“What… is that?”
Even in that chaos, the brown horse that had been galloping bravely stopped in place and trembled, seemingly terrified. Perhaps it felt the vivid fear of those mounted on the saddle. Anya tried to reassure Mil by stroking his mane, but even his own fingertips were trembling finely, so it was utterly useless.
“……”
Finally, the moon slowly crossed the black sky and moonlight dimly illuminated their surroundings. The giant shadow looming at the bridge entrance gradually lifted, and first appeared a beast’s foot with sharp, massive claws. The moment he felt his eyes meet eerily glowing blue eyes in the darkness, wings stretched membrane-like between three claws as tall as a small child flapped and it roared.
“…We… we have to run!”
Its head turned with a creak, then it walked toward Anya and Bluoa with thudding footsteps that shook what was close by. As the surrounding puddles began to freeze with a crackling sound, a scream of fear and horror burst from Bluoa’s mouth.
“It’s a demon!”
It was a demon. The demon’s face revealed in the downpour was bizarrely mangled in the form of a bat rather than human. Instead of shiny black eyeballs, it had eerily blue eyes. Bluoa made a retching sound and tried to vomit again. Fortunately, thanks to forcefully covering his mouth, he was able to avoid such an unseemly sight this time.
Anya hastily turned the reins while calming Mil, who was trembling with anxiety. But to make matters worse, the black assailants’ warhorses were chasing them, having perhaps shaken off the ghoul pack from where they had fled. It was a moment of being caught between a rock and a hard place—unable to advance forward or retreat backward.
“Whoa!”
The black knights hastily stopped their horses, perhaps startled by the sight of the demon standing guard at the bridge. When the demon flapped its wings, the surrounding trees swayed in strong winds. Anya and Bluoa bent their waists to avoid falling from their saddles.
And in an instant, the demon that had flown into the sky seemed to cover the moon for a moment, then descended toward them at rapid speed. Anya’s eyes widened greatly.
“L-lower your body!”
Bluoa hastily bent his waist at Anya’s cry. Anya quickly spurred Mil to avoid the demon’s attack. The demon passed Anya and snatched up one of the assailants with its sharp front claws, then gripped him as if crumpling a sheet of paper. The sound of bones crunching could be heard clearly even in the downpour. Bluoa shook his head with his ears covered.
The assailant went limp in the demon’s front claws without even screaming. The giant claws picked up the corpse and put it into its mouth with a bizarre laugh. Crunch, crunch. The sound of the corpse being chewed inside the demon’s wet mouth rang out.
“…Have you even fought such things?”
Haha. Bluoa looked half-crazed. He asked Anya with a face pale enough that it wouldn’t be strange if he died right now. Anya dismounted from Mil and readjusted his grip on Haebing. Sweat kept forming under his palm.
“……Yes.”
He seemed frightened, but in a way it also seemed he was just tense… no, in a way it was a strangely calm and crisp answer. In other words, strangely reassuring.
“Yes, then you’ll be able to protect me. Very reliable… what!?”
So Bluoa, who had been leisurely drawing out his response, suddenly widened his eyes and shouted. Anya looked up at Bluoa from below the horse. The man was looking down at him with a strange gaze that said, ‘When did you even dismount!’ Anya spoke quietly as if reciting.
“I didn’t kill it though….”
Lord Evernight killed it.
“I f-fought it though.”
Of course, it was closer to human form than such a gigantic demon beast as now.
“Before.”
Anya could still vividly recall the demon that had opened its giant mouth toward him in Northernmost, craving gluttony. Evernight had said in the cave—if you die beyond the barrier engulfed in enormous desire right before death, that unrealized desire manifests and sometimes becomes a terrible form of demon. Then what was that disgusting bat-like demon? Was it once human too? Then… who makes them like that?
“I will….”
Glancing back, the black knights were still breathing unpleasantly through their iron masks while holding long swords. Having just lost a comrade to that terrifying demon, they were watching the situation for the moment.
Those in difficulty were the same. Since they would also want to live, they wouldn’t readily launch an attack in front of the rampaging demon for a while. Then the person who would die first while staying like this was probably… Bluoa Shonda, who wasn’t skilled in swordsmanship.
“I’ll dr-draw the demon’s attention toward those assailants. Please cross the bridge in that gap, sir, and then send r-reinforcements here.”
“Your Highness!”
His face said what nonsense are you talking about.
“I’m sorry but I’ll b-borrow your bow.”
It was a face he had consistently considered docile. This brat won the honor duel in Tildyen ruled by that monster-like Evernight? Toward the arrogant Montrose delivering that news, he had sneered, ‘He probably used honey trap tactics with that pretty face.’ He had believed without doubt there must be some inside story. But looking back now… he was dying of shame at his own arrogance.
Bluoa couldn’t take his eyes off Anya. And as if entranced, he handed over the bow. The boy’s touch and gaze handling the longbow’s shaft were delicate. Soon Anya, who had nocked an arrow on the bowstring, aimed the arrowhead toward the demon.
“Let’s go together! I can’t go alone!”
Bluoa cried out urgently. Instead of answering, Anya kicked Mil’s shin with his foot. Then Mil lifted his front legs once and began to run. And simultaneously he released the bowstring. The arrow flew rapidly in a straight line and lodged into the demon’s thick body. The demon began to roar, baring its sharp teeth. Its blue eyeballs rolled smoothly toward Anya.
“Your Highness!”
Meanwhile, Mil carrying Bluoa galloped quickly toward the bridge. Bluoa grabbed the reins and tried to stop Mil hastily, but the already startled horse didn’t stop easily.
Drool dripped from the demon’s mouth as incomprehensible language flowed out. Like the cold snow storm that had blown beyond the barrier, it was a voice that was bleak and made one’s knees weak just to hear. Somehow it seemed like mockery too.
As if it had noticed Anya’s move, it struck the bridge with its long tail. Anya’s eyes widened in an instant.
He had failed. Thinking so, his heart began to pound madly as if it weren’t his own.
“Lord Bluoa, be careful!”
Anya screamed in horror. The demon had too easily noticed Anya’s attitude of wanting to protect Bluoa. It had intelligence.
Fortunately, Bluoa barely managed to stop his horse before falling below the broken bridge.
“I’m fine!”
Bluoa shouted while trembling all over.
Anya pulled the bowstring once more before it could run to Bluoa. His arms trembled because he wasn’t accustomed to the method of holding a longbow.
‘The weakest part. The weakest part.’
Anya repeated only that inwardly and released the bow. The arrow flew and lodged precisely in the demon’s eyeball.
As the demon began to rampage, the ground began to shake enough to make bodies sway. As if that became a signal, the black knights who had been silently watching the situation began rushing toward Anya. Anya hastily drew his sword. It was insufficient to block the long sword of someone galloping at a terrifying speed on horseback.
“Your Highness!”
Anya’s body floated and was thrown into the mud. Before he could even wipe away the muddy water splattered all over his face, the black warhorse changed direction and charged again. Feeling a tingling sensation as if something was broken somewhere, Anya immediately got up from his position. His whole body hurt as if shattered, but feeling pain was also a luxury at this moment.
《A foul smell.》
《The foul smell is so strong I absolutely cannot sleep.》
At that moment, like a ray of hope, Dragcals’ voice was heard in his head. Anya shouted unconsciously as gladness and simultaneous irritation rushed over him.
“You…! You, coming now!”
《All this time I couldn’t keep my eyes open because of the humans’ disgusting romantic antics. He is clearly Andalr’s descendant…….》
Anya’s face turned red as he tightly gripped Haebing toward the black warhorse charging once more from far away.
“W-we made a contract! Dragcals, because you keep appearing and disappearing, I….”
…was lonely. Anya felt aggrieved but forcibly swallowed the rest of his words. The spirit still questioned in an indifferent voice.
《Contractor, the energy inside the human’s belly… keeps pressing me down and I need to adapt. Intense and cold… energy that should not exist in this world….》
Somehow at those words, this life form that wasn’t acknowledged by anyone suddenly seemed pitiful and resentment surged. But Anya quickly shook his head and brushed away the thoughts.
“I might d-die. Help me. If I die, you die too.”
And this baby too….
《As the price of the contract, we gave our heart to you. Our heart only awakens and beats by the contractor’s blood.》
Over the spirit’s voice whose gender still couldn’t be determined, simultaneously a black knight swung his long sword. Anya dodged by leaning his waist back and rolled his body sideways.
‘There’s no time to delay. We’ll all be eaten.’
And he began to run. Toward the demon.
The black knights hesitated and stopped walking.
“Your Highness, forgive my rude words and actions… forget that, are you crazy!”
Bluoa, standing precariously at the edge of the broken bridge, screamed shrilly and collapsed as if his legs had given out. Fortunately, as if the distraction worked, the demon now completely turned its massive body from Bluoa and stood facing Anya.
“Damn it, he’s really gone mad!”
Anya’s actions were practically no different from suicide. How could he eliminate such a gigantic demon alone? Just before, making the observer flustered by suddenly talking to himself at the air… His Highness the Prince had clearly lost his mind from extreme fear.
In the deathly silence, the demon’s wings spread wide. And Anya simultaneously bit his finger hard. Vivid red blood spread out onto the ground drip by drip. A distance of only a few steps from the demon. He stopped walking.
Blood was still dripping from his finger. The demon’s eye color deepened and contracted tightly.
“……”
Anya quietly met the blue eyes that seemed like they would freeze everything, would surely bring deep darkness to this world, while placing his blood-soaked hand on the ground. Then the spirit’s characters engraved in a circular band around his wrist glowed red.
“Dragcals.”
