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Volume 6 Chapter 19

Volume 6 Chapter 19: Passage
As Axel fought against the armored knight, Lorie stood before the spring with Daisy.

The battlefield was close enough that they could hear the sounds of combat—yet far enough that they wouldn’t get in the way.

「Daisy, what am I supposed to do here?」

Lorie asked first.

What did she need to do to help?

In response, Daisy pointed at the spring’s water.

「I need you to touch this water.」

「The water? But if I do that, it’ll react strangely.」

Like before, it would probably repel her.

When she said that, Daisy looked at her and replied—

「Yeah. That’s exactly what we need. To fix this spear.」

The spear Daisy held was the one Axel had thrown earlier.

Its tip was shattered, but something resembling scales had been newly affixed to it.

「What do you mean?」

「When we touch the water, nothing happens. But when you do, it moves. In other words, the water you touch will end up filled with an immense amount of magic power. If I were to simply submerge the spear, it wouldn’t do anything.」

As he spoke, Daisy dipped his fingers into the water.

Nothing happened.

There wasn’t even the faintest sign of a magical reaction.

「From that, we can infer that only a spiritfolk like you can activate the sacred spring. Which means—Lorie. We need the water you touch.」

「…So you’re saying we’re going to use that hostile water to repair the weapon?」

When she asked, Daisy nodded.

「Exactly. We’ll submerge the spear in the water, letting it absorb the magic while also purifying it. That’ll complete the restoration.」

「It’s true… When I got blasted away earlier, I could tell—it’s not like the water solidifies or anything. So it should still be usable as water, but… we have to capture it first.」

Hearing that, Daisy gave a troubled nod.

「Yeah. Can I count on you for that? To fix the spear, I’ll need to focus completely—I won’t be able to spare any attention for anything else. For at least two minutes, I won’t be able to move. So… I’m leaving it to you.」

Lorie was already nodding before the words had even finished leaving Daisy’s mouth.

「Of course. I’ll do it. After all, you’ve come this far with me.」

She was the one who had asked them to come in the first place.

She couldn’t just sit back, do nothing, and watch helplessly.

…Giving everything she had—that was the duty of the Spirit Princess.

So Lorie pushed herself up.

「Lorie, are you sure you’re okay?」

「If I stay seated, I won’t be able to brace myself properly.」

She stepped down from her wheelchair, leaning on her staff.

Her legs wouldn’t bend, but she could still put strength into them.

「Besides, just having a little bit of water isn’t enough to refine the spear, right?」

「Ah—yeah, that’s true. The more we have, the stronger it’ll become.」

「In that case, all the more reason to get down there.」

Earlier, just the briefest touch had been enough to make the water rise up and lash at her like a striking tentacle.

…If that much could move just from the touch of her hand…

With that thought, she forced her foot forward—

「…Come on, then!」

And with that, she stepped into the spring.

At that very moment—

【Divine Punishment Enforced: Immediate Expulsion】

The same voice rang out—

—BOOM!

With a resounding noise, the spring moved.

This time, eight massive pillars of water surged up, far thicker than before.

Just as she had hoped, an enormous amount of water had responded.

「…This almost looks like a dragon. It reminds me of the Ouroboros. No—since there are eight heads this time, perhaps Yamata no Orochi would be more fitting.」

Each pillar arched and writhed as if raising its head.

And, naturally, what came next was—

—!

The swift retaliation against her imprudent intrusion.

The water columns lashed out like whips, striking toward her.

All eight were locked onto her. Which meant—

「If I capture them, I can use them as water! —【Construct Deployment: Collars of the Colossus】!」

Lorie struck the air with her staff.

In an instant, massive shackles of light materialized in the space before her.

This was a spell only Lorie could wield—one made possible by the immense magical power granted to a Spirit Princess, further honed through relentless training.

The shackles clamped down on all eight pillars at once, tightening and slamming them against the surface of the water.

The roots and tips still writhed, but the sections bound by the restraints could no longer move—

「This much water should be more than enough, right, Daisy?!」

「Yeah!!」

Daisy took off running toward the fallen water pillars. Then—

「Here we go—【Transmutation: Refined Enhancement—Divine Spear】…!!」

He plunged the spear into the water and began chanting his spell.

At the same time, a blue, bubble-like light started gathering around the spear.

It spread from the tip to the butt end, completely enveloping it.

Daisy kept his gaze locked on it, continuing to weave his incantation, pouring magic into the spear.

For two full minutes.

Until it was done, Lorie’s only task was to keep the pillars restrained.

It was a simple job.

And yet—

「…Kh…!」

The water tendrils began thrashing violently.

If she loosened her grip even slightly, the shackles of light would be flung off.

And on top of that—

【Divine Punishment: Immediate Expulsion!】
【Divine Punishment: Immediate Expulsion!】
【Divine Punishment: Immediate Expulsion!】

The voice echoed through the void over and over.

No—at this point, 『Echoed』 wasn’t the right word.

It was blaring, roaring in her head like an incessant alarm.

But—

「Like I care…!」

Lorie gritted her teeth, slamming her staff down and focusing her magic once more. That’s right.

「The gods can do whatever they want… but I’ll do things my way, too!」

She had been put through countless trials, forced to face one impossible task after another.

If that’s how they wanted to play, then she’d throw herself into something equally reckless.

「If it’s a battle of willpower, then that’s my specialty!」

She tightened her grip on her staff, channeling all her strength into it.

The force was transmitted through the shackles, pressing down on the root of the water columns, trying to subdue them. But—

—!!

The thrashing of the water pillars didn’t stop. And then, from the front—

—CRACK

A sound split the air.

The middle of the water column.

It writhed violently, and in the process, it slammed into the surrounding terrain, causing the lake bed to crack open.

The violent twisting of the water pillars sent rocks and gravel flying, charging them with explosive force.

With that momentum, the rocks and gravel shot up like bullets, hurtling toward Lorie and Daisy.

「Ugh…! 【Construct Deployment: Light Fortress】!」
　

Lorie immediately stepped in front of Daisy, raising a wall of light.

The light barrier, composed of her own magic, deflected the sharp stones and gravel.

But it was close.

She had been channeling most of her magic into restraining the water columns, which had weakened the wall.

Still, she had to maintain it while Daisy continued her chant.

With that resolve, Lorie kept the light wall up. That’s when—

—BOOM!

The loudest noise yet rang out.

It was the result of the water pillar thrashing again.

The crack was the same as before, where the lake bed shattered and debris was sent flying. However—

…This time, it was bigger!

The stones flying through the air were no longer mere fragments.

They came crashing toward her like the size of cannonballs.

They were moving at a terrifying speed.

With a sharp bang, the light wall was pierced.

…If this goes on, it’ll hit Daisy!

It was a split-second decision.

The stone cannonballs shot through the light wall and were about to strike her chest. In that moment—

「Not on my watch!」

Lorie slammed her palm down.

Since she couldn’t use construction magic, she had simply reinforced and hardened her hand with magic, relying on her bare hand.

She placed it in front of the stone cannonball.

—CRACK

With a dull sound, her hand collided with the stone.

She immediately felt the skin tear.

Though it had been somewhat hardened, it was still skin and flesh.

If it collided with sharp stones, the result was inevitable. Yet still—

…You’re not getting through me!

She managed to crush the stone.

Fresh blood and stone shards flew into the air.

That should have turned it into a non-lethal projectile. However—

A few small fragments still remained. So—

「Daisy!」

She called out urgently.

But Daisy didn’t move.

Daisy remained fixed on the spear sinking into the ultramarine water, both hands raised as she continued her incantation.

【Transmutation: Divine Spear Structure Enhancement, Spirit Magic: Infusion Enhancement, Divine Magic: Infusion Enhancement—】

Even if a pebble grazed Daisy’s forehead…

Even as blood poured from her hand—

Daisy didn’t stop chanting. She didn’t take her eyes off the spear. In fact,

「Haha… this is amazing! The spring’s magic, the divine power, it’s absorbing it all…!!」

Her eyes sparkled, and she smiled.

As though she didn’t even feel the pain.

…Such incredible focus…

A terrifying force was concentrated in her eyes and hands.

And then, after a few seconds—

「Ha… it’s done…!!」

Daisy’s chant, filled with determination and focus, reached its end.

「It’s fixed, my friend…!」

The spear was complete.