"The 'work' is going smoothly."
Cries and groans never stop echoing across the battlefield.
The ground trembles beneath the giant's footsteps.
The giant's hands bring down the rocky hills.
And beneath it all, people fall, get crushed, and howl in agony.
"If you were watching from far away, there wouldn't be a more spectacular sight than this."
But if you were watching it this closely, there would be no hell worse than this.
Spouting such trivial thoughts, I kept waiting.
If things were proceeding the way I expected them to.
By now, something should be biting at the bait.
"Too late."
Just as I was about to lament that—
Rustle
"Did they come?"
Something stirred nearby.
Then came a single shout.
"[Arrow Zephyros!]"
"Huh?"
Along with that furious incantation, a disc-shaped spell flew at me.
I quietly watched it approach, frowned, and casually activated a defensive Magecraft to block it.
"[Barrier 81, Single-Point.]"
Boom!
The enemy's attack was blocked without incident.
And yet my frown still would not smooth out.
And for good reason.
"Why are you the one showing up here?"
That damn fool was not the one I had been waiting for.
"[Revere!]"
KWAANG!
"Useless."
The spell that had been attacking me like a rotating saw unleashed a fierce explosion with a short trigger word.
But my defensive Magecraft would not break from something of that level.
That was why I could still afford to remain relaxed even with him right in front of me.
Compared to the enemies I had been dealing with until now, a mere Level 3 ambush was nothing.
Even without Magecraft, I could crush him alone with my bare hands.
And if I were to suffer even a single injury against someone like that...
I might end up so mortified that I'd want to kill myself.
Especially if news of it reached the people who would laugh at me for it... Damn it, there seem to be at least five of them.
I absolutely must not get hurt today.
"By the way."
What are you doing here, abandoning all your comrades who are struggling over there?
At my questioning stare, he answered proudly.
"There's no way we could bring down that monster by ourselves without a first-class adventurer!"
"So?"
"What do you mean, so? That monster is impossible, but you're different—you're alone, separated from any escort. And if we take you down...!"
"Then the golem will stop. Is that what you mean?"
"Yeah, you get it. Then... die!"
With that, Hyacinthus charged at me.
But my assessment of him was... nothing at all.
What exactly was this idiot trying to do?
Flinch!
"Huh?"
Thud!
The moment his foot touched the ground, he stopped moving as if he had snagged on something.
And so, without saying another word, I drove a [Gandr] straight into his forehead.
Honestly.
Who would have thought he couldn't even properly play the role of a clown?
He's worse than seaweed from Fuyuki.
At this rate, he's not even fit to be a background extra.
"I-I can't recite the incantation...!"
"You don't need that level of preparation against someone like you."
Rat-a-tat-tat-tat!
"Guhk!"
And then came the barrage of [Gandr].
Small in scale, but with a different curse every time, I gifted him a whole set of overlapping maledictions.
Well, as a Level 2 adventurer, he probably had some resistance ability, so it shouldn't kill him too badly.
"Die!"
Then, following Hyacinthus, someone else launched a surprise attack.
This too was an unexpected ambush.
By my estimate, the ones who should have been here right now were not these people, but "those kids" waiting farther away.
Still, well, an error of this size was within the range of simple prediction.
It wasn't a problem.
"My, my. I had a feeling, but there are more suicide squad types than I expected. Come now, value your life a little more, Miss Daphne."
"Shut up! You damn bastard!"
"Hmm, your mouth is far too foul. That won't do. Don't use such harsh words."
It only makes you look weaker, after all.
Like a proper villain, I threw out a memorable line and tilted my body slightly to dodge her sword.
Then, just like Hyacinthus, I activated the trap I had prepared for her and bound her movements.
"Damn it, why can't I move my body?!"
Daphne panicked as her body suddenly froze, just like Hyacinthus's had.
Since she's a pretty girl, I'll be considerate and kindly explain what kind of trap this is.
I lifted the [Invisibility] Magecraft that had been hiding the trap.
"[불구(不俱), 금강(金剛), 사갈(蛇蝎).]"
Wuuung
Two circular magic circles emerged on the ground.
This was a [Barrier] of stillness, one that robbed its target of momentum and reduced their movement to nearly zero.
"The original version should have been [Six-Arm Thunder], of course."
But this too required a certain talent, a source of [stillness], so reproducing it had been a real pain.
Magecraft related to the source—the primal nature, the essence of things—was not something you could so easily imitate unless you were cheating outrageously.
Still, if I forced myself to reproduce the finished product, it felt like... the resources it took were too much compared to the romance I got out of it.
As for the compression of space, [Suk] in particular required far too much preparation.
In any case, it was inefficient, so I had restrained myself in my own way.
I suppose it was another reminder of my own lack of talent.
The limit of what I could imitate was only up to [Three-Arm Thunder].
And even that was not like the original, which followed the caster around.
It was just like a normal barrier—something you set in one place and that was that.
In that sense, that rough-and-ready monk really was a monster of a man.
Well, it was because he was that kind of person that he could stand shoulder to shoulder with that puppeteer.
Come to think of it, that man had once said that when he happened to run into me on the street, he'd somehow found an answer.
What on earth was that supposed to mean?
"Well, it's not exactly relevant anymore."
"Guh! Damn it, I can't let go of this!"
"Oh, you've got plenty of spirit. You're still moving even while your stamina is being drained away by the barrier in real time."
"Kuh... damn it..."
Daphne's struggling gradually weakened as her movements came to a halt.
I walked up to her and whispered in her ear to reassure her.
"It's all right, Miss Daphne. In respect for your tenacity and courage..."
I'll make sure you're the very last one to retire.
Then I flashed her a bright smile.
It was my own little service, full of kindness and consideration, for a woman who must currently feel like both body and mind are about to die.
At that, Miss Daphne let out a beastly shriek and struggled again.
"You bastard! I'll kill you! You son of a bitch! I'm definitely going to kill you!"
"I told you not to use such harsh words."
Good grief, what a lady—despite how she looks, her learning ability is pretty poor.
Still, what can you do?
The broad-minded me has no choice but to understand and endure it.
Ah, I'm just too kind.
What am I supposed to do about this?
"How terrible."
Ahahaha!
The expression of a beauty in tears, seething with frustration, is truly sweet!
This is real [yurei]!
I don't care about the original meaning of the word!
Ufufufu, nectar, nectar!
This is why, no matter how many times I live my life over again, I can never give up being a terrible person.
So who told you to pick a fight first?
Why bother poking someone who's just standing there?
Ah, honestly.
"What a refreshingly pleasant feeling. I'm in such a good mood I could sing a song. Truly, I'm feeling absolutely HIGH!"
Ahh, this wickedness.
So damn thrilling!
Always so exhilarating!
After all, playing around with romance as the theme is the most fun of all!
And incidentally, all of this conversation is being broadcast live through the skyborne command tower.
Why go to such pointless lengths?
Because I need to show this much power and this much rotten character, so that all sorts of trivial little ant-worm trash won't come clinging to me and my acquaintances or bother us in the future.
In other words, this is reputation-building through notoriety.
Honestly, I was thinking that maybe this happened because I'm the kind of nobody only the people who know me know about.
After all, a mad dog is avoided not only because it's scary, but because it's filthy too.
If I don't make a show of it here and now, something like this might happen again later.
This is all just a stepping stone to prevent that kind of situation.
...It is absolutely not just me blowing off stress and having fun, okay?
"But I suppose I'll need a new scene for the audience that's been watching all this time."
For that, I search among the ones currently suffering for a new sacrifice.
The more shocking the scene, the better the promotional effect, after all.
Well, there is one more thing I'm looking forward to as well.
But since those guys still haven't arrived, I'm not sure yet.
Could they really not be coming?
If that's the case, I might be a little disappointed.
"Oh, you'll do nicely."
- Gooooo...
"Aaaah!"
"No! Cassandra!"
And then, at last, I chose one sacrifice and lifted her up in the golem's hand.
Looking down through the golem's eyes and inspecting them one by one, the one I chose was none other than the long-haired woman, Cassandra.
I hear she and Daphne are childhood friends?
She only looks a little weak-willed, but she's quite the beauty in her own right.
And no, I absolutely did not target her on purpose because I knew that in advance.
- Uuu...
"U, u..."
"Damn it, you bastard! Let go of Cassandra! Right now!"
"Now, now. Just wait a moment. I'll show you something fun soon enough."
Ignoring Daphne's protests from behind, I manipulated the golem and made it move.
In response, the golem clutched Cassandra in one hand like King Kong.
It was a simple action, but there was nothing gentle or King Kong-like about it.
Naturally, from Cassandra's point of view, her whole body must have been painfully squeezed so tightly she couldn't move a muscle.
"Hic, it hurts... Help me, Daphne..."
"Damn it! Cassandra!"
"Truly a tearful friendship."
Shall we test just how far that bond goes?
At my words, Daphne glared at me with a confused, puzzled expression, as if she had no idea what I was talking about.
Weak to beauties as I am, I kindly answered her question.
"Now then, from here on out, I'm going to throw Miss Cassandra to you, Miss Daphne."
"W-what...?"
"The only person who can save her is you. If you fail, she'll bloom into a single beautiful red flower. Come now, show me the power of the friendship between you two... show me such a miracle. If you do, she'll be safe, and you'll be safely freed as well."
"You bastard! Don't be ridiculous! Right now I can't move because of your magic...!"
"Well, that's exactly why it has to be something you overcome, wouldn't you say? Do your best. That too would be a kind of 'feat,' after all."
At my words, Daphne wore a stunned expression.
But I didn't care in the slightest.
"Are you ready? Then here I go... throwing her!"
- Goooooo!
I really did hurl Cassandra from the golem's hand toward this side.
Of course, with just the right amount of force.
"Kyah, kyaaaaaah!"
"Kuh, damn it. Cassandraaa!"
Just as I had promised, Daphne saw the reality rushing toward her and desperately thrashed with everything she had.
But my Magecraft remained as solid as ever.
Her body did not move even a little.
And in the end...
The thrown Cassandra was then—
"Taaaaaah!"
Thud! Thump, roll, tumble, tumble, tumble...!
Snatched up by someone else who appeared out of nowhere,
the impact was softened as they rolled together in a complete mess.
"Haah... haah... A-are you all right?"
"Ah...! Ahhh...!"
"Fortunately," she was safe.
Even though her face was a mess, smeared with tears and snot.
She survived, and her life was saved.
The instant everyone who witnessed that scene had their expressions twist with shock and confusion—
"So you've come."
Only then did I draw a true smile to my lips.
At last, the one I had been waiting for, and looking forward to.
"Bell boy."
The 'hero' had appeared.
It feels like my resolve is overflowing.