Chapter 15

Chapter 15: Struggle

Shu, propelled into the sky by acceleration magic, safely landed in the monster village. Just before landing, he used acceleration magic again to decelerate and touched down gently.

There, he witnessed a scene where individuals clad in holy knight uniforms were slaying monsters as they moved around.

"These guys...!"

Shu immediately spread out his magic formation.

A magic formation with a radius of about thirty meters spread across the ground, emitting a pale blue light. Two holy knights who were killing goblin imps entered the range.

"Die."

Simultaneously with those words, he activated "Slash Air Territory Divider Line" and cleaved the two holy knights into two halves. Deep crimson blood splattered and stained the surroundings.

The one who noticed this anomaly was another holy knight who didn't enter the range of the "Slash Air Territory Divider Line."

"What is this... Did you do this?"

"Yeah, so what?"

"What do you mean, 'so what'? No, in the first place, who are you? I haven't heard of any humans being in a monster village like this."

"Well, why do you think that is?"

Saying so, Shu activated his magic.

Since "Slash Air Territory Divider Line" couldn't reach, he attempted to blow away the holy knight with acceleration magic. However, the holy knight was also an expert at hunting monsters and accustomed to combat.

Unlike Yumir, who was easily defeated, he showed resistance even against the suddenly appearing magic formation.

"Hmph! ...A surprise attack, huh? How despicable."

"Are you cutting through the magic formation? That's also a magical technique, isn't it?"

"I'm the one asking the questions. I'm asking who you are."

Continuing the conversation here would be nice, but while they did, the village was gradually being destroyed, and the monsters were being killed. Due to its growth into a large settlement, Shu alone couldn't cover the whole area. He needed to quickly dispose of the holy knight in front of him.

Therefore, without answering the question, Shu began attacking the holy knight.

"Heavyweight."

"Hmm... What is this?"

The magic formation swiftly unfolded in an instant through Shu's intellectual power, generating a powerful gravitational force. The Holy Knight couldn't react to the magic formation expanding beneath his feet and easily became prey to the magic.

Kneeling down, he tried to stand up by pushing with one hand. However, his body, which had become several times heavier than normal, refused to obey. He could only move to some extent by using body reinforcement magic.

"...Can't be helped. Though you seem human-like, I'll consider you an enemy. Don't complain."

However, the reason the Holy Knight was holding back was that he was being lenient.

Even so, he was an A-rank Magic Armament User. He was a human with an immense amount of magic power and tremendous combat abilities. He wouldn't be immobilized just because the weight had multiplied several times.

He diverted the magic power he had held back into body reinforcement and infused magic power into his sword enchantment, striking the gravitational magic formation deployed on the ground. As a result, the magic formation was easily destroyed.

Magic had absolute effectiveness against physical entities but had little resistance against magic power. Unless it was highly controlled or there was a significant difference in magic power density, magic formations would be easily shattered.

(He's strong after all.)

A while back, Shu had defeated the Holy Knight, Zek Barat. At that time, he was able to eliminate him instantly with a surprise attack using vector transformation, but it wasn't certain if he could do the same this time.

Furthermore, unlike the previous time, Shu's use of magic had been exposed. It was likely that from now on, the Holy Knight would constantly attack with magic power. Since Shu's magic power wasn't infinite, it would be troublesome if his magic formations were constantly crushed. He could only recover his magic power through absorption or meals, so he didn't want to waste it unnecessarily.

And the Holy Knight didn't even give him time to speculate.

He poised his sword and with body reinforcement, quickly stepped forward.

"Ha!"

"Oh no..."

Shu forcefully moved his body with teleportation magic. The Holy Knight was surprised by his slippery movement on the ground but immediately responded. Thunder burst from his swinging sword and struck at Shu.

Since it was a surprise attack at lightning speed, Shu couldn't avoid the attack and it hit his left arm.

It seemed like he was aiming accurately for his heart, but because Shu was moving with teleportation magic, it hit slightly off.

"Tch...!"

Even if he had manifested, he was originally a spiritual-type demon. He had no sense of pain. However, being a spiritual-type demon also became a weakness.

Spiritual-type demons, which were essentially floating masses of magic power, were weak against attacks with magic power.

Normally, even if it was an attack that would leave severe burns, it wouldn't be enough for a spiritual-type demon. The composed magic power would be blown away, and that part would disperse into mist.

Shu was struck by the Holy Knight's lightning attack, and his left arm was obliterated.

However, no blood flowed.

"What...?"

The one who was surprised was the Holy Knight.

It was impossible for his arm to disappear just from a lightning attack in desperation. Moreover, he couldn't understand why there was no blood flowing.

However, he was indeed a Holy Knight.

He possessed the knowledge to immediately come up with an answer.

"You... are not a human, but a spirit-type monster. And you can materialize as a spirit elemental."

"Your observation is correct."

"Hmph. So, you were a high-ranking Greater Class monster. In that case, I won't hold back. I will completely destroy you with the power of my magic armor."

Shuu probably realized that he was a spirit-type monster. The Holy Knight switched to attacks using his magic armor. Dense lightning infused with magical power surged, attempting to crush Shuu.

Instinctively, he rolled and happened to avoid it by chance.

However, Shuu understood that this was merely due to luck.

(Stronger than I imagined.)

Until now, he had been able to defeat Holy Knights purely due to good fortune.

The difference is so great that he can honestly feel it.

"You're lucky. Then, how about this?"

"Damn it..."

Crackling white lightning filled the surroundings. If this were a physical phenomenon, he could repel the electrons through reversal using acceleration magic. However, due to the strong magical power infused within, he couldn't reflect it properly.

In that case, the best course of action would be to propel himself with acceleration magic.

Using his mental strength, he immediately deployed a magic circle, allowing magic power to flow and propelling his body backward.

While colliding with the houses created by the monsters, he managed to dodge the lightning. He was able to distance himself from the Holy Knight who used lightning magic armor, so for the time being, he was safe.

"Even more incompatible than I imagined. 'Life Drain' is useless at that level, and I can't afford to attack while only running away with magic."

Numerous monsters had already been hunted down.

The village was too vast to have a complete grasp of the overall situation, but as far as sensing magical power goes, they were rapidly decreasing in numbers. And there were over ten significant sources of magical power that were extinguishing the monsters' magic power. This must be the Holy Knight.

It's only a matter of time before they're completely wiped out.

"First, let's start by defeating that holy knight."

Rai is troublesome, but there's no choice but to defeat him.

There's no way he'll let us escape and overlook it.

As proof of that, the holy knight quickly enhanced his body and ran towards Shu. Shu is a high-ranking Greater-class individual, so he's quite a threat to ordinary people. He has been designated as the target that must be surely subjugated.

"He's a persistent monster."

"As the ruler of this village, I can't be easily defeated either."

"What? A spiritual-type monster ruling over demon-type and ogre-type monsters?"

"It's unexpectedly cute, you know?"

When monsters form a pack, their leader is often a higher-ranking species of that monster. It's very rare for different species of monsters to lead a pack.

That's why the holy knight was surprised.

At the same time, he perceived Shu as a danger.

"I see... So you were the ruler of the village. In other words, you're our target?"

"If you've targeted us with a purpose, that might be the case."

"In that case, I will take care of you with my own hands."

The holy knight raised his magic-infused sword. Then, intense lightning scattered from it, approaching Shu while destroying the surroundings. However, after seeing it several times, you can come up with countermeasures.

Shu immediately activated "Sky Slasher Divider Line" and sliced through the lightning.

"What?"

The sliced lightning disappeared there and didn't reach Shu. The holy knight tilted his head in confusion.

In the first place, "Sky Slasher Divider Line" is not a magic that sends a slash, but a magic that disintegrates an extremely thin area. By doing so, it disintegrates the flow of electrons, which is the source of the lightning. The embedded magical power is also absorbed by "Life Absorption," so it's not a problem.

"Die!"

Next, Shu targeted the holy knight. The invisible attack aimed to tear him apart.

However, perhaps sensing an anomaly with his magic perception, the holy knight swiftly jumped away from the spot. Due to the characteristic of "Life Absorption" absorbing magical power before activation, there's a slight time lag from deploying the magic circle to its activation for "Sky Slasher Divider Line."

Thanks to his enhanced body, the holy knight managed to evade within that brief time.

(At this level, they're even avoiding the "Slashing Void Zone Divider Line"...)

Honestly, Shu had to reconsider his underestimation of the Holy Knight.

Until now, his victories had been mere coincidences. It was just a combination of luck and a successful counterattack. There was no logical reason for Shu to have the advantage in battle against an experienced Holy Knight.

However, the Holy Knight was also surprised by Shu's unexpected tenacity.

(I never thought I'd be troubled by someone of the High Greater Class...)

Normally, even a B-Rank Magic Knight would be more than enough to defeat a High Greater-Class opponent. For the Holy Knight, being forced to exert serious magical power to defeat a Spirit Elemental was also humiliating.

Explosions echoed throughout the village, with fierce winds and water wreaking havoc.

It was probably because other Holy Knights were hunting down monsters with tremendous force.

But what about himself?

He was being held back by the High Greater-Class opponent right in front of him.

"Don't underestimate me, you monster!"

The Holy Knight roared while pouring a massive amount of magical power into his magic armor. Even he, an A-Rank Magic Knight, felt that it was an excessive amount. It was truly an enormous quantity.

And then, he aimed the tip of his magic sword, releasing the magic power towards Shu.

"Perish, wicked monster!"

"Wait..."

Naturally, Shu couldn't defend against an attack infused with this much magic power using his pseudo-defense, the "Slashing Void Zone Divider Line."

(When dealing with this level of immense magical power, the opponent often uses a trump card-like technique. And a trump card is undoubtedly a technique that can kill the opponent. In that case, it can be predicted that it's something like a concentrated charged particle cannon. If it has directionality, evasion is more optimal than defense!)

In an instant, Shu deduced the answer and disappeared from that spot using a combination of acceleration magic and movement magic. It seemed like he teleported, but in reality, he simply accelerated upward while controlling it with movement magic.

Just as he managed to escape into the air, a violent lightning struck the spot where Shu had been.

As expected, it was a charged particle cannon, so Shu, who had escaped into the air, remained unharmed. An intense electromagnetic field was created, making the surroundings crackle with energy, but there was no damage.

If he had been just a fraction of a second slower, Shu's spiritual body would have been completely shattered.

However, the crisis passed and an opportunity arose instead.

The Holy Knight didn't see Shuu, who narrowly avoided their devastating attack. Moreover, the massive release of magic power rendered magic detection useless for a brief moment. In other words, Shuu, who was in the air, had the advantage of launching a surprise attack at will.

"Acceleration, weight enhancement, vibration."

Shuu, who began free falling, used acceleration magic to approach the Holy Knight in a straight line. At the same time, he employed weight enhancement magic to increase his power.

He also kept vibration magic in standby mode.

The sound of Shuu cutting through the air caught the attention of the Holy Knight, but it was already too late. Shuu's kick, amplified by weight enhancement and acceleration magic, struck the Holy Knight directly.

At that moment, he utilized the vibration magic he had kept in standby, amplifying the impact and sound generated.

As a result, the kick's impact and sound resonated within the Holy Knight's body, causing internal destruction. Of course, the external impact of the kick alone was tremendous, rendering even body reinforcement useless and resulting in instant death.

With a loud thud, the Holy Knight's body exploded.

Blood splattered in all directions, spreading out in a radial pattern.

Although he sensed a considerable accumulation of magic power, it seemed it was still insufficient for evolution. However, he had successfully recovered the magic power consumed through magic.

"Haah... That was close..."

Looking around, Shuu saw countless fallen demon corpses. It seemed that every part of the settlement had a similar scene.

This settlement was the place Shuu had watched over.

When the demons he had grown attached to were killed like trash, anger welled up inside him like magma.

"I'll kill them."

Murmuring as he repaired his crushed left arm from the previous battle, Shuu activated teleportation magic and disappeared from the spot.