NOVEL NEXT chapter 18
18 – The Supreme Leader (13)
The girl always thought that her father was a liar.
That one shouldn’t trust the words that came from her father’s mouth.
Indeed, her father had almost never kept his promises to her.
The promise to come back home tonight.
The promise to have a meal together this week.
And…
The promise to always have fun with her after this matter was over.
Perhaps to adults, such promises seemed trivial.
But to the girl, these continuous lies from her father made her feel that his words were unreliable.
However, at this moment.
The girl was sincerely regretting.
Regretting breaking the promise.
Just as she had promised with her father.
At this, the girl was seized with intense amazement and opened her eyes.
Right after that, the figure of a man came into her view.
He was dressed like her father, but at the same time, he had the appearance of a stout general in a fairy tale.
“Ah…”
“Are you okay?”
“Ah… yes! I’m… okay.”
The girl managed to answer in a trembling voice.
Looking at her like that, the man showed a very cool smile and carefully set the girl down on the ground.
And then,
“Gabriel, take the child and step back.”
“Are you sure, leader? Even against such a monster alone…”
– “Roarrr!!!!” –
Before the words of the female devil hunter, who had appeared at some point, could finish, the monster let out another roar.
However,
Looking at that guy, the handsome man spoke with a calm and confident voice.
“It’s no problem. Protect the child. With this, the rescue in this area is over.”
*
– “Rawww!!!!” –
A demon resembling a crocodile roared even louder as if it were angry at having its prey taken away.
He came charging towards us at a reckless speed.
“Leader!”
“It’s… dangerous..!”
-Whoosh!
The giant anchor he swung—a behemoth aimed at Gelard who stood opposite him.
Forged of steel and seemingly weighing hundreds of kilograms, he wielded the massive object with ease, as though it were a mere toy.
-Kaboom!!!
Even a glancing blow tore the ground up as if it were being grated, its power immense.
Such destruction revealed that even a magical shield, if hit directly, would result in death. At best, with incredible luck, one could not escape a fatal injury.
However.
“Uh…?”
“Ah!…”
Gelard fluidly dodged the relentless attacks like water flowing around obstacles.
Witnessing his movements—it was as if he knew exactly where each blow would land—the concern Gabriel had felt just moments before began to shift into something akin to awe.
‘Incredible… How does he so effortlessly dodge such tremendous assaults?’
Gelard read each attack flawlessly, as though he had fought such an opponent hundreds of times before.
Though he dodged the anchor with supernatural ease, in the brief openings, he thrust his sword ablaze with flames, methodically inflicting damage.
“Incredible…”
The girl murmured in a voice filled with awe.
Gabriel, in response, silently agreed.
The once terrifying momentum now seemed laughable, as the demon’s defeat became increasingly certain. One of its arms had long been consumed by fire, simmering away, and its innards had begun to spill out messily.
Despite this, the creature was still brandishing its weapons with a staggeringly stubborn vitality, but to Gabriel, it was clear that its end was drawing near.
Even though Gabriel was confident in his own skills, skilled enough not to be outdone by anyone.
This was true when dealing with the shark demons, and it was the same when facing off against the colossal crocodile demon this time.
Whenever he saw the prowess of the man named Gelard, Gabriel couldn’t help but feel dwarfed, infinitesimally small in comparison.
‘With such formidable skill, and such a cool head in assessing the situation… Indeed… No one else could be more fitting for the name of leader. Far more t
Toward that guy.
Geralt slowly approached with an expressionless face.
And.
-Thwack!!!
Geralt plunged a flaming sword into the running guy’s heart.
It wasn’t just a simple sword strike; it was a single blow filled with flames and magic, instantly incinerating the guy’s heart.
Engulfed in flames, the guy turned red and shed blood, meeting a complete death.
Afterwards, Geralt pulled out the sword from the remaining guy’s heart and looked at Gabrielle, speaking calmly.
“It’s over. It took quite some time.”
Originally, Simon, the demon who had infiltrated the church, planned to use the choir to massacre them.
However, thanks to Jannu’s torture, they were able to easily find the demon’s location.
Of course, it would have been difficult for Geralt to exterminate the guy if he hadn’t been skilled.
“Amazing! Sir, you’re incredibly strong!”
“Thanks for the praise.”
The girl cheered with excitement.
Geralt smiled tenderly and lightly patted her head.
“You did well, leader. Knocking down that giant monster without a scratch, truly impressive.”
“There’s no need to praise me so much. It’s just a level that you can reach soon enough as long as you’re on the ground.”
Geralt calmly retorted, brushing off the awe-filled reaction from Gabrielle, while wiping off the blood on his sword.
Still, it seemed like a story that carried some consideration.
Despite the girl’s apparent coolness, Gabriel could only muster a bitter smile in response to her strict demeanor.
“I appreciate your words, but isn’t that a bit too much to ask? I was only able to handle the minor demons around here. Taking down that kind of monster without a scratch…”
Gabriel spoke, infusing his words with a touch of bitterness.
Then.
“No, it must be done. Now, as quickly as possible.”
“!…”
Gelard’s voice carried a sincerity and an unexpected gravity.
At this, Gabriel, sensing some instinctive danger, wore a blank expression momentarily…
But shortly after,
Gelard, as he had done with the girl,
gently laid his hand on her head and replied quietly.
“Let’s talk details after this is over; for now, let’s concentrate on the reality right in front of us. We may have taken down the big catch, but our mission isn’t complete yet.”
“Uhmm. Ah… Alright…”
With those words, Gelard walked past her.
Following behind him,
Gabriel felt, without realizing it, a slight blush creeping onto his face.
At that moment.
-Crack!
“Huh?”
“Hmm…”
A single black crow had landed before the two of them.
Tied to the leg of the bird, a common means of communication among Devil Hunters, was a small note.
“It’s a message from Jeanne’s party.”
“Did they find something? Or maybe they’ve encountered a problem in their search for survivors…”
With that concern, Gabriel and Gellard checked the note.
Shortly thereafter, Gellard, with a calm voice, looked at Gabriel and said,
“If that’s the situation, we should head out. I had hoped to wrap things up here first…”
Gellard glanced at the girl as he spoke.
However, Gabriel responded with a peculiar sense of urgency.
“We’ve dealt with the demons in this area, so the evacuation and the rest should be handled by that woman Emily and the choir. Let’s not worry and just go. Leader.”
“…Hmm… Well, yes, but…”
Despite his words, Gellard hesitated slightly.
At that moment, the girl glanced at the note and a somewhat surprised voice escaped her lips.
“! Ah… This address, it’s our house.”
“What?”
“…Is that true?”
“Yes, Yarghul Street, number 33! And… my father’s name is Carlo Bonaparte! It’s unmistakable.”
“I see. If that’s the case, there’s no need to leave it to the choir then.”
“That’s… well… right…”
Gabriel responded reluctantly to Gellard’s words.
Despite her mood, she couldn’t find any grounds for rebuttal given the circumstances, and ultimately ended up quietly following the girl who had, at some point, attached herself to Gellard.
She thought she saw the girl sneak a glance at her and stick out her tongue mockingly, but that was probably just her imagination.