NOVEL WEB Chapter 51
51. Believe
The attack that blasted my body straight up seemed to be a spell that conjured a sudden gust of wind.
Blown up into the air, I activated my skill.
I fell from a height of about ten meters, but of course, I took no damage.
“Tch, to dodge at that timing… Who interrupted me!?”
Gregorio clicked his tongue.
“Are you okay, Haruto?”
“I’m so glad you’re safe~”
It was Lilith and Alice who came running from the other side of the alley.
It was probably Lilith’s spell just now.
In the fight against the Demon General Gaius Vrim, she had flown me to the battlefield in a similar manner, so it must have been an adaptation of that.
“You saved me. Thanks, Lilith.”
I faced Gregorio, still clad in my protective barrier, [Armor Phase].
This time, I wouldn’t fall for a sneak attack.
Maximum vigilance.
“Didn’t you say your skill could only shoot straight?”
“Of course that was a lie. My ‘killing’ power can produce red orbs anywhere I want ─ this time, I’m not lying. But even knowing that won’t help you, haha.”
Gregorio laughed gleefully.
“[Light Bind]!”
A chain of yellow-white magical energy shot from Alice’s hand.
“A binding spell? Useless ─”
Patterns appeared in Gregorio’s eyes.
“[Reload].”
This time, the patterns were blue, unlike the previous red ones.
“[Shot Shell].”
A blue orb of light intercepted the magical chain.
As soon as it touched the orb, the chain shattered.
“No way!?”
Alice exclaimed in shock as Gregorio sneered.
“That won’t work on me. I can kill more than just humans. That time, I ‘killed’ the magic.”
This guy ─.
Just as I can change my defensive skills into various forms, this guy’s killing skills have variations too.
“In that case ─”
Alice continued to cast spells.
This time, she shot a silver-glowing magical rope.
It seemed like another binding spell.
Around it, I saw a sparkling light.
Hmm, what is that ─?
“It’s useless.”
When Gregorio intercepted it with a blue orb of light, it shattered as well.
“One more shot and I’ll be out for now… Can’t be helped, [Reload].”
An orange pattern appeared in the murderer’s eyes this time.
“[Round Nose].”
An orange orb appeared.
“What’s this time ─”
The orb exploded in a massive blast before me.
The thick smoke from the explosion completely obscured Gregorio.
“He killed the air with his skill. It can only kill in a small area, but it works as a smokescreen. I’ll see you after I reload six more shots ─ haha.”
His voice faded away.
“Wait ─”
I tried to chase after him but stopped.
It might be a trap.
If he used a skill in the smoke where I couldn’t see, I might not be able to defend against it.
Since he can’t shoot more than six shots at once, he must be running to buy time to reload.
Pursuing him is dangerous.
He said he could only shoot straight, but he caught me off guard from behind.
The ‘six shots at a time’ might also be a trap.
“…Time to regroup.”
I gave up on chasing him.
“You saved me, Lilith.”
“I’m so glad you’re okay, Hart.”
Lilith looked at me with relief.
“You followed me?”
“Even if you say ‘I have something to do’ with such a desperate look, it’s obvious. You’re a terrible liar.”
Lilith smiled wryly.
“It’s like saying something’s up.”
“Lilith-chan was really worried. And so was I~”
Alice added.
“After parting with Meriel, we followed you.”
“That was a spell I’d never seen before. So he killed the guild adventurers?”
“Yeah, he said he was the one behind the Miles City street murders too.”
I nodded at her question.
“He seems to enjoy killing. If we leave him be, people in the capital might become victims.”
“We must stop him…”
Alice muttered darkly.
“If only we could catch him somehow.”
“He said he kills magic. If he can use nullifying magic, he’s a tough opponent.”
Lilith added.
“Even so, we have to catch him.”
I half-muttered to myself.
I can’t talk about God’s skill.
Even if we capture him, can we prove it?
No ─ let’s focus on stopping him for now.
We have to prevent more random killings.
Damn, I should have asked Lilith for help from the start.
That was my mistake.
I’ll make up for it.
“First, how do we track him ─”
“That’s no problem.”
Alice smiled.
“I’ve marked him for tracking.”
“Marked?”
“I have this tool~”
Alice took out a tiny silver bead from her pocket.
“It’s called a [Marker]. It continuously emits a specific magic wavelength. If it’s stuck to the target, we can track them~”
“Stick it to him? When did you ─”
“After the first binding spell was blocked, I cast another spell, right? That was camouflage. I threw a bunch of these along with the spell ─ some must have stuck to his clothes.”
Now that she mentioned it, I did see a sparkle during the second spell.
Well done, Alice.
He said he kills magic, so tools should be unaffected.
“Lilith, contact the vigilante group. He shouldn’t be far. We have to catch him.”
“What about you, Lilith-chan? Don’t tell me ─”
“Yes, Haruto and I will chase him.”
Lilith said firmly.
“I’ll handle the attack. You support. Just like always. This time too.”
“He has skills that kill ─ both physical and magical. He’s a dangerous opponent.”
I’m worried.
“I just protected you from that danger, didn’t I?”
Lilith responded to my warning with a mischievous smile.
“I’m happy you care, but I’m worried about you too. So ─ believe in me. I want to help you.”
“Lilith…”
Maybe I was being stubborn.
To stop someone with God’s skill, you need the same skill.
But maybe what’s really needed is cooperation.
“And we need someone who can track the [Marker].”
“…Right.”
I don’t know if we can handle it alone.
But at least we can keep him occupied so others won’t become targets.
Just Lilith and me ─.
“Let’s stop him together.”