Chapter 204: The Price of『Queen Beryl』

The burning fist of the WrathPun had sent Fiona’s body flying along with fragments of the rock shield she’d raised. As Lily danced through the air, she saw that Kurono had caught her. She wanted to go complain about the sweet situation Fiona was enjoying right now, and this red monster getting in the way of that was unforgivable.

Her gem-like emerald eyes met the ominous red-black eyes of the WrathPun. Lily understood that she had once again become its target.

“Daaaa!!”

She continuously fired bullets of light with explosive power, and the sound of them detonating against the monster as they hit resounded, but the monster’s advance was undeterred. Advancing through the flood of light and sound, the WrathPun reached towards Lily with both arms.

Lily evaded as she flew through the air.

Her flying skill had been enough to put the Pegasus Knights to shame, but because she was staying just out of range of the WrathPun’s attacks in order to distract it, the advantage her ability to fly provided was relatively small.

Of course, compared to Kurono who could only run on the ground, being able to escape into the sky was much a better situation. But Lily only had a short time left where she would have that advantage.

(Crap, my time limit is already up…)

Lily has been drawing mana from the red crystal Queen Beryl to maintain her adult form. She was not yet out of her 『Life Drain』 scrolls written on dragonhide, but this monster would not give her the time to use one. So, using Queen Beryl was Lily’s only option, and now she could feel that the limit of how long she could use it for was approaching.

She had explained to Kurono that the limit was exactly 30 minutes, but she could sometimes last a little longer. It wasn’t that there was a hard limit of exactly 30 minutes at which point she’d be forced back to her child form. Rather, approximately 30 minutes was the limit of her body’s endurance in taking mana from the Queen Beryl.

To Lily, the activation of it felt a lot like running at one’s top speed. It wasn’t a problem for a short time, but fatigue quickly accumulated after a certain point.

“Ha…haaa…”

Flying through the air, evading the WrathPun’s attacks while firing lasers and bullets of light at it, Lily’s breathing was getting heavier.

(No, I still can’t turn back into a child yet…!)

She could feel that the burden on her body was getting heavier, but she continued using the Queen Beryl. Against this powerful monster, Lily being in her child form would be far too dangerous. She needed to end this situation where she could only endlessly dodge the monster’s attacks.

(Do you have anything, Kurono??)

Looking at them, she could see that rather than returning to the battle, they were hiding behind a rock wall that had appeared. If someone just saw that, they would think that her party was leaving her as a sacrifice to escape.

Abandoning members of a party in an emergency was a definite possibility with adventurers.

Normally, humans would prioritize their own life over that of their comrades in life-or-death situations. It was for that very reason that trusting in their party members until the very end was one of the things that set first-rate parties apart from the rest.

Lily had that kind of faith in Kurono.

She had lived her more than 30 years never trusting anyone, but now she had given Kurono all the trust that she had never given anyone else. She had even come to trust Fiona, who she had calculatedly brought into the party, a little bit.

(But if you’re doing to do something, do it fast! I can’t last much longer by myself!)

She had the responsibility of holding the enemy at bay with her magic, and the burden on her small body made her feel like she was running endlessly through a dark fog.

“Ha…haaa…”

And then, there was a small opening in her defense.

“Kuh…”

Lily was now too tired to deal with the WrathPun that could move almost as if it could teleport. When she noticed her mistake, it was already too late, and the WrathPun had grabbed her, 『Oracle Field』 and all, inside its two large hands.

“Ugh, let go of me!”

If a normal enemy touched Lily’s 『Oracle Field』 they would be burned by its light magic. But for the WrathPun which had incredible heat resistance, something like that couldn’t even singe its palms. It tried to crush Lily’s barrier between its hands with enormous force.

“Guh…”

Faced with that intense pressure, Lily’s 『Oracle Field』 started flashing violently.

「――『Radiant Force Edge』！」

For Lily who was focused on long-range attacks, 『Radiant Force Edge』 was the only method of counterattack she had. The two blades of light could cut through an opponent that was merely “tough” and burn them to a crisp.

But the WrathPun was the worst opponent for this.

The direct hit of 『Radiant Force Edge』 couldn’t cut the WrathPun’s hands or even fingers. Instead, particles of light spewed through its fingers like flowing water.

(It’s no good, I can’t escape!!)

Lily was trying to maintain her 『Oracle Field』 with all her strength, but the enemy was starting to break through it. She pushed back with an intense flow of light magic from inside, but the fingertips of the WrathPun’s right hand were starting to come closer to Lily’s body.

And then, those monstrous fingertips reached Lily.

“Aaaaaa…”

They had grabbed the rainbow-colored wings on Lily’s back that were the trademark of fairies.

And then, those fingertips tried to tear off Lily’s wings. Like a child trying to tear the wings off a butterfly, it cruelly pulled on her beautiful wings.

“Gyaaaaaa!!”

Lily’s beautiful face was twisted in agony from this attempt to tear off part of her body.

And yet, she still maintained her 『Oracle Field』. Even as she cried and ground her teeth, and didn’t know how many more seconds she could last, Lily wouldn’t give up until the end.

(Kurono will save me…)

She believed in him, so she wouldn’t give up.

(Kurono will definitely save me!)

Lily had faith, even in this hopeless situation. They’d lived together. Fought together. Her only partner, her beloved.

And so…

“Let go of Lily~!”

She was saved.

(See, I knew Kurono would come.)