A prison of stone and a sword of blood

Translated by SoundDestiny

Edited by Zil

They faced each other for a few seconds with their weapons in their hands. Angelica was the first to move.

“The Sword of Crushing Fire”

Angelica stepped into Justy’s gap with a sharp footwork that made it hard to believe that one of her legs was prosthetic, with a burst of energy, she thrust out her dagger.

The dagger, as thin as an ice pick, was aimed at Justy’s shoulder just right in the gap between the armour.

“Mmm!”

Justy spins his short-handled spear around and strikes the dagger.

It’s a magical spear that can kill her with a single blow if he takes it seriously. He tried to hit Angelica with the spear’s javelin as soon as she was slightly out of position.

“Interesting.”

This time, however, Angelica’s body fluttered. Flying through the air, she kicked Justy’s spear away with her prosthetic leg and stepped backwards to get some distance.

Justy did not give chase, but carefully measured the distance between him and the woman who had landed at a distance.

While Justy is fully armed with a spear and heavy armour, Angelica is lightly armed with only a dagger. Although her metal prosthetic legs are a literal drag, she is much lighter than Justy.

And while Justy’s armor gives him a huge advantage in defense, Angelica’s “Bakushasen” is a deadly weapon that can turn a scratch into an instant death. They had to be cautious in their attacks, as a single thrust through the armour or through a limb could decide the game.

Angelica’s bandaged face twisted with delight as she twirled the dagger around in her hand.

“You’re so strong, unlike Uncle Calcifer.”

“....I am flattered by your praise. Would you be so kind as to draw your sword?”

“You must be joking. The women of Ilkas are not so dexterous as to keep their swords dry of blood once they have drawn them. Aren’t we?”

“That’s right. Then ....!”

Justy kicked off the ground and leapt forward as if he was not wearing heavy armor, and he lunged straight at Angelica.

However, she immediately lowered her hips with her dagger and took a counter stance.

“Muun! ’Stone Wall’!”

“What?”

The surprise was just beginning.

He stepped just in time for Angelica, and with the momentum of his lunge, he shook the ground hard.

There was a thud and a small explosion, and at the same time the ground rose up and a stone wall appeared.

What was different was that the stone wall did not protect Justy but appeared to surround Angelica on all sides.

“You’re not going to .... stop me from moving, are you?”

Angelica, surrounded by stone walls, opens her eyes and realizes what Justy is up to, but it’s too late.

“Stone Prison!”

“Kh..”

Angelica tries to escape by climbing over the stone wall, but before she can do so, the undulating, lifelike ground rises up and swallows her whole.

The dome-shaped ground trapped Angelica and completely sealed her in.

“That’s a relief. I’ll get His Highness Raidorl before the air runs out. If your highness commands it, will you, a loyal warrior, refuse?”

Justy exhaled, “Fu,” telling Angelica, who was trapped in a stone.

He managed to catch the wounded beast.

If they had killed each other, one of them would have lost their life for sure.

“....Angelica. You still have a future ahead of you. I hope that the life you have lived will bear fruit in a different way than revenge.”

Justy murmurs with a touch of melancholy.

The words will not reach Angelica, who is trapped in a thick stone prison.

But that’s okay.

For whatever reason, Justy thought he was not qualified to tell his thoughts to her, who is a member of the Oigist family who betrayed the kingdom.

“It would be impossible for me or for Brad to put Lady Angelica back on the right path. If possible, I would like someone else to be her support.”

Heartbroken, Justy turns his back on his stone prison and goes to call for Raidorl in his house.

A soldier, who had heard the commotion, came to Justy’s side.

“Captain Oigist! What’s going on?”

The first to call out to him was one of his men, who rolled his eyes at the dome-shaped stone rising from the ground and shouted suspiciously.

“Oh, don’t worry about this. The fight is over, so why don’t you go and fetch His Highness Raidorl? I have an urgent matter to discuss with him....?”

That was all Justy could say.

Suddenly, a sharp jolt hit him in the back and he fell forward.

“Captain Oigist!”

“Get back!”

Justy stands up, using his spear as a staff. When he stroked his back with his hand, he saw that his armour had been slashed open and blood was flowing.

The wound was not deep. However, he had no idea how he had been attacked.

Justy turned his attention to the stone prison, and the next moment it was torn to pieces and collapsed.

“Fuahh, I almost got claustrophobic, it’s so refreshing under the sun.”

It was Angelica Ilkas, of course, who broke through the stone prison and emerged.

She was shaking off the stone dust from her shoulders and head and had a dagger in her right hand. However, unlike earlier, a poisonous red blade extends from the tip of the dagger.

“The sword is....”

“It’s called the Blood Sword, and it’s my other magic sword.”

Angelica told Justy, who was looking at her in surprise, in a light tone as if it was nothing.