Rhode really wanted to take the fight seriously. But honestly, sometimes there were a lot of things that he couldn’t do even if he said so because he needed someone else to make it work. And now, the problem was that… It didn’t matter who was the one saying what.
Because the battlefield was in complete chaos now.
Apart from Lapis, everyone else had hidden from the artillery fire, be it Rhode, Stefania, Catherine, Dona, or Eleanor. Right now, the most important thing was to stay away from this overwhelming bombardment. Rhode had to admit that this downsized version of magical cannons produced by Lapis was really successful. Even after she shrunk their size, she managed to keep their original might.
Keep their original might.
Keep their original might.
It was so important that it had to be mentioned thrice.
“This is ridiculous!”
While dodging the artillery bombardment that had no discernible pattern, Rhode screamed inwardly. This wasn’t just a normal headache, but a really huge one instead. Even at his level, it wasn’t like he wouldn’t flinch when the magical cannons blasted his body. As for Stefania, she wasn’t having it any better. In fact, her lack of knowledge of Lapis’s battle style caused her to take a direct hit from the artillery fire. Fortunately, this plane merchant had a lot of strange gadgets in her possession. In the face of the artillery fire, she whipped out something called a ‘banshee’s veil’ and wore it over her head. At the next moment, a transparent shield flickered around her and she held her whip to continue finding trouble with Catherine.
And for the three card spirits, they faced the same trouble. The projectiles fired from the magical cannons were pure magic and as such, an attribute-less attack that none of them was immune to. This, in turn, forced them into the same predicament as Rhode and the others.
If an exact analogy were to be made, both sides were now literally dueling against one other in a whirling storm. And what was more depressing was that it was not raindrops nor hailstones falling from the sky, but sharp knives instead. One wouldn’t be in any better state even if one survived after being struck by it. But only God knew what would become of one after being hit a few more times.
Thereafter, the three-on-three battle turned into a complete scuffle in just the blink of an eye. There was just no way for both sides to duel properly. Moreover, Lapis had also released several floating cannons that tracked and chased the three card spirits to their deaths. Just like her own attacks, these floating cannons looked like they had escaped a mental hospital, where their blasts had no accuracy to speak of. However, with an overwhelming amount of artillery barrage, it still brought upon an inexplicable sense of menace.
It felt just like one being trapped in an endless whirlpool and having to worry about whether or not one would suddenly be devoured by the terrifying jaws of a shark. Of course, it wasn’t as if Dona and Eleanor hadn’t thought about eliminating the threat directly at the source. But the problem was that Rhode wasn’t someone to be trifled with either. He dodged the artillery barrage, while keeping a wary eye on the two in front of him. As soon as they attacked Lapis, he would have a chance to sneak an attack from the side. With his formidable strength, the two of them didn’t dare to neglect his presence, so it became a fight of sneak attack and counter-sneak attack in the middle of a storm. To use one sentence and describe this situation in a nutshell…
What is this all about?!
Rhode rolled over to dodge the bombardment again and lamented helplessly deep down. The battle had begun to move in a direction that he hadn’t expected in the slightest the moment Lapis opened fire. While it was true that he had already known through the system what she was capable of, reading and experiencing it firsthand were two completely different things. There was almost nothing he could do right now under the almost unrelenting bombardment of this area.
Lapis is totally high right now.
At first glance, Lapis looked like she held up the cannon barrels and fired them. But the truth was that she was simply waving her arms haphazardly, yelling, and launching her attacks instead. At a glance, one would think that she was just confused and nervous in the face of the ambush from her opponents. But Rhode clearly heard the joy and excitement hidden within her screams, just like how the high-pitched screeches of a girl on a roller coaster were definitely not a sign of negative energy.
But despite that, Rhode couldn’t tell her to stop. The current situation was considered the best out of all his unexpected circumstances. Lapis wasn’t great at frontal combat to begin with. As one could see from the ‘battle’, the retaliation that she came up with was to turn herself into a fire-powered tortoise shell, where no one could hurt her, but she could hurt everybody else. That was exactly what rookies would think. But the problem was that when a rookie had great creativity, unimaginable ideas would only become more frightening.
Because they had the potential to be realized.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The deafening explosions in Rhode’s ears made his body tremble slightly. The scattered smoke in burning waves of heat from all directions gave one the illusion of being trapped in the middle of a fire pit. But even so, Rhode didn’t let down his guard. He stooped over, looked at Lapis, who fired the cannons to her heart’s content, in the distance and swept his eyes to the side. At the next moment, he vanished into thin air, leaving behind only flashes of smoke from the explosions.
“Leader should be fine, right? Lapis is really going all-out.”
The crowd, including the holy sword card spirits, watching the battle from outside the plaza was stunned. They had never seen this attack from Lapis, where the plaza of hundreds of meters wide had turned into another place entirely. No, perhaps it wasn’t even a plaza anymore. It was now full of shattered stones and pits of various sizes. Flickering magical radiances constantly formed circles on the ground that expanded and exploded one after another. It was indeed a pleasing sight from afar. But when the blooming flowers of flame were strong enough to harvest life, it was a totally different story.
Not only did Marlene, Lize, and Anne widen their eyes, but Canary, Mini Bubble Gum, and Icy Snow also began to feel uneasy. Icy Snow even used her ‘space scouting’ ability to search for Rhode’s location. But with this kind of artillery bombardment, it was just as difficult as finding the baby’s father in the shelling of Operation Overlord[1].
“———!”
All of a sudden, a trembling shrill resembling that of a demon’s sounded even in the loud, deafening bombardment. Shortly after, in the eyes of the crowd, a pitch-black, ghost-like shadow emerged in the glow of the gunfire, lurching forward and charging at Lapis!
After being ‘bullied’ by Lapis for so long, the three holy sword card spirits finally decided to get serious!
“Whoa!”
Upon witnessing the shadow of death looming over her, Lapis cried out in fear. She held out her hands hurriedly and along with this movement, hundreds of magical guiding lights erupted instantly, charging straight at the shadow ahead. It only took a moment for the lights to completely melt the shadow to the point where not even a scrap was left. But before Lapis reacted again, the land rumbled all of a sudden. The ruptured land that was bombarded by the artillery barrage rippled and swirled like ocean waves. Dozens of stone spikes broke out of the ground and stabbed at Lapis. Almost at the same time, along with whistling gales, a bright column of light that broke through the layer of clouds like sunlight shot at Lapis under the Light Angel’s guidance!
Apparently, after being tormented by Lapis for so long, the holy sword spirits were finally focusing their attention on the ‘weak’ elf young lady. And now, they were about to give her a special treatment that even Rhode wasn’t entitled to.
They were going to join forces to deal with her first!
It was clear that the Grim Reaper was luring Lapis’s attention earlier, while Catherine and Dona were the main attackers instead. Whether this diversion fooled anyone else was still a matter of opinion, but Lapis had clearly fallen for it. It wasn’t surprising, considering her lack of combat experience. If she didn’t fall for it, Rhode would have suspected whether she was actually possessed by someone or some special force…
Lapis was attacked more than once in such a short period. Due to the cover of her ‘artillery fire’, Rhode and Stefania also weren’t able to save her each time. But now, since she stood strong, she naturally had a way to survive.
Shing! Shing! Shing!
The moment stone spikes that were sharp enough to skewer a bunch of people broke through the ground and struck at Lapis, the floating cannons drifting around her turned around and aimed at them swiftly. And soon, several streaks of magical beams sliced through the air and headed toward the stone spikes. In a string of explosions, the bulky and huge stone spikes were completely shattered under the magical attack without leaving behind a single piece of debris. At the same time, the spinning and twisting rune shield before Lapis once again emanated a dazzling glow that transformed into an oval shield that encased her entire body.
Boom———!
Soon after, a dazzling light column descended from heaven, striking Lapis like the fiery breath of a mighty dragon. However, the rune shield that flickered brightly was like a dam stopping the strong, rushing torrent. The light column split into two from the middle immediately and not only that, but the mechanical wings behind Lapis also lifted and fired an overwhelming barrage at the Light Angel again!
“Hmph!”
Facing this counterattack, Catherine snorted involuntarily and seemingly had no intention of avoiding it. On the contrary, a glowing light flew across her armor like running water, enveloping her entire body and armor. With a sword in hand, the Light Angel metamorphosed into a mesmerizing flash of light and brandished her blade at Lapis. On the other side, no one knew when the Grim Reaper had sneaked up on Lapis. She took advantage of the opportunity as the floating cannons took aim at Catherine. The Grim Reaper raised her scythe high in her hands and swung it down with force. The dark aura that wrapped around the razor-sharp blade metamorphosed into a substantial beast that roared at its prey. Not only that, but as the two of them attacked, Dona, whose entire body was wrecked badly by the storm, also lifted her longsword and shuttled out of the dusty smoke. She slashed the giant blade in her hands straight at Lapis.
In the face of the trio’s assaults, it was naturally impossible for Lapis to react in time. The alchemical elf stood foolishly on the spot, staring at the Light Angel who dashed toward her, as well as the terrifying berserker who lifted the longsword and intended to slice her into half. Fortunately, Lapis was aware of her weaknesses. Impromptu reactions were never her strong suit, which was why the alchemical equipment she created was fully automated. Even though she could still control them, in times she couldn’t respond promptly, the alchemical equipment would act on her behalf.
Besides, Rhode and Stefania weren’t incompetent either.
Shing———!
As the Light Angel zoomed toward Lapis, the smoke and dust beneath the former parted all of a sudden. In the blink of an eye, thick, massive, black tentacles flew out of the ground and bound the Light Angel’s ankles. The force was so strong that even the Light Angel who charged with all her heart and soul halted at that moment. Along with the sound of whistling whips from the back, the Light Angel was hurled heavily into the smoke and dust.
Boom! In a loud collision, smoke and dust burst into the sky along with strong air currents.
Stefania turned her body over. Her baggy cloak fluttered out of the smoke and like a ghost, she arrived at the side of the Light Angel. Upon seeing the young lady beside her, the Light Angel had a fixed look in her eyes. She swung her sword immediately, attempting to repel Stefania away. However, she didn’t expect Stefania to move faster than her. Right before the Light Angel raised the sword in her hand, she witnessed Stefania turning her right wrist around. Along with a loud buzz, a cylindrical, scarlet lightsaber flew out of her cloak all of a sudden and struck the Light Angel’s wrist. As soon as the Light Angel sensed the burning heat penetrating her armor, she couldn’t help but loosen her grip on the sword. At the same time, Stefania stretched out her left arm, clenched her hand in midair, and the Light Angel’s sword whooshed into her hand as if attracted by a magnet. Then, Stefania held the lightsaber against the neck of the Light Angel.
“Phew… It’s finally over. I’m exhausted… As expected, I’m still not fit for battles… Thank the Force[2]. Otherwise, there’s no telling what would have become of me.”
Stefania let out a sigh of relief and turned around at the same time. Meanwhile, on the other side, the battle between Rhode and the other two was also coming to an end.
Just as the Grim Reaper brandished her scythe, Rhode appeared like a ghost from her side and stabbed her with his sword without hesitation. And in the face of yet another ambush from Rhode, the Grim Reaper also didn’t stall in flicking the long hilt over and striking down heavily at him. But this time, her attack failed to achieve its goal. Because Rhode had turned his left hand over and a card emerged between his fingers. Just as the card flickered and disappeared, his shadow trembled and soon after, dozens of tentacles sprang out from his shadow and bound the Grim Reaper’s scythe.
“Huh?”
Perhaps not expecting to encounter such resistance, the Grim Reaper who had been silent finally exclaimed. However, she wasn’t all so surprised. On the contrary, as the tentacles wrapped around the scythe, she darted away to the other side, extended her right hand, and struck the air abruptly.
“…”
In just a quick moment, the tentacles wrapped around the scythe withered and disappeared, before shattering piece by piece under the whistling cold aura of death and turning into nothingness. Despite that, Rhode wasn’t astonished. Since she was dressed as the Grim Reaper, she must be decent at using the power of death. In that case, the reason he summoned the Nether Tentacles was naturally not to use them as a trump card against Eleanor. On the contrary, he did it simply to buy a little time for himself.
And now, the time had been fully bought by him.
Swish!
While the Grim Reaper broke free of the tentacles, Rhode arrived before her. But facing the young lady in front of him, he didn’t launch his attack. Instead, he reached his arm out and wrapped around her slender waist!
“Huh?!”
Faced with this gesture from him that seemed almost like sexual harassment, the Grim Reaper couldn’t stay calm any longer. She raised her scythe and instinctively hacked down at him. However, Rhode didn’t give her the chance. On the contrary, while grabbing onto her waist, he picked up speed abruptly to the maximum, leaped over Lapis with the Grim Reaper in his arm, and charged at Dona.
Completely unaware that Rhode would actually use Eleanor as a meat shield for his assault, Dona’s attack came to a pause abruptly. That imposing attack from her came to a standstill at that very moment.
And that was the opportunity that Rhode had been waiting for!
Bam!
The moment Dona withdrew her sword, Rhode threw Eleanor at her. Then, an ice-cold flash shimmered from the blade in his hand as he stabbed straight at Dona’s neck!
[1] Codename for the Battle of Normandy, an allied operation during World War II.
[2] A metaphysical and ubiquitous power in the Star Wars fictional universe.
