Torn Asunder by War, A Sword Saint for Tomorrow X The Knight Wizards!! – Chapter 119

Chapter 119: A Fist When Clenched, A Palm When Open
  Unable to completely offset due to the insufficient number of units diverted to anti-magic defense, some of the rock golems positioned near the city’s south gate were also hit by the elemental bullets, shattering the natural mineral gauntlets fitted on the thick arms crossed over their chests.
  
  Amidst the sight of golems scattering armor fragments after being hit around their waists and legs, all the units within my field of vision displayed similar movements. It seems the twin elves’ point that “since they’re modeled after humans, their core is located in the same place as the heart” was accurate.
  
  『As expected, that’s the weak point, huh?』
  『Probably… Sound the war cry! Watch out for their shots!!』
  
  While responding to Revia’s murmur from the back seat, I quickly decided that exchanging fire with opponents who wouldn’t stop until their core was destroyed was disadvantageous, and took command to engage in close combat, naturally raising a war cry.
  
  『Don’t fall behind! We’ll charge too!!』
  『『Uooooohhh―――!!』』
  
  Responding to Aynst’s signal, which seemed intentionally timed, Zephyrus’s knights also roared, spurring their mounts in sync with us.
  
  However, there was still some distance between us and the large Aberrations. While we had them assume a defensive posture with our preemptive magic barrage and hindered the activation of their next spells, sadly, we still needed to weather at least one more earth-attribute stone-throwing magic attack.
  
  Yet, it was Kotono’s Svel S-type, the first unit on the right edge of the wedge formation, that seized the initiative. She launched a light, hardened alchemically-made arrow, which flew towards the first giant golem that was busy reconstructing a Stone Bullet, piercing the rock that seemed to be forming between its palms despite the distance.
  
  With the impact exceeding the threshold, mage Iris’s specialized magic “Flame Bomb,” embedded in the arrowhead, detonated, shattering the obstacle floating in a position that would hinder a direct hit to the vital point. The second arrow, which had been fired a fraction of a second later, hit the exposed chest and exploded.
  
  『Alright! Destroyed!』
  “Uu… Uu…”
  
  It seemed that along with its armor, which couldn’t be excessively thick due to mobility and magic consumption concerns, the golem’s core was also destroyed. The giant body of natural minerals, unable to support its own weight, collapsed.
  
  Without paying it any mind, the golems at the enemy’s vanguard attempted to launch the adequately sized rocks they had formed. They unexpectedly made fine adjustments to their aim, targeting our forces as we snaked around to avoid their line of fire.
  
  Kotono rapidly fired another arrow from her mount, but it could only hinder the actions of a single golem. Most of the golems fired off rock bullets at nearly 200 meters per second.
  
  In the slightly over a second it took for the bullets to land, each knight, including myself, continued to advance without stopping, making final adjustments and dodging the fierce attack with their own maneuvers.
  
  『Dangerous!? That was close, Dino-kun!!』
  『It’s fine, even if it grazed us, it’ll only be minor damage.』
  
  I shouted to Lise, who was ready to go down with the ship if it came to it, that we had taken into account minimizing damage even if we were hit. While the blue-haired knight, Zacks and Rain, whom I had entrusted with the new Svel F-type, managed to dodge successfully, it didn’t mean all units were unscathed.
  
  『Uwaah, my leg!!』
  『Ugh, sensory sharing is this painful!?』
  
  『Left arm damaged… I can still fight!』
  『…Such recklessness. I’ll switch to support.』
  
  Picking up the sudden exchanges between the squires and apprentice mages, I grasped the rough damage situation of the captured Clawsolas entrusted to them. Without the luxury to reflect, we closed the distance to close-combat range.
  
  At that point, our formation was already disordered. I followed the dual sword Begalta that had freely charged in, and aimed for a rock golem that had adopted a unique stance – tucking its chin into its left shoulder, which was thrust forward, and protecting its flank and chest with its right arm. I couldn’t help but make a comment as I initiated my attack.
  
  『Is it a boxer or something…?』
  『Claude, focus!!』
  
  I pulled myself together at Revia’s reasonable warning, putting aside the fact that my impression of the elf race had crumbled a little more once again. I ducked diagonally downwards, evading the giant golem’s left jab as it stepped forward.
  
  As the crude fist passed over my Clawsolas’s left shoulder, I smashed its chest with the sole of Belphegor’s left hand before it could unleash its next attack, a right body blow. Taking advantage of the point of contact, the red-haired mage released the Explosive Wind Bullet spell she had been maintaining in its activation phase.
  “Ooo… Ooooh…”
  
  Letting out a hollow sound that was hard to pinpoint the source of, the opponent whose core had been crushed slowly collapsed.
  
  As I retreated to avoid being caught in the blast, I caught a glimpse of the Tsukigase siblings’ Clawsolas out of the corner of my eye. Regardless of the process, they had pierced the core of another golem with a one-handed thrust of their longsword.
  
  『Nn, somehow we managed to push through… Ugh.』
  
  A sudden sense of danger from Revia was transmitted through the nerve nodes of the artificial muscles, and I instinctively leaped back just as several small, angled metal javelins sprouted from the ground.
  
  It was probably an earth magic attack from a sorcerer-type golem. Nearby, I could see one of my subordinate’s Gladius units that had failed to completely dodge, suffering minor damage to its legs.
  
  『Guuuh!?』
  『Ugh, ah…』
  
  Seizing the opportunity while the pilots were groaning and shaking their external loudspeakers, the opposing close-combat type golem I had quickly engaged lunged forward, slamming a Jolt Blow into my chest armor. At the last moment, my left arm shield managed to block, preventing a fatal blow.
  
  After glancing at the situation, I attempted to climb over the wreckage of the rock golem I had defeated to reach the troublesome sorcerer type and the enemy Clawsolas units. At that moment, the “Mechanical Magi” that had been lurking behind the city’s south gate took flight, flapping its four main and auxiliary wings.