Volume 3 Chapter 23 Where Does the Fish Caught Go
*Back to Ryuuji's perspective.*
<hr>
"Alright, let's go for round 2 of this rematch."
Adiliana, completely unfazed,summoned numerous tentacles from the ground and sneered, "See how many I can pull out of my sleeve this time?"
Lene and the others' faces fell into despair.
"But first, let's put this little one out of her misery. Wouldn't want her coming back to haunt you, even if she manages to resurrect, right, heh heh..."
"Stop it──!"
Before Suzu's tearful voice could reach him, a dull *THUD* echoed through the clearing in the overgrown forest.
But that wasn't the sound of the tentacles piercing Minori's body.
The sound came from...
"......huh?"
She couldn't see Adiliana's face, which was turned away from her, but she could probably guess that she was looking utterly bewildered.
"Why is a freaking arm growing out of my chest?" she must be thinking.
"B-Big Bro Ryuuji!"
"Well, well, well, Suzu, don't tell me you're actually yelling?"
He casually pulled his right arm out of Adiliana's chest as he spoke, grabbed her by the back of the neck with his left hand, and tossed her over his shoulder.
At the same time, the ground tentacles vanished.
"Agh!?"
Adiliana was slammed against the ground and let out a shriek that wouldn't be out of place coming from a monster, far removed from her usual polite demeanor.
It's always these kinds of situations that reveal a person's true nature.
"...So, the tentacles only come out when she's touching the ground? Useful information, thanks."
The moment Adiliana floated away and vanished, I figured that was probably the case.
If it weren't for those tentacles, the damage would've dropped drastically.
Maybe blowing her away is an effective strategy after all.
"Lene, get Minori treated ASAP. I'll take care of this guy who dared to lay a hand on my family."
"Yeah... yeah!"
As I turned towards the groaning Adiliana, I heard Lene's cheerful voice from behind me.
She sounded so happy, probably because she thought I was dead.
I've got to stop worrying her like this.
"Ugh..., the enchanter Ryuuji... surely, I should have killed you..."
"Sorry to disappoint you, Adiliana. I'm still kicking. Were you seeing things with those hallucinations you created?"
Grinding her teeth in frustration, Adiliana glared at me.
I shrugged and shot back with a light-hearted remark.
Sure, I was on the brink of death, but thanks to the Magic Stone of Festarl, I made a comeback.
It was a risky bet, but I'm glad it paid off.
Still, that Magic Stone of Festarl had some unexpected side effects.
I need to be more careful with how I use it──or maybe not use it at all.
"Now, since you've messed with my family, it's time for you to die──oh, you're already dead? Well, this time you'll be completely annihilated. I was careless before, but there won't be a next time."
"Nonsense! Do you really think you can withstand this attack?"
Adiliana, like a fool who's learned nothing, sent over a dozen tentacles hurtling towards me.
The power behind them was obvious, given Minori's condition lying there──but still...
"What!? How is this possible!? I pierced through you just now!"
The tentacles couldn't reach my body at all, and Adiliana's face twisted in shock.
Unfortunately, those hands won't work anymore.
My〈Magic Stone of Great Absolute〉couldn't fully defend against it alone, but right now, I'm stacking powerful enhancements using the〈Magic Stone of Elmusca〉.
"How infuriating! Then, let's see how you handle this! Be consumed by the miasma!"
"Hmph."
As Adiliana raised her right hand, a dark mist began to swirl around us.
She called it miasma, but honestly──
"Sweet delusions."
"Guh!?!"
Ignoring the so-called miasma, I lunged at Adiliana and seized her throat with my left hand, lifting her up.
As the Dark Mage groaned, the black mist vanished.
Just as I thought.
"You may have called it miasma, but it was nothing more than an illusion. You were planning to escape under the cover of those phantoms, weren't you? Did you really think I'd back down in fear? Sorry to disappoint you, but I see right through your tricks."
"U... guh..."
If she had such a powerful technique, she would have used it a long time ago.
The fact that she hadn't only made things clearer.
"Now then, I have plenty of questions for you..."
Just as I was contemplating how to interrogate the completely captured Adiliana, something unexpected happened.
Suddenly, Adiliana rolled her eyes back and began to convulse.
Perhaps this was a result of the magic from her teammates, or maybe it was a spell she had cast on herself──it could be either.
If this was an act to lower my guard, I'd have to recommend Adiliana for a role in the theater.
"Aaa, aaaaagh!"
"...Tch."
Without much thought, I figured it was bad, so I hurled Adiliana away from my family.
Immediately after, her body erupted in a tremendous amount of smoke and started to melt away.
In the blink of an eye, Adiliana vanished, leaving behind only her Magic Core.
"...Well, I managed to protect her, so I guess I'll call this a success for now."
Even though I felt like I'd lost the fish I'd been reeling in, I told myself that as I heard the Magic Core shatter with a *crack*.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)