155 All Members, Deploy

 

「[Skill Lender], activate.」

Lending process initiated. Select the borrower and the skill to be lent.
Borrower: Mina Rayleigh. Skill: [Angel’s White Wings] selected.
Borrower: Mina Rayleigh. Skill: [Range Enhancement ] selected.

…
…
…

Executing process.

「Ooooh… so this is what life with a Unique Skill feels like… Damn, this is hype…」

Using the higher-tier [Seraph’s Grace] was an option, but overloading Mina with too many skill points would likely backfire or overwhelm her. In the end, I judged it best to go with the pre-evolution skill,  [Angel’s White Wings] , and bundled it with a set of support-type skills.

Mina herself seemed deeply moved by the unfamiliar sensations of these rare skills, and fortunately, there were no signs of mental or physical strain.

「Mina, I’m about to lend a large number of skill points to Altora and the others. The sheer volume will put serious stress on their brains, so activate healing skills and keep them stable.」

「Y-Yes! I’m to make sure Altora-san and the others’ brains don’t go boom, right!?」

「I’ve still got some points for [Seraph’s Grace] myself, so I’ll handle the initial healing as a demonstration. Try to match what I do.」

「Okay!」

「[Skill Lending], activate.」

I selected the recipients and the skills, then executed the process.

At first, everything proceeded smoothly. For several seconds it seemed the lending would finish peacefully. But around the fifth skill, Gordon began clutching his head in pain. Soon after, all three of them were drenched in sweat and writhing in agony.

「G-Graaahhhhhh!!」

「My head’s splitting open…!」

「Ngh… nn… ahh—!」

「Beginning healing.  [Seraph’s Grace] , activate.」

「An- [Angel’s White Wings], activate!」

As we began healing, I found myself once again reminded of the strength that ran through these sisters’ blood.

「…Mina, are you sure this is your first time?」

「Th-They say guys like skilled girls, even on the first time—is that actually true…?」

「We are talking about skill usage here, right?」

Her focus faltered here and there, but she was good.

Even with her being the younger sister, there was no guarantee she’d be able to handle skill usage. I’d been prepared to step in if needed. But Mina absorbed it faster than expected, and her technique was precise. She was already offsetting the mental burden on Altora’s group all on her own. She must’ve been paying close attention to her sister all this time.

With this, I could leave things to her and head into the dungeon.

「I’m heading out. I’m leaving the town to you.」

「Y-Yeah, just go already, dumbass…!!」

「You sure you don’t wanna stick around a bit longer and watch Pervert-san writhe in agony?」

「Tempting, but we don’t have time.」

「Figures.」

Though she said it with feigned disappointment, Angelina stood as she gently wiped the sweat from a pained-looking Eria’s brow with a handkerchief. The three of us—me, Angelina, and Koe-san—would head to the dungeon and sever the source before Altora’s defensive line was broken. From here on, it was a race against time.

「Don’t screw this up, Marge the incompetent!」

「Right back at you. Oh, and take this.」

Even as he lay half-conscious, Altora couldn’t help getting a jab in. I pulled the sword from my hip and placed it gently beside him.

The treasured single-edged blade forged by the dwarven founder and passed down through generations of werewolf kings. This was the last thing I’d leave behind.

「You won’t find another sword that can keep up with [Sword Saint]-level speeds. I’m not charging interest, but I do want it back.」

「Now get the hell outta here…!」

He clearly didn’t want me to see him in pain. Typical Altora.

Just as I began scanning for a jump target to activate [Space Jump], Remonde handed me a small scrap of paper. Looked like a note of some kind.

「Marge, I wrote down the location of The Vigil’s End entrance here. I also scribbled down anything else I thought might help. I’ll be contacting my people to scatter in all directions—now it’s up to you.」

「Got it. Make sure you get away too. Altora and the others will buy you time, but honestly, I have no idea how long they’ll hold. They don’t even have proper gear.」

「About that… you figured we’d use Altora’s group to our advantage, right?」

「Sounds about right.」

「Which is why we made arrangements. I already sent word to have the gear delivered here. Should be arriving any minute now.」

「…So the moment your lackeys snapped out of it, you already had the next phase lined up. Thorough as ever.」

「Survival’s the name of the game. We Elves may have long lifespans, but the world’s too harsh to just coast on that.」

And so, three fronts were now in motion. Us. Altora and the back-alley dwellers. And Remonde’s Elves.

Each would now begin their respective battles.

「[Space Jump], activate. Let’s begin the operation.」

I locked in the coordinates and jumped.

Our destination: the skies above the Leon Enagoris mountain range.

Our target: the massive dungeon known as The Vigil’s End.

◇

Some time after Marge’s departure.

Once the skill lending and brain repairs had concluded, Altora and the others slowly rose to their feet.

「…Been a while since I felt like this.」

「A-Are you all feeling better now?」

「Yeah. You did good, Mina. Pretty impressive for your first time.」

「Altora-san just praised me…!? Maybe your brain really is broken!?」

「Wanna get slapped?」

As they savored the return of their Unique Skills, Gordon pointed a trembling finger toward the center of the room.

「No way… my [Obsidian] is back…! And look!」

There sat two suits of armor and a robe with a staff—gear they’d once relied on during their time as the Divine Silver Sword.

Remonde’s unexpected parting gift brought a smirk to Altora’s lips as he traced a finger along the crimson armor.

「When the Divine Silver Sword went down, this stuff got pawned to help cover damages. Remonde must’ve gathered it all up to bait us into cooperating.」

「All this just to make sure we followed orders?」

「Expensive? Dumbass. Nobody wants the armor of infamous war criminals. You can’t sell it, but it’s too well made to melt down. So it just ended up collecting dust in some warehouse. …Eria?」

While the others took it in, Eria remained slumped on the floor, trembling. Gordon and Mina rushed over, worried.

「Eria, what’s wrong? Are you still in pain?」

「Did I… do something wrong…?」

「Shame.」

「Shame?」

「Shame… remorse… regret… What was I even doing? I thought dipping bread in soup was a groundbreaking discovery. Someone please kill me now…!」

Her Unique Skill was [Ancient Wisdom].

It allowed her to search and master magic dating back to ancient eras—the highest tier of magic skills. It also massively boosted the intelligence required to wield such magic.

But when she lost that skill, her intellect returned to normal. Now that her high-level intelligence had returned, she still retained all memories of what she did while dull. The result: pure psychological agony over her own antics.

「Just kill me already… Bash my head in and end it…」

「Don’t worry. Even if your head cracks open, Mina’ll patch you up.」

「Request: tear out your tongue and die. Feel the agony as your severed tongue root chokes you from within and perish.」

「I’ve been wondering for a while now… Does [Ancient Wisdom] raise your IQ at the cost of messing up your personality?」

「Well, it is a skill that lets you browse centuries of magical knowledge. Most mages were total creeps, so soaking in their wisdom nonstop… yeah, of course you’d end up warped.」

A wave of strange nostalgia washed over them. For Mina, it was an unfamiliar side of familiar people.

「Mages really have it hard, huh…」

「Yeah. You need mana, knowledge, and tons of other junk just to get started. I’ve heard they’re more prone to warping from all the external input.」

「I seeee.」

「Healing types like Tiina get their power from unclear sources, so churches just call it ‘blessings from the heavens.’ That kind of thinking breeds elitism, which warps them from the inside.」

「Then what warped you, Altora-san? You’re just a swordsman.」

「Say one more word and I’ll cut you down.」

Their conversation continued, but by now they’d fully acclimated to their skills. The headaches had faded completely.

But they felt no urge to bask in sentimentality. They had no time to waste.

「Alright, enough talk. Eria, have you spotted anything?」

「Foolish question. Already scanning.」

Her once-silver eyes now glowed blue. [Ancient Wisdom] allowed her to sift through countless spells and deploy one for detecting monsters.

After a few seconds of searching, she spoke calmly.

「Just as the intel said. Large numbers of monsters approaching from the eastern slopes, near the trailhead. Optimal interception point is four half-bells from here—about fifteen minutes.」

「Perfect. Let’s move, boys. Been so long I don’t even remember the last time.」

「Yeah.」

「Ready.」

Altora donned his crimson armor, lifted the sword from the floor, and drew it in one motion. The silvery blade shimmered in the cold moonlight, different in shape from his beloved Divine Silver Blade of old.

「Divine Silver Sword. All members, deploy. Operation commence!」