Chapter 30: Helplessness
[The reward will be distributed shortly.]
"Can we do this later? I have no time for this now." Mika said stiffened up, while he pointed his sword to the enemies in front of him.
Zantar, who lost one arm, summoned two additional monsters.
Despite the effect of Encore still kicking in, he already got accustomed to it and remained unfazed.
Mika looked in the direction of Ophelia, whose situation did not look any better as she was surrounded by three monsters.
In a split second, he had to decide. Should he help Ophelia or should he focus on Zantar?
Furthermore, he had around one minute left to use Excalibur.
If Excalibur reverts back to its other form, then it would mean the end for them.
"!"
But before he could decide, Zantar instantly closed the distance between the two and threw a punch.
Mika jumped aside right in time.
"He's really taking this seriously now..." Mika commented quietly.
However, Mika forgot that Zantar was not the only one he had to watch out for.
He heard a roar from the side and when he turned around, his eyesight was entirely blocked off by a monster's fist.
With quick judgment, Mika used his sword's flat side and tried to block the fist.
"Tch!"
The force was however great enough to throw him into the air.
He thought that he would fly high, but then he suddenly sensed something grabbing his leg.
"What the-"
The other ape-like monster's unnatural long reach made it possible for it to grab Mika's leg even though he was thrown into the air.
And with one swift movement, the monster brutally slammed Mika into the ground again.
"Argh!"
Blood came out of his mouth as he landed on his back.
He had the feeling that at the bare minimum, a few bones were broken.
"Mika!" Ophelia shouted worriedly, but she had her hands full, too, at the moment.
She wanted to rush to him, however, she was still surrounded by three monsters.
If it would have been just one of them, then she could have taken care of it quickly.
But three of them were another thing.
Every time she spotted an opening on one of them, she would be interrupted by the others, when she tried to attack.
With their multiple long arms, they could reach from anywhere.
"Still conscious?" Zantar asked while walking towards Mika.
"Hrnngh..." Mika still groaned painfully on the ground.
"Let me help you up."
Then, Zantar lifted him up by grabbing his neck.
"Let go, you bas- Argh!"
Zantar was strangling him and put more force into it with every passing second.
"Damn!"
Ophelia gritted her teeth and, fully charged with lightning, rushed to Mika.
When she thought that successfully escaped the monster trio, long and thin shadows loomed over her.
"How long are their arms?!"
With her shoulders, waist, arms and legs being grabbed, she was stopped in her tracks and was pulled back to them.
"Let go!" she shouted wrathfully as she output more magic electrifying the apes.
"Don't let go." Zantar ordered coldly with his gaze directed to the apes.
Normally, anyone would reflexively release someone if they were put under high electricity, however, the apes did not flinch.
"What the hell?!" Ophelia was perplexed.
Zantar dedicated himself to Mika again, who was struggling to free himself.
Effortless, Zantar slightly threw Mika up.
Then, a loud bang was heard as Zantar hit Mika with his fist.
"..."
Mika did not even make a sound as he already lost consciousness.
Thus, he was silently flying into the woods again disappearing from everybody's eyesight.
"..."
Ophelia could not believe it.
"You're kidding me..." she muttered dumbfounded.
She bit her lips until they bled.
"How can I call myself their guide if all I did was get held back by some stupid apes..."
As if a switch was flipped, her eyes were now containing pure rage and killing intent.
"You were told to not let go, right?" she whispered.
Despite her arms being held tightly by the monsters, she managed, by mustering up all her strength, to grab a single arm of one of them.
"Then, I will fry you until you're dead!" she shouted vigorously.
She was determined to use everything she had for the remaining time.
Thus, one of the three was put heavily under shock.
It did not let go just like it was ordered to, but it was still screeching in agony.
"Hm? Is she still resisting?" Zantar pondered after the monster's scream caught his attention.
The scream echoed for a while in the entire jungle.
And then, it finally fell silently on its knees.
Its four arms let go of Ophelia and slumped down like its upper body.
The two other apes were distracted by their comrade's death and lessened their grip on Ophelia.
"Got you!"
Following that, she freed herself completely.
She did not waste a second and targeted the next one.
With her body covered in lightning, she moved fast in a zigzag-like manner around one of the apes.
Be it behind or in front of it. Above or under it. On its right or left side.
She moved from one position to the other at an abnormal speed.
The ape in question staggered and wildly swung its arms around as it could not keep up at all.
Ophelia evaded every single one of its arms.
"One punch is enough." she stated intimidatingly when she appeared behind its head.
And with a force greater than Zantar's previous punch, she knocked the ape into the ground causing a crater in the ground.
"Impressive..." Zantar remarked from the sides.
Seeing two of its kind getting beaten like that, the last ape of the trio unconsciously took a few steps back.
Only one was left in her eyes.
However, she reached her limit.
With a blurry vision, she approached it slowly.
"Haa... Haa..." she gasped for air already.
She had only a little magic left in her until she would collapse.
"?"
From behind her, she suddenly felt the earth shaking a little as the sound of stamping got louder.
She turned her neck.
"!"
Her eyes widened in shock.
"Sorry, but I'm too tired to drag this on any longer."
With the other two monsters on his side, Zantar appeared from behind her.
And in that same moment, when she was distracted by him, the ape, she was moving towards previously, swung its arm and slammed her away.
Ophelia did not make a sound as she was rolling on the ground.
She was not unconscious.
She was just confronted with helplessness.
"..."
Three high-ranking monsters and a high-ranking demon were still standing.
It would take a group of A-ranks or at least two other S-ranks to fight them.
So what could she alone do now in this hopeless situation?
She wanted to close her eyes.
"..."
Zantar looked in the direction Lily and Sylvia were escaping from.
'Will he target the girls now?', Ophelia thought with droopy eyes.
She clenched her fists and pressed them against the ground.
She tried to lift herself up but failed.
Her entire body was trembling in exhaustion and pain.
"What is this weird feeling I've got from there...? And why is my connection to my other babies getting weaker...?" Zantar pondered silently with a concerning and sharp gaze.
Curious, about what the feeling was, he moved in that direction.
"Don't!" Ophelia yelled.
"Hm?"
He looked back at her annoyed.
"Don't you dare go away!"
"..."
Zantar changed his mind and instead walked to her.
"This is getting annoying."
With her still on the ground unable to move, he placed his hand on her head.
"Hrnghh..." Ophelia groaned.
"I will just quickly smash your head."
He tightened his grip more and more making her scream even louder.
But as soon as he was about to finish her off, he instantly let go.
"?"
Bathed in sweat, Ophelia tried to look up.
Zantar's eyes were wide open. His mouth agape. His fingers were trembling slightly. He was breaking into a cold sweat.
He was in fear.
But why?
Zantar turned around and faced the direction Mika was sent to.
Even the monsters were looking frightened at that direction.
"Those bastards... They did it... They managed to infiltrate this realm, too!" Zantar muttered scared.
Someone emerged from the rustling bushes.
Ophelia squinted her eyes to look at the person, but she could not recognize anything from that afar.
The person calmly walked towards them in a straight line.
"S-stop him!" Zantar ordered the monsters desperately.
However, when they stood face to face with the person, they neglected the order and made space for the person to pass through.
Now, Ophelia could take a closer look at the person.
"Who is that- No... What is that...?" she murmured flabbergasted.
Standing in front of Zantar was a person with the same build as Mika.
Instead of the black hair, they were long shining golden hair.
The sunflower-like eyes were now sky-blue and the usual black pupils were white and had a cross-like shape.
But what was the most eye-catching was the thing above his head.
A bright halo.
"Now I understand why you had that smell on you!" Zantar shouted angrily even though he was still anxious.
"M-Mika...?" Ophelia asked scared.
Mika and the person standing there may have almost nothing in common, but she had a feeling that he was Mika.
And yet, she was scared.
The person opened his mouth.
"Autopilot successfully started."
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone