Chapter 657: Shadow Legion
The soldier who devoured everything did not fall for good, and Melania saw her jump the next moment. So even though the gobkin did not harm her, he still managed to obstruct her for a while.
"You d.a.m.n lizard!" shouted the soldier as she jumped and struck the gobkin with her palm, and the giant was sent flying. "Know your d.a.m.n place!"
Melania was worried about the gobkin who Arthur Silvera sent. After all, the enemy was a deme-ranker and someone even stronger than she is. A direct physical attack from her was bound to leave some damage, but the result was different from what she expected.
"I am fine!" shouted the gobkin as it came out of the rubble beside the wall, his body also unharmed. The way it exclaimed its status as if in surprise was both comical and terrifying because not even this monster knew its strength.
Melania could tell that the gobkin, although large, was not that strong. She expected him to be in the True-rank. Of course, a deme-ranker like the soldier woman could kill it in an instant, but it seems their physical stats were not that different.
"How… how… how could this be?" muttered the soldier with a trembling finger, even though she should have witnessed their strength earlier. "You are weird, giant green man!"
Melania blinked at her description, not knowing why she called him "a man" rather than a monster. However, she then remembered that there was a difference between how Alka and Earth treated other species.
Anything other than a human was a monster for the people of Earth, but there were versatile species in Alka. The soldier considered the monster a bit human since it could talk to them. Therefore, the soldier did not have the concept of a humanoid monster.
"What is your name?" asked Melania after snapping out of her daze. The soldier paused and turned toward her, looking as if she had just noticed her existence.
"I am Tinto, the great glutton," said the woman with pride, puffing her chest out. Her orange hair was akin to that of a flame, dancing quietly. "Who the h.e.l.l are you?"
"My name is Melania, and that should be enough to tell you," said Melania in an attempt to fool her. "I came here to diffuse the situation, given that some things have changed."
"Melania?" chewed the soldier on the name in recognition before nodding. "You are the prince"s sister and the queen"s daughter. What has changed? Are you trying to say that you are on our side now?"
The soldier seemed gullible enough to believe her, so Melania decided to push her luck. "I met Jono earlier, and he said that I needed to prove my loyalty. So presenting this woman to him is how I would do that."
"Oh-ho?" grinned Tinto. "Does that mean we have a little princess now? I like that. However, I cannot take your words for it. This mission is too important for me to mess up."
"Rather than that," said Melania to change the subject, turning toward the shadows and the gobkins surrounding Tinto. "It seems that Kino has fallen to this reinforcement. His presence is gone."
"I would not be so worried," said Tinto while looking in a particular direction. "Kino has some weird habit that always makes us think he is dead. He is the greatest swordsman in the kingdom."
Melania did not like that sound, as it meant Selena was still in danger. However, Tinto"s attention was diverted from whether she was an enemy or a foe; that was all she wanted.
"I will leave you here to handle these as I take this woman to Jono," said Melania while grabbing Aunty Sarah"s arm. "Then, I will see you later."
"Whoa, wait, wait!" said Tinto with surprise. "You cannot possibly leave me with these ugly men, alright? I am a soft girl that is best suited to fighting beautiful women. Let me take her to Jono, and I will tell him that you helped."
Melania rolled her eyes without being seen and then darted toward the tunnel she came from. It took Tinto a moment to understand what was going on.
"Are you trying to s.n.a.t.c.h the credit for yourself?" shouted Tinto from behind her while devouring the distance between them. As she appeared behind her, Melania turned with a hand br.i.m.m.i.n.g with energy.
"You cannot teleport but simply reduce the distance between yourself and the target," muttered Melania. "Rather than s.n.a.t.c.hing her, I will s.n.a.t.c.h your life."
Melania struck Tinto in her chest, sending the woman flying through the underground reservoir. Tinto screamed in pain as she slammed into the walls before falling to the ground. Then, the two of them ran back toward the tunnel.
***
Tinto liked to eat everything, but her favorite food was raw mana. However, when the princess struck her, she tasted something else: Pure energy. There were times when Tinto herself wanted to taste the sun, not realizing how it tasted. After all, she couldn"t devour the sunrays.
As the attack struck her chest, a part of it was devoured by her ability. Tinto got a taste of pure energy, and her body was br.i.m.m.i.n.g with joy. The energy was different from mana, which brought life to this world. It was the manifestation of force and movement.
Therefore, to put it simply, Tinto tasted raw energy with her body and ability. It left her heart beating and her chest tight. As she stared at the princess taking the woman away, Tinto wondered what this feeling was.
"I haven"t felt this way in a long time," said Tinto with a heaving chest. "I want her… to strike me more."
It was for the taste of pure energy rather than for her getting harmed. Tinto rose from the destroyed wall and was about to pursue the two women when the shadows and green men obstructed her again.
"Move away!" shouted Tinto with rage as she waved her hand. After all, she could only devour one thing at a time. She couldn"t eat the distance between them if someone were standing in her way.
"That, I cannot do," grinned the shadows at her. There were two shadows and one gobkin, but they were her bane. After all, she couldn"t devour living matter, and when she tried eating the shadows, it made her stomach upset. "We have orders to keep you here."
"That woman was s.n.a.t.c.hed away by us!" said Tinto with a frown.
"You are… truly naïve…" said the shadow at her before turning toward the gobkin. "Hold her back while the two of us attack. We have a chance if we work together."
"Ganging up on a woman?" glared Tinto at the three. "You lot truly has no honor. Make this a fair fight, and I will obliterate the three of you!"
Although she said that, Tinto knew that these three couldn"t be killed easily. The green man was akin to an unbreakable wall with his body, and the shadows simply could not be harmed as if they were a ghost.
"I will win!" shouted the green man before it came rushing toward her, and Tinto clicked her tongue while taking out a weapon. It was a giant spoon that she sometimes used to eat, but it also had other capabilities.
"I said, get out of my way!" shouted Tinto as she waved the spoon, striking the green man and sending him flying. It slammed to the walls before the shadows rushed behind it, striking with black daggers toward her heart.
Tinto took a step back, dodging the two of them. Finally, however, the two shadows changed the course of their attacks and struck the ground beneath her. The daggers dug deep into the ground before the shadows jumped back.
"You missed, idiots," said Tinto while glancing at the two daggers embedded in the grounds. "Are you blind or something?"
"We did not miss, as our goal has been achieved. Now, even if you try to move, you cannot. After all, we have captured your shadow," said the shadow from earlier."
"Captured my shadow?" frowned Tinto while looking down to find that the two daggers were digging into her shadow. "That is rubbish talk!" said Tinto while jumping back, but she could not fly away by a lot before falling to the ground. "Wha…"
Tinto stared down to find that her shadow was still in the same spot as earlier. Her eyes blinked, not knowing how her shadow could stretch so far and how it could be restrained.
"That look is normal when faced with our Shadow Legion," said the shadow from earlier. "We are not physically powerful, nor can we use elemental attacks. However, for a.s.sa.s.sination and restraining, no human can top us."
"You are overestimating yourselves, creepy shadows!" shouted Tinto as her mouth grew, and she wanted to devour the daggers. "I will just devour the shadows, and I will be free."
"…idiotic decision," muttered the shadow without trying to stop her. The shadows are not separate ent.i.ties but a single being. For you to devour your own shadow… that will not end well for you."