Chapter 173:

Chapter 173:

Chapter 173 Who is on top

...The world turned colorless once again.​It was only a brief moment, but it was more intense than before.

A shock that shook the earth.

A deafening noise that pierced my ears. The situation changed in an instant with the appearance of the Vampire Hound.​“What, what is this!”

“Vampire Hound? Get away from them!”

Reheln was once again approaching the fate of destruction.

The monsters that looked like hunting dogs increased their numbers and started to rampage.

The participants of the gathering were unable to hide their panic.​All the holy knights except Scarlet had left Reheln.

The only ones left were human magicians, human knights, beastmen, and elves.​It was not a good situation for the participants, as they had to face the Vampire Hound without their strongest force.

“Sir Flan!”​Amidst the chaos, Yushia called out to me.

“The barrier, look at the barrier!”​I slowly turned my gaze.

As the situation became more urgent, I needed to analyze the situation more carefully.​“Hm.”​The barrier that served as the boundary line was dyed red.​Of course, it was not just the color that changed. It was a barrier that was designed by sophisticated black magic, reinforced by life force, and completely blocked the entrance and exit of both inside and outside.​This must have been the work of the Vampire Hound.​“Divide! Fight right now...!”

“We need to regroup first!”​The other participants were in a state of confusion.

It was understandable.

They came here expecting a beautiful dawn butterfly, but what they saw was a monster that devoured flesh.​“Hey, then run away! Regroup!”​Everyone started to retreat from the scene, but it was not a good method.

The barrier blocked the entrance and exit, so it was not a retreat.​It was just a scattering act.

I gave instructions to my companions.

“Gather around me.”​My judgment proved to be right, as the result soon showed.

The bodies of the knights who hastily left their positions swelled up like balloons and then popped. ​After the human bodies exploded like soap bubbles, the Vampire Hound appeared and devoured them.

Trixie’s face also showed bewilderment.

“They come out from inside the body. How did this happen?”​“I’ve heard of it before.”​Yushia muttered with cold sweat.​“...Vampire Hounds, or otherwise known as fear absorbers. They are creatures that grow stronger by devouring the fear of others.”

“Then the reason why the participants’ bodies exploded was...”“They felt fear. They were devoured.”​Trixie’s eyes widened with disbelief.

“Are you kidding? They were devoured just by feeling fear?”​“That’s why I only heard of it. There are hardly any survivors after facing the Vampire Hounds.”​Vampire Hounds.​My impression of them was short.​“How ugly.”​Three eyes stuck together, a mouth that could swallow a human whole, their appearance was repulsive and unpleasant. I had no room to feel fear.​“And they are not that impressive either.”​In fact, there were many capable people here, even excluding the holy knights.​But the problem was the unexpected ambush, the lack of communication among the participants, and the ignorance of many about the existence of the Vampire Hounds.

All these factors were problematic.​Everyone tried to respond in their own way, but it did not yield any results.

In no time, most of the visible participants exploded and became the Vampire Hounds’ excellent nourishment.​Kyaahaaak─!​Then, a Vampire Hound as big as a rock flew at me.​But the Vampire Hound stopped in mid-air as if it was stuck, and then a silver line was drawn vertically on its head.​With a splat sound, the Vampire Hound that charged at me was split in half and fell to the ground.

It was Scarlet who swiftly swung her sword.​“Flan, are you okay?”​Scarlet looked at me and nodded slightly.

“You didn’t seem to react.”

“Well.”​Strictly speaking, I saw Scarlet’s wrist move, so I stayed still. But I did not bother to explain those details.​But what really bothered me was something else, namely that Scarlet called me by my name.

“Don’t do something you don’t usually do. Scarlet.”

“Something you don’t usually do, becomes something you do if you repeat it.”​That was when I had a brief conversation with Scarlet.

“Watch out!”

I heard Trixie’s urgent scream.

Kyaaak─!

At the same time, two Vampire Hounds charged at me.

Scarlet swiftly cut them off, but their severed bodies only grew into new entities and rushed at me again.

“Sir Flan! Are you alright?”

“They’re all coming for you!”

The two girls’ shouts were not lies. In the middle of this bleak battlefield, the Vampire Hounds that multiplied in number only aimed at me like arrows.

But that was why.

“It’s a good thing.”

Sincerely, I could answer that.

The Vampire Hounds slammed into the ground.

“Ah─!”

Yushia screamed with her eyes wide open.

The Vampire Hound growled as if it knew. It flew at me, trying to instill fear in me.

At the same time.

Whoosh─!

The mana that was sharpened like a blade swept fiercely and tore the area.

The slash that seemed to decompose the space itself was too dull for the Vampire Hound to react.

It just stared blankly at the situation with its dull eyes.

In an instant, the surroundings were devastated.

The rocks and the ground were left with scars as if they were cut by a sword.

The Vampire Hound was nothing but minced meat.

“Wow...”

Someone exclaimed.

They all looked at me.

Their faces were complicated, but their fear was definitely reduced.

I cleared away the corpse of the Vampire Hound and said.

“Get to work. Don’t just stand there.”

Only then did the others start to move hesitantly.

But.

A strange thing happened the next moment.

“What, what is that!”

Someone’s frantic scream hit my ears.

The flesh of the Vampire Hound that had been torn apart began to stick together.

It was as strange as seeing something that had died come back to life, and it was happening right before my eyes.

People started to panic again.

Even I hesitated for a moment.

There shouldn’t be anyone who could produce fear in this place.

“Hmm...”

But there was only one conclusion.

There was someone who could produce fear.

Someone who was spewing out such tremendous fear that they could revive the fear-eater as if to show off.

It wasn’t hard to guess who it was.

My gaze turned to the barrier that had appeared like a prison in the distance, barely visible.

“...Aurora.”

The soldiers of the palace and Aurora were trapped in that narrow barrier.

There was no need to see for myself that fear was emanating from inside.

I briefly thought of the reason why I had to save her.

Also, I didn’t have any heroic thoughts of stopping the Vampire Hound and protecting everyone.

I just thought that it would look better if Aurora stayed in the tower.

Also, I could only show her my victory if she survived.

“Scarlet. Can you hold the Vampire Hound?”

Scarlet nodded.

I quietly headed towards the small barrier that held Aurora.

Peace... Safety...

I didn’t care about those things. But.

I had to show her, too, who was on top.