Chapter 548 - Chapter 6: Amphisbaena
The second night passed without incident, and the third day arrived.
In the morning, the mages set out on their bowls. This was to reinforce the ice embankments and prevent the two-headed snakes from approaching. The Sertoria team—Eleanor-sama, Wilson-san, and Beatrix—each fired two shots and returned.
After welcoming them back and offering words of appreciation, it was time for breakfast. The ghosts were primarily handling the night watch, and the mages, who especially needed rest, were told to sleep early. Alcohol was restricted to one cup per person, so even the mages who usually had trouble waking up were alert.
"Today is finally the main event."
At last, it was time to investigate the ruins of the Central Fortress. However, there was a pond nearby where the parent two-headed snakes lurked. This wouldn't be a simple observation; it would involve an investigation while digging. We couldn't afford to be attacked by monsters while the site was excavated. It would be disastrous if something happened to the altar due to the impact of battle. To prevent that, it was decided to exterminate at least one parent lurking in the pond beside the fortress ruins.
The enemy might attack in a pack. Leaving behind the fortress garrison—centered around the ghosts (excluding Fiona) and the archers—the eleven bowl units, including reinforcements from Finis, all set out. The centerpiece was a medium-sized bowl piloted by Wilson-san. On board were the commander, Eowyn-sama, the vice-commanders, Magdalena-sama and Gwyn-sama, as well as the Henry Party, Harrison-san, Harris-sama, Beatrix, and myself.
All the bowls were concealing their presence. To avoid damage to the high ground, we gathered near the opposite shore.
"Release the frog."
Eleanor-sama gave the signal.
We deactivated the Glaciate on the frozen frog we had brought dangling from a rope on the medium bowl and cut the line. Once the frog left the range of the Camouflage and appeared, it fell into the pond with a splash.
Last night, we had lit a Firefly on one of the outer hills to gather moths and other bugs, then used Glaciate to freeze the frogs that came out. We withdrew before the two-headed snakes appeared, so no combat occurred.
We changed positions and watched for a while. The frog, which had been floating limply in the pond showing its white belly, began to twitch its right front leg.
"The parent snake has moved!"
I had been continuously searching with Sense Living. The parent two-headed snake, which had been near the water's surface by the fortress ruins, likely thought prey had come to the pond. It slowly approached the frog through the water. It was clearly huge. Its head size and body length were nearly double that of the young snakes. It might even be longer than a sea serpent.
The two-headed snake swam slowly near the surface. There were many water weeds floating, and perhaps because it didn't poke its face out of the water, it left no wake.
Meanwhile, the frog finally managed to float with its back up. It approached the shore and crawled out of the water with a dragging sound.
"Hey, is that okay? No matter how you look at it, it's unnatural."
Beatrix might be right. Even when swimming, the frog's legs were stretched out limp and unmoving, and its right hand was extended straight. In that posture, it dragged its belly through the rustling grass as it climbed onto the bank. It was by no means the movement of a normal frog.
In truth, we had tied a rope to the right front leg of the already dead frog and were dragging it with a concealed ally's bowl. We had to use it as a decoy to successfully lure the two-headed snake out of the pond. Since it was a frog, it was heavy and had to be dragged. Fortunately, it made a loud sound when dropped into the pond, so we managed to catch the snake's attention. That was also why it was making an unnecessarily loud rustling noise in the tall weeds, sounding nothing like a frog.
Sadly, the two-headed snake fell for it. Even if it had the ability to hunt in a pack, it seemingly couldn't tell that the unnaturally noisy frog was a corpse. It swam to the shore with one head in front and the other behind. It thrust its head into the grass and proceeded toward the frog, slowly parting the weeds.
The frog, which had been dragged along, stopped moving after being pulled a certain distance into the grass. The two-headed snake was quite close. Flicking its tongues in and out, it pulled its rear head closer and coiled itself in the grass.
A Simple Teleportation Magic Circle for sending letters glowed, and a scrap of parchment was sent through.
Eleanor-sama looked at it and handed it to Eowyn-sama. The allies who had been dragging the frog must have evacuated to the sky.
"Prepare to attack."
Eowyn-sama gave the instruction. A small signal flag was waved. The small ally bowls had already finished gathering.
Harrison-san deactivated Magic Reflection, and I deactivated Sense Living. I held my staff with both hands and poked the tip out from the edge of the bowl. Those firing magic or arrows leaned out, split between the left and right sides of the bowl.
"Attack!"
A sudden eight-shot volley. I fired an Over-High-Level Deluxe Holy. I aimed for the head magnified by Sight.
Harrison-san also fired three consecutive Log Holys. Harris-sama fired six Holy Lances.
Next, Beatrix fired a rapid succession of Fire Balls between the pond and where the two-headed snake was lurking, while Henry-sama and the other warriors and scouts fired two silver-tipped arrows simultaneously.
As planned, we aimed for the head that was in front during its movement. It had raised its neck as if about to pounce on the frog at any moment, but it was hesitating as if observing, perhaps realizing it was a corpse. So far, everything was going as intended.
We were in the sky above the pond with the sun at our backs. Since the snake was a monster, it likely wouldn't turn its face toward the sun. I didn't know what kind of ability snakes or frogs used to notice our concealed presence, but since it wasn't facing us, it shouldn't have noticed. As proof, the Holy spells fired by the three of us hit in quick succession.
Thud!
One of the heads collapsed to the ground with such force I could almost hear the sound despite the distance. The other head started to look up but stopped. Likely because of the sun.
Then, silver arrows rained down around the snake. Slightly later, Fire Balls landed one after another between the two-headed snake and the pond, erupting in flames.
Seeing our attack was effective, the surrounding bowls also began their assault all at once. They fired Holy Lances, silver arrows, and Fire Balls. The other bowls gathered around the one Eleanor-sama was piloting. Since everyone was positioned with the sun at their backs, the snake couldn't raise its head to confirm our location. It was firing lightning blindly, perhaps as a counterattack, but it was completely off-target. I didn't think it would hit anything.
Now, magic and silver arrows were pouring down around the two-headed snake. It seemed to be trying desperately to escape, but one of its heads was unmoving—I couldn't tell if it was dead or unconscious. Dragging it like a heavy weight, it began to crawl in a direction where there were no flames. However, that was away from the pond. The water it could escape into was far. It was completely trapped.
The two-headed snake wasn't even counterattacking anymore. It fled desperately with its functioning head in front. Meanwhile, the allies' Holy Lances and silver arrows hit it repeatedly. Several arrows were already stuck in its long torso. After my initial eight-shot volley and Harris-sama's rapid-fire Holy Lances, we fired slowly with intervals, taking careful aim. There were three more parent two-headed snakes. Reinforcements might come.
Finally, Eleanor-sama began the incantation for Prominence. If it hit directly, it would end it.
"Prominence!"
She didn't make it Megiddo Fire. Eleanor-sama had said she wanted to see if she could defeat it with Prominence alone.
A reddish-orange dragon headed straight for the two-headed snake. The target was the head that was struggling to drag the unmoving one. It was fired from quite high up. Just as the attack, which had gained sufficient speed, was about to hit... a massive amount of water flew in from the side. It was Maelstrom.
Hit by the broadside of water, the Prominence missed its target. It struck the ground and flared up. Fire and water have different pressures. Moreover, it would have been one thing if they had collided head-on, but it came from the side. It was shifted by exactly one unit.
"They've come. It seems the parents can fire a larger volume of water too."
Eleanor-sama was looking in the direction the water had come from.
Looking in the same direction, a two-headed snake had raised its neck from the grass slightly north of the path of our target. Because the angle was different, we couldn't keep the sun at our backs. However, it must still be dazzling. Its face was pointed slightly above horizontal, but even when I magnified its face with Sight, our eyes didn't meet. Its face was tilted slightly downward. Just as planned. Monsters are weak to sunlight. Since it couldn't turn its face toward us, it shouldn't be able to grasp our exact position.
"Finish off the fleeing Amphisbaena. The newcomer is after that. I will deploy a Wind Barrier to protect our allies, so do not go beyond the wounded one."
Eleanor-sama gave the order for the pursuit. First, we would kill one. Then, we would kill the other.
Everyone answered energetically and concentrated their Holy spells and silver arrows on the wounded one. Beatrix also attacked by flying Wind Cutters.
Since our bowl resumed the attack, the allies were also emboldened. They attacked all at once in coordination with the main unit. This had been decided from the start. We would defeat them one by one.
Perhaps trying to rescue its companion before its eyes, the newcomer fired water at its fleeing comrade to protect it from the Holy spells while firing lightning upward. Perhaps it was calculating the angle the arrows were flying from, as its aim was more accurate than expected, but everything was blocked by the Wind Barrier Wilson-san had deployed. It would have been better if the two were closer, but there was distance between them. Since it didn't hinder our allies' attacks, we could attack one-sidedly. Ally attacks hit the wounded one, whose movements had clearly slowed, one after another. Finally, it stopped moving completely. Perhaps giving up on the rescue, the newcomer, which had been gradually retreating, finally fled into the water.
"We're pursuing. I'll use Megiddo Fire. Let's see which is superior: my fire or the water it fires."
Eleanor-sama's voice grew louder. Her battle-hungry side had been ignited.
The pool the newcomer had retreated into was different from the pond. It was much narrower. We should be able to do it.
We contacted the allies via the magic circle for sending letters and she began the incantation for Prominence again.
"Prominence!"
It activated.
I fired my second eight-shot volley of the day. Harrison-san also fired a Log Holy, and Harris-sama fired rapid Holy Lances again. Holy Lances were also flying from the other ally bowls.
The reddish-orange dragon turned yellow, then began to look pure white, increasing in brilliance like the sun. It gained speed midway. Likely to increase the impact force of the drop from above. I could hear Beatrix swallowing hard.
I wondered if the enemy two-headed snake had managed to fire water...
With a roar, the glowing dragon's head landed and blasted a massive hole.
The dragon's head dug into the hole as if gouging it out, but then vanished. Eleanor-sama had deactivated it.
I looked toward the hole where smoke was rising, but I couldn't see anything. Even when I chanted Sense Living, I couldn't confirm the coil of the two-headed snake. It must have been incinerated.
When Bonnie waved the small flag signifying the kill, cheers from our allies could be heard from above.
"Just before reaching the Amphisbaena, several small explosions occurred. I think it must have fired water."
I had heard that if you douse Megiddo Fire with a large amount of water, small explosions occur. Of course, that doesn't happen if there's too much water, like when firing it into a pond or lake. In that case, it's said that a massive amount of steam erupts as if exploding.
Still, she really did have the good eyesight she always boasted about. I should have been watching with her, but I couldn't tell at all.
"It tried to save its comrade and even fought back bravely, so I must say it was admirable for an enemy."
She had won a complete victory over an enemy she deemed worthy of praise. She was explaining with a satisfied look.
"No matter how many times I see it, that power is incredible."
Beatrix was impressed. Water was flowing into the dug hole from the surroundings, sending up steam. It was the moment a new marsh was created in the wetlands.
"There are two more confirmed individuals. Let's strike as many as we can before the Amphisbaena gather into a large pack."
It seemed we could defeat them without issue if we fought them one by one. The parents were large, but their individual abilities weren't much different from the children. We had no losses, and morale was high. We could do this.
Just then, a letter was sent to the magic circle for sending letters held by Eowyn-sama. It was from the fortress.
"Urgent report! The fortress is being attacked by a pack of Amphisbaena!"
The signal flag was waved, and everyone headed toward the hill where the fortress ruins had been, where the demons were. It seemed this kind of situation had been anticipated in advance.
Upon arriving at the hill, the bowls became plates, and everyone jumped down at once.
A new bowl was created by Eleanor-sama, and the pilot was handed over from Wilson-san. She was in full serious mode. Beatrix cast Camouflage, and Harrison-san cast Magic Reflection. At the point of leaving the fortress, the only bowl that could be high-speed was the one we were riding. The other bowls prioritized numbers over speed, so they were at normal speed. Instead, they had fewer personnel on board, and there were two bowl-users per bowl. If they made the bowls again and made them high-speed to support the allies, they could return faster. For emergency returns, it was decided that everyone would return individually and join the defense in the order they arrived. This was because they prioritized the element of surprise. After seeing off the flags flying one after another, we also took off.
I wondered if there was a change in the number of Amphisbaena.
If they had been lurking somewhere other than the ponds, we hadn't detected them. We had to confirm that first. Currently, I was the only Sense Living user. Normally, those who used arc magic became priests or signed contracts with government agencies primarily for rescue activities, so they weren't in the military.
Suppressing my racing heart, we headed for the ponds. The search results showed no parents in any of the ponds. At least for now, there wasn't a fifth one. I was able to confirm at least that.
"We're returning to join the allies in defense. We're going all at once!"
At Eleanor-sama's instruction, everyone sat in two vertical rows. The people in the back put both hands on the shoulders of the person in front and held on. Our bodies were pressed tightly together. Then, the bowl became the minimum possible size. This way, no matter how much it swung around, we wouldn't fall.
"Beatrix. Please. At full power."
"Okay!"
Beatrix was the accelerator. We just had to get to the fortress. She intended to use it all up.
"Here we go!"
My body was suddenly pressed backward. The sturdy men were positioned in the rear, but I could hear groans the moment we accelerated.