[V8C18] Ice Chunk Attack

The ever-expanding Rose Fortress towered before them, protected by an army of rose dragons and rose soldiers, whose numbers also continued to multiply. Perhaps this excessive display of force was intended to showcase the Thorn Witch’s overwhelming power.

“Wow, that’s pretty amazing.”

Thule murmured in a relaxed tone, causing Pikeh to frown with discontent.

“Not really. I can do it too.”

“You had better not,” Cyril promptly interjected from his position on Thule’s back. However, Pikeh ignored him and waved her right hand again.

Her fingertips began sparkling with diamond dust, which soon gathered to form replicas of the dragons and soldiers. She had created an army of ice sculptures equal in number to the forces of the Thorn Witch.

That said, the replicas of the ice spirit Ashelpikeh were all remarkably well-crafted.

Unlike the deformed dragons and soldiers made from intertwined rose vines, her dragon sculptures had every detail reproduced, down to the last scale. Even the armor and weapons of her soldiers were covered in intricate decorations. They were so life-like that they might start moving at any moment.

But they didn’t, because they lacked the vitality of the rose vines.

The rose dragons bore their fangs and the rose soldiers swung their arms. Meanwhile, the ice sculptures simply stood there motionless, as expected of literal statues.

“Go.”

But once Pikeh gave the command, the ice replicas danced into the air, before showering back down on the deformed rose monsters. The exquisitely crafted sculptures charged in, and with resounding thuds, cracked apart in a spectacular display.

The heads and limbs of the broken sculptures were strewn across the ground, making the scene seem more violent than it actually was.

“D-Did you really need to make them sculptures…?” Cyril asked with a grown, to which Pikeh responded with an expressionless face.

“It looks cooler with sculptures.”

What an incredible waste of mana. Launching chunks of ice would have sufficed, and honestly, throwing some rocks seemed like it might achieve a similar result.

That said, these ice sculptures contained a great deal of mana in addition to their momentum, making them decently effective. The rose army was forced to halt its advance.

——Meanwhile, a certain someone was silently waiting for the Thorn Witch to pause her offensive.

＊　＊　＊

(…Now!)

Monica, who had been waiting outside the barrier for the right moment to intervene, took this chance to lift the magical battle barrier.

Raul and Pikeh may have appeared evenly matched, but the current Raul was completely unpredictable. Moreover, Pikeh had the inherent disadvantage of being forced to protect Thule and Cyril.

Above all, Monica could do nothing if Raul’s vines managed to recapture Cyril. Thus, if she were to act, it had to be now.

With the sudden disappearance of the barrier surrounding them, both Raul and Pikeh were momentarily distracted.

Taking advantage of those few seconds, Monica completed her magical formula. This was her most powerful spell, which only a handful of advanced mages could perform.

“——Open the gate.”

A large magic circle appeared in the skies of the Thorn Forest. And floating at its center was the shining gate for summoning the Spirit King.

And this gate promptly opened without a sound.

“Come forth from the edge of silence, Spirit King of Wind, Shefield!”

Blades of wind began to rain down at random——or rather, following an order known only to Monica.

Summoning the Spirit King was Monica’s most powerful means of attack.

In this veritable galestorm of sparkling wind, the Man-Eating Rose Fortress was torn apart and blown away, along with all of the rose dragons and rose soldiers.

The shredded vines began writhing like snakes, dripping sap in place of blood. However, new vines quickly sprouted from the severed edges. Both the soldiers and dragons were regenerating at a terrifying speed.

Thus, Monica sent forth another shower of wind blades.

Monica had already consumed a considerable amount of mana maintaining the magical battle barrier, so she could not keep the summoning gate open for very long.

Nevertheless, she continued to diligently chip away at the Man-Eating Rose Fortress.

Perhaps noticing Monica’s intent, Pikeh swapped from ice sculptures to ice daggers and joined in on the effort.

Meanwhile, standing in the center of the scattered vines, the Thorn Witch turned her head slightly to glare at Monica.

“——Spirit King Summoning, I see… What a luxurious diversion.”

She had noticed the diversion.

Either way, there was nothing else Monica could do. With cold sweat forming on her cheeks, Monica concentrated everything into maintaining the summoning gate.

＊　＊　＊

As Monica diverted Raul’s attention with the Spirit King Summoning, Isaac approached the Rose Fortress while invoking detection magic.

(…There it is.)

He had discovered a magical reaction within the scattered clumps of vines.

Isaac drew the dagger hidden under his jacket. Not a small knife for self-defense, but one with a thick double-edged blade.

After slicing through the mass of thorny vines, he thrust in his blanket-wrapped left hand to pluck out the jet-black ring hidden within——the Key of Knowledge Sophocles.

“Oh, the pie baker! You have done well coming to my rescue!”

“I don’t mind if you forget my name, but would you at least remember my esteemed master?”

Saying this, Isaac held Sophocles above his head. There, the ring had a clear view of the summoning gate of the Spirit King, as well as wind blades flying down with astonishing accuracy.

“Here we have the one and only master of chantless magic in the entire world——Silent Witch Monica Everett of the Seven Sages. She’s also my esteemed master. By the way, five of her theses are stored within the Ascard Library. Shall I read you the titles?”

“S-So that little girl is…?”

As Sophocles stumbled over his words, Isaac continued with a smug smile.

“Now then, I could be the one to use you… or would rather choose your own master? What will it be, Sophocles?”

“Ugh…”

Isaac decided to interpret that groan as an affirmative response.

Meanwhile, the nearby vines rustled forth to surround Isaac. Setting her sights on this newcomer, the Thorn Witch put on a slight smile.

“…Black… I like men with black hair. I’ll make sure to plant a beautiful rose on your grave.”

“Unfortunately, my hair is only dyed black,” Isaac retorted.

The regenerated vines took on the form of a soldier, which promptly thrust its spear-like arm at Isaac.

Isaac dodged the thrust with a slight sidestep, then severed the arms of the rose soldier with his dagger. At the same time, wind blades came flying to cleave what was left of the rose soldier in two. Monica was backing him up.

Spirit King Summoning was one of the most powerful spells in existence, thereby making it one of the most challenging to control. And no one but Monica could wield this power with such precision.

(My master really is the best.)

After silently offering his praises, Isaac swapped the dagger to his left hand and gripped the ring tightly with his right.

“Cyril!”

Hearing his name called, Cyril raised his head off of Thule’s back to see Isaac throwing Sophocles in his direction.

“Stop handling me so carelessly…!”

The screaming Sophocles flew through the air before landing in the hands of a reluctant-looking Pikeh.

＊　＊　＊

Hearing his beloved prince calling his name, Cyril lifted his head to see Isaac throwing something at him. It was a jet-black ring——the Key of Knowledge Sophocles.

Pikeh caught the ring and turned to Cyril with a serious expression.

“Can I break it?”

She had completely failed to understand Isaac’s intentions.

Meanwhile, Cyril descended from Thule’s back and extended his hand to Pikeh.

“…Give it here.”

“Okay.”

Cyril took the ring from Pikeh, but he was conflicted about putting it on. He clearly lacked the qualifications to use the Key of Knowledge.

(This is all the result of my foolish mistakes… I was far too weak to challenge Raul from the beginning, yet I got Monica and His Highness involved in my stupidity. I even allowed the Key of Knowledge to be stolen from my very finger…)

Cyril bit his lips in self-reflection, but this was interrupted by a shout from Sophocles.

“What are you doing?! Hurry up and put me on!”

“But…”

“If you don’t hurry, that man will die, devoured by the roses!”

Cyril immediately turned his gaze towards Isaac to see him surrounded by rose soldiers.

The arms of the rose soldiers were both as flexible as a whip and as sharp as a spear. In contrast, Isaac could do little but protect himself with the single dagger in his hands.

Monica was supporting him with wind blades, but against the constantly multiplying vines, they would eventually be overwhelmed.

“——Your Highness! …Is there any way I can save him!?”

“Who do you think I am? You are speaking to the guardian of the Ascard Library’s Forbidden Archives. Many call me the Keeper of…”

“If you know a way, hurry up and tell me!”

As a reminder, Cyril was hesitating to put on the ring just a few moments ago.

Seeing this quick change in temperament, Sophocles let out a dissatisfied sigh before saying, “Put me on.”

Cyril promptly slipped the jet-black ring onto the middle finger of his right hand, and the glossy black opal emitted a rainbow of color.

Soon enough, a pattern appeared on Cyril’s middle finger, with the ring at its center. This was the contract mark of the ancient artifact.

“Raise your hand to the sky.”

Once Cyril raised his right hand as told, his fingers began moving on their own.

With the tip of his middle finger emitting a golden light, Cyril’s hand began drawing a magical formula in the air using that light in place of ink.

“How beautiful,” Thule murmured, smiling as he observed the scene with his golden eyes.

Once finished, the magical formula drawn in the air flew forth to wrap around Raul like a sash. Raul immediately moved to flee the encirclement, but the shower of wind blades blocked off all escape routes.

“In the name of the Key of Knowledge Sophocles, you shall be sealed away.”

The golden sash surrounding Raul spread out into a thin screen, before enveloping him completely.

Sophocles had invoked a barrier from the ancient era, back when the creatures known as monsters still roamed the world freely. This barrier was powerful enough to seal said monsters.

Raul Roseberg’s vast mana reserves allowed him to forcefully break through most ordinary barriers. However, this one included a formula that separated Raul from all mana, even his own.

The grotesque vine creatures lost their power one after another, falling lifelessly to the ground. The severed vines on the ground no longer wriggled like serpents.

This barrier had the power to nullify all magic, and the mental interference magic placed on Raul by House Roseberg was no exception.

Raul drooped his head lifelessly inside the barrier. His curly hair, as red as a rose, fell to conceal his face.

“…Raul?”

Hearing Cyril call his name, Raul slowly raised his head.

Would that vacant expression twist into the sadistic smile of the First Thorn Witch once more…? Or perhaps…?

“Whoa, I can’t feel my mana!? This is so weird. It’s not like my mana ran out, I just can’t feel it at all, like a limb that suddenly vanished… Oh Cyril, is the test over?”

What appeared on his finely sculpted face was an overly cheerful and carefree smile.

Seeing Raul vigorously waving his hands within the barrier, Cyril felt so relieved that he even surprised himself.

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