Yuri's group was shadowing Pierre.
It was about time the effects of the mandragora wore off. The plan was to lure Gert to Pierre's location once he got close.
"Is that the Grand Library?"
"Seems like it."
Soon, a rectangular building covered in wild vines came into view.
Though not that impressive in scale compared to the Empire, it must have been a fairly large structure in Adelvine.
Pierre's party started a campfire in front of the Grand Library and began cooking food.
"They're calmer than I thought."
Pierre claimed he had come to the Grand Library to uncover the history of Adelvine.
Yuri expected him to rush straight inside, but his reaction was surprisingly quiet.
"Definitely suspicious."
Yuri's group, hidden in a spot where they could observe them, also began eating.
They didn't light a fire—instead, they chewed on dried jerky and soaked hard biscuits in water.
And they prepared for Gert's arrival.
They took their horses to a distant location, fed them mandragora, and tied them up. That way, they wouldn't be discovered for a few days.
Jose sat with his eyes closed in meditation.
Yuri approached him.
"What are you doing?"
"Calming my body and mind. We're about to face a powerful enemy, after all."
"You think he's coming?"
"I don't feel him yet, but I just have that feeling."
A cold glint flickered in his eyes.
The others also prepared for battle in their own ways.
Although there was still no sign of Gert, everyone had a sense that something was about to happen.
Laurent, who had been polishing his sword, stood up and asked,
"What should we do when Gert arrives?"
Since Yuri's group had stopped taking mandragora, Gert would target them if he appeared.
"If Gert shows up nearby, everyone take a bite of the mandragora."
"Huh?"
"I'll lead him toward those guys."
Yuri spoke while watching Pierre's group.
"We'll learn who Pierre really is. If he's truly an innocent scholar, we fight together. If not, we'll see what happens."
"Understood."
Since entering Adelvine, there had been no reaction whatsoever. Except for Yuri, the rest of the group had even begun to doubt Gert's existence.
But soon, everyone fell silent.
Something was approaching from the distance.
"That's Gert…"
Jared, who was hiding in the bushes and looking out at the horizon through a telescope, muttered.
"He looks terrifying."
"Everyone, take the mandragora."
"Are you sure about this?"
"Of course."
Yuri's group each took a bite of mandragora.
Now, the only enemy Gert could sense was Yuri.
Gert's steps grew faster.
Yuri observed his form through the telescope and let out a low groan.
"So that's Gert…"
A knight in tattered cloak was approaching.
He wore full plate armor that covered his entire body. It was covered in scratches, but not rusted.
His right arm's guard was shattered, revealing white bone underneath. Inside that sealed helmet, there must have been a weathered skull.
This was the appearance of the Death Knight who had driven Adelvine to ruin.
Unlike the Ten Strong he had encountered so far, Gert didn't bother to conceal his aura—it radiated freely.
With each step he took, a violent gust of wind swept out.
"Your Highness."
"Yeah?"
"Can you handle this?"
"I don't know."
Yuri's confidence was rapidly diminishing.
"If it gets dangerous, you guys will save me, right?"
"Well… sure…"
"Pierre's group should notice soon."
Yuri stood up.
Now that he was about to truly face Gert, his palms were sweating. He took off his gauntlets, wiped them quickly, then re-equipped and tightened them. He picked up Guilty and slung it over his shoulder.
"Cory."
"Yes."
"Cast a spell."
"Hmm…"
In an environment without dispel, magic could be very useful.
After some thought, Cory extended both hands.
Though he had focused on physical development recently, he hadn't abandoned magic entirely. Under Ernando's guidance, Cory had grown into a proper mage.
"'Wing.'"
A spell burst from his hands. A white light, soft as feathers, wrapped around Yuri.
"What's this?"
"It's a speed-boosting spell. You'll probably have to keep running…"
"Not running, luring."
"Yes, luring."
"Either way, it's a perfectly timed spell."
Yuri bounced in place a few times.
"Alright, everyone hide well."
"Yes."
No sooner had he said that than the others scattered immediately.
Left alone in an instant, Yuri stared out at the distant horizon and sighed.
"Hmm…"
The dot was growing larger.
Yuri raised Guilty and waved it toward Gert.
If he had vision, he would come straight away.
As expected, Gert picked up speed. He was now charging like a wild dog that had spotted prey.
Even Pierre's group seemed to have sensed his presence, as their camp became noisy.
Yuri's lips curled.
The dormant instincts of an old hunter stirred within him.
"A hunt, huh…"
Hunting orcs wasn't much different from handling beasts. Enemies consumed by madness reacted sensitively to stimuli, and so they easily took the bait.
Yuri looked back.
One of the mercenaries used a bow. He had an arrow nocked, watching the direction Gert was coming from.
Yuri calculated Gert's speed and crouched low. The eerie aura Gert exuded made the hairs on his skin stand on end.
If he stayed still, he'd be swept up and torn to pieces.
He felt an overwhelming urge to run, but he suppressed that instinct and forced himself to stay grounded.
The Death Knight in plate armor gradually came into clear view.
He was accelerating—faster than expected.
It was time to move.
Yuri tore off a large leafy plant beside him and used it to cover himself, then, like a beast charging in, he kicked off the ground.
He flared his mana violently, causing a thunderous boom.
Startled, the mercenary who had been nocking his bow instinctively let go.
A sonic burst rang out.
He was a skilled archer who could imbue arrows with mana.
"Nice."
Yuri changed direction.
The arrow, now without a target, flew past him and shot off far into the distance.
In the direction Gert was charging from, like a runaway beast.
Yuri immediately threw the leafy bundle and dove behind a nearby boulder.
"Phew…"
He wiped the sweat from his forehead and peeked out.
Just at that moment, Gert clashed with Pierre's group.
"Oh?"
Ivan's sword collided with Gert's.
A thunderous crash rang out. Ivan didn't back down right away. The mercenary company stepped back a pace and began attacking Gert.
They were stronger than expected.
"As I thought…"
They weren't just some hired swords protecting a scholar.
Yuri saw Pierre, who had been standing back, begin to move.
Black energy began to rise ominously from his hand.
Yuri gripped Guilty.
"Dark Mage?"
It was the same energy he had felt from other Dark Mages he had encountered before.
Pierre wasn't a scholar.
"So I was right."
With that level of strength, they might at least be able to wear Gert down.
Yuri smirked as he checked on his hidden companions.
They were watching from across the river with only their eyes showing.
Laurent nodded, Jared excitedly pumped his fists in the air, and Jose looked like he was barely holding himself back from jumping in. Simon, Guinness, and Cory were trembling as they huddled together, watching the battle unfold.
Yuri gave them a signal to wait a bit longer.
"How long can they hold out…"
They were fighting better than expected. Whenever Pierre used black magic from behind, a dark aura shimmered from the mercenaries' bodies, enhancing their strength, while Gert's movements began to slow.
Gert's plate armor had started to show damage in several spots.
But he didn't retreat.
He swung his sword with the same momentum as when he first charged. The sword aura tore through the air, gouging up the ground around them.
One of the mercenaries was caught in the blast and sent flying, crashing into the earth.
It happened near where Yuri was hiding.
Judging by the way the man twitched, he wasn't dead.
Yuri left him be and returned his gaze to the battlefield.
Ivan was at the front, facing Gert.
Their power gap was huge, but thanks to Pierre's black magic support, he was managing to hold his ground.
Suddenly, Pierre shouted.
"Gert! Come to your senses, Gert!"
Yuri was dumbfounded.
He remembered Pierre saying to try talking to Gert in a crisis—it seemed he was genuinely serious.
"Your task is done. You can rest now, Gert!"
But it had no effect.
Only Ivan, who was holding the front, had a harder time.
The rest of the mercenaries joined in, but it wasn't much help. Gert's plate armor deflected all the attacks flying at him from around.
Yuri considered.
Should he help now, or wait until they were worn down further?
"If those bastards can weaken him first…"
Then Pierre shouted again.
"Don't die to Gert! If he absorbs your life force, he'll grow stronger! Don't die! Hold on!"
Yuri stood up.
"I see. The Death Knight was born of black magic, so absorbing life force helps him recover."
In that case, fighting alongside them now might be the better option.
Yuri nudged the fallen mercenary near him with his foot.
The man, who had been sprawled out like a corpse, jolted awake.
"Huh?"
"You little bastard, playing dead?"
"N-no…"
"Your comrades are out there shedding blood and sweat, and you're chickening out? Is that your mercenary spirit?"
"I'm sorry…"
As Yuri stepped out, the rest of the group also began to reveal themselves one by one.
Pierre, who had been fighting Gert, stared at Yuri with a bewildered expression.
"What is the meaning of this?"
"What do you think? I started the fight."
"Don't tell me, you brought Gert here…"
"Yeah. It was me, you black-magic bastard."
"Grr…"
"Scholar, my ass. I've read a few books myself, but you don't smell like a scholar. Who do you think you're fooling…"
Yuri looked at Pierre with contempt, as if he had known all along, and rested Guilty on his shoulder. Then he kicked the nearby mercenary on the butt to push him forward.
"Go fight. What are you standing around for?"
Pierre formed a hand sign and protested.
"I am a scholar. I just happen to also be a Dark Mage. I'm a full member of the Continental History Society, and you, sir…"
"Shut it, you piece of trash."
Yuri looked at the black energy roiling from Pierre's body with disgust.
Dark Mages steal life force from living beings.
Usually from humans.
If Pierre was using magic strong enough to fight Gert, that meant he had sacrificed many lives in return.
"Let's take down Gert first. You'll get punished later."
"Heh heh heh, so this is a temporary alliance…"
Pierre, having shown his true colors, adjusted his crooked glasses and grinned slyly.
"Just don't get in the way!"
"You too!"
As Yuri triggered heart-soul slash, he used its explosive force to dash at Gert.
He brought down Guilty in one powerful strike.
A thunderous crash rang out like a bolt of lightning striking down.
Even Ivan, nearby, and Pierre, supporting from the back, widened their eyes in shock at the sheer force.
Gert's helmet was half-destroyed.
"So he's that strong…"
But it didn't seem to have done much damage.
What it did reveal, though, was Gert's skull—now exposed—and a red glow shining from within the sockets.
His mouth opened.
[Eradicate.]
The sound was bone-splitting, the kind that made you want to cover your ears on instinct.
As he spoke, Gert struck Ivan, who stood in his way.
Then he changed targets and aimed for Yuri.
[Under Fate.]
At that moment, black energy whipped up like a storm and surged forward.
The sudden attack left Yuri no time to react—he barely managed to raise Guilty.
His vision went black.
The sky and ground flipped.
Before he knew it, he was airborne. His body slammed into the ground more times than he could count.
"Your Highness!"
Laurent's voice echoed from far away. But due to the ringing in his ears, he could barely hear it. Even that sound faded.
His body was still rolling.
Eventually, he slammed into something heavy and fell still.
Something surged up from within. Yuri opened his mouth and vomited. Dark blood splattered on the ground. A metallic taste filled his mouth.
Yuri let his head droop and took deep breaths, then slowly rose to his feet.
"No, no…"
Beyond his half-blurred vision, Gert was approaching.
"You're supposed to warn people, you bastard…"
Yuri cursed. The pain was so intense, he couldn't stop himself from swearing. The energy of heart-soul slash flared violently from his body.
"Ten Strong, huh? Big deal."
Yuri's face twisted.
"So what, you think you're good at fighting?"
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