1162: Hell's Powers

Maleficent stood against the rampaging giant mech with his divine sword unleashed.

The man’s voice rang out over the soldiers running for cover.

「You’d better run if you don’t want to die! Escape before my mind is overcome with wrath!」

Maleficent was indeed trembling with anger, though he still seemed capable of proper thought. Judging by that phrasing, is he implying that he will eventually lose it?

Looks like he meant it quite literally.

（Maleficent grew horns from his head.）

『I can sense a demonic power…』

We heard the wielder of Hell has access to demonic powers, but it might be more complicated than just summoning demons.

『Oi! Girl! Sword!』

「!」

『Huh? Is this Maleficent’s voice…?』

『Get out of here! I can’t have Persona getting sad if you die!』

Eh? He knows about me? That’s something I’ve been wondering about for a while.

During our battle with Roaneth, I called out to him via telepathy. Maleficent and Persona have obviously heard me before.

Yet they never mentioned the incident. Maybe things were so hectic that they forgot about it, or they passed it off as hearing non-existent voices. At least, that’s what I thought.

Yeah, even I have to admit that would be way too convenient. But how are we supposed to ask “Did you remember that voice from before?” or “Did you realize this sword is an Intelligence Weapon?”

In the end, we just kinda lost our chance to ask…

And of course, Maleficent never forgot. That fact that he called me a sword is enough. No clue why he kept silent until now, but that’s not important anymore.

（Is Persona okay?）

『Yeah, she’s fine.』

Only when talking about Persona did his voice turn kind, showing not even a hint of anger. That said, he reverted back immediately.

『Ahh…! I can’t hold it in anymore! Hurry up and run! I’ll fucking kill you too!』

His situation appears to be more pressing than I thought.

（Last question! Where’s Cysanth!）

『That old man got devoured by the tool used to summon this silver thing!』

Seriously?! So he got sacrificed to summon the mech? I haven’t seen him since it appeared, but I was assuming he simply got kidnapped via teleportation or something…

『Just go already!』

『Fran, we need to run!』

「…Nn.」

No way we can afford to get caught in the middle of that. We retreated to Fort Elent, watching out for any stray bullets. However, not even this fort is completely safe.

「Jean! The fort is in danger too!」

「Indeed it is. Tell the adventurers to continue falling back. I shall notify the nobles.」

「Will it work?」

Fran worried the nobles might refuse to listen, as she knew how stupid they could be.

「Fuhaha! Leave it to me. Even if the nobles refuse, I swear to get the knights and soldiers to safety!」

「Okay.」

We can rest assured that the nobles can’t screw around too much if Jean presses them.

Less than five minutes later, the entire Kranzel army began retreating from Fort Elent. It seems the nobles understood they could not afford any delay.

One look at the battle between Maleficent and the mech, and even an idiot could understand that the fort’s walls are meaningless.

We forcibly broke through the walls to expand our escape route, and gave first aid with wide-ranged healing spells. I feel bad for the injured soldiers forced to run, but it’s better than dying.

The intense battle finally reached Fort Elent. The mech’s laser rays blew through the walls with ease, as Maleficent’s poison melted a portion of the fort and the surrounding mountains.

「GYAAAAH!」

「H-Help…」

We heard the screams of soldiers who failed to make it in time, getting caught in the middle of it all.

Our army managed to escape the fort mostly intact, though we suffered casualties from stray hits on multiple occasions.

Fran and I took the role of rearguard, so we saw everything from a short distance away.

I know Hell is a divine sword capable of controlling poison, but its abilities appear more versatile than I expected.

The poison feature was, of course, very potent. It could create poisons with corrosive or acidic effects, as displayed by the sludge melting some nearby cliffs into a smoking mush. Simply touching that would be enough to kill someone.

Hell was also an effective shield due to its power to reflect attacks. Seems to work against both physical and magic.

Another remarkable feature was the ability to manipulate space. Maleficent could both draw in his opponent or push them away, which he displayed on the heavenly dragon earlier. This was apparently different from simple teleportation.

Judging by the blade’s shape and name, maybe this is a property of the “gate” part?

Another surprise was its summoning ability. The Nethergate Blade suddenly grew into a 5 meter by 5 meter square. The doors flew open once again, and 30 figures jumped out.

（Demons!）

『Yeah, but they don’t seem that strong.』

Even your average demon is like Threat Level C, but these appeared to be on the weaker side. Compared to Diabolos, another divine sword capable of summoning demons, these ones seemed almost disappointing.

Well, I suppose Diabolos is completely focused on summoning, while this is just one of Hell’s many powers.

Meanwhile, the Raydoss side was not to be outdone.

The mech was durable enough to withstand Hell’s onslaught and deal heavy blows in return. Hell managed to repel all of its attacks, but anything capable of challenging a divine sword head on is terrifying enough.

Though unable to fly, it glided lightly on the ground with the rollers on its feet, blasting rays of light all the while. The right arm was equipped with a chainsaw blade and the left had a mana cannon. I can’t call it anything but a mecha.

Nameless and the others fought alongside the mech, but they had trouble once Maleficent summoned additional demons to attack them.

「The fort…!」

『Looks like Maleficent is really losing it now!』

A tsunami of poison slammed into the fort, which began gradually melting into a pile of sludge. Maleficent must be getting serious.

『Make sure you’re ready to run at a moment’s notice.』

「Nn.」

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