The location of the group changed as they went along. The car had entered a valley, and the further they went, the fewer houses there were. It seemed that even the road was getting a little narrower...
The sun had already set, and the darkness had fallen. According to the time shown on the clock inside the car, it was 9:00 p.m.
The darkened road was illuminated by the high beams of the limousine. Still, the world within a short distance was covered in darkness. The number of nearby trees increased, becoming a forest for the first time until they finally travelled along a forest road.
Even with the cars it was different, as the vehicles that used to circulate were no longer there.
"uwaa...This is certainly not a popular place."
As they looked out the window, Natsume expressed some of her thoughts.
This limousine could have been similar to the coffin of a reckless person sinking into hell. The view outside was enough to give anyone the creeps. Perhaps it was because they were invalidly covered by several unknown trees. Still, the atmosphere was enveloped in peculiar darkness.
"Are we, by any chance, fighting in a forest for the first time?" Tobio muttered as he looked out over the forest.
Upon hearing that, the expression of Sae, who stood beside him, darkened instantly.
A battle in a forest in the dead of night. It seemed to be an intense fight compared to the average conditions above the shopping center or department store.
Tall grasses, not knowing what was underfoot, and trees that gave rise to shadows and cover. For them, these would become dangerous factors.
"A forest... this brings back memories," Drako muttered.
"Yes, Master, I miss it a little too." Mordred, who was driving the limo, told Drako.
Drako and Mordred had spent a long time together with Shirone, Kuroka and Tiamat living in the forest. That is why this type of terrain was the one they were most familiar with.
Under normal circumstances, trees could be used by their opponents as cover. But... that didn't work with Drako. After all, he had the ability [The One Who Is Loved By Nature].
"We're close," Mordred warned.
The cursor on the navigation system was constantly overlapping with the destination point.
It was at this point that Drako noticed a presence in front of them, about fifty meters away.
"Stop!"
Mordred braked immediately, and the car came to a forced stop. With everyone in the car hit by the sudden break, Sae and Natsume let out "Kyah" reflexes!
Kouki leaned forward from the back seat to ask.
"What's going on?"
"There's a person in front of us."
Drako responded calmly.
Unbuckling his belt, Drako stepped out of the limousine. The rest followed a little later.
"We're already in enemy territory, so be careful." Drako reminded them.
Natsume carried a lantern in her hand, lighting the way. Drako, Mordred and Valina didn't need it, but it wasn't the same for the rest.
They advanced a few yards, but there didn't seem to be anyone in the area. The group tensed instantly, as they could be facing an enemy trap.
"You can come out, we won't hurt you. Unless you're our enemy, of course." Drako spoke in a particular direction.
Natsume pointed in the direction Drako had headed. When the light came on, a lonely girl appeared.
She was blond, part of her long hair had been braided, with dark features that suggested she was a foreigner.
They had barely arrived and had already found their first target.
The colour of her eyes did not match. The right eye was blue, and the left eye was black.
With a beautiful face, she was Shigune Nanadaru. It is said that she was the most beautiful girl at Ryoukou High School. She was a biracial girl who was part Japanese and part Western. She was called "Shigune" by her closest friends.
Shigune wore the school uniform of the school to which she had transferred... but she had gotten dirty in various places, and there were even parts that were broken. Some mud had been left on her face. She was breathing hard, which made it clear that she had just run for her life.
She addressed Drako in a weak voice.
"...Please help."
Drako nodded with a smile.
"Relax, we are your allies."
Shigune visibly relaxed, and began to pay attention to the rest. She recognized Natsume and Sae instantly.
"...Minagawa-san, and Toujou-san...?"
With two of her former companions appearing before her eyes, perhaps feeling relieved as well as surprised, Shigune ended up sinking to the ground just where she was.
"Woah woah woah! Are you okay!?"
"Relax, Nanadaru-san."
Natsume and Sae rushed over to the now seated Shigune to give her a gentle hand.
At the same time, Tobio and Kouki, who had also exited the vehicle, faced with the safety of one of their remaining companions, relaxed their tension to some extent and let out slight smiles.
Kouki noticed something that was held in Shigune's arms, however, and turned to Tobio.
"...is it the Sacred Gear of Nanadaru?"
Shigune was holding a small four-legged animal in her arms, wearing something like a mask over his face, and two horns were growing from his head. The mask had a strange sort of pattern... that Drako recognized.
This was the pattern of Toutetsu of the Shi Akuma. In other words, that which Shigune held was the Sacred Gear Toutetsu.
Shigune, after she had been attended to and had recovered her disposition, told Drako and the others.
"We have to get out of here! People who are using strange techniques..."
Shigune could say no more as Jin, Tobio's dog, had interrupted her with a grunt. Drako had noticed a threat there as well.
The man was quite adept at hiding his presence, it seemed, as Drako barely noticed where he was hiding. It was only when the enemy had let his intent to kill slip that Drako had sensed his presence.
Seeing how alert Jin was, they all prepared for combat.
"Jin..."
At Tobio's call, the dog drew a distorted sword from the shadows at his feet and prepared to use his mouth.
"Hmph, such an obvious attempt to kill. Interesting." Valina said arrogantly.
"This... this presence is not a magic formula," Lavinia added.
What appeared in the area illuminated by the headlights was a strange, one-legged, two-foot stone statue. The creature had small wings growing from its back and a single horn on its head, its appearance undeniably grotesque.
Drako shuddered when he saw the statue shaking violently.
"CLOSE YOUR EYES, ALL OF YOU!"
When he screamed, everyone did those and covered their eyes with their arms.
In an instant, the area was filled entirely with dazzlingly intense light.
When the light stopped, Valina and the others timidly opened their eyes. The strange creature was gone.
"It was written in those files, remember? CURSED STATUE OF RADIANCE LOST. BRAIN SHINE STATUE. As for their characteristic, if one directly receives that light which it releases, it gradually steals their sight. Depending on the circumstances, a person's eyes would be completely unable to see anything." Valina reminded them.
It was frightening what the young woman said, but her expression was serene.
Natsume swallowed her saliva and said.
"Isn't that more than terrifying?"
Valina answered again.
"It was written in the file. Abyss Team is made up of members with these kinds of skills."
That's right. The Abyss Team was made up of Sacred Gears users who inflicted damage that their opponents could not recover from.
If they had been hit by the attack like the one just now, they would have been robbed of their sight or possibly lost their hearing. Features that impose severe mental contamination with serious side effects, or others that use insects that parasitize the opponent's body gradually from the inside.
Murder, torture, the Abyss Team was made up of a collection of possessors who were completely inhumane.
It had been explained to Tobio and the others that, if one were to fight them in advance, one's mind and body would be severely damaged in some way.
The statue at this time was a Sacred Gear that, when it opened its eyes, would release a light and take away a person's sight.
"... A team that kills at first sight, if that's the truth, I'd rather not have them as opponents..."
While paying attention to her surroundings, Natsume muttered.
Then Valina and Lavinia turned their gaze to a single point. All the others agreed with their glances.
From the silent darkness of the road, laughter could be heard.
"Pupupu, upupupu."
As for what appeared as he let out such an unpleasant laugh, it was a thin man. He was dressed in something similar to the 'Nephilim' uniform worn by Tobio and the others.
The man was wearing sunglasses, had a crooked mouth and an ugly smile on his face. At his feet was the aforementioned mystery stone statue. His eyes were closed once more.
"... I wish your eyes would quickly become blind... I wish to make you understand the feeling of having blind eyes..."
While the man was talking, he had the eyes of the stone statue at his feet open.
Tobio and the others did not allow the silent attack, and Tobio, Natsume and Kouki moved quickly.
"Slash!"
"Do it!"
"Spread out!"
Jin charged at high speed with a sword in his mouth, Griffon took to the air, and the tip of Byakusa's long tail shot out towards the opponent.
It was a simultaneous triple attack, but even in the midst of this, the man's unpleasant smile did not cease.
Shigune shouted.
"That statue! There are two of them!"
Hearing that scream, Valina immediately took a quick look behind them and fired a silver aura from her hand.
There was another stone statue, but Tobio and the others were covered.
Lavinia spread a magic circle and attacked her opponent. The man was enveloped by the blue aura released from the magic circle... but there was no damage.
The simultaneous strikes taken from Jin's sword and Byakusa's tail were insufficient to break the stone statue in front of them. Still, the stone statue behind them was destroyed with a single attack from Valina.
The man avoided Griffon's direct high-speed attack.
"Die."
The boy opened his eyes for the first time when he heard the emotionless voice from behind him. He felt the sharp, cold arrowhead on his neck before he felt it pierce his neck easily.
Drako had taken advantage of Tobio and the others distracting the boy from disappearing into the trees. Communicating with them mentally, his presence had vanished completely.
With one of the Sacred Gears unusable because of Valina, and the other facing Tobio and the rest, Drako had a clear path to attack the boy.
With Lavinia's attack, Drako had discovered that the boy had some sort of protection, and was quite adept at dodging attacks as he had demonstrated with Griffon. To secure the One-shot, Drako had positioned himself directly behind him.
[550 experience points have been obtained.]
[Because of the effects of Title Skill [Walking Egg]. Another 550 experience points were obtained.]
[The level of [Nephilim Dragon] raised from 65 to 66.]
After two months of not moving up a level, Drako was quite happy to receive the familiar notification.
By killing this boy, he had received 500 experience points. Although his Sacred Gear could be considered high level, the boy's skill was not as good, so he had received the equivalent of a Tier 2 experience.
Upon seeing the boy's dead body, there were several reactions from the people present.
Sae, Tobio, Natsume, and Shigune all paled, but more or less accepted the situation. This guy was the enemy and had to be killed, or they would be the ones to suffer.
Valina, Lavinia and Kouki had no particular reaction. They accepted the kill without any problem.
"Good job, Master!"
Mordred was smiling. It was the first time she had ever seen Drako killing, and it was always good to confirm that he had the skills to be her Master.
Drako had warned Mordred not to make a move if she didn't have to. If possible, Drako would like to kill as many of the enemies as possible on his own.
With the battle over, everyone took a deep breath. Shigune then told everyone as if she had just remembered.
"Koga-kun! Toga-kun... is fighting in the village over there!"
Shigune's expression was urgent as he pointed at the village.
"Yes, let's get Koga." Drako nodded and headed for the limo.
"Wait!"
Drako turned and gave Mordred a strange look.
She summoned her sword [Clarent], and looked vigilantly up into the trees.
"Come out!"
Mordred began to get impatient when she saw that this person was not coming out, though not that she had much patience from the start. Crimson lightning was being violently deployed around Clarent, showing thas Mordred was ready to attack at any moment.
Drako was also on guard, as he could not sense this person. This meant that either it was very good at hiding, or it was more than 200 yards away.
But, Drako did not need to use his Senjutsu to feel the presence of that person.
"Hey, are there any people around here?" Drako asked mentally.
"Yes, there's a girl up on top of one of us. She's pointing with a silver bow at you."
So she was the reason why Mordred was so tense. Well, it's not like Drako was too comfortable knowing a girl was aiming a bow without him knowing.
"You must be Artemis' hunter, right?"
If that girl was really one of Artemis' slayers, then it was best that Mordred didn't attack her. He didn't know if the goddess was stronger than Mordred or not, so he didn't want to take any unnecessary risks.
Clarent's lightning stopped, a sign that the girl had stopped aiming her bow at them.
Like a flash of lightning, it seemed that the girl had jumped from the top of that tree before falling in front of Drako.
The girl in front of Drako had short black hair, tidy in a small ponytail, electric blue eyes, and freckles on her nose. She was wearing a silver polar coat and camouflage pants.
She didn't look a day over 17-18 years old, although she could have been many years older. She was a beautiful western girl. If Drako were to say where the girl was born, it would be in the US.
What struck him most were her electric eyes, a real lightning bolt seemed to pass through them, and a silver bracelet on her right wrist, to which Drako felt a strange connection.
On her back was a silver bow, but she had no arrows. Perhaps, like Drako, the slayers of Artemis could make their own arrows.
[Status Inspection]
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
[Thalia Grace]
Race: Demigod(des)/Huntress
HP: 2304/2394
MP: 1894
Strength: 1549
Defense: 943
Magic: 1753
Agility: 2543
Abilities:
[Atmokinesis]
[Electrokinesis]
[Animal Communication]
[Huntress Immortality]
[Archery]
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
So this is a mugwort hunter, huh. She's... powerful.
Drako didn't know what to say, since she was faster than Mordred, and outperformed Kuroka in everything except Magic.
"I am Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus and the youngest huntress of Artemis. Pleased to meet you. You must be Drako, right? I'm going to be in charge of your supervision."
She introduced herself, and her presentation was not at all discreet.
Virtually everyone, including Valina and Drako, was surprised to hear Thalia's presentation. This is normal, considering that it is not every day that one meets the daughter of Zeus himself.
In a sense, you could say that Artemis and Thalia were blood sisters.
...…..
After that, they all got back into the car. However, this time the seats had changed.
Actually, Valina had offered herself for the copilot seat, and Drako accepted. He was now sitting between Natsume and Lavinia, and in front of him was his new guest.
"Are you really Zeus' daughter?" Natsume asked.
She still could not believe that the daughter of a god was in front of them. Although it was not surprising either, since they had already spoken to one of Zeus' daughters before, and she was much more impressive than Thalia.
"Yes, I was born of the union of Zeus and a mortal 18 years ago," Thalia answered Natsume's question with a smile.
"Thalia-san, when did you join the Artemis hunters?"
This time, it was Sae's turn to ask.
"Not long ago, a few months ago. I really didn't expect Lady Artemis to give me this opportunity." She responded again with sincerity.
"Is it true that you slayers have to keep your virginity intact?"
The one who asked this time was... Kouki.
Thalia seemed to have caught the boy's interest. Although the interest was... just interest. It had only been a few hours since he had confessed his problems with the girls, so that wasn't going to be solved so quickly.
But it seemed Thalia didn't share that interest. And it was obvious from her shaking eyebrow.
Drako had noticed that Thalia didn't like being the centre of attention very much, even though she was hiding it very well. And he had also noticed that Mordred was watching her carefully.
If Drako's most powerful Servant could detect that this girl was dangerous, then it was best to tread carefully.
"This... thanks for saving me earlier." said the newest addition to the group, Shigune Nanadaru.
And it was not directed at Drako, or the group. She had thanked Thalia.
"Don't thank me, I was just leading you to them."
Apparently, Thalia had been helping Shigune escape. No one knew the reason, perhaps she just wanted to help the poor girl.
The bad thing about being inside the car was that Drako could not communicate with the tree spirits, so they had to move cautiously. He had his senses expanded to the max, looking for any sign of enemies in the area.
Soon they reached the entrance to the village, and it was there that Drako found many presences inside the houses. They probably belonged to the people who lived in the village, but it never hurt to investigate.
They all got out of the limousine, as they could not continue on the road any longer.
"Valina, take care of it."
Drako relied on Valina's speed and ability to escape in case something happened. Besides, Drako doubted she'd find anything dangerous.
They entered the village as well, although Valina was far ahead.
The newcomers tensed up, feeling the tension of such a quiet environment in such a dark place.
"What an unpleasant atmosphere..." Natsume muttered as she hugged herself.
Tobio and Sae agreed with her, while Drako and Lavinia remained calm. An atmosphere like this was nothing to Mordred and Thalia.
Suddenly, there was a strange sound.
"Hyah!"
Natsume let out a pathetic cry.
Tobio and the others raised their guards, but what emerged was a raccoon. He moved his nose a little and quickly left.
"What the hell, a raccoon?"
Kouki lowered his arms and took a deep breath.
Drako was enjoying the moment, as Natsume was holding him tightly.
A few seconds later, she was still holding Drako. Though it was fine at first, Drako was not going to continue with her hugging him the whole time.
"Give me your hand."
Natsume nodded weakly and took Drako's hand.
It was then that Valina returned from investigating the private homes.
"In each house, the inhabitants are sleeping. However, they are not sleeping just because it is night. It would be correct to say that someone forced them to sleep."
That's what Valina informed them.
"So that's why no one helped us when we asked them for help..."
It seemed that Shigune had asked this village for help.
"I see, if they anticipated a possible battle, they might have used a technique to put people to sleep. It will be so that they won't cause any unnecessary trouble."
Though if Drako were in his place, thinking like a villain, he would have killed all the villagers.
"However, if the situation gets complicated, the whole village may be wiped out," Drako warned of the possible consequences.
At that moment, Drako felt a powerful aura at the time that he was not familiar with. It was a very powerful aura, and at least it was on the same level as Baraqiel or Azazel.
"It is the aura of Satanael. Hey, so he came here directly himself."
Valina, who had known the Cadre personally, recognized him instantly.
The big fish had shown up.
This had become quite complicated in a single moment, though it was not as if Drako was not prepared for this.
"Mordred, it's your time to shine. Take care of Satanael, and don't use your Noble Phantasm unless you have to."
"I understand," Mordred responded and disappeared.
No, she didn't disappear. She moved at extremely high speeds, but the cracks in the ground where she used to be meant that she had taken on a powerful impulse.
Drako had his reasons for not letting Mordred use her Noble Phantasm.
She would likely be able to cause severe injury to Satanael, or even kill him if he was not careful. But that would mean that all the random enemies around the map would retreat in fear, and that was not what Drako wanted.
Perhaps even the best thing that could happen for Drako, in terms of experience, was to let Satanael escape so that he could gather more random enemies and gain more levels.
"Shigune." Drako called her.
"Y-Yessir!"
She responded, surprised.
"Take us to where Koga Hyousuke is."
It wasn't a request, but an order. It was not the most pleasant thing to do, but, as she embraced her Sacred Gear tightly, she nodded.
"While Mordred fights Satanael, we will go after the last Shi Akuma. By the way, Shigune, do not use that Sacred Gear unless I tell you otherwise. That creature can destroy the entire area if you're not careful."
Upon hearing this statement, Tobio and the other Ryoukou students were surprised. The demon that Shigune held... was a very powerful Sacred Gear, the strongest of the Shi Akuma.
However, Shigune found those words very wrong.
"I don't think Poh-kun is such a despicable boy to do that..."
…
….
Poh-kun?
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