Although I was able to use my coat to cover myself and block some of the debris from the flesh explosion, I was still blown away and rolled several times on the ground in the tunnel. Some of my hair seems to have been singed, I could smell a nauseating burnt scent.
I tried to catch my breath and recover my balance, but I couldn"t stop myself from a coughing fit and regurgitating what was in my stomach. My vomit scattered everywhere as it made splashing sounds.
I was so dizzy that I could only crawl along the ground to try and hide in the darkness again.
Meanwhile, Mefuri was screaming from the pain from my sword having pierced her. She was crying such things such as how unbelievable the pain was. Her high-pitched childish voice echoed throughout the tunnel and my head. The other remaining children shrunk themselves against the walls as much as they possibly could, as if to hide from her.
She"s reacting this strongly to having a sword stuck in her shoulder. Is she actually not trained for battle?
"-Rashiok, Claudia!"
Because I"m currently in a state where I"m too dizzy to move, I can only rely on them. I twisted my body while breathing quickly to look at Mefuri who was in the light. Mefuri seemed to have completely lost control of her temper and was angrily yelling while attempting to peel one of the children off of the wall.
"Hurry up and obey me!! Do you want to be exploded and die that quickly!!?"
She was threatening the child with the sword that she removed from her shoulder, while looking around her uneasily.
"…Hey, don"t get away from that wall!! This tunnel might collapse at any moment if she explodes that wall! Unless she"s willing to risk being buried alive, she can"t kill you guys!!"
I endured my nausea and summoned my energy to shout that towards the children, while Mefuri angrily responded with a "shut up!!" in my general direction.
-Aiming for Mefuri"s momentary distraction, Claudia suddenly attacked her soundlessly from the darkness and sent her pet.i.te body flying.
"Wah!? You… get off me!!"
Did Claudia throw away her blood and flesh-covered clothes, she was basically in only her underwear, but every time Mefuri scratched at Claudia"s hair and arms, I saw the spark of tiny explosions.
"Claudia…!"
However, being the most competent knight I knew, Claudia didn"t even let out a groan. She bit her lips to endure the pain, and in a break between the small explosions, even while covered in blood she was able to grab on to Mefuri and throw Mefuri over her own back in a brilliant move.
As Mefuri hit the ground, Claudia instantly had her sword against Mefuri"s throat.
The underground pa.s.sageway returned to dead silence. The remaining children seemed to be trembling while keeping as quiet as possible and observing Claudia and Mefuri.
"-Normally, I use spears."
Claudia began calmly talking to Mefuri who was still on the ground.
"The Rolentsor family"s spears are so sharp that a piece of paper falling on the spear tip would be sliced in two. The swords we use are also the sharpest around."
As Claudia talked, Mefuri attempted to do something with her right hand, but Claudia used her empty left hand to twist Mefuri"s arm behind her back. Claudia"s expression distorted as Mefuri screamed again.
"However, I loathe the idea of killing children. That"s why I would appreciate it if you could give up without resisting. You should just sit there obediently and wait for my master to decide whether to kill you or not."
"…W, what!? D, don"t joke with me - Eek!?"
Rashiok suddenly appeared on top of Mefuri unexpectedly as she was ranting. Claudia was still smiling calmly while holding her sword against Mefuri"s throat.
"Well, I"m saying it for your own sake that you should sit there obediently. Because of my code of chivalry, I prefer to avoid doing anything to a child… but this draconis here is just like my lord, even if you"re only a young girl, there won"t be any mercy for you."
……Um, hey.
Well, I suppose it"s just like she says.
Just as I wished, Claudia was able to capture Mefuri alive, but I had a subtle indescribable feeling as I watched her begin to tie Mefuri up.
At any rate, we"ve successfully captured the escaped prisoners with this.
With Rashiok helping me, I stood up again in the tunnel that returned to darkness once more.
The thick smell of blood lingered in the air. I felt like I could hear auditory hallucinations of the children that were still crying out in fear.