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Chapter 60 - How to Cross a Desert (7)

And so, the next day arrived.

At last, the long episode was reaching its final stage.

We dragged our tired bodies across the desert.

Keeping a careful watch on our surroundings as we walked, Regia mumbled beside me.

“...It’s strange today.”

It was unusually quiet.

On any other day, we would have already faced three or four ambushes by this time, but today, nothing had happened.

Not even a single scorpion, those creatures we had encountered endlessly, was in sight.

“The desert has never been this quiet before.”

“Doesn’t it feel odd? This isn’t a place you can pass through so easily… It’s like the calm before a storm.”

“We should take this chance to conserve our strength.”

“Good idea. We’re almost at our destination anyway.”

I replied casually, pretending not to know.

This was the pattern of the final wave.

At least until the sun went down, there would be no attacks today.

But when night fell, that’s when the final wave would begin, determining the outcome of the episode.

A massive wave of enemies was bound to come.

‘At this rate, we’ll be in trouble.’

The difficulty of this episode was certainly high.

It was meant to be tackled after accumulating plenty of experience at the Academy—once you were skilled enough to hold the position of Head Assistant.

In our current state, we would be completely overwhelmed.

‘I came here for Regia’s growth… but maybe this was too much.’

There were still no signs of her summoner abilities awakening.

There hadn’t been any noticeable precursors to her breakthrough, so it seemed it would take a while.

Well, there was no need to rush it.

As I said before, I believe in Regia.

Even if it didn’t happen this time, there would be other opportunities.

Besides, just securing the reward item would already make this worthwhile.

Given all the hardships she’d endured over the past few days, I had planned to handle the final battle myself.

So, we continued walking through the quiet desert.

“...”

Time passed peacefully.

The day went by quickly.

Before we knew it, the high sun had sunk below the horizon, and the sky was filled with darkness.

Night had finally fallen, shrouding the world in pitch-black shadows.

While we were following our usual schedule, getting some sleep, a sudden voice broke the silence.

“M-My lord!! Please wake up...!”

It was Regia, who had been keeping watch.

I rose from my spot as if I had been waiting for this moment, casually surveying my surroundings.

All around us was the dark, endless desert.

Screeeech! Crack, clatter… crunch…!

It wasn’t just dark—the ground was shifting with strange, eerie noises.

A mass of scorpions was writhing, so numerous that they covered the entire surface of the sand.

The horde swarmed in from all directions, completely cutting off any escape.

It was a scene of utter despair.

“M-My lord! Hurry!!”

Regia’s voice was urgent.

“So this is it...”

The old man’s voice sounded resigned as he loaded his crossbow.

Shiiing.

Amidst the chaos, I calmly drew my sword.

I muttered quietly to myself, ensuring no one could hear.

“At last, the finale.”

The climax had arrived at last.

***

Screeeech!

As if on cue, the scorpions surged toward us in unison.

It was an overwhelming tide that offered no hope.

They trampled over everything in their path.

We had to use every ounce of strength just to hold our ground, desperately fighting to maintain our last bit of space.

Sparks flew endlessly in the darkness.

“Hup…!”

Clang! Thud-!

The mindless beasts charged, their venomous stingers striking wildly. I parried each thrust.

Each clash sent shockwaves rippling through the air.

I tried to take control of the flow, cutting through the enemies with skillful movements, but it seemed pointless.

The overwhelming numbers were too much to handle.

Swoosh-!

I swiftly sliced one scorpion in half.

Before its body could even hit the ground, another wave of them rushed in.

It had been like this from the start.

For every one I killed, ten more took its place.

For every ten I killed, a hundred more followed.

Just as I sighed at the endless sight, I heard a voice behind me.

It was the old man.

“Duck!!”

Ping! Rattle-!

I ducked down immediately.

Dozens of arrows shot overhead like a shotgun blast.

Boom!

The scorpions’ bodies were crushed mercilessly.

I quickly retreated and called out to the old man, who was reloading his mana-charged crossbow.

It was a lighthearted comment.

“Nice shot! Do that about ten thousand more times, and we’ll be done here.”

“Unfortunately, these are my last bolts.”

“Oh dear.”

Thwack!

I drove my sword into a falling scorpion.

Even mutated variants with wings had started appearing, meaning we were now facing mid-tier monsters as well.

I flicked the blood off my sleeve.

“Let’s go again.”

“I’ll cover you.”

“M-My lord! They’re coming from behind…!”

We fought with everything we had.

My blade cut through the enemies on all sides, and the old man’s crossbow fired arrows and flames without pause.

Regia supported us, doing everything she could to help create a better fighting environment.

We held out better than expected.

We had far surpassed the time I initially thought we would.

“Huff...”

But that didn’t change anything.

The inevitable end was only delayed.

Eventually, we were surrounded by the scorpions, left in a state of disarray.

I quietly surveyed our situation.

Both of my companions had collapsed to the ground.

The old man’s crossbow lay discarded nearby.

He had run out of arrows.

Even my shadow-forged sword was now chipped and dull.

It wouldn’t be able to cut through anything anymore.

“Well, well… It seems this is as far as we can go.”

I let go of my sword as well.

With a thud, the shattered blade fell into the sand, disintegrating into dust.

We had no more means of resistance.

I took a deep breath.

‘I wanted to test our limits, but...’

Judging by the protagonist’s condition, it seemed we had reached ours.

Regia was trembling, curled up and sobbing.

I knelt on one knee, meeting her tearful green eyes.

The girl was shaking with fear.

“Miss Regia.”

“M-My lord.”

“It’s alright now. It’s all over.”

“I-I’m sorry... If I had done better... If it weren’t for me, you and the old man wouldn’t be...”

“Shh.”

I placed a finger over her trembling lips to quiet her.

Then, I took her hand in mine.

Like comforting a frightened child, I gently stroked her head.

I was trying to calm her emotions.

“You did well.”

“B-But...!”

“Do you remember what I told you a few days ago? That I’ll always believe in you.”

“...”

I carefully wiped away her tears.

Her small shoulders trembled pitifully.

I gave her a gentle smile.

“That trust hasn’t changed.”

“...”

“It never has, and it never will.”

The girl looked up at me, her gaze dazed.

It seemed like she was processing something, biting her lip.

I wanted to offer her more words of comfort, but I couldn’t, because of the scorpions that were now surging forward again.

The monsters’ twisted cries filled the air.

Screeeech! Shriek! Roar!

A pitch-black storm was approaching.

The monsters, hungry for slaughter, charged toward us, baring their fangs.

Thousands of scorpions swarmed.

Just as they were about to engulf us—

A faint voice whispered in my ear.

“...Efri.”

In the next moment, a bolt of lightning fell from the sky.

“...?!”

Beeeep!

A high-pitched ringing filled my ears, muffling all other sounds.

As my blinking vision cleared, I saw something massive in the sky.

A colossal winged figure was soaring above, large enough to blanket the entire area.

“Is that…?”

I found myself speaking aloud without realising it.

It was its magnificent appearance.

Those graceful wings, the enormous body, the spiked tail, and the fire smouldering with each breath.

It was unmistakably the same creature I had seen during the entrance exam.

“A wyvern...”

Roar!!

The divine beast let out a deafening cry.

The entire desert trembled.

It opened its massive jaws, unleashing a devastating attack.

It was the Dragon’s Breath.

Boom!

With overwhelming firepower, the tightly packed scorpions were incinerated in one fell swoop.

The blue flames blazed across the battlefield, turning the area into a sea of light.

Not even a speck of ash remained.

In the blink of an eye, more than 30% of the scorpions had been wiped out.

I turned to look beside me.

“Huff... huff...”

There, Regia was panting heavily.

Her pink hair was drenched with cold sweat.

She was clutching my hand tightly, tears streaming down her face as she smiled.

Her frail body wavered.

“Miss Regia.”

I quickly caught her as she collapsed.

Even as she lay in my arms, she looked only at me, her eyes shining.

Her gaze was filled with joy and emotion.

“I... I finally did it.”

Regia murmured with difficulty.

Her smile sparkled far more dazzlingly than the breath of a dragon.