CH 167

“Kukku …… they drank it, didn’t they?”

“Well, when they’re cornered, you can’t blame them. Now, Lars-kun seems to be slacking off a lot lately, but can her beat them?”

“Well, there’s the war demon and the headmaster, so it’s impossible to win, but they can slow them down. If his classmates are being targeted, he’ll have no choice but to get serious.”

“What about the dragon’s intervention?”

“Sarge won’t be able to participate with his size. If he gets smaller and spits fireballs at them, they’ll be in trouble, though.”

“Well, unless there’s an accident, those adventurers won’t win, will they?”

“Please don’t barge in on them okay, ‘Sensei’ ……”

(T/N: I wrote “Sensei” here so that he/she will be called different from the teachers in the academy.)

“Oh, it’s starting, the results of the experiment is –“

◆ 　 ◇ 　 ◆

“Ahhhh!? Uaaaahhhhhhh!?”

“Ugaaaahhhhhhh!?”

“O-Oe …… Obororororo ……”

“Gyaaaaaahhhhhhhh!?”

“W-What’s happening?”

The four who had taken the suspicious potion let out screams that echoed through the forest. This unusual rampage slightly frightened even Tigre-sensei, who tried to restrain it. 

“I have a bad feeling about this. …… Basleigh-sensei, Ryuuze! Take Luciela and get away from here!”

“Lars!”

I handed Luciela to Ryuuze and then grabbed Gadar by the scruff of the neck and threw him far away to see what happened. Even if it’s an act, he can’t get away anyway, and I have no intention of letting him.  I glanced over at the teachers, who seemed to be watching as well.

When I looked at Makina, her eyes met mine, and she nodded with a mysterious look on her face and led Patty and Luciel closer to Sarge. As expected of someone who aspires to be a knight, she seems to have sensed the danger.

While the kidnappers are still stumbling around, Ryuuze and Basleigh-sensei also arrive at Makina’s place.

“Sis!”

“Nn …… Luci- …… el?”

I was relieved when Luciel hugged Luciela while crying. So, all that’s left is this ……

“Ugagagaga …… Uh ……? Oh ……?”

Gadar, who was lying in front of me, suddenly stopped screaming and his body stopped shaking. He immediately stood up and checked his wrist.

“It doesn’t hurt, it’s healing!? And I’m feeling stronger ……!”

“What?”

“How dare you do that to me, kid? I’m gonna thank you for that!”

“That’s my line. This is a pain in the ass, so I’m gonna get you knocked out.”

“You’re cheeky!”

The moment Gadar leans forward to step in, I brace myself with my sword halfway up. The next moment, however, my eyes widen in disbelief at what I see before me.

“!”

“Hmph!”

“He’s Fast! That’s a hell of a lot faster than before! But ……!”

I jumped near him to avoid the right arm that was about to hit me, and struck the stomach with the hilt of the sword as hard as I could. If I make him pass out when he’s defenseless —

“Where’s the bravado from earlier, kid!”

“Wha!? .”

“What? My knees won’t move anymore?”

Gadar returns the favor, aiming for my stomach, and kicks me with the knee. I quickly activates my auto-protection to block the attack, pushes Gadar away with one hand, and aims my sword at his right shoulder. 

“Be quiet!”

“Tsk. ……! Don’t be cocky, you little brat! I let my guard down earlier, but if my arm was healed, you’d be mine!”

“I hope so ……!”

“Kuh!?”

Gadar picked up his sword when he was pushed away and engaged me in a fierce battle. In the forest at night, the sound of steel clashing echoes and sparks fly.

…… It’s strange, I was fast enough to grab his wrist earlier, even though it was sudden, and now he’s following my sword. It’s not that I’m trying to be conceited or anything, it’s just that it’s my natural power, but it’s obvious that his movements have changed.

“What’s with this kid that he can keep up with me ……!? Uoh!?”

“I’m going to hit you all at once, !”

At the moment that Gadar showed an opening, I burned Gadar’s face with fire. He crouched down, holding his face, and I attack him with hydrostream to finish him off. 

He was blown away and slammed into a large tree, causing Gadar to slump to the ground against the tree and pass out.

“Whew, a seasoned adventurer can be a bit tough–“

“W-Wait!? What’s with this guy!?”

“Nooooo!?”

I turned around at the sound of Basleigh-sensei’s voice and Luciel’s scream. However, my vision blurred immediately afterwards.

“Gah ……!?”

“Fuuuuu! Kill you …… I’ll kill you ……!”

“Ouch, t-this guy ……!”

Gadar, who I thought had been knocked unconscious by the hydrostream, seems to have hit me on the back of the head and is glaring at me with a snort. It was astonishing that he had closed the distance in an instant, but more than that, his “eyes” had changed.

His eyes, which had been a bright red just a moment ago, were now glowing red and suspicious. 

“You, your eyes are ……”

“Shut up! Die! Diiiiiiieeee!”

“Damn it!”

“Gaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!!”

I raised my sword, which I hadn’t let go of even after being hit, and slashed with all my might, trying to cut off his arm. This time there was another change and he just lunged at me, so I hit him clean on the right wrist.

“…… What!?”

“Gaaaah!”

“Kuh ……!”

But he was too hard to be human, so it bounced off him and he grabbed me by the neck and lifted me up. Then Gadar started to tighten up, foaming at the mouth. His body began to swell and the color of his skin turned green.

“Lars-kun! [Kaiser Knuckle]!”

“Gaaaah!”

It was Makina who rushed here.

Gadar’s left arm was snapped and his body bent into a crook. As soon as I could, I brushed off the loose hand and was able to land on the ground.

“Cough cough!?”

“A-Are you okay!? The three on the other side are acting strangely too, are they not just kidnappers ……?”

Makina says to me with a pale face. It’s true that there was a bloated adventurer wielding a stiff arm in front of Tigre-sensei and the headmaster.

“I’ve seen these guys somewhere …… yes, I’ve seen them in a book! They look like trolls!”

“Trolls are a few steps above orcs, aren’t they!? They’re not human!?”

“No, that potion they just drank …… that’s suspicious. Their ears are getting pointier, so something is definitely going on.”

“What do we do?”

“We’ll take them down. If it’s a troll, it has regenerative powers and won’t die even if I give it my all. Makina, can you help me?”

“Of course …… Tigre-sensei and the headmaster are fine, but Ryuuze and Basleigh-sensei are the only ones taking care of it. Let’s defeat this one as soon as possible.”

I handed her the sword, and Makina held it in her opposite hand and took a stance. I don’t mind being magic-only. 

I’m worried about Luciela, and it doesn’t looks like a medicine they prepared. I don’t know if they’ll ever come to their senses, but I need to take them down and find out what they’re after!

Doubtful medicine …… Now then, speaking of medicine ……?

Thank you for reading!

[Afterword Theater]

“It’s that guy, huh?”

Why are you biting your thumb like that ……

“No, maybe I’ll get my turn to show up ……”

You’re not going to have a turn, okay!?