I was surrounded by the Risen Dead, a ghoul species that looked as if it creeped out directly from a horror movie. This species is the most annoying one to handle as it won't die unless the necromancer itself is killed, which in this case is the Demon King.
"IT'S YOUR FAULT, YOU JACKASS!" I yelled as I swung my sword, beheading the ghouls, only for it to put them back on like a freaking helmet.
*Aww, come on~ Isn't it thrilling? This is what you're supposed to do in a fantasy novel!* entity chuckled.
"THRILLING, MY ASS!!" I jumped and activated the 'Flying' skill.
*You won't last long on air—*
"Shut it!"
'Flying' requires a high amount of mana, making it unsuitable for long battles. I could still feel the depletion of my mana from using the skill before. When I landed to restore the mana power, the Risen Dead welcomed me in a rather delightful way, crawling up from the ground. Mhm, what a warm welcome it was!
With the bits of mana left, I immediately flew towards the door of the dark castle. Since the ghouls had just appeared from the ground, none of them had entered the castle yet. By enhancing the speed of my movement, I finally managed to outran the ghouls and passed through the gigantic door.
'Imagine accumulating your mana on the palm of your hand, let it seep through and compress it into a mana sphere. Let it swirl around and stabilise, make sure to not let it break. Then, aim it at your enemy.' The earlier scene of 'Blade of the Unwanted' suddenly popped into my mind at this crucial moment.
It was back when Lucius trained Arthur as one of his appointed knight. Lucius was the one who taught magic to Arthur, who never had any lessons on it despite being a son of a noble. It was mentioned a few times on how negligent his parents were to him, their bastard third son. Besides a genius like Lucius, people had to get guidance on how to wield their mana.
Back to the present, I focused on moving the mana in my body onto my hand. The heart is especially concentrated with mana as it is the main source of the power. I might yet to know how to master this newly found attribute, but the amount of mana Catherine has is sufficient for any mistake I might do!
"DROP DEAD, YOU SHITHEAD!" I instantly aimed at the ghouls with the skill 'Gustblast' once a solid sphere successfully been formed.
*BOOOOOOMMM!*
It caused the undead to be blasted away while the door slammed to a close. Good thing that it's an inward door! Using the Bernoulli's Principle, the higher the velocity, the lower the pressure. While blasting the air out, the pressure will push the door an—ah, sorry, got carried away.
I landed on the castle's black mosaic floor and took in the massacre of monsters along the high-roofed corridor, creating a trail of corpses. This must be caused by none other than the MC! The corpses are burnt to crisp, barely recognisable. Even traces of Lucius' Holy Flame is still apparent on some, forming embers that glowed ever so brightly. Since he has the divine light attribute along the great-for-attacking fire attribute, this kind of fight would be a walk in a park for him, probably.
Each step I took echoed through the space, the howls of the wind crept me out to no end. The air smelt like smoke and dust, proving the type of fight that took place before. I suppose it is better than being humid with a mix of stinking corpses. The only light that showed the path I stepped on came from the stained glass on my left. Even so, it is still only dimly lighted as the sun is nowhere to be seen.
"Entity, you're there? This place kinda creeped me out. It makes me want to hear your annoying voice," I requested when the eerie vibe finally got to me.
*Yeah, I'm still here. Want me to sing for you?* Entity replied sarcastically.
"That sounds good, too."
Entity, who doesn't expect such a reply was taken aback. It then reluctantly began to sing the Dorazemon theme song, though it sounded as if a mosquito got into my head. I hate to admit it, but entity actually did lightened up the mood of the grim castle.
"Pfft…what's with the choice of song?"
Entity stopped to say, *It's what you were thinking of,* and continued, as if enjoying it, too.
Surprising, it's actually is the first song that I thought of! Ah, how nostalgic it is, being the opening song of my childhood cartoon. I remember waiting eagerly in front of the TV every Saturday evening with my baby brother just to watch the 30 minutes sho—
*CLANGGGG—!*
I jumped in surprise, immediately locating the source of the sound. On my right, there is a huge chamber that seems to be the throne hall, or what is used to be. All that's left now is a severely burnt space, tattered to the ground. After taking in the charred view, my attention was locked on the two figures in sight.
Laying on the ground, face downwards, a human-like figure with black hair, except for the two goat-like horns sticking out of the head and a pair of broken jet-black wings on the back. Perhaps it's dead? Standing by its side, staring intently at the dark being, is a tall and muscular man, covered in blood. The previous sound had come from the sword he dropped.
"Hah, found him."
Breathing heavily there, stood a handsome young man. The MC I was looking for, the infamous Lucius Leonhart, both in this world and the other. Beautiful silver strands that glimmers from the slightest of light for the hair, Ruby gemstones of the highest grade for the eyes. The gaze that seems to hold nothing but misery and arrogance. The face that looks like it got sculptured by god himself. What was that? The Dorazemon theme song sang by entity now sounds like a whole orchestra just from this sight!
Finally noticing my gaze, and clearly not approving of it, he scowled,"What are you looking at?"
*Ah, yes. Let's not forget about his harsh attitude.* I smiled bitterly.
"I told everyone not to come here, didn't I? Are you too dumb to get that simple order?"
"I don't want to be here, either," I replied, trying to sound respectful. "It was an accident, really. Didn't notice the magic wall…"
Upon hearing that, his eyes widened for a moment before turning away, mumbling to himself, "…so that's why that demon got distracted."
"Huh?" I raised an eyebrow while leaning slightly. "What was that again?"
"None of your business," Lucius answered rather coldly, not wanting to engage with the conversation.
He slouched down to take his sword before staggering, blood gushing out from his abdomen, causing him to lose his balance and plopped right onto the ground. The only sound heard after that is his grunts of pain and heavy heaves.
"Tch, just say you needed help!" I rushed towards him and squatted down, offering a ride.
"Ha…what…. are you doing?" He asked with great difficulty.
"Hop on, or do you want a bridal carry, instead? You don't seem like you're in a good shape."
Lucius remained quiet, silently observing me, as if he just got to see my face clearly. He propped up his body with an arm, looking at me with great doubt and hesitation. Does he not believe in my capabilities? Losing my patience, I taunted him more.
"You want a bridal carry?" I raised an eyebrow. "For real?"
"No," he replied almost immediately this time.
"Then forget your ego and let me carry you back," I huffed. "Look at those cracks, this dump of a castle will collapse soon, given the death of the Demon King." I gestured at the cracks gradually spreading on the walls.
Perhaps I had managed to persuade him, seeing as he slowly got up and reached for me. I immediately grabbed him and lifted him up before he changed his mind.
"Oh, and don't give me those shit on commoners touching a noble without permission and all later," I reminded him, although I knew that he won't do so.
Just being cautious.
I deliberately strode towards the entrance with his limp body on my back. Must've been a very exhausting experience, even for an MC. Seeing him being all fragile and vulnerable just picked something in my heart. How long had he been fighting? I could feel my back being soaked up with his blood. Not only did his stomach got cut open, many more severe injuries on his limbs and back could be seen. Even his beautiful face is covered in scratches and dry blood remnants. I could feel his gradually steady breathing and decided to break the silence.
"Don't get too cozy that you'd drool on my back," I snickered.
"….who are you?" Lucius inquired, his tone sounded interrogatory.
"Man, you don't even remember a beautiful knight like me? I'm Catherine, a knight of your march."
A brief silence filled the air before he replied with a rather pleasant tone, "You're plain looking."
But then again, how could anything that came out of Lucius Leonhart sounds pleasant?
"Shut it, that's a sensitive issue for people like me that you won't ever get!" I huffed.
"You're telling a noble to shut up?"
I couldn't see his expression while he said that, but the tone proves that he's not actually offended. Rather, it kinda sounded a bit teasing? I guess my hearing had got defected, after all. Maybe his face had altered my brain to some degree.
"We're at war, rank doesn't matter during these situations right?" I scoffed.
"…."
"Did you exhausted your light mana?"
"If I still have it, I won't have an ugly girl carrying me."
"You ungrateful bastard! I should've just left you in this crumbling castle!"
I grumbled through the way, complaining about his snobby attitude when suddenly, the sound of crashing rubbles filled the air. The rumbling gradually got louder as the ground began to shook from the impact.
*GURURURURU!*
"Uh-oh, guess it's time to make haste. Hold on tight or I might drop you!"
As he tightened his grip, I began to enhance my body with mana and dashed out of the castle swiftly. Just as I passed through the entrance, the castle collapsed in its entirety. Glad that we managed to escape being buried alive!