Chapter 71.1: Revenge

Chapter 71.1: Revenge

Strange inorganic sounds could be heard as several undead monsters named 〝Skeletons?marched through the city.

They indiscriminately slashed at anyone near them with their bone swords.

KATAKATAKATAKATA!!!

The center of Gladdstone resembled a painting of Hell. Screams echoed around the neighborhood as the blood flowed down the streets silently.

The skeletons brandished their swords while clanking their teeth in a mockery of a laugh.

One of them stood in front of a girl.

The child was frozen with fear, unable to say a word.

The skeleton swung down its sword to take her life, but it was stopped by a flash of light and a shout.

「HOLD RIGHT THERE! 」

The skeleton didn’t resist the magic and crumbled away.

The person who just swept in and saved the girl was none other than Aria. That flash of light was her skill, 《Sacred Blade》.

She turned toward the girl with a smile.

「You’re safe now. Please, get away from this place! 」

「T-Thank you very much! 」

The girl mustered up enough strength to stand up again. Then she unsteadily ran toward where there were fewer skeletons.

「Still… How can there be so many skeletons invading the city?! We have to save the citizens! Tama, please support me from behind. We’re going to prioritize the skeletons that are attacking citizens. Stella-chan… It’s time to rampage.」

「NYAN~! (Leave it to me, master!) 」

「WAHAHAHA! IT’S SHOWTIME! 」

Aria knew they’d probably face a seemingly endless number of skeletons. She wanted both her teammates to work together and steadily bring down the number of skeletons.

However, those skeletons were busy attacking the common folk.

Rescuing the citizens and reducing the number of skeletons became their number one priority.

Fortunately, Aria learned a Holy attribute skill, 《Sacred Blade》 just a while ago.

Skeletons were known for their weaknesses, namely Fire and Holy attribute, and blunt weapons.

These skeletons were just the right prey for Aria.

「《Sacred Blade》!」

Aria closed in on the rampaging skeletons and shot them down with her Holy attribute skill. The silvery light of Aria’s Sacred Blade decapitated the skeleton’s head.

Another skeleton approached from behind and swung its sword at her. Aria had already noticed the one behind her but instead, she focused on the skeleton in front of her.

After all, she had her reliable pet knight guarding her back.

「NYAAA!!! (LEAVE THIS ONE TO ME, MASTER!!!)」

As she expected, Tama immediately moved to protect her back. His lovely tail was enveloped in a crimson light as he let out an incredibly adorable cry.

Then, with a loud sound, a pillar of flame appeared from Tama’s tail.

BYUUUN!

Upon a closer look, the flame pillar looked very much like a sword. It stretched out toward the skeleton that tried to backstab Aria and smashed its skull.

At the same time, Aria finished with the skeleton in front of her.

「T-Tama, you… You have close-ranged skills too!? 」

「Nya~n! 」

Even Aria was surprised by Tama’s new skill. As for the man (cat) himself, well… His only response was his usual adorable purr.

The skill Tama used was one of his 《Elemental Tail Blade》 inherent skill, 《Flame Edge》.

Tama had judged that 《Summon Tentacle》 alone would not be enough to protect Aria in that situation. Thus, he decided it was time to show his close-ranged skill, which he had been hiding until then, to decrease the number of enemies.

The 《Flame Howling》 of his《Elemental Howl》 skill was the best choice to quickly shave down the number of enemies with its wider attack range.

Unfortunately, it was a dangerous skill to use in the middle of a town because it could accidentally burn down a building and the citizens.

「That’s the Flame Sword that sent me to oblivion! Not even the former me could withstand that firepower! 」

Stella seemed to be having some sort of internal conflict, perhaps due to witnessing the skill that killed her in her previous life.

However, it did not stop her from swinging her greatsword and Mega Shield toward numerous skeletons around her, sending her opponents to oblivion.

Just like Aria stated before, skeletons were very weak against blunt weapons. Stella swung around her shield and her humongous greatsword, which specialized in “Smashing” rather than “Cutting.”

「Look, those adventurers are fighting back! Everyone, ASSIST THEM! 」

「「「ROGER! 」」」

The command resounded on the battlefield after Aria’s party had reduced around 10% of the enemies.

Soldiers had arrived to assist them. Among what looked like the knight order of Gladdstone stood Dany, Howard, Marietta, and Kenny.

Aria welcomed them with a big smile on her face.

「Dany-san! 」

Once Dang gave the signal, the knights immediately attacked the skeletons. The enemies were being dispatched at an incredibly fast pace, as expected of a proper knight order.

From the opposite direction of where the knights came from, she heard another shout.

「It’s not just the knights, we’re here too! 」

「Although this isn’t a commission, we’ll be out of jobs if we lose the city. EVERYONE, CHAAARGE!!」

The new arrivals were the adventurers, led by Joey. They charged toward the skeletons and joined the fray.

The adventurers were very skilled. Compared to the knight order, their skills were weaker. However, they compensated that with teamwork and cooperation.

Their assistance renewed Aria’s hope.

(Now we might be able to somehow protect the city!）

Using the time they were buying her to rest, she took a potion from her thigh belt and drank it.

Her new skill 《Sacred Blade》consumed so much mana. She was empty just from using the skill a few times.

While she drank the potion, she heard a voice coming not too far from where she sat.

「What a drag. Those skeletons should’ve massacred the people in the center of the city following my plan and headed for the mansion of the Earl…」

When she turned to look, she discovered that the person stood in front of Reis’s firm, looking at the situation with bloodshot eyes.

It was Reis himself.

「Reis…-San? Just now… No, why are they with you??」