Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 10: The Reason for the Mask
The next two cavalrymen who arrived were clearly on guard. As soon as they saw me from afar, they kept their distance and attacked.
“The person who did that to them… is a child!?”
“So you set a trap in the forest… How cunning…!”
(In times like these, long-range attacks are the standard tactic.)
One was using a crossbow, and the other had begun to chant a spell – I could tell it was fire magic from the color of the magic covering the soldier’s body.
(They can’t hide their attributes, which means they lack training. There are no high-level mages mixed in either.)
Holding the iron sword I had taken from the enemy soldier, I stood with my upper body relaxed. My shoulders shouldn’t be tense, yet my lower body should be filled with power.
However, to the enemy, this stance might look like a joke. Even when my teacher taught me the stance, I was initially hesitant, wondering if it was really okay.
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“Die…!”
“Burn to ash, kid…!”
The crossbow was fired a moment earlier – what came flying towards me looked like a black line to my eyes.
(Hup…!)
As long as I know the trajectory, I can block it. With a dull clang, I blocked the bolt, and as for the fire magic that was fired after– I cut it down head-on.
“Wha…!”
Simply slashing a fireball won’t extinguish the flames, and if it hits the ground, it will spread – how can we prevent that?
“Opposing elemental magic cancels each other out when they collide.”
The technique, “Flowing Water Sword,” imbues the sword with the water element. It was the perfect technique to extinguish the fire magic.
And even though they should have kept moving after shooting their bows and firing their spell, the soldiers neglected to do so. It’s partly because it’s difficult for cavalry to move in the forest, but that’s the fault of those who ride in.
“wham…!”
“Gah… ah…”
I threw a stone at the soldier who was about to speak, grazing the area around his temple. By covering the stone with magic, I was able to knock them unconscious with just that.
(It’s hard to be completely silent…!)
However, no more cavalry came, and I continued to run through the forest.
Finally, I arrived at a hill overlooking the village. There were signs that someone had been there just a moment ago – I headed to the edge of the hill to check my surroundings.
—And I found the man I was looking for.
Zephen – Though he was armed in the same way as the other soldiers, the sword he held in his right hand had an unusual presence.
(That’s… the ‘Demonic Sword Hypnos’…!)
“—Aaaahhh!!”
A cry of agony could be heard. It was from someone fighting Zephen.
Reis-san is there. Why is he kneeling, I shouldn’t call out here, but, more than anything.
“Zephen…!”
There was no other option. There was no guarantee that it would stop Zephen’s sword – but It did.
The Demonic Sword Hypnos never swung down. Zephen turned around – blasting a twisted smile, unlike the one I had seen before.
“That voice… is it the Princess?”
“…Your Highness… why…”
If Reis-san hadn’t been fighting Zephen here, the soldiers would have already attacked the village.
Zephen’s forces were small, and Reis-san had fought alone, with five soldiers already down.
“Come down here. Otherwise, Reis will die.”
“No, you can’t, Your Highness…! Ahh…!”
Zephen stepped on the fallen Reis-san. When I came down from the high ground, Zephen finally removed his foot.
“Ashrina, do you know? Just who Reis is.”
“Sto…p…”
“I know. I know the meaning of Reis-san’s mask, and why he was here.”
He probably didn’t expect this answer. Zephen had a surprised look on his face.
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In the Kingdom of Forlant, there is an entity who act upon the King’s decree – the ‘Shadow Division’.
The members of this clan never show their faces in public. Even I, as the Princess, was not informed of their existence, but I know about them from my knowledge of my previous life.
“…Stop being so stubborn and beg for your life. You managed to survive that prison, didn’t you? Cling to life more… Come on, lie down on the ground and say it! Beg me to keep you alive in his place”
“Surely, if I do that, my blood will contain more Celestial Power… right? Were you planning to show me the sight of the village you destroyed after capturing me?”
“…Reis, you bastard…”
All Reis-san had told me was about the Celestial Stone, and the details about the village were just me exaggerating. But, it seems that my guess was spot on.
“You possess one of the Sacred Relics, Hypnos. I can understand why you’ve hidden it until now. Are you planning to use me to summon another sacred relic? I can tell by how you hold that sword, that you are intoxicated by the power of the Sacred Relics.”
“Shut up… Don’t act like you can see right through me, you who summoned a mere stick…!”
“That’s funny, you’re expecting so much from my blood.”
If he tries to hurt Reis-san any further, I will stop them – even if it means sacrificing myself to stop Zephen.
I wondered what I would see if I could change my fate of dying, Ashrina.
If Master hadn’t taught me the sword, I don’t think I would have made it here. So, if I could strike back at Zephen, then all my efforts will have been worth it.
“…Enough with this nonsense. Don’t move.”
“…Ah…”
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When Zephen’s sword begins to glow, Reis-san collapsed. The power of the Sacred Relic– the first stage ability of Hypnos is to steal the opponent’s consciousness.
If I move now, Reis-san will be killed. I need to hold back until the last moment, at a distance where I can definitely kill Zephen –.
“—Truly, like master, like disciple.”
When I heard that voice, I remembered something that happened some time ago.
“The path of a swordsman is not to die. I must teach you that.”
Zephen’s demonic sword came down.
However, before the blade reached me. I gripped the handle of the wooden sword hanging at my waist and put my power into it – this was the moment.
The blade of Hypnos cuts through me – but it was not ‘Ashrina’ herself.
Zephen’s face twisted in shock. What had been cut was a duplicate made of water.
“—Gaaahhhh!”
Faced with a situation he couldn’t understand, Zephen roared.
The slashed duplicate burst, creating mist. His vision obscured, Zephen slashed wildly in all directions – but blindly slashing wouldn’t hit anything.
“Had enough? I’d stay right there if I were you.”
I was aware of it from the moment I heard the teacher’s voice..
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That my appearance had changed. And that my temperament had changed from when I was the Princess – in other words, the current me is.
“…You’re saying that even though it was lousy, it’s still a Sacred Relic… No, that’s not right. There’s no way my sword could be defeated by such an trick…!”
“Want to see if it’s a trick? Come on, Zephen.”
The technique unlocked by mastering a Sacred Relic, ‘Avatar Release’.
Now imbued with the power of Master Muraku, the incarnation of the wooden sword, my appearance had become closer to his, and I had transformed into a black-haired swordsman.