A Former Child Soldier Who Uses a Magic Sword Wants to Live with an Older Sister of a Former Enemy E

The next place Seto landed on was a main square with a deserted town and a crumbling cathedral.

In the middle of it, a stake used for execution by flames was standing amidst this chilling atmosphere, and as if watching over it, a large tree was growing in one corner of the main square.

In this space, where it seemed as if it could start raining anytime, Seto waited for the wraith to appear, with his magic sword at hand.

He could hear thunder in the distance.

It was as if the deep-seated, dormant grudge of this city had awakened and was roaring.

But then, it began to sound more like a scream.

Then it turned into a clamor, with the sound of something burning, and the voices of men, women, and children mixed together, echoing through Seto’s ears.

This made him frown unconsciously.

Thunderclouds covered the sky above Seto at a speed that would normally be impossible, and lightning ran through them.

The wind blew harder, and the screams grew even louder.

Then, a single lightning bolt struck the stake.

Black smoke rose from it as it burned.

At the same time, the wind and tumult that had been raging so wildly suddenly stopped.

[I’m scared… I’m so scared… Fear drives me so crazy… It burns me up!] (???)

A young woman’s voice could be heard coming from the flames.

Suspecting it to be the wraith, Seto held his magic sword in his right hand, and backhand-gripped his knife in his left one, and slowly approached the burning stake.

He had no idea what sort of attack she would throw at him.

And he stayed vigilant not to be misled by that voice that seemed to unintentionally cause you to deeply pity its owner.

[I haven’t done anything wrong, but… Nobody understands me. They all longed for me, you know? And see me crushed by fear and despair.] (???)

Something moved amidst all the flames and smoke.

Then it soared high like a phoenix spreading its large wings, and landed gracefully in front of the burning stake.

It was a beautiful woman with long, asymmetrical black hair.

Her orange, dancer-like outfit showed off her inhuman proportions, and her smooth, curvilinear beauty was a sight to behold.

Her ample breasts were pushing so much against the fabric of her clothes they were about to burst, and her slit skirt revealed her bewitchingly beautiful legs.

However, her expression was somewhat melancholic, and her own lack of life was showing through her bright red eyes.

Perhaps due to this, she looked as if her outfit had been forced on her as a result of multiple twists of fate.

Conversely, the gap between the dancer’s state of mind and her outfit brought out the carnal desires of anyone who saw her.

Even Seto almost fell victim to his own lust, but he regained control of his own breathing and readied his magic sword and knife.

[My name is “Pouring Fear”. …How long do I have to dance in the middle of this inescapable fear…?] (Pouring Fear)

She bent her body as if dancing, and pushed her ample bust against the fabric to the limit, as if to emphasize it.

With her bright red eyes, the wraith cast a sad smile at Seto, and made a little gesture of sticking out her tongue.

Behind her sad, alluring beauty, she was overcome with an uncontrollable emotion.

——Fear.

When Seto sensed the intent of the wraith, he silently narrowed his eyes and focused them on her.

In all honesty, he could not bear the thought of cutting down a woman, and he was a bit confused about the enemy in front of him, who had an air to her somewhat similar to Satis’.

However, he reaffirmed his will to fight.

Just as he did in his battle against Dry Sorrow, he flipped a switch in his mind.

[Aah, how scary… Your eyes, your sword… They make my heart tremble. Why? Why are you trying to frighten me too? Tell me why.] (Pouring Fear)

[I don’t know the reason, but since you’re a wraith, I have to push forward. …Because I have someone waiting for me.] (Seto)

[That’s not a reason. So why? Why? Why does everybody want me? Do you all want fear to gnaw at my body and mind?] (Pouring Fear)

The wraith let out a sigh and a voice that sounded like a lament.

Looking exhausted, and with her white, translucent skin dampened by the heat of fear, she seemed ready to melt and disappear into the earth.

Even though her red eyes looked vacant as if she were in the presence of the man she fell in love with, they looked somber and dull, as if she was in complete despair.

The boy never thought he would be dealing with such a virtually defenseless being in a place of trial.

However, Seto’s eyes showed no sign of letting his guard down.

This kind of foe was not to be underestimated.

It definitely made sense to adopt this sort of attitude.

In the face of this wraith whose air and demeanor differed from those of Dry Sorrow, Seto cut off the word “mercy” from his own mind, and slashed at her head-on.

Using a dual sword technique he had developed himself on the battlefield.

He used the magic sword in his right hand to maintain a good distance between him and his opponent so he could mow her down and keep her in check, and instantly dive into her chest area the moment he saw her approaching, then use the knife in his left hand to perform various actions like gouging out her vital points, defending against her attacks, or slicing her torso and shins with his magic sword after catching her into a grappling hold.

Sometimes, he used his swordplay and footwork to wipe out the enemies around him with chains of slashes like a whirlwind.

He used a variety of sword techniques in every situation to improve his chances of survival on the battlefield.

Among them, Seto often used one technique in which he held his knife with his left hand in a reverse grip to mimic a mantis, and swung his magic sword sideways from his left flank to his back.

When his opponent was about to slash at him, he would extend his elbow wide and swing his sword hard.

That technique, which cleaved the opponent’s hands and abdomen in an upward scooping slash, was a threat to swordsmen who once fought on the battlefield.

This was because Seto’s dual sword wielding provided him greater action range.

And this time as well, he was about to strike the wraith with that same slash.

He learned from his battle with Dry Sorrow that he could not fight wraiths with ordinary methods.

Still looking exhausted, the wraith faintly smiled at Seto’s fighting spirit.

And just as he was about to move his hand forward to slash at her with his magic sword…

What!? (Seto)

A knife flew at him out of nowhere.

It was sharp and fast like a meteor, similar to the light slashes of Osiris’ magic sword.

Seto switched targets and flicked the flying knife away with his magic sword.

There was no one in the direction from which it flew.

He wanted to solve that mystery, but he did not have any time to relax as numerous other knives came flying at Seto from all directions.

[Why you…! So this is your power!] (Seto)

He turned his gaze to the wraith as he flung them all away, but she had already put more distance between them both.

Countless knives rained down on Seto like a torrential downpour.

Seto, who was able to fend off the knives with skillful swordplay, came to understand the true nature of her ability.

Is she summoning and shooting them from a dimensional pocket? No wonder those knives come flying at me even from the ground, then! (Seto)

Seto waited for the right moment to run through them.

All the knives were flying at the exact same speed.

Since they were flying randomly, the interval between them was uneven.

Sometimes, it was only a short moment.

Though it was merely a small one, he did find a way out of this in front of him.

After unleashing the power of his magic sword, Seto slipped through the flying knives at once, and approached the wraith.

[Aah, I’m scared. I’m scared… I’m scared…!] (Pouring Fear)

Immediately after Seto appeared right before her and tried to cut her down with his magic sword, her red eyes suddenly widened, and her movements increased in speed.

She dodged the incoming tip of his knife with dance-like motion, made knives appear from both of her hands as if by magic, and threw them at him.

Seto dodged and parried the knives, and kept waving his magic sword at her.

What’s up with the way she moves? She dances and evades my sword as if it was all choreographed! (Seto)

Whether it was a thrust, or a diagonal slash after a huge leap, the wraith dodged them all with passionate and seductive body movements.

It was fear. Her fear of Seto enhanced the quality of her evasive dance.

The more she feared Seto, the better she could sense the trajectory of his sword.

[I can see it. My fear is…!] (Pouring Fear)

[You little…!] (Seto)

Not only were none of his attacks landing, but Seto was once again stalled by the flying knives.

This was the reason enemies who used long-distance tactics were incredibly hard to fight.

Unable to put up with this any longer, Seto rushed away from the main square toward the residential area where houses were lined up.

[Aah, so you ran away. But you’re wasting your time. You can’t escape from this space. —Fear will come pouring down. All the fear you made me feel will come back to you.] (Pouring Fear)

With Seto, the source of her fear, disappearing from her sight, the wraith’s knives fizzled into black particles and dispersed.

However, those knives would probably stab Seto to death soon enough.

As long as the source of her fear that was Seto continued to exist, the wraith would wield her power without stopping.

You could say she was even more of a hassle than Dry Sorrow.

Meanwhile, Seto was moving with an objective in mind.

That swarm of knives is a real pain. It’s like a bunch of bees protecting their queen. …But if I take advantage of the characteristics of that wraith, then maybe… (Seto)

Seto was now on a battlefield.

He had a multitude of memories of that hell.

That bloody part of history where monsters that gnawed at the heart more than fear ever did lurked around.

Although they say a little learning is a dangerous thing, boldness could sometimes be your ally in overcoming such a predicament.

So Seto set out to fight back.