Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest Vol. 6

by Ryo Shirakome

  Irritated, Hiyama tried to chant a spell, but that distracted his attention for a moment.

  Meld had been waiting for this moment. His blade danced through the air, circling around Hiyama’s short sword. He slapped the weapon out of Hiyama’s hand and rushed forward.

  “Haaah!”

  “Ah!?”

  Meld ducked under Jose’s and tackled Hiyama.

  His shoulder connected squarely with Hiyama’s stomach, and the air was driven out of Hiyama’s lungs as he slammed into the sofa and tumbled over it.

  Two of the soldiers tried to pincer Meld, but he rolled underneath them and blocked Jose’s next attack with his sword. The blow sent him flying backward, but he used the distance he gained to straighten his stance.

  “Scatter— Wind Wall!” With the precious seconds he’d gained, he summoned a barrier of wind to protect him.

  Jose, who’d been in the middle of launching another attack, was knocked off-balance.

  Meld then blocked one of the soldier’s swings and threw an uppercut at another. Though the soldiers’ blows were powerful, their movements were clumsy. He knew he could handle them. Meld’s uppercut connected squarely with a soldier’s jaw and knocked him clean off his feet.

  The captain then swept his leg out, tripping Jose. And while the soldier was still stumbling, Meld slammed the flat of his sword into the man’s head. There was a sickening crunch, and the soldier fell to the ground.

  “Come on, Jose, I know you can do better than that.” Normally, Jose fought with a lot more finesse, but right now he was letting his weapon swing him around. Meld parried another one of his blows and threw the man over his shoulder.

  Jose gasped as the air was forced out of his lungs.

  “You stay quiet for a bit.” Meld slammed his fist into Jose’s stomach. The man spasmed, then went limp. Meld spared him one last glance before standing up and punching behind him.

  The last remaining soldier was blown away.

  “Goddammit. I even brought the vice-captain over to deal with you. How’s someone from this world so strong? Are you some kinda monster?” Hiyama coughed and stumbled to his feet. Meld looked sadly over at his former pupil.

  “You overestimate me. I just have a lot more experience fighting people. I am still the kingdom’s greatest knight, you know? You may have me beat when it comes to fighting monsters, but I’ve had years of experience fighting people.” So please, just surrender. Sadly, his unspoken plea didn’t reach Hiyama. The young boy tore at his hair and glanced at the unconscious soldiers.

  “What, you think you’ve already won?” Hiyama sounded completely insane. Meld gasped as he saw the look in the boy’s eyes. He knew that look. It was the broken look of a man who’d fallen too far to have any hope of salvation.

  “Daisuke, what did—” Meld broke off when he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He couldn’t believe it.

  They were standing back up. Both the soldiers, and Jose. It was as if they didn’t feel any pain. They simply got back up with the same blank expression as before.

  “Give it up. Hehehe... Those guys won’t stop even if you kill them!”

  “What? What have you done to—” Before Meld could finish his question, two more knights walked into his room. There were at least half a dozen more standing outside it, all of them Hollow.

  Whatever brainwashing magic had been used on them, it was extremely high-level. Even if their movements were a little sluggish, the soldiers never tired and their attacks were abnormally powerful.

  Suddenly, it hit him.

  Despite how loud their fight had been, no one had come to see what was going on. Meld finally realized how dire his situation was. He’d completely fallen into his enemy’s trap. There was likely some barrier around his room that kept the sound and vibrations from escaping. Chances were no one even knew he was under attack.

  They completely got me. This is what I get for putting too much faith in the castle’s defenses. He hadn’t expected his enemies to be capable of setting up such an elaborate trap in the heart of the capital. For the past few hundred years, humans and demons had been relatively equal in strength, which was why the castle’s multilayered defenses had never once been breached.

  That left only one possibility. Meld looked over at Hiyama. Considering the boy’s skills, Meld knew he couldn’t have been working alone. He was almost certain Hiyama had an accomplice. Said accomplice was probably the real brains behind this operation.

  In that case, this is no time to be thinking of making a valiant last stand. I need to escape alive and inform someone of this betrayal. Unfortunately, the doorway was filled with knights. He slowly backed up. Jose and the others surrounded him.

  “Just give up and die already, Captain Meld!” Hiyama’s mouth twisted into a sneer.

  “I refuse. As shameful as it is, I’m afraid I’ll be escaping with my life.”

  “Wha? You little—”

  Meld turned on his heel and dashed for the window. He slammed through it, the glass shattering with ease. For a moment, he hung suspended in the air. Meld’s room was on the fourth floor. A fall from that height would leave him crippled at the very least.

  “Wind Wall!” However, he slowed his descent with magic and landed softly on the ground below.

  He knew Hiyama and the others would soon chase after him, so he hadn’t truly escaped yet. Not by a long shot.

  However, he’d at least bought as much time as it would take someone to chant a high-level spell. Specifically, a very powerful fire spell.

  With it, he’d be able to buy himself enough time to find someone who wasn’t brainwashed and tell them everything he knew. I can do this!

  “O crimson—” He stopped chanting almost as soon as he started. Or rather, something stopped him. He wasn’t sure what. Hiyama and the others still hadn’t made it down yet, and there was no one else in the palace courtyard.

  There was no magic stopping him from continuing, and no one had fired an attack at him.

  “...” However, his instincts screamed at him to be silent. He knew not to make a sound or move a muscle.

  It felt as if his heart was caught in a vice. Cold sweat dripped from his chin. He stood stock still, wishing his breathing and heartbeat weren’t so loud.

  It was exactly like when an animal sensed a predator nearby. Meld knew his only hope for survival was to hope whatever this thing was passed him by.

  “First I had to step in to take care of the king, now the knight commander. I must say, your performance is quite disappointing. I suppose this is as much as I can expect from a human. Very well, it seems I must lend you a hand...” The voice was so melodious that it sent chills down Meld’s spine. It was also utterly devoid of emotion.

  Only after hearing that voice did Meld move. He slowly looked up, his head moving like a badly oiled machine.

  Floating in the air, silhouetted by the moon, stood a girl. A pair of wings sprouted from her back. She created a glowing silver sphere in front of her. It looked so fantastical that for a moment, Meld couldn’t believe what he was seeing was real.

  However, there was no time to be impressed. His body, his mind, his very soul despaired.

  There was an overwhelming difference in strength between him and this creature.

  The sphere’s silver light intensified. It looked like a miniature version of the moon. A very beautiful miniature version of the moon. The power stored in that light was anything but beautiful, though. It was cold and merciless.

  Meld knew full well what was about to happen to him. He also knew that there was no escape.

  “Ehit...” Meld, the strongest knight in the kingdom, prayed to the god he’d believed in since childhood. However—

  “Correct. This is what your lord desires.” Ehit didn’t stop the girl from bringing the silver sphere down on him. It was no larger than the type of balls children played games with, but its light eradicated all life.

  The silver light of death filled Meld’s vis
ion.

  This is what Ehit wanted? He wanted me to die!? Meld thought back to what had happened to his subordinates. He was sure even worse things awaited them.

  So in the final moment of his death, Meld’s thoughts turned not to Ehit, but to... Please take care of the rest for me... Well, even if I don’t ask, I know you’ll do it anyway. She’s your enemy, after all, so— Beat the shit out of her for me. The kingdom’s strongest knight put his faith not in god, but in the monster who’d crawled his way out of the abyss.

  Soldiers with Hollow eyes silently repaired the window and floorboards of Meld’s room. Another figure looked down at the letters still on his desk.

  “Oh my, I guess I should have expected as much from the captain. He didn’t miss a thing. That was close.”

  “Huh? What are you talking about?” Hiyama walked up to the figure, not even attempting to hide his displeasure.

  “It’s nothing. At any rate, how does your stomach feel? From the looks of it, he hit you pretty hard,” the figure said with a sneer.

  Hiyama grimaced and spat his words back at them.

  “This is nothing.”

  The figure’s sneer grew. Hiyama turned to watch a soldier fit a new window frame in and something occurred to him.

  “What about her?”

  “She already left. She said our performance was disappointing.”

  “I see. Well, I expected her to intervene. I’ve gotta say, it really feels like we’re blessed by god. Fufu, never expected her to be such a cruel bitch, though.” Hiyama shuddered as he thought back to the girl who had killed Meld. Originally, the plan was supposed to have taken much longer. But thanks to her help, all of the obstacles standing in their way had been removed.

  Hiyama still didn’t know why she’d chosen to cooperate with them. She claimed her god had told her to, but he had no way of knowing whether that was really the truth or not.

  He didn’t even know what she really was, just that she was far stronger than him.

  Hiyama shook his head, shaking off the fear that started creeping up on him. He decided to change the subject.

  “Well, all of the biggest problems have been solved now. At this point, we’ll be fine as long as Yaegashi doesn’t catch on.”

  “Indeed. Thanks to our little accomplice, both the king and the prime minister are effectively our puppets. Plus, the Holy Church was never our enemy to begin with. With the captain gone, there’s no one left who can stop me.”

  A hint of madness tinged the figure’s voice. Even Hiyama, who’d already killed someone, took an involuntary step back.

  The figure crushed something inside their hand. Upon closer inspection, Hiyama realized it was a letter. The letter Meld had written to Hajime.

  “Things are going to progress very fast indeed now. The ball’s rolling, and it’s only going to speed up from here. There’s no stopping now, not until we achieve the future I wish for.”

  The figure grinned, and their pupils shrunk to tiny dots.

  Maniacal laughter filled the late Captain Meld’s room.

  Chapter II: Invasion of the Capital

  A few rays of moonlight shone in through the barred window, lighting an otherwise dark cell. The stark contrast between the white light and the dark room was striking.

  The furnishings in the room were rather Spartan. The floor was made of metal, and there was only a single wooden pallet, a tiny desk, and a squat toilet. Frankly, prisons back on earth were more comfortable than this cell.

  Aiko leaned back against the wall, huddled up in a corner of the bed with her face buried in her knees.

  Three days had passed since she’d been imprisoned here. Thanks to the bracelet strapped to her wrist, she couldn’t use any magic.

  At first, she’d tried all she could to escape. But even cutting herself and drawing a magic circle with her blood hadn’t allowed her to cast magic. And naturally she wasn’t physically strong enough to break the bars of her cell. Nor had she been able to slip past the silver-haired nun who came to bring her food. The nun was far stronger than her and had easily been able to overpower Aiko.

  The bars over her window prevented her from escaping through there. The most she could do was get one arm through.

  Though even if there hadn’t been any bars over her window, she wouldn’t have been able to escape. Her cell was at the top of a tower on the summit of the Divine Mountain. It was unlikely she could reach the ground without dying, and even if she could, the mountain was crawling with priests. Avoiding all of them and making it back to the capital was an impossible task.

  In the end, Aiko had been reduced to huddling in a corner of her cell. Though she was worried about her students, there was nothing she could do for them.

  “What are they trying to do to my students... What’s happening...” As Aiko mumbled that to herself, she thought back to what the nun had said before kidnapping her.

  Apparently, the nun’s master would have found it inconvenient if Aiko had told her students what she’d learned from Hajime. The nun had wanted one of the students’ plans to continue unhindered.

  Worry and despair swirled around inside her mind. Aiko thought back to the boy who’d died in Ur, Yukitoshi Shimizu. She worried that another one of her students might be trying to do something they could never take back, and she couldn’t help agonizing over it.

  Stuck alone in this prison, she had plenty of time to think. The more she pondered over recent events, the more she realized that there had been something wrong inside the palace when she’d returned. Eliheid and the other leaders of the kingdom had been acting strangely fanatical when she’d gone to see them.

  That silver-haired nun must have done something to them. If the strange spell she’d cast on Aiko had really been some kind of mind control technique, then it stood to reason that the king and his retainers had been brainwashed.

  However, neither Shizuku nor Liliana had been acting out of the ordinary. Still, there was no telling what might have happened to them in the time since she’d been captured though.

  As she prayed for their safety, Aiko remembered one other thing the nun had said.

  She’d said that she needed to eliminate the “irregular.”

  That word brought to mind a specific student of hers. The boy who’d saved her life, and the boy who’d killed Shimizu. Despite being so strong-willed, he’d still seriously considered the advice she’d given him.

  And then... they’d maybekindofnotreallysortofpossiblyalmostkissed.

  As much as Aiko had tried to bury that memory, it kept surfacing when she least expected it. She blushed, despite knowing the desperate situation she was in.

  Aiko shook her head, trying to banish the memory from her thoughts. She was worried for his safety, but she also really wanted to meet him again.

  “Nagumo-kun...”

  “Yeah? What’s up, Sensei?”

  “Wha!?” Aiko couldn’t believe her ears. There was no way Hajime would be here right now.

  She glanced around her room, but saw no one, then tilted her head. Am I hearing things?

  It wasn’t just her imagination, though. Hajime called out to her again.

  “Up here, Sensei.”

  “Huh?” I’m not just hearing things! Aiko looked up at the window.

  Hajime was poking his face between the bars.

  “Huh? What? Nagumo-kun? How? This is the top floor... on the summit... Huh?”

  “Yeah, I know. Just calm down, Sensei. I need to make sure there aren’t any traps here...” Hajime swept his gaze across the room, confirming with his demon eye that the space was clear. There was a flurry of red sparks, and suddenly a hole appeared in Aiko’s wall that was wide enough to let a person through.

  Aiko’s room was at least 100 meters from the ground. And yet, Hajime just waltzed into the room as if the ground extended past Aiko’s walls.

  Hajime smiled as he saw the shock on Aiko’s face.

  “Why do you look so surprised? I thought I was doing a
pretty good job of hiding my presence, but it sounded like you knew I was already here... Made me lose confidence in myself, honestly.”

  “Huh? I did? How?”

  “I mean, you called my name, didn’t you? Wasn’t that because you knew I was here?”

  Naturally Aiko had known no such thing, and had only muttered his name because she’d been thinking of him. Not that she could tell Hajime that. And so, she hurriedly tried to change the topic.

  “A-Anyway, why are you here...”

  “To save you, of course.”

  “You came all the way here just to save me? Really?”

  Hajime raised an eyebrow. Her odd actions made him wonder if she hadn’t already been brainwashed. He walked up to her and turned his demon eye on her, just to make sure she wasn’t under the influence of some strange magic.

  Aiko blushed and her heart began to beat faster. The boy she’d been thinking about had happened to come save her just when she was hoping for him to, and now he was standing next to her bed staring intently at her.

  If they’d had a simple teacher-student relationship, Aiko would have simply asked him what was wrong. But they didn’t, so she found she could do nothing more than stare back at him.

  Hajime’s eyes found no traces of mana, so he decided that Aiko was likely still herself. He took her by the hand and examined her bracelet. It seemed he wanted to remove the artifact that was sealing her mana. But that wasn’t what Aiko saw it as. She squealed and said some rather scandalous words.

  “We can’t, Nagumo-kun! This is too sudden! And I’m your teacher!”

  “Don’t you want to be able to use magic again? Or is there some kind of trap that’ll activate if I break this? Doesn’t look like there is, but...”

  “Huh? Oh, that’s what you were doing...”

  “What did you think I was doing?”

  “Ahahahaha... I’m sorry. It’s nothing...”

  Hajime stared quizzically at Aiko, who tried to play it off with a laugh. She once again changed the subject, asking how Hajime had known she’d been captured.

  “The princess told me.”