No one's POV

The blowback from that impossibly huge art and the destruction that it wreaked worked together to crush Alice. As soon as the Osmanthus Blade had returned to her sheath, she crumpled onto Amayori's back.

The dragon gently cushioned her body, slowly descending in a spiral motion toward the front line of the Human Guardian Army. The first to run to the dragon was Vice Commander Fanatio. Her outstretched arms caught Alice as she slid from the dragon's back.

Fanatio:...That was incredible spellwork and Incarnation, Alice.

Fanatio said, overcome with emotion. Alice's eyelids rose, giving her a glimpse of the burning red floor of the ravine and the figures of enemy soldiers fleeing in uncontrolled panic. She couldn't see any bodies, even. Either the initial burst of light had evaporated them instantly, or the explosion had scattered them pride, but soon there came a swelling roar of cheers from the soldiers around her. Individual voices blended and morphed into one great exultation of triumph, repeated over and over.

Praise for the Integrity Knights and the Axiom Church ringing in her ears, Alice finally let out the breath she'd been holding and straightened herself up with Fanatio's help. The vice commander gave her a sympathetic smile and dipped her head.

Fanatio: The enemy has retreated. You guided us to victory.

Alice smiled back at her, then said severely.

Alice: The battle is not yet over, Fanatio. We must consume the sacred power created by that attack for healing arts, lest the enemy reuse it against us.

Fanatio: You're right...The dark knights and pugilists that make up the core of their army are still in pristine shape. In that case, everyone on their feet currently, take the wounded and withdraw toward the Second Regiment! All priests and those guardsmen with knowledge of healing arts, focus on curing the wounded as best you can until the power dries up! And keep an eye on the enemy in the meanwhile!

The guards scrambled to carry out her order. In the rear, the commands for sacred arts could be heard, one after the other.

Fanatio: I will report to the commander himself. May I leave this in your hands now?

Alice nodded, and Fanatio gave her another smile before trotting off. The people cleared out of the area, and soon only Alice and Amayori were present at the front line. She watched the vice commander go, then walked to her dragon and scratched under its chin, purring.

Alice: You did very well up there, Amayori. I know it must have been tiring to maintain a stationary position for so long. Go back to your bed and eat your fill.

The dragon trilled excitedly, then flapped its wings and rose into the air until it could glide back to its own kind at the rear of the camp. Alice had just taken her very first step toward aiding the injured when she heard a voice.

Eldrie:.........Mentor.

It was low and soft and belonged to Eldrie. She turned around to offer encouragement and praise to her only disciple and saw the young man, who was always so carefree and saucy, in a dreadful state. The sword in his right hand and the whip in his left were dyed black with thick dried blood. On top of that, his shining armor and lustrous, curled lilac hair were splattered and hideous. How hard did one have to fight to end up looking like this?

Alice: E...Eldrie! Are you hurt?!

Alice asked, holding her breath. With a vacant expression, he shook his head.

Eldrie: No...I did not take any major wounds. But...I ought to have lost my life in the midst of battle...

Alice: Why would you say that? You have a duty to lead the men-at-arms and fight to the very end of this battle...

Eldrie: I could not achieve my duty.

The young Integrity Knight murmured, his voice cracking.

What Alice did not know was that after Eldrie had allowed the mountain goblins to slip past the defensive line with their smoke-screen strategy, he'd spent several minutes fruitlessly attempting to clear the smoke without sacred arts, until he'd finally taken his guards and chased after the goblins that had gotten behind them.

But by that point, Chief Kosogi of the goblins had already been defeated by Renly, who was generally known to be a failure of a knight. His chance at regaining face after this failure lost, Eldrie's cool slipped away from him, and he began slaughtering fleeing goblins one after the other. When he stared up into the sky at Alice's godly display, he was already splattered in fresh blood.

Eldrie: I betrayed...your expectations of me...

He returned the Frostscale Whip to his side and used the empty hand to cover his face.

Eldrie: So stupid...so miserable...so humiliating...A disgrace of a knight...

And he had wanted to protect his mentor? With the power of that great sacred art to alter the heavens and earth? She was completely beyond his reach in every way.

He was never necessary. What use would a genius have for a half-assed excuse for a knight like him? He excelled in no area—not sword ability nor sacred power nor Perfect Control—and he couldn't even be counted upon to outsmart a bunch of goblins. The idea that he could be worthy of her heart...of gaining her love...It was laughable.

Eldrie: I do not have...the right to call myself your disciple!

Eldrie spat, so fiercely that blood nearly flew from his lungs.

Alice: You...you did so well!

Alice stammered, in a daze. It was all she could bring herself to say. What had happened to Eldrie? There had been confusion at the front line, but they'd defended against the enemy without too much damage so far.

Alice:...I, the guardian army, and the people of the realm need you. Why would you berate yourself so fiercely?

Alice asked, trying to keep her voice as calm and soothing as possible, but the darkness did not leave Eldrie's eyes. His blood-flecked cheeks twitched, and his voice was barely audible to her ears.

Eldrie: Need...as a source of power in battle? Or......?

He did not finish that question. An alien growl rolled through the air at that moment, drawing Alice's and Eldrie's attention.

???: Frrrhh...

It was wet and throaty, like a wolf's warning signal. Alice's eyes were wide and alert as she stared into the darkness down the ravine. The smoldering flames here and there in the valley cast light on some huge shape standing ahead.

It was not human. The lower extremities were folded at an odd angle, the waist was extraordinarily long, and the torso was powerful but slouching forward. The head atop its shoulders was nearly indistinguishable from a wolf. This was the last remaining demi-human race of the Dark Territory, the ogre.

Alice had her hand on the pommel of her sword already, but she noticed that the ogre was unarmed. In fact, the left half of its body was badly burned, even smoking slightly. The burning light attack was responsible for these wounds. But why didn't it flee along with its surviving companions?

She glanced around to see that the other soldiers were all in the back, and only she and Eldrie stood at the front now. Wary of the ogre's movements, Alice asked sharply.

Alice: Your life must be nearly down to nothing. Why do you stand there without a weapon?

The demi-human growled miserably.

Furgr: Grrr...I am...ogre chief, Furgr...

Its long tongue hung out of its open mouth as it panted. Alice squeezed harder on her sword. If it was chief of the ogres, it was one of the ten dark lords, among the highest rank of the enemy army. It must be expending its last bit of strength to attack. But the ogre's next words took her aback.

Furgr: I...saw. You created...spell of, light. That power...that look...You are Priestess of Light. Grrr...If I...take you...war will end. Ogres return...to the plains...

Alice(mind): What...is it saying? Priestess of Light? The war will end...?

It didn't make sense to Alice, but she could tell she was on the verge of obtaining some extremely important information. She had to find out more. What was the Priestess of Light? Where was she to be taken? But the moment the ogre's words halted, she heard a voice scream.

Eldrie: Why, you...overgrown beast!!

It was Eldrie. His bloody sword was high overhead, then swooping downward directly toward the ogre chief. But it did not finish its swing. Alice leaped so quickly, she practically teleported, pinching the edge of Eldrie's blade between her fingertips and using all her strength to stop his momentum.

Eldrie: M-Mentor...why?!

He gasped, falling to his knee, but she couldn't take the time to explain it to him. She let go of the sword and turned, approaching the still ogre. Up close, she could see that the creature's wounds were not just deep, but mortal. It was charred black from its left arm to its chest, and its left eyeball was cloudy. Alice sensed that its consciousness itself was hazy, but she asked her questions anyway.

Alice: Indeed...I am the Priestess of Light. Now, where are you taking me? Who is it that seeks me?

Furgr:...Grrr...

The ogre's good eye shone. Blood-flecked spittle ran down its long tongue.

Furgr:...Emperor...Vecta...said. Only wants...Priestess of Light. Grab priestess...deliverer's wish...comes true. Ogres...return to plains... keep horses...hunt birds...live......

Alice(mind): Emperor Vecta.

The name of the god of darkness, as he was known in the human lands. And that figure was now present in the Dark Territory? And he had started this war for the purpose of gaining this "Priestess of Light" that he wanted?

Alice committed these details to memory as she favored the creature that stood before her with a look of compassion. None of the stink of greed and desire found wafting off the goblins exuded from this wolf-headed warrior. It merely took part in the war as commanded and pulled back its bowstring— and nearly all its people had died out before they could even loose their arrows.

Alice:...Don't you despise me? I was the one who slaughtered your people.

Alice said. She couldn't help it, even knowing that nothing would come of it. The ogre's answer was simple:

Furgr: The strong...bear as much...as they have strength. I, too...bear chief's duty. So...I capture you...and take...to......! Grrrooooo!!

The ogre suddenly bayed ferociously. Its powerful right arm lunged for Alice, quicker than the eye could follow. Ting. It was the briefest of sounds: the Osmanthus Blade's hilt hitting the sheath. Alice had drawn it, slashed, and returned it to its scabbard at several times the speed of even the ogre's attack.

The creature's large body froze. Alice took a step back, and the ogre slowly sank to the ground. There was a fresh bloody line across its burly chest, from which the last bits of its life spilled out as pale dots of light. She reached toward the body of the proud wolf-headed warrior, stopping the sacred power that floated up from it and creating a number of wind elements.

Alice: Let your soul travel across the plains, at least...

She swept her hand aside, turning the formation of green lights into a little whirlwind that rose up and up into the eastern sky.

(Elsewhere)

As her forehead scraped the floor of the dragon tank in obeisance, Dee trembled inwardly at the gaze of Emperor Vecta upon her back. There was no anger in his ice-blue eyes. He was measuring her value without emotion of any kind. What kind of action would the emperor take against her if he found her to be without skill or use to him? The thought made her very bones shiver. After an agonizing wait, his deep, smooth voice.

Vecta: Hmm. So the failure of your plan and the death of a thousand dark mages were because the enemy absorbed and used the spatial dark power before we could...you say?

Dee: Y...yes!

She stammered, lifting her face just the tiniest bit.

Dee: That is correct, Your Majesty. We had no knowledge that suggested the enemy had a caster so powerful after the pontifex, so...

Vecta: And there is no means of replenishing that power?

He asked, interrupting her excuse. But she could not give him a satisfactory response to that question, either.

Dee: I...I'm afraid...that we will need rich land and ample sunlight to replenish enough spatial dark power to eliminate the enemy Integrity Knights, neither of which is in good supply here. The treasury at Obsidia Palace would have glimstones that can be converted into power, but we would need days to retrieve them now...

Vecta: I see.

The emperor said simply, then turned his sharp features toward the distant ravine.

Vecta: But from what I can see...there are no plants on the land here, and the sun has already set. What source of power were you going to use for this large-scale magic art of yours?

Dee was in such mortal terror that she never registered how strange it was for Vecta, god of darkness and supposed founder of the dark arts, to ask her such a fundamental question about its workings. It was only the desperate drive for self-preservation that helped her answer the question.

Dee: Well, Majesty, this is a battlefield...so the blood and life shed by the demi-humans and the enemy soldiers becomes dark power that fills the air around them.

Vecta: Uh...huh.

The emperor stood up from his makeshift throne. Dee's entire body went rigid. His black leather boots approached, clicking on the floor. She felt terror clenching her guts. The emperor stopped just to the left of Dee, fur cape waving in the wind, and murmured into the night.

Vecta: Blood...and life.

In a dry voice devoid of all emotion, Emperor Vecta asked.

Vecta: Dee Eye Ell, would three thousand suffice?

Dee: Huh...?

She lifted her head again, uncertain of his meaning. In profile, the emperor's face was smooth, even peaceful, but the way his pale-blue eyes stared down at the armies below filled her veins with ice.

Vecta: In order to have the dark power needed to reenact the large-scale dark art that will eliminate the enemy Integrity Knights," he elaborated, "would three thousand lives of that secondary orc battalion suffice?

Even Dee, who was cruel by the measure of her peers, gaped at this suggestion. A chill crawled up her legs. Fear struck deep. But as the idea sank into Dee's mind, it all turned to sweet intoxication.

Dee: It will be enough.

She pressed her forehead to the emperor's boot before she realized what she was doing.

Dee: It will be enough, indeed, Your Majesty. The remaining two thousand mages will pool their efforts to make it happen...The dark mages guild will perform the greatest and most powerful act of terror that anyone has ever seen..."

(Elsewhere)

Bercouli: Priestess of Light...?

Commander Bercouli muttered, broad jaw working as he chewed on a flat pastry cooked with dried fruit and nuts. They used the momentary lull in fighting to rush out some rations from the supply team to the soldiers on the guardian army side. The healing of the wounded was done for now, and thanks to the help of the Integrity Knights, who had considerable healing skill themselves, even the warriors who'd been at death's door were in good enough shape to sit up and sip bowls of soup.

Of course, the dead would never return. Of the two-thousand-plus that had made up the First Regiment, nearly a hundred and fifty soldiers and one lower knight had perished. Sitting across the folding table from the leader of the knights, Alice continued.

Alice: Yes. I don't recall that name showing up in any of the history texts, but it seems clear that the enemy commander strongly desires this person.

Bercouli: Commander...meaning Vecta, god of darkness.

Bercouli grunted. Fanatio poured siral water into his cup and added.

Fanatio: It's very difficult to believe...a god, coming back to walk among us...

Bercouli: I suppose so. But some of it does make sense. I know that you, too, must have felt the eerie Incarnation that hangs over the enemy camp.

Alice: Yes...I do sense a chill that seems to suck away the warmth from my bones...

Bercouli: For the first time since the creation of the world, there is no Eastern Gate standing there. Perhaps we should understand that anything is possible now. But, Little Miss if we presume that Vecta himself has appeared in the Dark Territory, that he wants this 'Priestess of Light,' and that priestess is you—the question is, how does that affect the current status of the battle?

Indeed. That was the real question. Even if Vecta was satisfied with gaining control of the priestess, the other races of darkness would surely continue their pillaging after that. It did nothing to change the fact that they must protect this ravine to the death. But there was another term that had stuck itself in Alice's brain and refused to leave.

Alice(mind): World's End Altar.

It was something the "god of the outer world" had said in conversation with Zora through the crystal panel, in the aftermath of the battle at the top of Central Cathedral half a year ago.

???: Head for the World's End Altar. Leave the Eastern Gate and head far to the south.

If she went there, she might be able to bring Zora's mind back. Yet, no matter how much she might wish to make that happen, she couldn't abandon the defense of the gate.

Alice(mind): But what if they chase after me?

What if she went through the gate and Vecta and his armies chased behind her, the Priestess of Light? It might even draw the enemy away from the human world and buy the guardian army enough time to fortify its defenses. Alice chose to keep the vague topic of the altar a secret for now. She reported crisply to the supreme officer of the guardian army.

Alice: Uncle...Lord Bercouli. I will go along, break through the enemy ranks, and head to the distant reaches of the Dark Territory. If the ringleader of the enemy desires the 'Priestess of Light,' he will pursue me with at least some of his troops. Once I've gained some distance and split their forces, strike back at the remaining army and wipe them out.

Bercouli: Fine, then. But you're taking a third of our troops with you.

Alice: But... I can't have you spared a third of your men!

Bercouli: The enemy still has more than 30.000 troops left. I don't think that many would come after you if you're the sole decoy. Only if a big enough number fled together would it work to split them up.

Alice: You do have a point, but...

Bercouli: Also, I have one more conditions.

Alice: What's that?

Bercouli: I'll be joining the raid unit.

(Elsewhere)

Lilpilin: Dis...dis is unfeah!!

Lilpilin shouted when he heard the emperor's orders. The orcs had already sent a thousand of their number as supplementary troops in the first group, nearly all of whom had been lost. He'd already felt his heart being crushed by the knowledge that his people had fought and died under the orders of goblins and giants, removed from his command. But this order was simply beyond the pale in its cruelty.

Dee: Offer three thousand sacrifices to be the cornerstone of the dark mages' attack spell.

It was a death that offered no recognition of a warrior's honor or respect for the wise. They were simply fuel or meat—no different from the long- haired cattle that the provisions troop brought along as a food supply.

Lilpilin: We came heah to fight! Ouwah lives awe not da pwice foh yoh failyah!

Lilpilin argued, his nasal voice high-pitched and strained. But Chancellor Dee of the dark mages merely stared at the orc with cold eyes and folded arms.

Dee: This is by the edict of the emperor!!

With a grunt, the orc chief's words stuck in his throat. Emperor Vecta's power had been made explicitly clear during the dark general's attempted betrayal. He was almighty, far outclassing any of the Council of Ten. And the strong must be obeyed. It was the ironclad rule of the land of darkness.

Lilpilin: But— But...

Lilpilin stood there, clenched fists trembling. Behind him, a voice that was smoother than usual for an orc.

Lenju: Chieftain, we have no choice but to follow da empewah's odahs.

He turned around with a start and saw a female orc who had a comparatively slender build and elegantly long ears. She was from a clan that was distantly related to Lilpilin's, and they had spent time together as children.

Lilpilin: Lenju.

With a gentle, comforting smile.

Lenju: Me and my twee tousand twoops would gladly give up owah lives. Foh da empewah...and foh owah people.

Lilpilin:......

Speechless, Lilpilin could only gnash his long tusks so hard they nearly broke. The woman stepped closer and whispered.

Lenju: Lil, I still believe dat it is not just da humans, but also orc souls dat awe summoned to Heaven afta death. We...we can meet again in dat holy place.

He wanted to tell her that she didn't have to give up her life, too. But he also knew that if three thousand soldiers were to accept an unfair order, it would be easier done if they knew their fates were shared by their princess knight, whom they held in a certain esteem even higher than their chieftain. Lilpilin unclenched his fists, took her hand, and groaned.

Lilpilin: I apologize, Len...fohgive me...Fohgive me...

Dee Eye Ell stared down at the two in obvious disgust.

Dee: Pack your three thousand troops together in close formation, a hundred mels before the ravine, within five minutes. That is all!

The orc chief glared at the departing dark mage with burning, squinted eyes. Why did they have to undergo this fate just because they were orcs? It was a question he had asked himself many times, but as usual, no answer was forthcoming.

As three thousand troops lined up, orderly, and marched toward certain death, there was even a kind of pride among them. But from the remaining seven thousand who watched them go came the low rumbling of sobs and comments of loathing.

The princess knight astride her armored boar led the three thousand proudly past the dark knights and pugilists, then arranged their formation a bit before the entrance to the ravine where the battle was taking place.

Almost impatiently, the two thousand dark mages who weren't enveloped in the earlier blast made their ominous appearance and started making a formation. Their chanting, in reflecting the horror of its intended content, set the atmosphere on edge with hideous discordance.

Lilpilin: Aa...aaah...

Lilpilin croaked. The orcs suddenly began to writhe in apparent agony and collapsed to the ground. As they flopped and struggled, little white twinkling lights emerged from their bodies, sucked out by some invisible pressure. As they flew toward the mages' hands, the lights turned black and bunched together, growing sticky and clumping until they took a shape like some eerie, unnatural serpent.

The screams of three thousand soldiers stabbed at Lilpilin's ears, sharp and vivid. He could make out the words, too.

Long live the orcs. Glory to the orcs.

Their bodies began to burst in quick succession. As the blood and flesh went splattering in all directions, the light gushed out of them in great quantities, traveling toward the mages.

Before he knew it, Lilpilin was on his knees, slamming his fist against the ground. The tears that flowed from his eyes trailed down either side of his large nose before falling to the black gravel.

Through stained vision, he watched as the princess knight in her especially conspicuous armor issued blood from all over her body like the petals of a crimson flower.

Lilpilin:......Lenju......!

he gasped as the princess knight slowly toppled toward the ground and out of sight. His jaws clenched so hard that the fangs burst through his lips, dripping blood of his own.

Lilpilin(Mind): Humans. Humans! Damnable humans!!

With each internal scream of fury and loathing, the orc felt his right eye pulse.

(Elsewhere)

Less than twenty minutes earlier, at the camp of the Human Guardian Army, the soldiers who'd been separated into two groups had shared warm handshakes and embraces at their safe reunion.

After the announcement from Alice, Commander Bercouli added a decision of his own. He ordered that the so-called Priestess of Light, Alice, be given half of their number when she diverted the enemy's attention. Alice was strongly against this, of course, and insisted that she would act alone, but the leader of the Integrity Knights would have none of it.

Bercouli: We still have plenty of reinforcements. If you're the only one acting as bait, Little Miss, there won't be many enemies going after ya. Only if you've got a good number with you can the strategy to split up the forces actually work.

She had no rebuttal to that. There was no denying that it was a huge stretch, claiming that she, on her own, would lure the entire enemy army away, based on nothing more than some vague information from the chief of the ogres.

Plus, Alice wanted to take Zora on Amayori's back with her. Admittedly, she was uncertain about being able to protect both herself and him against the enemy army. So the idea of military cohorts was reassuring.

When Bercouli announced his splitting of the guardian army, he had another surprise in store. He decided that he, the overall commander of the army, would join the decoy team. Fanatio and Deusolbert, who were designated the commanding officers of the remaining portion of the army, were vehemently against the idea.

Bercouli: Hey, you've done enough in this battle already. Gimme a chance to fight, too.

Bercouli argued. Fanatio's eyes screwed up in frustration as she said.

Fanatio: You can barely fold your own clothes without me there at your side!!

That one got a big jeer from the knights and guardsmen who heard it. Bercouli grimaced, leaned over to Fanatio, and whispered something into her ear—and surprisingly enough, the vice commander looked away and backed down.

As for Deusolbert, he had to accept the inevitable, especially when it was pointed out that he had fought to the point of exhausting his arrows earlier. A supply team was heading for the nearest town to get more, but this would take longer than an hour or two.

Concern and nerves were in abundant supply among the soldiers of both the advancing team and the remaining team. In fact, it wasn't clear which assignment posed more danger. How much of the enemy army would pursue the decoy team, and how much would continue attacking the ravine? Only God knew—specifically, Vecta, the god of darkness, commander of the enemy forces.

Eventually, the decoy force was complete: Bercouli, Alice, Renly, Sheyta, the four elite knights' dragons, a thousand guardsmen, two hundred priests, and a fifty-member supply team. Eldrie insisted on joining the decoy team, backing down only after Alice scolded him. The apprentice knights Linel and Fizel threw a fit as well, but when the commander told them to hold down the fort, they didn't have much choice but to accept his order.

To carry their supplies, they set up eight high-mobility four-horse carriages. One of them would contain Zora in his wheelchair and the two young trainees. Alice was very conflicted about the idea of allowing Tiese and Ronie to come along. But she would need someone to look after Zora, and whatever it was that had happened between them, Renly the elite Integrity Knight now insisted that he would protect the girls with his life.

In all honesty, Alice had few memories of Renly. But the determination in his young face and the impressive shine of the Double-Winged Blades on either hip suggested that he was the real deal.

Bercouli's dragon, Hoshigami, began its heavy running start to prepare for flight, giving way to a muted cheer from the guards on the ground. As Alice waited for her turn, clutching Amayori's reins, she looked back to Eldrie below.

Her loquacious disciple had been quiet as she'd prepared to leave, a fact that gnawed at her. But before she could think of something to say, Hoshigami took off into the air. She had to look ahead and gave Amayori's sides a gentle kick. Her dragon mount ran powerfully across the ground and floated up into the air, followed by Renly on Kazenui, and Sheyta on Yoiyobi.

Bercouli, flying slowly up ahead, turned back and shouted.

Bercouli: When we leave the ravine, we use the dragons' breath against the enemy's main force! They should have almost nothing left in the way of long-range attacks, but keep an eye out for their dragon knights!

She gave him a crisp affirmative response. The sound of the soldiers pursuing them on horseback and foot were audible over her shoulder. When they and the carriage group left the ravine, they would head south, to their right, and it was up to the four knights on their dragons to keep the battle lively and distracted until the ground troops had put good distance behind them.

A multitude of campfires burned in the land beyond the dark, narrow ravine.

There were so many. They had eliminated a ton of enemy soldiers, yet there must have been close to thirty thousand left. But the bulk of that power was concentrated in dark knights and pugilists, both of which were close- range units and had no effective means of attacking airborne Integrity Knights.

Alice(mind): No, wait...What is this?

There was a chanting in the air, audible beneath the whistling of the wind, roiling and low.

Alice(mind): A...group chant? Of a sacred art command? Impossible!

Alice balked against her own instincts.

Alice(mind): There isn't enough sacred power left to carry out any kind of large-scale attack art!!

But then Bercouli, who was flying ahead of her, gasped.

Bercouli: I...I can't believe what they've done!!

The moment they saw the enemy's spell, that great black wave of horror rushing toward them, both the civilian men-at-arms and even the elite Integrity Knights found themselves unable to think for entire seconds at a time.

It was a dark art of an ultra-high priority, even higher than Alice's earlier light attack. A long-range curse art that was impossible to physically defend against and devoured the target's life directly.

How could they produce a dark art of this incredible scale and density when darkness elements had such inefficient conversion to sacred power, and the entire battlefield was barren of resources to begin with? Only Bercouli was capable of spotting the answer.

But even he could not summon the wits to give an immediate order.

Every kind of offensive art carried certain values: its source element, density, range, speed, direction, and so on. In order to defend against a sacred art, you needed to cancel out those elements or utilize them to your own ends. You could snuff out flame attacks with ice elements, confuse a tracking art with a decoy, evade a direct-line attack with enough speed—part of what made a high-level caster was the ability to react and respond appropriately without skipping a beat.

But not in this case.

The enemy's attack was simply beyond the pale.

Only light elements could counteract dark elements. But light, too, was difficult to convert from raw power, and they could not generate enough of it to dispel that kind of curse. Fanatio's Memory Release would certainly be able to punch a hole through the enemy's curse, but the Heaven-Piercing Blade's light was far too thin in its effect, and more importantly, she wasn't in the decoy group.

Bercouli: Invert!! Pull up!!

Bercouli shouted, about the only thing he could do. Four dragons turned quickly, spiraling around, heading higher right above the ravine. With a terrible rustling of wings, the swarm of snaking creatures turned accordingly. But then Bercouli shouted.

Bercouli: No!!

The worms that chased after them were not even half the total. The rest proceeded straight for the guardsmen and the supply team running along the ground.

Alice:...!!

Alice gasped and turned her dragon into a steep dive. She charged straight for the wriggling mass of dark arts in the lead below. Shing!! She drew the Osmanthus Blade from its sheath. The blade began to glow a golden color.

Bercouli: Little Miss!! You can't use that one!!

Bercouli cried, trying to stop his favorite apprentice. The Osmanthus Blade's Perfect Weapon Control art was tremendously powerful in a battle of one against many, but only with sword against metal. It couldn't cut through a curse that had an ethereal body. Alice was perfectly aware of that. But there was no way that she could sit there and watch the soldiers be attacked.

Just then, a fifth dragon rocketed forth from the ravine like a shooting star. It was Takiguri—the dragon of elite Integrity Knight Eldrie Synthesis Thirty-One. As he gripped the dragon's reins, just one word ran through Eldrie's brain.

Eldrie(mind): Protect.

His mentor. His Alice. He must offer his sword to do whatever it took to safeguard the person whose life he had pledged to protect. But at the same time, he heard a voice mocking him at exactly the same volume:

Eldrie(mind): How will you protect her? A powerless man like you? Inferior in every conceivable way and yet endlessly seeking validation and attention from your mentor.

The thing that supported Eldrie's skill as a new, junior Integrity Knight was the powerful Incarnation that drove him to serve Alice. It was what made him a higher-ranked knight, but it also meant that when he was hit by doubt, it rocked him to his core.

Eldrie(mind): I don't have the strength to protect my teacher Alice, nor the right to stand at her side, he concluded, which caused a rapid loss in power. Swept up by an unpleasant emotion, he leaped onto Takiguri and chased after the decoy group, though he had no idea what he was going to do.

If it came to it, at least he could die here with his mentor.

As he flew, clinging to this last resort, he thought he heard something, and he glanced down at the ground. The guardsmen below had noticed the oncoming dark magic and were beginning to panic. Behind them, the supply team's carriages were fraying apart the same way.

A pale-blue light flickered in one of the carriages, visible through the covered top. He heard a strange voice in his head.

Eugeo: Your determination— your desire to protect— needs no payment in return, does it? Love is not something you ask for. You just give and give and give it, and it never runs out. Isn't that right...?

Eldrie(mind): Ah, man... What got me so confused? That I didn't have enough strength? That I couldn't monopolize her feelings? That I wasn't able to protect her? What tiny, insignificant things... Lady Alice has been trying to save all of humanity.

Eldrie whipped Takiguri's reins with one hand and shouted.

Eldrie: Go!!

Alice: No, Eldrie!

The dragon beat its wings powerfully, sensing its master's thoughts, and sped up immediately. The instant they passed the plummeting Amayori, Eldrie heard Alice calling for him to stop. But he did not slow down; he pulled the dragon higher, heading straight for the onslaught of worm creatures.

With his free left hand, he removed the platinum whip from his side.

The Frostscale Whip received its holy power from its core: a great snake that had once lived in the mountains of the eastern empire, known as the god- serpent. Unleashing the power of its memory transformed the whip to many times its original length and gave it free control over its own trajectory.

But this power was nearly meaningless against a curse-type sacred art. Even so, Eldrie continued to pray, filled with absolute conviction.

Eldrie: Serpent! God-serpent of yore! If you are indeed the king of the snakes, then devour this swarm of wretched worms!! Release Recollection!!

He called out, and the Frostscale Whip shone a brilliant silver. Amid that light, the whip split into countless ends. Hundreds upon hundreds of beams of light lashed out at the squirming black things.

And then the light turned into glowing snakes. The swarm of reptiles fanning outward from Eldrie's hand opened jaws of sharp, glinting fangs and bit down on the deathworms. There was a horrible zormp sound, and the first creature to be bitten in two reverted to darkness elements that promptly scattered into nothing.

Abruptly, the swarm that was heading for the guards and the swarm following the airborne dragons changed directions, recognizing the glowing hydra to be their most urgent foe. The snake heads were soon beset by countless writhing worms. The curse traveled up their length, bearing down on the source.

Eldrie was using the one element of the enemy's dark arts that he could affect, its ability of automatic pursuit, to force all of the spell's attention on himself.

Eldrie(mind): Lady Alice...

He grinned and closed his eyes. The next moment, darkness engulfed him. The life value of the Integrity Knight Eldrie Synthesis Thirty-One, which was at slightly over five thousand, instantly plummeted to negative five hundred thousand. The explosion that rippled outward from a centerpoint in his chest tore his body into tiny, fleeting pieces.

Alice: Eldrieeeeee!!!

Alice screamed. Her one apprentice, whose time with her had been short but memorable, slid off his dragon's back, missing over half of his body.

Alice turned Amayori around yet again and plunged through the remnants of the vanishing worms, reaching out with her free hand to grab Eldrie's. Her breath caught in her throat when she felt how light he was, but she gritted her teeth and sent the dragon upward anyway. Takiguri followed right beside them, concerned for its master. As the dragons shot upward in parallel, Alice shouted again.

Alice: Eldrie!! Open...open your eyes!! I won't let you leave me! Not like this!!

Eldrie had nothing left from the chest downward. His pale eyelids fluttered. Underneath his lashes, his purplish irises shone, weak but firm, as he looked at her.

Eldrie: ...Men...tor...you're...safe...

Alice: Yes...yes, I'm safe, thanks to you! I told you that I needed you!!

Her vision went blurry. Droplets landed on Eldrie's cheek. Alice held her disciple tight, not even realizing that they were her own tears. His voice was barely audible in her ear.

Eldrie: Lady Alice...you are needed...by...so many more people. I was...such a small person...to think...that I could have you...all for...myself...

Alice: I will give you whatever you want!! Just come back!! You are my disciple!!

Eldrie: I've...had...so much already.

He whispered, full of satisfaction. She could sense what little weight there was in her arms rapidly beginning to fade.

Alice: Eldrie!! Eldrieeee!!

She wailed. His final words were gentle yet heavy.

Eldrie: Don't...cry......Mo.........ther............

And so the soul of Eldrie Synthesis Thirty-One the Integrity Knight, also known as Eldrie Woolsburg, left the Underworld forever. Through wet eyes, Alice watched the body of her beloved disciple vanish. It turned into a gentle light that illuminated the night and melted into it, as miraculous as the several seconds she was able to talk with him as he lay dying.

Soon Eldrie was entirely gone, without even a trace of armor. Only the Frostscale Whip remained, falling onto Amayori's back limply. Nearby, Takiguri howled sadly as it flew, sensing its master's death. Alice breathed in the faint scent of roses and lifted her head.

Alice(mind): This is a war.

There was no point in taking any of it personally, no matter how the enemy tried to attack or what damages were suffered from it. Just minutes ago, Alice herself had unleashed a mammoth sacred art that had taken the lives of thousands of enemy soldiers; it could not be described as anything but merciless. So if she took all this anger, this sadness, and channeled it into power that would allow her to slaughter ever more foes...

Alice:...Let it not be said that you were not ready for me!!

Alice drew the Osmanthus Blade and shouted,

Alice: Amayori! Takiguri! Charge at full speed!!

The dragons, who were pressed into service by a binding art, normally refused all battle orders that did not come from their designated rider. But the two dragons, brother and sister, roared ferociously and beat their wings, rushing forward. The outer end of the ravine, where the charcoal Dark Territory stretched as far as the eye could see, grew closer.

Through the burning rage that threatened to blind her, Alice's blue eyes quickly made out the formation of the enemy's main force. On the left side, about five hundred mels past the exit of the valley, five thousand dark knights stood in their matching metal armor. To the right, another five thousand pugilists, their hardy bodies wrapped in light leather. These two groups were the bulk of the enemy forces.

Behind them were backup units of orc and goblin infantry and a very large supply team. Somewhere in the midst of them would be the enemy's supreme commander: Vecta, the god of darkness.

And right up front, packed between the rows of dark knights and pugilists, was a group cloaked in black. That was it. They were the dark mages who had set off that massive curse. There were nearly two thousand of them. And now they were fleeing, those who'd noticed the approaching dragons first among them.

Alice: You're going nowhere!!

Alice shouted, who then ordered the dragons to attack.

Alice: Aim for their tail...now! Breathe!!

The siblings craned their necks and opened their jaws wide. The flames that filled their mouths lit white fangs red. Two parallel pillars of fire tore through the air and hit the ground right where the fleeing mages were attempting to run. There was an earthshaking blast, and a fireball rose from the spot where the flames struck. The figures caught in its midst flew like leaves.

Their escape route blocked by flames, the mages completely lost order and clumped into one place. Alice held the Osmanthus Blade high overhead. Its body shone a yellow gold brighter than the sun itself.

Alice: Enhance Armament!

With a crisp metallic ring, the sword split into hundreds of tiny shards. Each one reflected Alice's Incarnation and glinted with sharper edges than they'd ever had before.

Alice hardened her heart against the sound of all the screams. She would not let that art be used ever again. She would remove both the caster and the command from the world.

With each swing of the glowing handle in her right hand, the blindingly sharp little petals followed the movement, slashing at the foes on the ground below. The dark mages, who wore no metal armor, had no physical defense against the metal shards that tore through their bodies.

Alice maintained the Memory Release form of her weapon until she was certain that over 90 percent of the two thousand or so dark mages were wiped out. It used up quite a lot of the sword's life, but she was not in the mood for conservation at this moment.

Two hundred mages fled in terror, not sparing a glance for the stacked corpses of their fellows, but this time, Alice returned the Osmanthus Blade to its original shape and let them go. Out of the corner of her left eye, she spotted about ten dark knights lifting off the ground on dragons from the rear of their formation.

She assumed they would rush for her, but the dragon riders merely formed up and hovered, keeping their distance. She learned why very soon: Bercouli's group was catching up behind her.

Bercouli: Don't push your luck, Little Miss!

The knight commander called out as soon as he was in range, understanding that she was bereaved after the death of Eldrie.

Alice: I...I know. I'm fine, Uncle. Please watch over the ground troops. I must go and play my role as decoy.

Bercouli: Sure...just don't go charging too far ahead!

Bercouli shouted, glancing at the enemy dragons. Alice ordered Takiguri to stay airborne where it was, and she had Amayori proceed forward and rise.

She could sense the attention of dark knights, pugilists, orcs, and goblins —and some great, colossal presence, though she could not tell its location— as she rose. Behind her was the low rumble of the soldiers and supply team leaving the ravine, heading south, and proceeding at top speed.

Then she shouted, loud enough to drown out the sound of all those footsteps. Her Incarnate voice, heavily amplified, spread in all directions, crisp and clear.

Alice: My name is Alice!! Integrity Knight Alice Synthesis Thirty!! I am the proxy of the 4 goddesses and 1 god who protect the human realm: the Priestess of Light!!

There was nothing behind this statement. It was, in essence, a bluff. But the effect it had on the enemy army was immediate. They rumbled and murmured. She sensed the desire to capture her extending toward her like giant invisible tentacles. It seemed true that the enemy was after this "Priestess of Light" at least as much as, if not more than, the actual conquest of the Human Empire and their lands.

The question remained, was that really her, or was she merely pretending to own the title?

It didn't matter to Alice. All she needed was for half of the enemy soldiers to follow her. If buying time and getting the enemy to pull away meant that they succeeded in defending the human world, which Eldrie, Dakira, and all those soldiers had given their lives in service of, that was all that mattered.

Alice: Know that any who stand in my way will be struck down by my righteous light!!

(Elsewhere)

Vecta: Ooooh...

Emperor Vecta, the god of darkness, also known as Gabriel Miller, hunter of souls, stood up from his throne in wonder.

Vecta: Ooooh.

The apparent failure of the attack that had consumed three thousand orc units, and the destruction of the large majority of the mage units, did not startle or disturb Gabriel in the slightest. Only in this moment did his cold, inert soul feel any kind of rumbling. From his thin lips, which assumed only the shape of a smile, a quiet voice.

Vecta: Alice...Alicia...

His eyes caught in full detail the sight of the young knight in her shining golden armor, standing on the back of the dragon in the distant night sky. Straight, long golden hair. Pure-white skin. Blue eyes as cool and crisp as the midwinter sky. In Gabriel's mind, these features perfectly matched the image of a beautifully matured Alicia Clingerman, the very first victim of his desires. He had failed to capture Alicia's soul the first time, but now he knew she had returned to take her place in this virtual world.

Vecta(mind): This time.

This time she would be his. He would take the lightcube that contained her fluctlight and devour it to his heart's content. As the knight pulled the dragon's reins and flew to the south, Gabriel poured into her a gaze like blue fire. He leaned toward the master skull and rasped an order, quiet but fierce.

Vecta: All troops, prepare to march. Pugilists in front, then dark knights, nonhumans, and supply, in that order. Proceed south. You must capture that knight, the Priestess of Light, unharmed. The commander of the unit that captures her will be given control over the entirety of the human realm.