Chapter 99 - Disintegration Magic
A blooming red flower.
The iron ball I threw struck the intended target with perfect precision.
Ignoring the stunned villagers who seemed as if time had stopped, I prepared to throw the next one.
The people who saw the red flower bloom again were thrown into chaos.
From their perspective, they probably have no idea what’s going on. They might not even have noticed the existence of the iron balls flying at them at supersonic speed.
Even from a distance, the lookout guards wouldn’t understand what I’m doing as I casually throw the iron balls.
There’s no room for mercy. I’ve learned what bandits are capable of from my past experiences. I aim carefully, ensuring I don’t miss my targets, and continue throwing the iron balls methodically.
How many red flowers have I made bloom? It took them quite a while, but the lookouts finally figured out it was my doing. They pointed at me and started shouting frantically.
Then, a furious group of bandits began rushing towards me. From a distance, none of them were running on foot; they were coming in several vehicles.
Hmph, convenient.
I didn’t attack immediately, instead letting them get as close as possible. Zenobia and Valeria played along, even showing their backs as they pretended to flee.
Come on, keep coming. Rush at me in your rage!
Running up a low hill, I turned around and surveyed the bandits when I felt their vehicles were far enough from the village. More vehicles were still coming from the village, but I had lured most of them out. The vehicles were heading towards me in a steady stream, most of them military-grade. They must have found a stash of abandoned military vehicles somewhere or maybe they were former soldiers. Either way, they were just bandits now.
With them this far away, there’s no worry about them fleeing back to the village. Given their numbers, there are probably few bandits left in the village.
At this point, we’re halfway to success. Time to start throwing again.
I threw the iron ball at the approaching vehicles without hesitation, hitting the center of one with perfect accuracy.
The vehicle, its magical propulsion system destroyed, came to a halt with a violent jolt.
"Still got more!" I shouted.
It didn’t take long to disable all the vehicles and pull them away from the village. The disabled vehicles continued to roll a bit due to inertia but eventually came to a stop. The bandits, descending from their vehicles, ran towards me in even greater fury.
They must lack any learning ability. Only after a few of them were felled by my thrown iron balls did they realize they were in a deathtrap.
"This time, I’ll take them on," Zenobia said.
As the bandits began to turn and flee, Zenobia sprung into action.
She was fast. Unbelievably fast. The Acceleration Magic I hadn’t seen in a while granted Zenobia an almost unfair speed. Her top speed was incredible, but what was even more remarkable was how quickly she reached it. In her wake, the bodies and heads of bandits littered the ground; none managed to escape.
Valeria, moving from a different angle, was no less formidable. Though not as fast as Zenobia’s Acceleration Magic, her Physical Enhancement Magic allowed her to achieve a comparable speed. The trail she left behind was nothing but the corpses of the bandits.
I only shot a few who tried to escape in a different direction from the village. Fighting without strong opponents is a hollow experience.
Well, that’s about it.
There are probably still some bandits left in the village, but we’ve achieved a near-decisive victory.
Thinking about this, I welcomed Zenobia and Valeria back.
"Valeria, well done. And Zenobia, your Acceleration Magic is truly unfair."
"This is the combat style that got me recognized as a top-tier mercenary. I had some confidence, but to call it unfair... Valeria, what’s with that speed?"
"Onee-sama trained me, so anyone could become that fast," Valeria replied.
"Don’t be silly. Valeria is just exceptionally fast."
Zenobia, looking somewhat skeptical but also inclined to believe it, needed a little push.
"What’s next? Should we head into the village?"
"…No, it’s fine. Let’s move on to the next one. I want to take out two or three more bandit hideouts today."
"That’s fine, but what about the village? There are people who were captured."
"It’s impossible to fit everyone into this mid-sized jeep. We’ll take out a few more bandits and report back to the guild. The remaining cleanup and rescue can be left to you. It’s cold, but a half-day’s delay won’t make a difference."
My goal is to eliminate bandits, not rescue villagers or slaves. If that were my objective, I wouldn’t have come with such a small group, and I would have considered equipment and mobility.
This time, helping people is just a side effect, and I haven’t thought about any follow-up.
Besides, I don’t want to be mistaken for a humanitarian.
"Also, after setting everything up this far, I kind of feel like they should take care of themselves from here."
"True to form, Yukari. If we go into the village, I’d probably end up taking care of everyone. Let’s move on to the next one. As Yukari said, the faster we eliminate bandits, the fewer victims there will be. Though, if someone Zenobia knows is among them, that’s a different story. What do you think?"
"That’s not the case. On to the next one!"
Valeria, already in the jeep, had no objections.
With Zenobia driving, we headed towards the next bandit hideout.
Since it was still early, we decided to tackle multiple hideouts in one go.
Zenobia, who knew the locations of the bandit hideouts, sped the jeep towards the next target.
We chatted idly during the drive, sharing amusing stories about interesting people in the Kikyo Society. While talking, I channeled my overflowing mana into creating high-level healing potions and magic potions, making efficient use of my time.
Time flies when you’re doing something.
"Here it is, that’s it."
There was only one thing that could be clearly recognized when pointed out.
Our next target was a formidable fortress. It seemed wasteful for bandits to use it, and it was a bit presumptuous. Apparently, it was a repurposed military fortress.
As we approached, guards could be seen stationed on the walls, and the interior remained a mystery.
We parked the vehicle a short distance away and got out.
Observing for a moment, nothing out of the ordinary happened. The guards stayed focused on us, but nothing happened.
Given that we were just three women, they should have tried something by now.
"Maybe the bandits here are out on a job?"
"Empty? That’s bad luck."
"Onee-sama, if they’re gone, we can still collect our fee."
"…I see, that’s a good point. Well done, Valeria."
"You guys… I’ve been low on funds, so let’s split it?"
Zenobia is generally a good person but, as a mercenary, she’s quite money-conscious. Some might call it greedy.
In any case, there were no objections. Besides, causing damage to the bandits might lead to internal conflicts among them.
We walked towards the fortress gate in a relaxed manner.
Upon reaching the closed gate, we found no resistance. The guards were shouting from above, but we ignored them.
With my mana sensing, I could tell how many people were inside.
As expected, most of them were gone, and only a minimal number of guards had barricaded themselves inside. With such a small number, subduing them wouldn’t be much trouble.
"What now? Should we look for another entrance?"
"No way. There’s a perfectly good entrance right in front of us. It would be too much trouble to look elsewhere."
"I thought you’d say that. But breaking it down will be a challenge, right?"
The fortress gate appeared to be made of wood and reinforced with iron, and even Mithril was used for additional strength. It was likely a magical device, powered by mana stones. The gate’s mana signature suggested it had some intricate enchantments, but I couldn’t discern the specifics. Still, it was clear this was a former military facility.
Despite all that, I wondered, so what?
I slipped on the Special Gloves I kept in my coat pocket and gave the gate a experimental punch.
"Shake it up!"
The gate groaned loudly but didn’t break. It was as sturdy as it looked, but its magical defenses were far from impenetrable. I could sense the mana stored in it depleting with just a light punch. Once the mana supply was cut off, the Mithril would lose its enhanced strength.
I punched the gate again, and the bandits inside, sensing the ominous creaking, began to gather.
This could save us some trouble.
With a few more punches, I drained the gate’s mana, and the bandits inside were now clustered in an ideal position. Based on their movements, there didn’t seem to be any slaves or civilians inside, but who knows?
The gate had lost its magical defenses.
Breaking it down wouldn’t require much mana. I had exhausted its magical properties not as a primary goal but as a side effect.
The purpose of my punches was to gather the bandits. The ominous sounds would alert them and draw them to the gate's other side.
It’s easier to subdue them this way. Even with mana sensing, searching the entire fortress would be a hassle. If I could set this up with a few punches, it was a cheap and effective method.
Time to break it. There were multiple ways to do it, but with me, it’s always going to be dramatic, and that might scare off the gathered bandits.
The gate should be tough, given its military origins.
Even without its magical defenses, the combination of wood and metal would be challenging. A competent mage could break through either the wood or the metal alone, but the combination significantly increased the difficulty. For example, an attack that would normally take one or two high-level spells might now require twice as many.
"Onee-sama, let me handle this."
"…Sure, go ahead. Zenobia hasn’t seen this before."
"Speaking of which, I’ve never heard about Valeria’s magical aptitude."
This was likely a demonstration, a way to introduce herself to Zenobia. It would be good for Zenobia to know what Valeria could do.
Valeria stepped forward and touched the gate, releasing a wave of mana. There was no incantation, just a natural and effortless use of magic.
The result was immediate.
Dust. A mountain of dust.
The massive and supposedly sturdy fortress gate turned into a pile of dust without any warning.
It didn’t matter if it was wood or iron. As long as it wasn’t infused with mana, it didn’t stand a chance.
Against Valeria’s magic, everything turned to dust.
This was the magic that once plagued Valeria, but now, having overcome it, it is a terrifying and immensely powerful spell.
It’s called "Corruption Magic" by some, but I don’t think that’s accurate. Corruption implies the breakdown of organic matter by microorganisms. Valeria’s magic affects even metal, so it could be called "Corrosion Magic." However, since it has both properties, calling it one or the other would be a mistake.
Besides, it’s not fitting for a beautiful young girl like Valeria. I decided to name it "Collapse Magic" and gifted it to her.
This magic is rarely used. Despite being Valeria’s most powerful spell, it’s often held in reserve. I don’t know the exact reasons, but with her current abilities, she rarely needs to rely on it. Her foundational magic and physical abilities are exceptionally high.
Incidentally, the Kikyo Society has several members with similarly negative magical aptitudes. Their backgrounds, shaped by their unique magical abilities, led them to join the society. Here, no one cares about such things, and they’ve all grown to master and control their powers. In the Kikyo Society, being powerful and formidable is even admired.
I used a powerful wind magic to blow away the pile of dust, revealing the stunned bandits on the other side of the gate.
Zenobia was excited.
"What was that!? Amazing, Valeria!"
True to her mercenary nature, Zenobia was purely impressed and eagerly asked questions, leaving Valeria feeling a bit flustered and looking to me for help. Her cuteness was irresistible, and I pulled her into a hug, petting her head while scolding Zenobia.
"Still not over? Look, the bandits are gathering. It’s your turn now, Zenobia."
"Right, I’ll finish this quickly!"
There was no need for me to intervene. I watched Zenobia charge in with renewed excitement.
We walked through the now-empty fortress, having already extracted the location of their treasures from the bandits.
The rooms we passed contained some unpleasant sights, but with no living beings left, there was nothing to be done.
We arrived at the treasure room, but a quick glance revealed it wasn’t much.
A few pieces of moderately valuable equipment, some weak magical items, and a small amount of gold coins. The only noteworthy items were a few pieces of jewelry and a couple of recovery potion vials.
Valeria wasn’t interested, and neither was I, except for the jewelry and gold coins. Zenobia, however, showed some interest in the potion vials.
We decided to hand the potions over to the guild and split the rest of the loot.
Bandit hunting isn’t as profitable as I thought, and it’s somewhat tedious.
Is there anything interesting around? It’s important to always find a way to enjoy the task.