Volume 4 Chapter 27 How To Raise A Sword Saint
Dahlia gaped at my suggestion.
She seemed frozen, as if she didn't understand the meaning of my words, but she quickly snapped back to reality and raised her voice in surprise.
"W-what are you talking about!? You think you can make me strong right now, that's impossible..."
At that moment, a Skull Knight charged in from behind Dahlia.
I swiftly dashed past her, maneuvering to her back, and thrust a knife at the Skull Knight.
Seeing the skeleton's head explode, Dahlia widened her eyes in shock.
She probably never expected to be rescued by me, but right now, Dahlia's strength was absolutely necessary.
I moved back closer to her and spoke in a volume that wouldn't reach the skull.
"If we don't do this, we're going to be killed anyway. If you don't want to die, then cooperate."
"B-but, I'm not able to..."
Dahlia looked down, lacking confidence.
Although it wasn't exactly to encourage her, I cast magic to make it easier to persuade her.
"[Boost], [Accel]"
"──huh!?"
"With the support of my Trainer's power and Ms. Nemophila's Barrier magic for protection, you can fight safely even as you are now. The acquisition rate of divine growth points from the skeleton knight is also quite high, so as long as you're within the support skill's effective range, you can rapidly grow in a short time. So, once again, take revenge against the skull."
"..."
Dahlia widened her eyes at the grave.
After seeing the desperate scene of skeleton knights rampant around her, she tore at her long light pink hair and pulled out her long sword.
"Oh, come on! When I die, I'll come out as a ghost!"
"If that happens, don't worry, you'll defeat him."
Seeing Dahlia's fighting spirit once again, Skull narrows his eyes suspiciously.
"Oh, you're going to the front lines too? What a futile, desperate effort."
It seems that our plan has gone unnoticed by the other side.
I'm right to speak in a lower voice.
We need Skull to keep sending out skeleton knights, so we can't let him find out about this plan.
While keeping that in mind, I support Dahlia's growth.
Even here, diligently nurturing someone, I couldn't help but feel exasperated, thinking I would always be "Mr. Nurturer."
"Hah!"
I take the blow from the Skull Knight, who was about to strike Dahlia, head-on and push it back.
After seeing the skeleton knight's stance greatly falter, I pulled back to switch places with Dahlia behind me.
Immediately after, Dahlia's longsword comes crashing down on the Skull Knight's shoulder.
"Se... yah!"
Thud!
As a dull sound echoes, the Skull Knight is slammed to the ground.
However, it has not been killed.
This is clear evidence that Dahlia's power is still insufficient.
Seeing the Skull Knight get back up immediately, I create another opening by sweeping its legs.
Having successfully disrupted its stance again, Dahlia swung down her longsword with a determination of "this time for sure."
"U... rah!"
Crack!
With a crunch, I shatter the skeleton body of the Skull Knight, and shards scatter around.
Finally, I've defeated one.
As I secretly breathe a sigh of relief about that, Ms. Nemophila comes up behind me, quietly asking.
"I'm... what should I do?"
"I'd appreciate it if you could keep an eye on Dahlia's barrier so it doesn't break. You don't need to worry about me."
"... Understood."
Ms. Nemophila's voice is barely audible.
But she probably knew that Dahlia and I were up to something, and came to ask if there was anything she could do.
After a short exchange with her, I once again approached one of the Skull Knights.
"Haha! So you're planning to wipe out the Skull Knights by adding the Eastern Hero? To be honest, I don't really recommend it."
While Skull conveniently misunderstood, Dahlia and I continued to fight the Skull Knights that crawled out of the graveyard, ignoring him.
I create an opening, and Dahlia slams her sword into it.
If the other side attempts to counterattack, Ms. Nemophila's Barriermagic will deflect all of it.
At first, it took 2 or 3 strikes to defeat a single enemy, but gradually the number decreased, and there were more instances where she could take them down in one hit.
Dahlia, who was supposed to have had her strength taken away, has made remarkable progress in such a short time.
[Race] Skull Knight
[Rank] B
[Divine Growth Point Acquired] 15,000
As expected, the divine growth point acquisition of "15,000" is no joke.
The Emperor Ant I defeated when I exceeded Rose had 25,000.
These skeletal knights each hold a number of divine growth points close to that.
Honestly, there probably isn't a hunting ground this good anywhere else.
Additionally, thanks to the Trainer's support skill, there's a fivefold increase in the divine growth point acquisition.
Because of that, Dahlia was quickly regaining her strength.
"Huh!"
Finally, she was able to defeat a Skull Knight all by herself, and within a short time, she had taken down a total of 20 Skull Knights.
"Hmm...?"
At that point, even the Skull noticed something was off.
Just moments ago, the once-still hero Dahlia, resembling a withered tree...
Now she was on the frontlines, gracefully slicing through the Skull Knights.
The Skull, feeling the situation anew, suddenly shouted in surprise.
"Skull Knights! Fall back immediately!"
"It's too late now!"
Commanding the skeletal knights to retreat.
The impact shatters all the surrounding Skull Knights.
Seeing the scene of most of the soldiers being defeated, Skull gritted his teeth in frustration.
There is no sign of any new skeleton knights appearing.
It seems Skull has guessed our intentions.
But it was just a little too late, as Dahlia said.
[Job Class] Sword Saint
[Level] 40
[Skill] Two-handed sword
[Magic] Holy Fire magic
[Divine Blessing]
- Strength: S+820
- Agility: S720
- Resilience: S750
- Magic: A+680
- Holy Power: A+680
Level 40.
It's not perfect, but she's regaining power close to the level limit.
Both skills and magic have returned to normal, and divine blessing has been restored to impressive levels.
"W-why is my power coming back...? How did this happen in such a short time..."
Even Skull, who had weakened Dahlia to level 1, would be the most surprised by this.
Certainly, he would think it impossible to regain the power lost in this moment.
"...It's truly hard to believe, but does someone possess an ability that promotes the growth of others? Otherwise, it wouldn't make sense. I never expected My [Graveheim] to be used in this way..."
Such insight is impressive, but he should have realized it a bit sooner.
The ability to uncontrollably spawn strong skeletal knights became a double-edged sword.
This is not a "graveyard."
Rather, it's the perfect "hunting ground" for the hero Dahlia's revival.
It was an unexpected blessing that Ms. Nemophila and I were invited here, and there likely isn't another place with such a nurturing environment.
As a result, the hero Dahlia was able to regain power close to what she had before her weakening.
"Now, let the counterattack begin"
With Dahlia's fighting spirit fully restored, Skull was clenching his teeth in anger.
At the same time, he was in a situation where he couldn't summon skeletal knights, clearly suffering.
Yes, if he were to call in skeletal knights as reinforcements here, it would only serve to make Dahlia stronger.
So Skull can't summon any more monsters to reinforce him.
This plan kills 2 birds with one stone, reviving Dahlia as a fighting force while preventing the Skull Knights from reinforcing their ranks.
"[Holy Fire (Floga)]! "
As Dahlia shouted, the long sword she was holding burst into flames like a torch.
This is not an ordinary flame.
A pure white flame that brightens the darkness.
A holy fire magic that exhibits tremendous power against monsters and is used by surrounding it with weapons──[Holy Fire (Floga)].
It's a technique that can be called the trademark of the Eastern hero, Dahlia, something I've seen time and again.
Seeing Dahlia, who has revived her will to fight, I whisper softly beside her.
"I'll make an opening by cutting into Skull, and then you can strike from there, Dahlia."
"...I never thought I'd be fighting alongside you again."
That's my line.
While I respond inwardly, I charge at Skull with my knife raised.
He swung the staff he was holding and accurately deflected my knife.
However, he doesn't retaliate.
Because of Ms. Nemophila's Barrier, if he counterattacks, he would be included in the [Judgment] target.
So, I step forward without hesitation.
Dahlia also looks for an opportunity and lunges at Skull.
The monster that I couldn't even scratch could gradually take damage by teaming up with the restored Dahlia.
"Guh──!"
The holy white flames of Holy Fire (Floga) slowly scorch Skull's physical body.
Even if he blocked the longsword with his staff, the intense heat of the white flames gnaws at his skeletal frame.
Whether it was out of displeasure or growing anger, Skull howled as if he was losing patience.
"This...! [Cursed Hand]!"
Dark mist ignites on his hand.
He forms that hand into a blade and reaches out towards me as if to pierce through.
He must have intended to break through the Barrier and cast a curse on me.
But...
K'jaam!!!
The Barrier magic cast by Princess Knight's Ms. Nemophila stopped the skull's blow without a scratch.
"[Judgment]──[Nemesis]"
In an instant, Skull suddenly knelt on the ground, as if his whole body was attached to lead.
A skill that curses anyone who attacks Ms. Nemophila's body and Barrier magic...[Judgment]──[Nemesis].
Skull's body was weakened by this and he was forced to kneel on the ground.
"My... body is not moving...!"
I didn't miss that opportunity.
"[Sharpness]!"
A silver light burst from the blade of the knife.
It's a support magic that enhances the sharpness of weapons──[Sharpness].
The sharpened blade, leaving a silver trail in the air and making a slicing sound, approached as if to swallow the skull's neck.
"U...raaah!"
Swish!
With a solid impact, the skull's head and silk hat floated in the air.
As they fell to the ground, the remaining skeleton body crumbled with a dry rattling sound.
Following suit, the skeletal knights around also scattered into bones.
Right after, a skull rolled close to my feet, and from it, a broken laugh could be heard.
"Clack, clack...! You don't think you've won, do you...?"
It seemed like there was a bit of consciousness left, throwing out words similar to a loser's lament.
And finally, he spat out a parting shot that stirred my anxiety.
"You will definitely be killed by Sir Vamph...! It's just that your lifespan was extended a little...! "
As he said this, the skull's head burned away, scattering into ashes.
Confident that we had successfully defeated the skeleton, we all let out a sigh of relief.
However, the words he had spoken crossed my mind, and I tightened the tension in my shoulders once again.
That's right, the battle isn't over yet.
In fact, this is just the beginning.
Right now, outside here, Rose and Cosmos are facing the spirit king, Vamph.
We must hurry and join them.
At that moment, the space in the graveyard that the skull had created gradually faded away, like fog clearing.
The scenery gradually changes back to the ruins where we were.
As I prepared myself to join the battle, my eyes were fixed on...
"Huh...?"
The scene was of completely ruined ruins, a clear blue sky with the chirping of birds, and no sign of any fighting.
Rather, it feels like I'm in the silence that comes after a battle.
It seems that my prediction was correct, and in the middle of the collapsed rubble I found something that I couldn't believe my eyes.
It was the figure of the Spirit King Vamph, lying on the ground covered in wounds.
"...but, could it be that it's already over?"
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