"You all, help the other elves! They're fighting the monsters—go and support them!" I ordered my squad members.
They all nodded and began helping the others fight the monsters.
I approached the sword duel between Yukito and someone else. I didn't know whether my presence here would help or not.
From earlier, I could see that one of them kept defending without attacking. I felt like one of them was being pushed into a corner.
I hoped the one being cornered was Yukito's opponent. If not, that meant this enemy was stronger than the previous one.
——
(Yukito side)
What the hell is this?! This demon just keeps attacking me nonstop!
He keeps swinging his sword at me. From earlier, all I can do is dodge his attacks—and even that is extremely difficult.
My cloak is already torn in many places because of his attacks.
The sound of clashing swords keeps ringing in my ears. At least the sound is still reaching them.
My breathing has grown heavy. My right hand is struggling to keep up with the speed of his movements.
On top of that, my left hand can't move because it was slashed by his sword. That alone is a huge burden.
Trying to attack and defend at the same time, while also making sure the wound on my arm doesn't get any worse.
Unlike me, this demon keeps attacking without pause, as if his stamina is limitless and he can swing his sword as much as he wants.
The movements of his hands and body are so fast that they overwhelm me. This demon is truly insane!
His abilities are several times stronger than mine. I have absolutely no chance of defeating him.
"What's wrong, you weak human? You've been busy defending this whole time. If all you do is wait like that, your life will run out first!" he shouted, trying to provoke me into attacking.
Even in the middle of his rapid attacks, he could still threaten me. Could it be that he's actually a high-ranking member of the Abbys?
Judging by his swordsmanship, that might very well be true.
Come on, come on… isn't there at least a chance for me to land a single hit on him?
If this keeps going, just like he said, I'll slowly die from exhaustion.
Sret.
Damn it, I slipped on a stone behind my foot.
I fell to the ground and saw the demon raise his incredibly sharp sword above his head. He intended to immediately cut down my helpless body.
The look in his eyes was that of someone completely focused on another's death, without caring about anything else.
His eyes were cold, making me feel that demons truly hated humans.
In this desperate position, I saw his mouth move as he said a few words…
"Goodbye."
Those words reached my ears faintly, like a hunter's farewell to the prey he was about to claim.
Am I… going to die here? No way. I don't want to repeat time again because of death—
Slash!
I closed my eyes, not wanting to see what was about to happen to me. My eyes trembled tightly shut.
After a few seconds passed, I didn't feel anything on my body. What happened—
With my heart pounding rapidly from the fear of losing my life and overwhelming anxiety, I gathered my courage and opened my eyes.
"Yukito, sorry I'm late."
I saw someone standing in front of me, blocking the demon's sword strike.
His body was trembling as he held back the attack. I could see it clearly from here.
"Luke…" I said softly.
Luke stood before me. He had finally arrived with his squad. At the very least, I could live a little longer now.
The small knife Luke carried was being used to block a sword several times larger than it.
The demon was slightly surprised that his attack had been stopped by Luke, forcing him to step back a few steps to create some distance.
He stared at Luke sharply, clearly seeing him as an intruder in his duel with me.
Luke looked at me and then extended his hand to help me up.
Of course, I immediately took it and stood back up, my right hand gripping my sword once again.
I wiped the dust from my lips before turning my gaze back toward the demon.
"That demon's strong, huh? I don't think I can afford to let my guard down even a little," Luke said.
"No matter how you look at it, he really is strong, isn't he?" I replied.
I was truly saved by him. If he hadn't come, I might have repeated time once more.
"I don't care who you are. That knife of yours won't be an obstacle to me."
"But… even if you humans increase your numbers, it won't make you any more impressive!" the demon said as he moved to attack us again.
But this time, he was moving so fast that we could barely see his movements.
"Yukito, is your arm still okay? If not, I can protect you for about half a minute," Luke said.
I let out a small laugh when I heard that. He really filled my mind with hope.
"It feels like it's already broken, you know. How could it not hurt? But yeah, we need to focus on our opponent, right—"
Before I could finish my sentence, the demon was already right in front of us again, swinging his sword.
Cring.
My sword successfully blocked his attack. The moment his movement was stopped by my defense, Luke immediately tried to strike back.
The demon swiftly dodged and counterattacked once more.
With Luke's help, the two of us could at least hold out for a few minutes until reinforcements arrived.
"Why are you spacing out, you damn human?" the demon had already moved behind me, intending to stab me from the back.
I turned around. Even though the difference in speed was immense, and even though I felt like my chest was about to be pierced—
Boost!
"Hah… hah…"
I immediately breathed through my mouth after using the skill to move to a spot a little farther from where I had been standing.
I didn't know how many times I had already used Boost. I had even forced myself to use it just now.
"Yukito, it's time for us to attack! We can't keep dodging forever," Luke said as he stood beside me.
Sweat was pouring down my body. Even breathing had become extremely difficult.
Vision!
(I use this skill to see the demon's movements and position in front of me.)
There it is. I can see a red circular marker above his head. That means the skill is active.
The activation condition is still the same—calling someone's name inside my mind.
With this skill, at least I can slightly enhance my vision. Alright… about how many more minutes can I last?
Hah… hah… my breathing is seriously rough! Hey, hey, why does my opponent this time feel like a boss enemy in a game?!
——
(Hime side)
"Everyone, get ready! They're coming!" Loki-san shouted, signaling that the enemy forces had arrived right in front of us.
And that was also the sign that it was time for Yuu-chan and me to use our magic to attack the enemy.
Come at me, all of you. I'll defeat you as long as I'm still able to fight.
Until then, I'll wait for Yukito-san to return. If he doesn't, then I think I'll have to go look for him.
"Yuu-chan, should we start?" I asked her.
Yuu-chan nodded lightly without looking at me. That meant she was already fully focused on the enemies we were facing.
"What about you? Are you scared and dumping all of this on me?" Yuu-chan replied.
I just let out a small laugh when I heard that.
"No way~ who do you think I am?" I answered.