NOVEL NEXT Ch. 100
Chapter 100
The Angel Rifiris summoned alone took the form of a teenage girl. She wore light armor, equipped with a sword in her right hand and a shield in her left. She looked more like a Valkyrie than an Angel.
"For now, let's take them down. Should be easier than the last ones."
While strengthening Claire and Lipia, Yuurai attacked the oncoming Angels with countless Blades of Darkness.
Perhaps their defense was lower than the armored Angel's, as she managed to injure them all over. However, the wounds weren't deep, and it was unclear if they were truly taking damage. They didn't even seem to feel pain.
"Claire! I'll stop their movements, so you finish them off!"
"Got it."
Yuurai rained down Blades of Darkness from above. Pressured by the assault, the Angels fell to the ground.
(If the strategy is the same, they're no match for me and Claire...)
Just as Yuurai thought that, the falling Angels began to sing.
To human ears, it was surely a high, clear, and beautiful song.
However—
"Ugh...!"
To Yuurai, the song was unbearably unpleasant. From a human perspective, it was like the sound of nails scraping a chalkboard—only worse.
It wasn't just unpleasant; it clearly disrupted her mind and made it harder to use magic. The power of the Blades of Darkness visibly weakened and was dispelled by the Angels' light.
"What an annoying attack..."
If the song affected Yuurai, it naturally affected Claire and Lipia too. Lipia covered her ears and crouched down, unable to move. Claire was also a bit unsteady.
However, since Claire fought more with Swordsmanship than magic, the disruption to magic might not affect her much.
"Claire! Can you still fight!?"
"I can still fight!"
"I might not be able to support you well! Be careful!"
"Got it!"
With Yuurai's attacks thinned, the Angels flew freely while continuing to sing.
Fortunately, though the song was a threat, they didn't seem skilled at long-range attacks. They came in for close combat.
Three Angels headed for Claire, while the remaining two attacked Yuurai and Lipia. Since Yuurai had to protect Lipia while fighting, the situation wasn't in her favor.
(I won't let Lipia get hurt. Even if I can't fight at full strength, I'm stronger than them. Besides, I now have a way to counter Holy attributes.)
Yuurai deployed countless Blades of Darkness around her and launched them at the two Angels. They couldn't deal damage, but they could at least hinder their movements somewhat.
Before the enemies could close in, Yuurai spent a little time gathering Magic.
"......Fallen Angel, summon."
Before Yuurai appeared a beautiful woman with black wings and pale purple hair. She was human-sized.
In both her hands were two ominous blades stained blood-red.
Though she appeared with an imposing stance... the Fallen Angel dropped to one knee.
"Huh? Hey, are you okay?"
Could the Angel's song have dealt fatal damage to the Fallen Angel?
Yuurai grew a little concerned.
Though the Fallen Angel held her head for a few seconds, she shook it side to side as if to drive something away.
The Fallen Angel glanced at Yuurai for a moment.
In her eyes, Yuurai saw a glimmer of will that hadn't been there before, leaving her confused.
"Um... can you fight?"
The Fallen Angel nodded.
"Then kill those two."
The Fallen Angel moved. Her movements were a bit sluggish, but not enough to prevent her from fighting.
The Fallen Angel was not just dark-aligned, but a dark-element Angel. If what the Evil God said was true, she possessed the power to erode Holy attributes.
It wasn't that she was immune to Holy attributes, but since both were weak to each other, the Fallen Angel's attacks were still effective against normal Angels.
So as not to interfere with the Fallen Angel's battle, Yuurai dispelled the Blades of Darkness.
"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
The Fallen Angel screamed. It wasn't just a voice—it was a type of attack imbued with Magic. The pressure slowed the Angels' movements.
The Fallen Angel skillfully wielded her two swords, wounding the Angels. Her blades tore large gashes into their bodies and prevented them from regenerating.
The Angels' swords wounded the Fallen Angel as well, but with Yuurai continuously supplying Magic, those wounds healed.
The Fallen Angel was originally a temporary form made of Magic. As long as the flow of Magic wasn't interrupted, she could continue to fight without disappearing.
(The downside is I can only summon one Fallen Angel... Hm, if I have the leeway, should I use Deep Corruption on that Angel? But I'd have to use my power as Demon King...)
If she used her power as Demon King, Monsters might gather. That was something she wanted to avoid.
"For now, let's kill the Angels."
The Fallen Angel fought well and drove away the two Angels.
Meanwhile, Claire was struggling. Her armor was damaged, and without Yuurai's continued supply of Magic, she might have been seriously injured and unable to move.
(Even for Claire, fighting three at once was tough. But now it's fine.)
"Support Claire! Kill the remaining Angels too!"
The Fallen Angel flew toward Claire and engaged the remaining two Angels.
With some breathing room, Claire bisected one Angel's torso. It still moved, but when she followed up by cleaving its head, it vanished.
Now Claire joined the Fallen Angel in battle, making it a one-on-one fight. At that point, they were no longer being pushed back.
Claire and the Fallen Angel eliminated the remaining two Angels.
"Claire, Fallen Angel, good job! Thank you for defeating them!"
When Yuurai called out, Claire gave a small nod, and the Fallen Angel—for some reason—hugged Yuurai.
"Wha? Wh-What?"
The Fallen Angel embraced Yuurai's head and rubbed her cheek against her. Though she looked older than Yuurai, she acted like a young, innocent girl.
At this sight, a wave of murderous intent erupted from Claire and Lipia.
"......Hey, Yuurai. Who is she?"
"Yuurai. What did you do to her while we weren't looking?"
"Wait, wait, I didn't do anything! I just summoned her and had her fight! I've summoned her a few times before, but this is the first time she acted like this. If I had to guess, maybe it's the song's influence?"
Perhaps the Angel's song had changed the Fallen Angel's state of mind. Did she even have a mind to begin with? Yuurai had assumed she lacked Intelligence and merely followed orders.
"Um, Fallen Angel? Could you let go now?"
"That song... made me remember. I was once an Angel. You destroyed me. Take responsibility."
"......You could talk? Well, yeah, I guess I did destroy you. I'll take good care of you now."
The Fallen Angel released Yuurai. With a slight smirk, she dissolved into the air and vanished.
"......She regained her memories from the Angel's song, huh? So she had memories to begin with."
Since it was Yuurai's first time using a Fallen Angel, there were still many unknowns.
At the very least, the Fallen Angel was undoubtedly a reliable ally.
As Yuurai pondered with a thoughtful hum, Claire and Lipia now took turns hugging her.
"Fallen Angels are dangerous. You shouldn't summon them too often."
"Yeah, I felt like something bad was going to happen too."
"......You two. We haven't solved the Rifiris situation yet, so let's save this for later."
At Yuurai's prompting, the two reluctantly let go.
"We've dealt with the Angels for now, but we still need to do something about Rifiris. But what should we do...?"
Neither Claire nor Lipia had an answer to Yuurai's question.