"Sir Zuckerman...!"

Arriving at the rocky basin, Nathan Zuckerman was greeted by a scene like a dust-filled maelstrom. The whirlwind, of course, was being stirred up by the swarm of flying monsters above, and the Pelleta knights who had lured them all the way from Zilbang were barely managing to hold formation in the chaos.

Between the dust-caked figures that recognized him with joy, Nathan spotted those soaked in blood, panting heavily. Even at a glance, their injuries were severe.

"I’ll take over. Withdraw immediately. I’ll draw the monsters’ attention."

"Understood! But..."

Their faces brightened at his arrival, but they soon looked confused as they counted the heads of those who had come with Nathan.

"This is the entire support force? Did something happen at Pelleta Castle...?"

"We judged that this number would be sufficient. Don’t worry. Don’t look back—just go the moment you find a gap. ...Now!"

Without hesitation, Nathan slashed toward the sky. A blade of brilliant blue aura sliced through the whirlwind as if parting it in two, cutting through the center of the monster horde.

―――!

A flash like a miracle.

As the dust was cleaved apart, the clear blue sky emerged.

The sheer power of that strike, made with a single sword, was hard to believe. The monsters shrieked as if torn apart by the overwhelming force. Scattering in panic, they left a momentary lull in the storm. Nathan leapt from his horse without pause and passed the reins to the injured knights.

"Go. Now!"

"Ah... Ahh...!"

Still staring dazedly at the sky, unsure of what had just happened, the knights finally snapped to their senses and obeyed his command. Those who had come with Nathan also handed over their horses, and the wounded knights mounted up and kicked off.

Among them, the man in charge—Vice Commander Brug—was the most gravely wounded. He struggled to speak.

"...Nathan. These {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} bastards... they’re not ordinary...! They’re relentless, attacking from the sky, picking one target at a time. Please... be careful...!"

"I will. We’ll see each other back at the castle."

Before Brug could even finish speaking, Nathan slapped the horse’s flank. With a whinny, the beasts galloped away the way they had come.

Now only Nathan and five subordinates remained. The knights looked to him. They had appeared slightly uneasy on the way here, but now, after witnessing the Swordmaster’s aura, they wore bright, almost dazed expressions.

"Sir! What do you wish us to do now?"

"Wait and evade attacks."

"...Sir?"

The unexpected answer left them blinking.

"Are we not to attack those monsters immediately, as you just did?"

Nathan slowly shook his head.

"Watch carefully. See if any of them died from that strike."

"...Ah."

Only then did the knights realize that none of the monsters had fallen. A few moved sluggishly, clearly affected by the unexpected attack, but that was it. As a group, the horde showed no major damage.

‘Unbelievable...’

To think such a powerful blow could leave only superficial wounds.

These monsters knew how to exploit the open skies with terrifying freedom. And they clearly understood that even powerful attacks were harmless if avoided.

Their shadows began circling again, darkening the ground as they regrouped overhead. Nathan felt their murderous intent—how they circled him as if targeting his head—and recalled Yuder Aile’s words.

‘You can strike into the sky with aura, yes, but it’s not an efficient use of energy. There’s just too much room for them to evade. You could brute-force your way through it, but... why bother?’

‘......’

‘If there’s too much space to dodge... then just take that space away.’

Take that space away.

As Nathan murmured the words, Yuder had nodded.

‘Yes. I’ll create the perfect moment for your strike right here.’

That voice... how could one describe it?

It was like the rising of the sun or the setting of the moon—so natural, so absolute, as if it couldn’t be any other way. It was beyond confidence or arrogance—something deeper lay in that tone.

‘Until then, Sir Zuckerman, conserve your strength and focus on evasion. With you acting as bait and distracting them on the ground, that alone will be enough. If things get dangerous, I’ll send a signal from the castle. It shouldn’t be too difficult...’

"Ugh... the wind...!"

"The dust! I can’t see the monsters anymore!"

Nathan looked up. The wind generated by the regrouping monsters was once again becoming a violent vortex. It swept in more dust, growing stronger. Even the monsters directly overhead were hard to see.

It was clear they weren’t pleased about being injured by this new human after losing track of their original prey.

Just as the knights groaned, unable to even anticipate when the next strike would come—

—Vmm...!

A light pulsed from the bracelet on Nathan’s arm, accompanied by a subtle vibration.

The moment he saw it, he readjusted his sword grip and shouted:

"Scatter!"

Even in this sudden situation, the knights reacted swiftly to the well-trained command. They burst out in all directions, slicing through the dust cloud.

At once, monsters folded their wings and dove at the spot the knights had just vacated, claws extended with vicious speed.

—KWAKWAKWAKWANG!

The ground shattered under the impact of their claws and beaks—so fierce was the blow, even the rocky terrain shook and groaned. Nathan immediately realized the tremors he’d felt at the castle had come from this very kind of attack.

Several monsters diving at one spot in unison—how could the ground not break?

But their target was already gone. The monsters, frustrated, let out agitated cries and soared back into the sky. Nathan glanced at his knights, who had safely returned to him, and nodded.

‘So that’s what he meant by letting me dodge.’

The monsters might be hard to see from here, but from Pelleta Castle, their movements would be much clearer. Of course, even that shouldn’t allow someone to predict their attacks with precision—but Yuder Aile had somehow done just that.

"Sir Zuckerman... what just happened? Was that...?"

"There’s someone supporting us from the castle."

"Excuse me?"

"From now on, keep your heads sharp. Keep moving, staying spread out. When you hear the command, scatter, regroup, and repeat. Focus on staying mobile and avoiding hits."

Until the moment the one at the castle "gives us our opening."

Nathan didn’t explain further—but the certainty in his eyes was all the knights needed.

"Understood! Move out!"

Like a single body, the knights sprang into motion, perfectly in sync.

Above them, the monsters—unable to catch their prey—snarled and surged with fury.

And atop the eastern tower of Pelleta Castle, six people watched the scene unfold.

"Ishias. Edin. That signal was a little late."

Yuder addressed the two standing tensely side by side.

"Now that you’ve got a feel for how long it takes the magic device to reach the signal point, you should be able to time it more tightly next time."

"Got it!"

Ishias, with her Danger Detection ability, could sense the precise moment the monsters intended to strike. Edin, with his Enhanced Tactile Sensitivity, could read subtle physical cues from those nearby and respond instantly.

Yuder had paired them together—so that whenever Ishias detected a strike, Edin would activate the magic signal device without delay.

‘Far better than me trying to activate it manually.’

Since it was their first time working together, the first signal had gone out slightly late—but according to Ishias’s senses, nothing overly dangerous had occurred on Nathan’s side.

‘Repeat this a few more times, and the monsters will start to get frustrated.’

Stupid, mindless monsters wouldn’t react—but ones smart enough to move in coordinated groups were different. Their cunning made them more prone to overreacting when denied success.

Like now.

"Yuder! The monster group split up! They’re attacking two—no, three times in a row!"

As Ishias cried out, overwhelmed by her readings, Edin sweated and focused, activating the magic signal precisely and repeatedly. Yuder looked up at the sky—where the dark specks now moved in erratic new patterns—and nodded.

‘Good. Time to blow it wide open.’

He looked down at the bow in his hands and spoke.

"Aks. Felicia. Valmore."

"Yeah."

"Just like we discussed. Let’s go."

Aks’s ability was Power Infusion Spheres. He could encapsulate objects he recognized as dangerous weapons—needles, fire, water—into small, transparent orbs and throw them.

Felicia’s ability was Light Burst. She could emit blinding flashes to disrupt the enemy’s vision.

Valmore had the ability Explosion. When he’d first joined, his uncontrolled power had been a menace—random objects he touched would blow up—but now, he could choose what to detonate and when.

‘His control isn’t precise to the second yet, but a few minutes is enough.’

Light gathered in Felicia’s hands.

Aks placed his hands over hers, creating a glowing orb of condensed light.

Valmore laid his hand on top, imbuing the orb with explosive power. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"Yuder. Here...!"

"I’ve never made one before, so I don’t know if it’ll work..."

"We’ll find out soon enough."

Yuder gave a brief reply and took the orb. Without hesitation, he drove an arrowhead into it. The sphere trembled as if about to burst—but held.

‘Perfect.’

Yuder nocked the arrow onto the string. His arms spread wide, steady as steel, and the bow formed a flawless arc.

For a brief moment, everyone’s eyes were drawn to his silhouette.

And—

"―――."

Yuder released the string with a light, silent snap.