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Chapter 45 – Moonlit Night, Parade of Corpses [1]
It was, a night where the red moon had become a dark red that was similar to the color of blood.
「Jeez, it sure is creepy……」
Holding a sake bottle in his right hand, the walking man that had an unsteady step looked at the red moon that looked like it would remain suspended in the night sky, and, in the middle of his drunkenness, felt a discomfort that was like a stab to his spine.
Today was an unlucky day. At work, a subordinate of his screwed up and responsibility was placed on him, and then, sometime ago when he decided to go drinking, because of a black haired woman that was a complete glutton, he couldn’t even properly drink his alcohol.
Though there were several other things other than that, for the man, today was an unlucky day.
As the moon was concealed by the clouds, the man continued down the street that didn’t have a shadow of a person while unsteadily walking.
「Che, you’re in the way, dammit!」
Maybe because he was irritated, the man, even though he bumped into the figure that had suddenly appeared, only shouted that and unsteadily continued on.
*Kata*……
「Nn?」
The man stopped moving due to the sudden sound that was made.
*Katakata*……
「What is that? This sound is.」
*Katakatakata*……
The man became creeped out by the continually resounding sound.
「Oi, is it you?」
When he asked the figure that he had just bumped into, the figure replied with a *Katakatakata* sound.
「Stop it, it’s annoying!」
The man was drunk but, if he were sober, he should have noticed.
That figure, while having a human’s appearance, was not human.
「Oi, punk――――Gah…!?」
At the same time that the clouds cleared up, the man came to the end of his life in an instant as he felt a pain run in his chest.
That figure that had the red moon shining on it, was a monster that was born from human bones, a 『Skull Warrior』.
Maybe because it lost interest in the man that fell to the ground with a *dosa* (thud), the Skull Warrior turned the blood smeared sword that was in one hand over and walked while making a *katakata* sound.
*Kata, katakata, katakatakata*
As it did, it joined up with other corpse soldiers in the middle of the street, and then once again joined up with different corpse soldiers.
As it repeated this several times, the number that the corpse soldiers in the main street had reached
*Katakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakatakata!!*
had surpassed a hundred.
◇
「Mana, wake up………っ」
「Nn……Eri? What’s wrong? At the dead of night like this.」
The Lizwadia Academy’s student dormitory. Mana Lurie, who was sleeping in a room of the second department’s dormitory, was shaken by Eri Trestoria, who was both her classmate and close friend, and woke up.
Getting her glasses from the shelf that was close to the bed in a practiced way, with the vicinity being dark, she understood that it was night.
「Something is happening. Quickly prepare yourself.」
The usually expressionless Eri Trestoria had shown impatience on her face.
「U, un」
Although she was more or less surprised by her close friend’s appearance which was greatly different from usual, Mana rose up out of bed and changed her clothes from her sleep-wear to civilian clothes.
And then, by the time she was wearing the academy’s robe, finally, the inside of her head began to wake up.
「……A scream?」
If one strained their ears, one could hear screams and the sounds of swords clashing in the distance.
「Mana, hurry.」
What replied to her muttering to herself was the words of Eri who was hurrying Mana.
「Un」
With the broom that she received from Yuu in her hand, Mana and Eri departed the dormitory room.
「To the academy’s interior! Please hurry!」
「The upper classmen are to guide the lower classmen! They’ll be coming here soon!!」
Bellows and shrieks, and then a wave of people. What the two that had come out of the dormitory saw was, a crowd of people that were evacuating to the academy’s interior.
「Coming?」
「It looks like monsters have come and invaded. ……Furthermore, they’ve come in a really large number, I think.」
「M, monsters!? B, but the academy has a barrier……!」
Lizwadia had an anti-monster barrier developed that had the magic academy at the center of it. This was because it was built on top of the stream of Maryoku, the 『Ryuumyaku (Dragon Pulse)』, that flowed from Luxeria.
Using that flowing Maryoku, a strong barrier that kept monsters away was applied but,
「……It was broken. That’s the only thing that I can think of that could have happened.」
「!」
Mana’s head became completely white, and, as if she had lost her energy, she stopped putting strength into her steps.
Lizwadia Magic Academy. The barrier that protected the town that consisted of that academy didn’t even allow the invasion of the monsters of the forest that had undergone a ferocious change three years ago.
The barrier, which continued for about a millennium at this magic academy and had not been broken once during all that time, was broken.
She understood the significance of that, and therefore was about to faint.
「For right now, let’s take refuge. ……Even we, might be able to be of some use.」
「Eri……Un. Let’s go!」
Being thankful in her mind for those words of Eri’s, who was worried about her own safety even in a state of emergency like this, Mana took Eri’s hand and started running.
「I wonder if Yashiro-sensei is safe……」
「He probably is. ……If it’s that person, he seems like he’d advance while kicking away those monsters.」
「Pu, ahaha! That certainly might happen!」
From the words that Eri said, for some reason, a scene of Yuu firing off a Yakuza Kick and kicking away a monster had flowed into her head. Mana, who though that it was kind of like, rather than saying that it was natural, it was more like it was a well-suited role for him, endured letting a laugh out.
「Un. ……That is why Sensei is fine. What comes first is, our own lives.」
「I’ve got it, Eri.」
The two young ladies that ran while strongly gripping each other’s hand, nodded in the middle of the crowd of people.
◇
「They’re here!! The upperclassmen are ――Guh!?」
The male student that was urging caution, had received a Skull Warrior’s long sword and had died.
「You bastard!」
The corpse soldier that cut down the male student was exposed to an explosion and was blown away.
But, the corpse soldier army advanced on while kicking about the smashed up bones!
「There are too many of them! Use wide area magic!」
「I’ll do it! 『Flame Wall』!」
The female student went in front and invoked her magic. The flames burned the ground, and at the spot where it hit the corpse soldiers, a pillar of fire rose up.
Although more than half of them were turned to ash, passing through that wall of flames, the corpse soldiers dryly made a *katakata* sound and drew near.
「What the heck, these guys……っ, they aren’t just simple Skull Warriors!」
「They’re strong, and their movements are fast!」
The usual Skull Warrior was said to be a weak monster that was equal to a Goblin.
The ghost that clung onto a deceased corpse was a low grade monster that simply held a weapon and only wandered about and could even be dealt with by underclassmen if they were students of this academy.
「Damn, quickly, the teachers are――Guah!?」
「Yolda!! You, damned skeletonsss!!」
「Wait, Touru! These guys aren’t just simple Skull Warriors! If you don’t calmly deal with them――」
「This is for Yolda, ah…gah………ah」
「Touru!!!」
The upperclassmen of the Lizwadia Magic Academy were having a close fight with the corpse soldiers that should have been low grade monsters, and casualties were appearing for everyone.
「……Just what is the criminal this time……Who in the world could they be.」
Lizwadia Magic Academy, the head of all of the students enrolled in that academy, the 『Student General President』. Conis Lurie inquired this while being protected by the surrounding armed students.
Having her brown hair in braids, the spectacled girl fixed her glasses and continued thinking while putting a hand to her chin.
「Destroying the protective barrier that was unbroken for a millennium and preparing Skull Warriors that could fight more than equally with the upperclassmen that could be called elites, this isn’t the work of man.」
Conis turned her head to behind her, and continued to inquire about this to the silver haired maiden that was sitting on her knees and had hit her hands to the ground.
「Could it be……the magician that played a forbidden hand and was said to have been defeated by the Preceding Hero-sama?」
「That possibility is probably pretty high.」
The silver haired maiden stood up while sweeping off the dust that had gotten on her knees, and nodded.
「The magician of evil that my elder sisters had once subjugated before,」
Then, the silver haired maiden………Alicia looked up at the dark red moon as if she were glaring at it and,
「The one that was once a human, the seventh Duke Class.『Necromancer』 Umbra. ……There’s no mistake, that this is his hand.」
said such.
