Escape From a Deserted Island With Enemy Female Soldiers - Chapter 70



69 – Three Hundred Yards to Find a Friend (4)

The battle began the moment they set foot in the tower. Monsters swarmed like a pack of dogs.

“There are a lot of them.”

“Don’t worry. We’re here, after all.”

Calon shouted.

“We’re breaking through! As is!”

“oooH!”

David and Calon headbutted the monsters. Every enemy in their path was knocked away.

Even with the same body, performance varies wildly depending on who’s controlling it.

Before becoming soldiers, David and Calon Battalion Commanders were elite mages. Mana manipulation, understanding of golems, they perfected everything.

“Our strength, and our weakness, is the charge. Four of you, take the flanks.”

The party moved in sync. Breaching the first floor, they burst through the second.

And the third.

A facility packed with all sorts of fire-related equipment, like furnaces and incinerators. Every time a furnace dipped, flames spewed from an incinerator.

“Ugh.”

Rachel leaned on Erich.

Being close to him calmed her. She hated that her subconscious kept reaching for him, but she couldn’t help it. Right now, the situation was incredibly urgent.

“There are a lot of monsters here.”

“Let’s stay calm.”

A rather fierce battle unfolded on the third floor. Mid-sized monsters and golems tightened their encirclement. The four dismounted from the golems. While two golems blocked the front and back, the others dealt with the enemies that sprang out.

They broke through the third floor, and as they ascended to the fourth…

[“You’ve come this far, have you.”]

A humanoid monster was waiting for Erich’s party.

Its entire body was covered in rock. Steam leaked from various points. The pressure was extraordinary. Erich frowned and asked.

[“Are you the boss?”]

[“So hasty.”]

The monster calmly smiled and opened its mouth. Faint smoke billowed out.

[“I am Redoff, the Stone Knight. I rule this fief, granted to me by a great being. You are nothing more than invaders on my territory.”]

Redoff’s finger pointed at Erich.

[“Wizard, what is your name?”]

[“…Erich Ronstein.”]

[“You dare steal my precious golem?”]

Erich didn’t answer. The stone monster’s gaze shifted between him and David.

[“You seem to have some skill. But, with that much, why is your mana so weak? Or are you hiding your power?”]

[“Maybe?”]

The truth was, Erich’s mana was pathetic. But blurting that out would be a bad move. If the opponent wanted to misjudge him, so much the better.

Erich lowered his voice as he spoke.

[“Answer me. What were you doing here?”]

[“Are your eyes just for show? You should have seen from the floor below.”]

[“I was too busy smashing my way up to see properly.”]

[“Huh.”]

The monster chuckled humorously.

[“Then I’ll show you.”]

Ledoff pulled something from his coat. A mana stone. A desperate voice came from the stone.

[‘Save me! I don’t want to suffer anymore!’]

Ledoff brought the mana stone to his teeth. And chewed.

CRUNCH!

With a chilling sound, the mana stone shattered into pieces. The person’s presence inside vanished. Mana gathered around the monster.

[“If you trap a soul in a stone, it becomes a mana stone itself. With the right aging, it becomes a wonderful energy source. It’s still hard to maintain this state outside, but…”]

That b*stard.

He definitely turned David and Callon into magic stones. Erich thought. He would absolutely beat him down. It was around that time the Saintess approached and spoke.

“Magician, I’m sure of it. He’s a demon from the Demon King’s army.”

“How do you know that?”

“The name Ledoff, I’ve heard of it. It’s in the scriptures. He’s a commander in the Demon King’s 17th Legion. He can use stone magic. Just like you.”

Which meant.

“Unlike that ghoul, he’s the real deal. You have to be careful.”

Erich knew a thing or two about demons himself.

Not all demons are strong. But all demons are cunning. Because they’ve completely sold themselves to devils.

Erich wedged ice flower stones between his fingers. He would use them in an emergency.

[“Enough information for those about to die. Now vanish.”]

Erich and Rachel stood shoulder-to-shoulder. No more talking was needed. Even if they were to extract information, half-killing him came first.

[“Rock, destroy.”]

“—!”

The instant Ledoff began chanting, Tilia drew her baculus.

Divine power, a blessing for all.

The Sephiron, unfurling like iridescent threads, enveloped the group. A warm feeling spread, and strength surged. The Saintess’s blessing instilled the will to live in the living.

And.

[‘Aah!’]

For the disembodied, it granted rest.

[‘Warm! I can fly now!’]

The soul held captive in the magic stone evaporated. Ascension. The stream of fire Redoff had unleashed scattered uselessly. Wrinkles deepened around his eyes.

Divine power interfering with souls?

[“Annoying.”]

Redoff clicked his tongue and brushed away the debris.

The other magic stones he’d brought were still intact. The power of the divine prayer wasn’t greater than the magic stone’s binding force. But if he tried to use the stones, they’d immediately be purified by that divine power.

[“A mage and a saint are on the same side. His Majesty would have a laugh if he saw this.”]

Redoff was a demon, but not one particularly strong in physical strength. His power lay in the golems he created.

As things stood, there was no other choice.

[“Incineration.”]

He would use his trump card immediately.

[“I offer a minor sacrifice to the demon of the north.”]

A minor sacrifice.

An offering to a demon, but only a small portion. A small payment, so to speak. The power gained was small, but so was the soul lost.

[“I offer my sublime soul. To ensure they are killed, grant a true soul to the golems.”]

[Granted.]

The scorpion golems he had prepared beforehand fell from the ceiling. They plunged their stingers into David and Calon’s heads.

“Ugh…!”

David’s brow split vertically. The scorpion detonated fire instead of poison in the fissure. David writhed in agony and collapsed. He didn’t get up immediately. Rage filled Erich’s eyes.

“Those b*stards…!”

“Mage, deal with them first!”

Rachel urged Erich on. She knew he and David were close, like senior and junior, but he couldn’t worry about him now.

“We gotta take out the scorpions first!”

Tiria ran with Riyo, Erich with Rachel.

Erich scanned the scorpions’ exoskeletons. The armor wasn’t that thick. If he could hit them with lapis lazuli, they’d be golden.

Easier said than done.

The scorpions moved fast. Way faster than those dinosaurs they’d fought earlier. Agile like they’d been empowered by a demon.

Which they had been.

That speed couldn’t come from an ordinary golem. Enhanced by demonic power. They hadn’t paid much of a price, so the armor wasn’t hardened that much.

That was the plan.

“Mage!”

Tiria shouted.

“My boss and I will try to pin them down! Use that opening to attack!”

Erich nodded. Tiria swung Baculus, chanting a prayer to bind the enemy’s souls.

“———.”

Punishment, repentance, and atonement.

A debuff skill she’d also used during the fight with the dinosaur golems.

If there were people controlling the golem’s core, maybe this would snap them out of it. As Tiria chanted the prayer, the scorpions’ movements noticeably slowed.

“Aah, aah.”

“Ughhh.”

The scorpions groaned. They wriggled their legs and rolled in place. Ledoph’s expression turned sour. The magician was a problem, but that cleric was just as much of a pain in the ass.

But it’s okay.

I’m part of the plan, too.

“Captain, toss it!”

Rio cast the net wide. Two scorpions were caught and bound at once.

“Yesss!”

Got them.

Now’s the chance.

Rachel drew her Divine Power to its peak. She pulled spare spears from her back and gripped one in each hand.

“Goddess.”

She recited the short prayer, then plunged the holy spears into the two scorpions.

Deep. They went in deep. Rachel didn’t stop there, she twisted the spears. Sephiron burst forth like a flood, searing both scorpions at the same time.

That’s it. I can definitely kill them like this, she was thinking, when.

“Ah, it hurts, Rachel.”

“Why, why are you stabbing us, huh?”

The scorpions said plaintively.

“…Daisy, Olivia?”

The light drained from Rachel’s eyes.

“It’s, it’s us. Daisy, Olivia. Don’t you recognize us? We, we finally met again, only to…”

“Yeah, please, just kill us. Captain. We’re, we’re done. We don’t, want to suffer, anymore.”

No way, she never imagined reuniting in such a horrific form.

Rachel slowly withdrew the spear. Tiny flames trickled from the mouths of the two golems, Daisy and Olivia.

[“Gotcha.”]

The flames, like flickers of a cigarette lighter, swiftly grew uncontrollable, engulfing Rachel.

*

Smoke billowed with the golems’ self-destruction. Redoff smiled, satisfied. This was his aim all along.

[“Indeed, they were damn good fighters.”]

Daisy, Olivia.

Among the magic stones Redoff had acquired, those two souls were by far the highest quality. They’d endured his cruel experiments without going insane. He knew they’d handle the top-tier golems he created well. Granted, he’d enhanced them with the power of immolation, too.

[“What a shame.”]

To waste such good test subjects like that.

But it’s fine. He could always find better souls.

When the explosion erupted, the priest and the fox beastkin were nearby. Judging by the silence, they were caught in it. Redoff’s lips couldn’t help but curl upwards. He felt a surge of joy at the thought of harvesting their souls.

[“Now, let’s see if they’re nicely done?”]

Redoff was about to clear away the smoke when,

Thwack.

Something seized his face.

A hand. Erich’s blackened, scorched right hand gripped Redoff’s face and twisted it.

[“Freeze.”]

Crrrrrack.

Before Redoff could react, frost engulfed his mug.