Chapter 6: Her Battle

The battle rages on. High above in the distant sky, and on the grounds of the academy below.

The conflict, which began at noon when the sun reached its zenith, grows ever fiercer—

As the day slowly, ever so slowly, begins to tilt toward dusk—

“《O Thunder Emperor’s Lance》—《Scatter》!”

As Halley chants the spell, the lightning flash of [Lightning Pierce] surges toward the sky—midway, it branches into countless bolts, each striking its target with unerring precision.

In an instant, ten enemies are felled simultaneously by Halley’s single spell.

This is Halley’s masterful technique, “Diffusion Activation.” By reducing the spell’s range to a tenth, it splits into ten branches, retaining its full potency while targeting multiple foes at once.

Yet, even with such skill to bring down enemies, Halley lacks his usual composure.

“Tch… Still not here, Glenn Radars…?!”

He looks up at the sky. The enemy forces descending from above seem endless.

The students around him, desperately maintaining a barrage of spells, are beginning to show signs of fatigue—

“《Swift Barrier Deployment, Ruby Circle》—!”

Christoph’s voice echoes through the courtyard.

A barrier of flames forms in the air above. In the next moment, a spiraling vortex of ultra-hot fire engulfs the incoming golem dolls, incinerating them one after another, reducing them to mana mist.

Naturally, the enemy descends upon this courtyard, the central nexus of [Luciel’s Sanctuary].

To push back the overwhelming wave of enemies, Christoph maintains [Luciel’s Sanctuary] with his left hand while deploying an offensive barrier overhead with his right.

Having sufficiently burned away the approaching foes, Christoph temporarily dispels the offensive barrier.

“Nice one, Chris-boy!”

Bernard swoops in from the sky, sliding along steel wires.

“Are you alright, Bernard-san?”

“Hah! Don’t act all grown-up, kid! Worrying about me is a hundred years too early!”

Bernard strikes a gutsy pose, as if to say he won’t lose to the youngsters yet.

“The situation at each school building is quite stable. We can hold out for a while longer. If anything comes up, I’ll issue orders to the commanders via the communication magic device.”

“You’re out there wreaking havoc on the front lines, yet you’ve got a firm grasp of the entire battle… That’s what makes you so incredible, Bernard-san.”

Christoph offers Bernard a faint smile filled with trust.

“But, Chris-boy, how’s the state of [Luciel’s Sanctuary]?”

At Bernard’s question, Christoph responds with a slightly grave expression.

“Unfortunately… due to students withdrawing temporarily because of injuries and unavoidable damage to the school buildings… the barrier’s maintenance rate is gradually dropping. It’s currently at 83%.”

“Hmm, it’s slowly but surely declining…”

“For now, high morale is keeping the decline in check… but I fear when it collapses, it will happen all at once.”

“Then it’s a race against time… Should we have forcibly mobilized all the students after all?”

“No, Bernard-san, your judgment was correct.”

To Bernard’s grim expression, Christoph responds with unwavering conviction.

“If we sent students with low morale to the front lines, their lack of spirit would spread to others, ultimately becoming a detriment to our forces. While numbers are critical in some battles, in this localized defensive war, fighting with only the high-spirited, willing students is the best strategy.”

“I see… Still, as an adult, it pains me to let children fight…”

“Regrets and remorse can wait. …The next wave of enemies is coming.”

And so, as the two converse, another swarm of enemies descends from the sky—

Meanwhile, in the largest room of the underground section of the Alzano Imperial Magic Academy’s school building—

Here, those injured in the battle above are transported from the eastern, western, southern, and northern school buildings via short-range teleportation magic, facilitated by Baron Zest’s long-range transfer magic.

“Everyone! It’s okay! You’ll absolutely be fine! I’m here for you!”

Led by the academy’s medical mage, Cecilia, a team of volunteer students tirelessly administers healing treatments to the wounded.

“《O Angel of Mercy, grant them solace, extend your saving hand》—!”

In this critical moment, Cecilia’s skills, honed to perfection and fully awakened, are nothing short of extraordinary. No matter how life-threatening the injuries, she manages to save every soul.

“Ugh… It hurts… It burns…”

“Lynn-san! Bind that person’s arm! Start casting a healing spell on them first!”

Cecilia darts around, tending to the most critically injured with ferocious intensity, issuing rapid instructions to the student medics.

“Y-Yes!”

Normally timid and reserved, Lynn cannot afford to hesitate in this moment.

“It’s okay… You’ll be fine… We’ll save you, I promise…!”

Determined to help as many people as possible, to do what even her cowardly self can manage, Lynn pushes through mana depletion, staggering but relentlessly healing others.

And then, at that moment.

“…Sorry for the trouble.”

At the edge of the room, Gibul, who had been receiving treatment for a shoulder injury, rises with the aid of a staff.

“G-Gibul-kun!? Where are you going!?”

Noticing him, Lynn hurriedly rushes to his side.

“Back to the front lines. …I can still fight.”

“But your injury hasn’t fully healed… You need to rest…!”

Lynn tries to stop Gibul as he silently moves toward the rooftop.

“If I bail now, it’ll only make things more dangerous for the others, you know? …No way I’m letting that happen.”

Brushing off Lynn’s hand curtly, Gibul breaks into a run.

“…Ugh… At least… please, be careful…”

Lynn gazes at his retreating figure with a prayer in her heart, then steels herself, returning to tend to the wounded, focusing on what she can do.

(…Everyone… Sensei… Please… please be safe…!)

Her classmates fighting outside, Glenn and the others battling in the sky.

Praying fervently for their safety, Lynn continues her desperate fight in her own way.

Gibul, pushing through his injuries to leave the medical ward, heads unhesitatingly for the stairs to the ground floor.

From the corner of the corridor, someone quietly watches him.

“…Why… Why…?”

It was Kreiss.

“Why can everyone fight so hard!? Aren’t you scared…!?”

In the corridor, Kreiss, Ena, and many other students sit huddled, trembling with fear.

These are the students who refused to join the battle outside or help maintain the barriers within the school.

Unable to overcome their terror of fighting or facing the enemy, they chose to retreat to the safety of the underground, like powerless civilians.

“What can we even do…? It’s all over anyway… Even if we fight, we’ll just die to [Megiddo’s Flame]… So why… why can they keep fighting…!?”

Kreiss’s anguished moans, as he clutches his head, echo the collective sentiment of those who have abandoned the fight.

Why? Why must we face such unjust suffering? Searching for a nonexistent culprit to blame, insisting they’ve done nothing wrong, their thoughts spiral into a dead-end of surrender… They are the defeated.

“That’s right… W-We haven’t done anything wrong… So we don’t have to do anything… It’s only natural that Rumia’s fighting for us, and only the crazy ones who want to fight should bother…! Yeah, that’s how it’s supposed to be…!”

Yet, why? What is this gnawing guilt and bottomless self-loathing?

As Kreiss and the others grapple with their unresolved turmoil…

“Hah… Unbelievable. Truly pathetic. …Are you all idiots?”

A scornful voice suddenly reverberates through the corridor.

It was Nameless, the elusive, otherworldly girl who appears out of nowhere.

“Who the hell are you!? R-Rumia Tingel… no, that’s not right…!? And what’s with those weird wings on your back…!?”

“Doesn’t matter who I am. These are just decorative. Don’t mind them.”

With a dismissive snort, Nameless brushes off the question.

“More importantly… Are you really okay with this?”

“—!?”

“I might be sticking my nose where it doesn’t belong, but… If you stay here doing nothing, you’ll regret it for the rest of your lives. That’s the look on your faces.”

“Tch, no way! We haven’t done anything wrong!”

“…Then why are you still lingering here, wallowing in self-pity? Why not just flee the academy? That’d be far safer.”

“Th-That’s… There’s an emergency standby order…!”

“Pathetic. Utterly half-baked. In a situation like this, emergency orders mean nothing.”

Suddenly, Nameless raises her hand.

“Whatever. If you’re going to stay here moping, at the very least… witness the outcome of this battle.”

“…Huh?”

Her hand begins to glow, and the light projects an image onto the corridor.

“That girl… Rumia is fighting for you, too… Seeing how this ends… That’s the least you owe her.”

And then.

The scene projected in the image is—

Inside the《Ship of Flames》, the fierce battle continues.

“Damn it! There’s still a ton of ’em!?”

Glenn and his group race through the ship’s corridors.

Behind them, golems stationed within the ship pursue in formation.

They wanted to avoid unnecessary combat and conserve their strength as much as possible.

But even as they try, enemies approach from ahead, swarming in droves—

“S-Sensei, what do we do!?”

“No choice but to fight!”

While running, Glenn readies his fist, and Re=L hefts her greatsword.

“Re=L and I will strike first and pull back! White Cat, follow up! Clear the front quickly, then deal with the rear! Got it!?”

“Got it!”

“Yes!《O Wind God, be sharp—》”

Sistine stops in her tracks, beginning to chant a spell.

“Raaaaahhh—!”

At the same time, Glenn and Re=L charge forward, leaping into the enemy swarm.

“Hah—!”

Glenn’s fist slices through the air with a straight punch.

“Yaaaaahhh—!”

Re=L’s slashing strikes whirl like a tempest.

Their attacks mercilessly scatter and blow away the golems’ front line, halting their advance—

“《—Brandish your blade, race through the heavens》!”

In that instant, Sistine’s spell completes.

Simultaneously, Glenn leaps toward the ceiling, and Re=L drops to one knee, crouching low—

Between them, a massive blade of wind streaks through at divine speed.

Black Magic [Air Blade].

The vacuum blade, unleashed in a horizontal slash, cleaves every golem in front cleanly in half—completely annihilating them.

“Alright! Next—”

Glenn lands and turns, while Re=L rises and prepares to leap toward the rear.

—For a moment, both freeze.

“…”

Unbelievably, Rumia is walking alone toward the mass of golems approaching from behind.

“H-Hey—Rumia! Idiot, fall back—”

Glenn starts to shout a warning, but his words are cut off, lost forever.

Rumia approaches the golems calmly, holding out the《Silver Key》before her…

With a click, she makes a motion as if turning it.

Then, something extraordinary happens.

The corridor where the golems stand is framed in a rectangular glow of light—

The rectangular plane of the scene rotates, like a revolving door.

For a fleeting moment, an infinite universe is visible on the other side.

When the rotation stops.

—The golems have vanished completely, without a trace.

“W-What was that…?”

Glenn, Sistine, even Re=L can only stare, dumbfounded.

It’s unmistakably—a power far beyond human limits, an excessively abnormal force.

“…I banished them to another dimension. Non-living entities like those, even if powerful, have a small existence and weak ties to this world, so they’re easy to send away.”

“Rumia… You…?”

“I’m starting… to remember. No… Someone inside me is teaching me… How to use this key…”

Rumia touches the《Silver Key》fondly.

“…I’m happy. Up until now, I was always protected by Sensei, Sistie, and Re=L… But I have this power… With this power, I can fight to protect you all… That makes me so happy…”

Seeing Rumia like this, Glenn and the others feel an indescribable sense of danger.

“Let’s go, Sensei. …I’ll fight too. And I’ll protect everyone. Even if it costs me my life… That’s my mission.”

Glenn hesitates. The《Silver Key》… Its tremendous power doesn’t frighten him.

It’s wielded by none other than Rumia. She’d never use it wrongly.

The problem—is Rumia herself.

Glenn has long sensed, faintly, a distortion in Rumia. Her tendency to place others’ needs far above her own—a flaw now glaringly evident in the worst way.

Fundamentally, humans must live for themselves above all. That’s the instinct of any living creature, the natural order.

Only when one’s own needs are met to some degree can they earn the right to give to others. Only then can they truly be kind. The selfless service of a destitute saint is no different from madness. It’s not supposed to exist.

That’s not how humans, how living beings, are meant to be.

The power of the

Gaining such power in this dire situation… It feels as though something critical has snapped within Rumia, like a restraint coming undone.

She shouldn’t use it. Rumia is still too emotionally immature to wield it—

“Rumia… Don’t use the《Silver Key》anymore.”

“Huh?”

Rumia tilts her head, puzzled, as if to ask why.

“Like Re=L said earlier, we’ll handle it. Rely on us more, trust us. You shouldn’t have to bear such an inhuman power alone…”

But.

“No… That won’t do.”

The usual obedient Rumia is nowhere to be found.

“…I… I have to save everyone. For that, I’m willing to—”

“You…”

It’s no use. Rumia is too stubborn now.

It’s understandable. Despite being somewhat more mature than her peers, she’s still only sixteen.

In the face of this unprecedented crisis striking Fejite, mentally cornered and burdened with an excessive sense of duty, Rumia is unreachable by Glenn’s words.

If this continues, with some trigger, Rumia might start using the《Silver Key》without restraint—

“S-Sensei… We’re running out of time…”

Sistine, too, seems to want to say something to Rumia but can only offer a pained expression.

“I know. Let’s move…”

There’s no time to argue now. Reluctantly, Glenn and the others press forward.

Without exchanging words, Glenn, Sistine, and even Re=L.

In that moment, their thoughts align.

—They have to fight harder. For Rumia’s sake. To keep her from using the《Silver Key》.

Unaware of their resolve, Rumia wears a serene expression, filled with unwavering, noble determination.

Glenn and the others hurry onward.

From that point, the enemy’s aggression ceases, almost unbelievably.

Perhaps they realized sending more fodder against Glenn’s group was futile, or perhaps there’s another reason.

—Glenn and the others don’t know.

The ship contains several doors and rooms, but the path is mostly straightforward.

Using detection magic to map the ship’s structure, Glenn’s group advances toward the deepest part of the《Ship of Flames》without getting lost, almost too easily—

“…This is eerie. It’s going too smoothly.”

Leading the group through the corridor, Glenn mutters suddenly.

“True, the diversion from the academy’s defense team is likely working… but still…”

“It’s too perfect… Could that demon be plotting something?”

“Yeah, exactly.”

At Sistine’s question, Glenn nods gravely.

Sistine, too, finds it odd and remains vigilant, mentally recalling the storyline of the fairy tale The Magician of Melgalius.

(In the story,《Iron Cavalry General》Accelo Iero appears twice… The first time in Rasle’s kingdom aboard the《Ship of Flames》… The second in the final chapter, during the decisive battle in the magic capital Melgalius…)

The plot collapse—the deus ex machina—occurs in the second battle.

A suddenly introduced “disciple of the Mage of Justice” defeats Accelo Iero with a baffling method, simply poking him with a small stick. Likely, the author Loran struggled to handle Accelo Iero after making him too powerful.

(Honestly, we’re treating a mere fairy tale as a key to defeating a Demon General…)

Though she thinks this, Sistine is desperate enough to cling to any hope.

(Let’s see… If I recall correctly, the first time was when the Mage of Justice and his party rode a dragon to infiltrate and destroy the《Ship of Flames》to save Rasle, right…?)

When things align this closely, all you can do is give a wry smile.

(And then… after the Mage of Justice and his party stormed into the《Ship of Flames》—)

Recalling up to that point, Sistine suddenly froze.

“S-sensei! Be careful!”

At Sistine’s urgent warning, Glenn and Re=L turned back.

“What’s wrong!?”

“I’m sorry! I just remembered! Accelo Iero《Iron Cavalry General》can freely manipulate the space inside the《Ship of Flames》!”

“What’s that?”

“In the battle against the Mage of Justice, he used that ability to split the mage and his companions into separate spaces after they boarded the《Ship of Flames》! He might try the same thing on us! We need to stick closer together and—”

At that moment, they realized something, and the group halted in unison.

“Where’s Rumia…?”

Yes. Somehow. Truly somehow.

Just moments ago, they could hear her footsteps and breathing.

But now, Rumia’s presence— was nowhere to be found.

Damn it, we’ve been had… Sistine bit her lip in frustration.

She didn’t have ‘The Magician of Melgalius’ with her now, and even if she did, there was no time to reread it, but why hadn’t she recalled it more clearly from the start—

“Rumia… RUMIA—!? Where are you!? Answer me!?”

“…Calm down.”

Though Glenn’s face betrayed an undeniable urgency, he tried to soothe Sistine.

“Losing yourself won’t help. We have to hurry and catch up to Rumia, starting now.”

“T-that’s true, but… but…! But still…!?”

Sistine, utterly shaken, looked on the verge of tears.

The reason was clear. Long ago, in their distant childhood, Glenn had devoured The Magician of Melgalius with fervor. Though he’d forgotten most of its details by now…

Glenn, too, had remembered.

The companions separated from the Mage of Justice— they were all mercilessly slaughtered by Accelo Iero’s hand in the end. The Mage of Justice hadn’t made it in time.

“It’s fine… It’ll be fine…!”

To Sistine, on the brink of tears, and to himself, Glenn repeated the words like a mantra.

To catch up to Rumia, Glenn broke into a run once more.

—.

—There was no fear or panic in particular.

If anything, there was a sense of relief, almost gratitude… That was her honest feeling.

That was the truth of it.

“…”

Rumia walked alone down the endless corridor with an almost uncanny calm.

Having awakened to the《Silver Key》, she intuitively understood that this sudden separation was the enemy’s spatial manipulation, deliberately isolating her from Glenn and the others.

And that the enemy’s target— was her, Rumia.

But that was fine. If that demon’s aim was her, then so be it.

Glenn, Sistine, Re=L— Rumia’s precious, beloved people.

This way, they wouldn’t have to face danger.

There was no reason for humans to be able to defeat a monster that surpassed humanity. It was an utterly straightforward, simple logic.

A monster could only be defeated by a human?

That was nothing more than the baseless desire— no, the delusion— of human supremacists.

In this world, there existed absolute, despairing walls that puny humans could never overcome— Rumia understood this now, not through logic but with her very soul.

For example… the presence of another self, quietly slumbering within her—

Only a monster of the same caliber could stand against a monster. Utterly straightforward, simple logic.

Accelo Iero— the Demon General Star— was a true monster who had abandoned humanity.

If so— then I, another monster, should face him alone. That’s why—

Bring it on…

Eventually, Rumia discovered a grand gate and passed through it without hesitation.

Beyond it— was a vast, semi-elliptical chamber.

Along the curve of the ellipse, countless massive black monoliths stood in rows. The floor was etched with sinister, overlapping geometric patterns.

In the desolate, echoing expanse of the chamber, at its deepest end, stood a throne-like seat.

There—

“Welcome, Rumia Tingel.”

The demon sat leisurely, exuding an air of calm authority.

“I must say, I’m impressed. To think… you’ve awakened to the《Silver Key》…”

Rumia approached the demon in silence.

“I see… No wonder the [Status Quo Faction] is in such an uproar, claiming you’re complete, that you’re enough as you are… To think you’ve reached such a level of perfection…”

The demon’s shoulders shook with amusement.

“But to me, you’re still lacking. For the sake of the Grandmaster… and for my master… I need you to be even more perfect.”

“I’m sorry. Your goals… mean nothing to me.”

Rumia fixed her gaze directly on the demon.

“I will defeat you. For Fejite… for everyone. Even if it costs me my life.”

For a moment, the demon stared at Rumia from the depths of the darkness within its hood…

“I see. You truly are the spitting image of her… Though this is Accelo Iero’s memory, not mine.”

“…?”

“Then again, it’s only natural, given you were born as her vessel…”

And then… the demon rose slowly, standing before Rumia.

“Tell me. Do you know how to fight? The way to use that power?”

“…I do.”

Rumia answered without fear or bravado, as if it were the most natural thing.

“You should be the one to prepare yourself. Right now, I’m probably… stronger than Sistie, stronger than Re=L… and stronger than Sensei.”

“Is that so? Very well, then.”

With those final words, the demon took a stance against Rumia.

“Rumia Tingel. For my grand ambition— I shall claim your life!”

“Accelo Iero. For the people I love— I will destroy you! Even if it costs me my life!”

With those declarations exchanged,

The demon, cloaked in an aura of dark energy, raised a hand like a blade—

Rumia, wielding the《Silver Key》that gleamed with radiant silver light, took her stance.

A battle beyond human comprehension— began here.