kscans

Chapter 243 - The Siege of Miglutt, and the Battle for the Kitchen

The kitchen was a separate stone building, detached from the main palace. A covered walkway connected it to the palace. As we ran into the walkway, a soldier in a black cloak and silver plate armor stood in our way. The cloak, as it billowed, revealed a crest of two oak leaves and an unfamiliar flower. The crest of the Leafkraut Family.

"Enemy!"

I shouted, drawing my sword. The enemy simultaneously readied his weapon. The wall right next to him had been breached, and more soldiers were trying to get in.

"…Mash! Get down!"

Marmi’s shout echoed as a fireball created from her magic flew over my head. With a deafening roar, the enemy soldier was instantly engulfed in flames, collapsing with a scream. I slipped past him and charged another soldier. But my attack was deflected by the metal plate, glancing off without causing any injury. The soldier raised his sword at me.

"Tch!"

I tried to pull back, but I had stepped in too far. I blocked the blow with my blade, and our swords locked. Just then, Myra jumped in and struck the soldier with her mace.

"Gah!"

The soldier screamed and fell against me. I twisted my body to use his momentum against him.

"Thanks…"

I looked down at the fallen enemy and thanked Myra. The helmet part of his armor was caved in and misshapen, and blood was dripping from inside. The soldier who had been hit by Marmi’s fireball was also completely still. I gritted my teeth at the sight. I could never get used to the death of a person. I looked away, and my eyes met Mizuki’s. Her brow was furrowed, her face twisted in a grimace. I was probably making the same face.

"Mash?"

Myra placed a hand on my shoulder, as if to check on me.

"Ah, yeah, sorry."

I shook my head, as if to shake off the lingering feelings.

"There might still be enemies outside. I’ll keep watch here. Mash, you head to the kitchen."

"Master. I will accompany you."

I nodded to Famu, and we ran towards the kitchen.

Famu and I stood before the door, trying to listen for any sounds from inside, but we heard nothing out of the ordinary. I considered peeking through a window, but that would mean going outside. Exposing ourselves seemed more dangerous. Although the sound of clashing swords had died down, the sounds of destruction, people’s screams, and the whistle of arrows were constant. I couldn’t tell if there was some unspoken rule of war not to kill civilians, or if the kitchen had already fallen into enemy hands, but there were no other enemies in sight besides the soldiers we had just fought. The enemy’s encirclement seemed thin in this area. I had no idea what the right course of action was. All I wanted was to get the members of Levante to a safer place.

"I’m opening it,"

I whispered. Famu drew her sword and gave a small nod. As I was about to put my hand on the door, I noticed she was still looking at me.

"Master, you’re afraid of killing people."

"Aren’t you?"

"I’m afraid that you will get hurt in this chaotic situation, Master."

"I…"

The memories of fighting the otherworlders, Mi and the others, and the battle with the pirates flashed through my mind. I still felt a deep aversion to the act of killing. I especially hated it when the members of Levante were involved. I had thought this feeling would fade as such situations continued, but now, seeing the fallen soldier, that feeling only grew stronger. I had to discard the values of my original world as quickly as possible. In a situation like this, anyone could die at any moment. I didn’t want anyone to die. But the more I thought that, the more a conflict arose within me, and that feeling also grew stronger. I put my hand on the door, as if to cut off those thoughts. This was no time to be lost in thought.

"Let’s just get our job done quickly and let the Star Union knights do their best to defend this palace. We have to find Sameim. If we can regroup with our allies outside, we should be able to manage somehow."

Famu lowered her gaze at my words.

"Master… is the Sam now different from the Sam I know?"

I placed my hand on Famu’s head. I stroked her ear, feeling its warm, soft texture.

"Who knows. But you’re the only one who can believe in Sameim until the very end. I don’t know about Sameim, but I believe in you."

Famu nodded at my words. I felt a powerful light enter her light-blue eyes.

"Alright, let’s go!"

"Yes."

In contrast to my determined words, I opened the door slowly. I peeked through the gap, but it was still quiet. It seemed no one was there.

"Were they already evacuated…?"

I threw the door open wide. A faint, raw smell of food hit my nose. It was a large room. There were no decorations; the wooden beams and stone brick walls were exposed. Tables were lined up in the center, and several stoves were along the walls. There were signs of a struggle. Large jars, about waist-high, were lined up against the wall, but half of them were broken. Next to them were wine barrels, but they were neatly arranged, as no one would have touched them in this situation. Looking around the room further, I saw that a window was broken, there were marks from arrows, and other signs that the enemy had broken in. I could see several fallen enemy knights. As I was about to step inside, Famu tried to go first, so I grabbed her clothes.

"I’ll go first."

"No. I’ll check things out. If anything happens, regroup with Mizuki and the others and escape into the palace."

"Hmph! You should stay back and watch, Master."

As we were arguing in hushed voices, a rustling sound came from inside the room. We quickly readied our weapons, and about twenty people in white aprons crawled out from under the tables. They were armed with things like cleavers, frying pans, and kitchen knives, all pointed at us.

"Are you alright?"

"Who are you?"

The man who asked was holding a long kitchen knife. He had thick arms, but he clearly wasn’t used to this kind of situation. His face was pale, and the tip of his blade was trembling. Looking at their faces, I realized I should have brought Marmi. I looked back at the walkway and beckoned for her.

"We’re in a party with Mo. Marina asked us to evacuate you to the palace."

"Are Lady Marina and Lady Mo safe?"

"They’re fine. Mo is behind me, securing our escape route."

The man with the knife looked at the others, then let out a sigh of relief and lowered his weapon. They started to move towards us.

"Mo and the others are outside. Head for the second floor of the mansion."

To make sure no one was left behind, I entrusted the evacuation to Famu and Marmi, who had just arrived, and stepped deeper into the room. As I passed by a soldier lying in a pool of blood, one of the maids turned to me in a panic.

"Be careful! That soldier keeps getting up and moving!"

"Moving? What do you mean…"

Just as I said that, the soldier lurched up. At the same time, a scream echoed from the walkway.

I kicked the rising soldier, knocking him back down. But he wasn’t the only one getting up; all three of the fallen soldiers were rising to their feet.

"Master, the soldier Myra defeated is getting up too!"

Famu’s voice echoed from behind me. I couldn’t see the situation in the walkway, but I thought the enemy we had defeated was dead. Even if he had been alive, he shouldn’t have been in any condition to get up and attack us.

"Did they use healing magic?"

"I don’t know. But—"

"Tch. Famu, you and Mo protect the people here!"

I stayed behind to cover their retreat, thrusting my sword into the gap in the soldier’s face guard.

"Guaah!"

The soldier let out a muffled scream and collapsed. I planted my foot on him, pulled my sword free, and readied my stance against the remaining two. Fortunately, perhaps due to the weight of their armor, the soldiers’ movements were slow. I closed the distance to prevent them from preparing, when one of the soldiers lifted a table. It was an old table, but it was made of thick, heavy wood. It looked sturdy and was clearly not something one man should be able to lift. I froze for a moment, but he threw it at the fleeing people.

"Dammit!"

I reflexively launched my Earth Magic. A large stone sphere struck the table with a loud crash, knocking it off course. The table slammed into the wall right next to the screaming servants and fell to the ground. Before I could even sigh in relief, a soldier picked up a fallen kitchen knife and charged at me. I parried the blow with my sword and slashed back at the soldier, but again, my blade couldn’t penetrate the armor.

"Channeling my mana…"

I recalled Maryanne’s words as I dodged an attack from another approaching soldier. But it was three against one. Just as I tried to focus my mana into the tip of my blade, another blade was pointed at me from a different direction. I launched another stone sphere from my Earth Magic, aiming for one of the soldiers’ heads.

"Take this!"

With a low metallic thud, the stone sphere struck the soldier’s head, and he collapsed. In that opening, I thrust my blade into a gap in another soldier’s armor. Red blood gushed out, and that soldier crumpled to the ground. Just as I turned my attention to the last one, I saw that someone who had entered the building unnoticed was now standing next to that soldier.

"Good grief. This may be the result of our master’s research, but it’s not in good taste,"

a clear, beautiful voice said. The speaker held a long staff and wore a black robe. From between strands of long golden hair, the long ears characteristic of the elf race were visible. And, also characteristic of her race, she had beautiful, porcelain-like skin. Her features made her look to be in her early twenties, but like Marmi’s mother, she must have lived longer than a normal human lifespan.

"Who are you…?"

While keeping my attention on the remaining soldier, I pointed the tip of my sword at the woman.

"Me?"

The woman smiled. For some reason, it seemed eerie, and a shiver ran down my spine. I glanced towards the door. The last of the people who had been here were just leaving. Famu was gone. Was she guiding them? Or was she fighting the soldiers in the walkway? As I was thinking, the fallen soldiers got up again. Even the one I had stabbed in the face was getting up.

"I am an elf who serves the Leafkraut Family. My name is Ilisarie. You are the otherworlder hero, Mash, are you not?"

I didn’t answer her question and shifted my position towards the door. But as if sensing my movement, one of the soldiers moved to block my path. Blood was still flowing from the gap in the armor of the one I had stabbed in the face, staining his armor and cloak a dark, blackish red.

"Even if a part of the body is destroyed and they die, many of its functions are not lost. If you implant a command to replace the brain, they will continue to move like this until all their functions are lost."

Ilisarie glanced at the soldier as if looking at something boring.

"Are you controlling them?"

"Not exactly. A magic circle is embedded in them that takes over and moves the body when the person dies."

"…So even if I defeat you, these soldiers won’t stop?"

I took a step back. Four soldiers who kept moving even after being defeated, and an elf. I couldn’t think of a way to get out of this situation. I could only pray that Famu and the others would come back.

"Mash, you don’t have to be so tense. And you heard my name, didn’t you? Ilisarie. I would like you to call me by my name."

Ilisarie smiled.

"Why did your master, Zeno, start this fight? What is he planning?"

"This mansion was not built with battle in mind at all. Do you understand?"

Her reply was completely off-topic.

"I suppose so."

It was a way to buy time. I nodded to draw out the conversation. I wanted to check on the situation beyond the door, but the soldier was completely blocking it. The soldiers were slow. If I focused on escaping, they wouldn’t be able to keep up with me. But would Ilisarie allow that? Fleeing without knowing her true strength felt like a dangerous gamble.

"And this kitchen was designed for the convenience of the servants, with easy access to the outside for shopping and other things, connecting to a back entrance."

"What are you trying to say?"

"Mash, I can take you from this place without anyone knowing. I would like to invite you to Lord Zeno’s mansion."

"Unfortunately, I just visited the other day. I don’t want to seem like an inconsiderate person."

"Don’t be like that. I’ll give you a front-row seat to watch the city of Miglutt be trampled."

As she spoke, I noticed another unfamiliar man standing in the kitchen.

"Let me introduce you. He is also a hero from another world, just like you, Mash."

He was a man wearing a red hood. A complete stranger. He had a medium build and a slightly plump body. His cheeks were a little sunken, and he had a stubble. The moment I saw his deep, dark eyes, an inexplicable rage surged through my entire body. I glared at him, and he glared back. I couldn't suppress the urge to cut him down any longer. I raised my sword and closed the distance in an instant. But before I could reach him, one of the soldiers stepped in and struck me.

"Tch!"

I endured the pain, quickly regained my balance, and readied my sword again.

"Master!"

I thought I heard Famu’s voice in the distance. In that moment, the irrational rage that had possessed me vanished. I backed away and headed for the door.

"What a pain. As long as we don’t kill him, it should be fine to rough him up a bit, right?"

the man muttered.

"Special Skill, Destruction Battleaxe!"

With his shout, the kitchen ceiling came crashing down. The space in front of me was filled with a mountain of rubble, and a thick steel wall blocked the path to the door. I looked up and saw the blue sky through a gap in the collapsed ceiling. The steel wall was being lifted towards that blue sky. The wall glittered as it melted into the blue of the sky, forming the shape of a giant battleaxe. It was swung down at the kitchen. Once again, a heavy mass of iron with a sharp blade was swung down from above. With a deafening roar, the remaining parts of the building that had withstood the first blow shattered. The battleaxe was not swung down completely, stopping with a slight gap, so I was not hit directly. But the shockwave was accompanied by a deafening roar, and a rain of rubble poured down. The soldiers were protecting Ilisarie and the otherworlder from the falling debris. I tried to use the confusion to escape towards the walkway, but a soldier struck me from behind. The dull impact and pain almost made my knees buckle. I barely managed to stay on my feet and swung my sword to shake off the soldier. But he grabbed my arm. At the same time, rubble hit my shoulders and back, and a sharp pain made me stumble. I was struck by the soldier again, and my vision went black.