CHAPTER 59: THE SHATTERED SWORDMAIDEN [3]

The bizarre creature drooled, her mangled mouth stretched at both ends, before an ear-piercing scream tore through Leon’s ears.

"Kreeerrrraaaaaaaaahhhhh!"

Even though the scream nearly burst their eardrums, none of them shuddered.

"Is that a chimera?"

Alice asked, squinting her eyes to get a clearer view.

"Gross," she added.

Of course, this wasn’t the first time Alice had seen a demon. Back when she was a kid, her grandpa always brought her along on a few of the hunts.

Well, because of her grandpa, she was pretty much used to witnessing these kinds of gruesome creatures.

Leon let out a sigh and met Alice’s gaze. "Can you deal with that thing?"

"Excuse me?"

Alice blinked, not believing what she just heard. The look in her eyes said, Did this fucker just order me?

Sure, Leon could fight that chimera on his own, but if he had Alice at his side, then why go to such trouble?

If Leon had to provide his research, then he would make sure Alice understood what it meant to accept his conditions.

"Grrrraaaaahhhh!"

The chimera growled, leaving the dog’s corpse on the ground. Her arms made a sickening wet sound as she cautiously walked toward them.

A chimera was usually found in the warzone. When the corpses of fallen warriors were left to rot, the demons turned those corpses into one of them.

"Aac... wint..." The chimera tried to move her lips, but her words were inaudible to Alice and Leon.

It was how they played with the emotions of humans, turning their comrades against them into rotting corpses. Most who faced them lost hope on the spot.

The chimera, after leaving the dog’s corpse, was growling at Leon.

"So?" Leon asked Alice again, looking at the scene.

"Huh? Don’t you know how to fight?"

Alice blurted in annoyance.

Leon gave her a flat look. "I can, but... why should I waste the effort when you’re right here?"

Alice narrowed her eyes. "Lazy bastard."

He smirked. "I prefer the term ’efficient.’"

Alice clicked her tongue in irritation and stepped forward.

She flipped her side hair with the motion.

Lifting her right hand slightly and rubbing the ring on her fingers, she walked slowly towards the chimera.

—-Grrroowwwwlll!!!

"Wow, how noisy. You need discipline," she said, looking at the chimera.

The gem on the ring pulsed with a deep violet glow, expanding and twisting until the small ring transformed into a massive scythe. A golden purple shaft supported a gleaming amethyst blade.

Alice spun it once, then rested the weapon behind her, letting its weight sink into the earth with a heavy thud.

A crack formed beneath her boots.

Leon’s eyes widened a little, his mouth forming a small "O."

"...Well, she doesn’t have to act that dramatic," he muttered, clapping lightly with an unimpressed expression.

Alice quickly dashed towards the chimera. Using the momentum, she swung the scythe, aiming for its head.

Leon had never seen such moves outside of movies or video games, so witnessing it in real life made his heart beat faster.

Chop!

Keeeeuuuugghhhh!

The chimera screamed as its head tore halfway from its torso, but the cut wasn’t deep enough. The oesophagus still clung to the throat, allowing the creature’s scream to escape its mangled mouth.

"The fuck!"

Alice landed on the ground, tightening her stance with the scythe.

Her eyes locked onto the chimera as it staggered forward, dragging its nearly severed head behind.

"Disgusting," she said, gripping the scythe with both hands this time.

The headless body lurched and swung toward Alice before she could press forward.

"S-Shit!" She fumbled, raising her scythe in front of her to guard against the attack.

But the moment the chimera’s flesh made contact with the blade, a grin spread across Alice’s face.

"Got you," she muttered a spell, and soon after, her scythe began to glow.

Keeeeuuuugh!

The chimera screamed louder, its skin shrivelling as if it were drying from the inside out. An unimaginable amount of affinity was being sucked into the scythe, pulled directly from the chimera’s body.

No matter how much the chimera struggled, it couldn’t tear itself away from the weapon, as if its hands had fused to the scythe.

The glow on Alice’s scythe slowly dimmed, its hunger satisfied. She twisted her body and kicked the chimera square in the abdomen.

Bang–!

The chimera was flung across the field, smashing through the air like a rag doll. Before it could hit the ground, Alice launched herself after it, her figure vanishing in a blur of speed.

Her lips parted as she whispered, "Mist Blade."

The blade of her scythe vibrated with power. In a single sweeping arc, the weapon released a storm of dense, black mist that hardened into razor-sharp darts.

Shhhhh–!

Dozens of dark projectiles slashed through the air, slicing into the chimera before it could even scream. Each dart cut deeper, severing limbs, splitting flesh, and shattering bone.

By the time the mist cleared, what remained of the chimera fell into pieces.

"Whistle~" Leon was impressed, looking at the body of the chimera scattered across the ground like broken pieces of glass.

Alice rested the scythe against her shoulder, swaying her hair. She gave Leon a smug, full smile as if to say, ’See that, fucker.’

Alice swung the scythe back into place, letting it rest against her shoulder as she strutted toward Leon with a smug little hum.

"Mhhmmm~"

Her boots tapped against the ground like she was walking a runway.

Leon’s eyes narrowed.

’Yeah, yeah, I saw all that. No need to rub it in.’

Alice tilted her chin up, smirking. "So? Not even a ’wow, Alice, you’re amazing’? Come on, don’t be shy, clap harder, bastard."

Clap.

Leon clapped once. Just once.

"There. Happy?"

Alice’s smile twitched. "You stingy piece of shit."

"Heh, don’t act so tough. You could’ve finished it quicker if you hadn’t done those weird poses."

Alice scoffed.

"Tch, fuck off. If I wasn’t here, you’d still be scratching your balls while that thing chewed your face off."

"Alright, sure... You did great, bravo..." Leon said without minding his tone.

Alice grined her teeth before a low guttural growl spread across the area.

"Hm?"

Leon’s brows furrowed. "...You hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Shh!" He gestured for Alice to lower her voice.

In that moment, Alice senses it too.

The shadows beyond the trees stirred, and one by one, more of those distorted, stitched-together chimera’s dragged themselves into view.

This time, there were both males and females. Some have limbs, some don’t.

Alice’s smirk froze.

"...Well, fuck me sideways."

Leon raised an eyebrow.

"Fifty? Sixty? What the—see, they all get attracted by your earlier shit show."

She clicked her tongue, spinning the scythe back into her hands.

"Oh, shut it. Don’t just stand there, dipshit—help me! I can’t take them all!"

Leon sighed, drawing his blade at last.

"Yeah, fine. But don’t expect me to do the same fancy-ass move as you."

"Shut up and focus!"

Finally, Alice, alongside Leon, noticed that they were surrounded. Both met gazes and silently nodded, telling each other to take as many as they could.

Alice dashed forward first, and her scythe moved with the same arc. One chimera fell before it could even move.

Thud–!

Leon, meanwhile, didn’t move. He just stood there, waiting.

There was a reason for that; as pathetic as it sounded, Leon didn’t actually know how to use a sword properly yet. He had never really had the time to learn sword art.

One chimera circled him, its yellow eyes locking with his. The moment it pounced, Leon did a voiceless incantation. A miniature shard of ice appeared right in front of his face. It spun forward like a drill and split the beast’s skull in half.

Shasssshhh—!!

Thud–!

The headless body hit the ground with a thud but kept twitching. Leon grimaced, walked up, and stabbed it over and over like a madman until it finally stilled.

"Phew..." He wiped sweat off his forehead.

Alice’s voice rang out, furious.

"What the hell kind of lady-ass fight is that, dumbass? You trying to get us all killed or what?!"

By the time she yelled, Alice had already taken down four chimeras, while Leon had managed just one.

Leon only shrugged. "Well, can’t waste energy yet. Just... wait."

"Wait?! Wait for what, your period to end?!"

Despite her insult, the sheer numbers pressed in harder, forcing them back step by step.

"Fuck!!" Alice spat, her scythe cleaving another chimera.

"Hufff... huff.. huff..."

Thirty minutes passed. The ground was painted with blood and gore. Alice, whose clothes were soaked and stinking of rotten ichor, had only managed to take down fifteen. Leon, in comparison, has just three.

"We’re so screwed!"

Alice cursed, wiping her bloodied hands against her thighs.

Leon, on the other hand, was completely clean. He had been using his voiceless incantations to pierce skulls, while Alice had been forced to rely on raw scythe work. For her, casting a spell would need time, and they didn’t have it.

Leon wiped his mouth, chuckling darkly.

"Maybe we’re doing something wrong?" His head tilted slightly, but his eyes were fixed on the tip of the iceberg beyond the battlefield.

A grin tugged at his lips.

More than fifty chimeras roared in unison, their bodies crouching low, ready to lunge on them at once.

"Shit! Shit! Run!"

Alice shouted, stumbling back as the horde surged toward them.

And then—

Click–!

A sharp metallic clicking sound echoed through the frozen air.

Every beast froze mid-motion.

The next heartbeat, their fifty bodies collapsed, diced into neat, impossible pieces. Flesh and bones splattered across the white ice, staining it red in a grotesque chorus of wet sound.

"You kids have balls."

The voice was heavy, feminine, and dripping with authority.

Leon smirked, lowering his sword.

’I knew she was watching.’