Chapter 22: The Headless Knight and the Ruins

「Yae, it went that way!」

「Understood!」

Using the crumbling rampart as a shield, that person disappeared from my view.

The metallic sound echoes against the walls. I turn and go around the rampart, and that person and Yae were fighting.

The knight had jet black armor and a large sinister sword. From that enormous body just oozes strength. The both feet were firmly planted on the ground, and swung both arms as they sprinted forward with the sword.

Well, there wasn't really any feeling of benevolence. The dark knight was already headless.

Dullahan. The knight who died a miserable death by the guillotine, was wandering aimlessly, looking for a suitable neck for himself. The real world and legend are different, but that was the subjugation target.

Yae and I formed a pincer attack against Dullahan. Yae saw the signal from me, confirming the light between my middle and index fingers, she quickly left from that place.

「Piercing light, Sacred Shining Spear, Shining Javelin」

From the finger tips shot a spear of dazzling light straight at Dullahan. The spear shot through the left shoulder and the arm was torn off.

However, blood doesn't poor from the wound like a human wound would. Instead of blood, a black miasma drifted out. The remaining right arm turned in my direction and lowered it.

At that moment, a figure jumps from the shadows straight at the headless knight with fists flying. Without hesitation the shadow then delivered a sharp kick which made it explode.

「Elsie! What about the wolves!?」

「I was able to finish it somehow! There were almost 20 of them, mou!」(Tln: Mou: cry of exasperation)

From a distance away Lindsey comes running up. Ok, from here is the real show.

Elsie, unexpecting an attack, Dullahan aims at her neck with that large sword in an instant and swings down. Elsie squats down, evades it and rolls repeatedly toward me.

「Flames come forth, fireball of purgatory, Fireball」

The fireball shot back behind Lindsey toward and hits Dullahan. Yae's blade swings and prevents the sword from coming down.

「It's stubborn! It'll be bad if this becomes a protracted struggle.」

Unlike them, if we were to be hit by that huge sword even once, it would probably be instant death, or an arm at best.

Dullahan had already lost his life, a corpse, in other words an undead. Undead are weak toward the Light attribute. Lindsey can use the light attribute but not to a strong degree. I guess I'll have to do it…. I'll go with that.

「Lindsey! Use Ice magic and stop his feet. A few seconds is ok」

「Eh? I-I understand!」

Hearing that, Yae and Elsie begin to move. Attracting Dullahan's attention, Lindsey and I work together. Understand, our team work is something else.

「Ice entangle, spell of freezing, Ice Bind」

Lindsey's magic activated, Dullahan's feet froze in no time. As to escape from the spell the ice begins to crack as the headless knight strains his legs to get out of the ice, little by little beginning to break away. As if I'll let you.

「Multiply!」

「My non-attribute activates. Around me, in the air, four magic formations appear. Next I recite a light attribute spell.

「Piercing light, sacred shining spear, Shining Javelin」

Immediately after, four spears of light appear from the formations and stormed out. All the spears flew directly at Dullahan. A non-attribute magic that enables multiple copies of the same spell to activate simultaneously. That is 「Multiply」

The headless knight had no means of escaping and took the full brunt of the attack of the spears of light; Lindsey's ice magic would not allow it.

Dullahan lost his right arm, his torso, and his left leg. Then he lost his chest and fell slowly.

The jet-black miasma oozed out of the now tattered armor, and scattered in the wind.

The headless knight moved no more.

「It's finished isn't it」

「I'm tired-degozaru」

Elsie mutters in relief, Yae squats down on the ground. It's no wonder. They had to evade most of the attacks continuously, those girls were always Dullahan's opponents.

「The large group of wolves was a miscalculation. That was dangerous…」

「Lindsey pats her chest as she lowers herself to the ground.

After a few months we had raised our guild rank to green. Black>Purple>Green>Blue>Red>Silver>Gold our rank was third from the bottom. With this we were officially independent adventurers.

Immediately we took a Green request, once in a while we should take a request in a different town, Elsie had proposed.

After going to the Guild headquarters in the Capital, we took on a Green request, among them was one for the subjugation of the demon. That was this request.

The ruins were originally the Capital from 1000 years ago. The king at that time threw this area away it seems. The previous king had decided to move to a new area and that is where the Capital is currently. Transfer of the Capital, as it were.

Although it isn't known why, right now the ramparts were full of holes, the paving stones and buildings were barely visible, the castle itself was completely broken down, just columns remained. It was now literally ruins.

Demon and demon beasts come and try to settle down in the ruins, then someone makes a request to subjugate it. However afterwards it repeats again. It appears to be a cycle of completion.

If a demon comes to settle one after another then before long there will be a crowds of them. Regular subjugation is required.

「But, even if this is the former capital, there isn't anything here...」

Looking around in the vicinity there was a crumbling wall, wall, wall. Here on a hill, were it was a good position to command form above, the castle was built here. Did the Duke and Sue's ancestors also live here?

However, after transferring the capital, why was this place abandoned? Was it like Romance of the Three Kingdoms where the capital was forcibly transferred and the castle and private homes were burned?

「It might be interesting if the King's hidden treasure was here」

「No, that's not the case. It would be different if the country was destroyed, but because the capital was only transferred, all the treasure was moved as well~degozaru.」

「I know, I know. I just wanted to say it.」

Yae rejected what Elsie had said out loud. Treasure huh?

In my world there were things like Tokugawa burial money and Takeda burial money but, there might be something like that here as well. It's not something I dislike either. Treasure hunting is a man's romance.

Suddenly, I thought of something. I could practice that magic here.

「Search: Treasure」

Might as well use the Search magic. There might be something that I recognize as treasure here.... Yea, nothing. Obviously right?

「Did you use 「Search」!? D-did you find anything?」

「At least there is no treasure near here.」

Replying to the rapt with anticipation Elsie the search results.

「I see...Too bad」

「Bu, but, Toyua that's just treasure that you recognize, there still might be something of value around.」

Ah, the younger sister also understands the romance of treasure hunting it seems. As expected of twins.

Certainly as Lindsey says, for example, there might be a painting worth a lot. But, to me it might only look like 「something with scribbles on it」that be 「something of value」. Even if something is retrieved it's not shown. It depends on the values of the user. If I were to know the value of a painting then something might react.

That's certainly a valid argument. 「Riches」 meaning jewels, gold, a crown, large or small coins, was that kind of image. Un, that would mean...

「Search: Historical Relic」

「Something of historical value「 should catch something right? Ah, but if I don't know about something like that then it would be useless... Huh?

「...I found something」

It was there, something of historical value. The ruins themselves responded but there was something else beyond that. Sharpening the senses. Yea, I certainly fell it.

「Wh, where is it~degozaru!?」

「...It's this way. It feels like it's over here. Its big, what is this?」

From within the ruins the feeling flows. I led while the others followed behind, before long there was pile of rubble. Oh?

「Underneath? Under the pile of rubble?」

How am I going to move this how many ton pile of rubble? While I am at a loss, Lindsey moved out in front.

「Flames burst forth, Explosion of Crimson, Explosion」

With an immense explosive noise, the columns and pebbles were blown away. Wai- isn't that going overboard, Lindsey!?

「...It's finished」

I who looked amazed, looked from Lindsey to the spot where the pile of rubble was. What is this, this enthusiasm?

Standing in the spot where the pile of rubble once was, the strong feeling further intensified. Underneath…..?

Under my feet on the stone pavement there isn't...n? What is this?

I moved a stone with my foot and saw something underneath. I called everyone over and we cleaned it all off. What was underneath was what looked like a 2 tatami wide iron mat. In this place…

Combining our strength we opened it. I don't know why but it doesn't seem to be rusted, and opens quite easily. Could it be that it isn't iron at all?

And below that, there was a set of stairs that leads further underground, we were eerily invited....