Chapter 31

# Chapter 31: New Adventurer Bern (29) – Embrace

“A….”

Blankah realized the truth that when someone has too much to say, they paradoxically find themselves unable to utter a single word.

She had to ask what happened after the dimensional transfer: how they ended up in such a ragged state. She had to explain that the Guild Master had fallen, and that adventurers had been reduced to being hunted down. She also had to tell about the nature of Richi’s magical power and how, despite clearly being knocked down once, he managed to revive.

Yet, despite all these things needing to be said, not a single word could emerge from Blankah’s mouth.

Just as tears began to well up in her eyes from suppressed emotion, Bern spoke.

“Please rise, Blankah.”

With a gentle tone, as if considerate of her feelings, yet imbued with unwavering resolve, Bern continued.

“The battle isn’t over. There’s still something you must do, Blankah.”

So, rise.

Grip your sword.

There will be time to cry and lament later, the red-haired adventurer was telling her.

It wasn’t a comforting word.

If anything, it was closer to stern reproach.

Bern did nothing to soothe the frustration, despair, and despondency she was feeling.

“This is *our* adventure, isn’t it?”

However, if one were to ask if Blankah had fallen into despair despite all this—the answer would be “no.”

She wasn’t a pitiable and powerless princess, and Bern wasn’t a chivalrous knight from a storybook.

They were adventurers.

They were comrades who swore to make the far-fetched tale of Richi’s annihilation a reality.

He, who didn’t mock her ambitions when others did, was now urging her on.

So fight together.

Now was the time to achieve their dreams.

Blankah picked up the sword that had been discarded on the ground.

The blade, which her mother used to care for so diligently, perhaps a keepsake from her father, gleamed sharply in response to her renewed determination.

With an unwavering gaze, devoid of her former weakness, she glared at the enemy and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Bern.

“I’ll go with the plan we practiced. Is that okay?”

“Is there anything special I should know?”

“There are at least four Spirit Knights. One of them is the Guild Master. They might interject at any moment, so be careful. Avoid the mist at all costs—it’s imbued with various negative spells and can also impair your senses.”

Bern nodded and then shouted loudly.

“Renya! Don’t expect specific orders from me—handle it your way!!”

“Y-Yes, Yes, Yes, Sir!! Good luck! Please pulverize those nasty skeletal bastards for me!!”

Renya’s enthusiastic outburst drew an unpleasant glance from Richi.

Renya clamped his hand over his mouth in a panic and shrank back, but no one scolded him for his conspicuous behavior. Who could complain about such an excellent aggro-supporter who willingly drew the enemy’s attention?

The moment Richi’s focus shifted, Bern and Blankah simultaneously propelled themselves forward.

Clang!

Two Spirit Knights clad in black armor blocked their path to defend Richi.

From the Spirit Knights’ swords, a murky aura resembling oil surged upward.

An ethereal sword aura enhanced by the knights’ inherent skill and further augmented by Richi’s spells—one that could rival that of a 5th Tier Warrior and utterly dominate those below.

Yet, Bern deflected both sword auras at once.

Clash!

It was a sight akin to magic.

As soon as Bern’s sword met one of the Spirit Knights’, it redirected its trajectory, causing Knight A’s sword to collide with Knight B’s.

Without missing a beat, Blankah unleashed an intermediate-level fire spell in the space where their swords were locked.

Bern had already stepped back as if it were second nature.

KABOOOM!

The explosive wave of heat and shock scattered the purple mist that had begun to recongregate.

Taking advantage of the clearing, Blankah plunged forward toward Richi, while Bern swung his sword at a Spirit Knight emerging from the dissipated smoke.

The Spirit Knight attempted to counter, but Bern deflected the blade with ease, slicing off the knight’s arm.

Another Spirit Knight stabbed at Bern’s back, but he whirled around gracefully, utilizing the momentum to drive his sword through the knight’s chest.

Both Spirit Knights, now severely wounded, faltered.

Bern, seizing the moment, prepared to deliver the finishing blow, but two swords lunged toward him.

Swish!

His shoulder was cut, and the blood that splattered on the ground slowly transformed into light before evaporating.

The enemy reinforcements numbered two.

What had once been three Spirit Knights now numbered four.

And worse, one of them wielded a sword that emitted an aura akin to aether, making Bern inwardly curse.

He sought to maintain the offensive to retain control, but the purple mist enveloped him once more.

Instead of charging directly at Bern, the Spirit Knights concealed themselves within the mist.

Though Bern focused his power to pierce the fog with his eyes, the layered mist thoroughly obscured its interior.

It was a blatant provocation, yet one that Bern could not ignore.

He knew that if he hesitated out of reluctance to dive into the mist, the Spirit Knights would undoubtedly turn their attention to Blankah.

The moment Bern entered the fog, three black sword strikes lunged toward him.

One aimed at his neck, one at his abdomen, and another at his leg.

Bern’s eyes flashed brightly.

Swish!

Avoiding the slash aimed at his neck, blocking the one aimed at his abdomen, and stamping down the one aimed at his leg.

Intentionally delayed, the fourth attack grazed his chest, but in return, the head of one Spirit Knight soared skyward.

At first, it appeared that he had successfully reduced the enemy’s numbers, but the decapitated Spirit Knight nonchalantly held his severed head in his left hand and continued the fight.

Bern sighed softly.

‘This isn’t going to be easy.’

Even being surrounded in this fog was worsening his physical condition.

Whereas for him, the enemy had to approach within a meter for his vision or hearing to work, they could easily spy on him while maintaining their distance.

The enemy consisted of three enhanced individuals already operating at a 4th Tier level, with a fresh addition at a 5th Tier. Moreover, even severe injuries were shrugged off as though inconsequential for humans.

No matter how much one might claim that Bern was simply ranked at the 4th Tier but possessed abilities far beyond that, it was impossible to decimate the enemies instantly in this situation.

Of course, the idea that winning and holding onto victory even in this dire situation was anything but ordinary shouldn’t be overlooked.

‘It might take some time. It’d be great if Blankah could hold out for as long as possible.’

****

“Foolish girl. Even without my guards, do you truly believe you can come near me?”

The purple mist swirling around Richi coalesced into several arrows that shot forth.

Blankah deflected one aimed at her face with a swing of her sword, but multiple arrows found their marks on her body.

The spells embedded within the mist that composed the arrows churned inside her injuries.

Her limbs went numb, a chill ran through her as if drenched in ice-water, and a fierce dizziness made standing difficult.

Yet, Blankah gritted her teeth and did not fall.

Sustained by healing and enhancement magic, she continued to pursue Richi doggedly.

At a distance so close that extending her hand would almost make contact, she unleashed a fireball.

‘The spell to burn trees.’

An elementary-level fire spell. Effective against small animals or weak monsters, but laughable against a powerful entity like Richi.

“Pathetic. Everything you do is futile.”

Richi dismissed her magic as if it weren’t worth the effort to block it, dissolving it effortlessly with the mist.

But Blankah wasn’t disheartened.

‘Blocked? That means it would have worked if I had hit.’

‘The spell to burn trees.’

‘The spell to burn trees.’

‘The spell to burn trees.’

She kept firing and firing, each time decreasing the amount of mist surrounding Richi.

Richi attempted to shake her off with an attack spell, but using a large-scale, powerful attack against someone so close could jeopardize himself as well. Therefore, he was limited to spells like the earlier cursed arrows, moderate in power and without risk of misfire.

Though Blankah blocked or dodged these attacks with her sword, she wasn’t perfect and ended up injured.

There was no choice. She hadn’t been a proper warrior; the training she’d received from Bern simply wasn’t enough.

But she could avoid fatal injuries.

And if she avoided fatal harm, she could endure the rest with her spells.

This exchange ratio, at first glance, was irrationally unfavorable.

While Blankah’s endless fireballs and sword swings had no visible effect on Richi, his spells, deemed trivial at first, were reliably causing her harm.

Her healing spells weren’t omnipotent, and her body accumulated wounds and poison.

But Blankah paid no heed.

‘I can fight.’

As a child, she could do nothing but cry and stay passive.

But now, even in an unfavorable situation, she was putting up a proper fight.

‘With spells taught by mom.’

She was standing against the adversary who had stolen the most precious thing from her.

‘With tactics taught by Bern.’

That reality, the existence of comrades who believed in her, was bestowing endless strength to Blankah.

“Annoying little gnat! Get out of my way!”

Frustrated by Blankah’s constant harassment, Richi summoned undead soldiers and monsters to chase after her.

‘The spell to burn rocks.’

BOOOOM!

Without even turning her head, Blankah’s fiery sphere turned them into ash.

For the first time, Richi was at a loss, reading the silent message in Blankah’s icy glare.

– Summon as many as you want. I’ll burn them all.

“You brat! How dare you! You who are neither knight nor mage!”

Richi could feel his frustration boiling over.

In the first place, such a woman shouldn’t even have been able to cling to him this way.

His dungeon was filled with countless undead and traps, and he had apprentices scattered around the human world as contingencies. Furthermore, he possessed powerful Spirit Knights crafted from corpses gathered during the confusion of the Virca Kingdom.

But the undead and traps had been overcome by the adventurers, the apprentices had been exposed, and the Spirit Knights were struggling to handle just one red-haired adventurer.

No, worse yet, they were being beaten back.

Richi needed to quickly help the Spirit Knights suppress that red-haired menace, but this insignificant nuisance in front of him kept pestering him without end—an aggravation driving him mad.

Though Richi had displayed dignity and authority when things were in his favor, his facade crumbled as genuine threats approached.

Finally, he decided to pull out the trump cards he’d kept hidden.

The ceremonial items he’d prepared for his ascension to the 6th Tier—these items he’d now use to escape this predicament.

“Foolish humans! Learn now that your arrogance has sealed the doom of your kin!”

Accompanying his grand proclamation, Richi initiated the spells to transform the souls of the sacrificial items into his power.

Naturally, absolutely nothing happened.

“…?! Why? Why?! No, could it be!”

It was then Richi finally realized that the space where Bern transported them was the very space where he had stored the ceremonial items.

Certainly, the dungeon’s structure was complex, catering to Richi’s tastes, and even survivors who overcame traps might take considerable time to find their way. But Bern had a courteous and considerate guide.

With the ceremonial items he meticulously prepared missing, the spells Richi had set up also fizzled.

Faced with the failure of the rites where he had invested so much careful preparation, the thread of sanity Richi had been holding onto snapped.

“You insolent wretches!”

The purple fog enveloping the surrounding areas gathered instantly in one spot.

Sensing the immense surge of power converging right before her, Blankah felt an ominous chill.

Richi, who had up until now been cautious and passive, was finally about to unleash a proper attack spell.

Though attempting to defend herself, Blankah found Richi unflinching against flames and sword slashes as he completed his incantation.

A massive dark sphere descending toward her head.

At the very moment Blankah prepared for death, someone embraced her, pulling her away.

BOOOOM!!

An immense explosion erupted.