A massive melee erupted. Countless plant-like monsters surged from the root-choked city center, while a horde of undead poured from a Subspace on the outskirts. The two armies collided head-on, and the battlefield instantly devolved into a tangled, chaotic mess.
'If I hadn't brought the legion, I would have been in serious trouble,' Simon thought. Facing that number alone would have taken an entire day. As Legion Commander, his role was now to lead the undead forward, occasionally launching a preemptive slash to eliminate the white apples falling from the sky.
He heard a strange noise and turned to see villagers rushing at him, their bodies covered in plant stems like grotesque blood vessels. Simon recognized them at a glance—the very couple who had told him about Sasha for three gold.
'Ugh.'
It was a sickening feeling to see someone he knew in such a state. Simon's expression hardened as he swung his greatsword. The two villagers were sliced in half at the waist, and the houses and plant monsters behind them were all cleaved in two before collapsing into rubble.
'This is a massacre. Why is Figaro killing innocent people?'
[It's obvious, isn't it? Look at that alley!] Pier's voice boomed in his mind.
Simon's gaze shifted. Tree roots pierced the bodies of the fallen, turning them into macabre coffins. The roots pulsed, siphoning some kind of energy, and as they did, the human forms grew more withered and gaunt.
[That bastard plans to absorb every resident of this town as nutrients.]
'Nutrients?'
[Yes. There's no way he'll stay in that massive tree body forever. Once he gathers enough power and gains perfect control over that girl Sasha's ability, he'll change his form one more time. That's when the real nightmare begins.]
'Thump! Thump! Thump!'
A tree monster resembling a rotten old log charged at Simon, but a swarm of Corpse Spiders, swinging in like a pendulum, sank their fangs into it and brought it down. Simon looked up toward the top of the tree. Through the magnified vision of his right eye, he could see Figaro's upper body, a twisted grin on his face.
Simon hardened his resolve once more. 'I will climb up there and wipe that smirk off his face.'
He pulled a zombie from his Subspace and touched the ring on his left hand to it. "Time to fight, Prince."
Black lightning struck from the sky, charring the zombie's form. A moment later, a boy in noble attire with a crown on his head rose to his feet.
[Ah, why is it always something like this when you call me?] Prince sighed, letting out a hollow laugh as he took in the sight of the giant tree.
Simon shrugged. "Because a hidden card is only brought out when it's important."
[...Oh?]
At those words, Prince's face lit up, and he began to bounce on the balls of his feet.
[That! I like the sound of that! A hidden card! You're saying I'm the legion's hidden card?]
"Yeah, yeah. Let's go." Clad in Pier's Bone Armor, Simon began to run, his cloak billowing behind him. Prince and the undead army followed at his side.
[The hidden card is on his way!] the excited Prince shouted, kicking off the ground and leaping up to smash his fist into the torso of a large tree monster.
The monster flew backward, crashing through a line of other plant creatures. Prince whistled, examining his fist.
[I'm stronger! Your Jet-Black has gotten more powerful since the Holy Federation, hasn't it?]
"Of course!" Simon yelled back, swinging the Greatsword of Ruin to slice a falling white apple in half. "How could I not get stronger after surviving at that school!"
With Simon and Prince at its head, the legion formed a spearhead and charged. The plant-type monsters and infected humans were all born from Sasha's innate ability rather than the Saintess's power. In terms of threat level, they were only Rank 1 to 3, far weaker than the legion's combat strength. The undead army advanced like a tidal wave.
[We broke through!] Prince shouted, sending more plant monsters flying with his fists. The base of the great tree was now right in front of them.
'It's so high,' Simon thought, craning his neck back until it hurt just to see the top.
[Simon! Are you going to climb it?]
"Just a moment." Simon took a deep breath, gripped his greatsword, and unleashed a powerful slash at the trunk.
A large gash appeared on the tree, but it was impossible to sever it with a single blow. A moment later, a white flame erupted from the wound, and it healed completely.
'The tree is Sasha's body. The Saintess's power is protecting it.'
During the incident with Flema, Simon had learned that the Saintess of Purification could resurrect with white flames even after being torn to shreds. Cutting down the tree directly was impossible. The only way was to climb it, strike down Figaro, and rescue Sasha. He'd had a similar experience during the island survival assessment, so he was confident.
'No time for clever tricks.' Simon placed his right foot on the trunk. 'Forward!'
He lifted his left foot from the ground, planted it on the tree, and began to run vertically. Prince, the skeletons, and the Corpse Spiders scrambled up after him.
[Just focus on what's ahead, boy! I'll control the legion!] Pier roared.
"That's reassuring!" Simon shouted, tilting his greatsword to the side. A sickening swarm of plant monsters was crawling down the trunk toward them.
'The sensation of cutting space itself!'
A white arc flashed through the air, and every monster caught in its path was severed and fell away.
[Hidden card punch!] Prince yelled. He threw a punch, and a shockwave of Jet-Black shot out like a tornado, blowing the remaining monsters off the tree.
"You really like that phrase, don't you?" Simon quipped.
[Not really!]
Simon and Prince continued to clear a path with sword strikes and punches. But it was harder than they had anticipated.
'This is ridiculously hard!' Even with Jet-Black, running up the steep incline on two feet was draining. 'And there are so many of them!' Plant monsters were endlessly pouring down the trunk. Just as Simon raised his greatsword to strike again...
[Save your strength, you fools!] Pier's helmet, which had been covering Simon's face, retracted and reassembled into a skeletal face, letting out a thunderous shout. The skeletons and Corpse Spiders surged past Simon and Prince, engaging the plant monsters first.
"Nice one, Pier!" Simon yelled as he and Prince safely bypassed the battlefield.
[How far have we come!] Prince shouted, creating another shockwave with his fist.
Simon kicked a monster away and replied, "About twenty percent of the way!"
[Ugh! It's too long!]
Just then, a branch in front of them twisted into existence, and a white apple popped out from it.
"Ah." Simon's expression froze. The fruit, which had previously only grown from the high branches, could now be produced directly from the trunk. It was proof that Figaro was adapting to the Saintess's power. He had to be stopped before he gained full control.
Small apples dropped directly toward them, and they destroyed them mid-air with a sword strike and a shockwave.
[Whoa!] Prince yelped in surprise. As soon as the apples were destroyed, they erupted in vertical pillars of divine energy. One of Prince's ears was blown off by the impact, and a hole was punched through his chest.
"Are you okay?"
[Damn it!] Prince staggered, coughing up blood. [Do you have enough spare zombies in your Subspace?]
"At least nine."
[Then there's no problem!] Prince immediately dashed in front of Simon and embraced the falling white apples. A divine explosion vaporized him without a trace.
With Prince annihilated, Simon immediately pulled out another zombie and touched the ring on his left hand to it. A black thunderbolt struck, and Prince reappeared.
[But dying feels like shit!]
"...Haha."
They ran without a break, but they had only made it thirty percent of the way. To reach the summit where Figaro was, they had to cover more than three times the distance they had already covered. The road ahead was long, and his legs were beginning to tremble. Still.
'I have to keep climbing.' Simon gritted his teeth. 'Don't think about anything else. Just get to the top, no matter what!'
As he ran, he reached a hand behind his back to activate a magic circle. The time had finally come. Emerald-colored smoke flowed out, and from another Subspace, he retrieved a golem's core. The core and the smoke merged, forming a black magic spell.
"Come forth."
The 'Blood Golem' magic was complete, soaring into the sky. Simon stopped and summoned twenty skeletons from his super-large Subspace. A cyan-colored smoke enveloped them.
'Simon Original – Royal Guard'
The twenty summoning-type skeletons began to emit a cyan glow, their cloaks brandishing in an unseen wind.
[Whoa, whoa! That's so cool!] Prince exclaimed.
Simon, panting, narrowed his vision. White apples were falling.
The Royal Guards shot out like bullets, drawing cyan trajectories as they swung their swords. The apples were sliced apart and exploded, allowing Simon to run safely through the gaps.
The twenty skeletons moved with impossible speed, using 'Dash'. It was as if countless emerald flashes were dancing around Simon. They cut down apples, felled plant monsters, and even severed the whip-like branches that lashed out at them.
"Ugh!"
One of the Royal Guards was caught in an explosion. Connected to it by the Cloud, Simon felt a searing jolt of pain and lost his footing.
[What are you doing!] Prince, coming from behind, caught Simon's hand just as he was about to fall. [Get a grip!] With monstrous strength, he threw Simon back up.
Simon created another foothold of Jet-Black and stuck to the tree. "Thanks, Prince!"
[Shut up and keep going!]
If he fell here, it was over. In his current state, it would be impossible to climb the tree from the beginning again. 'I have to get Figaro in this one go!'
Two more Royal Guards were destroyed.
'Uuugh!'
His muscles screamed, and his organs churned. The Royal Guard's only weakness was that the caster felt all their pain directly. Simon barely endured it, his eyes blazing. He could see the falling apples being cut down by cyan sword strikes from both sides. Ten Royal Guards remained.
"Uughhhh!"
His vision swam. His head spun, and a burning pain flooded his body. But he ran. He kept running. He could endure this much pain without using 'Indolence'. Besides, his Jet-Black reserves weren't stable enough to use it anyway.
[Hey! Snap out of it!]
Whenever he faltered, Prince would come from behind and push his back, giving him the strength to plant his feet and run again.
'Forty percent!'
Just then, he heard Prince's shout growing distant. He looked back to see Prince falling from the tree.
'Damn it!'
A branch had shot out, grabbed Prince's ankle, and flung him into the air. He managed to stick to the trunk again, but there was no time to wait. Simon ran on ahead. The number of Royal Guards dwindled to six.
"Hah! Hah! Disengage Royal Guard!"
The remaining skeletons froze, and the Cloud soared into the air, returning to Simon's magic circle. Panting, Simon swung the Greatsword of Ruin. Now, he was alone. He madly swung the greatsword, cleaving through the white apples. He stepped onto the midway point of the trunk.
'Halfway there!'
He had only just reached the halfway mark. His remaining Jet-Black was about four percent. He was overworking his core with mana breathing, but it was overloaded and malfunctioning. Every step, every swing, consumed more Jet-Black. Two percent remained.
He still had half the way to go, and Figaro was laughing down at him from above. His vision swam. His body whispered its limits. 'You've come this far. You've given it your best. Even if you can't save Sasha, it can't be helped. She'll understand. Your teammates will understand.'
'My best.' The word echoed in his mind. 'Is this really my best? Have I given everything I have?'
'Not yet.' He swung the greatsword, bisecting another falling apple, and forced his right foot forward. Fifty percent. Halfway to Sasha. To climb this remaining half, he had to do one thing: push past his limits, transcend common sense.
'Pull it out.'
Everything. To climb the other half, he had to give the other half of himself.
His remaining Jet-Black hit exactly zero. As if a switch had been flipped, the strength drained from his body, and a wave of exhaustion washed over him.
But.
He forced himself to take one more step.
'I...!'
He only needed one thing.
'Anything!'
Faith. Absolute faith in himself.
'I can do this!'
Figaro, who had been watching, stared in horror. Simon's eyes blazed with golden light, and a pure white radiance erupted from his empty core. The end was a new beginning. Where the Jet-Black had dwindled to zero, one hundred percent divinity now surged forth.
"Haaaaah!"
He began to run again, his feet now wreathed in holy power. He swung the greatsword with his right hand and pressed his left to his chest.
'Strength'
'Haste'
'Endurance'
His body was enveloped in blessings of different colors, and his speed accelerated. He ran, pressing a hand to his wounds and casting 'Heal'. He felt so good he could go crazy. A liberating feeling filled his chest, and he shouted, "Follow me, Pier!"
[Bwahahahahahahaha!]
Pier's skeletal form, wrapped around Simon, was also bathed in divinity and engulfed in radiance.
[Just you wait, brat!]
The Cloak of Invisibility transformed into a dazzling white cloak of divinity, and in Pier's left eye socket, a pure white flame blazed like a torch.
[You really are insane! How much more do you plan to insult the dead?!]
Now in the same state as the divine undead that had once severed the Saintess of Purification's right arm, Simon and Pier swung the Greatsword of Ruin in perfect unison.
Apples and plant monsters alike were obliterated in a straight line.
[How can a mere necromancer—!!] Figaro shrieked, his victory turning to ash.
"I told you!!" Simon roared, stomping on the divinity he had created and shooting forward like an arrow. "To stay right there!"

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