After the simple dinner, we were passing our time differently.
Mary and Nina both returned inside the tent early. I noticed it a long time ago but the citizens of this world were all early sleepers. Only a handful were like me who stayed awake after dinner.
I headed towards the carriage with a bundle of Luminescence Scrolls. As I was already given permission, I would be making use of that time efficiently.
I heard that we would be travelling for half a whole day tomorrow. I will instead sleep during that time. Efficiency first.
I don't know what Blaire was doing but didn't mind it that much. As long as she's not attacking me, that's fine. Actually, there's something much better but I doubt that could happen.
I removed the covering on the coachman's chair and saw several metal gears meshed with each other in a complicated manner. The only magic circle drawn was drawn on top of a vertical-axis bevel gear. However, the size was too small to properly make out the lines drawn on it.
"What a bummer…"
Since I can't read it, I took a clean sheet of paper and a chunk of coal. I laid the paper on top of the mark and passed the coal above it. The lines got passed to the paper. However, I may need some time to decipher it.
Also, since I just etched it, the accuracy may fall. It was risky so I repeated the same process several times while changing the stroke direction until I had a dozen copies of the magic circle.
After finishing, I got out of the carriage and stepped down. I looked towards the sky where a blue moon was shining brightly. The stars that I see weren't the familiar constellations of Earth. But there were still some similarities.
The tranquil surroundings soothed my tired mind.
"Aaaaah!!!"
Suddenly, I heard a shout. I was startled and quickly turned towards the direction where it came from. However, it was too dark to see anything.
Not long after, the loud sound of the bell continuously ringing echoed and woke up everyone. Everyone got out of their tents with an expression of worry and fear.
"THE DEMONS!!! IT'S THE DEMONS!!!"
Someone shouted.
So the enemy kingdom attacked? They are quite diligent to go on offensive at night. Still, I can't get used to everyone calling them demons.
Soon, Mary and Nina followed by Blaire came to my location.
"Are you okay?!"
Mary asked worriedly. I smiled and replied. If I act scared now, I'd just be increasing their burdens.
"I'm fine. Do you know the actual situation?"
"… They attacked from the east and west sides. A blockade was immediately formed but the front line is slowly getting pushed back. If we are to escape, we need to either go back or forward."
Blaire immediately summarized the situation. It hadn't been that long since the battle started. Was she perhaps acting as scout all this while?
"… What's the chances of escaping?"
"If we leave now, probably around 50%. It will be much lower if we escape later."
As she was speaking, several carriages were already running away. Only those too tired to move, too scared to move and can't decide what to do remained. I silently gripped my fist.
… Wait… There's another choice!
"Mary! Blaire! Go and support the east side! Nina and I will go and suppress the west side! We will help them!"
"B-But! I-I, I haven't fought with a demon before! I'm scared!"
"So you want to escape and leave all these people here to die?"
"Of course I don't want that! However––!"
"Don't worry. I only told you to act as support. If you deem it too dangerous, escape immediately. In the first place, you got that right?"
I pointed towards the gloves that Mary was wearing. It was the pair of gloves that she herself made. Seeing what I pointed out, her expression immediately turned firmer.
"W-What about me?! I don't have such equipment!"
Nina spoke in protest. I went to the back of the carriage where our baggage were place and pulled out another pair of gloves.
"Use this. The usage should be familiar to you right?"
Instead of answering, she placed mana on the magic circles making it shine. Good.
"Then, move out!"
As I shouted, both Mary and Nina ran away to their respective directions. Blaire too soon followed but I stopped her.
"Blaire, I have one thing to ask of you."
She didn't turn around but she stopped. There's no helping it.
"I don't know how the enemy will respond to us… If anything bad happened. I'm counting on you."
I bowed my head lightly. Hearing my words, she just shrugged her shoulders and ran away. I similarly ran and soon caught up to Nina. Looks like the boots were working properly.
It didn't take long before we reached the front line. Several soldiers donning full body armors while using shields and swords, lances and axes, were desperately fighting back.
The dark surroundings was a bit of a disadvantage. However, if I get close, that's not a problem.
I looked for a gap in the line and passed. Nina was a step behind me. After passing, I quickly dashed to the nearest enemy's silhouette. However, I stopped on my tracks the instant that I saw the enemy's figure.
Large and bulky. Over two meters in height. Arms long enough to reach the ground. Mouth full of ragged sharp looking teeth. And most of all, red eyes full of the intent to take lives.
"… A… A…"
I was shocked. My mental preparation to take lives of similar human being flew to someplace far away. Only fear remained. The demon noticed my presence and ran towards me. I dodged to the side at the last second.
I poured mana to the boots in panic. Strings of words appeared on my head. I quickly read it out loud, trying to chase away the fear welling up inside me.
[Weaving through the endless sky! Unstoppable might prevails! Gather! Converge! Follow the command of the contractor of the sixth gate! «Blitz»!!!]
After finishing the chant, light poured out from the semi-high cut leather boots. When the light faded, the figure of the boots changed greatly.
Instead of the normal brown color, it was now of a white, slightly glowing, appearance. The low cut now reached up to a bit over my knees, hiding the lower part of my trousers within. The weight of the boots disappeared. Also, I feel that my movements turned lighter.
Honestly, this was the first time that I activated the chant. Normally, the boot's circle was a passive type that continuously sucks mana to provide increased speed. It was a design that I noticed last night. Actually, I made this boots as precaution for Blaire. Who would have thought that I would use it like this?
The demon attacked the moment the light from the boots faded. It seems that it was afraid of the light.
It swung its long arms in a sweep. I lightly jumped. Still, my jumped easily reached over 3 meters. I was startled and almost missed my landing. I fumbled for a short instant.
Taking this instant, the monster attacked. It raised its arms and swung it down. I can't dodge. I haven't regained my balance yet.
Almost out of reflex, I half turned and released an axle kick. When my kick met with the arm, a heavy sound rang before the whole arm of the demon flew away spraying some sort of liquid around.
I got pleased after seeing the destructive capability of my boots. The demon staggered backwards.
Of course, I didn't miss this chance and attacked with a shining star straight to the monster's face.
I slightly regretted my decision after seeing how the demon's head got smashed to a pulp in such close distance. I'm not a fan of gore…
The demon's body dropped. It's not moving anymore. I heaved a sigh of relief. After the tension of my first fight was released, amazingly, my knees gave out making me kneel on the ground. The fear I felt earlier started to kick in.
Unfortunately, I don't have the luxury of time. Another demon saw me and started to attack. This time, I tried dodging lightly. The demon's arm passed a few inches above my head. I instantly dashed towards the demon's body and released a spinning kick. The demon's body got split into two. I jumped back to avoid getting splashed with more blood.
I got absorbed in the fights. I lost count of how many monsters I killed. By the time that I regained my bearings, a mountain of corpses were piled all around me. A chill ran down my spine. Did I do all this? The scene of the aftermath, when seen by a weak hearted person, would surely make him vomit.
I surveyed the surroundings and tried to look for Nina. I couldn't see her as it was too dark. Instead, I ran back to where the frontline was earlier. I relied on my blurry memory and found them after a minute.
Looks like they are having a hard time. But I guess it was a little easier than earlier as the length of the line halved. I must have wiped out the left flank alone.
Nina was joining in the fight. The gloves that I gave her gives a boost in defense, vitality and strength. A passive type similar to, but a bit stronger than my gloves. I increased the output without increasing the required input. It took about an hour to adjust it. Looks like it was a success.
Noticing that the fight against the demons don't look too good, I reached through one of my pockets. I picked a piece of paper and held it in my hands.
Time for another experiment.