Chapter 81

Been delayed by werewolves longer than expected. Seriously, I don’t have time to waste here. This is troubling.

I only pulled the unconscious werewolf’s head out of the ground before rushing to Mail’s location.

The destination was quite a distance from here.

But if I flew at full power without holding back, I should reach there in just a few minutes.

Every second counted now; there was no time to spare.

“Huu…! It’s so cold because I’m going too fast!”

Whoosh!

A sharp, icy wind slashed across my ears.

It felt like riding a motorcycle in freezing weather without any protective gear.

Of course, my fragile body couldn’t possibly endure this.

My skin quickly turned bright red, and my exposed ears already felt numb.

But I gritted my teeth and endured it. What did it matter if I froze from the cold?

If suffering could buy me time, I’d do it a hundred, no, a thousand times over.

With burning determination, I forced my retreating body to press on.

“…!”

While leaping between rooftops as quickly as possible, an unnaturally charred black wall caught my eye.

It was intense and strange in many ways.

No structures had collapsed as if from a bomb, and the building itself remained intact despite the fire-like marks.

How could just that one spot be charred so deeply, like someone had dotted it with a marker?

As I raced forward, a thought crossed my mind.

“Come to think of it, I heard a thunderous sound earlier. Wait, lightning in the Liberation Army means…!”

Thump.

A chilling premonition ran down my spine.

The reason was simple.

Among the Liberation Army’s higher-ups, there was someone who specialized in lightning magic.

The highest rank within the Beastman Liberation Army was the Supreme Commander.

Below them were the Seven Stars, the top commanders.

Each commanded their own division and possessed monstrous individual combat abilities.

Well… if you looked closely, they betrayed and backstabbed each other constantly.

Surprisingly, each of the Seven Stars’ combat prowess equaled Raven’s—upper Double Number Pixie level.

To make it clearer, Double Number Pixies ranked between 10th and 99th.

So most of the Seven Stars ranked within the top 20 globally.

Considering how powerful magicians could unleash firepower equivalent to an entire battalion, you could vaguely grasp how a single organization waged war against all of humanity.

“Akashmir of Lightning. If she really exists… Greg won’t stand a chance. You can’t withstand lightning with just your body.”

Honestly, Greg was so strong that worrying about him seemed laughable.

Orcs were known for their tough vitality and robust bodies, comparable to bears and lions even unarmed.

And Greg was a Grand Warrior Orc, the cream of the crop.

Even without weapons, he was essentially a walking biological weapon capable of tearing apart tanks.

But against a skilled lightning mage, such advantages faded instantly.

Lightning, perhaps even more dangerous than flames, was extreme firepower that not even Greg could endure.

Even if he somehow dodged the attack and closed the distance, if the opponent enveloped themselves in lightning… Greg, who fought without weapons, would have no choice but to take the hit.

If Greg had a sturdy weapon to withstand lightning, things might improve slightly, but someone who avoids fights wouldn’t carry such a thing.

“If Raven isn’t late, maybe we’ll be fine… I don’t know. Let’s see how things go.”

Pushing down my unease, I increased my speed.

All I could do now was trust Raven somehow.

When I finally arrived at the destination where the ear-piercing noise grew louder,

Before my mind could process, I threw myself forward.

Before I could rejoice at seeing Greg again after so long,

I saw a woman preparing to attack him, kneeling on the ground.

“Crisp up and fry! Plgur!”

“…!”

Skrrt!

Sliding to a stop just in time, I managed to position myself in front of Greg.

From beyond came a flash of red light that stung my retina.

So her attack was indeed lightning magic.

Thankfully, I’d anticipated it; otherwise, I might’ve been too late figuring out how to counter it.

Feeling a small sense of relief, I stretched my telekinesis toward the ground.

What I grabbed was the solid earth beneath the stone floor, impervious to electricity.

But this alone might not be enough to handle her power.

So I embedded nearby metal pieces into the side of the human-height dirt wall I constructed.

Some of the lightning would use the metal as a guide, diverting its force sideways and dispersing its strength!

The next moment, the colossal dirt wall collided with the red lightning.

BOOM!

Before the deafening roar, nausea-inducing bodily reactions hit me.

The overwhelming force tore through my telekinetic grip on the compacted dirt, pushing my body backward.

Perhaps growing stronger didn’t change the gap between true powerhouses.

A similar sense of helplessness pressed heavily on my shoulders, much like when facing Drakel.

Still, I refused to lose.

No, I won’t lose.

With near-fanatical resolve, I held onto the telekinesis resisting the red lightning.

If this crumbled so easily, I’d have no face to show Greg.

“You won’t pass beyond this point!”

Shhhuu…

An eternity-like instant began to move.

The force trying to pierce through the telekinetically lifted dirt wall completed its role.

The meaning was simple.

I successfully blocked the enemy’s attempt to attack Greg.

Understanding this, I released the tightly held soil.

The dirt, towering as tall as a person, crumbled down, creating an enormous dust cloud.

“…Yuria?”

Before the thick dust settled, a familiar voice reached my ears.

Low, emotionless, yet subtly warm.

I flipped back the cloth covering my head and turned to look at Greg.

Hello, liar. A month passed, and you didn’t come, so I came myself.

I felt like saying that if I could speak.

“How did you…? No, this isn’t the time for such talk. Thank you. Thanks to you, I survived.”

“…”

“Huh? Oh, these are minor wounds. Nothing to worry about… Ugh, never mind.”

As the dust slowly settled, Greg’s appearance was utterly pitiful.

His clothes were nearly rags, and underneath were layers of old bandages.

Deep, fresh wounds bled profusely from his shoulder and abdomen.

One arm was completely charred black, likely from direct lightning exposure.

How could someone inflict such grievous injuries on another?

Before sorrow, boiling anger surged within me.

“Akashmir…!”

Clenching my teeth, I turned around again.

In the distance, a red-haired woman stood, waving dust from her eyes, staring at us.

Her appearance matched Akashmir of Lightning that I knew.

Grayish skin and prominent ears clearly marked her as a Dark Elf.

Thinking about the red lightning spell she cast moments ago, there was no need to consider the possibility she wasn’t Akashmir.

After all, unleashing magic powerful enough to burn Greg’s arm left little room for doubt.

“What? Something suddenly interfered. A brat? From the lack of mana, you’re probably not a mage…”

Akashmir eyed me, contemplating whether to attack.

Apparently, blocking her lightning without mana made her cautious.

She might be wondering how to deal with this unexpected variable or considering capturing me alive.

Either way, it worked in my favor.

Having expended nearly 30% of my strength to block one attack, this golden moment to catch my breath was crucial.

“Our chances… honestly, they’re nonexistent.”

I was furious.

If Greg had taken that attack, he’d either be dead or critically injured.

Thinking about it fueled my rage.

But regardless of emotions, the gap between us was despairingly vast.

There were two walls between Greg and Akashmir, and three walls between Greg and me.

Arithmetically speaking, five walls separated Akashmir and me.

“Blocking the attack was miraculous… No, actually, she was finishing off a fallen opponent while I barely managed to hold her off with everything I had. I almost failed to block it.”

The disparity made me chuckle bitterly. Facing a tank with a rifle might feel like this.

Without boiling rage, the sheer pressure would’ve prevented me from standing.

Yet, strangely, the confidence I felt earlier still stood firm.

Was it courage? Or recklessness? Realistically, victory against her was impossible. It was puzzling.

As I pondered this, Greg suddenly spoke.

“Yuria. Run. There’s no reason for you to get involved here. Nearby, Raven is fighting another enemy. I’ll buy you time to escape. I still have the strength to withstand her magic. So… Ugh!”

“…”

Tsk. What nonsense.

Using telekinesis, I shut Greg’s mouth as he spouted absurdities.

How could someone on the verge of death talk about buying time? He could barely stand.

Besides, I came here to save him.

No matter how strong the opponent, running away wouldn’t solve anything.

I’m definitely surviving this and returning to Night Haven with Greg.

“This future… wait, what if I tried something like…”

Flash.

An idea sparked in my mind.

Perhaps it was the only solution to this situation.

But there was no guarantee. Possibilities remained possibilities until acted upon.

“Ah, enough. I hate brats. You’ll fry along with him. Let’s finish this annoying task. Plermen.”

Akashmir muttered, pointing her finger at us.

Her short patience seemed exhausted.

Perhaps she was confident her full-powered attack would definitely land.

This time, an enormous bolt of lightning descended, impossible for me to block even at full power.

BOOM!

The red execution verdict that tore everything apart struck the ground.

Then, an eerie silence followed, as if even breathing had stopped.