I hold up my sword and confront the jet-black knight. The jet-black knight likewise drew his sword and slowly came toward me.
　I already had a sense of discomfort - I could hardly feel any kind of killing intent. If he was a skilled swordsman, I could tell as soon as I faced him.
　But from the jet-black knight, there was not even a hint of killing, not even a hint of presence.
　It wasn't an assassin either, so what the hell was going on?

I'm going to take the lead here, Arta-san, so please cover me.
Helen!　Helen!

　Before I could stop her, Helen was ahead of me. I'm not sure what to do, but I'm going to do it.
　The jet-black knight responded to Helen's movement and ran with his sword at the ready.
　As soon as their swords crossed, I started to act. I go around from the right and enter the jet-black knight's blind spot.
　From there, he unleashes "Invisible" - but the jet-black knight leaps from the spot without looking at me and avoids it.
　Helen and I move simultaneously and cross swords with the jet-black knight. Helen's movements were well-matched to mine.
　Her swordsmanship was impeccable, and I knew immediately that she was worthy of her position as first officer.
　The jet-black knight facing me was not completely able to take the sword blows of both Helen and I.
　One by one, his armor was scarred, and I was able to judge the enemy's strength by looking at it. This is not the swordsman that Aena was talking about.

"Huh.

　I'm not sure what to make of this. I'm not sure if you've seen this before, but I'm sure you have.
　The jet-black knight stopped moving for a moment.

Don't move. "Don't move. If you do, I'll take your head off.

　If you move, I'll take your head off." Without threat, I tell the jet-black knight.
　If you move even a single muscle, I was going to cut off your head on the spot.
　However, the jet-black knight doesn't even hear my words of restraint, but grasps his sword with his deeply wounded arm and tries to move.

"Alta-san!

　Helen called out my name. At the same time, I was moving.
　It wasn't the neck that I cut off, but the arm that held the sword. It's not that hard to kill an opponent like this -- the important thing is to find out who the enemy is.
　Again, I put my blade to the neck of the jet-black knight and warn him.

"I warned you. No more.

　But then I realize what's wrong with me. There was no bleeding from the arm that I had cut off, nor from the wound - the sensation that I had cut off was definitely that of a person.
　This time, he slashes the head of the jet-black knight, who tries to move again, without hesitation.

"What ......?

　It was Helen who shouted in surprise. I'm not sure what to do, but I'm sure it's a good idea.

How did you ...... get my head?
I know what you mean. I understand what you mean, but I don't see the point in capturing this guy.
"There's no point in capturing him. ......?　What does that mean?

　I'm not sure what you mean by that. There is no bleeding from the head that was chopped off.

I'm not sure what to say.　What? But ......?
I'm sure you'll be happy to hear that. But the small amount of blood on the sword is blood. It's definitely human.
So, what is this ......?
I'm not an expert in magic, but it could be some kind of necromancy.
"Necromancy ......?　That's the magic of controlling dead bodies, right?
Yes. Yes. It's supposed to be a very advanced form of magic.

　To handle a corpse, you have to channel magic power into its entire body and move it.
　It takes a great deal of skill to move a living person with only magic power.
　If the witch and her companions are capable of doing that much - as Aena said, they must be capable of doing that much.
　I've already heard that Lusa Prominate, who claimed to be the Red Lotus Witch that I defeated before, escaped with the man she called the Sage of Swords.
　If she was a witch of the same rank as Lusa, it was certainly not surprising that there was someone who could handle that kind of magic, considering her ability.
　It's highly possible that this is the connection to the identity of the enemy that's targeting the knights this time.
　To be sure, I picked up the head I had chopped off and took off my helmet to check.
　Helen opens her mouth from behind, as if to confirm.

"Well, it's still human, isn't it ......?
"Yes. This is a great way to make sure that you are getting the most out of your investment.
"Ta, indeed ........ I'm sure you've heard of it. Even though it was from a blind spot.
I'm not sure how it works,......, but you'll have to ask someone who knows magic to find out. But for now, we should consider that we have succeeded in reducing the enemy's strength.
Yes, yes!　That's right!　The night patrol was worth it.



　Helen agrees with me.
　But I don't think she's quite as optimistic as I am.
　We have succeeded in reducing the enemy's strength--that is certainly one way of looking at it. On the contrary, the enemy can replenish its forces and attack us at any time.
　This is because the enemy has defeated and recovered the first officer. In other words, they are retrieving them for use in necromancy.
　And if they have a corpse that's as good as mine, then it's possible that they have the corpse of Raoul Isaruf.
　But is such a thing possible in reality?
　My previous life ended in solitude, with no one to care for me.
　Even if I could find a dead body, I would not be able to determine that it was Raoul Isaruf.

"...... can't help but think, huh?
What, have you noticed something?
No, nothing, sir. First, let's contact the other knights and have them retrieve the body. If the enemy has appeared, then there may be knights in contact with them in other areas as well. Let's move to other areas and share information while reducing the enemy's strength.
"Yes!　Yes, sir!

　I still don't know what the enemy's strength is.
　At the very least, there are still enemies on the same level as me - that much is an unchanging fact.