Approximately twenty minutes before Luna accepted the emergency quest——
A powerfully built Holy Knight on horseback, leading twelve subordinates, was galloping down the forest road in the kingdom’s southeastern region.
The keenly sharp-faced man is Nyngoran Vitold, a formidable heavy warrior entrusted with command of the Seventh Holy Knight Battalion.
(Damn……Thunder Emperor Meridora, what kind of monster is this……)
He had received the report of Meridora’s appearance and set out to deal with it——only to be beaten back, overwhelmed by the immense power of lightning, a humiliating defeat.
He had used a classic smoke screen to blind the enemy and escaped with his life by the skin of his teeth.
Currently he is escorting five civilian carriages and retreating at full speed toward the kingdom.
(……I’m sorry. This must be agony, but hold on just a little longer……)
Expressing gratitude to the beloved horse pushing hard beneath him and gently patting its back——far overhead, a portion of the clear blue sky darkens to pitch black, and crackling explosive sounds ring out.
“Brace yourselves——here it comes!”
The instant Nyngoran shouts the warning, brilliant lightning bursts——
“Gaaaaaah……!?”
——and a Holy Knight who takes a fierce lightning strike slides limply off his horse.
He is a trained Holy Knight, still likely breathing.
If a potion were administered immediately, if a recovery spell were cast, he could probably be saved.
But if they stop here, annihilation is certain.
The members of the Seventh Holy Knight Battalion abandon a dear comrade by the roadside——and drive their horses on.
(Damn, damn, damn……! That bastard is completely toying with us……)
Nyngoran, fury written across his face, glares over his shoulder at what lies behind.
Far in the distance, a thin silhouette swaying like a specter——that is Thunder Emperor Meridora.
Whatever trick he is using, he walks at a leisurely pace and yet maintains an unhurried, unbreaking distance from the galloping Nyngoran and his men——occasionally, as if remembering they exist, snapping his fingers and striking down Holy Knight after Holy Knight with lightning magic.
He could slaughter them all at any moment he chose——but he would never do something so wasteful.
Meridora is enjoying his hobby: ‘hunting humans.’
(……This strange lightning is without question his innate magic. The effective range is probably everything under open sky——which means right now, it is effectively the same as having our hearts gripped in his hand……)
The top priority is to escape this ‘open sky.’
(My innate magic is weak against three-dimensional attacks. ……If death awaits either way, take the path with even the slightest higher chance……!)
His resolve set, Nyngoran decides in his heart to make for the Kueri Caves ahead and commit to a siege.
He immediately activates magic and connects to three locations: the Kingdom’s Holy Knight headquarters, the adventurer’s guild, and the Elgia Royal Palace.
“I am Nyngoran Vitold, captain of the Seventh Battalion! Time is short, so I’ll speak without waiting for replies! We are currently protecting a large number of civilians and traveling the southeastern forest road toward the capital! The enemy is Thunder Emperor Meridora! His strength far exceeded our projections! Lightning magic that commands the open sky——”
Even as he delivers a concise account of the situation, blue lightning raining from above strikes another Holy Knight——
“Gaaaaah……!?”
——and a comrade he has endured hardship and triumph with for years collapses like a puppet with its strings cut.
“Kgh……! We are moving to take cover in the Kueri Caves and make a desperate last stand! This is purely a delaying measure and we almost certainly cannot win! We and the civilians will be killed to the last! Knowing this is asking the impossible, I still beg you! Send reinforcements immediately! Someone——someone who can actually fight Meridora——please……!”
Nyngoran delivers his soul’s cry and cuts the spell.
Thunder Emperor Meridora is a monster the battalion commander himself cannot lay a hand on.
Every capable fighter who might be able to subdue him is assigned to critical duties——guarding the royal palace, border security, front line combat.
The Kingdom of Elgia, whose military strength is meager even compared to other nations, is in no position to send reinforcements here.
Nyngoran knows all of this perfectly well, and yet sends his request for aid in a spirit of grasping at straws.
After that, the group moves to the Kueri Caves——and the demon wreathed in blue lightning closes in.
“——Hey, what’s the matter? Is our little chase already over?”
Thunder Emperor Meridora, apparently in his mid-twenties in appearance.
A tall, lean man with flowing blue hair and twin horns on his brow.
Clothed in a white-and-blue kimono and wearing a sadistic smile, Meridora is met by Nyngoran, who stands his ground with the composure of a man who has made his peace with death.
“Yes, the running is over. From here it’s a war of attrition——a test of which of us runs out of magical energy first. Let me be clear from the outset: I am the most stubborn man in the kingdom.”
“Kha, a war of attrition? What face does a bottom-feeding weakling who tucked tail and ran have, talking like that!”
The moment Meridora snaps his fingers, gleaming blue lightning races across the sky.
Nyngoran answers by slamming both hands together hard.
“——!”
The incoming lightning strike is caught and held by a transparent barrier.
“Ohh……that’s an unusual magic.”
Meridora narrows his eyes with what looks like interest.
The innate magic is a defensive magic that erects extremely thin, layered barriers at pre-designated points.
While it is weak against attacks from multiple angles or from above and below, it is extraordinarily strong against a single direct frontal attack.
And this location is a narrow cave running in one direction, which limits Meridora’s attacks to coming from straight ahead.
The ‘terrain advantage’ belongs to Nyngoran.
“I am ‘Ironclad’ Nyngoran! Your piddling lightning will not get through me!”
“Hmhm, interesting! I’ll play with you for a bit!”
How much time passed after that.
“——Hey hey, what happened to the bravado from earlier? Is this all your precious ‘ironclad’ amounts to!?”
Meridora’s attacks reach a vicious intensity——
“Gkh, gh……!”
——and the layered barriers Nyngoran has deployed shatter one after another.
(I held the terrain, laid the magic formations, drew on every support tool available. And still there is this much ‘gap’ between us……)
Lightning blades, lightning spears, lightning axes——weapons formed from blue lightning come raining down like a storm.
And then finally——the last barrier breaks.
“There we go, nowhere left to run! What now, ‘Ironclad’!?”
Meridora swings his right arm, and a gleaming lightning spear is launched at terrifying speed.
“……!”
Civilians to protect at his back——Nyngoran has no choice.
“GRRAAAAaaaaaaa……!”
He crosses both arms with every ounce of magical energy he has, and takes the incoming lightning spear head-on.
“Kgh, hah……hah hah hah……”
Breathing ragged, he lets his scorched arms hang limply at his sides.
He barely managed to stop it——but the arms are no longer usable.
The gap in power between the two is simply too great, and the grim tragedy waiting ahead is clear to everyone present.
“Nngh, Nyngoran-sama……!”
“You have done more than enough, you have fought more than enough for us……!”
“Don’t worry about us anymore, please stop. Any more of this is only going to cause you more suffering……!”
Far behind Nyngoran——sheltering behind the wreckage of a carriage, people weep.
And yet, the light in Nyngoran’s eyes has not gone out.
“Hah hah……what’s wrong? I am still absolutely, completely, totally——fine……”
He is a man who will never give up.
As long as the possibility of reinforcements——the possibility of a miracle——remains above 0.1%, he will never quit.
“Hmhm……good, GOOD, Nyngoran! I love a human with some backbone! Your flesh and blood must taste absolutely wonderful!”
An excited Meridora draws the long sword at his hip.
It is the cursed lightning sword Gyulan, which cuts through all things absolutely.
(What is that……! Can a sword that abominable actually exist in the world……!?)
Off the charts in both quality and quantity of magical energy contained.
A single blade holding every ill omen of the world——worst of the worst, a true disaster made weapon.
“Now, shall we bring it to a close! Give me a wonderful scream!”
Meridora raises Gyulan overhead and breaks into an explosive run——and Nyngoran meets him with his scorched right fist.
(One second, even a fraction of a second longer——buy time until reinforcements arrive……!)
From the moment he chose to make his stand, death had already been in the cards.
If his arms are cut off, he grapples with his legs. If his legs are taken, he bites.
Every means available——buy even a fraction of a second more.
Nyngoran Vitold was a proud Holy Knight, one who offered himself for the sake of the weak.
“GRRAAAAaaaaaaa……!”
As a tremendous battle cry reverberates through the cave——a single rings out in the Kueri Caves.
“——It’s Berg from the adventurer’s guild! Hold on just a little longer, all of you! Something ‘absolutely unbelievable’ just headed your way!”
The next instant——appearing between Nyngoran and Meridora as if splitting them apart, a massive plate armor emerges from empty space.
“[Both]: What——!?”
At the appearance of this uninvited visitor, both reflexively leap backward.
(That plate armor——could this be Silver-dono!?)
(*That just now was the highest-class magic *……? This armor is not to be underestimated.)
In the tense air——
“Hmm……? Oh, looks like I landed in a pretty good spot.”
The Saint is in very high spirits about the accuracy of her own .
Which makes sense——she is not skilled at precise magical control, and normally jumps by rough feel——but.
(This is definitely a ‘hit’!)
In the dim cave, directly ahead are civilians in a state of visible terror.
Nine chances in ten, these are the people she has been sent to protect.
“Allow me to introduce myself——I am adventurer Silver Glorious=El=Bloodfallenheart, and I have come to help——”
As Luna takes one step toward the frightened people, delivering her lengthy introduction along the way——Nyngoran’s voice booms out.
“——Silver-dono, behind you!”
“Hm?”
The instant Luna turns around——
“——Too slow!”
Gyulan, the lightning sword, attacks Luna’s head——the helm.
The next instant, a dry metallic clatter rings out——
“……Huh?”
The single blade holding every ill omen of the world shatters into pieces, sad and pathetic.
Luna, for her part, is completely uninjured, and the helm has not moved a single millimeter.
“That feeble, contemptible magical energy of yours……. Could it be——you’re a ‘magic beast’?”
“Don’t lump me in with those creatures! I am a proud great demon——”
Luna swings her right hand at the furious Meridora as though brushing away a gnat.
The next instant——
“Gh……!?”
One single hit.
Meridora collides with the cave wall at extraordinary speed——and becomes an unresponsive red smear.
“[Everyone]: ……Huh……?”
What spreads through the cave is pure, simple ‘confusion.’
The Thunder Emperor who had wielded absolute power——Meridora, who had been a being of hopeless scale——had been extinguished by a light flick of the wrist.
The reality of it, too strange to be true, could not be swallowed immediately.
The massive plate armor that had appeared out of nowhere was on a different ‘level of strength’ altogether——in the most literal sense.
Everyone standing there dumbfounded, Luna, having dispatched Thunder Emperor Meridora in a single blow, turns back to the civilians with an expression more serious than usual.
“Now then——I am so glad you are all safe. I have been sent by the adventurer’s guild to protect you.”
The Proxy of the Saint has come to help.
This fact loosens the terror that had seized people’s hearts, and a relaxed air begins to flow through the cave.
But the words that follow from Luna turn everything upside down.
“Currently, a vicious demon called ‘Thunder Emperor Meridora’ is said to be prowling the area around these Kueri Caves. Now, while he hasn’t found us yet, is the perfect chance! I’ll lead the way, so let’s evacuate to the village of Tot as quickly as possible!”
“[Everyone]: ……Huh……?”
The second bout of confusion of the day spreads through the room.
(No, that thing right there that you just……Meridora……)
(Could this be——a joke from Silver-dono……!?)
(……I don’t know. What on earth are we supposed to do in a situation like this……)
Sad to say.
The Saint is entirely unable to distinguish clearly between ‘demons’ and ‘magic beasts.’
She always decides by ‘rough intuition,’ and her accuracy rate falls below thirty percent.
In actual fact, she had rendered the incorrect verdict of ‘a weak magic beast’ on Meridora——
——with the result that in this entire world, in her mind alone, ‘the threat of Thunder Emperor Meridora’ remains alive and well.
“Everyone, please line up behind me! Come on, quickly……!”
Fundamentally diligent at heart, Luna throws herself wholeheartedly into the emergency quest——and pressed by her earnestness, the people get moving one by one.
“Silver-sama, thank you so much……!”
“You saved my life, ye did……!”
“Truly, truly, thank you so much……!”
Everyone voices their gratitude one after another——and yet not a single one of them tells the ‘truth.’
Whatever she may be——Proxy of the Saint, adventurer who came to their aid——not one of them could bring themselves to correct a ‘genuine monster’ who had one-shot Thunder Emperor Meridora.
In the somewhat awkward atmosphere that follows, Nyngoran, his treatment with a potion now done, moves forward.
“——Silver-dono, you saved us when it counted most. I do not have words enough to thank you……!”
“……Forgive me, you are……?”
“My apologies for the late introduction. I am Nyngoran Vitold, captain of the Seventh Holy Knight Battalion.”
Given that this is before the Proxy of the Saint, his posture is even straighter than usual.
“How kind of you. I am about to escort everyone here safely to the village of Tot. Please come along with us, Nyngoran-san.”
“I’m afraid not. I still have things I must do here, so I’ll be taking my leave.”
“Things you must do……?”
To Luna’s question, Nyngoran gives a firm nod.
“Several of my comrades fell during our retreat. Or——perhaps some may still be breathing. Even if not, I want to at least see that their remains are returned to their families.”
“I see……I understand your feelings, but that seems rather dangerous. To be frank, it’s not something I can recommend. This entire area is where Thunder Emperor Meridora is lurking, after all.”
Luna delivered this cautionary advice in an impressively capable-adventurer sort of way, sharp and composed——but from the perspective of those who know the full situation, it is a monumental misunderstanding resulting in spectacular spinning of wheels.
“Ah, w-well……yes, I suppose so……. I’ll keep watch around me and take care not to be found by Meridora while I search for my comrades.”
“……I see. If your mind is that firmly made up, I won’t try to stop you any further. I will at least pray for you to return safely.”
Luna extends her right hand——
“Yes, thank you.”
——and Nyngoran grips it firmly, and they shake hands.
(Nyngoran-san doesn’t seem particularly strong, but what a ‘courageous person’……)
(Silver-dono has unimaginable strength, but what an absolutely ‘oblivious person’……)
These two, who are entirely on different pages, part ways wishing each other safe.
After that, Luna exits the Kueri Caves with a large number of civilians in tow, focuses every nerve on the close-range detection she is not good at, and proceeds carefully——very carefully——down the peaceful, tranquil forest road where no demon or magic beast is to be found.
On the road to the village of Tot——
“Hm!?”
Luna snaps her gaze up to the treetops——
“[Everyone]: ——!”
——sending a jolt of tension through the civilians.
“Oh. Just a lizard.”
“[Everyone]: Phew……”
The tension releases——
“Ah!?”
“[Everyone]: ——!”
“Oh. Just a squirrel.”
“[Everyone]: Phew……”
The most pointless tense minutes in the history of the world pass——ten minutes, thirty minutes, an hour——and they finally arrive at the village of Tot.
“Phew. You should all be safe from here.”
“[Everyone]: Th-thank you so much……!”
“Please think nothing of it. I was simply doing my job as an adventurer. ——Then, I’ll be on my way.”
Having thoroughly enjoyed her long-overdue adventurer moves, Luna activates and jumps to the capital.
(Phew. That was a pretty intense quest, but it felt very adventurer-y……something like ‘a good day’s work’!)
In actual fact she had done nothing but proceed carefully down a completely safe forest road for no reason——but the Saint is looking very pleased with herself.