Adventurer of Flash - 06 - [Flash]

Chapter 06: [Flash]

~~Side: [Cain von Ainsberg]~~

Cain led the Black Dragon Knights and adventurers towards the Tail Plains. 

Ideally, he wanted the White Dragon Mage Corps and the S-rank party to join them, but both were out of Balkut on other missions, so it couldn’t be helped.

Normally, assembling a subjugation team this quickly would be impossible. However, this was Balkut, the heart of Marquis Ainsberg’s territory and the country’s defense, known for its fierce warriors.

“According to reports, the monster that appeared is an A-rank ‘Bloody Bear.’ Stay sharp.”

“”Yes, sir!””

If an A-rank monster targets Balkut, it would be a disaster. Three million people live in that area, and ten million in their territory. If they fail to subjugate it and let it escape, this land could be half-destroyed.

“Intermediate magic and below won’t even scratch it and will worsen visibility. When I give the signal, unleash advanced magic all at once. Understood?”

“”Yes, sir!””

“Alright, we’re almost at our destination. Reorganize the formation so that those who can cast advanced magic are at the front!”

With these words, the Black Dragon Knights and adventurers began making precise movements while riding their horses. Only the chosen ones were present, so the formation was completed very smoothly.

A few minutes later, they arrived at the Tail Plains, and within a few more minutes, they spotted the large back of their target. Since the range of advanced magic is at most fifty meters, they needed to get closer.

Fortunately, the target seemed to be already engaged in combat. It was fighting a group of D-rank Black Horses, which seemed to have coordinated well but were almost entirely wiped out. 

The bear was likely aiming to eat the Bicorn mentioned in the reports. By consuming the magic stone of a B-rank monster, it sought to promote its growth.

“The target is distracted! Cast your spells on my signal! Three… two… one… fire!”

Dozens of advanced spells were launched with tremendous force.

However…

The Bloody Bear was unscathed.

“Huh?”

The monster slowly turned around, its furious eyes locking onto them. As everyone froze, a member of the A-rank party muttered:

“That’s not an A-rank ‘Bloody Bear.’ It’s an S-rank ‘Vampire Bear,’ a city-level disaster-class monster!!!”

An S-rank monster typically requires the entire military and all adventurers of the fortress city Balkut to defeat it. Moreover, this one hailed from the notorious “Forest of Demons,” one of the most dangerous places on the continent.

Cain calmly thought at full speed. Retreat was not an option because the future of the Ainsberg Marquisate depended on this battle. He quickly devised the best strategy and gave orders.

“Those who can cast advanced magic, stay where you are and fire again as soon as your mana recovers! Those who specialize in close combat, split into two groups and attack from both sides! Do not get within the range of the spells!”

“Charge! Follow me!” 

“Uoooo!”

The Vampire Bear thought that new prey had appeared.

It approached with its thick, powerful legs, and with a swift swipe of its sharp claws, which were imbued with blood magic, ten prey were killed. Another ten were blown away by the shockwave.

For this monstrous bear, it was merely routine work.

“Do not falter! Never give up! If we lose, this marquisate is finished. That means the empire is finished too!”

If the marquisate, the heart of national defense, were destroyed, other countries would gleefully attack.

Cain blocked with his sword repeatedly, but each time he was blown away and already covered in blood. Yet, he continued to fight without giving up. 

Seeing their lord’s determination, the Black Dragon Knights were inspired, and the adventurers, too, felt the heat of the battle and kept charging.

However, a few minutes later, the subjugation team was in a state of devastation. Half were dead, and the remaining half were severely injured.

The Vampire Bear pondered how much it could grow by consuming this prey rich in mana. 

This monstrous bear had ventured out in search of new prey after devouring all the monsters within its territory in the Forest of Demons. It avoided entering the territories of other high-ranking monsters to avoid unnecessary battles, knowing it wouldn’t come out unscathed. 

With the B-rank Bicorn waiting as a dessert, it couldn’t help but grin maniacally. Seeing this, the subjugation team lost hope completely.

Cain, lying on the ground, muttered to himself, 

“Is this the end? Forgive me, my family, my people, and my countrymen.”

At that moment, an overwhelming flash of light was unleashed upon the Vampire Bear, blowing off one of its strong arms.

“Tch. Missed.”

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By the time Arte arrived, the subjugation team was already in ruins. Some stood using their swords or staves for support, but his father, visible in the distance, lay on the ground covered in blood. 

The six-to-seven-meter-tall bear-like monster standing about a hundred meters ahead wore a crazed grin, confident in its victory.

Seeing this, Arte said, 

“Alright, I’ll definitely kill it.”

Shifting his focus from anger, began to think at lightning speed. 

That monster bear was enveloped in some kind of magical aura and covered in thick, ironclad fur. Therefore, he needed to infuse a significant amount of mana to penetrate it. He decided to obliterate it without a trace, so he quickly gathered his mana and concentrated it with sunlight to create a thick spear of light.

“Spear of Longinus.”

This was a high-powered single-target attack he had devised earlier. He had thought that if even a high-rank monster’s head wasn’t pierced by a fine laser, it might heal instantly, so he came up with this.

As expected, it narrowly avoided the attack, only losing an arm.

That big bear sensed that he was concentrating a vast amount of mana. With a miraculous sense and reflexes, it dodged at the last second.

“Tch. Missed.”

Honestly, he was confident he could have taken down an A-rank monster, but this one had an unusually large amount of mana, so it was likely an S-rank.

“Probably an upper variant of the Bloody Bear, like a Vampire Bear?”

As he muttered this, the monster bear roared furiously. 

“GRRRROOOOOOOAAARRR!!!”

Its roar probably reached Balkut with ease.

The bear then quickly readied itself for battle and prepared to charge at him.

However, he quickly activated his hyper-speed thinking and gathered his mana, devising a way to kill it without causing collateral damage. 

First, he enveloped his body and sword with dense light mana and regular mana, mimicking what that monster bear was doing.

As the Vampire Bear took a step forward, he infused more mana into his legs than ever before and leaped. The power was immense, and with a thunderous roar, he approached the target at the speed of light.

The target couldn’t recognize him, but with his high-speed thinking activated, he could see everything. He reached the bear’s face and, with a swift slash of his sword imbued with light mana, he effortlessly sliced off its head.

“Too slow.”

One of the knights or adventurers watching the scene muttered,

“Flash.”

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Knowing that there would be injuries in the battle, the marquis’ army had a medical team accompany the subjugation force. 

The medical team, who had been watching from a distance, rushed over as soon as the battle ended and quickly began treating the wounded.

“Father, are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m conscious somehow. My body can’t move, but I witnessed your bravery, Al. Without you, we would’ve all been killed and eaten by that bear by now.”

“Stop saying things like that and get treated.”

“No, I’m as tough as I look. The more severely injured need attention first.”

“I figured you’d say that, so I brought you a healing potion. Drink it.”

“Ah, thanks.”

I forced him to drink the healing potion, and his wounds started to heal. He managed to stand up, looking a bit better.

I originally intended to obliterate that damn bear, but since S-rank monsters are valuable for their materials, I cleanly severed its head.

There was still work to do. I headed towards the herd of Black Horses that had been fighting the Vampire Bear before the subjugation team arrived.

The herd was decimated. Every single one was gravely injured, likely having bled out over time. None of them were breathing.

However, as I approached the herd, a bloodied Bicorn foal emerged from behind the large corpse of what seemed to be the leader and stood in front of me.

“Are you trying to protect the herd?”

We stared at each other for a while. Its eyes seemed to hold intelligence.

“You’ve got good eyes.”

“Neigh.”

The foal tried to intimidate me, but it wasn’t scary at all.

I could tell it was very smart, probably as intelligent as that damn bear, maybe even more. 

When the herd encountered the bear, it must have known they couldn’t win. Yet, it didn’t abandon its companions and fought. Now, even knowing it’s the only survivor, it stands before me, trying to protect its fallen comrades and threatening me.

For a monster, it has a strong sense of loyalty. I’ve made up my mind.

I silently approached and forced the healing potion I had saved into the mouth of the injured foal, who couldn’t move.

Then, I said,

“Come with me.”