A Distant Reverie

Chapter 76

Crack!

The eight-foot water elemental shattered into chunks of ice. The remnants of its body rapidly melted under the relentless rain, yielding a low-hanging mist that began to permeate the surface of the battlement. Amidst the melting rubble of ice, a grayish stone laid at its center.

A shamanic core.

It was blemished—a chunk of the stone missing, presumably damaged when its tethered connection with the shaman was abruptly severed by Kobo's spell. Whatever the case, it was obvious that the Naiad would not rise again.

"Kobo! Are you okay?!" Vesper yelled as he rushed to Kobo's side.

His own voice sounded hoarse and disembodied. His ears had been dulled by the cacophony of the incessant rain and the abuse on his body. A scalding burn flared across his torso with each step that he took.

He ignored it all.

Kobo was slumped against the walls of the battlement. Her eyes were wild and alert as she heaved with exhaustion. The relentless sling of spells must have finally taken its toll. Luckily, aside from the mental fatigue and a few scratches, she appeared to be fine.

"Mr. Vesper, you should be asking that about yourself," she said in between breaths.

Vesper smiled, awash with relief. His shoulders began to slack as tension poured out of his body.

"Is the Naiad dead?" a voice called from behind.

Vesper turned around. It was a royal knight who had peaked his head around the edge of a damaged palisade. His eyes were frantic with fear. Only then did Vesper remember that they were in the midst of a brutal defensive war against Duke Calon.

The cold, unflinching reality settled back in.

The battlement was a complete wreck from the aftermath of the Naiad's rampage. Despite its fixation on Vesper and Kobo, the collateral damage inflicted to its surroundings was undeniable. Bodies slewed the area. Palisades damaged. Broken structures and weapons laid along the ruined wreckage. Cannons that had just been repaired were flung uselessly to the side, ravaged by the Naiad's attacks.

Reine, who was supposed to be coordinating and commanding the defensive efforts, was nowhere to be found.

"The Naiad is gone!" Vesper strained his voice to give a reply.

He peered over the edge of the battlement. Duke Calon's soldiers continued their relentless advance on the castle walls. Their confrontation with the Naiad must have only lasted a few minutes at best. Still, the swarm of soldiers gathered close to the castle gates had nearly doubled. The time they spent distracted by the Naiad was fatal.

What now?

Before he could find an answer, the castle walls began to shake.

***

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

The massive door of the castle keep trembled with a rhythmic cadence. Stone and debris flaked off from the walls and ceilings as the persistent, blaring impact continued with relentless fervor. Marine stared with unease, watching as the reinforcements they had placed earlier to fortify the door slowly became undone. The steel construct was the last bastion separating them from the stone golem and Duke Calon's vanguard forces.

Is Suisei not back yet?

She glanced at the stairway leading to the upper floors of the castle keep to her right. She had sent the young lady off to fetch Reine as a desperate measure to counteract against the enemy's stone golem. The shamanic construct proved to be far more troubling than she expected. With Reine at her side, she never grew to appreciate the destructive potential of the stone golem until she had to fight against it.