━Clang.
A sudden sound ca from the door behind Tirpione, who was clinging to .
“Ken, will you be my master?”
She looked up at with familiar eyes, the sa gaze I had seen often before.
Those eyes reminded of Laphne’s when she saw as prey.
The eyes of soone filled with desire and greed.
“Master... ans...”
“It refers to the owner of the magic sword Tirpione.”
Of course, that’s what it ant.
I placed my hand on her shoulder to gently push her away and looked her in the eyes.
“Uh, Tirpione, you may not know this, but if you co with , we’ll be attacked by monsters… That’s just how magic swords work.”
If I left this house while owning Tirpione, a horde of monsters would swarm in.
How I knew this was unclear, but I played it off as the characteristic of magic swords.
What mattered was that my life was at risk.
No matter how strong I had beco through my diet, facing a horde of monsters would surely be fatal.
Yet, to my surprise, Tirpione chuckled softly.
“How wise of you.”
Then, she looked up at with a gaze full of admiration.
It felt as if she were a fanatic lost in a cult.
I couldn't comprehend how she could evaluate this highly in such a short ti.
“But it’s alright, Ken. If you don’t leave, there’s no danger.”
“Pardon? What do you an…?”
“All you have to do is stay with .”
Her lips curled into a subtle smile.
That greedy smile seed to gaze at intently.
No way…
I pushed her aside and rushed towards the door in a panic.
━Clang, clang.
“D-Damn it, what the hell…!”
The door was locked from the inside, and no matter how I tried to manipulate it, it wouldn’t budge.
“Fufu, Ken, even if you’re Ken, you won’t be able to open it easily.”
Tirpione’s voice echoed from behind as I turned to face her, bewildered by the situation.
“Do you know why monsters don’t swarm when my body is in this house?”
She slowly approached, pressing her body against my back.
It was a warmth and a physical presence I couldn’t associate with a re spirit of a sword.
“It’s because this house has absorbed the magic of this place.”
“...The house is a monster?”
The very house itself contained demonic energy.
That wasn’t an impossible story.
After all, Tirpione had originally been an ordinary sword before absorbing magic and becoming a magic sword.
“This house protects what is inside it. Its purpose, painstakingly created by my first master, has awakened its powers through the demonic energy of this hell.”
I felt her arms wrap around my waist, her face pressed against my back.
Simultaneously, her voice, filled with greed, echoed in the house.
“Let’s stay together from now on, my master.”
In response to her words, I thought,
‘This is bad.’
Having been imprisoned by Laphne once, I realized Tirpione was sincere.
I had no idea why she was acting this way towards , but the important thing was that I was trapped.
In a monster house made stronger by absorbing magic.
But I needed to calm down, Ken Feinstein.
You have experience with imprisonnt.
It’s not sothing to be proud of, but...
This wasn’t my first ti dealing with such a situation, so I shouldn’t panic and should act calmly.
I would find a way out.
Having made up my mind, I turned to grab Tirpione’s shoulders.
The shining eyes that desired sothing looked at with delight.
I smiled back at her.
“I guess I’ve been played here.”
What Tirpione wanted was for not to leave.
In other words, she wanted to stay with her.
But I needed to get out of here. I couldn’t take her with .
So, I’d pretend to fulfill her desires.
“Well, since I have no choice, I look forward to working with you from now on, Tirpione.”
“...Ah.”
Tirpione’s face lit up with emotion at my slightly hesitant performance.
It seed to have worked.
Then, with tears glistening in her eyes, she nestled against .
“Ah! Ken! I believed you would understand!”
“...Y-Yeah… uh.”
As she pressed her body against mine, I could feel her soft form against .
Don’t panic.
I had endured far worse from the much larger Laphne.
I must not lose my composure over this level of intimacy.
“Uh, Ms. Tirpione. As a nto of our ti together, may I take a closer look at your body?”
“W-What? My body?”
“I’ve thought it was beautiful since the first ti I saw it. I want to take a good look at it.”
“...Huh!”
Suddenly, Tirpione grabbed her chest, her face turning bright red.
What was she doing?
From my perspective, the magic sword was simply a beautiful, fine blade crafted by its maker.
But what did that have to do with her clutching her chest?
Tirpione soon smiled and offered her sword to .
“Here it is...! But it is a girl’s body, so please handle it with care…”
“Y-Yes…”
To , it was just a sword, but to Tirpione, was it truly her body?
I gently traced my fingers along the blade of the sword I held.
Hmm, the edge is certainly…
“Aah! K-Ken! Don’t touch there too roughly…!”
“Whoa! I’m sorry!”
What part of the sword was that even…?
Anyway, the long sword form of the magic sword felt substantial.
It was definitely a fine sword with significant value.
“This is nice. A really good sword, Tirpione.”
“...Uuhh, if you praise like that, I’ll be overwheld…”
Embarrassed, she looked down while I turned my body.
In my line of sight was the locked door of the house.
“...Ken?”
Tirpione called my na from behind as I stared at the door in silence.
But before she could sense my intentions,
Using the physical abilities I had gained from my diet,
━Swish!!
I swung the sword in an instant.
“K-Ken?!”
Tirpione was startled by my sudden action.
But it was already too late.
━Chiiiiiing.
The magic sword Tirpione has the ability of corrosion.
It can corrode any living being that cos into contact with its blade.
And if this house had absorbed magic and turned into a monster,
It would count as another living being.
‘It works!’
The latch was precisely severed by the sword’s edge and began to corrode, loosening.
I turned to smile at Tirpione, who was gazing blankly at .
“Sorry about this. There can only be one person who can imprison .”
“Ah, ...Ah!”
━Kwahh!!
Then I lunged forward, breaking the door and escaping the house.
Of course, I left Tirpione behind.
With the shock of breaking the door, I rolled on the floor and imdiately looked back at the interior of the house.
Would she be following ? Would she attack ?
But contrary to my thoughts, Tirpione rely stood at the door, looking down at .
With a face that seed sowhat regretful, she smiled.
‘...Why isn’t she coming out?’
For a mont, I wondered about that.
Then, I saw sothing erging from her pocket and couldn’t help but chuckle.
What she held in her hand was the engraved stone tablet.
The key I had been searching for.
Noticing my expression, Tirpione covered her mouth with the stone tablet and said,
“This is what you needed, right? Then you’ll have to co back here soday.”
With her chuckling voice echoing in my ears, I felt a sense of helplessness in front of the key I could not obtain.
In the tranquil columns of the room,
Laphne’s party, who had co to save Ken, stood silently, finishing their preparations.
On the seventh morning, as Ken had described, the gravestone was about to react, and a multitude of monsters would soon swarm to break it.
To stop those monsters, the party was wrapping up their preparations with serious expressions.
“Emily, if the positions collapse due to the incoming monsters, stick close to Nana or Mary.”
Adrian, adjusting the gloves Ken had made for him, approached Emily, who was sitting beside a pillar.
She nodded quietly, knowing her safety as the only healer was paramount.
“...They’re coming.”
At that mont, Laphne’s voice rang out as she stood beside the gravestone, looking toward the forest.
And the ground began to shake simultaneously.
━Thud, thud, thud, thud.
It felt like a minor earthquake, with the ground trembling beneath them.
Emily, who had been sitting, stood up, and the other party mbers preparing quickly grabbed their weapons.
Then.
━Piiing!
With a strange ringing, the once-silent gravestone began to glow.
Seeing this, Laphne smiled brightly for the first ti in a while.
“Ken is coming soon, right?”
“Yes, as long as we protect this gravestone from those monsters.”
Standing next to Laphne was Mary, releasing her cold magic.
They all thought that they would soon et Ken again.
Even with the approaching horde of monsters, they shared this hope.
They wished for his safe return.
“Well, shall we begin?”
With a gentle smile, Adrian extended his hand forward.
His magic radiated warmth, growing larger, causing the surrounding temperature to rise.
And as if conducting an orchestra, he waved his hand.
━Fwoosh!
Suddenly, a massive fla erupted before him, and the fire magic, charged with energy, soared through the air like a cannonball, targeting the enemy horde.
━Kwahhhh!!
With the soaring flas and the sound of a trendous explosion,
And,
[ Uwaaaahhhh━!!! ]
The battle to protect the gravestone, where Ken would return, began with the cry of a monster.
“Laphne! Mary! You two take care of the smaller, nurous monsters. We can’t let them reach the gravestone!”
Among the approaching monsters were smaller creatures that dashed forward.
They resembled rats, tiny insects, or small humanoid monsters.
Following Adrian’s command, Mary’s ice projectiles rained down on the monster horde, resembling a machine gun.
While Laphne took care of the creatures that dodged the magic.
“Zikfrit, you and I will handle the bigger ones.”
“Understood.”
Adrian and Zikfrit faced the massive horde of monsters.
Finally, Adrian turned to Emily.
“Emily, use healing magic on any injured mbers. And please seal any monsters using skills.”
At his words, Emily nodded resolutely and soon sent magical chains from her hands to bind a harpy that was about to use a sleeping skill.
━Kwahhhh!!
Simultaneously, another fla erupted from Adrian’s hands, attacking the horde of enemies.
Zikfrit, moving like a blur, jumped high into the air.
His target was clear.
A giant worm.
As he swung his sword toward the colossal caterpillar-shaped monster, it was split in two.
━Kwahhhh!!
━Bababababam!!
With a barrage of fire and ice raining down on the monster horde, they were swept away.
‘...We can do this!’
At first, Emily had been overwheld by the incoming monsters, but she smiled at the sight of her party efficiently dispatching the creatures.
If things continued like this, it wouldn’t be hard to hold out until Ken returned.
As she envisioned victory, suddenly,
━Thud, thud, thud, thud!
━Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!
From the center of the forest, the sounds of more monster hordes approaching echoed on both sides.
[ Kraaahhhh━!! ]
Monsters ca charging with dreadful roars.
What began as a single line of monsters swelled into a more significant mass due to the rging of additional hordes.
“A-Adrian…!!”
Emily, frozen in place at the sight, imdiately called out to Adrian.
“Damn it! Mary! Take the left side━!!”
Adrian, who had witnessed the sa scene as Emily, shouted urgently to Mary.
The two individuals capable of producing the most significant firepower had to sweep away the enemies with their magic.
‘...If this continues, their magic will…’
But no matter how powerful they were, they had their limits.
The growing number of monsters ant that the amount of firepower they needed to unleash was also increasing.
Zikfrit and Laphne moved without pause, taking out the encroaching monsters.
Though they were slaughtering the creatures at an unbelievable pace,
It was challenging to defend against overwhelming numbers.
[ Kyaaahhh!! ]
“Ugh!”
━Slash!
Ultimately, one Poison Rabbit managed to slip past Laphne and Zikfrit’s defenses.
Though it wasn’t a high-ranking monster, Emily could easily dispatch it with her sword.
But.
‘They’re getting through.’
The once impenetrable barrier was starting to show cracks.
“...Ken.”
Emily gazed anxiously at the gravestone, hoping for Ken’s return.
But it still glimred, with no news coming from it.
“...Hurry back.”
For so reason, with each passing mont of Ken’s absence, her anxiety mounted as she gripped her sword tightly.
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