24. [Altora] Life’s Biggest Chance/Middle (3)
The fact that “Divine Silver Sword” was made possible by Marge lending an extraordinary number of skills was something that was hard to believe. But looking at Altora’s abominable state, no one could deny it.
At this point, Gordon clearly realized that this was an abnormal situation, and shouted to Tina at the back.
「Tina! Use [Angel’s White Wings] to heal Altora!」
Tina trembled and timidly held her hands to the front.
「[Angel’s White Wings], activate…!」
Nothing happened. Altora’s wounds, which normally would have healed completely in a second, were left exposed.
「[Angel’s White Wings], activate. Activate! No… my angel power is gone after all… O’ Heavens, what sin have I committed! Aaaaaaahhhhhh…」
Tina collapsed while holding her face.
「T-This is not the time to be crying! Altora is…」
「Gha…!」
Several times the [Sword Saint] flew in the wrong direction and fell at Eria’s feet. Eria crouched down and looked at Altora, who was covered in mud.
「E-Eria… use ancient magic and strengthen something…」
「Not available.」
「Huh……?」
「Ancient magic is currently unusable. Therefore, I will provide the maximum support I can in my current state.」
Eria put her right index finger into her mouth, and then put it flat on Altora’s forehead.
「Apparently cuts can be cured if you put spit on it.」
「Hah……?」
There was nothing he could do. With a body that refused to listen, Altora managed to turn his attention to the Duke’s seat.
There was no one sitting there anymore.
「AAAAAAAAAAAAAA……!!」
Altora didn’t even have the willpower to stand up anymore. Behind them, Gordon was also surrounded by fifty army ants and was about to be crushed.
「H-Hey! What are you guys doing!? For some reason I can’t swing my great sword! Hurry up! These things are going to–!!」
Gordon’s [Obsidian] is a unique skill that can harden his body and increase his weight, making it an excellent shield. The sacrifices he made in terms of mobility and attack power were made up for with skills like [Physical Strength Enhancement] and [Flash Step] lent to him by Marge… But now that those were gone, he was unable to move, let alone swing his great sword.
If his defense is hard, then he won’t die. But he can’t defeat the enemy either. Until the effect of the skill wears off, Gordon can only continue to stare at the ant’s mandibles gnawing at his eyeballs.
Eventually, the A-class parties and Duke Abik’s private army joined in to help, and the unveiling event, which was unprecedented in history, came to a close.
◆◆◆
「I came to return the letter. I cannot send this to the master.」
Seven days have passed since the unveiling party, which ended in confusion and disappointment.
Altora and the others sent a letter requesting a meeting with the Duke to offer an explanation, but the butler who came to return the letter, which had a stamp of rejection stamped on it. He also serves as the secretary.
Altora, who had been waiting in the guild late at night until no one was left, desperately tried to fight for a chance.
「Wait! I mean, please wait! I can explain all this!」
「Well now, what do you wish to explain?」
「I-I wasn’t feeling well that day… And there was a traitor…」
「Listen well, Altora-sama. It seems like you are misunderstanding a few things.」
The black-clad butler/secretary held up three fingers with his white-gloved hand.
「My master doesn’t like pointless fights. He values being thoughtful, merciful, and tolerant.」
「I-I am aware of that.」
The butler chose not to reply to Altora, and lowered one of his fingers.
「If you had a problem with your skills, you should have thought about it and reported it. We could have given you another chance two or three months later.」
Altora swallowed, thinking “like hell I could have said something like that”. Seeing this as an answer, the butler lowered his second finger.
「However, it is human nature to not give up without trying. My merciful master believes that such failures happen to everyone. The reason why he remained at his seat even after your first failure was “proof” of this. However…」
The butler lifted his monocle.
「You activated it for a second time.」
「S-Second time?」
The butler then spoke as if admonishing Altora.
「You activated the skill [Sword Saint] two, three, and four times, even though you knew you couldn’t control it.」
「Why is that……?」
「It would not have been surprising if it had hit the master or his wife.」
「…!!」
Altora’s [Sword Saint] is a high-speed attack that cannot even be seen with the naked eye. If it was directed towards a person, the results are plain as daylight.
If such a thing had happened.
Imprisonment, torture, hanging. Ominous words sprang into Altora’s head, and he felt as if the ground beneath him would collapse at any moment. As Altora sank to the ground and placed both hands on the floor, the butler lowered his third finger.
「That’s why I asked the master to leave. My tolerant master has said that he will not charge you with any crime. You are still young. Please keep a broad perspective and cherish your life.」
「B-But! Is there really no other way!? Let me at least talk to him once!」
The butler shrugged his shoulders at Altora, who was still reluctant.
「Let’s see… If you notice a natural disaster or a populace uprising, please come to see us. You might get a chance then to meet the one who rules the territory. Well then.」
De facto complete refusal. Altora could only silently watch the butler leave.
「…Shit! Shit!!」
Knowing that his path to advancement has been closed, Altora punched the floor.
「Marge, you bastard!! You…!!」
Eria cannot use magic and Tina has lost her healing powers. Gordon’s [Obsidian] is still well, but he will be unable to move for a while due to the mental damage that has been done to his entire body by the army ants.
The S-class party “Divine Silver Sword” has completely lost its function.
「…No, not yet.」
In the darkness where everything was lost, Altora noticed one remaining light. He stood up and grabbed it.
「The alchemist! The genius alchemist Angelina! She hasn’t arrived yet!」
An alchemist who was called in to fill in when Marge was expelled. Unlike Eria, she was a talented woman who was devoted to academics, but on some whim she showed an interest in the “Divine Silver Sword.”
Altora had been informed that she would arrive soon.
「If a door is not available through a nobleman, then I should go through a scholar! With two talented members with promising futures in academia, there’s bound to be a breakthrough somewhere! It is often said that you should always have a broad perspective!!」
Something was wrong with Eria, but that doesn’t erase her past accomplishments. Altora laughed to himself in the guild at night, thinking that there must be some use to her still.
A young alchemist was staying at an inn near the guild. She arrived at the town but the sun was setting, so she postponed her visit to the guild until the next day. Her name was “Angelina.”
「Tomorrow is finally the day〜Tomorrow morning〜」
On the table in front of her was a small stone doll the size of her palm. The puppet, also known as a golem, nodded at her words as if it had a will.
「I’m really looking forward to it. What kind of person are you, [Skill Lender]!」
Altora had no way of knowing her intentions.
NEXT CHAPTER
RELEASE RATE
Skill Lender Get Back His Pride
Speed up schedule by 10 hours
Current schedule: Every 90 hours
Oh? Seeing if skills can be lent to inanimate objects/magical constructs?