Hard Carried by My Sword-Chapter 73

At the very front of the charge were Hansen and Leonik. Unlike adventurers, mercenaries had far more experience fighting other people and they knew exactly how to handle a mage.

The best way was simple: take the mage’s head off before he could speak a single word of a spell. Unfortunately, that wasn’t an option in this battle.

Hansen slammed his shield into the ground and dropped to one knee. He had fully prepared by bringing a tower shield this time—one big enough to cover his whole body.

“Leonik!”

“I know!”

Leonik braced himself at Hansen’s side. Two B-ranks pouring all their strength into one shield created a wall that compared to that of a castle. This was how the Steel Claw fought mages.

That hardened defense had once held off even a sixth-tier spell. Aura of two colors flickered across the shield’s surface, overlapping to form a barrier like a castle wall.

“Stay down where you belong, you dirty pests,” Andrei muttered as he glared at their resistance and thrust out his hand.

Black Lightning, the fifth-tier black magic, was already a devastating spell on its own. On top of that, being inside the manor, drawing on the leyline magic woven through the domain, its power multiplied several times over.

The lightning struck before the thunder could catch up. With a roar, the tower shield buckled as both mercenaries were hurled backward. Four deep trenches gouged the floor where they’d dug in and molten rivulets of metal dripped from the shield’s ruined frame, burned through by the lightning that punched right through their Aura.

Hansen and Leonik were a sight themselves.

The dark electrical current had splashed over the shield’s edge, searing their skin black and sending steam curling from their burned armor. If they’d had just a little less Aura, they’d have died then and there.

“Ha... mel...!”

Even so, they’d stopped it. And the comrade they’d protected—Hamel—took that chance. He loosed his bowstring, sending a single arrow of red light ripping through the air.

Hamel had only two mithril arrows that manifested his Fire-type Aura. One split the air, leaving a trail of fire, punching through even the lightning Andrei reflexively cast to block it, and drove straight for the Count’s brow.

However, mages were a kind that took endless precautions to shield themselves. Just before the fire arrow struck, a ring on Andrei’s finger shattered and the arrow’s force dispersed.

It was a one-use, top-tier artifact that nullified lethal damage. With one of them wasted, Andrei’s face twisted in rage. Behind him, multiple magic circles snapped into view, glowing with a sick, ominous light.

“You worthless pest dare to break my ring?! I will not spare even one of you. Not even in death will your souls rest—all of you will be my slaves!”

His roar split the air as a wave of black magic burst forth. Not a single spell was lower than fifth-tier black magic.

Darkness spread, carrying disease and curses, and dozens of shrieking spirits clawed their way out, banshees howling like a chorus of nightmares. Andrei had summoned the spectral undead, nearly impervious to any physical force.

And at the same time, a rain of daggers poured from the ceiling with a barrage of thwips. Even Leon’s sharp sight barely counted them all—thirty-six.

Karen, now perched unseen above them, had unleashed them all at once. Her daggers punched through the skulls of the wraiths, burrowing into spines, ripping out through their waists. If they’d been human, they’d be dead before they hit the floor.

“Tsk. Of course, it’s not working,” Karen muttered in annoyance.

The wraiths only twisted in discomfort, not enough to banish them. Even Aura Weapon struggled to truly destroy spirits, and Karen’s Shadow Aura, so close to black magic itself, was weakened even more here. If Leon’s Sun or Caesare’s Moon Aura had been used, it might have ended them outright.

After her ambush failed to finish them, Karen immediately slipped back into the darkness. The next instant, a blast tore through where she’d been, but she was already gone without a trace.

“That rat!”

Andrei’s teeth ground together at the taunt. Karen’s knives hadn’t destroyed the wraiths, but they pinned them in place with shadows. Shadows lay outside the realm of normal matter, making them perfect for trapping spiritual bodies just like physical ones.

The others didn’t waste the chance she’d bought them.

“Light, shine your path for the lost!”

Demian’s holy incantation swept away the curses suffocating the room. Light flowed into Leon’s sword and the mercenaries’ blades, bursting white in a temporary blessing, sanctifying their weapons.

Leon saw the plan and was the first to move. He hadn’t even used Aura, yet one wraith cleaved in two by his swing vanished into nothing. Such was the true power of holy light: imposing natural order on that which broke it. And that was why sacred spells were the bane of black magic.

“You think I’ll let the kid have all the fun? Come on, you idiots!” Gustav shouted.

“Big words for the guy who ate the first lightning bolt!” Hamel teased.

“All that muscle, but it’s all for show, huh?!” Leonik joined in.

Gustav hauled himself up, and the other mercenaries, bolstered by the holy light, rallied at his side. The wraiths, pinned in place by Karen’s shadows, could only flail as weapons of light tore them apart.

Andrei wasn’t about to watch helplessly, but Karen and Hamel’s suppressing attacks never stopped. Daggers and arrows hammered at his barrier, forcing him to defend.

“Pests! Cursed vermin!”

Furious, Andrei’s eyes rolled back as he pulled something from his coat. It was a small bell, but far from an ordinary one. It had to be an artifact.

Before anyone could stop him, he rang it, and a clear, soft chime spread through the entire manor, barrier or not. The intent behind that sound was unmistakable.

The door slammed open with a loud crash as knights burst into the room. The chime Andrei had rung had summoned them here---though their reaction was unexpected.

“My lord! You called for us!”

“Wait, what on earth is happening here...?!”

The knights who’d rushed in as if waiting for the order now stared, eyes blinking in confusion, at the lingering wraiths and at Andrei, floating in midair as if they had no idea he was a black mage.

“Welcome, my loyal knights.”

Andrei’s lips twisted into a sinister curl. Sensing the malice behind that smile, Demian quickly pressed his palms together, but it was too late.

The knights’ armor, the oaths they had sworn when they were knighted, the swords they held... All at once, they pulsed with a wicked power that seized their bodies.

“Gaaaahhh!”

“Aaaargh!”

Their skin split and warped like gnarled bark, their eyes went blood-black, and every muscle in their bodies swelled grotesquely. They were going through one of the most infamous forbidden spells of black magic, a curse that detonated every ounce of a living being’s potential, turning them into mindless monsters of brute strength.

Without will of their own, they obeyed their master’s commands without question. The only downside of what seemed like a perfect spell was how difficult it was to brand the spell into living flesh and how long it took to prepare.

“Frenzy...!? You vile heretic, you used a forbidden art!” Demian shouted, his voice shaking with fury.

Andrei only laughed, a high, cold cackle like a dog barking in the dark.

“Who decided it was forbidden? Who gets to chain my hands and feet for the Church’s sake?”

“Those bans were agreed to by every nation on the continent!”

“But we never agreed to your wretched chains!” Andrei’s voice rose suddenly as he glared at Demian. “You people were always just afraid of us—afraid of black magic’s power! Its potential! You were terrified that we’d stand above your worthless rabble! You dare call it justice to chop off our heads and mount them on pikes in your dear Goddess’s name?!”

“There’s no reasoning with you,” Demain muttered.

“That’s my line, lapdog of the Church.”

That ended the exchange. Now, the only thing that remained between them was raw, primal killing intent.

“Kill them, my knights! Crush these worms to paste!”

At Andrei’s roar, the frenzied knights charged all at once. There were only five of them, maybe because it was the middle of the night, but their power now was nothing like before.

Gustav’s eyes widened as his zweihander met one of their blades.

“What the hell are these monsters...!”

With Gustav’s natural brute strength, massive frames, swords longer than two meters, normally, no one could meet his true swing head-on and live to tell about it. However, this knight did.

He slid back a few steps, two fingers bent backward from the impact—but his stance held firm. Gustav, who’d hoped to drop at least one enemy right away, found his body locking up in disbelief.

“Careful!” Demian shouted, his voice cutting through the chaos. “Anyone under Frenzy feels no pain and will push past every limit they have! Their life force is burning out of control, so unless you land a fatal blow, you can’t kill them! And their Aura will surge too!”

“What the hell does that even mean?!” Gustav asked back, stunned by the absurdity of it all.

Unfortunately, there was no time for an answer. The brawl erupted around them.

Leon noticed the tide of the battle turning against them, and fast. Gustav might hold his own against one, but the other mercenaries were down to half strength at best, after tanking Andrei’s earlier magic. Even with Demian backing them up, they’d hold off two at most—and only on the defensive.

I have to handle at least two myself, Leon thought to himself.

Karen had her hands full just keeping Andrei pinned down. She couldn’t spare any more help.

Then El-Cid’s voice came.

—Watch how they move.

Leon stepped in, blocking two of the knights at once, his focus locked on El-Cid’s advice.

—They still have the swordplay they learned over decades, but their minds are gone. It might actually be easier to fight two at once.

“Ah.”

Leon saw it immediately. Pincering an enemy perfectly required a mind—a sharp one that could judge distance to the half step and match timing to the heartbeat. Mindless berserkers were not capable of that.

One-on-one, their power and old skill made them dangerous. Two at once, though, they’d get in each other’s way.

Perfect.

In a single breath, Leon forced his mind into icy calm. The world slowed to a crawl as he parried an incoming blade. His eyes turned glass-clear, every thought tied to his blade.

Even strengthened by Frenzy, their swordsmanship was crude. It was natural since they were just muscle memory wielded by beasts. Against Leon, who could counter A-rank attacks with his vision and footwork, they were nothing.

He shattered their sloppy combination rhythm in an instant. Leon swept down the thrust aimed for his throat and guided the blade into the path of one coming into his side. The two swords collided, and in that instant’s clash, Leon’s own blade slipped through the gap like a scalpel in a furious slash.

The Holy Sword slammed into one knight’s collarbone and ripped all the way through to his ribs. Blood splashed over Leon’s chest—but he didn’t blink. His eyes snapped to the second knight, unflinching.

A berserker would never care about a comrade’s safety, and Leon’s hunch proved right. With an incomprehensible guttural shriek, a slash of steel glinted in the dark.

It was fast.

Movements that ignored torn muscles and splintered bones flickered at the very edge of Leon’s sight. For sheer speed, they even rivaled Karen’s. It was a perfect example of how dangerous Frenzy was.

However, Leon didn’t flinch at that speed.

I’ll cut him down.

Unlike Karen’s blade, this was brute force without deception. If the attack was only fast, it was over the moment its path was read.

A berserker had no mind to retreat or feign. Leon and the knight locked eyes and charged at each other, when a streak of Black Lightning struck Leon and hurled him backward.

“Guh?!”

He barely blocked it. Demian’s blessing that was wrapped around his sword resisted the black magic, saving him, but flickered and vanished as a consequence.

Leon blinked, clearing the spots in his vision, then turned his eyes to the berserker that had been caught in the blast with him. All that remained was a suit of armor turned black and brittle like charcoal.

“You’re using your own knights like disposable tools...”

Leon glared toward the place where the Black Lightning had come from. To not only turn men into monsters but to blast them apart with the enemy? No master should treat their knight like that.

Andrei looked utterly unfazed as he replied, “They gave their lives to me. What’s wrong with using them as I please? They should be grateful they were useful to the end.”

It was impossible to tell if it was provocation or genuine conviction.

Before the anger could take hold, Leon’s eyes flicked around the room. The mercenaries were still fighting desperately against the other berserkers, Demian was chanting under his ragged breath, and lastly, Karen was clinging to Andrei’s back.

“Karen!”

She hadn’t been able to hold him down after all. She looked terrible. Her clothes were charred like she’d been struck by lightning, and blood dripped steadily from her abdomen. A wound that deep could take her life if help didn’t come fast.

Leon started forward, but Andrei raised a hand and said, “Hold it. I have an offer for you. Accept it, and I won’t lay another finger on the girl.”

“An offer...?”

“Mhm,” Andrei gave a single slow nod and smiled thinly. “You’re talented for your age. Much more refined than these insignificant mercenaries. That swordsmanship—you must be a son of some noble house in disguise, yes?”

“...”

“So I’ll give you a chance. Join me. Cut down these ignorant pests and the Church’s dog for me. Do that, and your woman lives—and so do you. Refuse... and both of you die here. Well? What do you say?”

It was an offer Leon could never accept, but he narrowed his eyes and bit down on his lip, pretending to hesitate. He had to keep Karen alive. That meant tricking the Count—but would a high black mage believe him without binding him with oaths or some magic contract? The risk was too great.

If I strike with Merak and sever him now—

No, that was impossible. He wasn’t skilled enough yet, and the wind-up was too obvious. And the moment he gathered Aura, Andrei would sense his killing intent.

He had to buy time somehow. He couldn’t abandon Karen, nor could he accept Andrei’s terms. He was trapped between a sword in front of him and a wall behind him.

—Leon. You know something?

What?

—There’s this thing called “sideways.”

Leon’s brow furrowed, puzzled—then his eyes went wide as he grasped El-Cid’s point.

Andrei opened his mouth to speak again, but that was when a deafening roar sounded. Suddenly the night sky was visible.

The upper floors and roof of the building had been blown clean off. Even the ceiling above Leon’s head had vanished in a single blast. Even Andrei stared, stunned by the sudden chaos.

Yes, the manor’s barriers had weakened during the battle—but no one could have expected destruction on this scale. Not even a siege catapult could hit this hard.

“Angela!” Demian shouted as soon as he spotted a silhouette at the ragged edge of the ruined roof and broke into a grin.

It was the very Holy Iron Inquisitor who had attacked the holding facility alongside the two vampires. A woman of silence and iron fists. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Angela didn’t hesitate for an instant. She dropped down straight through the hole.

Her knee struck the marble floor with enough force to crater it and she pulled her leg free without a flinch, raising both her armored fists.

She couldn’t speak. So, she let her hands do the talking.

Angela lifted her left hand toward Andrei, thumb pointed high. Then, she flipped it over and slammed it down toward the floor.