Chapter 42: Enchantment Magic

In front of a grand set of very obvious doors.

Together with Roy and the others, we opened the doors and stepped into the great hall—only to find it already swarming with monsters.

They were spiders—an overwhelming number of them, in various sizes, ranging from waist-height to as tall as my shoulders. That could only mean one thing: the enemy was exactly who I thought it was.

“No doubt about it—that’s the Spider Queen,” Joseph muttered.

I instinctively looked toward the back of the hall, but I couldn’t see anything that looked like her.

Actually, I couldn’t see the back at all—it was completely covered in spiders.

“I’ll handle the small fry! Miki, clear us a path!”

With that shout, Kazuya took off running.

I quickly cast physical enhancement on him, then started visualizing a large-scale spell.

A massive magical spear of lightning that would fly straight toward the far end of the hall—crackling with electricity, paralyzing everything in its path, clearing the way so Roy and the others wouldn’t be slowed down—a thunder spear like that!

“Two spears to carve a path!”

I began the incantation for the grand spell. Both the white figure and I—chanting the same spell with the same image in mind.

Kazuya kept tearing through the spiders at close range, steadily creating space.

Then the spell fired. Two massive spears of lightning appeared, flying side by side straight through the hall toward the back.

Any monsters in their path were struck down. Even those nearby were paralyzed by the discharge, leaving a long, straight corridor through the center of the hall, wide enough for the two spears.

“All yours, Roy!”

“Thanks! Leave it to me!”

Roy and the others charged in right behind the spears.

From there, we steadily reduced the spider numbers—probably down to about thirty percent.

The spider monsters didn’t use webbing—they breathed fire instead. And with this many of them, any regular adventurer party would’ve been wiped out. But not us. That said, the sheer numbers made it a drawn-out fight.

Roy and the others had started fighting the Demon King’s officer. Apparently, the Spider Queen was a massive spider about three meters tall, with the upper body of a naked woman growing out of it. Three of them suddenly appeared—towering figures.

“Miki, how about we go watch Roy and the others fight now?”

As the swarm thinned out, Kazuya made the suggestion.

He clearly had no intention of interfering. And it was a good opportunity to get a read on Roy’s strength.

It was unfortunate what happened with Dominic, but Roy could very well become a worthy rival for Kazuya. At least, that’s what I believed. And I was sure Kazuya thought the same.

“Yeah, we’ve thinned them out enough. Let’s go.”

I agreed, figuring the few that remained could be handled as needed.

“Yeah—wait! Miki, up above!”

At Kazuya’s warning, I looked up.

More monsters had appeared on the ceiling of the great hall.

They were about our height, and just like the officer, they had the upper body of a woman—spider monsters clinging to webs, hanging down on threads, staring at us... and at Roy’s team.

There were maybe twenty of them in view, with more crawling out from cracks in the ceiling. They must have a nest up there.

And for some reason, I felt one of them directing a powerful hostility straight at me.

One of the spider women descended to the floor and started creeping toward Claudia, who was at the rear of Roy’s group. But Roy and the others were too focused on the officer to notice.

“We’ll deal with these! We’re not letting them get in Roy’s way!”

Kazuya activated his power and sliced through the spider in a flash.

Even Claudia, a ranger, hadn’t noticed the monster’s presence at all. And yet Kazuya had picked up on them on the ceiling. His sensory awareness really was something else.

I fired a barrage of ice magic at the ceiling spiders, and a few of them dropped down silently, dodging the spell, and landed facing us.

Looks like they were finally ready to treat us as opponents.

A spider monster with the upper body of a woman—let’s call it an Arachne for convenience.

The eyes of the opposing Arachnes gleamed ominously.

At that moment, Kazuya’s demeanor changed. He suddenly clutched his head, as if struggling against something.

And then, in that instant, the Arachnes both on the ceiling and the ground launched a simultaneous fire attack.

All of that fire was aimed at me.

I immediately recast my magic barrier and fired a volley of ice blades at the Arachne in front of me.

At the same time, since I was their target, I moved away so as not to involve Kazuya.

Unlike Kazuya, I couldn’t swiftly dodge magic or physical attacks. That’s why I had no choice but to rely on barriers and take the hits head-on. And so, my barrier was under constant assault from the Arachnes’ fire.

Blocking the successive waves of fire and claw attacks with my fire-resistant and physical barriers, I counterattacked with ice magic.

But the Arachnes were fast, and my ice lance spells rarely hit their mark.

At one point, I glanced at Kazuya—he was just standing there, dazed, unlike earlier.

This was likely the effect of the Arachnes’ charm magic. With that many spells cast at once, Kazuya had tried to resist, but being exposed to it for so long must have finally overwhelmed him.

Several Arachnes descended from the ceiling and surrounded him, spitting silk to wrap him up.

I raised my hand, ready to launch an ice spell to interfere—but stopped. If they dodged, I might hit Kazuya, who was defenseless.

The Arachnes captured Kazuya, reeled in their silk, and began to ascend.

Don’t tell me… they’re taking him back to their nest!? No—this is bad! At this rate, they’ll take Kazuya away!!

Panicked and frantic, I racked my brain for a solution—and that’s when my eyes landed on my bracelet. Reaching for it, I remembered.

I’d completely forgotten! That’s right—this bracelet!

This bracelet is paired with the one Kazuya carries. By pouring magic into it, you can teleport the other person to your side. It’s a rare magic item—I gave it to him as a birthday gift.

Its teleport range is about thirty meters. If I act now, I’m still within range.

The catch is that if the other person strongly rejects it, the teleport fails. And since Kazuya is under charm magic, he might unconsciously reject the pull.

But I have no other options—and I believe in Kazuya! There’s no way he’d ever reject me!!

I clutched the bracelet tightly and poured in my magic and my feelings.

Kazuya! Come back to me!!

The bracelet responded—it activated.

If Kazuya didn’t reject me, he should appear. He should be teleported here!

Moments later, the figure of Kazuya—bound in silk and being carried off to the nest—vanished, and reappeared in front of me, free from the threads.

Kazuya! Kazuya!!

Thank goodness! Even while under the charm, he didn’t reject me! Thank goodness!

Leaving the barrier spell to my shadow, I threw my arms around Kazuya, even though we were still in the middle of a battle.

──But Kazuya, with his eyes still closed, didn’t respond.

He was still under the charm. I was so relieved, I forgot to cast the dispel.

I quickly chanted the charm-breaking spell and reached out to touch his hand. Physical contact was needed for the magic to work.

But even then, Kazuya didn’t react. He just stood there blankly, still under the spell.

The reason was obvious. The Arachnes were still around, constantly casting their charm spells.

I immediately began forming the image for a grand spell.

I was trembling with fury—consumed by the destructive impulse of I’ll never forgive them!!

Every single one of those Arachnes who laid their filthy hands on my Kazuya—I’ll pierce them all with a homing lightning spell, not leaving a single one alive! I’ll destroy their nest in the ceiling too!!

The image was complete. I began the incantation for the grand spell—and unleashed it.

A long bolt of lightning burst forth, piercing through the nearest Arachne, then another, and another. Even if they tried to dodge, the lightning chased them down, relentlessly piercing every last one of them before soaring into the ceiling and obliterating their nest.

A classic chain lightning spell—but powered by my wrath, so its destructive force was immense.

After a short while, the Arachnes were all wiped out—or so it seemed.

I turned back to Kazuya and cast the charm-breaking spell once more.

Earlier I’d used just a touch, but right now… that didn’t feel like enough.

I gently cupped Kazuya’s cheeks with both hands, rose on my toes, and leaned in. Then, while chanting the dispel spell, I kissed him softly.

I pulled back and looked into his face.

As his eyes regained focus, his expression slowly returned.

“Thanks, Miki!”

And then he hugged me tightly.

“I remember everything from when I was charmed. I could hear your voice, even though I couldn’t resist. I remember being taken away by them, and I remember the bracelet’s power. I was kind of out of it, but I felt you calling me. That’s why I knew—I had to come back. I had to answer your call. And when I appeared right in front of you, I realized you’d saved me. Heh, I never thought you’d actually kiss me first… I’m so happy. Seriously, that was the best!”

Saying that, he didn’t give me even a second to reply before pressing his lips to mine.

He hugged me even tighter.

And though I sighed a little at how hopeless he was, I gave in to my feelings and wrapped my arms around his neck.