"Keep your positions, and don't let that thing catch you!" Spearman commanded the Assault Team while trying to defend themselves from the Nevermore's diving attacks. When they thought the job was done, the flying Grimm caught them with their guards down as they saw them stopping by the old castle and destroying one of the roofs. Both Adventurers and Huntsmen ran away into the woods or the castle to get cover. They would find more unexpected surprises as Lizard Priest began to sense a familiar scent, a faint one nonetheless from a distance. His mind might be playing tricks, but as he looked up, the reptile's pupils shrank to his shock.
"What's the matter?" Furious Brawler looked at the Adventurer as he stopped moving. Then, she turned her head upwards to see what he was looking for. And as expected, Brawler's reaction wasn't much different from his.
"What got into you two!? Move your asses before that thing...! It must be a joke!" Spearman looked up too. Terrified and confused.
Somewhere, in the woods. High Elf Archer, hiding already among the trees, looked for any remaining Grimm in the area. She tried to keep an eye on her allies in case the Nevermore could catch any of them. Elemental Fencer was near as defense while Javeline Warrior and Knife Ranger did some cleanup. They had much easier doing quietly than most. "Any more?" Fencer asked.
"Not a single one. Except for that big one in the sky, what was it called?"
"Nevermore. That thing is dangerous to engage in a fight at this ground level."
"I don't think I might reach it." High Elf Archer said. She looked distraught as she checked her remaining arrows. "I have six left. What about you?"
"Two spells. Glad that I didn't waste many, but I don't think it would be good enough for us."
"Not kidding..." Both girls tried to keep calm about the situation. They took a deep breath. Archer shook her head as more things wouldn't stop being chaotic. "You won't believe me," she said. "Is it possible to survive that Nevermore if getting caught by it?"
"Unlikely, why?" Fencer asked. The young Adventurer started to point out towards the sky. Both looked up until the refined girl squinted her eyes after looking at the Nevermore carefully. Her vision wasn't as gifted as High Elf Archer, but she could clearly imagine what was carrying on the Grimm's mouth. And much to her surprise, she couldn't get any more amused by it. "What in the world...?"
"For a moment, I thought I was losing my mind when I saw Orcbolg up there. Guess I'm not the only one."
"But how!?" Fencer shouted.
"I don't know, but it looks like he can hold on without a problem."
"And why are you so calm!?"
"Not the first time he dealt with bigger creatures than him," High Elf Archer said. She adjusted her bow's string as it began to feel loose. Unfortunately, such a condition wasn't good enough for the rest of the night. So she just had to keep going a little longer until the quest was over. "Better help him out before he gets eaten, though." Carefully aiming her bow at the flying creature, she used her elven eyes to get a much accurate sight. Still, no matter how far she could see, her weapon could not reach such distance without losing speed. "Ugh, this useless..."
"Something wrong?" Fencer asked.
"There's no way I can hit that thing from here," the High Elf Archer lamented.
"Do you want me to help you?"
"Unless you can repair my bow or have a replacement, maybe."
"I have a better idea," Fencer said as she closed her eyes and extended her right hand at the Elf's weapon. Fencer's palm began glowing a bright yellow with static until the bow did as well. "This should be enough to hit that thing a couple of times before the spell disappears."
"Now we are talking! Thanks!" High Elf Archer's eyes aimed back at the Nevermore, now with a temporarily more potent weapon at hand. She pulled the string while seeing how the arrow tip started to be engulfed in sparks. "I got you!" She said as releasing the arrow, shooting it like a lightning bolt traveling at high speed.
The first arrow hit Nevermore's left wing. While it wasn't enough to take it down, the damage was equally significant that made the flying Grimm stumble. So much for his luck, Goblin Slayer saw it as he was still clinging for his life. He got his knife ready, preparing for the next arrow. Right when the second one hit, this time on the Nevermore's missing left eye, it opened its beak and accidentally let the armored guy go. He flew by violent winds, but he reacted quickly but stabbing the creature by the tail while grabbing one of the feathers with the other hand. There was no safe ground for him, but he got a better chance to go after the Goblin Shaman despite the odds. The only thing he needed was to get closer to the vile rider. Goblin Slayer just needed a little more time.
Back to the castle, the rest of the Infiltration Team finally reached the outside, but only to be greeted with more Grimm towards them. They assumed a defensive stance as the creatures were getting closer. Grimm Slayer and Cat Ninja were better to keep fighting, but not against a small horde. As they braced themselves, right when Beowolves leaped at them, a spear flew and pierced through their stomachs. It was from an instant that they could easily miss with a blink. "Whoops! I knew I forgot a couple of those!" Spearman claimed while looking embarrassed. Seconds later, the Assault Team jumped in action and began taking care of the pack of Grimm. Lizard Priest sliced Beowolves' throats and crushed their ribs with a punch. Furious Brawler rushed at two more and rapidly dispatched them with both a powerful punch and a kick on their heads.
"Sis!" Grimm Slayer exclaimed with relief.
"Oh hey, you are back! I'm glad you are okay!" Brawler's attention shifted towards the hooded girl and started giving a big hug that could leave her out of breath. Unfortunately, despite not being the best of time, neither of the Adventurers or the Huntsmen was brave enough to interrupt their sibling hug. Grimm Slayer tried to say something but did nothing but muffles. "What?" Brawler asked before releasing her. "Sorry..."
"It's fine, I'm glad you are safe, too," Grimm Slayer said, smiling at seeing everyone alright. Well, almost everyone.
"How did it go?" Paladin asked the group as he, Witch, and Valkyrie joined them.
"The job is done," Priestess replied confidently. "What about all of you?"
"Easy peasy!" Valkyrie said with a thumbs up.
"I wouldn't say it was 'easy' since most of those things began to run away and scatter around," Spearman said, picking his weapon from the ground. "By the way, can someone explain me what is the deal with that guy up there!?" He pointed at the sky, seeing the Nevermore flying around the area with Goblin Slayer there as well.
"Oh, right! We have to save him!" Grimm Slayer pleaded, but everyone seemed confused.
"How?" Spearman asked, but there was an awkward silence. "So?"
"Okay, I still haven't think on anything yet!"
Witch turned around and looked up, seeing how the Nevermore was doing. She saw the creature's altitude, and there was probably more. She slowly looked at the cliff they were waiting before. Witch got some clarity. "How about... there?" She said to the group, pointing upwards, and slowly moved her finger towards the cliff. They began to realize it, and probably the best idea (or the worst) came to Grimm Slayer's mind.
"That's it!" The hooded girl shouted. "Alright, here is the thing. I will try to get on top of that thing."
"I don't know about that," Paladin said, scratching his head.
"He is right. What happens if you get hurt from up there? There's no guarantee any of us can save you from that Nevermore!" Brawler was concerned for her baby sister, but Grimm Slayer's eyes said a totally different story. She was serious.
"I know how dangerous it is, but we are going to take it down, one way or another." No one would object to the idea, but the hooded girl still needed to make some preparations before confronting it. "You guys try to distract it. I talk to the others about the plan." So without further ado, Grimm Slayer left a trace of petals as she went to the woods first, leaving the rest thinking of how to fight the Nevermore from the ground.
"How do we deal with that thing, then?" Spearman asked the rest.
"I could do it, but I got no more spells to work with," Dwarf Shaman said.
"Perhaps a substitute might do the trick, but what could it be?" Lizard Priest commented.
Shield Paladin looked at his surroundings. Anything could work, and that was precisely what he found when looking at the rubble from the castle. "Listen everyone, I know what to do!"
Things got noisier back to the woods. High Elf Archer tried to conserve arrows, and the lightning effect on her bow hadn't worn off yet. So she resorted to using the dagger, whatever tried to get close to her. Elemental Fencer covered her back at any given opportunity, but two against who-knows-how-many Grimm and goblins coming at them. Javelin Warrior and Knife Ranger were already busy somewhere else in the area. For the moment, it was keeping the line unless there was a change of plans. It didn't take long when they saw a burst of rose petals storming the enemies and dismembering them in a short time.
"Took you some time," Fencer said as she lowered her guard for a moment. "Did you deal with the Grimm pool already?"
"Yeah, but there is something else."
"Let me guess, does it involve with that Nevermore, too?"
"Yeah..."
"Don't tell me you are trying to get up there..."
"You know me~" Grimm Slayer smiled, much to Fencer's disappointment.
"Seriously? Tell me at least you have a better plan than the last time."
"Kind of, but I will need help from everyone on the ground."
"What do you need us for?" High Elf Archer jumped off from the tree. She had been listening to the whole conversation while hiding from there. "We are already ahead of you, but I don't many arrows left."
"That is fine. I just need you to keep it distracted while I try to save Goblin Slayer," Grimm Slayer explained.
"That sounds good to me. It is refreshing to save Orcbolg from danger once in a while," High Elf Archer said with a playful tone. They nodded at each other before taking the plan in motion. Grimm Slayer went to look after Javelin Warrior and Knife Ranger to catch up about everything.
"I hope the night is over. I already want to go to bed after this," Fencer groaned.
"Same, but I'm only hoping for a big celebration in no one dies... Watch out!" More Grimm appeared from left to right; two Ursai charged at them by surprise, but they barely dodged both in time. Things didn't look good, as dealing with such massive monsters was a bad idea without backup. Fencer did her best with evasive tactics while High Elf Archer kept her distance by hiding in the trees. She couldn't afford to waste arrows on the Ursai. Fencer put her effort into fighting them off simultaneously, but there was so much the sophisticated Huntress could do. Every time one of the Grimm tried to get close enough to the Adventurer, she stabbed it in the face with her dagger. Not enough damage, however.
Elemental Fencer used her last spells to freeze the area, hoping to slow the Grimm from attacking both. Sadly, they broke out without issues. She still had little fighting chance. "This is not good..." She muttered as the pressure increased. It would be too soon to give up, but how long do they have to hold the line until they get help? They began hearing roars coming on their way. Those kept getting louder with each second, closer and closer.
They sounded hungry... and angry.
Against the corner, Fencer had her back against the tree. The Ursa charge at her, but High Elf Archer's reacted quickly: She shot one of her arrows to the Grimm's stomach.
It didn't die; three arrows remained.
"This is getting ridiculous!" The Adventurer said in exasperation. "If this continues, we won't survive out of this!"
The roars suddenly turned quiet. They no longer could hear any of those foul monsters approaching. What happened? The silence was unsettling. Fencer kept struggling against those creatures; she could feel its mouth near her face. Sharp fangs to tear her skin. It would be the end of the line...
...And there was a gunshot.
The Ursa screamed and stepped back. Fencer stabbed it in the neck; wincing and cowering were all the creature could do. Finally, it tried to turn its back and ran off, but it was too late for it. Its limbs began to fall off and disappear into black smoke out of nowhere. The last thing before it could cry or roar, its head rolled and vanished into thin air alongside the rest of its body.
Fencer couldn't believe what her eyes were beholding in front of her. A man with black hair, tarnished clothes, a canteen in hand, and a large sword in the other.
"Ugh, those guys are making me work overtime..." the Stranger groaned. He turned at his left, seeing Fencer on the ground, tired and not eager to see him. "What the hell? I know you," he said.
"Oh great, now he is here, too..." Fencer grimaced.
"Are you alright!?" High Elf Archer rushed towards Fencer, but before she could ask more, she quickly noticed the Stranger with surprise. "Hey, where you been?"
"Do you know this guy!?" Fencer asked shockingly.
"Yeah, he was the one that put the quest for everyone. Do you know him, too?"
"I wish I didn't..."
"Hey!" The Stranger called out both girls as if they were focused more on the conversation than the situation at hand. "You can save any formal introductions for later, don't you have something else to do?"
"Right!" The girls said in unison.
The second Ursa finally showed itself seconds later after hearing the first one's cry. It was getting into position to rush against the group. The Stranger seemed unamused as he scoffed and got into a stance to counterattack. He didn't move from his place, standing in front of both the girls. Instead, he waited and let the Grimm approach him first. Both hands at the sword, eyes on the target, and taking a deep breath as he was patient for the perfect time. When the Ursa was only halfway through to attack, the red jewel from the Stranger's sword began to shine. The red light covered the whole weapon, and slowly, its shape morphed into something different.
The Grimm finally had its prey within range; from an abrupt and unlikely turn of events, its whole body began to separate into two halves. A swift, powerful vertical cut made the Ursa fall apart before turning into more black smoke. The girls could do nothing but be amazed by the Stranger's fast reflexes and the crescent-shaped blade he wielded at the moment.
That weapon, it was the same as Grimm Slayer's...
"I deal with the big ones while you do whatever you need to take care right now," he said without turning his back. There were no complaints from the girls as they finally got more room to breathe. High Elf Archer quickly picked her position among the trees and got a clear view of the Nevermore. She was bracing herself whenever her time to shine arrives.
Up and higher, almost making one person seemed to be on top of the world. Grimm Slayer looked down, thinking how far it would take a person to see others as ants. Then, her eyes slowly shifted towards the dark sky, seeing both moons closer than previous nights. She told herself that she was already far from home, but it didn't matter as she knew nothing was like the present. That Nevermore in the sky brought recent memories, but she felt lucky last time of taking one down and earning the name. Who knows if fortune would be on her side tonight.
She walked away from the cliff's edge, closed her eyes, and took deep breaths. Her legs were shaky, her heart pounded faster, and both hands began to sweat inside her leather gloves. Grimm Slayer tried to shook off those feelings before being ready for whatever comes next. She waited for the flying Grimm to get a lower altitude before jumping. It could be at any moment, but there was something she didn't expect: Rocks and boulders were being shot at the creature.
"Damn, not good. A little to the left," Paladin said with an unsatisfied look while using his hands to make a frame, trying to calculate the trajectory. The method was orthodox, for the Adventurers at least. Spearman was baffled about what he was witnessing, but Witch seemed more than amazed despite never changing her gentle smile. Hammer Valkyrie was standing on top of a now-destroyed structure with a mischievous grin and proud look. She carried her weapon with one hand while looking at the sky. Furious Brawler and Lizard Priest were gathering the most prominent rocks that they could find from the ruins. It was slow work, but they didn't have issues moving those by themselves. Priestess, Cat Ninja, and Dwarf Shaman were the only observers of such an outrageous plan. However, they didn't mind being on the sidelines at the moment as they already did their part of the job and needed to rest; Priestess wished she could do more, though.
"Are you sure is this the best you could come up?" Spearman said to Paladin, but the Huntsman felt rather insulted.
"Do you know something better? I'm open to ideas," Paladin said. He looked more assertive and confident than usual, something that Spearman wouldn't expect right now.
"Nah, that's fine," Spearman concurred readily. "I guess Huntsmen do things different than us, so I ain't anyone to judge at their work."
"Although I must admit. This is something I would expect from Sir Goblin Slayer. I suppose there is more cunningness in this world that I could ever imagine," Lizard Priest said as he was done moving one of the rocks.
"Then let me show you a little more how we do things like home, Remnant Style!" Valkyrie said gleefully as she gave the thumbs up. Paladin signaled them to proceed with the next move: Lizard Priest began using the strength enhancer spell to increase his muscles. Next, he lifted the rocks with both hands at a suitable level for Valkyrie to use her hammer. "Fore!" she shouted before striking the large stone up to the sky. Its trajectory was much better than before as it did a direct hit at the Nevermore, causing it to fly lower.
The opportunity finally arrived.
Grimm Slayer raced towards the cliff's end. The speed increased, and the burst of petals scattered across the sky after taking a long jump towards the creature. She had her scythe ready to thrust on the Nevermore's back, giving her the chance to hold into something while trying to reach Goblin Slayer.
"What are you doing here?" The armored guy asked, sounding tired and almost out of breath.
"I came to get you down from this," she replied without letting go of her grip.
"I can't do that. I must kill the Goblin Shaman and this Grimm."
"Are you crazy!? We can barely have the hang of this!"
"If I don't kill either of them, they will bring a lot more of troubles in the future," Goblin Slayer said, and it was clear that trying to argue further would be pointless. The hooded girl understood such stubbornness. So what should she do next? The answer was obvious: Keep moving on.
"Alright, I guess I have no choice." With a careful motion, Grimm Slayer tried to ask Goblin Slayer for a rope. He pulled one from his satchel and handed it to the Huntress. From both ends of the tool, they tied to themselves while wrapping the middle around the scythe. The weapon's blade was sturdy and sharp to not easily let go. Goblin Slayer also handed one of his daggers to Grimm Slayer. Both began slowly crawling towards the Goblin Shaman against strong winds. Thrust after thrust, they made their best effort holding from the scythe as their support. However, approaching the little green monster would leave them at its range to fight back with magic.
"We have to kill it from here!"
"Give me a hand with this!" Grimm Slayer instructed. Goblin Slayer began twisting the weapon to make the rifle's barrel aim at the rider. He used his left arm and the rope to stabilize the gun's aim while the young Huntress had her hand on the trigger and the eye on the iron sight.
She was in position, but the flying Grimm began dodging the rocky projectiles, disrupting her focus on the target. It was a gamble as she only had one shot to end things. Grimm Slayer's breathing control worsened while keeping one eye open. It was a matter of waiting for the perfect moment, the time where she needed stillness.
Things couldn't be better as two arrows hit both wings, causing partial paralysis for a couple of seconds. After that, the altitude lowered more, and its speed reduced considerably. That was it. Grimm Slayer had a clear shot. She pulled the trigger, and the bullet went out in a second.
The Goblin Shaman heard the gunshot, but it was too late for it as the vile creature looked over its shoulder. Then, without processing what was happening behind it, its head exploded like a melon into small visceral chunks in the air. Its lifeless body fell from the mount and flew to the ground. The Nevermore realized what was happening on its back; it tried to make violent turns to drop both slayers. But, unfortunately, that was another mistake. It left another opening for the people on the ground to deliver the final blow.
High Elf Archer's last arrow hit the Grimm's right eye, blinding it for good. After that, its movement went erratic and vulnerable for one more attack. The Assault team launched another rock at one of the wings, breaking it instantly and losing balance. The Grimm lost control and began hitting against the castle's watchtower, and finally, crashing against the cliff's wall.
"Wait, did those two got off the Nevermore already?" Cat Ninja asked. No one could tell confidently, and such vital detail made everyone horrified. Their eyes widen, and some of them gulped.
"Goblin Slayer!"
"Sis!"
Furious Brawler and Priestess were the only ones that shouted. At the same time, the rest rushed towards the impact zone, hoping that both slayers survived; even with a lot of prayers and a miracle after what they witnessed, their odds were slim.
Hi, it's been so long since my last update. I been doing other personal projects that I had little time to write fanfiction for a long time. One might expect to apologize for the waiting, but there are a lot of writers in this site that didn't update in the long time either. We are in confusing times, and we are handling the best in our situations. The only thing I can do is to uplift other people's moods by doing what I know best, and that's simple writing. There is no telling when all this is going to be fixed, but we can only continue living what we can now.
The next chapter won't take me long, but I cannot promise when will be more, I only wish everyone to take care out there.