Future Diary Survival Game-Chapter 69 : Rescue – 4

Chapter 69: Rescue – 4
Benjamin looked at me instead of answering.
“You are?”
“I’m the leader of this party. My name is Mason Gear.”
“So you’re Mason. I see. I saw Edgar shouting your name while coughing up blood.”
He said it with a strangely satisfied tone.
That made it all the more puzzling.
“You don’t seem to have truly joined hands with Edgar.”
“Of course not. Why would I side with such a lunatic?”
“But the result says otherwise……”
“I don’t even know how to explain it. Whenever that bastard gives an order, my body just moves on its own. It’s like… I’m compelled to obey him somehow.”
His hand trembled violently.
At the same time, the bodies of the knights connected by the threads of his gloves staggered and swayed like puppets.
“I can’t hold on much longer.”
“……”
“Aina. You should be able to slip through their formation. Please, find an escape route.”
“I’m not leaving everyone behind. Did it ever cross your mind that we might actually defeat the knights?”
“That would be quite difficult. Urgh!”
The next moment—
His arm swung through the air.
I’d never seen it before, but it reminded me of a conductor leading an orchestra during a grand performance or festival.
“Kwaaah!”
“Uegh!”
At the same time, the knights at the front line charged toward us.
Ta-at!
The spot they kicked up sent dirt flying high.
And before I could regain focus, they were already right in front of us.
“Step back!”
Kaang!
As expected, the first to clash was Sienne.
In one swift motion, she sliced off both arms of two knights.
Blood gushed into the air with a sharp sound.
However, Sienne’s expression wasn’t bright.
“I intended to cut them down completely.”
“That won’t be so easy. Each of them… yes, they’re about as skilled as that brat Ian.”
“……!”
“And they’re a legion that feels neither pain nor fear. I beg you, please—find somewhere to flee, while you still can.”
“After cornering us like this, isn’t that a bit contradictory?”
“I suppose it is.”
He sounded calm, but I could see it clearly—
Benjamin was biting his lip hard.
Yet his arm moved again, waving side to side.
This time, ten knights charged at once.
“Your Highness, Mason! Fall back, both of you!”
Berseum immediately began casting a spell.
Then, a fierce battle erupted.
Sienne took the vanguard.
She unleashed countless sword strikes, blocking the knights’ advance.
But as Benjamin had said, each of them was about as strong as Ian. It was difficult for Sienne to hold them all off alone.
The gaps she couldn’t cover were taken by Berseum and Aina.
Berseum, for once, used offensive magic—sending flaming arrows soaring through the air.
Aina occasionally threw her needles.
Yet, overall, we were undeniably at a disadvantage.
Should we retreat now?
I toyed with the teleportation bead, thinking.
That’s when the Diary Book spoke.
[Either way, you’ll need to decide quickly.]
‘Hm?’
[Thanks to that man putting everyone around to sleep, there’s no one left to read Edgar’s letters.]
And indeed—
The coachman, and everyone within sight, had fallen asleep.
‘The last time the coachman read one was the 151st letter, right?’
[Yes. I’m not sure how long Edgar’s resurrection cycle is, but the deaths he’s accumulated should be about to expire.]
‘Damn it. So we really have to run?’
[I’d like to make a suggestion.]
The Diary Book continued, in its usual leisurely tone that didn’t fit the situation at all.
[You still have plenty of points left, don’t you?]
‘Hm? Probably, yeah.’
[Then why not buy a new product?]
I didn’t bother asking what it meant.
I understood immediately.
‘You’re talking about the Shop, right? The one that opened up when I leveled up last time.’
[Exactly. You caught on fast.]
‘I think the last newly registered product was Aina’s Awakening Potion… Does that mean it grants a new ability, like Her Highness’s case?’
[You’ll just have to drink it and see.]
Well, there was no point expecting a detailed explanation from this thing.
I summoned the Shop right away.
<Always with you — The Mobile Diary Shop.>
<You can purchase the following items at very low point costs.>
<Current Level: 2 — Two items available for sale.>
<1. Awakening Potion (Armelia Exclusive): Purchased!>
<2. Awakening Potion (Aina Exclusive): 500 points.>
[Points required: 500]
[Remaining points: 263]
I purchased Aina’s Awakening Potion.
Just like before, the Diary Book fluttered like a bird laying an egg, then spat out a small vial from between its pages.
It contained a thick, black liquid that looked unpleasant just to look at.
“Aina. Come here.”
“Huff… Huff… You—Ugh! Can’t you see I’m busy right now?!”
“Sienne, Berseum—please cover for Aina for a moment. It’s important.”
They barely had time to nod.
Aina, breathing heavily, retreated toward me.
Deep cuts ran along her arms and legs, looking quite severe.
“Aina.”
Armelia hurried to heal her wounds.
Meanwhile, I held out the vial.
“Drink it.”
“What’s this?”
“It should have a similar effect to what Her Highness is doing right now—healing you.”
“……At this point, I don’t even have the energy to argue.”
She uncorked it and gulped it down in one go.
I was the one who told her to drink it, but seeing her do so without a hint of hesitation moved me a little.
Was this the power of high trust?
Soon, Aina’s face twisted.
“So bitter. How did Her Highness drink this stuff so easily?”
“To be honest, I don’t remember drinking it myself.”
“Ah, right. Mason fed it to you, didn’t he?”
“……?”
“Anyway, I finished it. Now what do I do?”
Now what should she do? Tell me, Diary Book.
But before the Diary Book could reply, Aina’s expression turned strange.
She rubbed her eyes several times, then looked between me, the others, and the knights.
“Huh? What… am I seeing right now?”
“What do you mean?”
“Mason, you and Her Highness… no, everyone—there’s a faint shadow behind you. A white shadow.”
A white shadow?
Just as I was about to ask what she meant, the Diary Book spoke.
[She’s seeing souls.]
‘Souls? Those actually exist?’
[Well, beings like Magireta exist in this world, so having souls isn’t that strange.]
‘……’
[Have her turn her gaze to Benjamin.]
I relayed the Diary Book’s words to Aina.
She looked up at Benjamin on the second-floor rooftop, and her eyes widened.
“Only my brother’s shadow looks strange.”
“How strange?”
“Everyone else’s is white, but my brother’s is black. No, not completely black—more like a dark gray.”
I instinctively understood why his shadow was different.
And, as expected, the Diary Book confirmed my intuition.
[Edgar’s soul has tainted Benjamin’s. Still, for it to remain that color means he’s resisted quite hard. Unlike Ian.]
‘Tainted his soul… How could Edgar even do that?’
[Every person has a unique talent. Armelia’s Perfect Recall, Aina’s deep understanding of the body, Berseum’s mana sensitivity, and Sienne’s aura perception—all of those count.]
‘Then Edgar’s talent must be the power to stain souls.’
[Yes. That’s probably what made him so remarkable when he was alive. Well, technically, he’s still alive even now.]
‘So what should Aina do?’
That’s when Sienne’s sharp voice rang out.
“I can’t hold out any longer, Your Highness!”
“Mm?”
“May I kill them all?”
“So you’ve been holding back until now?”
“They’re the Silver Knights—technically assets of the Empire. I didn’t think it proper to cut them down in front of Your Highness.”
Chaeng!
Sienne deflected a rain of blades and continued.
“But the berserker needles’ effect is stronger than I expected… I don’t have the luxury to care anymore!”
“……”
“If you dislike it, then run away right now.”
Armelia bit her lip and looked at me.
It felt like she was leaving the decision in my hands.
I quickly spoke to the Diary Book.
‘There’s no time. How can we free Benjamin from Edgar’s control?’
[By touching his soul.]
I didn’t think it was a metaphor.
After all, Armelia had healed wounds by touching the injured directly, channeling the Light of Healing.
“Aina, fly up. Touch that shadow you mentioned.”
“……Huh?”
“No time to explain. Hurry!”
“Ah, okay. But breaking through these knights to reach my brother will be tough.”
At that moment, Sienne, who had been listening to our exchange, spoke to Berseum.
“Berseum, can you push them back for just a moment? Ten seconds—no, even five would do.”
“I’ll try.”
Berseum began chanting, longer and more complex than before.
Soon, flames erupted between us and the knights.
A wall of fire rose from the ground.
The berserk knights lacked consciousness, but perhaps because Benjamin was controlling them, they all stepped back.
In that brief opening, Sienne held out her sword toward Aina.
“Get on.”
“Uh… I think I see where this is going, but are you sure this will work?”
“Yes. Benjamin’s still in the same spot where we heard his voice earlier, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Then get on. Quickly.”
Aina leapt onto the blade like an acrobat.
With a strong flick of her shoulder, Sienne launched Aina into the air.
Straight toward where Benjamin stood.
“Wow. I keep living through the strangest things.”
Aina’s voice trailed off as she soared away.
She really did fly well.
Meanwhile, the flames Berseum had raised died down, and the knights resumed their assault.
But I didn’t take my eyes off Aina.
She landed gracefully right in front of Benjamin.
Then exchanged a brief conversation with him.
“Hi, brother.”
“Ugh… Aina.”
“No time to talk! We’ll catch up later!”
Benjamin tried moving his gloves again, attempting to command some of the knights toward himself.
But his movements were far slower than Aina’s.
Aina moved faster than the eye could follow, circling behind Benjamin.
She crouched, then stretched her body and leapt.
– Swaak.
Then she reached out toward Benjamin’s soul—something invisible to me.
Landing neatly back on the rooftop, Aina looked at me and shouted,
“Like this? Mason!”
I had no idea.
[Yes, that worked. Even though it’s your first time, Necromancy manifested successfully. Truly one of great potential.]
At the Diary Book’s words, I felt a wave of relief and replied,
“Yeah. It worked out fine.”
“But the knights are still moving……”
“That’s because I haven’t handled them yet.”
Just then, the staggering Benjamin stepped forward.
Thud.
He dropped to one knee and pressed his hand against the floor.
“Brother!”
“I’m fine, Aina. Just felt dizzy for a moment.”
“……”
“I don’t know what you just did, but—”
His voice softened completely.
“I feel clear again. Thank you, truly.”
“Looks like it. Your shadow’s turned white again.”
“Shadow?”
“It’s a long story. I’ll explain later… actually, maybe I won’t be able to explain even then.”
“……”
“For now, could you make them back off a little?”
Benjamin raised his hand without a word.
Pik, pik.
Threads connected to his gloves began to retract.
At their ends—embedded in the knights’ crowns—were the same needles Aina had shown before.
Benjamin retrieved all fifty-five needles and neatly gathered them away before collapsing face-first on the rooftop.
Thud.
And all the knights fell to the ground at once.
Sienne and Berseum lowered their stances.
“Well done, Sienne.”
“No, you too, Berseum. I’m surprised—we worked together better than I expected. You’re more suited for battle than I thought.”
“I’ve been through quite a lot, being hunted by the Empire. Not as much as you, though.”
“Hehe. It’d be troublesome if you were better than someone who’s wandered through battlefields.”
Meanwhile, Aina carried the unconscious Benjamin on her back and returned to us.
Benjamin had already fainted.
Aina spoke.
“My brother suddenly passed out. What happened?”
“……”
“Something didn’t go wrong, did it? It can’t have……”
Wobble.
Then Aina’s legs gave way, and she began to fall.
Armelia quickly caught her.
“Aina? What’s wrong?”
“Mmph…”
“……Mason. Aina’s asleep.”
“Seems that way.”
“That’s impossible. How could she just fall asleep in a situation like this?”
It was probably a side effect, just like what happened when Armelia used the Light of Healing.
Instead of saying, ‘Your Highness did the same several times, remember?’, I simply stared at her.
Armelia, realizing what I meant, turned her gaze away slightly.
Then, with her cheeks faintly flushed, she muttered in a defensive tone,
“Well… I suppose it happens when one’s tired.”