Chapter 223: Assault. 16:22

Assault. 16:22

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The 13th Arc begins.

Since many people might not be familiar with the name “Purple Dual Rings,” I’ll give a brief explanation of the proper nouns and terms used in this chapter in the afterword section, so please remember various things.

With this, even if you’ve forgotten the previous content, it’ll be fine!

The Saikanan Highway is a historic highway that runs east-west through the Golden Continent Hamejika.

This highway, stretching from Ashgo in the west to Rayvlake in the east, has been continuously delivering crops harvested in Tezonka to dining tables across the continent, and delivering imported goods shipped from Ashgo to the treasure vaults of royalty and nobility in various countries.

It was a highway truly deserving of being called the main artery of the Golden Continent.

However, that was a long time ago.

Due to various reasons such as the development of new distribution routes, advancements in agricultural technology in various regions, and the coup that occurred in Ashgo, the number of users of this highway has been steadily decreasing.

Moreover, that’s especially the case during early winter like now, when light snow flutters.

That’s why Emi had been walking along the highway for the past few days without encountering many people.

To the west, to the west.

There wasn’t any particular reason for heading west.

It’s just that the direction she happened to run in after leaving her beloved base was west.

That’s all there is to it.

“……”

Emi gently slapped her cheek and, following the disappearing snow, took her gaze off the antique stone pavement that stretched on endlessly.

Looking ahead, far, far in the distance, at the end of the highway as far as the eye could see, the golden evening sun was setting.

The stone pavement, the ears of pampas-like plants extending around it, and the trees of the forest just beside them, with only a few withered leaves still clinging to their branches.

Every single one of them sparkled beautifully, while at the same time creating deep shadows.

Emi unconsciously narrowed her eyes at the brightness.

Light snow fluttered down again, disappearing as if being absorbed into Emi’s pitch-black outfit that occasionally surfaced a rusty red color.

That outfit was something Emi created with her own abnormal ability.

To explain what that means, it was her newly devised abnormal ability【Black Arms】wrapped around her body.

This supernatural magic power construct, which didn’t even let the golden bear’s lightning pass through, also blocks out the cold outside air.

In other words, when wrapped around the body, it’s warm.

That’s why Emi was constantly wrapping this【Black Arms】around her body, wearing it like armor to ward off the cold.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

It’s hard to move, so she didn’t wrap it around her limbs.

She wrapped it round and round her torso.

Therefore, her current appearance was that of a pitch-black, rugged, spiky, spherical rock with her limbs and head poking out, a bizarre sight indeed.

The travelers she very rarely passed by all gazed at Emi’s appearance in astonishment and….

“The Dark Spiky Rock Man…!?”

They muttered.

And then, picked up by Emi’s superhumanly keen hearing, those words were lightly【Intimidated】, causing them to turn pale and run away.

Even Emi feels some embarrassment about having such a peculiar appearance on the highway, let alone inside an uninhabited demon realm.

However, the【Black Arms】outfit had such high cold resistance and defense that it blew away the small demerits of being a little embarrassing and a little hard to move in.

Moreover, Emi had the conviction that as she got used to this【Black Arms】, she would be able to freely transform its shape… into a more refined form, like clothing.

Therefore, in order to become proficient in operating【Black Arms】, she became the Dark Spiky Rock Man again today and proceeded along the highway.

Fortunately, on this day, Emi didn’t pass by anyone.

Furthermore, blood-thirsty monsters rarely appeared on the highway, making it a very peaceful and quiet day.

Inevitably, Emi’s vigilance towards her surroundings was also slightly lowered.

Such carefree words from Extra-sama echoed in Emi’s mind.

“……”

…Indeed.

Shall we enter the forest soon and hunt a deer or something?

Silently patting her abdomen wrapped in【Black Arms】, Emi casually replied in her mind.

With her abilities, hunting creatures in the forest was extremely easy.

Upon finding prey, she just needed to approach it with a single leap and behead it to obtain flesh and blood.

Fortunately, the forest in this area was very bountiful, with deer, boars, Topecchogo, and others inhabiting it in large numbers, making it easy to find prey.

Even if she started hunting from now when the sun was about to set, for Emi, it would be in time for dinner.

…Of course, the reason she could do that was because Emi was quite a skilled individual.

Especially the deer around here, with their sharp antlers capable of easily slicing down large trees, black wings, and fire-breathing, they’re dangerous, so please don’t thoughtlessly enter the forest just because you got a little hungry while traveling, everyone. Promise.

But, however.

To conclude, on this day, even with Emi’s abilities, the hunt was difficult, and it was late at night under a sky full of twinkling stars when she finally began eating the deer meat she managed to find.

Why?

…Because an intense battle was about to occur at this place, and the creatures, sensing it and becoming frightened, all fled deep into the forest.

“HEY HEY HEY YOU DIEEEEE!!!”

With such a crude and inelegant rough shout, Emi’s day, which seemed like it would end peacefully, was instantly ruined.

“…!?”

Emi, who had completely let her guard down, hurriedly turned towards the direction of the voice, the forest she was considering entering for hunting.

And inevitably, her field of vision captured the figure of the sudden attacker.

It was a giant, probably over 3 meters tall, running towards Emi at a tremendous speed while assuming a fighting stance.

【Ashgo】

A country whose name has been mentioned quite a few times so far.

【Rayvlake】

A country located in the eastern part of the Golden Continent.

The setting of Arc 2 and 3.

Emi is from the Rayvlake Kingdom, although she’s not aware of it.

【Tezonka】

The setting of Arc 8 and 9.

There seems to be an ancient ruins called “Saikanedon” there, but since it wasn’t on the route, Emi passed by it.

【Deer】

Even if it has wings or breathes fire, as long as it’s explicitly stated as a “deer” in the narration, it’s a deer.

By the way, deer-type monsters such as “Electricia” (Arc 3) and “Sword-Fighting Deer” (Arc 7) have already appeared.