"No way!"
Having listened to Roseliel's plan, Lucia and Mona spoke in unison.
Her plan was simple: split into three paths. Lucia would handle the healing at the windmill, Roseliel would be responsible for drawing away the living corpses, and Mona would figure out a way to send word of the situation out.
As for how to send word, Roseliel had come up with a brilliant idea:
Burn it down!
Most of the buildings in Maple Creek Town were made of wood; if a fire was set inside, it would spread quickly.
With such a huge fire blazing in the night, it was impossible for the guards in neighboring towns not to notice.
When people came to investigate, they would naturally discover that there were no living people left in this town.
Besides, the town was beyond saving anyway, so burning it wouldn't cause any major loss.
Given their lack of manpower, this was the optimal solution Roseliel could think of to balance all aspects.
She really hadn't expected to be shut down by both of them at the same time.
"Do you two have a better idea then?" Roseliel shot back.
Both Mona and Lucia fell silent.
"See? Time waits for no one, my friends!"
"But..." Mona cut in, "this is far too dangerous! There are so many living corpses—how is Master supposed to draw them all away?"
Her expression was more resolute than ever before.
Lucia didn't speak, but Roseliel knew what she was hesitating over.
She didn't fully trust Roseliel; she was worried whether Roseliel just wanted to take the opportunity to flee.
The reason she hadn't voiced it was that at a critical moment like this, openly doubting her would only make the situation crumble even further.
"Let me do it instead!" Mona continued. "I'll draw away the living corpses—I know spells suited for this! Let me—"
Roseliel took Mona's hands, interrupting her.
She looked directly into Mona's eyes and said to her solemnly:
"This job has to be done by me."
"I can't guarantee I'll draw away all the living corpses; some will definitely be left behind in town. If you run into them while going to set the fire, you won't be able to escape either."
"And after setting the fire, you need to return to the windmill to help Lucia defend this place so she can cure Nancy faster."
"If I were the one to stay behind, Lucia would just have one more person to protect, making the situation even worse."
She had a very clear understanding of herself.
"But... but..." A layer of mist covered Mona's eyes, her lip trembling slightly as she bit down on it.
Just yesterday, she had nearly thought Roseliel was going to leave her forever, and she had secretly sworn to protect Roseliel forever after.
And now, she had to watch with her own eyes as Master stepped into danger once more.
"Please trust me." Roseliel pulled her into a hug, tightening her arms and resting her chin gently on top of Mona's head.
Mona's small hands gripped the fabric on her back tightly, as if afraid she would disappear the moment she let go.
"If something really goes wrong..." Mona's muffled voice sounded from her arms, "I'll try every means possible to drag Master's soul out of hell."
Honestly, I'd still prefer to be allowed to rest in peace...
Of course, she didn't say that out loud. She simply released her grip, patted Mona's head, and flashed a broad smile:
"Don't worry!"
Afterward, she turned her head toward Lucia. "You don't need to worry either. Don't I still have this thing?"
She tilted her head up and pointed at the collar around her neck. "Or were you actually just scaring me, and this thing is totally useless?"
She slipped back into that provocative, cheeky tone.
Whoosh!
A silver-white talisman was tossed over from Lucia's hand. Roseliel caught it instinctively; it felt warm to the touch, still retaining a lingering trace of holy magic power.
"Once you return, I'll help you take this thing off." Lucia turned her head away, no longer looking at her. "That talisman can block a few fatal blows for you. As long as you don't dive headfirst into a horde of living corpses, you'll make it back alive."
"When I get back, can I put this collar around your neck?"
"Give the talisman back."
"Sorry, I was wrong."
A few lighthearted jokes loosened the overly heavy atmosphere a bit. The group pressed for time to confirm the remaining details.
The horse Amy and Nancy had ridden when escaping to the windmill was tied up on the first floor. The group cleared away the obstacles blocking the front door and pushed the heavy wooden door open a crack.
Roseliel swung onto the horse and looked back.
Mona stood at the door with wet tear tracks still clinging to her face; Lucia stood with arms crossed, her expression calm though her fingers unconsciously picked at the edge of her sleeve; Amy held her hands together in prayer, her lips moving silently as she recited an unknown prayer.
She had always treated this world like a game, yet at this moment, she truly felt that this was her life.
"Wish me luck." With a soft smile, she gently nudged the horse's flanks with her heels and slowly rode out into the night.
The door behind her closed once more, letting out a heavy thud.
Roseliel didn't look back.
Because the three of them had fled here earlier, living corpses were already wandering around the perimeter of the windmill.
Fortunately, before setting off, Mona had cast magic on her to conceal her aura of the living, preventing the living corpses from detecting her for the time being.
The original Roseliel had disappointed her countless times, but this time she finally came through a little bit: as a noble, she actually possessed some horseback riding skills.
However, this horse wasn't a dedicated riding horse. It wasn't fast, was quite old, couldn't be expected to have much stamina, and didn't even have a proper saddle.
It looked as though she was doing something pretty much equivalent to throwing her life away.
Roseliel slowly rode the horse to the side of the road and took a deep breath.
Fortune favors the bold.
She raised her hand slightly, and a burst of fireworks shot out from her palm.
Basic cantrip: Fireworks.
And so, the show began.
The moment the fireworks went off, Mona inside the windmill canceled the concealment placed on Roseliel.
Meanwhile, Lucia, off to the side, cast a blessing upon Roseliel as well.
This blessing would grant her more abundant stamina and, more importantly, surround her with a continuous light field of positive energy.
Surrounded by living corpses on all sides, Roseliel at this moment was as dazzling as the sun itself.
"Urgh!" Repulsed by the light, the living corpses began charging toward Roseliel.
The living corpses that had originally been wandering slowly around the windmill turned their heads first, low growls rumbling in their throats before they began moving toward her.
Immediately after, from the farther streets, beneath the eaves, and deep within the alleyways, dense crowds of figures emerged one after another.
Roseliel had seen plenty of crowds numbering in the hundreds, but she had truly never seen a crowd of hundreds charging straight at her.
"Hyah!" Roseliel kicked the horse's belly with her heels, and horse and rider surged forward.
The black tide behind her followed close on her heels. The living corpses' footsteps trampled recklessly over gravel and smashed through wooden fences, moving at an astonishing speed.
The horse's back jolted violently; Roseliel felt as though her waist was about to snap. They had been riding for less than ten minutes, yet the insides of her thighs were already burning from the friction of the saddle.
Her stamina clearly wouldn't last much longer either.
When it came to being a disappointment, the original Roseliel truly never disappointed.
The horse couldn't make it, the rider couldn't make it—no matter how one looked at it, this was a suicidal charge.
Yet the flame in Roseliel's eyes had not gone out.
Her grip on the reins tightened further, and she leaned low against the horse's back. The wind howled past her ears, blowing her loose sideburns backward.
After working so hard for so long, she couldn't die miserably out here in the middle of nowhere, killed by some nameless living corpse.
Her hand reached for the gold coin she had kept in her pocket all along. With Mona and Lucia present, she had never found an opportunity to use it.
And now, she was the only one left.
She already had a great idea.
Rate on N.U.
