I Tried To Be Her Loyal Sword

---

20th Chapter

“What is it, Mir?!”

A knight, hastily dressed and barely buttoned up, asked. As I was gauging the positions of the monstrous horde with all the mana I could muster, I replied heavily.

“A wave of monsters is coming! We can’t defeat them with our current strength. We must flee!”

“What do you mean…?”

“At least a dozen! They’re substantial, massive beasts. They’re incredibly fast! We can’t run by foot; we need to use teleportation!”

I grabbed the two baffled mages, who were nursing their throbbing heads.

“You two! How many can you teleport at once?!”

“Uh, um!?”

The sleepy-faced mages responded in bewilderment. Everyone seemed overwhelmed, lost in confusion, when Cal regained his composure and grabbed my arm.

“First, explain the situation. Where is this horde? I don’t see them…”

“Everyone, put your ear to the ground.”

At my command, they all tilted their heads and pressed their ears to the ground. Then, they froze.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

The monsters were approaching.

“Is th-there an earthquake?!”

Someone asked, petrified. I shook my head.

“It’s the vibrations from the movement of the giant horde.”

If I were to fight alone, there might be a slim chance of winning, but protecting everyone while fighting was impossible. They’d surely get trampled and die while I was engaged.

‘Damn it, why are these giant monsters moving now?!’

The movement of giant monster herds was exceedingly rare. This rarity stemmed from the fact that very few existed in such large formations, and giants typically didn’t stray far from their native habitats.

“Quickly, how many can you teleport?!”

But now wasn’t the time to question reasons or motives.

Under my urging, the two mages hurriedly checked their mana circuits.

“Honestly, if we push our limits, we can manage up to six people. Anything more than that might break our circuits…”

“I think six is doable too. Anything beyond that is beyond my capability.”

At their answers, the knights’ faces went pale. We had a total of 14 people here.

That meant two had to stay behind.

“Your Highness! Can you use teleportation magic yourself?”

“Ten people… no. Wait. I never learned teleportation.”

Cal, who initially seemed about to respond to the pressing question, suddenly switched his tone.

‘Damn!’

I bit my lip. If someone had to stay, then it should be me. The burden of fighting and protecting them all would surely crush me, but if I fought alone, I might somehow endure. Still, if two had to remain, the other would end up dead while I was fighting.

“…I’ll stay behind.”

And then Cal uttered nonsense.

“Your Highness! Absolutely not!”

“Shut up! Are you crazy?!”

The knights resisted vehemently, and a string of harsh words slipped from my lips. It was absurd for a noble’s heir to be left behind in a situation like this.

I ground my teeth. I couldn’t let my brother, who had finally opened up to me, die.

‘Damn it! There must be a way— Ah!’

As I bit my lip hard enough to draw blood while racking my brain until I was nearly feverish, I suddenly had a flash of insight and fished out an item from the spatial pouch at my waist. It was a small object resembling a glistening silver stone that fit perfectly in one hand.

“Please just accept this. I’m really worried about Mir. It’s a favor, okay? Just hold onto it.”

It was an artifact containing teleportation magic that El had given me long ago, saying she was worried about me.

“When I go back, I’ll give you a kiss!”

I was elated. I grabbed Cal by the shoulder and forced the stone into his hand.

“The activation phrase is ‘To me, it’s Salvador.’ Just think of where you want to go, hold it tightly, and recite the phrase.”

“What… ugh!”

My black aura wrapped around Cal’s entire body, pinning him down. As he collapsed helplessly, I commanded the knights who were lost in confusion between Cal and me.

“Take him away.”

“What are you doing! Unbind me this instant, unless you want to die for treason against the nobility!”

“You need to live to face the charges later. Just retreat quietly.”

Leaving Cal, who was frantically struggling and yelling, I led the mages away.

“How long to activate the magic circle?”

“About ten minutes…”

“Five minutes! Make it in five minutes!”

As I glared at the mage who was hesitating, he shouted in a panic. Nodding, I began to sense the direction of the increasing vibrations.

‘North.’

I encased my legs in mana.

“Wait! Where are you going?!”

“I’ll buy time by blocking the path of the monsters. In the meantime, you all make a quick escape to the village and call for reinforcements.”

“You madman! Don’t you dare leave me like this!?”

“You must take care of Prince Cal. If he gets hurt, no one will escape serious punishment.”

Everybody knew that failing to protect the prince would be a grave offense, so even though I wasn’t in charge, they shot me wary glances as they nodded in agreement.

‘There might be a chance I’ll die for treason against the nobility.’

Treason or not, I had to survive.

I saw the aura lines sinking deeper into Cal, who was still struggling, and loosened them slightly.

Crack, Boom—!

The vibrations grew louder, and trees began to fall about 500 meters ahead. I had only seen a giant horde move once in my life, and it had left the forest in ruins.

‘And I… lost something precious that day.’

I bit my lip. This hunt was too reminiscent of that day’s nightmare, making me feel dazed.

“Then I’ll be off.”

If I got any closer, they would be in danger. With my mind sharpened, I gripped my sword tightly and released my mana, casting a slow smile at Cal, who looked pale.

“It’s been nice meeting you all.”

“Mir!”

Ignoring Cal’s scream, I kicked off the ground, using my momentum to jump off the surrounding trees again.

Crash! Crash—!

I moved swiftly off the trees. As I got closer to the source of the vibrations, the trees swayed, and my instincts began to scream.

‘Will I survive?’

Feeling my body start to tremble, and sweat pouring down, I tightly shut and opened my eyes. Memories from my childhood, when I had faced a giant monster horde for the first time, an event I wished to forget, flooded my mind. I found my thoughts paralyzed, overwhelmed by snippets of traumatic memories.

Usually, this is called trauma.

‘Gotta hold on.’

I tightened my grip on the sword.

I had become stronger now. No longer someone needing protection, but a person who could defend. I needed to buy time for my companions to escape.

Suppressing my fear, enduring the memories as I dashed forward,

Cruuuuumble—!

I was once again facing a calamity. A calamity that seemed impossible to endure.

The monstrous eyes, which had been moving noisily, turned toward me, who stood in their way.

‘The dog of hell creeping from the abyss, Debera.’

Its appearance resembled a dog, but its size was at least ten times that of a man. Its blood-red eyes, which burned with a terrifying fire, the smell of iron, decaying flesh, and a horrific aura of magic engulfed the area.

‘…I might throw up.’

Even in a state where I should be dead and lifeless, seeing Debera still moving as if defying death earned it the title of ‘the dog of hell creeping from the abyss.’

Grrrrrrrrrrr…

I stood face to face with the largest Debera, who seemed to be the alpha. Drool dripped from its enormous fangs.

Tension made Debera raise its tail, eyeing me carefully, yet it didn’t charge. It seemed it could sense I wasn’t an easy target, instinctively picking up on that fact.

Debera belonged to the fiercest and strongest class of monsters. Dealing with a single Debera would be a simple task, but confronting a horde was an entirely different story.

It meant that I could die.

‘If I could evade without a fight, it would be ideal…’

Filled with a glimmer of hope, I unleashed killing intent from my whole body. Black smoke erupted, engulfing the entire forest. The Deberas, exposed to my murderous aura, shuddered.

Killing intent—raw energy enclosed in the air that indicates strength. Beings that sense stronger presences, be it human or beast, instinctively feel fear.

As the alpha Debera shrank back, other Deberas lowered their tails. Just as a faint hope began to kindle.

A twist of fate occurred then.

GRAAAAWR!

The alpha Debera’s eyes became tinted with madness, and the faint aura of magic within it exploded. The Debera let out a wail.

A power, akin to but significantly stronger and more wicked than magic, seized the Debera. It charged at me like a puppet on a string.

‘Damn!’

I quickly dodged aside, enveloped in mana.

Crash!

A crater formed on the ground where I had just stood. Even after countless encounters with Debera, its terrifying power never failed to haunt me.

‘…It’s being controlled.’

Everything fell into place.

I gritted my teeth and glared northward, channeling aura into my sword.

Swoosh!

It was as if I severed the darkness in the sky and turned it into a single thought form, a sinister black aura swirling menacingly. The darkness representing my life enveloped the sword.

“I guess that’s just about enough to live so-so.”

I murmured softly while raising my sword. The Deberas, now mere puppets on strings, seemed to thrash wildly and surged towards me. I had no confidence in crushing them and emerging alive.

‘…Aria. My child.’

In this moment of dire straits, one face surfaced in my mind.

My little one, who was my meaning. The only color in a colorless world.

“I want to see you again.”

With that obsession, I finally resolved to confront the colossal calamity once more.

“Guard!”

A bright light captivated my eyes. Now familiar, that special refreshing mana dominated the area.

Magic circles unfolded, blocking the path between me and Debera. As the rushing Deberas collided with them, they staggered back.

I awkwardly turned my stiff body. I felt like a mess, struggling to break free from my aura bindings. Two legs lifted into the air through flying magic, and my hair was blown into chaos by the wind.

Amidst it all, the glaringly bright red eyes glimmered.

Pure white snow. A cold winter. A forest near the north. A horde of giant monsters.

In this situation, reminiscent of a nightmare, that red light approaching me might just be my salvation. A small redemption for the child I was—the one who had cried alone, holding a corpse in a snowy expanse.

At the same time, there was fear. The horror that this corpse might now become you gripped my heart.

At that moment, I realized everything.

Ah. Cal has already become heavy enough to make me feel both salvation and terror all at once.

“You madman…

I uttered a curse with a choked voice as my throat filled with moisture. With both hands conjuring magic circles, Cal grinned.

“Did you think you could do it all alone? You madman, Mir.”

My other blood relative was also standing against the calamity with me.