Antagonist Protection Service

Just because the Demon emanated such an aura of intimidation, it didn't mean everyone was afraid.

"Laaaars...!! You bastard...!"

Giving practically no break, someone new charged with a cry of war.

"...Simply terrible."

Alasil only muttered at the rushing giant, a large-statured woman covered entirely in thick-plated mail. Wielding both a great hammer and a shield, each weighing easily more than numerous people, she was more like a human tank than a warrior, or perhaps a rhinoceros.

And she wasn't alone.

"Olga! Be careful!"

Rushing up behind her, a blondie in similar, light-themed knight armour, albeit far less clunky. He too could have been noted to be quite extraordinarily handsome, and at the sound of his evidently concerned voice, the tank could only grin behind her helmet.

"Don't worry, Captain...! I'll smash this ugly bastard's head in no matter what!"

"Hm...? Now, isn't that ironic..."

Raising a single eyebrow at the steadily approaching woman, the Demon muttered.

"A human calling me ugly... Truly fascinating, how ignorant these things can be."

Just before the charging tank reached him, Alasil swiftly moved out of the way, easily evading the other who seemed to have a harder time turning with that much momentum.

"Agh, come here...!"

Halting herself just as she passed him, Olga then turned and brought her hammer down without hesitation, her movement surprisingly fast for how heavy all the equipment must have been.

Of course, maybe it was because of just that, but Alasil only had to step back to dodge, and as he did, he raised a hand.

Crackle~!

Black lightning sparking in his palm and between his fingers, he reached for the other's armour.

Thud-!

"Oh, no you don't! Cheeky li'l bugger!"

Smacking his stretching arm down with her shield and causing the lightning in his grasp to abruptly disperse, Olga continued her tempo swing by flourishing her hammer again, bringing it in from the outside and impacting the Demon's side.

SLAM-!

"Tsk...!"

Gritting his unnaturally sharp teeth, Aasil hurriedly used both arms to shield from the impact; his torso bent and visibly tilted to the side as he was sent skidding across the cracked ground.

Somehow he had managed to remain standing after the hit, but the damage he sustained was surely unignorable.

"Pesky, so pesky...!"

Needing a moment to recover, he backed off and jumped away to gain some distance, the tank already on her way towards him again, relentless.

However, wasn't there someone he had overlooked?

"Why hello!"

"...?!"

Shiing~!

Before the Demon had a chance to react, the handsome, blond knight from before was right there, brandishing a magic sword.

Thud-! ...Drip... drip...

In one swift motion, the leader of the Black Fang, Florian, had amputated the Demon's arm, causing it to plainly fall to the ground, dark blood dripping from its severed stump.

"That's for Lars, foul Demon!"

"Tch, damn humans...! Disappear!"

Gritting his teeth even harder, the Demon hastily swiped his remaining arm towards the continuing opponent, his hand sparking with black lightning.

CRACKLE~!

As a result, a wave of sinister electricity surged out, washing over the captain like a wave and shocking his body all throughout.

"Ghhh...! That's not... Hk-! Gonna be... enough...!"

Managing to hold on even still, he took a step forward, and then another, remnant sparks of the black magic arcing off each corner of his body.

"How terribly ugly...!! Just fall and perish like you were meant to, accursed worm!"

Bearing a deep scowl, Alasil waved his arm again and again, sending wave after wave of black electricity to jolt and zap him.

With each assault, Florian's movements were surely slowing, but somehow, he never seemed to fully stop.

"Hk-! You, gh... Won't... stop me..."

Of course, although he didn't stop, it didn't mean he would be able to catch up, his body battered with countless magical volts as it was.

"This hideousness..."

Gazing at the captain with patent scorn, the Demon's gaze flickered to the charging tank just arriving at his position and raising her hammer to the side once more.

If he could see it coming so plainly, it was nothing―effortlessly jumping out of the way before she could hit him, Alasil swiftly approached his severed arm on the ground and picked it up, putting the end of the limb to where it had been separated from his torso.

"So repulsive, the fact you think you can resist me..."

In merely a few seconds he took his hand away, and just like that, the arm was successfully reattached. As if it had never been severed in the first place, he opened and closed his hand a couple of times, confirming his regained strength.

"Too ugly, too hideous... Perhaps I should simply demonstrate to you the tr--"

Again, the Demon's words were interrupted, his head harshly jerking to the side for the second time.

"...Ah..."

His gaze naturally drifting towards the ground, what entered Alasil's vision was a familiar, abnormally-shaped arrow, its blunt tip bearing resemblance to a mace.

...Drip.

Just beside it, a single drop of blood fell.

"..."

Now that he realised it, his cheek stung.

Strange.

The impact from earlier had already healed, and this time had hit the very same cheek, causing just a little bit more damage than the first shot.

"...You."

Snapping his gaze towards a certain direction at the top ridge of the basin, Alasil muttered as if spitting out something disgusting.

"All little rats, aren't you... Each even uglier than the last..."

Raising his hand in front of him with a scowl, a small black dot appeared in space, promptly expanding to encompass his own tall height in an instant.

"Well, I can't be having you scurry around forever."

Without hesitation, he shoved his hand through the dark portal, grabbing something and yanking it out.

"Ah?! L-let go of me! Captain! Big sis! Help--"

"Shush."

Thud-!

Throwing the petite figure to the ground, their hood fell from their face, revealing long-ish, fern-hued green locks.

Knocking the woman's bow from her hands, Alasil stomped on her back, pinning her beneath his boot and absentmindedly closing the dark portal, an identical void vanishing in the distance where he had evidently grabbed her from.

"Noisy rats are the first to be exterminated. Should you value your ugly life, you won't bother that pathetic squeaking any further."

Patently terrified on the ground beneath him, the trapped Shena of the Black Fang bit her lips tight and meekly lowered her head, instinctively realising there was nothing she could do to escape on her own.

"You son of a bitch...! Shena...!!"

Eyes widening at the sight of her younger sister, the human tank of the party screamed.