“Don’t go getting all spineless on me now, meow! I’m here, so everything’s going to be fine! Get your heads back in the game, meow!”
Rache-san barked orders at her companions, but their response was lackluster at best.
“Zahha, Torta… what’s the matter, meow? Raymond, Nate… answer me, meow!”
Her voice grew strained with anxiety, but the veteran adventurers only cast hollow, unsteady looks in her direction. At first, I thought they were simply too exhausted to speak, but even so, their lack of reaction to their own leader felt wrong. They had at least acknowledged her presence with their eyes, unlike when I first approached them, but they were still far from normal.
『We’ve arrived!』
“Tort, are you okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine, Lowell.”
Shiroru and the others finally caught up, trailing slightly behind Rache-san’s initial charge. They dove straight into the fray, thinning out the swarm. Halfa unleashed waves of kinetic force with her Shock Voice, scattering the bees across a wide area, while Spira ensnared any stragglers in her Ice Vines to finish them off. Shiroru, still in her giantized form, discharged bolts of lightning while swatting away any bees that dared draw near. Lowell acted as our shield, intercepting enemies with precise slashes. He seemed to be targeting their wings specifically, systematically stripping the swarm of its mobility rather than aiming for immediate kills.
Allen and his group were taking a breather, their Mana reserves likely flagging. Abyss Soldier magic stones were rolling across the ground everywhere, so they would probably replenish their energy and rejoin the fight shortly. Once they did, the tide of battle would swing decisively in our favor.
That said, it wasn't going to be over in a heartbeat. The Abyss Queen was still summoning a steady stream of Soldier Bees from the surrounding area. Our rate of annihilation was higher than her summoning speed, meaning victory was inevitable, but a prolonged struggle was unavoidable at this pace.
“Rache! We need to prioritize taking down that big one first!”
“…You’re right, meow. Understood! Muscle and I will handle the queen, meow! Tort, keep the rest of these pests off us, meow!”
“Understood!”
To bring the curtain down on the battle, Rache-san and Masso-san lunged toward the queen bee. With Allen’s group back in action, our defensive line was rock-solid. We could easily withstand the fierce onslaught of the remaining soldiers.
The shift in momentum was immediate. The number of Abyss Soldiers began to plummet. Perhaps the queen no longer had the focus to call for reinforcements under Rache-san’s pressure, or perhaps we had simply exhausted the local population. Either way, the hive had lost its greatest weapon—its numbers. Once we finished off the bees surrounding our position, we moved in to eradicate the queen’s personal guard.
Even for an A-Rank monster, a queen stripped of her subordinates stood no chance against the combined might of Rache-san and Masso-san. Rache-san toyed with the queen, dancing around her guard and weaving behind her to unleash a relentless barrage of heavy blows. While each individual strike didn't look devastating, her lightning-fast rush whittled away the Abyss Queen’s Vitality at a terrifying speed.
Yet, the queen couldn't afford to focus solely on Rache-san. After all, she was also facing an incarnation of pure muscle. Masso-san was rampaging, swinging a gargantuan battle-axe he had produced from somewhere. Every swing of his brawny arms threatened to cleave the giant bee in two if it connected. The fact that he hadn't landed a hit yet was only because the Abyss Queen was making it her absolute priority to evade him. Naturally, that left her wide open to Rache-san’s flanking maneuvers.
Under their coordinated assault, the queen was steadily backed into a corner. It looked like we wouldn't even need to lift a finger. In fact, I decided it was best to stay back; getting too close would only get in their way. While the two of them made it look easy, the Abyss Queen was still fighting for her life, spraying stingers and green Poison Balls in every direction. If we got caught in that crossfire, we’d be in serious trouble. The two of them dodged the attacks with nonchalant ease—though, actually, I’m fairly certain Masso-san took several direct hits. For some reason, he just kept moving as if nothing had happened. Maybe I just imagined it?
“Nya-nya-nya-nya! Just stay down, meow!”
“Gwahaha! The final blow shall be mine! Hrngh!”
The Abyss Queen staggered under Rache-san’s final rush. Masso-san didn't miss his opening. His battle-axe bit deep into the giant bee’s thorax, tearing through chitin and flesh until it split the creature down the middle. Even with the immense Vitality of an A-Rank monster, it couldn't survive being cleaved in two. The massive carcass slowly collapsed, dissolving into smoke before it could even hit the ground.
“Excellent work, everyone.”
“No, we’re the ones who should be thanking you, Tort! This thing is a nightmare when it has its swarm to hide behind, meow. But more importantly—them!”
Rache-san rushed over to her companions. Once the soldiers had been thinned out, the four adventurers had slumped to the ground, motionless. I had left Allen’s group to guard them while they rested.
“How are they?”
“It’s just as I thought—something’s wrong, meow. Even if they’re exhausted, they’re far too unresponsive, meow!”
“I see…”
For now, the priority was getting them into the Magic House to rest. Perhaps then we could figure out what was happening. Oh, but before that, I should probably clean them up. Their gear was in absolute tatters.
I cast Clean on the warrior—Zahha-san, I believed—and a brilliant light enveloped him. It was a phenomenon far removed from the standard spell. It was the exact same reaction I’d seen when I purified that giant bird.
Wait… did I subconsciously use the version of Clean meant for purifying Malice?
But the spell wasn't supposed to react like that unless there was actually Malice present… right?