Mistress Of The Evil Forest

Case 99: Advent – Appearance.

*****

Under the guise of Silaerob, Aurora teleports directly to an alleyway near the scene. As soon as her senses transfer, an overwhelming wave of burnt scent gushes over her, causing a frown to appear on her face. In her ears, the cries of ordinary people can be heard—loud and clear.

''Tch.''

A sense of urgency is born at the moment, and Aurora quickly runs through that panic crowd, arriving at Astra Square in mere moments. Others pay no mind to this blatant figure wearing a robe in bright daylight as their concerns are rather about their precious lives.

Once she sets her feet on the ruins of what used to be a glamorous plaza, the sight of a lone man standing amidst the flame greets her. With long, black hair that runs to his lower back, a decently muscular body, and well-defined facial features, the man, objectively, is attractive—if not for one fact:

He is quite literally dead.

At once, Aurora realizes this—pale skin, rigid joint movements, and lifeless eyes. However, what makes her so certain is that she can't use [Inspect] on him.

By definition, the system is a set of features assigned to certain living organisms in order to assist them in their survival. This means that the dead cannot have a system.

'A zombie?! But how is this so strong??'

Facing the oppressive aura coming from the man, Aurora can't help but squint her eyes. She is even certain that this man is stronger than herself. Belatedly, the man also turns to Aurora, leading to a brief moment where the two stare blankly at each other.

'Wait, a man with Eastern features and long hair...!'

Right then, Aurora suddenly remembers a detail from the original storyline regarding a 'zombie boss.' Arc 7 of the story is dedicated to Ravenous Moon, a cult that has been quiet for some time at the point when this piece takes place. In it, a high-ranking executive of the cult descends into the academy with the sole purpose of eliminating the seed of light—Claire.

One of the bosses the player has to fight is a deceased hero of the Eastern country—Hakuryuu Genji. Once hailed as the Black Dragon of the regime, he helped the country through multiple crises and eventually reigned as the Emperor for an extended period of time.

Somehow, the cult executive has found a way to obtain Genji's body and took control over it, essentially making him a mere puppet for his schemes.

However, according to the timeline, Arc 5 has not properly started yet, and a boss from Arc 7 is present. For once, Aurora regrets her interventions in the plot.

'...No. This is only natural.'

Even if she doesn't like it, she has to accept reality and prepare for it. Aurora pulls out the Blackstar from her inventory and quietly assumes a fighting stance. 

If Genji—one of the strongest soldiers in the cult—is wreaking havoc in the capital of the empire, then it means the cult is going for a big one this time. If so, Aurora is prepared for a devastating war with the cult—her mind has decided so a long time ago.

Breaking the brief moment of peace, Genji aims his palm at Aurora. Effortlessly, a gush of fire so intense it blows the surrounding debris away escapes, forcing the robed figure to duck to the side. Before long, Aurora takes the nearby building's wall as a platform and springs toward Genji; her sword gleams a bright, frosty blue.

KENG—!!

The infused sword carrying the enormous momentum is lightly blocked by two fingers of the defender, who looks unfazed. Not stopping at that, however, Aurora quickly retreats her sword and strikes Genji a few more hits at multiple angles, causing destructive blasts to wipe away the surrounding ruins.

Seeing as though Genji isn't bothered by her attacks one bit, Aurora then further fuels a second element—light—into her blade. Facing his now weakness, Genji finally stops playing and starts dodging particularly dangerous strikes for once.

Instead, he begins to dish out counterattacks of his own, often nearly hitting his elusive opponent. 

For a while, the two clash with each other in the ruined plaza, seemingly reaching a stalemate the more the fight goes on. In reality, it is Aurora whose stamina is being consumed for little paybacks, as she has also felt at the moment.

'They should be here soon...'

''This way!!''

''Prepare the formation!''

One by one, forces of the empire arrive: imperial knights clad in elaborate black armor, imperial mages donning classy black robes, and, of course, the always-nosy Claudia Heisenberg. Accompanying the professor are her colleague Hailey Florence, Astra Academy's principal, Alice, and numerous other professors.

In an instant, they deploy a siege formation to surround the cause of the disturbance completely, pointing their weapons at it. Seeing Silaerob arrive even earlier than them, some don't know what to do. Suddenly, a tense atmosphere descends onto the battlefield again.

''Tch.''

However, that doesn't apply to Genji, who has no interest in human emotions at the moment. He keeps bashing spell after spell, even more fire after fire at Aurora, forcing her to utilize the acrobatics skills that she learned back on Earth to the fullest.

Eventually, Aurora feels frustrated enough. 

''What are you doing?!'' She shouts. ''Aren't you going to protect your city?!''

This call straight-up embarrasses some people—a slap in the face for hesitating simply because of Silaerob's controversial reputation. The two commanders of the imperial knight unit and the imperial mage unit nod at each other briefly before giving out orders.

''Suppress the man!''

''Unit six, support the knights!''

''We'll also help!''

As a knight takes the initiative and rams his body at Genji, Aurora sighs in relief before falling back to recover her stamina. She begins to relax her wrists and smoothes the joints, watching the imperial soldiers taking over the battle. Befitting an Arc 7 boss, Genji is said to be as strong as a master in their middle stages, so defeating him alone is not an option.

Then, she suddenly senses someone walking to her side.

''How strong is this guy?''

A mature woman with distinct red hair and red eyes brazenly inquires about the opponent. As it is, Claudia Heisenberg seems unfazed in front of Aurora, unlike the last instance where they met. This renders the owl girl speechless for a moment, but she snaps out of it right away.

''Stronger than all of us here.'' She replies. ''There will be more to come.''

''What?! There are more of these things??'' Claudia frowns. ''Are you sure?''

''...Eighty percent.''

''I thought you were supposed to be a prophet? Why do you seem so unprepared—''

''Hey, that's enough.''

Right then, a small figure approaches the two. Barely reaching Aurora's chest in height, Alice of Astra Academy puts her hands on her slender hip and puffs out her nose.

''She's not our mom. She doesn't have the obligation to protect us.'' She says. ''So be grateful to her.''

''...''

For once, Aurora finds someone with a good opinion. Glancing at Claudia's embarrassed face, Aurora smirks in victory.

''Ugh...!"'

''Argh!!''

With a few loud thuds, three knights are sent straight through buildings, crashing into the sturdy walls. Turning back to the battlefield, Aurora's brief good mood is instantly gone.

Maybe now isn't the time for chatting.

Clenching the Blackstar's handle, Aurora takes a step toward Genji, who only has eyes on her since the beginning.