Danmachi: A Mage's Journey

Chapter 284: Saving the Day

Olivas' face twisted in disbelief, his mocking sneer faltering for the first time.

"How dare they... how dare these wretched, powerless insects resist?! How dare they, those who can only be protected, raise their hands against me?!"

To Olivas, ordinary people were nothing more than props, playthings to torment, fragile fruit to crush beneath his heel for amusement. But now, those very same people stood defiant, faces pale yet eyes burning, determined to protect the one who had stood up to fight for them.

It was an insult and a blasphemy. And it filled Olivas with raw, uncontainable fury.

"Fools! Pathetic vermin! Do you really think you can change anything?! In the end, I'll slaughter every last one of you, trample your corpses, and drown this city in despair!"

He raised his blade, laughter bubbling with madness.

But before his command could fall—

"The situation... has already changed."

A voice, clear and beautiful, descended from the skies.

The battlefield froze.

Olivas' breath caught.

Asfi's battered fists clenched tighter. Her heart screamed, this was it. The opportunity she had waited for.

Every head turned upward. And there, high above, standing against the crimson glow of the setting sun atop the massive city wall in the northwest, were figures. Figures that made even evilus pause.

Their silhouettes gleamed in the twilight. The wind danced through crimson hair.

And then—

"Justice has arrived!"

Alise's shout echoed across the battlefield like a thunderclap. For a moment, time itself seemed to stop.

...

"The rhythm of the battlefield has shifted. Broken through, have they?"

On West Street, where dusk had turned the ground into a bloodstained stage, Alfia whispered softly. The woman whose overwhelming strength had crushed countless adventurers stood untouched, not a single wound upon her flawless body.

Her frown eased slightly, and the corner of her lips curled upwards.

"Astraea Familia... So, while the enemy was focused on the city's core, you thought to force your way through the unguarded walls? Hmph. Bold."

From the distance, Riveria, gasped, her sharp elven eyes confirming the sight.

Even exhausted, even bloodied, she couldn't help but smile. "They've driven evilus back and are advancing northwest. A surprise breakout... that's exactly their style."

"A strategy with sharp decisiveness... very much like that rat."

"heir breakout speed is incredible." Ais admitted, her body drenched in wounds, sword heavy in her grasp. Yet her golden eyes glimmered faintly, as though searching for someone who was not among them.

But no matter how hard she searched, that familiar figure was nowhere to be seen.

Alfia let out a long sigh, her gaze flickering briefly to the distant Seventh District, where Erebus waited. "If we are absent, they crumble this quickly... Ridiculous."

Her feet moved. But before she could advance, Riveria and the other adventurers blocked her path.

"Do you think we'll let you turn your back on us? You're too dangerous to ignore."

Their magic surged, blades raised, determination etched into every battered face.

Alfia's eyes narrowed. The morale here was burning brighter than ever. This would be troublesome.

"Clever." She muttered darkly, halting in place.

Slowly, she turned back, facing the adventurers who dared raise weapons against her.

"I could slaughter you in an instant." She said, voice dripping with cold finality. "But even I cannot chase after them now."

Her crimson eyes glinted with frustration. She had wanted, just once, to see with her own eyes the girls she might have walked alongside in another future. But now, that sight would have to wait.

On Northwest Orario.

"Hahh... hahhh... Akira, Ryuu... you did it."

Adi, bloodied and gasping, forced herself to her feet. Her body screamed in pain from the clash against Zald. For a Level 3, such sparring bordered on the impossible.

Across from her, Gareth and his comrades stood battered, their equipment shattered, yet still holding on.

Zald's gaze shifted northwest. His massive black sword gleamed ominously as he murmured, "Eight years since our familia fell into the shadows. Have the little girls we once overlooked grown into such warriors?"

"They are... special." He admitted, almost to himself.

Shakti, breathless, chuckled despite her exhaustion. "Special indeed..."

Gareth raised his lips faintly, silent but approving. The sight of the Astraea Familia carving open a breakthrough was worthy of recognition.

"Then why not step aside?" Gareth asked, voice rough but steady. "At this point, letting one or two slip by won't change the tide."

But Zald shook his head, the massive blade once again raised in defiance. "No. Erebus' command was clear. Not a single adventurer passes."

His answer was short, absolute, and unyielding.

The steel wall stood once more. And before it, the battered adventurers squinted their eyes, heavy breaths filling the battlefield.

A difficult wall. A wall that might cost them everything to climb.

...

"Astraea Familia... No! It's not over yet! It's just another familia coming."

Olivas's voice cracked with panic when Alise and her companions appeared, but almost instantly he forced himself back into composure. His expression twisted into a sneer, his words meant to cover the fear gnawing at his gut.

"Girls who aren't even first-class adventurers are nothing to be afraid of. Don't forget, we still have hostages in our hands."

"UOOHHHH!!" The evilus soldiers howled, their voices overlapping in a feral roar.

With bloodlust dripping from every breath, they surged forward like wild beasts, rushing from all sides to engulf the Astraea Familia.

Alise stood at the front, her red hair blazing like a banner of defiance. Even as the enemy tide pressed in, she placed a hand at her waist, straightened her chest plate, and raised her chin proudly.

She said, her voice ringing clear, "Well, it's noisy as ever, but everyone, let's follow the plan."

Her eyes burned with a fiery determination as she thrust her sword into the air.

"Everyone! Let's get started!"

At her command, the silver blade in her right hand ignited, gleaming with brilliance.

"I won't let anyone suffer anymore. I'll defeat you, the ones who trample others and make them cry."

With that cry, the Astraea Familia moved as one. Ryuu, Kaguya, Lyra, Neze, and the others surged forward. Years of anguish, countless suppressed emotions, all erupted in a storm of steel and fire. The battlefield exploded into motion.

"Aaahhh!"

The clash began.

A dwarf among evilus' troops whipped several smoke bombs from his belt and hurled them toward Asfi.

Bang! Bang!

Thick smoke burst forth like a living beast, instantly swallowing the battlefield. The evilus soldiers faltered, nerves fraying as shadows darted within the haze.

Fshhh!

A wooden sword cut through the chaos. Ryuu's lithe form weaved through the smoke, her speed inhuman. Soldiers dropped in droves as her strikes shattered wrists, knees, and weapons with merciless precision. The thuds of bodies falling, the screams of broken men, and the hollow clang of dropped steel echoed through the haze.

The confusion deepened.

"Stop swinging! You're hitting our own!" Someone screamed, but his voice was drowned beneath the chaos of clashing blades, ragged breaths, and desperate curses.

One soldier spun around in panic, only to find Ryuu's cold eyes upon him. Her wooden blade snapped against his wrist, forcing his scream as his sword fell. Using the momentum, she spun and swept three more from their feet, each collapsing to the ground with broken knees.

By the time they realized it, Ryuu had already reached Asfi. She scooped the wounded girl into her arms and leapt clear of the collapsing formation.

"Asfi." Ryu whispered as she laid her gently behind the cover of a broken wall.

She pulled out a vial and poured it across the burns and gashes marring her friend's body. "It's okay now."

Asfi's pale lips trembled, her eyes glistening with relief. "Hah... That's good. I... waited for you."

But before the words had fully left her lips, shadows surged through the smoke. Knives flashed like fangs.

(End of Chapter)

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