Torn Asunder by War, A Sword Saint for Tomorrow X The Knight Wizards!! – Chapter 10

Chapter 10: The Skeletal Knight and the Knight King
  “A city built by the short-lived humans, huh…”
  
  Glancing at the scene where the royal castle stood to the north and the church’s cathedral towered on the south side, the skeletal knight Gaius recalled the once prosperous city of the undead.
  
  In addition to their fundamentally different and powerful magic compared to humans, some of his dark-skinned brethren continued to live as skeleton people even after death, refusing to cease their activities after enjoying their lives.
  
  At first, their actions, which defied the laws of nature, didn’t seem to cause any problems, but… Those who transcended death and remained in positions of power, and the magic tax they imposed on the common people to maintain their existence, caused resentment. This led to large-scale unrest in various countries, triggered by riots among the city dwellers.
  While the chaos continued and prolonged, the skeleton people, whose civilization was destroyed by the Aberrations that suddenly appeared, entered a long slumber. After awakening, they followed the “Pact of the Joints” etched into their souls and played a role in the “Hour of Ruin.”
  
  The Spirit Gate that was built within the Lizel Knight Kingdom was originally under the command of this skeletal knight… but it can only be described as unfortunate that their infiltration strategy was exposed to the enemy at an early stage.
  
  “Even if you surpass Lizel, the female fox will appear, so I’ll destroy the Great Forest’s Spirit Gate… but I’ll take compensation.”
  
  Speaking in a monotonous tone, he pulled a small, dull-colored polyhedron from his pocket and tossed it high into the air. If the capital’s Knights, who were currently away, saw it floating in the sky, they would recall the fragment of the Spirit Gate.
  
  In fact, it was an extremely small Transfer Gate, capable of summoning a large Aberration species that had been dormant in the dimensional gap, bringing it inside the sturdy castle walls that protected the capital’s people.
  
  “Buaaaaaaaargh ―――!”
  
  A giant, bull-headed beastman about 16 meters tall roared as it fell from the sky, landing with a thunderous crash on the main street that had been designed for knight deployment.
  Even as the people present were dumbfounded, the large Aberration clad in armor swung its gripped Kanabo horizontally, smashing a three-story building facing the street.
  
  “”Kyaaaaaaaaaa!””
  “”Uooooooooh!””
  
  “U-uwaaaaaah! Gubeh!?”
  
  Struck by the sudden disaster, a man who had been screaming involuntarily took a direct hit to the head from a shattered wall stone, dying in a spray of blood before he could even understand what was happening.
  
  Many others were also struck by the scattering debris, including an elderly person who was fatally wounded by a piece of wood and lay helplessly on the ground.
  
  “R-run! Head for the castle!”
  
  “Sob… Okaa-san…”
  “Ugh… Mary, don’t worry about me, just go… Someone…”
  
  Responding to the cries of a young mother who had collapsed with one leg nearly severed, a nearby man picked up her child, nodded once, and ran away without looking back.
  
  Despite the gruesome situation, the bull-headed giant beastman Minotaur tried to pursue the residents who had scattered like spiders, but… it was too large to chase them into the narrow alleys.
  
  “Guooooh!”
  
  With a roar of frustration, it leaned into the building it had crushed, climbed up it, and smashed its Kanabo onto the roof on the other side, sending shattered debris raining down on the heads of the fleeing people once again.
  
  This scene could be seen from the castle, so the capital’s defense force was already mobilizing. The king, who had confirmed the appearance of the large Aberration, was heading towards the castle’s stableyard with his accompanying mage.
  
  “…Where are you going, King Strauss?”
  
  “It’s decided, I’m going to fight back with the Clawsolas K-type… It’s the only knight we can move.”
  
  To stop his companion, who declared it as a matter of course, the seasoned chief magician Blaze Lumias, with a short beard, thrust his Shakujo held in his left hand horizontally, blocking the passage.
  
  “The K-type is just for show. It might be fine for moving it during ceremonies, but it’s out of the question for actual combat.”
  “Ha! As if that female fox from the neighboring country would make a dull sword, that knight is fully capable of fighting.”
  
  “That’s not the issue!”
  “Then, are you saying we can defeat that giant Minotaur with just the defense force?”
  
  Faced with this perfectly reasonable question, Blaze, his gaze sharpened, nodded silently.
  
  “We will show you that it can be done, even at the cost of the lives of the defense force and the magician unit.”
  
  “Rejected, you fool! I appreciate your concern, but… If I can save many lives even if there’s danger, I must act as the Knight King.”
  
  Hesitation in using force against the king, who had no intention of stopping, backfired. The moment the chief magician channeled magic into his Shakujo, the tip where the magic stone was embedded was sliced off with a surprise attack.
  
  “Sigh… You haven’t changed, have you?”
  
  “Hmph, you’re just pretending to be understanding, but you haven’t changed either, have you?”
  
  King Strauss, grinning mischievously, was indeed no different from when he used to complain about boredom, frequently sneak out of the castle, and try to seduce the town girls.
  
  Xenos, the former escort knight, who was supposed to stop him, used to enjoy it together with him, so it was always Blaze, the accompanying magician, who ended up suffering.
  
  （That bastard Raizes didn’t care and wouldn’t get involved in any trouble…）
  
  The chief magician sighed at the fact that the once close-knit group of four talented individuals had now changed their positions and become old men, and lowered his severed Shakujo.
  
  “Don’t cause me any trouble, as usual.”
  “No, I’m used to it.”
  
  After briefly exchanging glances, King Strauss passed by Blaze, who bowed his head along with his dedicated mage, but… as they turned the corner, a second assassin appeared.
  
  “Otou-sama, the city is in a terrible state…”
  
  Izana, his only daughter, approached with her glossy black hair, inherited from the Rare Humans, swaying, and gazed at him with worried emerald eyes.
  
  “…I’m going to defeat that bull-headed large Aberration now, don’t cloud your pretty face.”
  
  As he stroked her head, which was in a perfect position for petting, with his large hand, her father gave a fearless smile, so she swallowed her words of concern without uttering them.
  
  “Please, don’t overdo it… I wish you good fortune.”
  “Yeah, I’ll be back soon.”
  
  “That would minimize the damage to the citizens,” King Strauss added. As he was about to pass by, Izana called out to the young female mage who was following him.
  
  “I’m counting on you to look after Otou-sama, Sariel.”
  “Yes, I will stake my life on it…”
  
  As she watched the mage silently nod and follow her father, Izana couldn’t shake off a bad feeling. Eventually, the Clawsolas K-type, the only knight remaining in the capital, was deployed from the main gate onto the main street.