Chapter 44: This Is Not Harem Wars Movie!
Carmilla, who had always been lurking in the shadows, manipulated the villagers who had turned into Dead Apostles to attack.
Now, she appeared in her true form, aiming to deliver the finishing blow.
Whether it was the annoying vampire Senpai or the Berserker who couldn't communicate, their defeat didn't matter.
As long as she dealt with this young man, the Servants who lost their Master would soon be eliminated one by one by the Dragon Witch.
Even though this young man's face was quite to her taste, Carmilla was now forced to kill him.
Just imagining the moment his blood splattered made her entire being surge with an unbearable thirst.
Aaa~, she really wanted to see the moment the blood flower bloomed inside this boy's body.
Surely, its taste would be sweet, wouldn't it?
"Don't blame me, young man."
Carmilla gently moved her fingertip, and a massive surge of magical energy erupted from it.
Venomous thorny vines formed from mana immediately shot out from behind her, madly surging towards Ethan!!!
Not good!!!
Ethan had not anticipated this attack at all; he instinctively wanted to use a Command Spell, but it was too late!
Taking a direct hit from such close range, there was no way he could defend himself!
Just as Ethan prepared to grit his teeth and endure it all, suddenly, someone forcefully pulled him back.
Before his brain could process what was happening, a familiar figure had already taken his place.
Ethan tumbled to the ground, and in the very next second, a girl's painful scream echoed in his ears.
"Uwaaaaa———!!!"
Without even checking whether he was injured, Ethan immediately lifted his head to look forward.
He saw Mash standing exactly where he had been.
To save him, Mash had thrown away her shield, and in that critical moment, she had used her hands to pull him away.
And she had taken Carmilla's attack in his place!!!
The venomous vines coiled tightly around Mash, their sharp thorns piercing deep into her flesh, dark red blood continuously flowing out.
Already weak to begin with, Mash could now only let out uncontrollable cries of pain.
"You damn brat! What a fool!!!"
Seeing that the one ensnared by the vines was Shielder, Carmilla immediately realized her plan had failed and quickly prepared to retreat into the shadows.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing to my Master!"
A cold voice rang out right behind Carmilla.
Sensing the killing intent, Carmilla didn't even turn around—she immediately stomped her foot on the ground, causing countless thorny vines to burst from the earth, wrapping around her to form a defensive barrier.
Whoosh———!!!
Mordred instantly swung her sword.
The sharp blade sliced through, severing the dense mass of thorny vines in one stroke.
But inside the severed vines, there was only empty space.
"Tch, she ran away?"
Mordred clicked her tongue in annoyance, then swung her sword once more, cutting off the vines entangling Mash.
At this moment, Mash's entire body was covered in wounds, and the blood from her cuts had already turned black.
Her face was flushed, her eyes tightly shut, her expression filled with pain.
It seemed that the poison from the vines had caused Mash to fall unconscious.
"Se... Senpai..."
Mash's lips trembled slightly as she weakly murmured a few words.
"It's okay, I'm here."
Ethan immediately leaned in to listen carefully to what she wanted to say.
"Se... Senpai... run..."
Even now, Mash was unaware that Carmilla had fled—still delirious, she was trying to urge Ethan to escape first.
"It's fine now, Mash. Everything is okay."
Ethan gently held Mash's weak fingers, speaking softly.
For some reason, the atmosphere around them suddenly felt like the desolate scene after the explosion at Chaldea that day.
Back then, he had also held Mash's hand like this.
At that moment, it was as if only the two of them existed in the world.
Thinking back, perhaps from that very moment, he and the girl who always called him "Senpai" had formed a bond.
A girl who was weak, but always cared for him from beginning to end.
...Perhaps that was Mash Kyrielight.
A Kouhai who always put her Senpai first.
...
Seeing Mash injured and falling into a coma, the audience in the livestream channel immediately panicked.
[Oh No!!! Mashu-chan!!!]
[Hurry up! Call the hospital!!!]
[Hospital? Just use magic to heal her already!]
[That's right! Host, hurry up and use magic to heal her! Don't tell me you don't know how?!]
[I—The Great Sage who has been virgin for thirty years—shall take action!]
[This guy's magic is seriously powerful.]
[Don't worry, I think Mash is at least a secondary heroine. There's no way she's gonna die.]
[Secondary heroine? What are you talking about?! She's definitely the main heroine!]
[What?! What about Johanna and Martha? Are you saying they can't be main heroines?]
[Only kids make choices! Adults should take them all!]
[Catch 'em All, Host Ketchum!]
While everyone was still arguing noisily, a sudden comment appeared, making the entire chat fall silent.
[Wait... Why is no one mentioning Mordred?]
[...Do you really think someone with Mo-chan's personality could be a wife? At best, she's just a bro!]
[Umu, that's actually true.]
[I approve.]
[Being bros is better! Bros for life!]
[Some people say "just bros" on the outside, but who knows what they really want inside!]
…
[System: 'British Trouble Kid' has sent 100 Saint Quartz!]
[Message: Are Mo-chan supporters even allowed to live? I'm shaking with rage!]
[System: 'French Netorare Guy' has sent 100 Saint Quartz!]
[Message: Don't worry about that, bro. That just means we get Mo-chan all to ourselves.]
[System: 'Strongest Shield' has sent 100 Saint Quartz!]
[Message: As long as Mashu-sama doesn't fall, you will all remain mere concubines!]
…
Deep in the forest
Carmilla, now spirit-form, hurriedly retreated into the distance.
"No! I must report this to that witch! If they get past this area, they'll reach the castle soon... By then, I'll lose my control over this land..."
"...?!"
Suddenly—
A holy light descended from the sky!
"What—!!!"
Before Carmilla could react, the beam of light pierced straight through her thigh, causing her to collapse to the ground.
Immediately after, a figure slowly approached from afar.
"Thanks, Tonbi."
"Chiu chiu."
The white owl flew back and landed obediently on Johanna's shoulder.
Now, thanks to a miracle, it had fully recovered, without a single trace of its previous wounds.
"Popess?!! How is this possible?! I clearly concealed my presence!"
As an Assassin-class, Carmilla possessed Presence Concealment—a skill that allowed her to hide her presence.
It was precisely this ability that had allowed her to escape Mordred's sight unharmed.
"I temporarily transformed this forest into my own magical domain. While inside, you can't escape Tonbi's pursuit."
"Chíu—!!!"
Tonbi spread its wings wide toward Carmilla.
"Damn it! A lapdog of the church!"
Carmilla immediately retaliated, gathering a mass of dark energy in her hand once more.
"If I'm not mistaken, you also have a legend tied to 'vampires,' don't you? And it seems you take great pride in that legend."
Johanna's expression remained unchanged, but her voice carried a barely restrained anger.
She had witnessed firsthand the moment Carmilla attacked Ethan.
"Wait... Don't tell me you're planning to—"
For the first time, fear appeared on Carmilla's face.
She remembered vividly what had happened to her Vampire Senpai when he was turned into a vampire... and what her fate had been.
"You dared to ambush my Master... Looks like you've already prepared yourself for the consequences, haven't you?"
A silver moon floated beside Johanna.
"God is merciful. But I am not."