253. VS Vanguard – Flame Emperor Glen (Part 2)

—It worked.

Seeing the man’s face as he stared at her in shock, Touka felt certain of it.

(I was certainly flustered when my heart was pierced, but…)

At that moment, she really thought she had died. Or rather, she had taken enough damage to die, given that her HP had hit zero in an instant. And yet, Touka was alive. Why?

The reason was the “Contract” formed between the Wolf King and Sayaka.

The skill “Monster Contract” of the “Monster Tamer” occupation does more than just strengthen contracted monsters or allow communication. It also allows the tamer to use the skills of the contracted monsters, albeit partially. Naturally, one cannot use skills that far exceed their own capacity, and there are corresponding risks. Among the skills Schwarz possessed, the one Sayaka used was “Substitution.”

It is a skill that literally allows one to shift the damage they receive onto a comrade. This applies to other party members as well.

Sayaka used this to shift the damage Touka received onto the skeletons she had originally contracted and put into her party.

(It was the right choice to fill the remaining party slots with her contracted monsters, besides myself and Katsuragi-san…)

The damage Touka received was literally a fatal wound. Consequently, the skeleton that took the damage died in her place. A party can have a maximum of eight members. In other words, she can survive even if she suffers fatal wounds five more times.

(And to utilize that to the fullest, it has to be this.)

Taking the enemy with her.

Slithering out from Schwarz’s shadow, Touka clung to Glen’s body. Considering the difference in stats and levels, it would be a delay of less than a second. That second was enough.

“Wolf King-sama! Forget about me and—”

『GARUUUUOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!』

Without waiting for Touka’s words to finish, Schwarz slammed an attack into Glen.

Claws enlarged by darkness tore through Glen along with Touka, who was pinning him down. It was a strike delivered without a moment’s hesitation.

(Wait—just because I can “Substitute” doesn’t mean you shouldn’t show some restraint, AGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!?)

A searing pain ran through her as her body was slashed diagonally from the shoulder. The attack of darkness tried to collapse her body and annihilate every cell. Her HP hit zero for an instant, and in the next, the wound regenerated and her HP returned. It was a truly bizarre sensation.

(My clothes—I don’t have time to worry about that!)

Not just her body, but her clothes must have been blown away in an instant by Schwarz’s attack. The regenerated Touka was completely naked. However, she didn’t have the luxury to care. Identifying the enemy came first.

“Ooh, ow ow ow…”

“Ts!?”

Looking over, Glen was standing a short distance away. His left arm and a portion of his flank had vanished.

“Not bad, little lady. ‘Substitution’ for damage, huh? You caught me off guard. That’s a skill only high-ranking undead are supposed to use, but I guess it’s not strange for the Wolf King.”

“…”

With just that exchange, he seemed to have completely read their hand. He excelled not just in power, but in observation. Even so, the opponent had lost his left arm and was riddled with wounds. If Schwarz pushed through now, they would win. Touka was sure of it.

“…You have the face of someone who thinks they’ve won. You’re too naive.”

“Wha—”

In the next moment, WHOOSH! An “Arm of Flame” was born from Glen’s left shoulder. Furthermore, flames erupted from his gouged flank, eventually enveloping his entire body. It was a form reminiscent of Libera’s summoned beast, Ifrit. This form was his true combat state.

“If the Wolf King is ‘Darkness,’ then I am ‘Flame’ itself. Don’t look down on me. This is my full power!”

True to his epithet “Flame Emperor,” his power was fire. That power reached its true potential when he unified himself with the flames. Glen’s intimidating presence increased even further than before.

“OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

Glen roared. That alone caused flames to spread through the area at once, turning it into a scorching hell. The temperature was so high that even breathing was difficult; an ordinary person would have been turned to ash in an instant. With a THUD, Glen leaped, brandishing his greatsword.

“Oraaa!”

Schwarz reflexively guarded with darkness, but Glen’s flames easily sliced through it, damaging Schwarz’s physical body. Schwarz looked at Glen with eyes that couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

『IMPOSSIBLE…?』

“Not done yet!”

Glen’s onslaught continued. Slashes of energy with higher output and density than Sora’s breath were unleashed by the hundreds in a single second. Schwarz’s darkness was completely erased, and parts of his body were turning into charred remains. Watching Glen unleash a one-sided attack against the Wolf King, who was hailed as the strongest of the Six Kings, Touka was lost for words.

This was the Vanguard, the top tier of the otherworlders. She began to doubt if they were even the same species.

『GAHA…!』

Schwarz was pierced through the back and stomach by the flaming greatsword and pinned to the ground. Touka could only watch in silence. Suddenly, Glen’s eyes turned toward Touka. In those eyes, there was not a shred of interest in her.

“Now, it’s your turn next, but…”

“Guh…”

“I know I already killed you once, but if you run now, I’ll let you go. If you swear not to interfere or get in our way anymore, Boss Randall probably won’t go out of his way to kill you.”

In a sense, it was an extraordinary offer for him, and a final ultimatum for Touka. If she gave the wrong answer, she would be turned to ash that very second. Touka let out a breath and spoke the answer that felt right.

“…I refuse. While that person is fighting, I cannot be the only one to run away.”

That’s right, she couldn’t run. Even now, in a distant place, Kazuto was fighting. Though he had the support of Momo and Aka, he was essentially fighting a member of the Vanguard alone. In contrast, she had a powerful ally in the Wolf King Schwarz. If she fled now, he would laugh at her. …While that would be exciting in its own way, it would be far more “delicious” to win properly and ask for various things as a reward.

“Is that so? Then I guess I have to kill you.”

“Ts…”

Glen’s flames were about to burn Touka to death. Then, Schwarz moved.

『—UOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!!』

While the sword pinning him to the ground was still stuck in him, he forced himself to stand. He pulled the sword out and stood next to Touka. A smile was visible on his face.

『Hmph, you are indeed the comrade of that human. It seems you are no coward…』

With a shloop, thin darkness covered Touka’s body, transforming into something like a black rider suit.

“Ts… I-I thank you.”

Touka was grateful she no longer had to worry about her skin. Moreover, wearing this black suit made power well up within her. Apparently, it also had the effect of boosting stats. However, since it adhered tightly to her skin, it emphasized her body lines, creating quite a spectacle, though that didn’t matter right now.

(Ugh… are you ready yet, Katsuragi-san? Since my “Main” is hardly working, you are my only hope…)

Even at this moment, Touka was activating a certain skill, but it didn’t seem to be affecting Glen. As it stood, everything depended on Sayaka’s performance, exactly as planned. Then, the shadow at her feet trembled. Cloaked in Schwarz’s darkness, Sayaka Katsuragi appeared.

“Touka-oneesama! Preparations are complete!”

“Thank you, Katsuragi-san! Nice timing!”

Touka thrust her hand up.

“Everyone of the pack! Please!”

「「「「WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!」」」」

The Wolf King’s kin, who were standing by in the distance, began to howl all at once. Then, a vast amount of energy overflowed from their bodies and was launched toward Schwarz.

“……?”

『UU… TH-THIS IS…!』

In that instant, Schwarz felt his power being magnified dozens of times. What Touka had orchestrated was a reverse supply of energy from the kin. The power of the kin, which was originally boosted by the Wolf King’s power, was returned to the Wolf King using the “Monster Tamer” skill.

Sayaka gave a sharp salute to Touka.

“It took some time, but ‘Re-contracting’ with all of the Wolf King’s kin is complete!”

This was a high-tier version of the “Monster Strengthening” Sayaka had used against Kazuto at the school. A transcendent enhancement of contracted monsters—all the power and skills of the kin were concentrated into the single entity of their master, Schwarz.

It was the Heroic Hymn of monsters, a counterpart to Kazuto’s “Heroic Hymn.”

『WOOO… OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHH!』

Schwarz’s wounds healed in an instant, and power overflowed. This wasn’t just the power of the skills Sayaka possessed. It was a miracle achieved only because of the kin who were devoted to Schwarz and prepared to stake their lives for him.

“Hey, hey, hey, that’s impossible!”

Glen, immediately understanding the danger, moved instantly. Before the supply of power could finish, he produced a flaming greatsword to end Schwarz’s life, aiming for his neck.

But—

“Wha—!?”

The blade stopped, perfectly blocked by Schwarz’s darkness. It was incomparable to the darkness he had been slicing through so easily until moments ago. The density was unbelievable.

『Hmph…』

As if checking his own condition, Schwarz lightly swung his tail. In that instant, the sound, the space, and the world were sliced apart.

“Gaha—”

Unable to dodge or defend in time, Glen was blown away over a hundred meters in one go and slammed into the ground.

『I see. It seems I have been considerably strengthened.』

Confirming the state of his power, Schwarz laughed. Then he looked toward the pack—toward his kin.

『I give you my thanks. I am blessed with fine kin.』

「「「「Ts…!」」」」

At those words, the kin trembled with joy. Compared to Schwarz, their individual power was tiny. That they could become the strength of their own King was truly a joy beyond expectations.

『Now, let us settle this, Vanguard.』

As their King, Schwarz declared loudly.

End of 253