Chapter 283: Rinella’s Destiny is Her Own (76)

My whole body trembled like a corpse on the verge of death.

Even so, I still clung to the Corpse Giant’s forehead. If anything, I tightened my grip on its head.

I couldn't let go now.

Some way or the other, I had to see it through to the end.

Thus, the relentless, stubborn hatchet strikes continued.

Thwack, Thwack, Thwack.

With each swing of the hatchet, blood splattered and soaked my skin.

Before long, silver cracks began to appear on the Corpse Giant's head.

They were just small fissures at first but, as time went on, they increased in number and depth.

The current Corpse Giant was not the same one that seemed impossible to defeat.

The monster desperately lifted its head, trying to smash it back into the ground.

It was a good move.

Even for me, allowing one more blow would be the end of me.

Had it not been for someone charging in just in time, it would surely have succeeded.

Blue hair streaked by, leaving a trail of blue aura.

The knight plunged straight into the Corpse Giant's embrace. Immediately after, her sword glided through the seemingly suspended time.

A vertical blue trajectory, like the Milky Way, was etched.

The aftermath was astonishing.

The ground shattered, and the sonic boom from her strike tore through the atmosphere.

It was a strike that seemed to recreate a natural disaster with a sword.

To my knowledge, there was only one person capable of using that technique.

"...Teacher!"

Irene Lupermion.

The one who had volunteered to be Ria's escort knight finally joined the battlefield.

Although I still wasn't used to her calling me 'Teacher'.

However, her timing was indeed perfect, causing the Corpse Giant to fall once again.

As Dame Irene's surprise attack had shattered its waist.

The Corpse Giant’s body staggered uncontrollably.

Unable to regain its balance, it couldn't slam its head into the ground.

Taking advantage of that moment, I swung my hatchet down with all my might.

And finally, there was a resounding crack.

The Corpse Giant’s head was completely enveloped in a silver glow.

KIIIIEEEEEEEEEAK

It was the most dramatic reaction it had shown so far.

The Corpse Giant's head convulsed wildly and even the screams it let out were expelled as light.

It didn't take long for its head to explode with a loud bang.

The force of the explosion sent me flying alongside countless other heads.

I tumbled on the ground for a while, panting, then embedded my hatchet into the ground and struggled to my feet.

The headless body of the corpse giant didn't move at all.

It simply collapsed forward with a loud thud.

Certain of victory, Dame Irene excitedly ran towards me.

“T-Teacher! Did you see that?! The technique you taught me, I executed it even more perfectly than I've ever practised it before..."

Of course, this was merely her hasty conclusion.

If this were to end like this, there was no way my future self would have been so wary.

Amidst the scattered corpses, a smaller Corpse Giant emerged.

It was as if it had shed several layers of clothing all at once.

I immediately cursed under my breath.

“Damn it... Dame Irene, get away!”

Hearing my warning, Dame Irene's gaze blankly turned behind her.

But it was already too late.

The Corpse Giant was already throwing a punch.

As much as it had shrunk, its speed had also increased.

With a Bang, Dame Irene who was struck squarely by the Corpse Giant's fist, let out a strangled scream.

“KK-KYYAAAAAAAACKK!”

The force of the blow sent Dame Irene tumbling across the ground several times.

I immediately switched from my hatchet to my sword.

The Corpse Giant, which once stood tens of meters tall, was now only a few meters high.

Its size was still imposing but, compared to before, it was much more manageable.

The concentrated destruction and violence in that short span of time was enough to leave even the immortal creature in tatters.

I put my sword away and drew my hatchet.

It was more fitting for the final blow.

The Corpse Giant's fall was accompanied by a loud explosion.

Boom, a fierce shockwave swept through the surroundings.

Its body was already in shambles.

But its arms were still sturdy, as if it had another trick up its sleeve. They were fully covered in gauntlets that had once gripped my ankle tightly.

But it was futile.

I tightened my grip on the hatchet, recalling the echoes from those unfamiliar memories.

Blowing up yourself is the Liberation.

Silver cracks started to spread across the Corpse Giant's entire body.

And, as expected, it exploded with a bang.

Inside was yet another smaller Corpse Giant.

The speed at which its gurgling and bubbling flesh regenerated was terrifying.

So I moved even more aggressively.

If it couldn't move anymore, it couldn't get any faster.

The intervals between the silver trails of my strikes grew shorter.

The silver aura blazed more brilliantly.

Time seemed to split as my strikes continued, accelerating and accelerating.

Boom, Boom, Boom!

When I destroyed the small Corpse Giant, an even smaller one emerged.

And when I shattered that one, an even tinier one emerged.

The once towering Corpse Giant, standing meters tall, soon shrank to the size of a child.

It was no longer a hideous mass of corpses lumped together.

Revealed at last, the core of the Corpse Giant was in the form of a small child.

Judging by its shabby appearance, the child seemed like that of an orphan.

Its dishevelled state made its gender difficult to determine.

The child, who hadn't even been breathing, suddenly opened its eyes.

It anxiously looked around before gazing up at me with a frightened expression.

"W-What about the Headmaster? A-Am I going to be punished for fainting again...?”

It was twisted.

Once again, making the corpse of an orphan put on an act. Just as I was cursing inwardly like that, something caught my eye.

The child had a name tag on its chest.

I blankly stared at the letters on the name tag.

'Mitram.'

The child clung to my knees, pleading.

“I-It's my fault... It's my fault for being a useless freeloader who slept for 3 hours yesterday and still couldn't even do the work properly. So please, please, at least not the punishment room..."

I took a shallow breath, in and out, for a moment.

Then, I slowly spoke.

"...Kid."

Clear and innocent eyes looked up at me.

Even that cruel Dark Priest must have once had a face like this.

So, with heartfelt emotion, I uttered the only words I could.

"It's my fault."

No, perhaps it’s ours.

At the moment when the child's eyes widened in response to my incomprehensible words,

Pukkk, suddenly, the sword in my hand pierced the child's heart.

The child, momentarily in disbelief, fumbled at his chest.

Seeing the blood-stained hand, the child smiled.

"...Finally."

With a look of relief, the child's body collapsed.

"Finally now, I can rest..."

The blizzard stopped, and the sun rose.

Sunlight poured down like a curtain.

For a long while, I just stood there facing the sun.

The story was approaching its final act.