City of Witches Chapter 266

During the roughly 1-kilometer walk, Eloa never once gave Siwoo the vanguard position.

Even though the attacks came from a much more passive number of knights—eight to ten at a time—unlike the initial simultaneous charge of thirty-two, she still did not.

“Stay back.”

Although she had verbally permitted Siwoo to join the battle, she was actually anxious.

She feared that the still-inexperienced Siwoo might suffer an irreversible wound from a momentary mistake or lapse in vigilance.

If possible, she intended to keep him from participating in combat until the very end.

“Hahp!”

Already the tenth clash.

Eloa, having cleanly cut down nine White Knights, steadied her breathing once more.

There was no need to use magic power as extravagantly as in the first battle.

Just as the Cowardly Witch had gauged Eloa’s combat power, Eloa too had assessed the level of the White Knights.

Unlike Enemy Knights, these mere inferior substitutes, the White Knights, were no match for Eloa in either strength or skill.

All that remained was to subdue them with minimal force, conscious of efficiency.

“Something’s strange.”

“What do you mean?”

Siwoo responded to Eloa’s muttering.

“The worst-case scenario I envisioned was either an Enemy Knight leading White Knights in a simultaneous assault or my magic power being depleted by waves of reinforcements. Even someone not particularly skilled in tactics would know that this kind of attrition is unfavorable…”

Viewed solely on its own, the situation was progressing very smoothly.

She had already killed a total of nearly 150 White Knights with almost no effort.

That was over ten percent of the enemy’s forces eliminated without cost.

At this point, the very ease of it became a source of unease, sending shivers down her spine.

“Could they have gone outside? To dismantle the barrier?”

“That’s impossible. The core of Sochtul’s plan is this drainage tunnel. It’s a crucial point they must defend by any means necessary.”

Diverting troops outside while the strongest combat power of the Witch Point has a blade pressed to their throat?

It would be little more than a gamble with almost no chance of success.

Eloa muttered as if to herself, tapping the flat of her Contract Sword with her fingers.

“By now, the Cowardly Witch must have realized it too. That mere numbers of White Knights like these cannot stop our advance.”

They must have accumulated more than enough data on each other to call it a probing engagement.

She must have known full well that unless she deployed her forces more aggressively and sent out Enemy Knights or powerful Homunculi, she couldn’t stop Eloa.

Were the two Witches who entered through the other vertical shafts performing an excellent diversionary operation?

“What’s the reason for throwing away troops in these ambiguous numbers, piece by piece… At this rate, it only slows our footsteps…”

“Couldn’t slowing our footsteps itself be the goal?”

Siwoo, standing behind her like a screen, wiped the sweat from Eloa’s forehead as he spoke.

“Tell me your thoughts.”

“No one knows what role the altar serves. There’s a possibility they’re just buying time because they have a way to seize complete initiative the moment the ‘altar’ is completed.”

“That makes sense.”

As soon as Eloa finished speaking, the intermittent ghostly wails that had been echoing since earlier filled the tunnel completely.

-Ooo—oooo—ooo—

Clearly louder now that they were closer.

Both Eloa and Siwoo frowned at the unpleasant sound, more grating than nails on a chalkboard, that seemed to bore into their nerves.

“That’s getting tiresome too.”

“Indeed.”

Hadn’t Della maintained her sanity for months listening to that sound right up close?

Siwoo couldn’t help but feel renewed admiration for her mental fortitude.

If it were him, he would have gone mad by the third day.

“We’ll hurry. And as I’ve said repeatedly, be prepared to retreat at any time. I can buy us time.”

“Yes, understood.”

-Ooo—!

No more White Knights appeared to block their way.

Siwoo and Eloa, who had been running down the passageway sensing some unease, stopped simultaneously.

Because the long, drawn-out scream that had been echoing like a dragged-out tape abruptly cut off mid-way, as if a cassette tape had snapped.

It was an annoying noise they had wondered when it would end.

But now, with this unnatural silence hanging in the air, they almost wished it had continued.

In any case, it meant the situation had changed.

The place where Siwoo and Eloa stopped was a junction where five tunnels converged.

Following the second tunnel from the right was supposed to lead to the altar.

“Get ready.”

Eloa raised her Contract Sword again.

She expected a full-scale attack to begin soon.

If they wanted to overwhelm with numbers, a spacious location would be suitable to leverage numerical superiority.

This spot, where five tunnels converged into one, was perfect for that.

Whatever had happened, dealing with the immediate danger took priority.

“This time, you’ll need to use your strength too.”

“Understood, Master.”

“Please be careful.”

“You don’t need to worry about me. I won’t hold you back, I promise.”

-Clank!

Unlike before, the sound of metal echoed from all directions as White Knights began crawling out of the tunnels.

Endlessly, endlessly they came.

Even at a glance, their numbers reached triple digits—by no means insignificant.

“Good.”

If this much combat power was being deployed at once, it was safe to assume the Cowardly Witch was playing her hand.

But Eloa’s expression remained calm.

At first glance, it seemed like the greatest danger since entering the drainage tunnel, but in reality, it was the opposite.

The White Knights were far more manageable than Eloa had anticipated.

Eloa’s innate magic and combat style resembled a sports car: high output but not very fuel-efficient.

If the White Knights had been sent in waves of 50 to 100 at a time, it would have been troublesome.

Magic power would have been continuously wasted in the process of braking and re-accelerating.

In that sense, having this many White Knights gather closely together without Enemy Knights was very favorable in terms of conserving magic power.

However, even for Eloa, facing all of them with only six Contracts would be difficult.

“I Contract.”

Therefore, she proposed two additional Contracts.

Contract Seven: Pay one-quarter of total magic power to convert into pure strength.

The seventh Contract supplements the lacking strength.

The White Knights gathered here numbered at least half of the total forces.

Thinking that expending only a quarter of her magic power to deal with them was the best scenario, she regulated her power and imposed the restriction.Contract Eight: Obtains 'Transcendent Awareness' that detects all spaces within a 30-meter radius.

The eighth contract eliminated blind spots in situations surrounded by multiple enemies.

In particular, the eighth contract aimed to cover the blind spots that inevitably occur in one-versus-many combat situations, while also serving the purpose of immediately assisting Siwoo when he was in danger from behind.

The White Knights rushed in all at once, making this wide passage feel stiflingly cramped.

Eloa faced them head-on, swinging her Contract Sword without retreating an inch.

-Bang! Thud! Crash!

Eloa, stretching out a long trail of pink magic reflection light, danced as she unleashed sword energy in all directions, resembling a wolf leaping into a flock of sheep.

She swung her sword to slash.

She swung her leg to split torsos.

When enemies got too close, she even charged forward using her shoulders or elbows for physical impact.

Even the White Knights, who could tear apart most Witches to shreds, snapped like twigs before Eloa's fierce assault.

Coincidentally, the compatibility between the White Knights and Eloa was exceptionally good.

The barrier field of the Red Branch, which interfered with and defended against various Magic effects, had little impact on Eloa.

This was because her contract was not external but seeped into her bones and muscles.

Since it wasn't expelled externally and had a definite physical form, the interference from the Distortion Field was minimal.

Of course, the barrier field's defense was solid, so it required a bit more strength to cut through.

While simultaneously cutting down four White Knights, Eloa glanced over to check on Siwoo's condition.

Even for her, it was impossible to face this many enemies at once without letting a single one slip past.

Approximately seven to eight White Knights dodged Eloa's slashes and charged toward Siwoo.

Eloa, initially anxious and worried, soon realized her concerns were unfounded.

"Hap!"

Siwoo swung his sword as if spinning in place.

Due to innate differences in magic power and skill, he didn't possess the explosive destructive power Eloa had.

Nevertheless, he calmly faced the White Knights swarming toward him.

An insight once gained does not disappear with time.

Siwoo's sword was still beautiful, and his coordination with the fluttering Ribbon that sharply sliced through space had become much more natural.

It was refined swordsmanship.

It was polished swordsmanship.

It was also beautiful swordsmanship.

Despite facing far more enemies charging at him simultaneously than when he fought five White Knights before, he calmly reduced their numbers one by one.

-Crash!

Siwoo's movements, albeit clumsily, traced Eloa's slash.

A more precise and intense strike sliced through the waist of one White Knight as if wrapping around it in an instant.

The result of his accumulated training, the Contract of the King of All Maladies inherent within the Brand, was gradually blooming as it met real combat experience.

He was growing stronger.

Unbelievably, facing the White Knights wasn't as difficult as before.

The blood fiercely flowing through the veins of his entire body, the sense of unity as if every tiny muscle moved according to his will, the hand that felt one with the sword—all were vividly felt.

Suppressing a smile that threatened to bloom, Siwoo split a White Knight thrusting a spear toward his heart from the crown of its head down to its crotch.

"Hoo... hoo..."

The battle was one-sided.

Siwoo caught his ragged breath.

Eloa also wiped the sweat from her forehead and retied her disheveled hair.

A total of 598 White Knights were shattered by Eloa's hand, and the 22 that slipped past were finished off by Siwoo.

Of course, compared to the overall number, Siwoo's assistance was minimal, but it was clear he had grown incomparably stronger.

"Are you hurt anywhere?"

"I'm fine. What about you, Master?"

"Don't worry, these mere foot soldiers are nothing to me."

Eloa's expression had gained some composure, and Siwoo wore a faint smile of pride and joy.

Perhaps they had been too fearful prematurely.

Maybe the Cowardly Witch was panicking from an unexpected ambush?

Even though the real enemy hadn't yet revealed itself, such optimistic thoughts even crossed their minds.

Then.

-Crash!

A roar echoed.

Not long after glancing around among the shattered remains of the White Knights...

-Crash!

Again, a noise like iron plates being struck resounded from far away.

This time, it was accompanied by a tremor as if an earthquake had occurred.

Unaware of what was happening, Eloa cautiously gripped her Contract Sword, while Siwoo looked toward the passage from which the sound came.

-Clank clank clank

Soon after, heavy footsteps, as if soaked in blood, followed.

Appearing before the ornamental flame illuminating the fork in the road was a knight slightly larger than the White Knights, clad in armor as crimson as if drenched in blood.

"That guy is the Enemy Knight..."

The atmosphere was different.

Aside from being slightly larger and having a different color, from the moment it appeared, Siwoo's instincts sounded an alarm.

'That guy is not on a level I can handle.'

Having grown about 0.5 meters taller than before being captured by the Cowardly Witch, it now stood at 2.5 meters.

In its right hand was a red spear, the Red Branch, easily over 2 meters long.

Having absorbed various offerings and completed the awakening ritual on the altar, both the Enemy Knight and the Red Branch had taken on a much deeper crimson hue.

"......!"

"......!"

Siwoo, examining the Enemy Knight with tense eyes, and Eloa, preparing to draw her sword, both held their breath simultaneously.

The two of them now understood the origin of the two consecutive roars they had heard.

In the Enemy Knight's hand, two Witches dangled by their hair.

Evelyn, the Witch of Agriculture with healthy brown skin who had flirted with Siwoo.

Her lower body cleanly gone, half-severed intestines spilled messily from her upper body.

Dragged along the cement floor on the way here, the crimson flesh was smeared with dust.

Patricia, the Witch of Glass with white hair and beautiful gray eyes.

She likely wore an expression frozen in terror and shock.

The qualifier "likely" was necessary because only half of her head remained.

Naturally, both were dead.

-Gurgle gurgle gurgle

In the midst of Siwoo and Eloa losing their words.A sound like scraping metal flowed from between the Enemy Knight's helmet.

Humans and Homunculi are different races, with completely different physical structures.

Naturally, their languages could not be the same.

Yet even without understanding the words,

even without a single sentence being exchanged,

one could discern what emotion was contained within that unpleasant tone.

That sound is laughter brimming with delight.

After becoming incomparably stronger than the rival who had driven him into a corner time and again, he had met him once more.

That long-held grudge.

Obsession.

Rage.

The perfect opportunity to release it all had arrived.

Thus, the Enemy Knight simply laughed, and as he laughed, he opened his eyes.

The 'twenty pairs' of pupils densely embroidered upon the helmet were curved, emitting a crimson light as if a human were smiling.

A word from the author (Author's Note)

Surprise! Surprise!

Siwoo and Eloa