Chapter 94

After defeating Fegnis and traveling through the castle, I explained to Lucas and Eva about Neah, the familiar monster that had been disguised as an owl along the way .

Lucas-sama was very surprised when I explained that Neah was a half of a vampire and a necromancer .

On the other hand, Eva seems intrigued by Neahh that has transformed from an owl to a person .

“So you know the exact location of the curse,, right Neah?”

“Of course . That’s why I’m leading the way?”

Neah walks in front with her black-hair waving back and forth .

Our footsteps echo throughout the castle, which is illuminated only by the lights of magic tools .

“Usato, I assume that you know, but I’ll just ask again . ”

“Hmm?”

“The two of you behind should listen as well . ”

Neah spoke out while facing forward .

“Usato and I are the ones fighting the curse . You two just have to look . ”

“…Yeah . To be honest, I’m just a king, so I’ll oversee the battle . ”

“It’s good that you understand . Well then, should I also remind you that we might fail?”

“Oi, Neah…”

Watching Lucas stressed to that word, I warned Neah .

However, she stares back at me .

“There is no guarantee that the curse will be destroyed, so you have to be prepared for the worst . ”

“–But”

“It’s okay, Usato… . Please continue . ”

Lucas shows a serious expression .

Neah quietly opened her mouth .

“…The curse is on the verge of disappearing because the bell that was the source of the magical power was destroyed . It is not a bad thing to disappear since these are the captured souls who curse the Samaria royalty . As for Eva, the soul and presence that she has taken will be lost forever . ”

“…Yes, that means I can’t live for too long…”

Since her life has been cut off, she may not be able to live for a year at worst .

Eva muttered and painfully felt a tingle .

“Well, in order not to do that, this hobbyist is trying to destroy the curse . But if it fails… For example, if the curse is difficult to destroy, or Usato is in danger . If that were the case, we’ll give up on breaking the curse . ”

If we fall into a situation where we cannot do anything about the curse, we have to pull back .

“It’s more dangerous than it was originally . To get her soul and existence back, I have to be close to Eva . But my resistance spell can only be applied to either Usato or Eva . However, if the curse had a clear intention, then Eva, who would be unprotected, would be targeted… . No matter how monstrous Usato is, I don’t think he’s able to overwhelm hundreds of curses?”

“……Aah . ”

“…Can you not show me as if you’re not convinced . I’m not saying that you can’t… . . That’s why I’ll do my best to help . ”

Neah turned awkwardly and said so, but I who was a grimace also leaked a smile .

We were enemies just recently, but after getting to know each other, she’s more human than you think .

Eva was smiling happily to me, looking at Neah walking forward, and she was happily talking to me .

“Usato and Neah are very close friends . ”

“It’s a little different from being close to each other . It may be more correct to say it’s a matter of trust . ”

“Fufufu…”

Eva smiles cynically, but it didn’t hold any power .

Maybe her body isn’t the best . If she doesn’t regain her existence and life, she won’t be able to move and live a short life .

“What’s wrong……?”

Eva turns and looks at me worryingly when I have become silent .

I don’t want to think about what happens after I make a mistake .

However, there is no guarantee that we’ll be 100% successful .

As Neah puts it, I must destroy the curse, thinking of the worst possibility .

“We’ve arrived . ”

While indulging in thought, Neah stops in front of a large door .

The place we stopped is… . . !

“This door is…”

Lucas-sama, looking at the door illuminated by the magic tool’s lights, is astonished with his eyes wide open .

“No way… is this the place…!?”

“Yes . It was very easy to find . After all, the king at that time seemed to have a strong desire to reveal himself . ”

――There is a throne .

The place I was invited to this castle, the first place I met Lucas-sama . This was where the curse that had been eating away at the Samaria royal family was hidden .

“It was so close…I couldn’t notice…”

Neah enters the hall with the throne, and walks to the wall behind the throne without hesitation . She cleverly touched the wall, nodded, and opened her mouth .

“Usato, can you break this wall?”

“Can you not assume that I can just break a wall this thick… . . Well, I’ll try it . ”

It looks like a hardened wall, but can it be easily destroyed?

While I was a little worried if I could break it myself, I rushed into the wall with a straight kick and hit, and my legs pierced the wall more easily than expected and collapsed .

Beyond the collapsed wall, a spiral staircase leading to the back and a dull, creepy breeze blow .

“It was surprisingly easy to break because there was such a space behind the wall…”

It was the king at the time that instructed the hero to be bound, so it is natural to put the body of the curse in a familiar place .

Reason why it could be easily destroyed——

“Not really though, it’s not a wall that’s so easy to destroy…”

“Wow, Mr . Usato is amazing…”

“…”

The feeling of dejavu courses through me as they reacted to me from behind…

Why am I having flashbacks about the situation when I hit the target back in Lukvis?

……No, let’s switch feelings .

“Okay . Transform into an owl, Neah . Lucas-sama, please don’t let go of Eva and stay behind me . ”

“Yes”

The transformed Neah rides on my shoulder .

Lucas-sama also picks up Eva so as to be careful, and goes down behind me .

“Well, there’s a big curse below this . Keep that in mind, Usato . ”

“Yeah, I’ll hit it with all my might”

I clenched my fist strongly and said that, I began to go down the stairs so as not to slow down .

A hidden room was hidden behind the throne .

We set foot on the spiral staircase, and we went down the stairs with great caution .

Neah illuminated our path with the light of the magic tool that she sneaked from the castle sometime ago, and after going down the stairs, the green light that stands out in the darkness is visible .

With that light in front of me, I took a deep breath again and stepped into the space where the light was leaking .

“……! This is……”

The space where the light leaked was a place like an altar .

Although it was covered with dust as a whole, there was a space that could accommodate dozens of people, and the altar in the back had a crystal ball that emitted a green light to enshrine something .

Probably that is the core of the curse .

I understand without Neah saying . You can see the magical patterns moving in the crystal as if they were mixing, and above all, the atmosphere that seems to be dangerous is transmitted briskly .

――――――、

“… Usato”

“Yeah, there’s more than yesterday’s . ”

I know this because I faced the curse last night .

This rough and unpleasant feeling, like a lot of eyes, are directed at us .

It’s kind of like a curse inside my stomach .

“…”

“Eva, are you okay?”

I wonder if Eva felt the same thing as me .

Lucas-sama was worried, and when he called out, Eva screamed at me as she squeezes her hand .

“Usato-san…I know this feeling…”

“Know?”

When I ask Eva that while looking back, she shakes her voice as if she was frightened .

“It’s the same as a dream . With those who had a grudge on me…”

“You don’t have to say it anymore . I know what you mean . ”

“……Okay”

In other words, it was the curse’s work that caused her to have nightmares .

I thought that the people of Samaria had a lot of resentment, but they often try to hunt down in her dreams .

“… Wait . Then…”

Who are the people who protected her in the dream that the curse would have shown?

The Samaria people, who have a grudge against the royal family, can’t protect Eva .

Maybe—

“Usato! As I expected, the curse has a core! I’ll break it before the curse really moves!”

“…Aaah”

Neah who looked at the crystal on the altar excitedly moved and said that while flapping her wings .

“Is it possible to break it just by hitting it? Isn’t it necessary to break the curse first?”

“I was thinking about using it, but I don’t need it . That crystal is, so to speak, a wedge that binds the soul to this world . Unlike magic, it is made by a person, so if you break it, the soul that was trapped will be released… . ”

I’m a little uneasy, but if she says so, I’ll obey .

However, it seems like what I would’ve done too…

“You did say to break it, but shouldn’t we leave such a brute force method as a last resort…!”

“What are you talking about now, even though you can only use your fist…”

So rude . Even I would think before I hit .

Well, it’s quick because you don’t have to think about it . All you have to do is break the crystal in front of you without thinking .

I guessed that’s my purpose here, Skeletons appearing from all over the hall that could not be compared to last night .

“–Aaaa”

“Hee-r…”

“Ah”

“Looks like they’ve gathered…! Neah, let’s end them in an instant! Switch the resistance magic to me at the right time! Lucas-sama, Eva is defenseless for a while! Call me when it’s dangerous!”

“Okay, be careful!”

“Yes!”

I confirmed with Neah on my shoulder as she nodded, and I touched Eva’s shoulder lightly held by Lucas-sama .

If I am equipped with resistance magic, I can ignore the skeletons and go to destroy the curse in the shortest distance . Eva may be defenseless by that amount, but I will destroy it before that happens…!

“Now!”

“Shhh!”

Neah’s dispel activates, and at the same time the resistant magic that covers Eva’s body jumps out to the front .

“Let’s go Neah!”

“I know!”

Then, the magic of resistance is put on the body, and the magic of restraint is put on both hands .

The skeletons start moving due to my sudden action, but the movement is slow .

A skeleton reaching out from the ground——————

Also the skeletons that attacked from the ceiling―――、

They can’t keep up with my speed .

“Hmmmp!!”

“Gi, ……!?”

I dealt with the annoying skeleton floating in the front with a Healing Restraint Fist without difficulty, and after accelerating, I drew my right arm and squeezed my fist tightly .

The distance to the altar is approaching .

After that, I just have to hit with my fist directly…!

“This is the end!!”

A clenched fist is swung down at the altar .

However, it was up to that point .

“Ahhhhh”

“Goo, Kee”

“What!?”

Cling clang!!, and after hearing the sound of multiple chains, several skeletons cracked into the wall at a tremendous speed like it cut between the fist and the crystal…

The fist that was supposed to hit the crystal was blocked by the skeleton that became a wall, and the direction was shifted .

“What?! The skeletons being pulled by the chains are connected to the wall…!?”

“What is this?! Now, the chain has moved regardless of their intentions! Usato, let’s back down for now! Maybe I’ve made a ridiculous misunderstanding…”

“It’s no use pulling back! Let’s hit it again! Oraa!!”

“Are you even listening to me!?”

If I can stop it, I might as well try .

Raising my fist again and trying to swing it down, the skeletons block in the same way as before, but this time I will hit it until it breaks with both arms so that there is no problem even if they’re blocking!

I tried to stick out the right fist while ignoring the control of Neah ―――、

“Sto-, plea-“

“Wow!!”

A small, child-sized skeleton pulled out in front of my face . Instead of screaming, my fists stopped because of those begging words .

Can’t believe they’re using such hands…!

Pulling the fist that was sticking out and descending from the spot, the frustrated Neah looked at me .

“This is certainly unexpected . It would have been nice if I had the intention . But this is… obviously someone with a different intention from the skeleton that wants to openly disturb us! “

“It’s different from a skeleton…”

While protecting the altar in front of us, I avoided the skeletons that attack from the surroundings — No, watch the skeletons that are being protected .

The chain connected to that collar . That stretches from the ceiling/wall and forces the skeletons to move . I have an unspeakable anger towards them, who are forced to be pulled in front of the altar like slaves .

“Bullshit……!”

Is this what it means? An existence that uses the people of the Samaria people who are suffering from the curse of their souls?

If this really exists, what happens next after they prevent the altar from being destroyed?

Currently, they can’t stop me as I’m being protected by Neah’s magic, even if I dodge dozens or hundreds of skeletons .

The means to show me the gap is that ―――

“Usato, there is a curse here!”

“—Eva!!”

At the same time, I heard Lucas-sama’s voice from behind, turn around .

Turning around, Eva is surrounded by many skeletons and Lucas-sama who hugged her is protecting her .

“I’m coming now…hh!?”

Although I tried to go to help, suddenly the movement of my legs was hindered and I was about to fall .

Looking at the foot, the chain that was connected to the skeleton was wrapped around .

“Tsk, you!!”

Resistance magic is limited to “curse”, so it cannot be prevented otherwise .

The chain can be released immediately, but Eva is in danger while doing so .

Moreover, there are countless skeletons heading here as well, probably to stop me .

…………I have no time to hesitate!

“Neah, cancel the magic that is applying to me!!”

“Huh!? Don’t be stupid! You know what happens if I remove the magic that protects you in such a place!?”

“Please!”

“…Argh! Alright alright! Why am I even being good with you! Seriously! Don’t you die on me okay!?”

The magic of resistance applied to me was released, leaving me unprotected against curses .

Regardless of that, I grab Neah that is on my shoulder all the time .

“Let me apologize for now! Sorry!”

“Eh!? Why are you holding me… Wait!? No way…”

I’ll leave you to help Eva and Lucas-sama!!

I lightly threw Neah towards Eva and Lucas-sama . Neah screamed, but soon unraveled and returned to the original vampire form, landing near the two .

She gazes at me with teary eyes and when she shakes her hands with Eva and Lucas-sama who have round eyes, she activates magic and moves away the curse .

“…!”

Shortly after I was relieved, the skeleton, which had a chain entwined around my leg, caught my foot and I suffered the same headache as last night .

I immediately trampled the skeleton at my feet and wielded a fist at the skeleton attacking from all sides .

――― Kaka

Every time the fragments of skeletons shattered around myr feet, the bones increased like a mountain, and I could hear the ridiculous laughter .

――― Kakaka

The number and playback speed are much faster than last night .

I couldn’t make it in time, and two skeletons were attached to my back and legs, pushing my teeth .

“—-Huh…!? You think this kinda shit can stop me!!”

―――Wha!?

I smashed the skeleton that was entangled in my body, crushed it with a turning kick, I grabbed another skeleton and crushed several pieces together and smashed them into pieces .

―――It is not possible with a decent method, so let’s destroy the soul with the appropriate number and means .

“… Who are you!”

Suddenly, a voice echoes in my head, different from the laughter .

I tried to find the master of that voice, but at the next moment, I threw the skeletons holding the chains connected to my neck all around me all at once .

“Ku, this is…!”

The skeletons that were shot down just before bite into the whole body, as if I were looking at my gap in which my limbs were restrained and I was unable to move for a moment, due to the chains flying like creatures from the front and back and left and right .

“But…”

Skeletons entwined and biting with both arms .

I could not stand properly because of the extraordinary pain that could not be compared to last night, as I kneel down .

“Usato-san!”

A mockery that was not heard before .

The voice of Eva calling for my name .

The skeletons attacking me filled my field of vision, and the next skeleton showed me was literally a sight of death .