My Beloved Princess ~The Boy Called Incompetent Rises with Only a Sword and the Princess's Devotion~

—Screech screech screech screech!

Gouging the pebble-filled ground, the giant top rampaged in all directions.

He plotted to drive in a strike the moment its movement stopped, but getting the timing right was proving quite difficult. Moving after seeing it stop was too late. Before he could rush in, the spinning would begin again, and he’d end up eating a counter. His left arm made light contact, and it gouged away the dragon robe’s sleeve along with his skin. Kishō cursed.

“Completely random where it stops. The troublesome part is it depends on that thing’s mood. In the end, can I only rely on luck? This is bullshit.”

To confirm Kishō’s position, the giant turtle would stop its movement for just an instant and stick its head out. If he could successfully exploit that opening, he had plenty of chances at victory. However, matching the timing to that opening well was an extraordinarily difficult task.

If he repeated hundreds of attempts he might eventually catch it, but his stamina running out first was the more likely possibility. If his luck was good, the match would be decided in the next instant, but if his luck was bad, that moment would never come. Kishō’s current state of mind was the latter.

The charges were repeated countless times. Each time he dodged while watching for chances.

Even after the fierce assault passed, he didn’t stop his feet but kept chasing. Because there was the possibility it would stop rotating right there.

And in the rapidly shifting scenery, something he shouldn’t see flashed at the edge of his vision for just an instant. Kishō rubbed his eyes in despair and looked that way again. Then he shouted loudly.

“Ōka. What the hell are you doing? You’ll die, and I’m not joking.”

Part of it was irritation at the combat with no end in sight. But more than anything, what irritated him was that thoughtless action that would waste the Princess’s sacrifice. Who did she think Kuroyō had protected like that—those words rose to his throat and he desperately endured them.

However, Ōka also shouted in a voice as loud as Kishō’s yelling. She was crying.

“Message from Yō-chan! Do you have a plan to defeat it!?”

“Is Kuroyō safe!?”

Ōka nodded firmly. Relief spread through Kishō’s chest so intensely he wanted to cry. Ōka shouted as if urging him.

“Just answer! We don’t have time!”

The giant turtle’s charge closed in on Kishō, avoiding Ōka by a hair’s breadth.

A gale blew, and a short scream of “Kyah!” Not losing to that gale, Kishō also yelled back.

“I have one! But I’m troubled because there’s no opening!”

He calculated so the next attack trajectory would deviate from Ōka and leaped sideways. Evasion successful.

Thinking who knows what, Ōka thrust her palm upward toward the heavens.

“Reach Yō-chan. [Flash Burn]!”

A line of light shot from her palm and ascended to the night sky, cutting through it. And she clenched that fist tightly before her chest—

“After the next attack ends, its movement will stop, so strike then!”

“Stop, why would it—”

“Just do it! Trust Yō-chan!”

“I don’t really get it, but got it.”

If told to trust, he could only trust.

What would probably be the giant turtle’s final high-speed spin was closing in before his eyes once again.

◇◇◇◇◇

A white light belt continued to the heavens.

“Breath, huh? As expected of Kishō.”

A high ground where one could look down at the forest. Kuroyō, standing still atop a cliff, floated a smile on her lifeless, pale face. That face like a specter illuminated by moonlight was frighteningly beautiful.

The arrangement had been: if there was a plan to defeat it, breath; if not, shoot magic into the sky. That just now was light attribute breath—undoubtedly what Ōka had released.

She’d already used Thousand-Mile Eye and grasped the location of the two. As for the giant turtle, she didn’t even need to use it—its whereabouts were obvious at a glance.

The giant turtle raised a dust cloud and charged toward Kishō.

The finale was near.

“I must revise the perception that turtles are sluggish things.”

Kuroyō could barely manage standing, but those jet-black eyes hadn’t lost the sharp light of an absolute ruler. Giving up on her broken and unusable right arm, she held her left arm—which had gotten off with a relatively minor fracture—forward.

“I got this far thanks to Ōka. And because Ōka moved despite knowing the danger, I can handle this appropriately. Thank you.”

Kishō evaded the giant turtle’s attack directly to the side.

Even after that, its fierce advance didn’t stop, pushing down trees and creating scars in the forest.

Just when a new path had been created like that, the giant turtle’s movement finally stopped. It poked its head out.

“It’s over. [Dark Chain Binding].”

Kuroyō chanted her final magic.

“These chains absorb [Ki]. You can no longer use big techniques— Aaaah!”

The small magic burden that could normally be ignored pressed heavily on her near-death body. Among all the skeleton and body parts, not a single location was uninjured. Just moving her arm a little made all her bones creak painfully. Both legs, while not fractured, had cracks running from femur to toes, and just standing was considerably painful. Her organs were damaged, and her mouth tasted of blood.

And the more powerful the restraint target, the more output was needed, and the burden on the body also increased. At that burden that made her want to cry and scream, Kuroyō bit her lip tightly and endured.

“Ugh, guh… kuh… hah… ah… ngh…”

The giant turtle tried to thrash about with brute force. Each time, pain like being struck by lightning ran through her.

“Kuhah… uaaaaaah, aaaaah!”

But if she complained over something of this degree, she couldn’t serve as Kishō’s close aide. That was the imperial studies drilled into her since childhood. The resolve to support her husband’s path of conquest.

“I’m fine. I’m strong. I can absolutely do this.”

◇◇◇◇◇

A black shadow nestled close to the giant turtle. Even more depth was added to that blackness. Shadow deeper than darkness drew a circle surrounding the giant turtle. In an instant, dozens upon dozens of black chains were vigorously shot from the shadow.

The black chains undulating like snakes bound and restrained the large shell. The conditions were different from earlier. The magic activated at the timing when it had completely stopped. The friction from high-speed rotation didn’t exist. The black chains magnificently fulfilled their role without being severed.

“Shō-kun!”

“I know!”

He’d already completed refining [Sword Aura]. Putting every bit of power he had into the soles of his feet, he firmly planted them on the ground and kicked off. He accelerated rapidly. The scenery flowed backward in an instant.

“GYEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!”

The gigantic turtle let out a roar while remaining holed up inside its shell. Whether it was born of rage at having its movements sealed, or of panic, was unclear. Either way.

“It’s over. Die.”

Leaping from a full sprint. A great jump exceeding ten meters.

The purple-flame [Sword Aura] loaded with full power surged. His target was the same place as the first time. The magic core hidden on the shell’s underside. A deep slash mark and accompanying crack had already entered it. It absolutely couldn’t withstand a second time.

In an instant, the practice sword’s point captured the magic core.

“GUGYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!”

Leaving an ugly death cry, the giant turtle’s body dispersed without a trace.

—ROAR!

A strong wind blew as if washing away the remaining [Miasma].

Nothing remained afterward. The ominously drifting [Miasma] and everything else had cleanly vanished.

There was no longer anyone to disturb the night’s silence.

◇◇◇◇◇

“Kuh… uuu…”

Kuroyō, covered in wounds all over her body, crumpled from her knees.

Not even the strength to stand remained.

She placed her left hand on her chest and regulated her rough breathing. Turning only her neck to look back at the darkness behind, she glared sharply. The blonde hair faintly illuminated by moonlight hadn’t completely assimilated with the darkness.

“So it went according to plan.”

“Precisely. I shall take you without reservation.”

The person Kuroyō had never let her guard down against to the very end raised the corners of her mouth in satisfaction.