In any case, we start chapter 10 with Leina's troubles in the alternate world...!
Enjoy!
Episode 10: Final Battle! End of the Beautiful Fighters! (Part 1)
The story so far...
Elina’s group was approaching Leina, who was still challenging the endless battle to seal the Demon within Maramaks.
Michel regained his memory: he had been a part of the Demon cut off by Leina, and albeit subconsciously, had intended to sacrifice the Beautiful Fighters and open the gate to Maramaks.
Brushing his struggles aside, Elina forcibly challenged Nanael into a battle and got her to open the forbidden gate in exchange for her victory, a spectacular feat.
Fight to the Death at Maramaks ~ Leina’s Predicament
[I might be nearing my limits.]
Discarding such thoughts, she wielded her sword and cut down the beasts.
She had survived a never-ending flock of beasts that dealt accurate attacks at a speed beyond what a mere human could manage; it only went without saying that she was near her limits.
At this point, there were more beasts being produced than the accumulated sum she had already dispatched.
More than once or twice she had made it to the Demon, and had even succeeded at delivering a fatal blow, but each time the panicking Demon had summoned innumerable beasts even at the expense of her own body in order to drive the heiress back.
[There’s only one woman beyond the pack of beasts. She keeps concentrating all her power in creating more and more of the beasts, and is weakened to the point that I could defeat her with just one strike.
However, my sword won’t reach there, unfortunately.]
She could see the Demon sneering at her.
‘You can’t advance through this flock with your power.’
She was saying so between laughs.
“That might be true, and yet...!”
The swing of her sword brought down another monster.
One, and then another.
One head, and one more.
Even if she cut down more than one hundred, she still wouldn’t reach.
They truly were appearing faster than she could deal with them.
“I’m not done yet!”
She scolded herself as encouragement.
[I’ve crossed past my limits. Now I just have to defeat the Demon in front of me. One step at a time.]
“Deeyaaaaaaah!”
She raised her voice... but her swinging sword was stopped. The shock that should have defeated her foe was transmitted to herself instead, sending a harsh pain through her arm.
“Kuh!”
She frowned in pain for a moment.
[Still, I can’t ever let go of my sword.]
There was no way her punches or kicks would ever be enough to injure the beasts.
[Who stopped my sword, though? Did the beasts I left behind actually catch up with me?]
When she looked up to see, it was no mere monster there; a huge body covered her field of view.
It was a giant with the strength to break walls and a thick skin that could withstand attacks from a ballista. This species of giant (“Living Citadels”, as they were usually called), couldn’t be defeated unless their weak points were struck with precision. It was a nasty opponent that could immediately recover from light wounds.
The giant grabbed her leg.
“!”
The motion completely caught her off guard. Before she could even think of resisting, she was lifted into the air and smashed against the ground.
“Guhah!”
The shock dulled her whole body.
In a normal situation, this would have meant instant death. What had prevented her from dying was the divine protection applied to her armor... but it had broken into bits in exchange for her life, exposing her bare body.
Without her armor, another attack like that would really be her last.
Her rough breathing made her unprotected abdomen move up and down in almost exaggerated motions.
Fortunately for her, it seemed neither the beasts nor the giants had the intention to rape her. Otherwise, she’d have easily lost her purity right there and then.
What her foes wanted was not to violate her, but to pulverize her. The way she was, she’d be torn apart by the beasts’ fangs, if the giant didn’t crush her first.
Of course, she wasn’t just going to sit back and take it.
[If only I could stand up, or move an arm, or even just a finger, I would still have a chance at victory.]
However, her body just wouldn’t follow her orders.
She didn’t have the strength to keep breathing anymore.
Her view got dark, and she felt the footsteps of death approaching.
Despite having gotten within arm’s reach of the Demon, was she going to disappear without having fulfilled her mission? Were Nanael’s expectations of her wrong? Had her skills fallen short?
Regret surged within her like a kaleidoscope, and just when her heart was about to fall down the cliff of despair... a soft sensation was transmitted to her lips.
A warm breath that became a breath of life, expanding through her body from her lips.
“Big Sister! Wake up! Open your eyes!”
A voice she had heard before kept her consciousness from sinking into the abyss.
A reliable, powerful voice.
“Big Sister! Come back! Come back to us!”
The breath came in again.
[This voice is...]
“Airi! Melona! Don’t let the opponents approach!”
“Certainly!”
“Leave it to meee!”
“Michel, come! Get the flute ready.”
A reassuring voice that kept giving orders all around her.
[Yeah, this voice is...]
“Eli... na...?”
She could see now the face looking right at her. The eyes wet with tears, the hands firmly rubbing her chest.
“Big Sister, thank goodness!”
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