Down.
That’s what Promi told Rita.
But in reality, Promi only took three seconds.
At the top of the high slope, Promi first drew her sword, and gray runes lit up one by one along the blade, like street lamps turning on in succession along the edge of a street.
Then, Promi’s figure seemed to transform into a gust of wind, surging toward the massive Broodmother.
Sword light flashed, and in an instant, the enormous Broodmother shattered into pieces, falling apart like a toppled tower of blocks. Sprays of bodily fluids and massive chunks of flesh tumbled down.
Caught amidst the tide of Beetles, Rita looked up and caught a glimpse of the final glint of cold steel on Promi’s sword before it was completely sealed within the Scabbard.
Even in the clattering, gnashing sea of Beetle legs and mandibles, Rita felt as though she could hear a sharp hum from the sword.
Then, all was silent.
The moment the Broodmother was slain, the swarm of Beetles madly biting at Rita froze for a heartbeat. The many chitinous limbs that had been locked onto her seemed to hesitate, as if unsure where to strike.
But it was only a single instant.
After that, the swarm erupted again, their attacks on Rita growing even more frenzied.
But not all of them came for her— a significant portion, roaring with rage, surged toward Promi instead.
Killing someone’s mother in front of an audience, Promi was naturally going to suffer the fury she deserved.
“Rita!”
It was the loudest Promi’s voice had ever been. Though she simply called Rita’s name, Rita already understood what she meant.
“Understood!”
Rita spun around, sword in hand, her blade slicing through the air like a whirlwind, flinging away the charging Beetles. She seized the chance and broke into a sprint.
Although Promi was positioned even deeper inside than herself, Rita trusted her strength implicitly. As long as she could ensure her own safety, that was all that mattered.
The keen blade cut through Beetle shells and the corpses of the swarm, making the Beetles wail in agony, but still they pressed on fearlessly, one after another, toward Rita.
It was futile. Even if they threw their lives away to try to trap these two intruders— Rita and Promi— within their nest, they couldn’t stop the pair from slicing through their ranks like sharp blades, shredding the swarm as thoroughly as the dead Broodmother.
Suddenly, a deeper and colder will, as real as a tide of frost, swept over the land. The hairs on Rita’s back stood on end; she shivered as if a bucket of water had been dumped over her from head to toe.
All the Night Saint Beetles fell silent at that moment, their countless compound eyes swiveling in unison to look in a single direction.
Not toward Promi. Not toward Rita. Not even toward the corpse of the Broodmother. But toward a part of the swarm— a patch of Beetles no different from any others.
Yet what they were truly staring at wasn’t the swarm, but the very earth beneath their feet.
Rumble, rumble, rumble—
The whole ground began to tremble and roar. Earth and rocks sprayed into the air as a huge shadow rose from the shattered earth, flipping over several stunned Beetles.
Tap.
A sharp Beetle leg, nearly as thick as Rita’s waist, stabbed into the ground, followed by a second and third.
An individual much larger than an ordinary Night Saint Beetle, bearing a superficially similar shape but utterly different upon close inspection, slowly emerged from the hollow.
Its legs and backplate weren’t smooth like the ordinary Night Saint Beetles. Instead, they were sharper, like a mountain of thorny crystal clusters. Its shell didn’t have the usual obsidian luster but instead shimmered with the dim glow of a starlit night.
Night Saint Beetle— now Rita understood the origin of that name.
The most terrifying thing was that this Beetle was nearly four meters long. Just lying there, it was like a small hill, making all the other crawling Beetles beneath it seem utterly insignificant.
As an adult who could be scared by a twin-tailed little fairy, the sight of these Beetles alone was enough to shatter Rita’s worldview. Now, there was a giant, a monster large enough to bite off her head in a single gulp.
Disgusting!
Rita thought, but still called out loudly.
“Promi!”
“That’s right, it’s here.” Promi’s voice, compared to the massive Beetle, barely carried any emotion, but every word rang clear in Rita’s ears: “Night Commander.”
The Night Commander opened its mandibles, and a deep, droning hum— as if it resounded directly within Rita’s mind— crashed down with immense pressure, making her vision swim. It felt like countless needles stabbing into her brain.
The pain wasn’t severe, but it was unbearable.
Within that sound, Rita could even hear the rage of this colossal Beetle.
This was not a sound in the physical sense, but the [will to kill them all] struck Rita’s mind like a heavy hammer.
The paralyzed Beetle swarm had received the highest command. Now, they erupted once more, their madness surpassing even that at the Broodmother’s death.
The swarm gathered. Even at the edge of her vision, Rita could see more and more Beetles crawling forth, a black tide sweeping over the hills and rocky cliffs, surging toward the two of them at alarming speed.
“Original plan? Regroup?” Rita gripped her sword, calling back to Promi.
“Regroup!” Promi turned her blade, the seriousness on her face reflected in the steel.
Rita and Promi moved at the same time, dashing toward each other.
Gray runes lit up on Promi’s sword once more, though much dimmer than before.
Promi swung her sword in a wide arc. With her slash, gray currents sliced through several Beetles nearby, cutting them clean in two.
But the swarm’s relentless assault was something they’d seen before. More and more Beetles piled atop one another, heedlessly charging at Promi— the one who killed the Broodmother.
Even the massive Night Commander raised its sword-like limbs and, displaying speed that belied its size, charged toward Promi.
While fending off the attacks of the swarm, Rita kept a close eye on the Night Commander’s movements.
Heading for Promi? So, they’re underestimating me now, are they?
Rita didn’t have any firebombs, but just a moment ago, Promi had handed her something just as effective.
Rita pulled a piece of parchment from her chest, broke the wax seal, and hurled it at the swarm. Instantly, the parchment ignited by itself.
Then, flames a hundred times stronger than the parchment itself burst forth, incinerating all the Beetles within several meters to ash.
That’s good, that’s powerful!
Of course, it was expensive, too. Rita had seen magic scrolls in shops before— a single scroll inscribed with the Fireball Spell could buy her twenty of the best swords she’d ever owned.
To let an ordinary person, unable to use magic, unleash such powerful spells— a high price was only reasonable.
Though Rita could, in theory, use magic, she had never actually learned any.
And Promi had given her more than one scroll.
Another explosion rang out, and the blast of heat devoured a swath of advancing Beetles.
This level of destruction allowed Rita to get closer to Promi, and even the Night Commander had to pay attention to her side of the battlefield.
The Night Commander paused, and a sharp voice sounded again by Rita’s ear, the meaning as clear as day.
[Go, kill her]
Several Night Saint Beetles that had been charging Promi suddenly turned and began attacking Rita, while the Night Commander charged at Promi again.
Rita was also in a full sprint, racing against the blinding speed of the Night Commander— and against time itself.
She ran through the patch of cleared ground, sword in one hand fending off the remaining enemies, the other groping for the last of her magic scrolls.
No matter how powerful the scrolls were, against the vast swarm, they were nothing but a drop in the bucket.
No matter how strong Promi was, she could still be delayed by the Beetles, unable to move for a time.
The Night Commander let out a triumphant screech, its blade-like forelimbs raised high, shrieking as they slashed down at Promi!
Clang!
Claws and sword collided, sending up a shower of sparks.
But the blade was Rita’s.
Another mental shockwave struck, not a command for the swarm, but a direct message to Rita and Promi, surrounded on all sides.
[You have nowhere left to run]
Indeed, there was truly nowhere to run.
This was… this was…
This was exactly as planned.
Earlier.
“If I can’t move, how long can you protect me?” Promi asked.
“Three minutes might not be realistic, two minutes, no, maybe one minute should be doable?” Rita thought for a moment. This time, she wasn’t being conservative— she was exaggerating a little.
“I don’t need that long. Ten seconds. Make sure I’m not disturbed by anything. Anything at all.”
“What are you planning to do?”
“Killing the Broodmother won’t solve the root of the problem.” Promi gently tapped her sword hilt. “I need to kill the Commander.”
Several giant Ice Spikes, formed from magic scrolls, erupted from the ground like sharp petals, encircling Rita and Promi, toppling several Beetles immediately.
Each Ice Spike came from a scroll— just this move would be enough to buy Cecilia a night in Rita’s arms.
The Night Commander swung its huge limb again, once more slashing toward Promi.
But the limb, which should have pierced right through Promi, was actually deflected by the sword of the silver-haired girl standing in front of the gray-haired human girl.
What made humans powerful wasn’t their strength, but their skill— and yet, the Night Commander had lost in a contest of sheer force?
How did this silver-haired human manage such a feat?
The Night Commander attacked again, only to be deflected once more.
Clang, clang, clang, clang.
No matter how it attacked, it couldn’t break through the sword defense of the silver-haired girl.
The Night Commander lifted its massive body and let out a screech in the truest sense, using its bulk and limbs to crush downward together.
This time, the weak human would definitely be crushed into pulp!
As expected, the silver-haired girl stepped aside, forced to dodge the crushing weight.
Too bad— it was too late! The Commander was ready to taste fresh meat.
Behind the retreating Rita, Promi’s rune-lit sword had already thrust forward.
The gray wind pressure swirling around the blade struck like a hammer, shattering the proud chestplate of the Night Commander and piercing straight through its enormous body.
A line of gray surged upward, disappearing into the sky.