kscans

Chapter 114 - The Battle on the Ship and the Immortal Man

A fierce cannonade echoed. A shell soared from an enemy galley, aimed at our sailing ship. The moment it touched the magical barrier Marmi and the others had deployed, it changed course as if to avoid the vessel, falling into the river and kicking up a violent plume of water. Simultaneously, the enemy crossbowmen began their attack. But their arrows were also deflected by the barrier. The magical shield was effective enough to turn the tide of battle. But how long could the two of them maintain such a massive barrier? Our sailing ship was linked to three galleys—one on each side and one at the stern, still connected from the earlier battle. This prevented us from picking up speed, leaving us to drift downstream. It would still take time to reach the shore. I had a feeling the enemy would catch us for sure before then. The galley we were on continued to sink lower, its waterline steadily dropping. It was listing heavily to starboard, and the deck would soon be submerged. But this was a wooden ship. Wood should float. Was it possible for it to sink completely? The bow of this ship was tied to the stern of the sailing ship with a rope. I had asked Famu and the others to cut it, but there was no sign of my request being carried out. Was it just as Takamura said? Were the sailors unable to make the choice to abandon me, the goddess's envoy? Or did they believe I could summon the goddess again and were being overly optimistic about the situation? I wished they would make a decision. Cutting this ship loose would slightly increase the sailing ship's speed. We could just swim to shore. How much time had passed since the battle began? The sun was beginning to set in the west. There was no sign of Jack and our reinforcements. Were we used as a decoy, or were we abandoned? Either way, we couldn't expect any help from them. I felt like everything was going from bad to worse. My anxiety grew. For now, I had to deal with the enemy in front of me. Mizuki and I faced Takamura across the flames. The fire had spread to the mast and sail, and embers danced across the deck. For the time being, I used Water Magic to dampen my and Mizuki's clothes. Wet clothes hindered movement. And then there was the ship's tilt. I couldn't move as I wanted. My footing felt unstable.

"So you can use magic. I can too, actually."

As he spoke, multiple fireballs materialized above Takamura's head. They shot toward us. I tried to dodge, but one of them hit my leg.

"Ouch!"

I quickly used Water Magic to extinguish it, but a stinging pain remained. As Takamura tried to form more fireballs, Mizuki charged him. Her attack was parried by his large cleaver, but Mizuki followed up with a relentless barrage of slashes. Takamura fought back, and a fierce exchange of blades ensued. The cleaver grazed Mizuki's cheek. In that moment, Mizuki managed to land a cut, but the wound was shallow and healed in an instant. The metallic clang of their blades clashing echoed again and again. I moved behind Mizuki, into Takamura's blind spot.

"Mizuki!"

At my shout, Mizuki dodged to the side. I lunged, thrusting my blade at Takamura's chest. But my footing was off, and the tip only sank slightly into his chest. My katana was knocked away by his cleaver. Just then, Mizuki slashed at Takamura's neck. Blood sprayed from the wound, but it soon closed and disappeared. The wound in his chest from my thrust did the same. Takamura knew he was no match for the two of us in a sword fight, so he didn't press the attack. He retreated, circling us to create distance. I couldn't help but click my tongue. This was getting us nowhere.

"If only we had a wooden stake…"

"They say it's effective against vampires, but…"

Mizuki replied skeptically to my muttering.

"No, I mean, if we leave it stuck in him, he probably can't regenerate."

I wanted to hit the wound with Earth Magic and embed a rock in it.

"I see. In that case, what if we cut him apart?"

Mizuki no longer saw Takamura as human. I felt the same. I had lost any hesitation about cutting him down.

"Good idea. Let's give it a try."

I nodded at her suggestion.

A cannon boomed. Like before, the shell went wide. Takamura was creating fireballs again.

"I'll be the decoy."

I nodded at her signal. Mizuki then charged at Takamura. The fireballs shot toward her. Mizuki skillfully blocked them with her shield while slashing at Takamura with her sword. Takamura retreated while dodging, firing more fireballs at her. Mizuki deflected those with her shield as well. Then she closed the distance in an instant. The clash of their blades began anew. Even in a one-on-one duel, Mizuki seemed to have the upper hand. She skillfully parried Takamura's powerful blows with her sword and shield, then countered with her own blade. With her superior speed, she overwhelmed him, robbing him of the chance to attack. Mizuki pressed him, forcing him toward the ship's rail as they fought. Her footwork was solid, showing no sign of being affected by the unstable ground.

"Damn you, woman!"

Takamura's face twisted in frustration. To deliver a powerful blow, he ignored his own defense and raised his large cleaver high overhead.

"Mash!"

Mizuki shouted. At her call, I lunged forward, slashing at Takamura's arm. The tip of my blade caught the right arm he was about to bring down. The cleaver and his right arm separated from his body and fell into the water.

"Guaah!"

Takamura frantically stared at the water where his arm had fallen, but the arm, still clutching the cleaver, sank beneath the waves. He clutched the stump of his missing arm and crumpled to his knees. It seemed a severed limb didn't regenerate like a lizard's tail. Mizuki and I looked at each other and let out a sigh of relief.

"Next, the legs,"

Mizuki said in a tone that could have been serious or a joke.

"Nah, that's too much trouble and we don't have time. Let's just take his head. We can drive a wooden stake into the stump to make sure it doesn't grow back."

"That's gross. But if he can regenerate, I guess we have to."

Mizuki and I leveled our swords at Takamura.

"H-hey! F-forgive me!"

Takamura screamed.

"We'll forgive you if you make the pirate ships withdraw."

"I-I will! Let me go, and I'll return to the galley and have them pull back."

Mizuki and I exchanged glances. Even if he withdrew, the pirates probably wouldn't stop their pursuit. But at the same time, we couldn't bring ourselves to cut down a man who had surrendered. Mizuki seemed to feel the same way. She had a troubled expression on her face. I guess I was too soft. Mizuki was the same. But I liked that softness in her. Famu would have been furious. I couldn't even begin to understand the mindset of Takamura and the other transmigrators who attacked us. I could, with a great stretch, understand Emma's motives. But if someone from Levante were killed, would I take the lives of completely unrelated people to bring them back? Right now, I didn't want to become that kind of person.

"The god who summoned you probably told you your wish would be granted if you killed the transmigrators summoned by the five goddesses, right?"

"Uh… ah. That's right."

Takamura nodded.

"Did they tell you anything else?"

"Not really…"

Was he really not told, or was he just keeping quiet?

"Is your wish to return to your original world?"

Takamura shook his head.

"Is it something that affects lives other than those of transmigrators?"

Takamura shook his head again.

"Then your wish is meaningless even if it's granted. The period transmigrators can stay in this world is ten years."

His eyes widened at my words.

"What do you mean?"

"You know that transmigration happens periodically, right?"

"Yeah, I know."

"You were transmigrated from this date in this year, weren't you?"

I took out my phone and showed him the calendar for the day I was transmigrated. Takamura confirmed the date and nodded.

"It's not just the current transmigrators. It's the same for past ones. They're all transmigrated from the same date. Don't you think that's strange? The culture of this world should be much more similar to ours by now."

"…"

Takamura fell silent, as if deep in thought.

"There's no proof that any past transmigrators lived beyond ten years. The goddess who summoned me didn't deny it either. That's why transmigrators can cause small changes in this world, but they can't leave a major mark."

"N-no way…"

His voice trembled.

"If you think I'm lying, you can look into it. You'll find out the truth soon enough. With that in mind, I'm asking you. I'm looking for a way to live a normal life beyond ten years. I want you to cooperate."

"…"

"Also, stop the piracy. Next time, I will kill you. That's all from us. You can go wherever you like. I'm sorry about your arm."

After hearing my words, Takamura stood up.

"Are you really… sure?"

I looked at Mizuki. She nodded, so I nodded too.

"About the Demon Lord. Did you know the Demon Kingdom is ruled by a triumvirate?"

Takamura said.

"I know."

Myra had told me before. After the Demon Lord was defeated a hundred years ago, they didn't enthrone a new king and instead have three powerful individuals running the country.

"They're trying to resurrect the Demon Lord. To do that, they believe they need the blood of a transmigrator summoned by Laciel, the same as the hero who defeated him."

"…"

I couldn't imagine how my or Mizuki's blood could resurrect the Demon Lord. In the first place, something that could be resurrected with human blood didn't seem human. The Demon Lord must be something inhuman.

"I'll think about cooperating with you."

Takamura turned his back to me and raised a hand to the sky.

"Special skill, [Fantasy Balloon]!"

Countless balloons appeared in the air above his outstretched hand. The balloons were tied with strings connected to Takamura's body. He floated gently into the air. Then, by some logic, he began to fly toward the upwind galley.

"The Balloon Ma—"

Mizuki started to say, then clamped her mouth shut.

"You know about that old incident? You're lying about your age, aren't you?"

I said, poking her in the chest. I felt the soft sensation through the fabric on my fingertip.

"Wh-what are you doing?! My dad just told me about it, that's all!"

She covered her chest with her arms. As we watched Takamura, his balloons popped when they touched the magic barrier Marmi and the others had created. He lost his buoyancy and fell into the river. He might just drown. Mizuki showed no sign of wanting to go help him. As we watched, he summoned more balloons and took to the air again. This time, he took a route that went around the magic barrier. But he was spotted by our crewmen and shot at with crossbows. It seemed he couldn't use his immortality while he was using the balloons. I wondered if he'd be okay.

"Well, even if he dies, it's his own damn fault."

"…He brought it on himself, I think."

Mizuki nodded in agreement with my muttering.