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‘H-how dare a measly human like you hurt me, who mastered the ways of sorcery! You’ll pay with your life for this sin!’

In a fit of rage, the Lich planted its cane on the ground. An instant later, a large and ominous magic circle floated around him, miasma pouring out from it. The miasma spread like black tentacles, wrapping around the agonizing monsters and morphing their bodies into far more unsightly and wicked shapes. At the same time, the lifeless bodies sprang up on their feet, moving even more nimbly than when they were alive.

“It’s making more undead…?”

As I muttered that in a low voice, the Lich began cackling in a loud voice. The fiend looked highly confident in the results of that spell.

“Dammit…!”

I wanted to help her, yet my body would not react… But I could not let Lapis take all of them on her own.

“It’s okay. Just stay there and watch.”

As she passed beside me, she sensed my presence and said that in a low voice. Completely the opposite to her, the Lich kept laughing loudly.

‘Khahahahahahah! Now that they’ve been revived, they’re many times stronger than they were in life! Even if you possess strength and courage, you shall never be a match for such a high number of opponents! Just stay still gritting your teeth watching how they slaughter all the other people!’

All the undead monsters began moving at the same time. We had gone through so many lengths to defeat them, but now they simply stood up again to fight for the Lich. But we had been careless as well, we knew the enemies were undead, so we should have foreseen things turning like this…!

The situation had been overturned against us to such an extent, but Lapis looked unfazed. She glared intently at the monsters, then took her sword and pointed it straight upwards.

“Begone.”

The moment she muttered that, a white flash blinded our eyes. At the same time, the sound of an explosion rang shaking my whole body. Unaware of what was happening, I instinctively cowered down protecting my head with my hands before pieces of dirt began raining all around.

“Wha…what happened…”

The sky itself seemed to be booming with loud crackles. The flashes I could see sparking every so often made it clear what was happening. It was lightning. Lapis had created a storm of lightning that continued to strike all the monsters without leaving a single one alive. Not even their bones remained. Her lightning had been so powerful that wherever one hit, a crater with scorched earth remained.

Not even veteran adventurers that had honed their magic throughout all their lives were capable of bringing forth anything close in power to her magic. Perhaps the combined effort of a squadron with multiple dozens of sorcerers from the royal palace would be able to replicate something similar, but even that would require a really long time to chant.

We all looked at her in something that had long crossed the definition of awe. My mind was numb, unable to process the information my eyes were accurately relaying to it. We were not the only ones looking dumbfounded at her, the Lich that had been so composed until just a few moments earlier, now looked unsure of its footing as it tumbled a few steps backwards unable to hide its unrest.

‘That can’t… it can’t…just who…who are you…?’

“It’s rude to ask a woman for her secrets.”

Saying so, Lapis forced a smile as she readied the sword in her hand. It was a cheap and average sword, but as she filled it with her intent, it began glowing like a holy sword. Her skills resembled those used by Karin moments earlier to a certain extent…though in Lapis’ case, they were many orders of magnitude more powerful than Karin’s.

The Lich, fearing for its life, reaffirmed its grip on the cane, while Lapis began walking towards it without seeming to care about any danger befalling on her.

‘D-don’t get closer! Go away! Are you aware of who I am?! I’m a powerful priest turned Lich, who was deemed worthy of inheriting a fragment of the Demon King’s power! I’m not someone a little girl like you should approach so lightly- …Aiyee I’m telling you to go away!’

The miasma pouring from the Lich’s body thickened. He was going to launch another large scale magic. The orb forming on the tip of its cane was more than twice as large than the one Lapis had defended us from earlier. It was obvious that the Lich was showing its full strength. It was an orb of raw and powerful magic made with the sole intention of killing Lapis.

‘Die you brazen child!’

The orb was released and it flew straight at Lapis at breakneck speed while dying the surroundings in black. Lapis however, faced that threat head-on, with steady steps and no intention to avoid it.

In a single movement that looked like a flash, her sword cut straight through the orb and sliced it in half. The Lich stared at her, frozen in terror and unable to react as Lapis’ arm swung again, this time severing its upper body from its torso.

Its body crumbled down with a dry sound, almost a bit too dry. The undead king who had brandished such a devastating power until then had been slain by a single girl.

‘…Kuh… Impossible…so shameful…who would’ve thought…there was a human who wielded so much power… My lord…Demon King…I’ve failed…’

The Lich’s body began disintegrating like sand, leaving only a small mound behind. Me and the others were the only ones left there, prostrated in the ground trying to cover ourselves. Lapis looked up at the sky, heaving a deep sigh, she then put her sword away and began treating our wounds with a melancholic look on her face.

“…”

“…”

No one said anything, or rather, no one could say anything. There was a swirl of emotions in my mind, being saved from the brink of death while also witnessing a power that far surpassed any of our own, I felt confused as to what I should even say.

“Sorry for being late, Master.”
“Lapis…”

I felt her hands on my body, warm magic flowing from them and running through my body, my wounds closing and healing right in front of my eyes. She could perform healing magic like this, which only a really high skilled priest would be able to replicate, and earlier she had also used a large scale offensive magic, just who was this girl?

My feelings were almost the same as fear, which she seemed to notice as a lonely smile overtook her lips. I could not tell why, but I had a strong premonition that if I did not say anything, she would go away. That thought forced my hand to reach out to her, but then I froze, unsure of what to say. I felt annoyed with myself, gritting in frustration seeing how useless I was, but then help came from an unexpected place.

“Lapis!”
“Uwah-?!”

When she was done healing everyone, Karin and Ciel jumped on her. Unlike all the other adventurers who were almost afraid of her, those two showed no restraint as they got close to her, examining her body.

“Are you hurt anywhere?! If you kick a creepy weirdo like that your beautiful legs could get hurt!”

“I felt like my heart was going to explode earlier! I know you’re really strong, that doesn’t mean you should be reckless!”

“You two…”

Seeing those two acting completely normal made the clouds covering Lapis face dissipate. Yes…she had saved our lives, but her mind had just been saved by those two. My mind began working again as well, so I lifted my tired body and stood up.

“Lapis.”

“Master?”

The guards and adventurers she had healed assembled behind me. Even those with cruel faces looked meek now, making her act slightly hesitant. We all faced Lapis, then bowed our heads down.

“Err…Master?”

“Thank you, Lapis. You saved all of our lives. If it wasn’t for your help, we would’ve all perished right here.”

“Thank you missy! You really saved us!”

“Thank you so much! I don’t even want to think what would’ve happened to us if it wasn’t for you…”

As more and more people expressed their thanks, it did not take long for her face to go from uneasiness to happiness. For a moment I thought the other adventurers might shun her due to her excessive power, but I was relieved to see that it had just been needless anxiety.

There had been no damage done to the city, and there were no casualties between the adventurers and guards either. That beautiful girl had brought for the best result, which could almost be called a miracle, and was now smiling while being crushed in a sea of gratitude.

That was one matter settled. But I still felt a bit caught inside the Lich’s last words. He had called the Demon King its lord. The only Demon King I knew about was the one slain by the Hero three hundred years ago. Did that mean he was attempting to be resurrected?

“…We should investigate that as soon as possible.”

There was a banquet and a big party to celebrate the victory, and only I had a strained smile as I thought about those things.