S-Class Monster (2)

-Uuurrrggghhh!!!

It was a bizarre noise.
It was unmistakably the voice of a flying beast.
Yet, it was unlike any other beast’s voice.

It had the majesty of a tiger’s roar.
And the mystical resonance of a dragon’s bellow.

No one watching dared to breathe.

Such was the majesty emanating from the beast in the sky.

No, from the divine beast.

-Uuurrrggghhh!!!

The divine beast raised its head again and shouted.

It was the same eerie cry as before, but this time it was imbued with magic.

The cry soon transformed into a unique, tangible force, sweeping over the bewildered <Order>’s crusaders.

A powerful area debuff.
Fortunately, it was the <Order> specialized in recovery and purification.
They dispelled it immediately, but the problem was the morale plummeted severely.

―I-Is this right? It’s not the Yellow Dragon?
―Wait a minute… then doesn’t that change the entire plan?
―W-We should retreat for now…
―If we retreat now, the area will be devastated. We must fight here.

The unexpected emergence of an unknown enemy.

And this chaos affected Bishop Empty Head the most.

Bishop Empty Head couldn’t even think to close her gaping mouth as she stared at the Kirin.

‘Th-This can’t be happening?’

She stepped back a pace.

She wanted to turn around and run to the tent where Shibasaki Ryuko was.

To grab her by the shoulders and demand an explanation.

But she couldn’t do that.

“Bishop Empty Head! Please command the operation!”

The messenger shouted, kneeling on one knee.
Bishop Empty Head swallowed dryly.
Looking ahead, countless priests and paladins were staring at her.

It was a familiar gaze for Bishop Empty Head.

An experience she had encountered countless times.

Bishop Empty Head clenched her fist.

The sense of having fought long battles in the name of holy war was screaming within her.

Turning back to the tent at this moment would mean certain defeat.

The morale was already dampened.

If it were to drop further, they would lose all the unique advantages of the <Divine Law> and fall into panic.

Bishop Empty Head clenched her fist.

‘I must do it.’

She needed to instill the certainty that they could win and take the monster’s head.

Boom!

Bishop Empty Head infused her armored fist with holy power and struck her armor.

It was a signal of vibration.

“We will start the operation now!”
“Yes!”

True to her name, Bishop Empty Head had an empty mind.

But she saw it as a good thing.

What does it matter if it’s not a Yellow Dragon?

In the end, isn’t it just a beast without proper intelligence?

“Immediately aim the prepared Dragon Slayer at it!”
“B-Bishop! The opponent is not a dragon. It’s a completely different divine beast–”
“Shut up and prepare!”
“Y-Yes!”

The lieutenant, startled by Bishop Empty Head’s empty command, quickly spread the word.

Creeeak!

The sound of metal being drawn.

The proud ‘Dragon Slayer,’ prepared at the cost of hundreds of billions, was aimed at the sky.

The Bishop crossed her arms and looked at the Kirin.

Rumble!

The quadruped beast, holding thunder in its mouth, looked down at them.

She didn’t like it.

‘Only the sky permitted by the Lord. To look down on us from there…’

I’ll drop you from there right now!

Soon, the news came that the massacre cannon was ready.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Empty Head raised the mace, illuminating the flash.

“Fire!!!”

Shoo-qua-qua-quack!!!

The dragon-slaying cannon fired a gigantic, monstrous spear.

Although the costly bestowed ‘Dragon Slayer’ was meaningless, the ballista’s powerful firepower began to embed the monstrous spear into the Kirin’s body.

As the Kirin writhed in pain, both the morale of the crusaders and Empty Head’s confidence in victory surged.

-Kkweeeeeek!

The Kirin began its counterattack in earnest.
A blue electric charge gathered on its horn.

“O great crusaders! Raise your shields! The Lord is with us!”

The holy power surged like a wave.
In the front, 300 B-grade paladins raised their enchanted shields, blessed with all sorts of protection.

Kwa-kwa-kwa! Kwar-reung!

The deafening roar.
The raging thunderstorm.

Though individually weak, the power of the collective is the hallmark of the <Order>.

Perhaps because of this.

They successfully blocked the Kirin’s strike.

Empty Head did not let her guard down.

No matter how brainless she seemed, the experience of leading countless holy wars to victory was invaluable.

Now, she had to seize this momentum and cement it into victory.

“Prepare to attack!”

The dragon-slaying cannon reloaded.
Priests amplified each other’s holy power, unleashing their attack spells.

The tide of battle gradually turned in favor of the <Order>.

“Good!”

We can win.
We can win!

Defeat that vile monster and offer the treasure bestowed by the Lord. The key to the S-grade [Treasure Room] to others.

Finally, the saintesses who couldn’t achieve anything descended, and under the support of Shibasaki Ryuko, she ascended to the position of saintess.

Empty Head dreamed of a sweet future where she would rise more than anyone else.

Crackle!

That was until ‘Kirin’ suddenly activated a ‘special gimmick.’

Rumble!!!

There was no sign or warning.

Just as Kirin signaled with a glance, four pillars erupted.

Centering around the warriors of the Order, pillars rose in the east, west, south, and north.

From the pillars made of water, fire, wind, and rock, the Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, White Tiger, and Black Tortoise emerged.

It was the appearance of powerful divine beasts, each deemed at least A-grade.

The priests, who had concentrated all their firepower solely on Kirin, were caught off guard.

One knight stared blankly at the White Tiger that appeared before him.

“Growl!”
“Wh-Whoa?”

The knight hastily raised his shield against the White Tiger’s claws, which swung like a surprise attack.

Crunch!

He thought he’d be crushed like an insect… but?

“Huh?”

The knight who managed to block it found himself unharmed.
Only his shield was slightly scratched.

Soon, the forms of the divine beasts became half-transparent…
They realized they were essentially illusions materialized by power.

“…What? It’s nothing much?”

This fact spread quickly.

Empty Head, who was observing the battlefield, quickly realized this too.

Empty Head laughed heartily as if she couldn’t hold back her laughter.

“As expected, the creatures summoned by such insignificant beasts are equally worthless!”

Empty Head infused holy power into the tactical artifact around her neck.

“Ignore them; don’t be afraid of such trivial illusions! Concentrate all firepower on that flying beast!”

Following the command, the crusaders ignored the divine beasts.

Powerful firepower poured onto the ‘Kirin’ for several minutes.

Finally, the time had come to pay the price for reckless actions.

Rumble!

“Wh-what…?!”
“The divine beasts are disappearing!”

The divine beasts, which had been attacking indiscriminately, soon turned into light and dispersed like particles, being absorbed by the Kirin.

Despite the sudden change in circumstances, Empty Head only ordered, “Attack, attack!”

Even she belatedly came to her senses in the face of a wave of magic of a different grade than before.

“Wh-what is this?!”
“B-bishop! The K-Kirin’s appearance!”
“…?!”

Empty Head saw it clearly.
The rainbow-colored aurora emanating from the Kirin’s body after absorbing all the divine beasts…

The natural disaster of the surrounding clouds turning pitch black and gathering.

It was undoubtedly a wave of power surpassing that of an S-grade monster.

Empty Head trembled.
The emotion of fear slowly crept up.

“D-don’t be ridiculous! I-I’m a chosen person. A bishop!!!”

She raised her mace.

Fired the Hero-grade divine law [Flash of Repentance] at the Kirin.

The Kirin, unscathed by the strike, looked at Empty Head with eyes full of thunder.

As if judging on behalf of a god.

The Kirin struck lightning towards Empty Head.

That was the end.

“Aaaaah!!!”

Empty Head screamed in pain.
In less than a second, she was charred black, transforming into what was once Empty Head.

In an instant.

Roll.

Empty Head rolled her eyes.

She saw clearly in the moment of death.

-A smirk.

The woman with the tear mole who had shouted to support her, sparing no support and help.

Shibasaki Ryuko.

She was smirking.

Bishop Empty Head is dead.

Burned to a crisp, leaving no proper form behind, she died instantly on the spot.

A deathly silence ensued.
Voices filled with anxiety seeped out from all around.

“…Uh, uh?”
“…Did the Bishop just… die?”
“Then, who will lead? No, wait. If we attack now!”
“No, it’s impossible… How do we catch that? It’s not even hurt!”

To be honest, that wasn’t true.

The Kirin was clearly dripping white blood, wearing an expression of wrath.

Regardless of the bishop’s sudden death, it was evident that the damage had accumulated.

It wasn’t obvious, but still.
The attacks on the Kirin weren’t entirely meaningless.

But what good is that?
What does it mean?
What does it matter?

The commander died in vain.

The crusaders hesitated, not knowing what to do.

With a brilliant blue lightning ready to judge from the sky above, the ‘divine beast’ loomed before them.

A creeping sense of fear began to spread among everyone.

And fear is highly contagious.

This became the catalyst for the rapid collapse of the front lines.

Boom!!!
Crash!!!

“Kyaaah!”
“Ah, ah! Everyone, take cover!!”
“No! If we leave the battlefield now, we can’t maintain the divine law… Ugh!”

Screams of chaos erupted.
Those gripped by fear fled in all directions, and those who fled became the Kirin’s first targets, torn apart by the judgment of lightning.

-Screeeech!!!

The Kirin itself had grown stronger over time.

But the panic weakening the sect’s unique cohesion caused even greater issues.

The leisurely slaughtering giraffe.

Was it a stroke of luck?

Even in this situation, there were those who did not give up.

“Block, block!!!”
“If we fall, everyone dies!!!”
“We must not let them reach the evacuated citizens!!!”

150 <Main Tank> Crusaders who had long been loyal to the <Order>.
They defended against the Kirin’s attacks without a single step back.
Because of them, a complete collapse was prevented.

However…

It was merely a stalling tactic.

In the end, a commander to break through the situation and a powerful force to end the ‘Kirin’s’ life were needed.

The herald, who grasped the situation first, rushed to the tent.

“Reporting the situation!!!”

The herald shouted urgently, sliding to her knees.

The recipients of the report were two trembling girls holding each other’s shoulders.

Natsu & Yuri.

The saintesses designated by the Order and the ones in charge.

“Forgive my rudeness! This is urgent!”

The herald reported the damage situation like a rapid-fire gun.

And as the names of the deceased mentioned by her echoed…

The two trembled even more.

No matter how vast their divine power, they were only ten-year-old children.

They witnessed death with their own eyes.

They recognized the smell of burning human flesh from the acrid scent brushing their noses.

The cries of “Help me!” ringing in their ears carried a bloody hallucination.

Finally, the herald’s bloodshot eyes pleading, “Saintesses… please give us orders!” instilled an obsession.

“Ah, uh. Well, that… so.”
“…Ah, ah…”

The saintesses who couldn’t string words together properly.

A chilling yet irresistible hand descended on their shoulders.

Like the touch of a ghost.
Another kind of fear tightened its grip on the two of them.

“…!”
“…!”
“Oh dear, the situation doesn’t look good.”

Shibasaki Ryuko.

The one who had laughed bitterly at the death of Empty Head, now issued a cruel command with a calm face.

“Tell everyone to hold out with all their might and risk their lives.”
“…!”

The messenger flinched.

She was at least smarter than Empty Head.

She realized that it was no different from being told to go out and die.

“B-bishop! T-that is–”
“I’m speaking for everyone. Don’t overstep your bounds.”

At the warning, the messenger clamped her mouth shut.
Shibasaki smiled at this.

“Just 5 minutes, hold out for just 5 minutes. In the meantime, I’ll devise a strategy for victory.”
“…Understood.”

Shibasaki Ryuko looked at the messenger.
As soon as she left, she rummaged through a corner storage and pulled out a saddle.

She approached the trembling saintesses.

“Saintess?”
“…Ah, ah…”
“……”

Then she whispered.

Words so unexpected.

Words that were utterly incomprehensible.

Even Natsu, who was usually brave, and Yuri, who was too timid to ever question, both asked, “…Huh?”

Shibasaki Ryuko smiled gently and said again.

“Let’s escape.”

Just the three of us.