At that moment, the warning of the spirit, which resembled a scream, struck Lunamaria's earlobe.

　It was almost a miracle that she was able to react on the spur of the moment.　

　Aiming at the white shadow that was approaching like a gust of wind, Lunamaria held out the vajra stone dagger that she wore for protection.

　A moment after the dagger was about to cut through the white shadow, an unbelievable pressure is applied to Lunamaria's hand. From the bottom to the top, a strong impact that seems to lift the whole body up.


　The next moment, the dagger flies through the air with a clear sound of kink.......


　Lunamaria lost her weapon in an instant, but she was able to determine the identity of the shadow in the little time she had earned.

　The elf's blue eyes caught the figure of a young man with grayish white hair and blood red eyes.

　In his hand was the Eastern Sword (Katana), the same as his master (Sora). It was this weapon that had just flicked off the dagger of Lunamaria.

　The young man's red eyes stared at Lunamaria with a guileless stare. That alone is enough to expose him to a pressure that makes his throat dry up.

　In a faint voice, Lunamaria told the two men behind her, "You two, run!


'You two, run!'


　The other side was not aiming at her, Lunamaria decided. If the other side's aim was Lunamaria, they wouldn't have been able to shrug off the first blow.

　If the aim was not Lunamaria, then the two remaining possibilities were Seal and Sparrow. And based on the young man's movements just now, Lunamaria guessed that the target was probably the sparrow.

　The sparrow is standing still with both eyes wide open, unaware of what is happening. It was Seal who took the hand of the sparrow and tried to quickly run back into the mansion.

　The beast girl's ears and tail, which showed a quick reaction, are both binned and stretched out to the point where you would think that there is even a wire inside. It was clear that this was brought on by extreme tension, and Seal must have realized the ease of the attacker in this short time.


''Earth spirit (gnome), my friend. Twine this man's legs together.'


　Losing her dagger and using her bare hands, Lunamaria exercised her spirit magic.

　Then, breaking through the cobblestone pavement in the alleyway, a tentacle-shaped object that looked like the roots of a plant tangled around the white-haired young man's legs.


　-- Unlike the earth-water-fire-wind magic dealt with by Miroslav and Sora, there is no fixed chant or effect for spirit magic. There is only a procedure in which the sorcerer wishes for the spirit and the spirit fulfills it.

　It's a good thing that you can change the effect of the spell according to the situation, so spirit magic is much more versatile than normal magic.

　However, there were disadvantages as well, as a matter of course.

　Spirits are fickle, and the more detailed the effect is, the lower the success rate. Depending on the competence of the surgeon, the wishes could be ignored. In the worst case, they might even attack the surgeon, displeasing him.

　In other words, the effect was unstable. This was the reason why there were so few spirit users among adventurers who required certainty.

　In that respect, Lunamaria, an elf, has a high affinity for spirits, and the success rate of spirit magic is much higher than that of other spirit users. At this time, the earth spirit also teased the opponent's feet in response to Lunamaria's wishes.

　However.


''Little wise...!


　Irritating words leaked out of the white assailant's mouth. Immediately afterwards, Lunamaria felt her opponent's magical power swell like an explosion.

　An explosion is not a metaphor. The assailant - Klimt released his heightened jingles as a shock wave to the surroundings. A strong impact, as if struck by a giant hammer, was felt throughout Lunamaria's body as she was hit by a direct hit. When I noticed, the elf's thin body was flying in the air like a leaf on a tree.　　　


''.........!


　It is probably unique to the light-weight elves that they were able to quickly regain their position in the air and land on the ground from their feet.

　However, as she stood up, Lunamaria's face was covered in frustration.

　The earth spirit that had been teasing her attacker's feet was already nowhere to be seen. That would be no surprise. The torrent of magic power (odo) surrounding the enemy's body was equal to a scorching fire. There was no way a subordinate spirit could keep such a flaming demon in bondage.

　If it was a higher level spirit, but calling a higher level spirit would require an appropriate amount of magical power and concentration. It's not just a matter of time before you'll be able to get a good deal more than you think.


　--In the first place, there's no guarantee that a higher level spirit would be able to stop it, but....


　Lunamaria groans inwardly.

　I can tell just from the short offense and defense now. The difference in power between them has reached a desperate level. This is not an opponent that Lunamaria can face at all.

　The current Lunamaria is no better than a frog staring at a snake, and it was no surprise that she would cower and slump down.

　In the corner of her mind, she thinks that the only reason she didn't have to expose herself to such an abomination was because of her master, Sora.

　Earlier, when I met Sora, who had returned from the Lord of the Flies' nest, in the guild. Compared to that time when I confronted the dragon at close range, the heavy pressure that the assailant in front of me gives me is somewhat lighter. That gave Lunamaria's spirit some leeway, if only slightly.

　And seeing such Lunamaria, Klimt opens his mouth.


''Hmm, I'll praise you for not sitting up now.


　Klimt bends his lips and looks at the elf, who is breathing heavily.


'I'll give you one piece of advice in spite of your enthusiasm. Go away now. I'm after the demons, not the elves.

''You seem to have a grudge against the demon man, but is that grudge a reason to slay a child not much older than you?''

'It's a foolish question. The fact that such a question is asked is a sign that people on the continent are at peace with themselves. Oh well. If you're not going to listen to my advice, then you'll die here.


　With that, Klimt swung the sword he was holding high. The sword's blade reflected the sunlight and emitted a radiant glow.

　Lunamaria gently sits down. Looking at Klimt's attitude, which was unattached, it was obvious that further words were meaningless.

　And so, the two of them were about to collide again, right on the verge of doing so.


''--Wait, wait!　Wait!


　Liddell's voice, upset, interrupted them.

　The braided receptionist was stunned by Klimt's sudden disorder, but the time created by Lunamaria's resistance brought her back to herself.

　Liddell, who had given Parfait the reins of the rampaging horse at Klimt's fighting spirit and hurriedly dismounted from the Gosha-dai, loudly stopped Klimt from confronting Lunamaria. It was also an appeal to Goz and Cryer, who were watching Klimt in silence.


'Private combat within the city is strictly forbidden!　Please stow your weapons at once!

I can't hear that.


　The response was immediate.

　The reason why Lidel's expression froze is because his voice came not from the front (Klimt) but from behind (Goz).

　Liddell, who thought he had an approximate grasp of the three men's personalities and relationships from the exchanges up to this point, thought that Goz and Cryer were going to be able to stop them.

　However, when he listens to Goz's words, he realizes that he was wrong.


It's an iron law for us. We cannot obey the law of keeping your weapons in front of demons.

Lord Goz!　The boy is under the protection of Miss Sola and The Union!　This is something that the Ishqa government has acknowledged. If you do any harm here, you will not get away with it!

It is unavoidable. Compared to the harm caused by neglecting demons, it is a far easier price to pay to be a criminal.


　Looking at Goz, who said it without a breeze to move, it was clear from the fire that it would be difficult to persuade him. On the contrary, if you continue to say more words of restraint, Liddell might be cut down. The current Goz exudes that much wariness.

　Liddell doesn't know that this is a torrent of magic power (Odo) called the jade. Even though he doesn't know it, he understands its power. The guild's receptionist, who is accustomed to the roughness of being exposed to the power of a giant (cyclops), shrugs her body.

　Parfait, who was closer to Goz than Liddell, is also blue-faced and shaking his shoulders.

　Like a drowning man clutching at straws, Liddell searches for Crya, hoping for a bit of hope.

　And it is here that he finally realizes that Cryer is gone.


　-- I don't even need to think about where she's gone.


　Liddell's face, which was even paler than just blue, paled even more, and he looked up at the walls of Sora's mansion. Then, as if waiting for it, a scream that seemed to belong to Seal resounded from the other side of the wall.

　It was Cryer, who had jumped over the fence and stepped onto the property, attacking Seal and Sparrow, who were trying to escape into the mansion. And Seal must have been wounded by defending the sparrow. Liddell guessed that.

　It's a good thing that you're not the only one who can do this. And even more so, the sparrow.

　I'm sure you'll be able to hear the screams of the demise soon, and Liddell closed his eyes tightly.