Chapter 619 - Tenth Story: The Demon Realm of Northern Medioland ③
We avoided the crisis of infighting. However, that alone won't let us win against the Queen.
"What shall we do now? I think it's fine to retreat for now and try again."
It was Harold-sama. The opponent made an unexpected move. They are completely in attack mode against us. The method of sneaking in and launching a surprise attack won't work. It will be a head-on battle. Not very scout-like.
"Let's try pestering them a bit more. I feel like the ants anticipated our move and took the initiative. If possible, I want to explore how much we can do from this situation."
Hmm. It might be quite scary.
Eleanor-sama thinks the timing when the Queen activated the Charm was when the Wind Barrier... the high-level magic, was activated. In other words, the Queen sensed the activation of high-level magic in the same space as the hollow. We are currently in a passage where a medium-sized bowl can easily pass through, and moreover, we were just about to depart, so we are very close to the hollow. It's quite possible that the Queen is in the same hollow. A surprise attack might be impossible, but a direct assault is.
Now, it was time for a do-over.
The surprise attack failed. And we might not necessarily fight the Queen. We'll use only one medium-sized bowl. We decided to limit the number of people, and only two members from the monster extermination squad joined as backup. A total of twelve people.
First, we block the hole with a wall of Light at reduced output. Light has no grade, so if you reduce the output, it becomes basic.
I actually activated it, but no Charm activation was sensed. Since four ultra-high-level mages—Eleanor-sama, Wilson-san, Mary, and I—couldn't sense it together, it probably didn't happen. We make the bowl while protected by the wall of Light. Wind Barrier, Camouflage, Magic Reflection, Mute. In addition, various support magics. It was fine even though we used this much magic. At times like this, it's convenient to have three other holy mages besides me who uses Light.
Everyone boards the bowl, and we depart. We attached the wall of Light to the bottom of the bowl. Since the output is still reduced, it should be hidden within the Camouflage in appearance.
As we depart, ants are climbing up in swarms right near the hole we started from. It's as if they read our plan to attack from above.
"It seems they even detected the location where the magic was activated. They seem quite clever."
After all, the battle with the Queen was only recently. Eleanor-sama probably doesn't understand them well either.
"Winged ants are flying. Are they males?"
Robinson-san spotted them sharply. They seem to be flying below. They shouldn't be underestimated, as they even have aerial combat personnel. It's good that we're on a bowl, but if it were a ground battle, we would have surely lost.
"Shall we try a light skirmish? Price, please attack with Holy from the hole open there."
"I don't mind, but since we're at it, why don't we descend? We might be able to behold the Queen's form."
Hmm, Eleanor-sama crossed her arms.
We made it a covered bowl and changed its shape slightly. Since Harold-sama was in charge of the lid, there were three people who could use elemental attack magic, led by Wilson-san, and three people who could release Over Flow. To make full use of this, the bowl also had six holes. Four at the bottom and two at the top. To stabilize it, it became a shape like two deep plates joined together, and everyone crouched. We also made it a box shape with walls of Light attached to both the bottom and the lid. Accordingly, we canceled Magic Reflection.
"Well then, here we go."
Eleanor-sama's instruction was given. We illuminate the upper and lower walls at full power. The surroundings became bright, and I could clearly see the situation of the ants.
Soldier ants and worker ants are clinging thickly to the walls. Below, winged ants are buzzing around, and I can't see the bottom. If those are all male ants, they must have come out to protect the Queen.
The ants clinging to the walls were connected to the bottom in a surface like a flowing reddish-black liquid from around the hole dug for the passage, but they began to flee in disarray when illuminated by the Light. The winged ants were also moving fast, and it felt chaotic.
"Wind Cutter!"
"Freeze!"
"Holy!"
Beatrix, Mary, and the monster extermination squad held their palms over the holes at the bottom and fired basic magic in rapid succession. Since each one is weak, they fell one after another even with basic magic.
Wind Cutter and Holy fly in straight lines, so they knocked down the winged ants in a straight line one after another. Mary's Freeze wasn't targeting individual ants but was freezing an entire space, so those with frozen wings clumped together and fell in swarms. Once they fall, their wings will break, and they'll just be ants. She's doing quite well.
"Not bad, right?"
"Oh? This is the method Beatrix taught me."
"Was it?"
The person who taught it seems to have forgotten, but well, whatever.
Eleanor-sama had said up to five shots for now, so the four of them fired five shots each, for a total of twenty shots.
Of course, it wasn't just basic magic.
Wilson-san, who swapped places with Beatrix, released Cumulonimbus.
We plunged right into the middle of the clouds. It's shaking so much it feels like we'll flip over. It's good that we were crouching, but if we were standing, we would have fallen.
Will, sitting cross-legged, was holding and supporting the work lantern with both hands. I'm impressed she could think of such a thing.
"What on earth are you thinking!"
"It's exactly as you say. I did suggest descending, but I didn't say to descend into the middle of a Cumulonimbus."
Rarely, Harold-sama and Price-sama's opinions coincided.
"I won't care even if the lid slips!"
It was Harold-sama. He was desperately shaping his hands as if pushing down to press the lid onto the main body.
"It's fine. It's just shaking a bit. Unlike water or earth magic, lightning has no pressure, so it just shakes. It should be."
I feel like we're receiving plenty of pressure with this much shaking...
Since we're illuminating the clouds with the light of the Light, the surroundings are pure white as if we're in a thick fog. Even so, I can tell from the impact transmitted to my body that my field of vision is rattling. Probably caught in it, things that looked like ants hit the box and vanished somewhere. Meanwhile, yellow lights began to flicker within the pure white.
"It's coming! Everyone, please be careful!"
Bishaan!
One hit! To be precise, we took it!
It felt like when you hit your forehead hard, and the front of my eyes flashed, and at the same time, the floor pushed up and I hit my head on the ceiling. Stars flew before my eyes when I hit it, but the amount of light at that time wasn't as much as when we took the lightning.
Without time to think, they came in quick succession.
It's like a small boat that has rowed out into a storm. Everyone was hitting their heads with thuds, and outside it was flashing brilliantly. It feels like we're being targeted.
"A-Are you okay! Please be careful of the holes. If your arm or leg gets caught, you might break a bone."
Eleanor-sama shouted. That's certainly true. We probably won't fall, but it's quite possible to sprain a joint. This can't be an act.
"How can we be okay! Isn't everything flying towards us!"
Harold-sama is exactly right. It's flashing brilliantly everywhere and making loud cracking sounds.
"The wall of Light should be repelling them! Jeanne, pull yourself together! Don't hit your head and lose consciousness!"
She's saying something outrageous. It's strange enough that I can maintain the magic after hitting my head this much. Oh, I'm conscious because I'm wearing a hood. It might be easier to just take it off and lose consciousness.
"You mustn't block the holes!"
It was Beatrix. I see, because of the holes, I mustn't faint. If I block the holes, I can sleep.
"I don't have that luxury! I'm at my limit just controlling it so we don't hit the walls!"
"Why don't we just ascend!"
"It's impossible now!"
It's no use. The bowl will surely break. No, even if it doesn't break, it might be faster for the lid to come off and for us to be thrown outside...
We broke through below the clouds.
Even though the bowl is made of air, twelve people are on it. It seems to have fallen on its own due to the weight. Accordingly, we took the concentrated lightning attack on the ceiling, but we successfully repelled it all. The vibration also became only the impact when hit. It's much better.
When I looked around inside the bowl, the joint between the main body of the bowl and the lid was frozen. Beatrix and Mary had released Freeze to keep the lid from coming off. Both must have made their own judgment. They're doing well.
"There she is! Right below!"
I looked down at Harold-sama's voice.
I saw the Queen, dragging her long, thick abdomen colored as if dyed with flames, half-buried in a large quantity of ant carcasses. The reason her face looks downcast and bowed might be the effect of the Cumulonimbus, or the effect of the Light illuminated at full power.
"Wind Barrier!"
Wilson-san made an air disk under the bowl. The lightning hits the ceiling of the bowl, and the effect of the Light is significantly reduced by Wilson-san's Wind Barrier. The Queen raised her face.
"It's coming!"
Pillars of earth thrust out from the left and right walls. Sand Pillar.
Eleanor-sama, who had accelerated the descent slightly, dodged it at the last moment.
"Next, front and back! There's a height difference!"
"Go down! Sand Storm!"
Harold-sama was on guard, and Beatrix crumbled the earth pillar with magic. The one she crumbled was the one that came from the front, and as Eleanor-sama lowered the bowl, a pillar thrust out from right behind as if grazing the ceiling.
She was chanting well.
"They'll just do the same thing anyway. Right now, I'm the only one who can use this magic. I was chanting once we cleared the clouds. I didn't make it in time for the first one, though."
That's a nice judgment.
"Thank you both!"
Eleanor-sama's voice was strangely upbeat.
"That one looks like she's having fun."
"I wonder what kind of nerves she has."
Harold-sama and Beatrix grumbled. I don't think they can talk.
While they were talking, Wilson-san's disk was being strengthened by the priests. High-speed rotation had already begun. Sensing it, the Queen began attacking the disk instead of the bowl. That thing knows about the saucer.
"Jeanne, one more push!"
"Yes!"
While Wilson-san skillfully manipulated the disk to dodge the earth pillars, I reduced the output of the Light once. For a moment, the surroundings became pitch black.
"Now."
"Yes!"
Hearing Wilson-san's signal, I turned it to full power.
Since the disk was vertical, the light illuminated the Queen directly. The Queen looked down.
Now!
"Magic Reflection!"
Sensing that, Price-sama made a reflector around my face.
"Holy Over Flow!"
I canceled the Light and fired an eight-shot volley with the reflector. It's pitch black, but Wilson-san should have already made the disk parallel.
"Holy Over Flow!"
When I fired again, I saw several small flashes of lightning before my eyes. Success.
"Go for it!"
"Go!"
It was Beatrix and Harold-sama.
No matter how you look at it, they're enjoying themselves.
The Queen desperately tried to obstruct the saucer, attacking the disk with Sand Pillars. Wilson-san calmly cut each one in two. Meanwhile, the bowl gradually descended.
Silver arrows fly. It's Henry-sama and Bonnie. Even in this situation, they hit the abdomen with several arrows.
The arrow attacks seemed effective, as the Queen raised her face and was gnashing her jaws as if hurling abuse at us.
Earth pillars attacked the disk from four locations: upper left and right, and lower left and right.
"I'll take the top! Sand Storm! Sand Storm!"
"Please escape to the lower right!"
The two pillars at the upper left and right crumbled, and of the two from the lower left and right, the saucer cut the one from the lower right in two. The tip of the cut pillar fell onto the Queen.
"Sand Storm!"
It was Beatrix.
The falling earth pillar instantly shattered. A thick cloud of dust arose. The saucer plunged into it.
The falling grains of earth were blown sideways. Presumably, the Queen, who disliked being blinded, blew them sideways with Clump Sand. However, that became fatal. It was just as Beatrix intended. Seizing a moment's opening, the saucer attacked the Queen. The Queen blew earth with Clump Sand. The disk, its direction diverted by the sharp-angled clumps, stabbed into the ground.
"Eh? Seriously? She can dodge like that."
Even Beatrix was surprised.
Unfortunately, it turned out she was less than an ant. Well, I'm the same.
"Cancel the bowl's lid! Set the wall of Light to full power! Launch an all-out attack."
I did as Eleanor-sama said. Everyone leaned over the edge of the moving bowl and launched a simultaneous attack.
Beatrix pulverized the earth pillars with Sand Storm, Mary struck with Clump Water, and Price-sama and the monster extermination squad fired Holy Lances. Meanwhile, the saucer kept flying around, attacking the Queen. Silver arrows even began to fly between the magic spells.
It was one against twelve. The attacks from the flying bowl exceeded the limits of the Queen, who had turned defensive, and finally, the saucer caught the Queen and severed her abdomen.
We finally defeated the third Queen.
Now we've moved to a mopping-up operation, and the monster extermination squad, Beatrix, and Mary are going around exterminating the eggs in the Queen's abdomen.
However, I didn't think we'd struggle this much. If we'd taken a hit from an earth pillar, total annihilation was even possible.
"This is no trivial matter."
Eleanor-sama also looked serious.
"It seems ants share information among themselves. If the details of the previous subjugation were brought to the Queen we subjugated this time, what will happen in the future?"
If the nests are connected and information is shared, the fourth one will set up countermeasures based on the information from this battle... It will become even tougher.
"Could such a thing really happen?"
Price-sama was doubting. It wasn't written in the secret books. However, just as they are sheltering the former boss of the Ruined Town, there's a possibility that the Lich's existence has been conveyed to Price-sama and James-sama. The fact that they share information should be something heard from the Lich, and it wasn't written in the secret books. Despite that, he ignored that point.
"It's possible. During this operation period, I want to defeat at least one more, but we should probably think carefully about countermeasures."
Eleanor-sama said with a very serious face.