Kuro no Maou

>For example, the stone wall that surrounded this village.
No matter how much Anastasia would touch it with her hands, her ability alone wouldn’t help her break through it at all.

And it was the same with this fog.
If this dreadful white fog that surrounded them had originated from purely natural causes, Ursula’s draining ability would have done nothing to it.

However, the fact that it disappeared was proof that this fog was magical in nature.

There was a magic spell that could deprive an enemy of sight simply by clouding the surroundings with fog.
Ursula had learned from Kuroe that this was a type of support spell that assassins would normally learn.

If so, this fog would be the same as that.
A magic spell used by the Gluttony Octos themselves.

Although it was already very easy to guess that this unnatural fog had been caused by these octopus monsters from the beginning.

“Maybe if I do it like a Wind Barrier…”

If this fog was just a mass of magic power, it would be easy for Ursula to get rid of it with her own magic.

It would be Ursula’s first time directing her draining ability towards something intangible like this fog, but since she had already managed to fully control Anastasia, it was nothing that a simple matter of application.
As she witnessed a Wind Mage blowing some of the fog away, she realized she could use them as a reference example.

Therefore, all she had to do was to put it into practice.

“Hmm, let’s see… How about this?”

She made a mental image of the mist of her draining ability covering the area like a film spreading all around her.

The wind barrier repelled the incoming fog blowing it away, but Ursula’s draining aura was able to absorb it automatically simply by existing.
Ursula figured that rather than just letting this aura run freely, it would be safer to make it like a dome that could cover her from every direction.

Though it was just an idea, Anastasia, being a loyal servant who followed her mistress’ will without hesitation, produced the exact same effect Ursula had envisioned.

She released a thin mist in every direction with her in the center just like the blast wave that had incapacitated villager and octopus alike.
Then, she limited its expansion to a spherical radius of about fifty meters, holding it firmly so that there were no openings.

Anastasia’s drain ability is proportional to her composition density.
Her humanoid form had the highest density, while a mere haze had the lowest density.

However, even her lowest density would have enough draining power to keep the fog generated by the Gluttony Octos at bay.
The fog within the range of her draining ability had been completely cleared, just like how that Wind Mage used a barrier to achieve a similar effect.

“Hmm, it looks like this’ll do.”

It seemed that using this draining barrier constantly was easy enough for her.
Ursula had been worried that she could have had to spend too much concentration to keep it active, but it appeared that there was no need for her to worry about that.

If they could secure their visibility, it would make fighting this battle easier for both herself and her allies.

Ursula didn’t think that she would be able to protect all of the villagers all by herself.
Though the Crusaders had been quick to flee, she knew that this evacuation wouldn’t succeed without their help.

“Now I should provide some support for our allies.”

Far from getting confused or impatient, now that she boasted both an impregnable defense in the form of her draining barrier that could repel the fog as well as the ability to drain the octopus of their energy with a single hit, Ursula carried out what should be done calmly and in an orderly manner.

Now that she had secured her own safety, her next step was to assist the Crusader soldiers and rebuild the line of defense.

“Uooooooohhhhh! I will hold this line, no matter what!!”

The heavy knight captain Cliff was shouting so loudly that his voice echoed throughout the square.
He must have been fighting bravely in front of the stone wall, but with his subordinates fleeing one after another, even the toughest of the heavy knights would have ended up being forced to retreat here.

Ursula’s honest impression was that he was lucky to have survived this much.
He seemed to have escaped for dear life until he finally arrived at the square’s entrance.
The number of soldiers had greatly decreased since the beginning of this battle.

However, it was fortunate that there were still allies who still maintained their will to fight against these desperate odds, especially when it was a group of powerful heavy knights.
On top of that, the captain of the heavy knights would probably have a fairly high rank among the Crusaders, so his position could prove very useful when attempting to regroup:

Ursula then set out to assist the weakened heavy knight unit, and started walking lightly through the square, almost as if taking a leisurely stroll.

The octopuses she eliminated along the way would be replaced by new ones, but Ursula still quickly brushed them off with Anastasia’s draining hands and arrived at the heavy knights’ position, where they were making their last stand.

“Excuse meee!”

“Gah, they’re rushing in all at once! Everyone, shields up–”

Naturally, these knights –who not only were wearing thick helmets but were also completely focused in their fierce battle– would have a hard time hearing Ursula’s quiet voice.
And even if they had managed to hear it, they probably wouldn’t have time to pay attention to anything a child would have to say to them.

They were fully dedicated to intercepting the rushing horde of octopuses that approached them with the force of an avalanche.
Since the fog had been cleared out here, they could easily see the enemy, which only made them pay even more attention to them.

Being focused on the battlefield was one thing.
But completely ignoring her like this was an entirely different matter.

“Hmph! Can’t you tell I’m trying to talk to you? You… You tunnel-visioned amateurs!”

With that mild curse directed at the heavy knights that dared to ignore her, Ursula decided to quickly clear up the enemies in front of them in order to draw their attention to herself.

She unleashed her four draining arms towards the octopuses with a force fueled by her dissatisfaction.
If the octopuses were to disappear abruptly, it would cause quite an impression on the heavy knights.

And “abruptly” almost wasn’t enough of a word to describe how the octopuses were literally snuffed out like a weak candle fire.
It had been an overkill, like crushing an ant with a warhammer.

“W-What!? What happened–”

“I did this.”

When the confused Cliff turned around, Ursula was standing there with her chest puffed out.

“Nonsense, where the hell is the mage that did this!?”

“I’m telling you, I did this.”

Ursula had Anastasia lean forward and stare at the extremely rude amateur knight that had dared to ignore her.

“Uwaah!? W-What is this!?”

“This is my Origin Magic.
I’ve been using it since the beginning of the battle at the gate.
You didn’t see it?”

“Ah, no… I did see a white gust of wind that wiped out some of those devilfish monsters, but… I never thought that a young girl like you would be the one who had cast such a spell.”

“Are you blind?”

Ursula sneered at Cliff’s lack of situational awareness, but he actually had a point.
It was basically impossible to picture a 15-year-old girl standing side by side with Crusader soldiers, who were renowned as being a powerful military force.

However, there are exceptions to everything.
A general could give special permission to talented children to join their ranks, and there were some special units formed exclusively by children.

“You must be one of the people who evacuated from the neighboring village.”

“I’m Ursula, an apprentice sister from the 202nd Colony.
This is my spell, ‘White Yaksha Princess – Anastasia’.”’

Though Cliff wondered why there were children fighting in this battle, that question didn’t dare come out of his mouth while he stood before Ursula, who was accompanied by Anastasia and the extraordinary magical power that emanated from her.
He quickly realized that this was a child with special powers that can fight hordes of monsters all by herself.

“I want to help evacuate the villagers.
I will provide as much support as I can, so let’s work together.”

“Kuh, as a knight, even if you have a lot of power, I can’t let a little girl like you fight, but… It’s not like I have much of a choice.
I appreciate your assistance, Miss Ursula.”

“Okay, that settles it.”

Though Ursula nodded in a very arrogant manner, Cliff started to move with little regard for her attitude.

“Reorganize the formation around the church.
Recall the soldiers and rebuild our defensive line.
As soon as we’ve all gathered, we’ll secure an escape route.
We’ll then withdraw to Alsace Fortress while making sure every villager escapes safely!”

Cliff issued his instructions rapidly, one after the other.
First, his subordinates, the heavy knights, began to move, raising their voices to recall the soldiers that had escaped.
At the same time, they urged any panicking villagers they found on their way to retreat to the church.

“Hey! If you don’t want to die, you better take up your spear! If you keep running away from this fight, we won’t hesitate to stab you in the back!”

“Hurry! Get in the church, you’ll be safe there!”

The plaza had turned into a crucible of chaos, but since a large portion of that thick fog had been cleared out and the strong heavy knights were somehow managing to hold the terrifying monsters back, soldiers and villagers had started to gather once again into a semblance of order.

Even the cowards that did nothing but run away to protect themselves forgetting about their pride as a knight and their duty as a soldier knew that this was the safest place in the village at the moment.
It was a matter of human psychology to feel a sense of security in gathering in this place rather than trying to get as far from the fog as possible.

Before long, dozens of soldiers had gathered in front of the church, lined up shoulder to shoulder with the heavy knights and set up a desperate line of spears to wait for the enemy.

However, compared to the battle in front of the main gate earlier, the number of enemies attacking them was much smaller.
It was all because of Ursula’s support.

“Hey, any word from headquarters!?”

“They’ve already been annihilated! The deputy base commander, the officers, they’re all in those octopuses’ bellies.
Captain Cliff, you’re the highest-ranked officer right now.”

That was the answer he got after asking one of the soldiers who seemed to be running away from the headquarters.

“Gah, then there’s no other choice, I’ll take over the command!”

Cliff’s words alone might have sounded as if he was frustrated by the idea, but his tone of voice evoked a hint of joy.

Ursula understood that feeling.
She remembered that the highest-ranked official here used to be that stupid mushroom-headed Mashram, and that his deputy after his disappearance was just as unwilling and incompetent as he was to run the circus.

However, it would normally be hard for anyone to show even a shred of enthusiasm after being charged with the management of such a half-baked base of operations that wasn’t important enough to allow for them to show their feats on the battlefield.
It would be quite rare to find someone who would be actually happy to be in charge of such a place like Cliff was showing to be.

But now Ursula guessed that the reason why Cliff was so joyful about it was that despite its disadvantage, he was still at the top of the hierarchy here in both name and essence.

“Men really are stupid.”

While muttering what sounded like a line taken from a second-rate romance novel, she continued to wield Anastasia’s skills in order to safely gather as many soldiers as possible.

“Amazing, she’s completely blocking them.”

“Hey, don’t let your guard down, we all have to make it out of here!”

“Fire! Light the fire! They are weak against fire!”

“Those without weapons should carry torches! Don’t let them get closer!”

The Crusaders were rebuilding their lines at an alarmingly quick pace.

Thanks to Ursula’s support, the octopuses’ advance had been put to a halt, and hope was rekindled inside the soldiers’ hearts.

There were now about 50 soldiers gathered here.
Furthermore, the men amongst the villagers who had taken refuge in the church, as well as courageous women and boys who were barely reaching adulthood, began to support them with weapons and torches.

Everyone else seemed to have been safely evacuated, so their total numbers were now around the same military strength of 100 soldiers.
These were the last remaining forces still within the walls of the 203rd Colony.
No more people were rushing into the square and the only things still moving around through the fog were those octopuses.

“Miss Ursula, we can’t hope to save anyone else! We have to start retreating!”

Having been calmly observing the surroundings during the fight, Ursula actually agreed with Cliff’s opinion.
But she could not give an immediate answer.

Priest Kuroe hadn’t returned yet.

“…Priest Kuroe is very strong, he should be fine.”

After thinking about it for a while, she came to that conclusion.
Even though he didn’t have the help of Anastasia’s tremendous power, there was no need to worry about him.
He was strong enough to hold his own, and once he retreated he would be able to find her and rejoin with her.

Ursula nodded to herself, and was about to give Cliff her okay, but at that moment…

“Woaaahh!? T-That one is huge!!”

A giant tentacle tip stabbed into the stone pavement of the plaza as if to drown out the soldiers’ cries.

The tentacles themselves, which stretched out from beyond the fog, were as long and thick as the trunk of a large tree.
Their harpooned claws at the tip seemed to be as large and sharp as a dragon’s claw rather than a spear.

And at the end of those enormous tentacles, there was a huge head that towered high into the sky.
Its dark, wide-open round maw at its bottom turned towards the soldiers as if it was about to suck them all in.

“Oh no, that doesn’t look good at all!”

Ursula and Kuroe had seen one another 10-meter octopus just like that spewing out a powerful acid breath from its maw.

Since they had all crowded together in order to brace themselves for the rushing smaller octopuses, a single acid breath attack would be enough to turn them all into mushy octopus food.
Looking at the purple drool dripping from the maw of the giant octopus caused a chill to run down Ursula’s spine.

“We’ll have to do something about that big one–”

“Step back, I’ll take care if it.”

Ursula took a step forward, stopping Cliff who was about to jump out at any moment.

No matter how well trained those heavy knights were, the giant octopus would be able to release his acid breath before they could even jump at it.
Its circular maw had made a roaring intake sound, as if it was already halfway ready to fire.

“I’ll show you… what Anastasia and I can do!”