65. He accounted for everything
In my line of sight, Kefir had appeared before me. Although I first saw her black stockings and the hem of her skirt due to lying on the ground, neither of us brought up that topic in this situation.
Kefir’s appearance surely meant the completion of “that matter” I entrusted to her, and by the way… just her arrival had already defused the dangerous scripts of “being taken away by Nilou” and “Althas being destroyed”!
Regarding my “magically modified Althas” appearance, Kefir first showed a hint of surprise, but quickly shook her head and stopped thinking about it. She shot me an “I’m sorry” look, then stood in front of me, sword drawn, meeting Nilou’s gaze, or rather, the naked hostility that had even transformed into swirling black mist!
No need to apologize, Kefir. Everything I did was willingly for your script, for the future. If I had been a bit more impressive, I wouldn’t be in such a mess now. From here on, I’ll have to rely on your support!
“Nilou.”
Upon meeting again, Kefir no longer showed the surprise from before; she directly began to assert her claim.
“He is mine, don’t even think about taking him; you won’t succeed.”
“But it’s not up to you to decide; it’s up to Mr. Ogilid~ Big Sister.”
As for Nilou, she didn’t show any surprise at Kefir’s appearance this time. She didn’t choose to flee immediately; her attitude towards Kefir had completely shed the previous traces of Nilou, leaving only indifference and malice, along with that… gaze that showed no intention of moving away from me.
—
“You may bask in the brilliance of genius, but… please do not tarnish my Mr. Euclid, alright?”
Even the voice of my former master held no warmth anymore.
“You put him at risk, you gave him promises devoid of credibility, even hesitating to entrust your body and soul—”
“!”
“You are merely exploiting Mr. Euclid’s power; you see him as a useful tool. Ah, I am a servant, and I will not complain about your actions, but… I beg you, do not deceive Mr. Euclid.. .”
I wanted to argue, but in my current state, it would be futile.
“Only I have been paying attention to Mr. Euclid; only I am worthy of his gaze; only I can protect him, just as he does for me… Young lady—do you truly understand what you can do for him?”
“Do you really deserve Mr. Euclid, Clefair?”
Listening to Nilu’s almost… twisted remarks, I began to doubt whether I was guilty of some grave sin.
And on Clefair’s side…
“You think too highly of yourself…”
As her words fell, the two figures collided! Black mist roared, snowflakes raged, flames flickered in Nilu’s eyes, intertwining with the silver light from Clefair’s long hair.
“Last time, I might have been a bit lost…”
In the next moment, Clefair deflected Nilu’s weapon, retaliating with all her might!
“But now I have confirmed it, I have made my choice, Nilu.”
【Clefair is no longer lost!】
“I am not a good master, because… this time I chose him! You didn’t think I was only at the level I was when we last fought, did you, Nilu? Now you are my enemy!”
“Hahahaha—Young lady—you always love to put on a show in front of Mr. Euclid—was that how you deceived him?”
The black and white figures clashed at a speed I could barely see, and I couldn’t tell if it was my imagination, but both Clefair and Nilu seemed to avoid my position in this fierce struggle, leaving me untouched by their sweeping, dazzling magic , which would have been a most frustrating death.
【Clefair and Nilu are evenly matched!】
In the previous events, Clefair had already made some breakthroughs, so she wasn’t encountering any trouble in this script for the time being. As for Nilu, the script that had been troubling me since arriving in Plouce was now fully revealed!
【Nilu wants to kill Clefair!】
Clefair had blocked the death script for me, but she herself was in considerable danger. In the next moment, the content of the script became evident!
Even though Clefair had the upper hand thanks to her rich experience and strength that matched Nilu’s, she still faltered in other areas! Whether it was magic or attacks, they all vanished upon striking Clefair’s robe! That was the power of the wind fairy, and it made me realize: Clefair’s “upgrade” might not be enough!
Then it was up to me to stop it!
“Clefair! Don’t think too much! Come back!”
The artifact in Nilu’s possession wouldn’t cause any harm; it would only put Clefair in danger!
As soon as I spoke, Clefair instinctively retreated at my warning, and at that moment, relying on the protection of her artifact, Nilu swung her sword right where Clefair had just been!
“!”
“Hahaha—what a pity, young lady—once again, the incompetent you has been saved by Mr. Euclid!”
Kefir did not respond, merely wiping away a trace of blood from her neck. I also knew: even though our strengths were similar, the current Kefir still couldn’t compare to Nilu, who was already close to max level! It wasn’t a matter of class difference, but rather a loss in “treasures”!
This… is my responsibility!
“Why aren’t you running away yet? Hurry up and leave Mr. O’Gilid behind and escape~ Otherwise, I might accidentally… kill you~”
My gaze finally prompted Kefir to stop. She suppressed her indignation and quietly came to my side.
“I’m sorry…”
“It’s nothing.”
Since she is also one of the protagonists, there’s no need for you to force yourself to win against her, Kefir. After all, your attitude towards me doesn’t need to prove anything to Nilu.
“Isn’t this what I prepared for, to prevent this moment?”
I was helped up by Kefir, looking towards Nilu and watching her smile slowly fade.
As a professional at clinging to power, how could I let Kefir suffer? Perhaps I wasn’t good at fighting, but in other respects, I wouldn’t let anything slip.
“Nilu, you have already lost.”
“Lost? Mr. O’Gilid, why can’t you just look at me properly? The woman beside you is simply…”
Nilu’s words were cut off, for in the next moment, flames flickered in the distance, and footsteps rapidly increased!
“It is my incompetence that prevents Kefir from fighting you, but… no one said that dealing with you must be a one-on-one battle with Kefir. What if… more than just Kefir knows about your actions?”
I was deliberately stalling for time to allow Kefir to act, seizing the opportunity while Nilu would definitely try to take me away to explain to the Austro-Hungarians! And now, reinforcements have arrived! I couldn’t just watch Kefir being unable to defeat Nilu and then see Nilu leave gracefully? That wouldn’t do; it would be too embarrassing for Kefir, and I, as her subordinate, couldn’t maintain my face!
So…
“Why are you two big fools running so slowly? Hurry up!”
In the blink of an eye, Adev brought a whole bunch of orcs surrounding us from all directions!