Chapter 176
The banshee let out a blood-curdling scream.
Hearing it, many students screamed, foamed at the mouth, and collapsed unconscious.
It was an indiscriminate area attack... 'Scream of Death'.
Any human who hears this scream is cursed, and those with weak mental strength can't even remain conscious.
If left untreated like this... they will eventually weaken and die.
"Damn... I can't believe the students ended up like this while I was here..."
"Sir Clael?"
"Ah, it's nothing. Sorry for startling you."
Apologizing, Clael removed his hands from Reina's ears.
It had been a split-second decision, but he managed to protect Reina from the cursed voice.
If he had been even a little slower, it might have been dangerous.
'Scream of Death' curses any human who hears it, but if you block the sound by covering your ears, you can prevent it.
(Hmm... come to think of it, why am I okay?)
Clael's hands had been occupied covering Reina's ears.
Naturally, he couldn't have covered his own ears.
"Kuma—"
"Ah, it was you."
But at some point, the bear plushie had appeared behind Clael.
When Clael turned around, the bear gave a thumbs-up (probably?).
Apparently, the bear had covered Clael's ears for him.
The bear covered Clael's ears, Clael covered Reina's ears, and Reina sat snugly in Clael's arms.
It was a scene that was both heartwarming and a little silly.
"Sir Clael, are you alright?"
"You seem fine, Reina. Although... the students appear to be completely wiped out."
Having heard the banshee's scream, all the students present had collapsed face-down on the floor.
A black haze clung to their bodies—there was no doubt they were cursed.
"Tch... I can't believe I let my guard down...!"
The only one still holding on was Eric.
Eric, too, was cursed, but he somehow managed to stay conscious.
He tried to get up from the floor, but it seemed he couldn't muster strength into his body.
'Noooooooo...'
Seeing that she had defeated all her enemies... the banshee began returning to the book.
If they let her escape like this, the book would vanish, and they'd lose their chance to defeat her.
Clael left Reina behind and kicked off from the floor.
"Sir Clael!?"
"Reina, please support and heal with magic! Whatever you do, don't attack!"
After giving Reina instructions, Clael leapt at the banshee, who was trying to return to the book.
"Unforgivable...!"
'Nooo!?'
Grabbing the screaming banshee's arm, he pulled her out of the book.
Then, he threw her toward a nearby bookshelf.
"Hmph!"
'NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!'
Wailing, the banshee crashed into the bookshelf.
She glared at Clael in fury and raised her giant scythe.
"'Strength Up', 'Vitality Up', 'Speed Up', 'Mind Up'...!"
Clael's body was enveloped in lights of red, blue, green, and other colors.
Reina had activated support magic to enhance Clael's body.
"Thanks, now I can fight...!"
'Heehee!'
Clael dodged the giant scythe and punched the banshee in the face.
He didn't use Holy Arts. He relied purely on physical strength.
(The banshee has abnormally high magic resistance. On top of that... despite her appearance, Holy Arts and holy water don't work at all on her...!)
She's a deceptive monster.
The banshee looks so much like a reaper that novice players mistake her for a ghost-type enemy.
But shockingly, the banshee's attribute is not 'dark'—it's 'light'.
In other words, Holy Arts and holy water are completely ineffective.
(In this game, the banshee is considered a messenger from heaven... in other words, an ally of angels. That means she's associated with Holy Spirits and Saints.)
The banshee's true identity is an angel.
I don't know about the ones in Ireland... but that's how they're defined in this world.
Because of that, using light-element attacks like Holy Arts actually powers her up, and she unleashes powerful area attacks.
'NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!'
"And to top it off, her magic resistance is so high that you have to beat her physically... It sucks having to pummel a crying girl. It really hurts the heart."
Clael muttered in a low voice... but there was no other choice.
Eric was incapacitated, and Reina wasn't good at physical combat.
That meant Clael had to do it.
Fortunately, her attacks were wide and slow. Even as a priest, Clael could handle close combat as a combat healer, so dodging wasn't difficult.
(...Oh right, the bear plushie was here too. Now that I think of it.)
He remembered belatedly, but inside the plushie was a Holy Spirit.
Holy Spirits are also allies of angels. It would've been sad to have them fight each other, so Clael stepping forward had been the right call.
"I'm sorry... Forgive me!"
'Nooooo...'
Clael landed a full-force right straight, and the banshee's body dissolved into light and vanished.
All that remained was a single book, and the battle was over.