Editing Log Horizon: Ex. Dragonhowl Mountains (section)

===Part 3 of 3===

"By the way, Eli-eli."

"Please don't call me Eli-Eli, Mistress."

"But isn't Eli-Eli cuter?"

Leonardo was taken aback as Kanami and Elias began to talk. Elias was an Ancient. Not an Adventurer, but rather, an NPC. In other words, he was not human.

Why was she talking with Elias with such familiarity?

Wait, why was Elias here in the first place?

As a member of the Knights of the Red Branch, he should have been in the Northern European server.

Of the many Ancients, Elias was certainly the most well-known. His renown was on par with that of the White Wing Princess, Rin Shanfen.

Therefore, even Leonardo, who was not of the European server, recognized Elias on sight. Nonetheless, Ancients rarely left their home server. It never occurred outside of specially planned events, and after all—


In the current world of Elder Tales,

the administration that planned events

no longer existed.


Within Leonardo's stunned thoughts, a low, calm chime rang. As if to confirm the system sound, a party invitation window opened. Assuming that it came from the people in front of him, Leonardo accepted it without checking the details.


When a party was formed, the list of the party members' names was displayed. From this window, Leonardo learned the name of the petite girl who had sent him the invitation.


The girl's name was Coppelia.

She appeared with Elias earlier, but had been completely forgotten by Leonardo in the shock of seeing Elias. She left a plain impression.

With a petite body 140 cm tall and dressed as a Victorian maid, she was of the Cleric class. Level 90, of course.

Having approached while looking up at Leonardo, she picked up her skirt and made an elegant curtsy.

"Coppelia is called Coppelia. Nice to meet you. Do you desire any healing?"

"Ah, I'm Leonardo. Nice to meet you... ah, healing would be good."


Looking down on the girl that gave off the impression of being a mysterious doll, Leonardo muttered his inner thoughts. While her response was somewhat strange, she looked very honest.


Now that he had joined the party, it seemed that it contained only four members. There was Kanami; the girl in front of him, Coppelia; of course, himself, who had just joined; and finally, Elias.


Kanami was a level 90 Monk.

Coppelia was a level 90 Cleric.

That much, he understood. With a small party of only three, the role of controlling the enemy front line fell to the Monk, an evasive tank, while the Cleric was in charge of healing. And, with his high offensive power in his role as Assassin, his sole task was to reduce the enemy numbers. This party was in no way unbalanced. To construct a simple party, that was the minimum.

But, why was Elias in the party?

(... Level 100 Blademancer.)


Before his eyes, the ground seemed to waver and he felt like he couldn't understand anything.


First of all, he couldn't understand how an NPC could join the party.

What the hell was a 'Blademancer' anyway? There were only 12 classes that could be chosen in Elder Tales. Three warrior classes, three weapon attack classes, three healing classes, three magic attack classes. That mysterious Blademancer class was not one of them.

Likewise with level 100. An Adventurer's maximum level was 90. That hadn't changed since the expansion released two years ago.


Everything about this situation seemed to mock Leonardo's common sense and knowledge.


"... Irregularities are present in your heart rate. Do you require healing?"

"No, I'm fine... though, is there something odd about me?"

"I do not detect any status affliction icons."

"There shouldn't be anything like that, but... well, was your trip long?"

Leonardo inquired.

"Master acquired Coppelia in Ville Fleurie."

Knowing that there was a bit of time lag on the automatic translation against mouth movements, Leonardo had some time to think. 'Fleurie' was probably Paris. That was assuming that Kanami and Elias started in the Northern European server, traveled across Europe and reached Central Asia.

However, his train of thought was forced to a halt there.


Interrupted by a deafening crushing sound, Leonardo had realized that Elias and Kanami had disappeared without him noticing.

"Combat has commenced. To stay within healing range, Coppelia will be moving. Please pardon the party's disarray."

"No, it's fine. I'm coming too!"

Together with Coppelia, Leonardo ran along the scorched, dry roads.


There was no need to search for the others.

To begin win, most of this town of Tekeli was in ruins.

The cold wind of the plateau and the harsh sunlight had somewhat weathered the bricks. Within these ruins, there were a few pillars and walls left that were about as tall as Leonardo. Though there was little precipitation in this region, if it rained, it would be difficult to find shelter among the crumbling ruins.


Therefore, it was not at all difficult to locate the battlefield.

Violent thunder rumbled from down the eastern road of the town's main intersection. It was a magical lightning spell. A cluster of heat waves distorted the scenery - Daylight Shades.


With that much distortion, there were undoubtedly dozens gathered in that area.

And just a few hundred meters away, Elias, brandishing his crystalline two-handed sword, fearlessly slashed at their weak points.


(What are you doing!?)


Cold sweat suddenly ran down Leonardo's back.

Elias was good. His Blademancer class and the strength of a level 100 was beyond Leonardo's understanding. Therefore, though it was perhaps wishful thinking, defeating countless Daylight Shades by himself was a possibility.

But for Kanami to plunge into battle, following Elias, was absurd. It was definitely a suicidal action.

It was obvious from the fact that Leonardo, equally level 90, would have been shredded within five minutes.


"Remaining within tactical range. Providing support. Aria: Symbol of Sacramento."

In the end, there was no other way.

Once again, he would have to die.


Leonardo was resigned to it. Running next to him, Coppelia had probably entered casting range. The magical spell began to take effect on the party members. Though it did not provide any offensive boost, this support spell added significantly to defense - thus an effective contribution to battle.

The heat elementals would surely take notice, and target her.

Currently, the front line composed of Elias and Kanami was fighting well, but should they fall, the spirits would turn on this small girl next. If that were to happen, it was clear as day that this girl would be torn to pieces.

In other words, she had already signed her death warrant. All three members other than Leonardo had done so.


If that were to happen, Leonardo had to join them in death.

Of course he thought it stupid, but following others into folly was a geek thing. As a born New Yorker, Leonardo had his sense of pride. Even if nobody else understood, to call himself a turtle ninja was to be an ally of justice.

Not staring at a woman's ass.


"Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Letting out a roar from the bottom of his lungs, Leonardo charged the cluster of monsters that shimmered like a heat haze. Relying on a jump strengthened by his physical ability, he leaped above the enemy. Here, in midair, he was in the blind spot of many of the monsters.


(No need to hold back!)

Leonardo struck first, choosing his strongest finishing skill.

The warrior class' specialty was drawing the enemy's attention, forcing it to forget about the warrior's allies. The healer's role was to prevent casualties within the party by continually healing. And the purpose of the magic attack class was in controlling the battle, defending against the unexpected until the end of the battle.

As for Leonardo, an Assassin, what was his role?

To summarize the role of the weapons attack class: slay the enemy. The Assassin was the weapon attack class that specialized the most in the obliteration of enemies.

As Leonardo had expected, his strongest attack, Assassinate, had instantaneously dealt nearly ten thousand points of damage. Furthermore, as his opponent was more than ten levels below him, it was instantly slain as a side effect.

A dry, high-pitched sound echoed like a gunshot throughout the area.

A single Daylight Shade ruptured out of existence with what some might consider a funny sound.


"Oh! You came! Kero-nardo!"<ref>Kero - the sound a frog makes</ref>

"Stop giving people rude nicknames!"

"Then, let's get started. Haa. Crystal Stream! Blood of my hidden fairy clan! To crush the enemies before me, lend me your strength!"


(When did he enter a Japanese anime?) Leonardo wondered, though he had no time to say it aloud. Having disposed of one enemy, he carefully surveyed his surroundings. There were many enemies. From prior experience, by the time he would have taken care of the dozens within sight, others would have gathered from the town's surrounding area.


In any case, without rushing, they needed to reduce the enemy numbers with utmost efficiency. Elias' body was shrouded in a torrent of sparkling blue and violet light. The divine protection looked strong and was bestowed upon Kanami, Leonardo, and even Coppelia.

Thanks to this effect that strengthened defense, the front line could be held for now. Despite being level 50, with this many enemies gathered, their pressure should not be underestimated.

As it was, being able to reduce the number of enemies was good.

However, should the arrival of enemy reinforcements exceed the rate at which Leonardo dispatched them, this fragile balance would break. If that were to happen, Coppelia's healing would be insufficient, the burden on the front line would increase, and the tenuous situation would worsen. In other words, annihilation.

This fight was a fight to reduce the number of enemies.

Leonardo bit his lip.

If that was the case, he, as an Assassin, held the key to this fight.

---End of Part 3---

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