20 – Sandworm Scramble (2)

The sandworm was immense.

Its sheer scale rivaled even the main edifice of the Tristy estate.

One of the famous, large-sized magical beasts of the Eastern Front, a fearsome predator who’d claimed countless soldier’s lives with nothing more than its mass.

The mercenaries trembled, gazing upwards.

“aaah…”

As if the colossal monstrosity would crush them any moment.

Their faces were etched with terror.

A sandworm had never been sighted near Daebo Village.

Even for seasoned mercenaries, this was their first encounter with such a massive magical beast.

To begin with, sandworms were rare creatures, seen only sporadically in the most dangerous sectors of the Eastern Front.

How could a mere mercenary band hope to defeat an enemy that required steam tanks and mana cannons?

Before the fight even began, the mercenaries had lost their will.

“Ru-run away!!”

They screamed and scattered.

“Don’t run in a group! Spread out!!”

Karlson and Johnson shouted until their throats were raw, but the mercenary band was long beyond control.

“──────!!”

The sandworm’s colossal body slammed into the earth.

The tremor pulverized those who were unfortunate enough to be standing in that spot into nothing more than sand.

The sandworm roared, a chilling sound, amidst the swirling, oppressive dust.

“Young Master, we must evacuate, quickly. We will be forced to abandon the carriage and travel on horseback.”

Even with Dalpi’s sharp insight, there was no feasible strategy to defeat the sandworm in this situation.

Ian’s thoughts echoed Dalpi’s assessment.

The sandworm was a creature that would shrug off even a knight’s sharpest blade.

If they were knights, perhaps…but with a company of mere mercenaries, victory was impossible.

A sorry tale for the mercenaries, but sacrificing them to the sandworm and fleeing with Esther Tristi was surely the best course.

For Dalpi and Ian, Esther’s safety was paramount.

However, Esther seemed to think otherwise.

Esther shook off Dalpi’s hand as he tried to guide him toward the carriage.

“Why flee?”

Dalpi stared at Esther.

A serene expression, devoid of any trace of fear.

Normally, the young master would be trembling and stuttering – was this the power of that capable friend he’d mentioned?

“Young Master… you must escape immediately. The sandworm is a greater demon. No mere mercenary band can hope to defeat it.”

Esther sighed softly.

And then.

“Certainly, a sandworm is beyond the capabilities of any common mercenary band…”

He tilted his head, a hint of curiosity.

“Do I look like a common mercenary to you?”

“…….”

“We will not retreat from this place. There is no need.”

Esther advanced toward the sandworm.

Dalpi hurried after him.

“Young Master, but…”

“The sandworm is a formidable foe!!”

Ian, who was preparing to flee on horseback, spurred his mount forward, joining the pursuit with urgency.

“Even if victory is possible, there is absolutely no reason for us to risk ourselves!! Your safety is our utmost priority!!”

Esther fixed Ian with a sharp gaze.

“Did you just say *my* safety?”

“Y-yes, but…”

“Do I appear so pathetic in your eyes that I would feel threatened by such a demon?”

Esther Tristi radiated palpable displeasure.

“If you are afraid, you are all welcome to flee. I am quite capable alone. I was beginning to think escorts were unnecessary in the first place.”

What Esther was thinking, he couldn’t fathom.

Even as the genius young master who had solved the Millennium Problem, his innate mana was woefully insufficient.

Dalpi and Ian’s eyes flickered for a moment, but their duty was to protect Esther.

“Haa, truly… if I die, I’ll become a ghost and haunt the young master.”

“If you have a better plan, please, enlighten me. My role is to guard the young lord. We cannot simply run away.”

Esther nodded towards the guards, now ready to fight.

“Killing the sandworm will take time. We need the mercenaries’ help too. First, let’s boost morale.”

Esther ordered Dalpi and Ian to draw the sandworm’s attention.

“Understood.”

There was no hesitation in Ian and Dalpi’s eyes.

For Esther’s safety, they would do anything.

Besides, he was the genius young lord who had solved the Millennium Problem.

Solutions invisible to others seemed clear to him now.

The guards decided to trust in Esther’s audacious confidence.

Dalpi snatched a dead mercenary’s sword and headed towards the sandworm’s blind spot, while Ian charged straight ahead.

“Look this way!”

Dalpi and Ian brandished their weapons at the colossal sandworm.

The reality was that it was difficult to even scratch its hard shell, but their fighting display was quite impressive.

Like venomous insects with wings, they hovered around the sandworm, attacking relentlessly.

“Wait, hold on! Everyone, look over there!”

The mercenaries, who had once given up and fled, paused and stared at the two brave men fighting the sandworm.

“Incredibly fast, and strong.”

“They both look like Aura users…”

They were powerful.

As one would expect from those guarding Esther Tristi, they were skilled individuals.

Despite the significant size difference, they were not intimidated by the sandworm, their courage far surpassing that of ordinary mercenaries.

It was while the mercenaries were captivated by the two men’s valor.

“There’s no point in running away from this spot.”

Esther’s voice echoed across the battlefield.

No one could refute the sharp, unsparing assessment.

Because it was undeniably true.

“Running away from a powerful enemy is, I suppose, the best option you have. Worthy of applause, even. Life is precious, after all. However, the reality is that you cannot even properly escape in this situation.”

If Ian and Dalpi hadn’t moved.

Those mercenaries still living after the previous attack would have found themselves corpses as well.

“It is meaningless. Haven’t you realized that with the deaths of your comrades? Do not repeat pointless acts. The result is the same. It is simply meaningless. Why can’t you understand such a simple thing?”

The clicking of his tongue was etched deeply into the mercenaries’ ears.

Ester’s words were agitating them.

Something began to roil within their hearts.

“If you don’t want to die, take up your weapons. Behind you lies all the loot you’ve broken your backs for these past three days. You intend to give your coin to some mere demonspawn for free?”

The mercenaries’ eyes changed.

Ester, seeing this, began to issue commands.

As expertly as a commander who had worked with the mercenary company for ages.

He understood the entire command structure of the company.

“Halbond, Dvoa, Zheras, Devalio, you will lead teams to distract it, aiding Dalpi and Ian. You must spread out as much as possible. It is not that fast. Those of you fastest on your feet amongst the mercenaries should be able to evade it. Zherald, fetch the Blue Drake’s oil. Derek, you, the arrows…”

He understood the specific traits of each team, distributing the personnel in their best roles, considering what they did best.

“…”

Karlson and Johnson blinked.

In an instant, the company commander’s job had vanished.

In merely three days, Ester had turned mercenaries who were complete strangers into extensions of himself.

It was a terrifying charisma.

It was in that moment they understood why Ester Tristy had not been impressed with the Karlson and Johnson mercenary companies.

The only mercenary company that could capture that genius’s heart would be, perhaps, the Black Blades, the most famous in the Kingdom of Yustina.

“Karlson, Johnson.”

“Yes, Young Master!”

“You will join the distracting mercenaries and continue to issue commands.”

“Understood!”

The two mercenary captains drew their swords with rigid posture and charged toward the Sandworm.

“You dogs! Run like your lives depend on it!”

“If anyone is slow, I’ll kill them before that beast does!”

Arrows and blades danced wildly.

Countless cold weapons began to hammer against the Sandworm’s tough hide.

Ester, with his arms crossed, quietly watched the situation unfold.

The perfect moment would have been when the sandworm’s gaze was utterly consumed by the mercenaries.

“Young Master!! I’ve brought the oil!!”

The mercenaries arrived, pulling a cart.

Upon it were barrels filled with the oil of the Blue Drake, harvested over three days and the most valuable prize among the slain beasts.

Ester, with her telekinesis, hurled a barrel at the sandworm.

The barrel splintered and shattered, its contents erupting, drenching the sandworm.

Ester repeated the act.

The oil clung thickly to the sand, and the sandworm lost its footing, sliding.

*Thump-* A small tremor rippled through the ground.

Flame bloomed in Ester’s hand.

The colossal sandworm ignited in an instant.

“Ah, it’s still moving!!”

The sandworm remained.

Enraged by the flames, it advanced toward Ester.

“Young Master!! You must flee!!”

Despite the mercenaries’ screams, Ester simply extended her palm.

And then, *crack-*

A fissure appeared on the sandworm’s hide.

For in that instant, Ester’s chilling frost swept over the sandworm.

When the temperature changes drastically, matter expands and contracts repeatedly, shattering.

The sandworm’s tough hide was no exception.

The sandworm’s armor, which had neutralized countless attacks until now, began to crumble.

“Now.”

The maid and the knight soared into the air.

The sandworm was resilient.

It had survived the heat and the cold.

But now, with its sturdy armor gone, the attacks of the others would be effective.

Through the combined assault of many, the sandworm’s tender flesh was exposed, and its breath was extinguished.

*Thud-* With a final rumble, the sandworm collapsed to the ground.

“He… he felled a sandworm!”

“Waaah!”

The mercenaries cheered.

On the battlefield, where screams and wails had echoed, they reveled in the joy of victory.

“Lord Esther!”

“What magnificent sorcery!”

Esther responded to the approaching Carlson and Johnson with a dismissive wave.

He simply walked towards the sandworm’s corpse.

As serious as someone who had uncovered a truth of grave importance.

*

“Hah…”

I discovered a peculiar mark on the sandworm’s carcass.

To my eyes, it was merely a black stone, but Nob AI saw something different.

『The reason demonic beings are being discovered in the Tristy Autonomous Territory is due to the Insane Curse.』

『Based on the data I’ve learned so far, the Insane Curse is ‘something akin to magic’ that forcibly creates demonic beings by utilizing the mana distributed in the surrounding area.』

『The substance you are observing is ‘Recall Matter’. According to the third volume of the Mana Substance Deepening Theory, Recall Matter is not typically found on common demonic beings. It is a pure mana crystal, rarely seen only in demonic beings born from Balteumas with a mana concentration of 0.93 or higher.』

『The mana concentration of the Tristy Autonomous Territory is approximately between 0.3 and 0.4. Even during periods when the curse intensifies, the probability of a sandworm being generated is merely 0.000000001%.』

『Based on this, in addition to the current Insane Curse…』

Just tell me in plain terms.

『Someone has pulled a malicious prank.』

『’Something akin to magic’ is in effect in the eastern region of the kingdom, where the Tristy Autonomous Territory is located. It is amplifying and accelerating the Insane Curse.』

『The royal magic institutions predicted that the Insane Curse would reach its peak in two months, but according to Nob AI’s calculations, approximately…』

Nob AI predicted that a calamity would befall the eastern Yustina Kingdom in exactly one month.

It warned that countless demonic beings could overflow like a tidal wave, leading to the deaths of many.