Chapter 29 – Witch Hunt (4)

Perhaps because he had invested a lot in the Strength stat. Although he didn’t feel the weight as much as before, it was still heavy.

That would apply to the soldiers standing in front of him as well. The soldiers buzzed at the majesty of the greatsword appearing before their eyes.

“A human swings something like that?”

“Does that make sense?”

That sound again. He was sick of hearing it. Just as Velloc was about to take a slow step, a high-pitched voice was heard from behind.

“Hameln! You accursed bastard!”

It was Cara, who had followed Velloc out, who shouted. She pointed at the lord, not even thinking of covering her messy red hair and nakedness.

“You coward without honor or loyalty! How could you do such a thing to me!”

The lord did not back down either. A deep hostility, different from when he glared at Velloc earlier, radiated from him.

“Shut your mouth! You dirty witch! When I think of what you did to my son and my people, my guts twist even now!”

“I told you that wasn’t my doing!”

“Ha! Would I believe the words of a strange spellcaster? Or would I believe the words of God’s deputy?”

“What? The church is behind this?”

The moment Cara hesitated at the shocking fact, Velloc stepped forward a few paces and said,

“Adel. Protect her.”

“Understood.”

Placing Cara behind her back, Adel drew her shield and curved sword. Cara urgently whispered in Adel’s ear.

“Stop Velloc! Let’s buy time around the guardpost first. I will try to cast a spell somehow.”

Adel was momentarily flustered. About this bitch casually calling her master by his name when they had only just met,

and finally, at the sight of a mage terrified by that level of military force.

‘Something is displeasing.’

Adel pushed Cara into a corner with a bit of personal feeling. Just in case she got hit by a stray arrow.

With a short scream, Cara was flung aside. Beyond the smooth armor of the female knight, Velloc could be seen rushing in among dozens of armed soldiers.

“Watch closely, spellcaster.”

“What…”

At Adel’s confident tone, Cara’s eyes shook anxiously.

No matter how great his physical strength was, how could he face dozens of warriors alone? It was fucking reckless. It was the same for Hameln’s side.

The lord sneered and ordered the soldiers.

“Hmph. Has the blood rushed to your head? I will show you how great the difference between courage and foolhardiness is! Shoot!”

Swish!

The loaded crossbows spat fire. Dozens of black lines rushed toward Velloc.

The lord and the soldiers were confident. Now that guy was finished, they just had to deal with the mage and the female knight behind him.

No such thing happened.

Velloc held his greatsword in front of him like a shield. In an instant, a barrier large enough for a person to fit in was formed. As metal clashed against metal, the arrows bounced off helplessly.

“What?”

Whether the soldiers were flustered or not, Velloc took his stance and swung his greatsword. The soldiers raised their shields as they were trained. However, they were crushed along with their shields, and their upper and lower bodies were severed.

“Aaaaaargh!”

The intense wind from the sword swept past the faces of the soldiers behind. Soon, they were covered in the entrails and blood of their dead comrades. The lord and Cara gaped open-mouthed, and fear settled in the eyes of the blood-stained soldiers.

That greatsword was not for decoration. It was truly a terrible weapon. Just as the soldiers were about to freeze,

“Don’t be afraid! His weapon is certainly huge, but it will be slow accordingly! Aim for that gap!”

A knight from Hameln’s side coolly gave instructions. It was an appropriate command. The soldiers nodded and gathered their fighting spirit.

Spears and swords flew in from all directions toward Velloc, who had swung his sword. Velloc responded by quickly recovering the swung sword. The spears and swords hitting the greatsword also bounced off in vain.

A soldier tilted his head.

“Shit. It’s not slow, sir?”

Crash!

The soldier who left his last words became a lump of blood. Velloc moved without rest.

When they pushed their shields forward, he slammed down his greatsword with all his might. When his monstrous strength and the sword’s weight combined, the soldiers were crushed along with their shields.

A spear flew in from the front. Velloc, dodging the spear by tilting his head slightly, rammed the soldier with his shoulder. And he swung the greatsword in his hand like a windmill.

In an instant, light flashed, and a storm of blood raged in all directions.

Without exception, the soldiers who tried to swing their swords from behind and those who tried to strike with axes from the side were cut to pieces.

In the chaotic battlefield, more than a dozen died in an instant.

The lord’s relaxed face froze like stone. He cried out in panic,

“What… what is that! Is he truly human?! What are you doing? Sh-Shoot arrows!”

However, the archers hesitated.

“We cannot shoot because our allies are mixed in!”

“Ugh. Knights… what are the knights doing! Go! Stop him!”

At the lord’s command, five knights who were directing the soldiers in the back rushed out like arrows.

The running knights whispered among themselves. Their complexions were not good.

“It is truly monstrous strength. Moreover, he is fast. Since it has come to this, we must double-team him.”

“Isn’t that… dishonorable?”

“Bullshit. That guy is an evil person who colluded with a witch. He is an opponent we don’t need to keep honor with.”

“Certainly… that’s true. Everyone, fall back!”

When the knights shouted, as if they had been waiting for those words, the soldiers hurriedly retreated. Trembling legs and damp trousers.

Even their panting breath. In that brief moment, the elite soldiers of Hameln had become defeated troops.

As the soldiers withdrew, a wide circle was formed around Velloc. Five knights broke into it.

Along with flashing plate armor, they all possessed substantial armaments without exception. One of them was exceptionally large.

“Kane of Roban.”

“Grent of Adven.”

The knights vied to introduce themselves, but Velloc did not bother to reply.

A relationship already ruined anyway. He didn’t want to bicker with guys who would die soon.

He just adjusted his stance and gripped Butcher tightly so he could swing it at any moment.

Did that sight offend them? The knights’ momentum turned murderous. Among them, the exceptionally large man, Grent, stepped forward. The battle-axe in his hand gleamed ferociously.

“You are truly a person who knows no honor. Shouldn’t you at least state your family name to an opponent before a duel?”

A heavy baritone voice struck his ears. It was a quite knightly way of speaking. However, Velloc was dumbfounded.

What kind of sophistry was this? Did his brain also fill with muscle since he did nothing but swing a sword every day? So he gave him a piece of his mind.

“What kind of bullshit is that? Since when did a fight of dozens against one become a sacred duel?”

“…”

Realizing his own blunder after speaking, Grent made no reply. Instead, he raised his battle-axe. The four knights around him also took their stances.

“Aaaaaargh!”

Grent let out a bizarre shriek and slammed down his battle-axe. If he could block that sword for even a single strike, the remaining comrades would thrust their swords in. Then it would be their victory. Grent grit his teeth.

‘Right, as you said, this is not a fair duel. It’s war. So don’t resent us for being cowardly.’

It was when Grent muttered in his mind. There was a flash before his eyes. The moment Grent regained his senses, he was flying through the sky.

It was strange. His body was so light. Rolling his eyes downward to look,

he saw the giant greatsword flashing, cutting his comrades to pieces.

Soon, the upper bodies of his comrades also flew into the sky. Only then did Grent realize,

that he had died without blocking even a single blow. Right before crashing into the stone floor, Grent spat out his last death rattle.

“Monster…”

Splat.

Velloc, who sliced through the five knights in an instant, slung his sword over his shoulder. It was quite a decent amount of experience points. Per knight, it was similar to when he killed Bourbon. ‘They were guys with skills.’ Velloc, satisfied, turned his gaze.

A soldier with his arm severed, crying out for his mother. A soldier who threw down his weapon and lay flat on the floor.

Even soldiers looking for God with devastated expressions. Various sights were seen.

The common point was one. The fighting spirit that had blazed like fire was completely cooled down, as if ice had been poured on it.

That was also true for the lord, who had appeared like a king commanding the soldiers. The Lord of Hameln gestured at Velloc, his lips trembling.

“What, what on earth are you… Are you real demons?”

“I will tell you an interesting fact, Lord.”

No answer returned from the lord. Nonetheless, Velloc continued.

“The one who spread the curse is Bishop Luzback. You were used.”

Only then did a reply return from the lord.

“What… what bullshit. Why on earth would he do such a thing?”

“I won’t ask you to believe me. I just want you to know that the world is overflowing with strange monsters.”

“Hahaha… For a bandit bastard who used my goodwill to break out a criminal, you speak well.”

The Lord of Hameln, who was sitting down, laughed with an astounded face. Soon, frowning, the lord shrieked,

“This is not a lawful war; it is a situation where some bandit knight has invaded and is trying to kill me. Do you think the surrounding lords will stand still? My relatives? You will end up turning all of them into enemies!”

“It’s something I already prepared myself for from the moment I set out to save her.”

It was the moment Velloc was about to swing his sword.

“No, this is something that happened due to the whim of a crazy mage.”

Before he knew it, Cara, who appeared next to Velloc, stretched out her arm. Velloc stopped his sword.

“Can you leave it to me?”

It was an earnest expression. Velloc smirked and sheathed his sword.

Right, a woman’s revenge had to be respected.

“Thanks.”

Cara, smiling slightly, chanted a spell. Along with an unknown voice, brilliance flashed in her eyes. Soon, crimson flames began to form in her hands.

What was small like a snowball grew larger and larger, finally becoming as large as a human head.

Cara smiled with satisfaction, while the lord’s face grew increasingly pale in contrast.

“These, these witches!”

“It fucking hurt, you son of a bitch. You feel it too.”

Cara growled and threw the fireball. A crimson demon of fire soared, and the lord rolled on the floor with a scream. However, it was impossible for a fire made by magic to be easily extinguished.

“Aaaaaargh!”

The foolish lord ended up as a handful of ashes. He followed behind the fief residents he had offered up with his own hands.

“Some saint said it. There is nothing as futile as revenge. True revenge is forgiveness…”

Cara, looking at the scorched marks on the floor, muttered quietly. However, she soon began to giggle.

“But… why do I feel so good? I feel like my chest has cleared! Even though that guy was merely used, according to your words!”

When the mage who had burned a person in an instant burst out laughing with disheveled hair, she looked like a madwoman. All the more so under her stark naked state.

To the point that even the frozen soldiers fled.

“Uh… I’m glad your mood has cleared.”

Velloc also backed away from her slightly before he knew it. This time, Adel approached.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“You worked hard too.”

“By the way… is she really alright?”

Adel asked, pointing at Cara.

Her question carried concern about the mental state of the newly welcomed mage. Velloc pondered for a moment, but soon thought it didn’t really matter.

Mages were a breed that originally had a loose screw somewhere.

No, from that perspective, Cara was a person of excellent character.

“That’s on the cute side.”

Velloc stripped off the clothes of a corpse that were in relatively good condition and covered Cara’s body. Only then did Cara, realizing she had been walking around stark naked until now, blush, but she soon smiled looking at Velloc.

“Thanks, Velloc. Actually, I felt this since the first time we met. You are quite delicate, aren’t you?”

‘I don’t think this action deserves that kind of praise.’ Velloc thought for a moment, but soon smiled slightly.

Whatever was good was good.

“Because a real knight would have acted like this.”

“What do you mean? Then are you saying you’re a fake?”

At Cara’s question, Adel spoke proudly.

“My master has received God’s blessing. He occasionally says things that ordinary people cannot understand.”

“Ah. So that was the source of your monstrous strength.”

The witch, who was convinced in an instant, looked all around the messy castle interior.

A burned-to-death lord, dozens of severed corpses, and moreover, many soldiers who had fled. Rumors would spread quickly. Perhaps a bounty would be placed.

Cara asked Velloc,

“What are you going to do now? Are you going to slip away immediately?”

Velloc shook his head. In his mind, the images of people who had been unjustly burned to death and the child throwing stones at her neighbor came to mind.

“We must restore this city to how it was.”

Now it was time to execute the sinister demon wearing the mask of a priest. For some reason, the greatsword slung on his back seemed to throb.