Crest of the Strongest Knight

Chapter 185 - Hello

The Walpurgisknight backed away after a brief struggle before finally managing to wrench his blade from Medrauta's unwavering grip.

In the process, Medrauta had torn off a chunk of the weapon, causing her to gaze at it briefly. In her hand, it was like a shard of the night sky, reflecting no light yet absorbing all. She tightened her grip, crushing it into pieces.

"Lady Scarlet." Medrauta spoke. "Get Eris out of here. She needs help immediately."

Scarlet didn't need telling twice. The noblewoman dashed forward as quickly as she could in spite of her injuries, stopping only when she arrived at her fallen knight's side.

Scarlet had never knelt before. Not even in the presence of royalty. But now, she sunk down, kneeling beside Eris' unconscious body. The blonde-haired knight's eyes were closed and she was barely breathing, but she seemed alive for now at the very least.

Among the knights sent from Spinel, one of them was a knight-hospitalier paired with a noble who could bestow a fairly decent healing Crest. However, Scarlet's rudimentary medical knowledge told her that it was still too soon to relax with her knight in critical condition. With her one good arm, the noblewoman hefted Eris on her shoulder, her delicate frame protesting as it strained against the knight's weight.

Eris wasn't particularly heavy, especially given her small stature, but her well-built muscles were dense and gave Scarlet's untrained body a significant challenge. The noblewoman took an experimental step, wincing as the effort caused one of her wounds to reopen, a trickle of blood running down her outer thigh.

Viviane's eyes flickered between Medrauta and Scarlet, torn between helping her closest friend and her beloved knight. Logically, Scarlet was the obvious choice given her injured state and her absolute inability to haul the dying Eris back to the knights in the rear, but she also didn't want to leave Medrauta.

Though he had been momentarily surprised, the Walpurgisknight still stood tall and undaunted. His thick plate armor still bore several gashes from Eris' attacks, but they weren't significant enough to actually hamper the armor's function. Aside from the heavy rasp of his breath indicating some degree of fatigue from his fight with Eris, he was otherwise prepared for another bout against Medrauta.

Viviane bit her lip, clearly at an impasse. If she left, she would deprive Medrauta of her Crest and the enhanced abilities that it would grant her, not to mention the Lake's power to suppress a Sworn's regenerative abilities. However, it was obvious that Scarlet wouldn't be able to make it back to the camp in time without help, leading to Eris' inevitable death.

The safety of my knight... or the life of my dearest friend's knight... Viviane clenched her bow tightly. There were no more arrows for her to shoot. Oh, Aluvsha... Just what am I supposed to do?

"Vivi." Medrauta spoke. Though her gaze never left her opponent, she could sense her beloved lady's turmoil with ease. "Go. I'll be fine alone."

"M-Medrauta!?" Viviane blinked, surprised. Her knight's voice had freed her from the mire of her dilemma for now. "But I—"

"Everything will be alright, Vivi. This time, I won't let anyone die... So please save Eris. You're the only one who can."

Viviane hesitated for a moment before nodding resolutely. Though her heart was still laden with worry for her knight, she rushed toward Scarlet, the raven-haired noblewoman nodding at her gratefully as she transferred Eris to Viviane.

As the two noblewomen and Eris hastily departed from the shield tower's vicinity, Medrauta released a sigh of relief and narrowed her eyes, meeting the Walpurgisknight's. Her black-clad opponent shuffled forward cautiously, clearly wary of the new ability she'd suddenly manifested.