Chapter 768 – Each Person’s Responsibility, Each Person’s Struggle

000

It was an explosion so large that it shook the entire village.

The elderly people in the corner of the room who lived in the village without knowing anything about the sudden shock.

And, their familiars take orders from those old people and run the village around on their behalf.

Everyone must have turned their heads in the direction where the explosion occurred and witnessed it.

A huge red flame snake ascending towards the sky.

Of course, it wasn’t just the old man and her familiars who witnessed it, but also her companions who were waiting for her return at Laila’s mansion, and Fromme, who was with Petrus.

＂That direction is… The direction where the seal warehouse is…! And that red snake is definitely─.”

Looking beyond the window, at the snake dyeing the sky red, when Fromme looked serious, Petrus, enduring the pain, raised his upper body and looked out the window.

＂That is definitely a spirit of the magic tower, just like us.＂

“Yes, I know. Although it was only a short while, I saw my brother ministering to that guy…”

Fromme looked serious, then she walked over to Petrus and laid him back on the chair.

“Wait here. As the acting chief of this village, I have to do what I have to do.”

Petrus looked at Fromme with a moment of surprise as he spoke with a somewhat determined and determined expression.

In my heart, I wanted to stop him.

Fromme’s age was already well past his prime as a human, beyond twilight, and close to the dark night after the sun had set.

Petrus thought that there was no way his old body could withstand a battle with such a huge spirit.

If we let him go now, there was a high possibility that he would end up injured.

─But.

Petrus knows very well what kind of person Fromme is.

It was something he learned from being around his grandson and his grandfather, even though it may have been a fake of his own making.

How deep is the sense of responsibility he has for this village that was entrusted to him by his sworn brother.

And, for his sake, he is willing to sacrifice himself.

With that in mind, how long has this place been protected?

“You must return safely.”

Therefore, Petrus had no choice but to let Fromme leave the room while saying that.

Clearly, fighting here is more important to him than his own life.

Looking at the small but large back of his departing grandfather, Petrus prayed in his heart for the first time to the god of men.

Please, please protect my grandfather so that he can return safely and return to the mansion together.

001

＂Cough…! Cleon…! Are you okay!?”

＂Ugh… Ah… ＂

Inside the sealed warehouse where black smoke was rising, when the debris from the ceiling fell with a patter, the red dragon that soared above and disappeared was no longer visible.

What remained where the complex was a charred floor and pieces of the complex scattered around.

And, Lila and Ventuna quickly deployed a defensive barrier to protect other objects around them-

Lastly, it was Cleon who targeted Lila and threw her body to protect her from the huge tail that Ignis swung out of the complex.

Cleon was successful in protecting Lila by blocking her tail using Galatea and his own body, but her own body was completely burned black as the tail bent.

It was clear that the skin inside him was also burned, so Lila urgently used the recovery spell she had available to heal some of the wounds on his body.

If it was a burn and not another wound, it would have been fortunate that she could respond on her own.

“Lila… Did the seal of Ignis fail…?”

And, when Cleon looked up at the hole in the ceiling, Lila wondered for a moment what to say, but Ventuna answered for her.

“No, Lila’s magic was perfect. Chanting, magic control, and completeness of the spell.”

Even as Ventuna said that, she picked up a piece of the pot that had fallen on the ground and continued her words with a sad look on her face.

“But… It was just too perfect. Lila’s sealing technique is. “

＂What does that mean?＂

Cleon asks Ben Tuna a question as if he doesn’t know, but Ben Tuna shows the back of the jar she was holding.

The charred back was covered with marks where it had been bitten by sharp teeth or scratched by scales several times even before the explosion.

There would be no need to explain who made it.

＂The seal of Ignis that Laila’s grandfather created has already weakened considerably. However, when the complex, which was the medium for her seal, was unable to contain Ignis inside her, she was somehow maintaining her seal by pulling part of it out. If she continues to keep it inside of her, if she breaks, the seal itself will disappear completely. Judging by his previous reaction, it seems like Ignis himself was unaware of this.”

At Ventuna’s words, Cleon nodded her head as if she understood.

In other words, in order to somehow maintain the seal whose allowable amount had been reduced, when Lila tried to forcefully keep everything inside the jar that was being maintained by the medium, it ended up exploding.

This was too vague a problem to call it someone’s fault…

“It’s my fault…”

When Lila covered her face as if blaming herself, Cleon patted Lila on the shoulder and then stood up from her seat.

“It’s inevitable to blame yourself, but now is the time to move first, Lila.”

＂… Yes.＂

Ignis went up through the sky and disappeared, but judging by the red sky, he must still be in this village.

No, it would be safe to say that everyone here knows where it went.

Lila takes a deep breath to calm herself down for a moment, then removes her hands from her face and stands up.

“Let’s go. To the Magic Tower.”

002

After the vibrations from the explosion subsided a little, Shitaka, who had been lying down with her head in her arms, got up and looked out her window.

Then, I was able to see that the red snake flying in the sky was coiled on top of the broken tower in the village square, looking down on the village.

“Sister… Is it okay if I stay here?”

When Shitaka asked that question, Takapo also had a worried look on her face, but she made an effort to nod her head in order to calm the anxious children.

“Of course. I’m sure everyone will be safe… If anything happens, I’ll protect you.”

Although Da Capo said that, his expression could never brighten because his body was still not moving properly.

At that time, Arnia went downstairs to check the situation and returned with Amelia.

“Everyone, are you okay? The explosion a little while ago shook the mansion greatly, but no one was hurt, right?”

When the children nodded in response to Amelia’s question, Da Capo spoke to Amelia.

“It’s okay here. The kids seem a little anxious… But what happened in the village?”

“Well… We don’t know everything, so we’re trying to contact Lila, but we haven’t heard back. It seems that the red snake that appeared on top of the magic tower has dispersed the magic of the entire village.”

In a situation where the conversation using engraving did not work properly, they had to judge for themselves the optimal action to take.

“Now, Sasha is on the rooftop of her mansion to find out the situation in the village…”

“Oh, Amelia!”

Even tigers come when they say – no, in this case, wolves also come when they say what they say. When Sasha jumped down from the rooftop and, with an acrobatic movement, opened the window of the room where Amelia was and jumped inside, the children in the room were a little concerned. He let out an exclamation as if asking where the fear from before had gone.

“Sasha? No matter how urgent it is, jumping in through the window is for the sake of children’s education…”

Amelia said that, but Sasha simply said she was sorry and then pointed out the window with her hand and shouted.

＂Well, all the familiars in the village have become strange…! “It’s coming this way, destroying things around it!”

Sasha’s words were a shock to everyone gathered in the room, including Amelia.

Why? The words were unnecessary.

The cause was clearly the red snake that appeared on top of the magic tower, and the reason why the familiars were heading this way could be predicted to be that they were targeting this mansion.

Now that Lila and Cleon are gone, it is they who have to protect this mansion once again.

Amelia seemed to think about something for a moment, then she spoke to Sasha.

“Sasha! Go up to the rooftop again and prepare to snipe the familiars approaching the mansion! Me, Kuon, and Arnia will stop the enemies on the ground!”

＂Yes, four!＂

After hearing Amelia’s words, Sasha once again tried to go out through her window and climb up to her rooftop, but she hesitated and looked back at her, perhaps remembering what Amelia had noticed about her earlier.

“Well, this is an emergency! It’s okay!”

＂Right, right!?＂

Sasha jumped out of the window while saying that, and then Gonzales, who had returned to his griffon form, flew up into the sky and carried Sasha to her rooftop.

“… So that’s it, so everyone, please hide yourself in this room.”

When Amelia said that, Da Capo and her children could tell that she looked a little sorry.

“I should have sent you to a safe place, but to have it happen like this…”

She felt sorry for the children and Da Capo, who had dreamed of a peaceful life, that the situation was becoming increasingly dangerous.

Seeing Amelia’s expression, Shitaka, who seemed to be hesitant about something, shook her head and stood up.

“Well, that’s not true! It was our first time sleeping in such a soft bed, and the breakfast Kuon made was really delicious!”

＂Right!＂

The children each nodded their heads as if there was nothing wrong with Amelia and her companions.

＂We will also help protect this mansion! That red-haired sister… Lila said so! Find what we need with our own strength!”

And when Shitaka raised her voice like that, Amelia looked a little surprised and covered her mouth with her hand.

＂We obviously couldn’t do anything against the demons, but we still practiced how to use weapons to survive to some extent! Right, guys?”

“Huh! “I’ve also caught a mouse before!”

While Amelia was confused about what to say while watching the children’s answers, which were overflowing with enthusiasm, Da Capo quietly called out to her.

＂Shitaka. If you end up in danger while fighting, you could end up causing trouble for Amelia.”

＂Well, but…＂

“But it’s a good idea to do something to protect the mansion. Amelia. Wouldn’t you like to give these children some work, such as moving something and setting up a defense line? If there is a barricade, it will help prevent enemies from invading.”

At Da Capo’s words, Amelia nods her head, saying that she might be okay.

＂Well, then, get the wood and tools from the warehouse…＂

“Okay! All I have to do is find the materials for the barricade in the underground warehouse and bring them up, right? Let’s go, guys!”

＂Oh-!＂

Before Amelia finished speaking, she looked at the children running out of the room. Amelia blinked for a moment and then looked back at Arnia, who was waiting for Amelia at the door of her room.

“Arnia, could you please look after the children who went down to the basement? Please be careful if you try to touch something dangerous.”

“All right. The moment you touch such an object, I will restrain you with wire.”

＂Well, it’s okay just to be careful!?＂

Amelia reacted to Arnia’s harsh remarks as if she had come to her senses, left her children in charge of her, and left her room to deal with the army of familiars coming towards her. It was heading to the main gate of the mansion.

And, the dacapo left in the room.

Because her body couldn’t move, she couldn’t do anything, but she couldn’t just sit on the bed forever when everyone was in danger.

And she looked around, and somehow stretched out her arms and crawled over the top of the bed, trying to get down to the bottom of it, and then-

Crash! He fell off the bed while making a sound.

＂Ugh…＂

Because she hit her elbow hard on the floor, that part was sore, but she was able to get down to the bottom of the bed anyway.

What she was heading for was her own bag, which was quietly placed in the corner of her room.

Her ass was crawling on the floor in a posture that was almost awkward, and when she got to her bag she was shaking and stretched out her arms, and she somehow managed to hold on to her bag. As it falls to the side, the items inside come pouring out.

Inside the various items that came pouring out, there were not only alchemy bombs, but also her potions to be taken in dangerous situations.

And among them, there was also a potion that had once doped her physical strength that made her body look like this.

If she drinks the potion in this situation, it will take more time for her body to fully recover – but the thought that she should not move now has already settled in her head.

Then, Da Capo took a deep breath, took her own potion in her hand, and brought it to her mouth.

003

Lila, Cleon, and Ben Tuna, who returned from the outskirts of the village to the center, were embarrassed by the chaos that had unfolded, but could not stop her moving feet.

The familiars were walking in the direction of the Flamewatch mansion, smashing everything in sight as if they had escaped the control of their masters – no, they were under someone’s control.

And, it was the same for visible ‘living things’.

The moment Lila’s appearance was seen, the villagers’ familiars rushed towards her.

“Ah, really! It’s annoying in many ways!”

As Lila swung her staff in a burst of frustration, fist-sized spheres of flame appeared in front of each of them who were trying to attack her.

And, the moment they touched each enemy, they created a powerful explosion and succeeded in repelling the enemy by shattering them or sending them flying far away.

＂Lila!＂

“Because it’s okay! I don’t have time to deal with these guys here…!”

Lila bit her lower lip while responding to Cleon’s cry of concern for her.

Then, the next moment, Ventuna snapped her fingers, and the two winds rushing through the ground created a barrier and a straight path leading to the magic tower.

＂… Is this okay?＂

At Ventuna’s words, Lila nods her head when she sees the enemies unable to overcome the wind barrier.

＂Enough! Let’s go Cleon! As for the familiars heading to the mansion, the remaining kids will do something!”

＂… Ah!＂

When Cleon also nods his head at Lila’s words, he follows behind Lila, who had started to run away, and heads toward the magic tower.

To seal Rex Ignis, who is waiting for them at the Magic Tower, once again – this time, to completely defeat him.

In Lila’s mind, the magic plan for him was steadily progressing.