Chapter 6

A proper battle has begun. ——Is it proper, though?

Finally, I was able to confirm the figure: a giant easily exceeding three meters in height. It appeared to be made of ice, a translucent white. It had a full-body suit of armor without a neck, and in its hand was a massive sword proportional to its size.

"……Is this an Ice Golem?"

"Do you know about golems? Yes, they are automatons infused with false life through magic."

The ice golem stood before us, blocking the entrance.

It doesn't seem like it will let us pass easily.

"……Can we win?"

"Hard to say. The strength of golems varies greatly depending on the skill of their creator. At the very least, the mage who can create a golem of that size must be quite skilled."

The motion of drawing my sword was the same as when I fought the wolf pack, but the tension seeping from my expression couldn't be hidden.

"I'll make the first move, so Kanna, take the young lady and escape while I create a distraction. If this golem is the guardian of this place, it won't pursue us once we leave the area."

"……Understood."

It was hard to say the word of agreement. I understood that her plan was the most reliable, but the fact that Rea had to be the decoy weighed heavily on my heart.

"Don't worry. I'll only fight for a bit and then escape. I don't have a death wish."

Rea, who had turned her head slightly, had a smile on her face.

Seeing that smile, I steeled my resolve.

I turned to the young lady I was carrying. She was trembling in fear, her face pressed against my body, so I couldn't see her expression. But I, like Rea, gave her a smile.

We can't die in a place like this. Rea and I must be repeating the same words in our hearts. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been able to escape from that castle together.

"Then……let's go!"

With a force that seemed to shatter the ground, Rea charged forward. Despite the weight of her massive sword, she moved with incredible speed, rushing towards the ice giant. I braced my legs, ready to run at any moment.

The best opportunity would be after Rea lands a hit. This would set the guardian's target on her, allowing me to escape while she is being pursued. It's a simple plan, but we have no other choice. So, I must focus all my efforts on it.

The golem reacted to Rea's approach, raising its sword.

Just before the collision, the golem leaped. It was a surprisingly high jump for its massive size.

Rea, who had too much momentum, swung her sword at an empty spot and almost lost her balance. But I couldn't watch it through to the end. I didn't have the time. Because the landing point of the golem, which had jumped high into the air, was right where I was preparing to run, behind Rea.

"Wh-What the hell!"

This was one of the few times in my life that I had such a perfect reaction. Before the golem reached the peak of its jump, I had already started running sideways. The golem landed, slamming its sword into the ground where I had been standing. The force of gravity and muscle shattered the ground, and the shockwave nearly tripped me. With a balance that I wanted to praise myself for, I managed to stay on my feet and changed direction towards the exit.

I felt a chill on my temple. Following that sensation, I threw my body forward. When my head was at half its original height, a massive object passed just above me, creating a gust of wind. I fell face-first to the ground and immediately looked up to see the ice giant's sword flying straight through the air. The golem had thrown it.

"Is the young lady okay?"

"Y-Yes……"

While hearing her frightened response, I quickly stood up and turned to face the golem. From the golem's empty hand, ice began to grow, forming a new sword in just a few seconds.

"Give me a break!"

I tried to run again, putting strength into my legs. At the same time, the golem raised its sword to throw it again!

"Here I come!"

A tremendous impact ran through the golem's side. Rea had struck its arm with her sword. Despite the size difference, Rea's blow had completely overpowered the golem. The ice giant, after a brief moment in the air, fell to the ground.

"What kind of strength is that?"

Even as an ally, I was shaken by her overwhelming power.

"Now's our chance, Kanna!"

Without even nodding, I started running towards the exit. This time, for sure.

But reality was cruel.

The ice giant, before it could stand up, threw its sword again. It wasn't aimed at Rea or me. I thought it might have been a miss, but the ice giant's sword hit the exit I was aiming for.

The combined weight and speed of the sword completely shattered the exit, collapsing it with a loud boom. I couldn't immediately accept the scene before me, unable to run or stop, and walked to where the exit had been.

Touching the pile of rubble that blocked the exit, I finally realized the reality.

"Completely trapped……"

With the only escape route blocked, despair began to overwhelm me.

But I tried to keep my legs from collapsing. The 'weight' on my back refused to let me sink into despair.

"We're in a tight spot."

Rea, who had apparently been fighting the ice giant, was now breathing heavily next to me.

"The mage who created that golem must be quite skilled. It has a very sophisticated automatic control system. It's on the level of a royal court mage."

"How skilled is that?"

"Ten of them could defeat a thousand-man army in a direct confrontation."

"Monsters!"

At that moment, an idea struck me.

"Hey, Rea, pass her to me!"

"Huh? Hey, Kanna!"

I forcefully pushed the young lady towards Rea. Before she could say anything, I started running.

As I ran, the ice giant turned its body to face me.

"Rea, 'destroy it!'"

I pointed behind me once.

"Got it! Damn it!"

Rea, who instantly understood my intention, raised her sword towards the collapsed exit. She had always been able to read my mind with minimal communication.

"Don't die, Kanna!"

She shouted and swung her sword horizontally at the pile of rubble. The sword pressure blew away a significant amount of debris. She continued to swing her sword.

The ice giant completely ignored Rea's actions and kept turning to face me as I ran. As expected.

For some reason, the giant's target had always been me.

Reflecting on it, the ice giant had been attacking us since it appeared, completely ignoring Rea, who possessed a threatening offensive power.

It was possible that the target wasn't me but the young lady I was carrying, but the golem didn't even look at the girl by Rea's side.

With this realization, the solution was simple. We needed to reverse our initial roles. I would draw the giant's attention while Rea worked on clearing the exit. This was the best division of labor at this point.

The only problem was——

"Ugh!"

The giant jumped again, raising its sword high and charging at me. I screamed and jumped forward to avoid it. The ground behind me cracked, but I immediately rolled forward and continued running.

——Whether I could survive until the excavation was complete.

"My life in this world is too violent!"

While resolving to seek new revenge against the princess and her family who had summoned me, I ran away from Rea. Although I was the target, there was no guarantee that the giant wouldn't change its target to Rea.

Without any other means of movement, the ice giant repeatedly jumped, and I dodged each time, feeling my soul being worn down. If I tripped, I would be crushed and turned into mincemeat. Running at full speed while maintaining balance was quite challenging.

The "chill running down my spine" that I had experienced many times since coming to this world came again. It had been a guide for dodging the giant's jumps.

But this time, it felt different.

Looking back, the golem was performing a different action. Instead of jumping, it was raising its sword high on the spot. Was it going to throw its sword again?

But the golem didn't throw its sword. Instead, it slammed it into the ground. The ground shattered, and numerous ice mountains rose up. A vast field of ice spikes, breaking the ground, came towards me. They were slower than a thrown sword but covered a much wider area.

"——!"

I barely avoided the direct hit of the rising ice mountains but was caught in the aftermath and thrown into the air.

"Ugh……"

It was fortunate that I didn't land headfirst. I was slammed into the ground on my back and rolled over. The impact of the fall forced the air out of my lungs, and my vision flickered red and black from the lack of oxygen.

Something hit my body, and I stopped moving.

My entire body ached, but I managed to sit up. I was quite far from the line of ice mountains that had formed. I had been thrown that far. Looking at the point where the ice mountains had risen, I saw the golem approaching with heavy steps.

"Kanna!"

Rea stopped her excavation work and ran towards the golem. But the distance was too great. The golem's movements were slow, but its size and stride were different. It would reach me before she could.

I tried to stand up, but the pain made my body buckle at the knees.

"Don't mess with me……you bastard."

The pain was intense, but not fatal. If I wasn't dead, my body should still be able to move. Staring at the approaching ice giant, I clenched my teeth and put strength into my legs.

"Ugh——!"

My joints screamed in pain as I stood up. The ice giant was right in front of me.

There was no time to wallow in despair. No room for fear.

Just to survive.

To move forward, I can't give up!

In the next chapter, Kanna finally gains the power to fight.