Chapter 46 (1/2)

(Harold’s POV)

I had just received the slash that was meant for Yuno, somehow I was able to make it in time, but my relief was short lived after the figures of the black-clothed group entered my sight, all of them gravely injured.

The scent of blood was in the air.

It was obvious who was the cause of this disaster.

The giant with the bad taste in armour who just tried to kill Yuno, and the Sarian Empire soldiers who were his men. They would be the reinforcements the messenger was telling me about.

The moment I understood the situation, I felt my heart beat with a ‘thump’. Not from fear or anxiety, it was something else…

It felt as if all the blood in my body was boiling over. An intense anger that surged up from the deepest parts of my very being.

My mouth spouted out some foul words as usual, but my mind didn’t have the intention to stop it at all.

It was impossible for me to act rationally at this point. Save Yuno. Annihilate the enemies in front of me. I couldn’t think straight.

When my anger towards Ritzert had reached it’s climax was the moment I felt him appear. ‘Kill him’ thoughts like that flooded into my mind like a tidal wave, I was overcome with a sudden lust for bloodshed.

I thought that it felt abnormal, but this was just how I supposed to be… wasn’t it?

How could I not give in? It was unbearable, holding these feelings inside me, they had to get out.

I threw out another provocation, I decided it would be better to just defeat Ritzelt in a duel.

Although I wanted to beat him, wasn’t I using a bit too much strength? I could feel the blood rushing to my head.

A flurry of flames shot towards me. I jumped out of the way to avoid a direct hit, only for spears of ice to come flying towards the place I landed at.

But easily I swept them off with my sword.

He had a fast magic invocation speed. One after another spells were launched towards me without leaving an interval. Each spell’s accuracy and power first class.

It looks like his title of ‘The Magician’ wasn’t a lie.

Although I wasn’t sure I could cope with it with my sword skill, but I was still able to avoid his magic with evasive maneuvers. It was probably due to the distance, but conversely, that meant that I couldn’t narrow the gap if I wanted to.

I did have a way of stopping his ‘tricks’, but even so, it’d be useless if I couldn’t even advance a step.

I had tried jumping straight towards his chest before, but Ritzert intercepted my charge with magic. It’s only natural to assume that something similar would occur if I tried again.

So what if I restricted his actions with magic?

Changing my strategy, I switched to attack magic, but it was useless. My opponent was more familiar with magic than I was.

But I had to make use of what I had.

Neither of us were able to land any fatal attacks.

We were just repeating moves over and over again. The thing was, I was specialized in close quarters combat, which meant I needed a moment to close the gap to Ritzert, who was a magician.

Moreover, I was already fatigued and injured from the previous battles, while he was in almost perfect condition.

It was obvious who was at the disadvantage here.

And that wasn’t even everything, I still had one more thing holding me back.

Ritzert unexpectedly lowered his hand, releasing the magical power he gathered there as he gazed at me in disgust.

“Did you choose to fight me despite the obvious result? You can not win against me.”

“By all means, keep sputtering fatass1, and I’ll slit that neck of yours.”

“You still don’t understand the situation you’re in? But I guess that’s what makes you brat.”

An ugly smile broke out on his face, and I felt a chill run up my spine.

Ritzert released a rain of icicles towards me, but I wasn’t his only target, they were sent flying towards Yuno as well, who was still treating her colleagues.

“Damn it!”

Cursing, I swept off the icicles while releasing the spell <>, and for those that still got through, I destroyed by swinging my sword at high speeds.

But it wasn’t enough, I couldn’t block them all.

Fresh blood splattered onto Yuno’s face.

Her expression twisted in shock as her face was dyed vermillion. After confirming that she wasn’t hurt, I pulled an icicle out of my right shoulder.

I lost a lot of blood.

Intense pain ran through my arm, I wouldn’t do this normally.

But the blazing anger I could feel burning throughout my body made it hard for me to think straight.

Ritzert. That guy, kill him.

That thought, I couldn’t get it out of my head.

Maybe this was how he would’ve answered…

(That’s right… you’ve been with me since the beginning, haven’t you, Harold?)

I had lost a lot of blood, so it was amazing that I could still think as clearly as I was.

Ever since the moment I first entered this world, all those times my body moved without thinking, all those times my mouth said things I didn’t mean to say…

(That was you, wasn’t it?)

Its no wonder my mouth was so foul. I always found it weird how I was able to reproduce the movements from the game so easily.

For better or for worse, I was being influenced by the will of the original Harold. Maybe this is why the mediocre existence known as Hirasawa Kazuki2 could adapt to this world so easily.

So what will happen to the consciousness that’s in control right now? Will I be swallowed up by the original Harold, or will my personality overwrite his? Or will a new persona be born from our two identities mixing together?

(I don’t know about such things, and I don’t care.)

I don’t have the time to think about things I don’t know about. There’s not even any proof that this hypothesis of mine is correct.

However, if Harold truly is still alive within myself-

(Harold Stokes, lend me your strength! You’re the reason why your body is hurt now, your plan didn’t go the way you wanted it to, and it’s all that guy’s fault!)

That is Harold Stokes. A selfish, arrogant, piece of trash bastard you could find anywhere.

Someone like that would never forgive someone else for saying this even if they were in the wrong. His pride was hurt, so Harold won’t give up until Ritzert is dead.

“Oh? Have you given up? It’s only natural that this result would come to be, but you’re only a brat, so how about this? If you apologize and swear allegiance to me, I might forgive you.”

Was he so convinced of victory to make such a proposal? Even if the situation wasn’t the way it was now, there’s no way in hell I’d accept that offer.

“I’d rather choose death than become your subordinate, I follow no one.”

“…so you were a foolish brat after all.”

My vision was blurry, and I couldn’t steady my breathing. I was bound to collapse if I kept pushing my body the way I was now.

I have no choice but to settle this with the next attack.

Behind me more and more people were starting to get up after having received healing magic.

“Get out of here already, you bastards, you’re nothing more than obstacles in my way.”

“But…”

“I won’t repeat myself, Tasuku will be troubled if your identities were to be found out.”

Yuno was silent for some reason. Perhaps she was weighing which was more important between myself and the Sumeragi family.

Isn’t that stupid? There was absolutely no comparison between the two.

“…understood, but please, at least accept this.”

Yuno accepted with a bitter face, but before leaving, she used what was left of her magical power to cast healing magic on me. I think I heard her mutter something like “I so sorry Erika-sama, but…”

To be sorry for healing my wounds, she was probably apologising to Erika because this action was the equivalent to ‘abandoning’ me.

She must’ve really hated me for making that order.

Well, it’s fine. That’s just what it means to be Harold Stokes.

(…that’s why, I beg of you. Harold, ‘you’, please lend me your strength!)

Even with all the training that I’ve done until now, my success rate of doing this was less than twenty percent. It wasn’t something ready to be used in an actual battle.

Still, it’s the only skill I have that even has a chance of beating Ritzert.