SWNOVELXO Chapter 376
The basement of Eldriksir Mansion.
In a dark corner that seemed more fit to be called an underground floor rather than a basement, the voice of a woman soaked in pain broke the silence.
“Guh…!”
Azani, one of the Sisters entering the Eldriksir Mansion to subdue the mad mage Joyra, clutched her injured shoulder and swallowed a groan.
“Are you okay?”
“Don’t worry. It’s just a scratch… ugh! Nothing serious.”
The woman worried about her was Nisa, also a Sister who had entered the mansion to capture the crazy mage.
Both were Sisters of the Holy Kingdom, having entered the mansion upon the village chief’s request to bring Joyra back to her senses.
Days had passed since they broke into the mansion, but thankfully they hadn’t fallen victim to Joyra yet.
However, that was the only hopeful fact.
They hadn’t ‘fallen’ yet, but the situation was utterly desperate.
They had thought little of the mad mage, considering him just a bumbling wizard, living in a small village and only interested in healing magic rather than combat spells.
Yet, his level of danger far exceeded their expectations, even if they were too complacent.
His spellcasting was so highly skilled that it was hard to believe he was just a regular person without professional combat magic training, launching powerful spells non-stop and driving them into a corner. They had been defeated by Joyra on the very first day they entered the underground and had been merely buying time fleeing since then.
But that wasn’t the only problem.
What appeared above ground as the old, somewhat colossal Eldriksir Mansion was nothing compared to the vast underground that lay beneath.
It was an expanse more fitting to be labeled an underground level or space, rather than a simple basement. Honestly, the basement of the Eldriksir Mansion was so spacious it could envelop the entire village.
The existence of this maze-like underground left them first bewildered, and secondly shocked to find that the entrance they had come through had disappeared without a trace.
At least, after days of avoiding Joyra’s gaze while running, they uncovered that the underground itself was riddled with various mechanisms unknown to them, altering the layout every time they tried to escape.
As a result, they hadn’t been able to defeat the mad mage nor retreat, instead wandering aimlessly through the mansion’s underground for days.
And it wasn’t just aimless wandering; they were also evading Joyra, who was ever on their heels, searching for an exit that they feared might not even exist.
Consequently, Nisa, the holy knight, had her sword broken in half and was unable to retaliate properly, while Azani, the special saint, had her shoulder severely injured. To top it off, their food supplies had run dry.
They had no intention of dying at the hands of Joyra’s spells, yet they could sense the inevitable approach of death, tightening its grip on them as they lacked any clever strategy.
“There’s no need to give up just yet. It’s not like there are no options left.”
“Hmph. Who’s giving up? But if I had known it would come to this, I would have just kept chasing Aila, that girl…”
Even in such dire situations, Nisa tried to sound optimistic, attempting to comfort the wounded Azani. Despite Azani sweating coldly, trying to act strong, her weak inner feelings inevitably leaked out.
“…I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have accepted the village chief’s request, and now you’re hurt because of me…”
“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. It was my choice to accept the request too.”
“….”
“….”
Upon hearing Azani’s words, Nisa, who had been trying to keep a positive attitude, could no longer bear it and began to blame herself. In contrast, the girl who had just been comforted, Azani, encouraged her.
After they consoled each other, a brief silence hung between them.
Amid their quiet reserve, it was Azani who broke the silence first.
“…I bet Aila has managed to slip out of the encirclement by now, right?”
“That’s likely. Since we took on the village’s request, there was a gap in the encirclement. Someone as skilled as Aila must have found a way to escape. But are you okay? If Aila truly is a traitor, we wouldn’t be able to avoid responsibility for letting her escape.”
“Hmph. Even if their antics are annoying, Daria and Aila are not the type to betray the Holy Kingdom. Something must have happened; that’s what I believe.”
“…You’re probably right?”
In truth, they were part of the pursuit team sent to capture Aila, who was on the run from the Holy Kingdom.
No matter how talented Aila was, the Kingdom was aware of her abilities, and even if they gave it their all, it would be beyond their capabilities to completely shake off the Holy Kingdom’s pursuers.
However, Azaani’s team had developed sympathy for the villagers and, against protocol, had dropped their guard, opening up a gap in the encirclement, allowing Aila to escape safely to Astram.
The result was the dire situation they currently faced.
Whether the hasty dressing of her shoulder had come to a conclusion or not, Azani clutched at her bandaged wound and struggled to stand again.
“Phew. More importantly, we need to figure out how to escape this damned underground prison. Let’s think about getting out of this mansion, whether it’s facing discipline or requesting more reinforcements.”
“Right. What you say is….”
“Indeed. Worrying about others is a luxury reserved for those who can take care of themselves. For you to even think about others is nothing short of scandalous.”
“…!?”
“Where did that voice come from!?”
At that moment, a third voice interrupted their conversation.
And considering anyone else who could be here aside from Azani and Nisa in this underground space, only one person fit the bill—
Joyra Eldriksir.
A guy with a slender built and a friendly smile, wearing glasses, appeared before them.
Yet, beneath that appearance lay a mage possessing the most dangerous magical powers they had ever faced.
Upon spotting Joyra, Nisa quickly regained her composure and almost simultaneously lunged at him.
With a special gauntlet forged from enchanted metal from the Holy Kingdom, she aimed a strike at Joyra’s face.
Kaang!!
However.
Before her fist could reach Joyra, he had already finished casting his spell, and her punch was effortlessly blocked by a translucent barrier that had sprung into existence before him.
“You couldn’t even challenge me while wielding a sword; how could you expect to do so unarmed?”
As the barrier shimmered, Joyra began casting another spell, from which a light shaped like a white bullet burst forth from his hand, and Nisa was struck down mercilessly.
“Aaaaah!”
Bam!
“Nisa! You fiend!!”
With a sound that was impossible to believe was made by a human flying through the air, Nisa crashed into a corner, and Azani, witnessing this, charged at Joyra in rage.
She rushed in like someone who had lost their composure after Nisa fell.
It would seem reckless for Azani, a special saint, to attack Joyra, who had effortlessly repelled even the holy knight Nisa’s attack.
However, that reckless charge was her calculated ploy.
As she lunged at Joyra, her form suddenly swelled to nearly double its size, and sharp claws popped out from her hands, capable of rending steel as her roar morphed into a fierce beast’s growl.
Kaang!
With her blow, the previously unbroken barrier that had withstood Nisa’s assault began to crack.
“I’m a white lion beastkin!”
Grrr!
Now fully transformed into a white lion beastkin, Azani continued her relentless assault, aiming to break Joyra’s barrier.
However, Joyra remained unfazed, acting as if a massive white lion beastkin slashing at him were just a little kitty.
“Last time, I let you slip because I was caught off guard by that form, but I won’t fall for the same trick twice.”
“Whether it’s a joke or not…!”
Azani’s words were cut short.
“Cuh, ugh!?”
Because a shining ball of light had pierced her from behind, the one that struck Nisa.
Thud.
“Sure, the destructive power and speed are impressive, but you seem to lack experience in combat. To fall so easily for such a simple trick.”
“Y-You…!”
Although she appeared unharmed on the outside, it was clear that Joyra’s magic had affected her, leaving Azani collapsed on the floor, incapable of movement.
“This long, tiresome game of tag… it ends here.”
As Joyra beamed at the fallen Azani, he began casting a spell to snuff out their lives.
In a dire situation where their bodies refused to respond, Azani and Nisa desperately struggled to move, but their limbs seemed to have gone mute.
“It’s really… over.”
Joyra finished his spellcasting.
“With this, it will be truly…!”
Bam!
In that instant, an explosive sound echoed, and the maze’s wall shattered apart.
“W-What is happening!? Who are you!?”
Startled by the sudden third-party intervention, Joyra exclaimed.
Kurt, who had crashed through the maze wall, answered him.
“Just a passing Lizardman.”
“I’m a Half-Elf!”
“I’m a Human… ahem!”
“Wait!? Why is everyone introducing themselves all of a sudden!?”
Thus, Kurt’s crew made their grand entrance.