Due to me, the lurking enemies deemed there was no reason to hide any longer, and they simultaneously began to attack the guards.

Without hesitation, I threw the bomb I had in my hand at their sight.

Kugugugugugung!

In an instant, a tremendous explosion sound accompanied a burst of flames.

Amidst the hazy smoke, the place where the enemies were hiding looked significantly hollowed out.

I knew the power of what I had created very well. Due to the strong firepower, a considerable number of enemies nearby seemed to have suffered injuries.

After that explosion, the guards and enemies intertwined and started fighting.

Although the enemies had ambushed us first, an unexpected advantage was gained by the guards due to the sudden bomb.

My eyes were solely focused on Askan.

Unlike the other guards, Askan turned his body straight toward the place where I was.

I used K39 to knock down the enemies approaching Askan from afar. It felt like covering him with protective fire.

Somehow, the eyes of Askan looking at me seemed young, but the situation was too urgent to mix in any words.

Suddenly, enemies appeared around me as well.

In the eyes of the enemies looking at me, there was a vitality as if they were seeking revenge for the recent bomb retaliation.

Bombing couldn’t be used when the enemy was this close. There was a chance that I might get caught in the explosion as well.

Zen was rushing toward my location, but I couldn’t afford to wait for his help.

Shi-iiiiiiing─

In an instant, a demon’s sword flew right in front of me.

I narrowly avoided the sword and aimed the barrel of K39 at the moment.

“Uaaaaah!”

Suddenly, a fierce flame appeared and set fire to the body of the enemy swinging the sword at me.

At first, I thought it was a single flame, but in the blink of an eye, seven flames attacked the enemies surrounding me.

Out of nowhere, Askan appeared, blocking me as if protecting me, and said quietly.

“Why did you chase them here?”

“Me?”

At that moment, I suddenly saw an enemy attempting to attack Askan.

Without hesitation, I aimed at the enemy with K39 and fired.

Paaaaa─

The flame shot from K39 was less powerful than Askan’s unextinguished flames, but it quickly flew towards the enemy who had tried to attack him.

“Trying to do what I couldn’t do in the past.”

Ten years ago, I sent Askan off with a sense of helplessness, but now it was different.

There was a puzzled emotion in Askan’s eyes at my response. However, the situation was not relaxed enough for us to exchange words.

Amidst the constant attacks pouring from all directions, Askan hid me behind him and fended off the enemies.

Zen, who had arrived here, began to knock down the enemies around him one by one.

With the dark attribute abilities, Zen was stronger at night. He momentarily concealed his figure, appeared unexpectedly, and pressured the opponents.

From a distance, it seemed like he was teleporting.
Thanks to Zen joining, it became much easier to deal with the enemies. If things continued like this, it seemed the guards would win and conclude the situation.

That’s when it happened.

From a distance, a figure of an enemy aiming at Askan and pulling the bowstring was visible.

Quickly, I aimed at the opponent with K39, but pulling the trigger didn’t result in a shot.

The amount of magic power charged in the magic stone had run out.

“Of all times…!”

I hurriedly reached out to grab another magical engineering weapon, but the arrow had already been shot from the enemy’s bow.

Ssweeeeek!

The arrow shot by the enemy was rapidly approaching.

Seeing an arrow that seemed to pierce Askan immediately, thoughts vanished from my mind.

My body moved first.

I swiftly enveloped Askan.

In that fleeting moment, Askan, who sensed something strange, looked at me, and our eyes met in mid-air.

Even though it seemed like I might be hit by the arrow at any moment, Askan’s eyes, looking at me, twisted, and he quickly grabbed my shoulders and rolled us both to the ground.

We fell intertwined. In no time, Askan’s posture became as if he were covering me with both hands above my body.

Kaang!

Soon, a sound like iron colliding rang out.

I saw the sharp arrowhead twisting and falling to the ground.

Turning my gaze, I saw that the arrow had hit Askan’s shoulder, not me. Fortunately, it seemed to have caused no injuries as it hit the steel armor.

In the urgency of rolling on the ground, Askan’s mask came off.

Quickly examining Askan, I asked, “Are you okay?”

For some reason, Askan responded with a very angry expression.

“Is that the question you want to ask me right now?”

“Look at this.”

Since Askan’s clothes were torn due to the arrow from earlier, I quickly got up to see that part.

But Askan was faster than me. He abruptly grabbed my wrist and began to move away from the battlefield.

Since the situation had not yet been completely resolved, it was unavoidable to feel puzzled.

“Where are you suddenly going?”

“We’re moving to a safe place.”

“No, I can help…!”

“Have you forgotten? The most important thing to me is your safety.”