By Zephyria Leonardo, who met the red pupils, swallowed hard. The distance was so close that he would be swallowed whole if the Queen rushed at him.
As he lowered his posture and watched the monster’s movements with bated breath, the eyeballs that had been scanning the inside rolled to the side, contrary to his expectation that it would attack him right away.
Behind the sticky sound of the inhuman eyeballs and eyelids rubbing against each other, a cool energy surging in the air brushed against the skin of the two people. At that moment, the core also sensed a strange current, and the monster’s figure, which had been visible through the crack, disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Kwaaaang―!
Kyaaaaaack―
A sharp scream and shockwave echoed throughout the vast space. Although it was not visible because it was blocked by the Ice Pillar, it seemed that Agrizendro had threatened the core and temporarily driven the monster elsewhere.
Leonardo, knowing that he was buying them time, immediately stepped on the end of his cloak. After tearing off a long piece of cloth, he twisted it vertically and wrapped it tightly around the upper part of the wound on his shoulder as if to compress it. Of course, this would not completely stop the blood from circulating.
If the mucus on the end of the stinger had the same poison as the Deformed species in the crater, the wound would have been no different from pouring the Illaptor’s poison into it whole.
‘I should have looked for Dregalianif on the way.’
Blaming himself for having been only looking for the core a few hours ago, Leonardo bit the end of the cloth and pulled it tight to tie a knot. Then, he gathered heat in his hand and cauterized the affected area with flames. He had to hope that the poison, reacting to the high temperature, would weaken and slow down its spread.
After self-treatment, Leonardo glanced at the 12th Battalion Commander of the Southern Branch next to him.
It was quite a headache to have to worry about that woman right now, as the enemy’s movements were unusually fast.
“Snap out of it. Don’t be spaced out.”
Isabella, who had been staring at the crack, turned her head at the cold voice. Her eyes, which had been frozen due to belatedly understanding the situation, flickered with complexity for a moment.
Her hesitant gaze reached Leonardo’s left shoulder, which was soaked with blood.
“…….”
After moving her lips several times as she looked at it, she opened her mouth in a subdued voice.
“I’m sorry.”
Leonardo’s eyebrows arched smoothly. After a moment of silence, Isabella, who had been facing him with a stiff expression, lowered her eyes.
Then, as if she had made up her mind, she continued in an extremely serious voice.
“I’ll snap out of it from now on.”
Fierce venom, as if projecting her will, surged around her as her eyes changed. The murderous energy wrapped around her scythe, deeply staining the sharp blade.
“…Thank you, Blaine. I won’t be a burden to you.”
Her gaze, after uttering her resolve as if making a pledge, wandered over Leonardo’s shoulder several times.
Leonardo, who also glanced down at his shoulder, recited his thoughts to her, setting aside the introduction because the situation was not relaxed.
“Well… it’s okay. First, we have to buy as much time as possible until we can contact the outside, so the Legion Commander and I will lure the core first and drive it to one wall. Then you go up again and put up the barrier―.”
“No, there’s no need for that.”
Leonardo’s face was filled with bewilderment at Isabella’s appearance, which interrupted his words and lowered her posture.
“The members who came here with me have already gone to inform the liaison officer who is waiting nearby about the situation. It seems that Commander Hastings of the 9th Battalion is also moving separately.”
“…….”
Leonardo suddenly realized that the Commander who had been with the 9th Battalion Commander of the Southern Branch was not visible. The only figure who had jumped down from where the 9th Battalion commanders had been after the scream was heard a moment ago was one person.
It didn’t make sense for the Commander, who was perfectly fine, to deliberately not show up when his superior’s arm had been torn off, so it was certain that he was moving to another location now.
“Once the news reaches the liaison officer at the entrance, preparations for activating the barrier will be completed throughout the entire peninsula within 10 minutes. So we will push the core to the limit as it is and execute the first stage of the operation.”
Intense energy gathered under Isabella’s feet, as if she was about to burst out at any moment, as she swept back her hair. Soon, the nearby rock was pushed back by the pressure and began to crack slowly.
Leonardo, who had been staring at the scene, blinked slowly. Gold Eyes shone sharply like a flash of light, as if seeing light in the darkness.
“You should have said that sooner.”
A surge of intense Magic Power swirled around him. Isabella’s shoulders flinched as the tension-inducing current rippled.
The scorching heat poured out, and his golden hair fluttered in the hot wind. Leonardo, who grabbed the back of his neck and lightly loosened it from side to side, gestured to Isabella’s scythe.
“That monster’s tail is annoying. Just make some scratches on the outside like you did before. I’ll take care of the rest.”
Isabella, who looked at her scythe, tilted her head with an expression of incomprehension. She must have clearly seen the monster’s hide hardening just now, so she had no idea how he was going to do it.
However, because he was such an existence with abilities beyond common sense, and because he was emitting an energy that would make it possible. Isabella, who had been silent, nodded briefly without adding any other words.
Kwaaaang―!
Afterwards, another roar spread. The two people, recognizing the urgency, exchanged signals with their eyes.
Drawing out Magic Power from their entire bodies and staring straight ahead, they listened to the monster’s sound and prepared to attack.
Holding their breath and watching for the timing, they put strength into the hands holding their weapons, and lowered their bodies to leap, sensing the flow of air.
And at that moment, one of the Divine Beasts that had gone to find Nero returned to Leonardo’s Magic Power.
^
“Squad Leader, is it really okay to follow him like this?”
Squad Leader 8 and three squad members were hurriedly chasing after the member who had joined them earlier. The two who had been with them were temporarily moving separately because they had gone to inform others of the situation.
Squad Leader 8, while at the head, answered with an uncertain face to the squad member’s question mixed with rough breathing.
“The direction seems to be right for now. The fluctuating current is getting closer and closer.”
Her breathing was also noticeably more rapid than usual. The reason was none other than the one member in front of her, who she felt she would miss if she looked away even for a moment.
He quickly rounded another curve and disappeared, and since the sound of the impact, he had been speeding through the cave like a madman. According to him, the Supreme Commander was where he was headed, but it was a mystery how he knew where to find him when even his direct subordinates couldn’t sense his presence.
Kwaaaang!
In the meantime, he must have broken another wall ahead, as dust that had accumulated inside the cave rushed in with a deafening roar.
She had seen him kick down walls that blocked his path often enough that she was used to it now. But the first time she saw it, she really thought a demon beast had broken through the wall.
Seeing the member rampaging like a runaway train, Squad Leader 8 reaffirmed her doubts.
‘He’s at least a squad leader level, no, a company commander level ability holder. This isn’t the movement of an ordinary member.’
She had been gauging the member’s abilities and identity all along, and she was convinced that he was hiding something.
Her suspicions were fueled not only by his unusual first impression, but also by the fact that she had seen the flames flickering in front of him when she had struggled to catch up.
In that place where the headwind was particularly hot, the member was staring silently at something in his hand. Then, suddenly, he turned around and explained the situation, saying that he had found the location of the core, and that appearance made her feel a strange sense of incongruity, as if she were facing a completely different person.
It came across as an intangible force, giving her the illusion that his green eyes, tinged with blue, were turning red.
“……”
Squad Leader 8, recalling the past, refocused on the member’s back. He was a suspicious character in many ways.
But the direction he was heading seemed to be roughly correct, and he was doing an excellent job of guiding them quickly. For now, there was no other option but to follow him without complaint.
Squad Leader 8 quickened her pace.