Chapter 84: A Hero Returns!
Chapter 84: A Hero Returns!
Arthur's Point of View
(Slight recap) Arthur got reeekt by the soldiers, and is now on the verge of losing. But, at the same time, Fenrir shows up and joins the battle!
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That pound was not enough to kill the soldier, which made me heave in relief. Although these knights planned on dirtying their chastity to the person I cared for the most, I still wanted them alive. If they needed some punishment of some sort, the law would be a perfect example for them.
But right now, my eyes focused on the eerie figure appearing out of nowhere. And that shadowy shape saved Merleen and me from despair.
After taking down those soldiers-hopefully without killing them, the shadowy figure launched itself to me. That figure tossed the knights away from my face, freeing me from my latches.
"Hey, Arthur. Did you miss me?" Fenrir said, while baring her claws.
I could not help but curve up a snicker upon meeting Fenrir's face in front of me. She was like a ghost that haunted my mind every time Fenrir was not beside me. There was this inkling feeling in my heart that Fenrir would protect me one of these days.
And I did not think that day would finally come.
"Geez, what took you so long?" I asked, mocking her with that goofy smile. "I knew you'd come."
"Sorry, Arthur, for doubting you. But right now, we need to kick the king's ass!"
"Ah, Fenrir! Don't kill anyone, okay?" I shouted, before seeing Fenrir off.
"I already know that."
After our exchange, Fenrir launched herself towards the knights and slammed her fist on the ground. The earthquake was enough to disrupt the knight's balance, forcing them to kiss the ground.
Fenrir continued ravaging the battlefield with her brute strength and extreme agility. She was like a jaguar dashing across the platforms with ease. However, Fenrir was no cat. She was the opposite of that animal, especially without those whiskers!
I stood from the ground and rushed towards Merleen. My eyes checked her body for any obvious bruises that I could tend. Fortunately for her, Merleen did not acquire any wounds from the knights. If they harm her, I might change the rule just for this day. It was a good thing I did not have to resort to that.
However, Merleen had yet woken up from the scene she faced. Because of the intense situation, Merleen collapsed and shut her eyes. She did not want to see anything like that, knowing that the two of us would die in vain.
If Fenrir had not arrived in time, that would have happened. It was a good thing Fenrir reconsidered right before Merleen got assaulted by these men. It was as if my luck had finally turned towards me.
But I jinxed myself as the king prepared something for us, which only got worse. Instead of human soldiers, the tyrant crowned released their tamed monster just to eliminate us. If he had these many beasts, he would have done something horrible to the neighbouring town.
It almost felt like. something odd happened in the forest.
As soon as the king released her pets, those monsters turned against him. Those beasts ate the elite knights guarding the king without casting a sweat. The king had an escape plan as he ejected himself from his throne.
After the monsters ate their meal, they craved for more and stared at the battlefield. Dozens of them scattered themselves at the place. Some of them even flew to the skies, while others dug underground. I could even guess that most of them got experimented on by this kingdom, since the king planned on using his pets as weapons.
If we wanted potions, that leader would want an army without feeding them, unlike humans. It was a perfect story for a person like him!
However, despite knowing his reasons, there was no point in taking down the adventurer guild. If the king wanted to conquer Camelot, he could have done it without killing the outer border. But instead of letting them live, the king wanted genocide of the poverty families. Hence, this situation right now.
My train of thought got distracted by a group of people approaching me. Eight recognisable adventurers welcomed my eyes, and each of them armed themselves with their weapons. I pointed my Clarent at them and waved it away from these people that could harm me. My body acted on its own while shiveringly carrying Merleen's unconscious body from this place.
But before I could even move, the man wearing emerald armour offered his hand. I stared at it for a while before realising that this mercenary wanted to help me.
"A-Aren't you going to kill me?" I asked, in a squeaky voice.
I could not help but get fidgety about the situation. Since Merleen killed the leaders of these mercenaries, I knew they wanted revenge against my group. These people also showed their side upon meeting me for the first time. So I really wondered... about this sudden change of heart of this group towards me.
"We are not here to kill you, Arthur. On the contrary, we're here to save you," the green armoured man answered, while patting my shoulder. "We'll take it from here. For now, you need to regain your strength if you still want to fight. Since Merleen is in no condition to battle, you should head over to Galehaut and seek treatment...." the man in front of me said, while scratching the back of his head.
"... If we're the ones who would accompany that girl it would be painful for the rest of us," that man continued, while leading me the way.
I had no other choice but to accept his offer. Since Merleen had a rare arcane capacity, her magic might got torn into pieces, considering the abnormal amount of magic she had. She also constantly drained her arcane to zero to save me from that fight.
And it was finally coming to bite us right now.
"Are you really going to be okay with this?" I asked, while looking at the flooding soldiers behind me. "These soldiers are still people I don't want you to kill them. I want to protect everyone else, including the soldiers."
"It was like Galehaut mentioned. You have a kind heart, Arthur. I commend you for that. If you don't want to kill anyone, that's fine by me! You're the one who wants to protect the village. My team would gladly give our lives to protect our home town!" the man answered, while showcasing his plate armour dyed in green.
"Tell me your name, so I can thank you," I asked the man who offered me his hand.
"People call me 'Green Knight'. And since I kind of like it, I got stuck with that name for eternity."
After our exchange, I heeded his advice and dashed straight to the ruined houses. I made sure that Merleen had a comfortable seat while racing through the wrecked road.
Those soldiers who noticed me could not chase me around, since they were both dealing with beasts and Green Knight. Fenrir was also with them as an ally, which made the situation absurd. It was as if the entire scene came from a movie where enemies become allies for the ultimate battle.
"Don't jinx it again, Arthur," I said, trying to lighten up my mood.
It took me a while before reaching the shelter. As I opened the door, Galehaut met my eyes. He sprinted towards me and carried Merleen to the back room. Since she needed treatment for his arcane, Galehaut tried his best to work on it as soon as possible. He even asked me to go outside and wait for him to finish.
"I work faster when I'm alone," Galehaut exclaimed, as he closed the door.
With nothing to do, I helped Galehaut's family distribute the herbs to the families. However, we all knew these plants were just prolonging the inevitable. It did not heal these people's illnesses, but comforted them. And that comfort would only last a minute, since all of them would share the same plant for a few seconds.
Before I could lose all hope, a recognisable face emerged in front of me. This event had been my thrice encounter of meeting people after a battle.
"Merchant! Do you know how to brew some potions?" I asked.
But Merchant could only shake his head and answered, "If I could, I would. But making potions includes countless materials and procedures. It even took me months before creating those two prototype potions!"
After confessing his work, Merchant sat on the bench while staring at the families. He took out the two potions from his bag and gave them to me.
"Give these two bottles to those who are in dire need. You're free to choose who to give this potion to since you saved my life," Merchant said, while looking at the ground. "I heard about what happened from Galehaut. Are we going to lose, Arthur? I don't know which side would kill us; the king or this plague."