LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 29
While the main subjugation team was engaged in a tussle with the Ice Worm, the cavalry, who had been waiting idly, were growing dissatisfied.
“Guuuuuh— Guuuuh—”
“Knights! At this rate, aren’t we just going to waste time?”
The boredom was shared even by the animals carrying the knights. A warrior, petting the beak of a Snowrunner that was pacing in place out of sheer boredom, bluntly voiced their inner thoughts.
No one opposed this sentiment. After all, it was only natural for everyone to desire honor and achievements in the subjugation.
However, that kind of statement was risky, and the cavalry commander waved his hand dismissively.
“Mind your words and actions. For your own sake.”
“Understood.”
“Still, it feels like we shouldn’t just sit here.”
The cavalry commander shared the same dissatisfaction. Especially after the wizard had unleashed a massive spell to deal with the Ice Worm moments ago.
“Surely, they must have some resistance to ice magic. So it’s working, huh?”
“Is it because they’re a wizard of such exceptional talent that’s overpowering the resistance?”
“Those deceitful magic users. I’ll admit their power, though.”
“Tsk. Is it really just going to sit back and do nothing?”
There were more than a few who felt an overwhelming urge to ignore orders and charge forth. However, one thing was for sure: disobeying commands was absolutely not allowed.
Their lord and employer, Alfred, was known for his generosity towards subordinates, but he would never forgive outright rebellion and disobedience driven by grandiosity.
As the discontent among the cavalry grew, a messenger rushed in from the command post.
Before the cavalry commander even had a chance to ask what was the matter, the messenger shouted.
“I bring you Lord Joric’s command! He says to charge at once!”
Finally, the news they had been waiting for arrived.
Most were delighted by this news and quickly prepared, but the knights tilted their heads in confusion.
Upon learning the reason, they began praising the wizard they had complained about just moments before.
Despite being called a vile sorcerer, he was delivering an achievement that would be greatly beneficial.
To think he would exhibit the virtue of conceding an accomplishment he could easily claim for himself!
“To concede an achievement! How honorable!”
“I thought he was a greedy sorcerer, but… hmm, it seems I should send a small gift as an apology…”
“Alright, everyone! You heard it, right? The order has been given!”
The cavalry commander firmly gripped his Cavalry Spear and shouted.
“Just to check, is there anyone unprepared?”
Wild boars, Snowrunners, warriors, riders, and knights grinned with greedy smiles. Well, of course, there was no need to mention that.
“Squad leader! Cavalry signal!”
At the command of the cavalry commander, who lowered his visor, the squad leader, holding a horn, blew it with all his might.
Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu—!
In the chaotic subjugation scene, the faint sound of the horn echoed through the air, heading towards the snowy hill where the command post was situated.
Those who had yet to calm their heated minds shouted.
“Spread out!!!”
“Clear the way! The cavalry is coming!”
“If you don’t want to be squished by the knights, move aside!”
“Don’t let go of the ropes!”
The knights and squad leaders commanding the Ice Worm subjugation heard the commotion and used words and force to clear the path for the excited cavalry.
Those who had let their blood rush to their heads quickly received a bump on the head and regained their composure, scattering swiftly to the sides. Nobody wanted to die under friendly fire.
Naturally, the Ice Worm, sensitive to noise and vibrations, sensed the change as well.
The horn signal, the rapid approach of dozens and hundreds of footsteps, and the sounds emanating from those trying to restrain and attack it were all altering.
The Ice Worm instinctively sensed a grave danger approaching.
“Graaaah!”
Hooosh— thud!
“Watch out above! It’s coming down!”
“They won’t die from eating dirt! Roll! Roll!”
“Grrrrooooah!”
Crack—!!
In the midst of chaos, the Ice Worm reacted more violently than before, trying to escape while the subjugation team and the anguished screams of the victims struggled to contain it—a true chaotic scene with Catherine’s magic and the rapidly advancing cavalry drawing near.
All of this was visible from the command post.
The messenger successfully conveyed the message; the momentum of the charging cavalry could be felt from afar.
Joric, tapping his fingers against his arm, turned to Catherine, focused on her magic.
“Atanitas, are you really alright?”
“Why resist like this? Hm? What’s that?”
“I’m asking if it’s okay to concede achievements to others.”
“Ah, that.”
Catherine had no choice but to concede.
Her specialty and expertise lay solely in ice magic.
While she could restrain the Ice Worm indirectly with her ice magic, utilizing it for an attack was incredibly challenging.
Moreover, the constraints posited by the temporary spells formed using her ice magic required another form of magic with sufficient power, needing a medium or reagent to utilize.
But alas.
She had completely forgotten to bring it.
This was something she couldn’t divulge.
If she expressed this, it would undoubtedly bruise her pride.
Thus, Catherine raised her head and shook it.
“Well, theoretically, I could handle it all myself. But if I did, I’d have countless people envying me.”
“That’s an undeniable fact.”
“At least the knights in the cavalry right now would be.”
“It’s only natural for a knight, as honor and achievements are basically everything.”
For knights, the most important thing was honor, which could only be attained through achievements, directly affecting their pay.
Maintaining their dignity to avoid being looked down upon by other nobles, suppressing enemies while showcasing their splendor, preserving the pride of their horses and equipment, and ensuring they had quality meals to maintain and develop their formidable might…
It all amounted to a lot of money.
This was true even for Joric, who was a former adventurer but had, despite it all, established himself as a knight with his name among the nobility.
“Lord Joric, if that’s the case, it feels like you don’t need to shine in particular?”
“Well, since I’m the subjugation captain, as long as this mission succeeds, honor and achievements will naturally come to me, so it’s a different situation.”
“Yeah, for a captain of this caliber, that’s certainly the case.”
“Indeed. Ah, looks like the cavalry is about to clash.”
Upon hearing this, Catherine turned toward the subjugation team.
With their cavalry spears sent ahead, they charged fiercely, crossing the path prepared by the forces surrounding their target.
Kiiiiiing—!
Thud!
“Graaaah!”
“Graah!”
Some unfortunate souls lost their balance due to the tremors caused by the Ice Worm, but the subjugation team pressed on, never halting their charge.
They pressed forward, weathering falling rocks with their armor, quickly evading the Ice Worm’s heavy strikes.
Finally, closing in on their target, they thrust their Cavalry Spears with all their strength and speed.
Crack-! Crack!
Piercing through the Ice Worm’s carapace, the spears shattered, sending splinters flying.
Of course, Cavalry Spears were expendable items in the first place.
There was no issue with this.
The cavalry left behind the broken spears and divided like a river blocked by obstacles, turning around without hesitation to retreat.
The following cavalry turned and followed suit without delay.
Kiiiiiing!!!!????
With a series of attacks piling up, the Ice Worm’s carapace crumbled in an instant.
Chunks of pure white flesh were torn away, splattering bright red blood.
At this rate, it was going to die.
The Ice Worm felt a life-threatening peril, right then…
“Mm!?”
“Atanitas!?”
Catherine quickly sensed something was off.
Something had begun to interfere with the magic.
Catherine swiftly reinforced her control over the magic to assess the situation and realized—it was the residual, ownerless magical energy left in the atmosphere and on the ground coalescing into a single point.
The direction was directly in front of Catherine.
Towards the centered Ice Worm within the subjugation team.
“Oh no. A breath attack in this situation? It’s not even a dragon!”
“It’s trying to breathe right now—”
“Yes, it’s going to unleash its breath!”
Joric’s eyes sharpened.
Breath attacks.
Though the dragon’s breath was iconic, it wasn’t solely restricted to dragons.
A few powerful monsters could mimic it, albeit in a less than perfect manner—but its destructive power was beyond mere imitation.
Yet facing the Ice Worm right now…?
No, Joric shook his head.
There was no need to doubt it now.
Joric immediately retrieved his magic tool.
It was a precious item borrowed from Alfred, prepared for contingencies.
“Squad leader! Respond!”
-…Lord Joric? What is it—hey! Move aside!
“It’s about to unleash its breath! Get out of its line of fire immediately—”
-Breath, really? Hm? Breath!?
“Exactly! Hold your positions even if it’s chaotic! I’ll defend it!”
Before anyone could react, Catherine shouted.
“Atanitas, what is this about—”
“Taking a retreat now would only increase damages! Squad leader, do NOT spread this order to anyone else!”
Only after hearing this did Joric regain his composure.
If he suddenly ordered a retreat to those maintaining the encirclement, the whole formation would undeniably fall into chaos.
Even if there were a few magic users in the formation, there was only one wizard within the current subjugation team.
Joric regained his calm and asked.
“Is there a way?”
“Yes, it might even turn into an opportunity for a counterattack.”
At that moment, the air changed.
Gooooooo—
The Ice Worm’s mouth opened, split into four jaws, and a threatening low sound began to rumble, warning everyone in the subjugation team of the incoming threat.
Before anyone could respond, the Ice Worm’s mouth opened into a cross shape.
Puhuaaaaaa—!
Along with the massive waterfall sound of a mountaintop, a breath packed with ice shards blew forth in a whirlwind.
“Uugh—!”
Catherine, already calculating the outcome, changed the magic she invoked.
Countless ice fragments forming a grip around the Ice Worm scattered simultaneously, forming a hemispheric shield that enveloped the cavalry in its path.
Swaaaaaaa—!
Like a massive rock parting the stream, the shield split the breath in two.
Even the scattered fragments of breath were deflected away from other subjugation teams as if a wave bent around the shield.
“My goodness. This is why my lord only sent one wizard.”
“What are you waiting for?”
“Huh? Ah!”
“Prepare for a counterattack!”
Though the breath was powerful, it wouldn’t last forever.
Joric, momentarily spellbound by the wizard’s overwhelming prowess he had only heard tales about, regained his composure, quickly issuing commands to the dazed squad leader beyond the magic tools.
“Phew, that shield was raised just in time!”
“Indeed, Contractor.”
Mary, who had entered the command post by now, responded to Catherine’s musings.
“Huh? What? When did you get here?”
“More importantly, have you forgotten something crucial?”
“Uh, uh-oh?”
Mary quietly approached her and handed her a bag.
It was the small bag full of necessary reagents that she had completely forgotten!
“As expected of my attendant!”
“Hehe, indeed, it’s worth taking care of a lazy Contractor.”
“Hey.”
In the meantime, Joric also noticed the new visitor.
“Atanitas. This woman is the previous—”
“Oh, she’s my personal maid. By the way, this makes things easier. Lord Joric. Prepare the cavalry again. I will create the opportunity myself.”
“…Squad leader! As soon as the cavalry returns, send a messenger for immediate re-deployment!”
While Joric was handing down orders, Catherine employed her telekinesis with just a nod, grasping a small yet plump pouch of reagents from her bag to channel her gathered mana into both hands as she faced the Ice Worm.
Nature flows in cycles, and all paths converge as one.
The attributes contained in all the mana she commanded simultaneously reversed.
The mana surrounding the shield began melting, igniting just as it bound the breath the Ice Worm unleashed.
Like a salmon swimming upstream, Catherine’s burning mana coursed back against the Ice Worm’s breath before it could react, instantaneously transforming into a pillar of flame that reversed in action.
Puhwaaaaa—!
Kiiiiiing!?
Ultimately, as the explosion erupted from within, the Ice Worm’s entire body ignited.
The external shock stirred the insides, causing the monster to collapse to the ground.
Thud—
And those unyielding didn’t miss this chance.
The cavalry resupplied their Cavalry Spears and charged forward again.
“Hahahaha! That’s it! This is the magic user my lord personally hired!”
“Horses! Assault like a blizzard!”
“Clear the path! The cavalry is coming out!”
All charged unprotected toward the fallen Ice Worm’s head in unison.