Year 141_Keireki Era_Summer/02
"There's no way I'm letting you escape—it's my job, after all!"
The guards moved ahead, and Orfus said this before breaking into a run.
Gram, though carrying a girl, wasn't so far ahead that Orfus would take long to catch up.
"Run, Wild dogs."
Orfus chanted his signature assassination magic.
An invisible blade sliced through the air with a brief delay, grazing Gram's thigh.
It wasn't a deep wound, but the cut forced him to stumble slightly.
Though he didn't fall, his speed dropped.
He turned back to check the distance between them—but—
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Yo.
I'm the one who wasn't looking too good at escaping my pursuers.
"What the hell...?"
I muttered without thinking.
Several of the guards—should I call them pursuers?—chasing me had collapsed with wounds similar to mine.
"Don't run, dammit. You'll end up hitting my men."
A man grinned as he approached.
"B-Big bro O-Orfus! What the hell are you doing?!"
"Damn it! This hurts like hell!"
The guards' cries of pain and resentment rang out, but the man called Orfus didn't seem to care.
"Well, thanks to this, it looks like I can catch the kidnapper. So, cut me some slack."
He extended his hand toward me and whispered, "Run, Wild dogs."
"Gyah!"
A scream.
Another pursuer was ripped apart by 'something.'
It was definitely magic.
I clicked my tongue—not because I was hit, but because of his lack of concern for his own allies.
Yet, I had no idea what kind of magic this actually was.
Why the hell does he keep hitting his own people?
Even for a lousy shot, there's got to be a limit.
"Well, well. The distance is closing in."
He chanted the same spell again. This time, the death cries of a small animal rang out from beyond the trees.
Another missed shot. But unlike before, the small animal hadn't been visible to me—or to Orfus.
I gently set Retilet down behind me and stood up, signaling my intent to fight.
"Oh? You're gonna fight?"
"I'd say you should stop, but—"
"Even if I surrender, you don’t seem like the merciful type to spare my life."
"You’ve got a good eye for people, huh?"
He grinned.
"I'll at least try to kill you without making it too painful, hahaha!"
He laughed cheerfully despite the grim statement.
"OHHHFFF!"
I didn't waste the opening and threw a lousy rock at him.
"Whoa, watch it!"
Rather than using magic, he tried dodging by shifting his body, but agility didn't seem to be his strong suit—he failed.
Seeing him flinch while getting hit was comical, but it didn't improve my situation.
Not that the rock I threw was strong enough to do any damage.
Between me and Orfus, two more pursuers stood in the way.
It was still too far for a melee attack.
Orfus muttered, "What a pain," and resumed his chanting.
At the same time, I hurled an empty canteen at him.
"Huh?" He tried dodging but failed once again.
He was clumsy, that much was clear, but his magic more than made up for it.
Almost simultaneously, the pursuers, and my upper arm were slashed.
The cut wasn't deep enough to make something fall off, but I knew that was just luck.
The scene before me was nothing short of hell.
But—I was starting to understand.
His magic. And how to counter it.
The problem was, even if I knew, I had no means to defeat him...
"… Gram…"
"I'm fine. I'll figure something out."
"… Lend me a little blood."
"Blood?"
"With it, I can fight a little…"
Orfus took another step forward.
I had no other options.
"What do I need to do?"
"Let me touch the wound on your thigh."
I nodded.
She gently ran her finger over the wound.
It didn’t hurt. The blood that had been seeping out either vanished or solidified immediately.
"With just this, I can use magic once. The range is about the same as your throwing. If I hit him, I can take him down… Can you make use of it?"
"Oh, more than enough."
"What are you two whispering about? You're about to be within my range, you know."
Still smiling, Orfus kept walking.
"Just a little more and this hassle will be over," he added.
"The Imuze guild said she’d fight, so we magicians raised our voices too. But when we actually got here, a lot of them chickened out, afraid of what the council might do. Not so fun anymore. But hey, if I can claim the feat of taking down the 'Eternal Retilet,' I'll have more options."
So, he's the type to enjoy chatting.
Or maybe he's just refilling his magic supply. He took out a cigarette, lit it.
I'm buying time, he's replenishing his ink.
This might be a chance to draw out more information.
"Imuze? Not Biumode?"
"Biumode? They're honestly not reliable, given the situation. That's why we, the main faction, are coming from Imuze."
"So Biumode isn’t fighting alone?"
"We’re magicians. Magic is a tool for battle. All this talk of peaceful use is boring as hell. If Biumode sparks a war, we’re gonna hop on board! Hahaha!"
He laughed again. It was starting to get on my nerves.
But I held back.
"I heard the Imuze’s Magic Guild had a fight with other branches?"
"Yeah, it was a mess… but a good number of us survived, and we're heading for Biumode. Some as mercenaries, some as guards—different ways of getting there."
He smoked his cigarette down to the root, then flicked it away.
"… Well, I talked too much. Anyway, we’ve got our reasons. Hand over Retilet, and I’ll let you keep your life."
Trying to bribe me?
… Oh, I see.
He's scared.
I didn't hurt him much, but the fact that I hit him at all must have shaken him.
Seems like the cigarette wasn’t enough to steady his nerves.
"You really don't want to admit defeat, huh?"
Orfus’s voice betrayed a hint of irritation.
If he's losing his cool, then he won't be able to play any tricks.
If I can turn this around, now’s the moment.
What do you think about this chapter?
