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Translator : hasr11
Editor : (unedited for now)
Chapter 29 : The Case of the Attack on the Doll Princess.
When I turned back and decided to return to the inn『The Bustle of the Pier』, an arrowhead came at me.
From the corner right beside me, a man with fugitive-like loose and dishevelled hair[1] appeared suddenly.
He, as if an acquaintance, seemingly gave a greeting「Yo」, and took out his sword in a way that even made me feel friendliness. He swung the blade downward.
It was too sudden.
Even though my mind perceived danger, my body didn’t heed.
If it continued like this, I’d lose my life without even getting a chance to speak.
But that didn’t happen.
(Princess, run!)
It was thanks to Walf, who had been hiding close to me as a guard,
He faced the phantom killer holding his flame sword.
*
*
－－My memories ahead of this are vivid enough to even puzzle me. Seeing a crisis on my life drawing near, my concentration power must have heightened to its limits.
*
*
The phantom killer was not that surprised at Walf’s appearance.
He was calm, and on the contrary even gave a grin in order to show his filthy yellowed teeth.
Swords clashed ーーAnd a strange thing happened.
*
Walf’s blazing blade made a creaking sound and froze.
The phantom killer’s sword was transparent as if it were an icicle. It wasn’t ordinary. Perhaps, it was a kind of magical sword.
But still, to win against a flame sword, just how much magic does it have put in it?
Walf’s judgement was quick. He immediately let go of his sword.
But he was still too late.
A freeze spread on his fingers which he’d only touched the hilt a little with.
Walf, who was preserved in ice from the neck down, tumbled.
*
Incidentally, the phantom killer was holding his sword with only his right hand.
His free left hand was held up to the heights of his face, but he for the second time, repeated the action of opening and closing his hand.
There were many instances when such an action that had no connection was the key to invoke magic, and in reality that was exactly what it was.
Three lances fringed with light appeared in the empty sky.
Their tips were all pointing atーーMe.
*
Walf couldn’t move a muscle, Kajero and Cactus-Kun weren"t there.
I didn’t bring along any dolls other than them to Malgaroid.
Now only I can protect myself, but it’s not as if I’ve done nothing up until here.
While creating as much distance as possible, I wore the black lace gloves. It was my creation that I’d constantly been improving for the past two years. Woven with the blessings of multiple spirits, you could make a laughingstock out of ordinary magic with just this one thing.
Simultaneously creating a barrier out of magical power of each attribute, I was able to intercept the lances.
Due to limits on its power, I couldn"t create it anywhere other than before my eyes, but with thirty layers overlapping, there was no way of it being destroyed in the first place. Even if such a situation arose, I’d be fine. The one piece I was wearing was special material, it wouldn"t lose out to those suits of armour.
I got ready to invoke magic.
*
ーーBut when did so, I guess I seemed afraid and petrified of the signs of my imminent death from his point of view.
Novel Updates
「Watch out!」
*
From the escaping people, out came a red haired youth who had called out a while back. Why is he here? Did he follow behind us?
No way. He must have reached here by chance.
Rather than that, the more pressing matter was that he was rushing toward me as if to protect me, and moreover, the place he was rushing to was the other side of the magical barrier.
There was nothing I could do
「……Ugh.」
The Light Spears pierced through the thin leather armour.
The pike turned up halfway through his back and then disappeared.
The red haired youth fell flat on his back. There was a huge hole on his chest. A deep red stain was spreading on the ground.
Sugoi Desu
I didn’t even get the time to become scared and raise my voice.
The phantom killer’s second sword was drawing near.
I intended to dodge it in a hair’s breadth, but I was too late.
I felt a sharp and hot sensation on my left arm.
I was cut.
The crimson blood trickled and collected quite a bit on the ground.
I didn’t feel any pain. I wonder if it was because of the nerves.
The phantom killer showed a vulgar smile on his dry skin like a dead tree.
「You’re wearing quite nice clothes.
I wanted to kill you, but I wasn’t thinking of averting the sword I’m wielding
It seems a straightforward method won’t work.」
Actually, the strike before was supposed to gouge deep into my back.
The reason why that didn’t happen was solely because of the wind spirits I carried in my one piece.
「This too is a request.
I don’t have any grudges against you……No, it’s not as if I don’t have any.
I’m looking forward to what kind of face Feria will make. Kuku.」
While the phantom killer piled on more words, I felt him gathering magical power in his left hand. It seemed he wanted to produce those Light Spears from just a while back again.
There were various kinds of magic, while there were ones that required you to chant a spell, there were also ones that just required you to think of it.
There was a type that required you to internally vocalise in order to knead the magical power. It didn"t matter if the contents spoken were idle talk or anything else. The phantom killer was probably using that.
「Regarding your killing, I’ve got a tacit approval from even the Magaloid Royal family. When it comes to the security knights, even they won"t come.
ーーBrace yourself, Doll Princess.」
If the opponent were only holding a sword, I"d have tided over somehow or the other.
Because the other party too knew it, they decide to use magic.
Letting slashes slip through while expanding the barrier was a bit too difficult.
I"d already called Kajero , but there was no guarantee I"d survive till he reached.
It was a crisis-like situation.
*
Even so.
Even though people were being killed in front of me, and even I myself had injuries.
Why was I so calm?
It was as if my heart was made with walls of steel.
The phantom killer maneuvered both the sword and the spear. It seemed he held a grudge against Feria.
I wonder if he was the fourth fiancé who came up in the conversation a while back. Did he resent the fact that he was disowned after he did everything that he wanted to do?
I had some time to make such a deduction.
I wonder if the one piece was bestowing strengthened spiritual force.
I don"t remember. Well, small talk is for later.
I had to buy time.
And I had already thought of the means to do so.
During the time the phantom killer was incessantly talking while weaving his magic, I too hastened my own preparations.
It was something like a trick, but it"d no doubt stop the opponent"s movements,
If all went well, it should be able to turn the magic sword power, and perhaps even s.n.a.t.c.h it away.
Just the worth of doing that was enough.
As expected, that last thing I wanted to rely on was my prided technique.
「You"re quite apart from other children just as the rumours said.
How about you show me a slightly afraid expression?」
「I apologise, but I don"t happen to have any courtesies for sc.u.mbags.」
I unintentionally said it in a harsh manner.
When I used special magic, no matter what I did, the limits of my self restraint tended to loosen.
Even my expression must have been a cruel and s.a.d.i.s.tic one.
*
*
……Let"s talk about what you want to do already.
For example, the pendant on my neck.
There was a water spirit dwelling in here, but there was not much of practical use for it as method in doll magic. It was a technique that mixed together with alchemy.
Strictly speaking, be it magic thread, magic formations or alchemy furnaces, they all needed preparations.
But, I had the ultimate offering here that would omit most of it.
The unintentionally spilt blood of a pract.i.tioner.
Moreover, I came from a family line that had continued to use magic from a long time back, that magic concentration could not be compared with ordinary humans.
*
At that moment, the phantom killer"s sword was soaked in my blood.
I had finished the chant in my heart already.
The prerequisites had been completed.
Afterward, I only had to put my mind into it, and utter a few words.
*
*
「You praised my clothes just now, but that sword is exquisite too.
It"s transparent and beautiful.
ーーThat"s why, give it to me.」
*
*
In a moment.
Even though there was no shade at all in the height of summer, an awfully cold breeze blew.
The frenzy of the people had just perfectly settled, and a silence that reeked of falsehood came over.
They were Spirits.
I turned my body as far as possible and pointed at "that".
The phantom killers sword.
It seemed extremely endowed with magic, but luckily, at that time when it clashed with Walf"s sword it became rather worn out.
The spirts immediately made that sword their own.
*
「Wh-What……!」
It was natural that the phantom killer was at a loss.
His body was now moving with its own will.
The left hand that had been raised for the sake of invoking magic was now grasping onto the sword along with his right hand.
That blade turned towards his own neck.
It seems these spirits were mostly a high ranked existences, and thus brought the phantom killers body under their control very easily. It was a glad occurrence outside of my calculations.
「No, don"t kill him. Hand him over to Kajero, because I have a lot of information to get out of him.
For the time being, leave him in the corner.」
The phantom killer nodded, moment by moment.
The person himself did not care about my intentions.
At the entrance of『The Bustle of the Pier』inn, tautly stretching his muscles, he took a standing in attention posture.
Well then.
The first problem had been solved.
But it was far from over.
The youth who had collapsed protecting me.
*
I would hate for him to die like that.
T/N –
1. Raw says ochimusha. Reminds me of this.↩