Escape From a Deserted Island With Enemy Female Soldiers

32 – The Ghoul’s Altar (6)

And she was defeated.

The monster’s magic picked at blind spots in the fog. With visibility gone and only a spear as a weapon, close combat was forced.

Projectiles you could block or dodge. The problem was that the monster’s ranged techniques were all formless.

She struggled, but the situation was overwhelmingly unfavorable.

“Ugh!”

Rachel was thrown back by a blade of wind and rolled on the ground.

[“OMN UNHT.”]

The monster muttered a phrase, drawing closer.

She desperately tried to grab the weapon she’d dropped, but before her hand could even reach it, the monster’s kick sent the spear flying far away.

A brutal hand grabbed her ebony hair, yanking it up. Bloodshot eyes and gold pupils met hers.

Definitely not human eyes. Up close, maggots writhed around the edges of his eyes. The stench of rot made Rachel’s face contort.

[“GRA VLYTH. LYNAR KALTHUR.”]

“Ugh, what the hell are you saying…”

[“VAR TU’KATH, GARN KHAL NA. KALMA ORTH LUN ZHARA.”]

The man snorted. He was mocking her. Like, why did you even come at me instead of running? You’re so unbelievably outmatched.

Rachel thought. Had she really been no match for this monster?

Hell no.

She’d dodged several of his invisible spells. And if that wasn’t enough, she’d closed the distance to within three yards. So much so, that the monster himself panicked and widened the gap.

The divine power granted by the Goddess was originally a blessing bestowed upon humans to vanquish the wicked mana. If she could just get close enough, Rachel would undoubtedly win.

But she had forgotten, because she’d grown too accustomed to it.

“The mage.”

Erich Ronstein, the mage of the Magocracy.

“If that b*stard were here, you’d already be done for.”

In every battle, the mage would guard Rachel’s flank. Whenever her blind spots were exposed, he would fire off the appropriate spells to fill the gaps.

The two of them were strangely in sync. Even though they couldn’t speak the same language, they always moved as if they were reading each other’s minds.

Because of him, Rachel, despite being the vanguard, always managed to finish fights with barely a scratch.

“If the Colonel and the mage show up, you’re finished. And by the looks of it, your wounds from yesterday haven’t healed completely, so you should probably just consider today your death day- aaaHK!”

The monster tightened his grip on Rachel’s head as if telling her to shut up.

[“DNA SYRATUL UNNA. VITH KRA. THI KA SARTUN.”]

Her whole body went limp, she couldn’t do anything. Rachel glared at the man as her last act of defiance.

“I’ll kill… you…”

She may have lost the battle, but she wouldn’t surrender. That was what it meant to be a Valkyrie. Right now she was being dragged away, exhausted, but the second an opening appeared she would immediately counterattack and slit his throat.

Rachel’s strength was fading, her consciousness growing hazy.

Colonel Kaston, and the mage.

For now, trusting them was the best option.

*

The Saintess and I, arms linked, ran like hell.

The monsters kept on our heels. More persistent than I’d thought. Just when we shook off a few, another pack would pop up and continue the chase.

We could fight them, but without the Valkyrie in the vanguard, the risk was too high.

Besides, I’d used mana stones twice yesterday, so I didn’t have much stored up today. I couldn’t waste the mana stone meant for the leader on these grunts. Right now, linking up with the Valkyrie was the priority.

If my hunch was right, this fog was a maze. And most mazes only have one exit.

That’s why we chose to head straight for the mountaintop.

“Run faster!”

“Wait, you! You’re too fast…! Ah!”

The Saintess almost tripped. No matter how much of a soldier she was, how much training she’d had, there was a height difference. Our strides just wouldn’t match.

At this rate, even if we shook them off, we’d just be chased by another bunch. At the very least, we needed to lose these grunts before we reached the peak.

It was killing me, but there was no other way right now.

“I’ll carry you.”

“Huh?”

“It’s not time for a three-legged race!”

In a flash, I lifted the Saintess into my arms. Her eyes immediately flashed orange.

Her bewildered expression only lasted a moment before she wrapped her arms around my neck and pressed close. That made it easier to move, my center of gravity more balanced.

Sure, it took more out of me than not carrying her, but with the monsters on our asses in real time, I couldn’t afford to slow down for even a second.

How long had it been?

Only after shaking off the last of them did I set the Saintess down. My lungs felt like they were burning. As I gasped for breath, she offered me her waterskin. Her eyes were a soft pink now.

“Are you alright?”

“No, I’m not alright. Why are people so damn heavy?”

“I’m actually quite slim, you know?”

“Whatever, let’s keep moving.”

The shrieks of monsters echoed around us again. We took a quick swig and got going.

The second it looked like we were about to be hunted, I hauled the Saintess onto my back.

It was definitely easier than carrying her. And I was starting to understand why she felt so much heavier than she looked.

How long did we keep switching between running and walking?

The cries that had been like distant muttering just suddenly vanished, all at once. The space where the sound had been was filled with a chilling emptiness, a desolate silence.

Dark, dim, and quiet.

Like we’d stepped inside a barrier.

I set the Saintess down and caught my breath. The fog was slowly lifting. It looked like the mountain peak was right in front of us. The ghoul seemed to be beckoning us to come closer.

“Hey, Mage!”

The Saintess, arms crossed, glanced around before pointing to the ground and shouting.

A stone spear lay there, fallen on the ground. The one I’d made for the Valkyrie.

“Why is this here?”

The blade was still warm. The magic stone inside was full of Ekirel. The heat that had been generated by the neutralization reaction between Mana and Sephiron was slowly fading.

It’s undeniable. A battle happened here.

The ground, stamped with erratic patterns, reinforces that prediction.

Just before the fog rolled in, the Valkyrie was walking right in front of us. But it was only after time passed that we found this clearing. Maybe that monster uses magic that warps space-time.

“Ah…”

The Saint’s eyes were violet. For a Lumina to have this color in their eyes is a very bad sign. It meant she was either terrified or terribly uneasy.

“Let’s hurry.”

We continued onward.

Reaching the summit, an open landscape appeared.

The first thing that caught my eye was a tree stump. It was cleanly cut, which meant a tool was used. The first sign of civilization we’d seen on this island.

And if you lift your gaze, the second sign is right there.

Stone pillars.

Not just one. Roughly a dozen or so pillars stood in a circle.

Inside the pillar formation was a truncated pyramid-shaped stone platform. An unusually strong magic could be felt emanating from it.

It could be a temple for worshipping something, or an altar for offering sacrifices.

“I guess this is it. Our destination.”

The Saint glanced around, then cautiously let go of my arm. She cleared her throat, then grabbed my sleeve, replacing the previous grip.

That’s when the mana stone in my pocket resonated.

Humming.

“…What?”

Wondering what it was, I pulled it out. It was the mana stone I got from catching the Siren on the last island. I had no idea what it was for, so I had just been carrying it around…

Now I get it.

I poured all my remaining mana into the mana stone, activating it. The mana stone, having devoured the magic greedily, belched.

Then, cautiously, we moved forward.

I hadn’t seen it from afar, but the altar was surrounded by scattered bones. All human bones. There must have been at least dozens, maybe hundreds.

And up there.

The Valkyrie lay on the stone platform.

[“Ah, you’ve come at a perfect time.”]

The demon’s voice made me tense up.

[“First, I must offer this b*tch. Sorry, but your turn is next.”]

*

A ghoul dies if it doesn’t eat people.

Amalgam, once a lowly soldier in the army led by some great figure long ago, was no different. He had once been human, but became a ghoul, and now his hard-won immortality was tied to consuming people.

Not that it mattered much. He had enjoyed eating people even before becoming a monster.

However, he wasn’t truly immortal. Like any monster, demon, or devil, he was doomed to have his body destroyed by the power bestowed by the goddess venerated by the Holy Spirit Church – divine power.

That’s why the Holy Spirit Kingdom’s female soldier’s spear thrust was more critical than the mage’s ambush.

[“I can never forgive this b*tch.”]

He almost died.

He’d hastily used teleportation to return to his dwelling, but he’d poured so much mana into the teleportation and regeneration that he needed to rest for the time being.

Yet, the group of mages survived the night and still had the strength to barge into Amalgam’s hideout.

[“After completing the offering, I’ll gnaw on her bones and flesh. Of course, you two as well. I’m looking forward to it. It will be a splendid feast.”]

There was no reason to hide it now. Amalgam unwound the bandage from his fingertips. *Shhhrrr.* Bones, bursting through his skin, gleamed sharp.

The mage gave a hollow laugh.

[“Well, you should’ve come out like this from the start. Why were you being so subtle all this time?”]

[“I told you. For magic users, concealment, deception, and cunning are virtues. Who throws ingredients on the fire without first preparing the meat?”]

[“That’s because you’re—”]

[“Rise.”]

The ground beneath the mage and the saintess surged. Sharp iron spikes sprouted like newborn shoots. They dodged with a split-second’s reflex, but the maneuver split them apart.

Amalgam’s goal.

[“Push them back.”]

[“Impale them.”]

The two mages chanted simultaneously. Amalgam’s iron stakes and Erich’s lapis lazuli met in midair, sparking.

“———.”

At the same instant, Tyria, having drawn Baculus, uttered a pronouncement. A halo shone behind her back. Amalgam’s eyes widened.

[“Damn it.”]

Raw, unrestrained divine power.

[“You didn’t use any of it on the way here?”]

[“To catch you.”]

It was Erich who answered. Amalgam clicked his decaying tongue with a *tsk*. His plan to exhaust their power beforehand had failed.

The battle began now.