Sheriff Chatin (Part 1)

Sheriff Chatin (Part 1)

The striking head of the polehammer did not look very large—roughly the size of a mallet—with a steel shaft attached to it.

The enormous warhammers seen in movies, games, and comics were purely artistic exaggeration. Wielding a weapon that large would be no small challenge to one's stamina.

An unexaggerated polehammer was not particularly eye-catching, but its power was not diminished in the slightest. A blow to the skull with it was more than enough for a flawless one-hit kill, and Sheriff Chatin was more than capable of wielding it.

Anyone who had risen to the rank of sheriff had to have some real skill, especially in a world with supernatural powers like magic. The criminals guards faced were far more dangerous than those on Earth, so being able to fight was an absolute necessity.

He made full use of the pole weapon's strengths, using its reach to control the direction and range of Kaya's evasions. Whenever she tried to close in, she was forced back. Even retreating to create distance became impossible, as the whistling hammer blows left her with nothing but dodging.

Within only a few seconds of the fight beginning, Sheriff Chatin had already seized the rhythm of battle, severely limiting Kaya's ability to perform.

As the warhammer came hurtling at her once again, Kaya finally found herself with nowhere left to evade. With no other choice, she raised her longsword in both hands and waited for the right moment to block.

Her sword was of excellent quality, and she had chosen to block the hammer's shaft. If she had taken the hammerhead directly, her blade might have been smashed in two.

Worse still, Kaya's skill and strength were inferior to Sheriff Chatin's, and there was an enormous gap in the quality of their equipment as well.

The instant her block succeeded, a dim magical glow rose from the polehammer. Kaya, who had intended to withdraw after taking the hit, suddenly felt her wrists go weak. She could not muster any strength at all.

"Force Ram!"

At the crucial moment, Eve's magical attack came to Kaya's rescue.

A hammer-shaped field of force smashed toward Sheriff Chatin's side, but the distance was too great and Force Ram was not especially fast. He immediately gave up on pressuring Kaya further, taking two steps back to let the hammer-shaped force pass.

Koura, freshly enhanced with Cat's Grace, threw down her shortbow, drew the dagger at her waist, and rushed forward. Taking the chance, Kaya dragged her numb, weakened wrists and sword back so Pei Renli could enhance her with Bull's Strength again.

Watching Koura engage him, Eve explained, "That warhammer should be enchanted with something called Touch of Fatigue. This spell drains the strength of anyone it hits. It's best not to meet him head-on."

The weapon and armor Sheriff Chatin used had all been issued by Curtain Star City. Every ability on them had been specially enchanted for the convenience of maintaining public order.

Normally, when making an arrest, he only needed to strike a nonlethal part of the target's body with that warhammer and activate Touch of Fatigue to capture them alive. But he clearly had no intention of taking anyone alive now. Every strike was aimed at a vital point.

As they spoke, Pei Renli cast Bull's Strength on Kaya. This spell happened to counteract Touch of Fatigue, and the weakness in her limbs vanished the moment the magic took effect.

"Koura and I will keep him tied up. Think of something as quickly as you can."

Leaving those words behind, Kaya charged forward once more to assist Koura. Two against one in close quarters should give them at least a slight edge, enough to buy some time.

But saying they needed to think of something was one thing. What, exactly, could they do?

Pei Renli did not have much mana left. He had enough for only one more casting of either Cat's Grace or Bull's Strength. There would be a little left over afterward, but not enough to cast either one again.

If he used Magic Missile instead, he could probably cast it four more times—five at an absolute stretch—but Magic Missile could not deal any damage at all, so using it would be pointless.

That was only because he had rested a little earlier. Otherwise, he would have even less mana.

The others were not in much better shape than Pei Renli. They had fought a battle before confronting Sheriff Chatin head-on, after all. None of them were at full strength.

It was hard to say who was the better fighter, Sheriff Chatin or Anton the monk, but one thing was certain: the method they had used against Anton would not work on him.

After all, Sheriff Chatin wore armor, while Anton had come empty-handed, armed with nothing but his fists.

Aside from that difference, the frustration was exactly the same.

Ordinary weapons could not break through magical armor. To harm him with cold steel, they would have to get close enough to attack the gaps in his armor or strike the unarmored areas from behind.

But Sheriff Chatin was extremely alert. Even against two opponents, he was capable of keeping both Koura and Kaya directly in front of him or slightly to either side, never giving them a chance to circle behind him.

Eve and Pei Renli, standing farther back, were in an even worse position. Their spells were blocked by the armor. Even if they picked up Koura's discarded shortbow and attacked with it, arrows aimed at his head would be deflected by the enchantment. And their most commonly used Magic Missile was completely useless...

At that thought, Pei Renli suddenly recalled a detail.

When Eve had used Force Ram to rescue Kaya just now, Sheriff Chatin had chosen to dodge rather than endure the magic and use the opportunity to finish Kaya off.

If his armor truly possessed the ability to ignore magical effects, there would have been no need for him to dodge. Prioritizing a reduction in enemy numbers when facing four opponents alone was basic common sense—something Chatin, who had risen to sheriff, could not possibly fail to understand.

Yet he had still chosen to evade. That was not normal.

And if Magic Missile's ineffectiveness had merely been a bluff, then the two enchantment spells Eve had cast after the battle began had likewise produced no effect at all.

Therefore, Pei Renli believed Sheriff Chatin's armor was probably enchanted with resistance to abnormal conditions, rather than spell resistance that could resist every kind of magic. That was why he had chosen to avoid Force Ram.

Of course, it was only a guess. Pei Renli had no absolute certainty that it was true, but they had no better option now. They could only test this line of thought.

"Do you have any more powerful evocation spells? And they can't be related to fire attacks."

There were many offensive spells that used fire as their primary means of destruction, and they were highly effective as well. Mages often chose that sort of spell when selecting offensive magic. Pei Renli, for instance, had specifically learned Burning Hands.

Eve knew nearly every spell Pei Renli could use, because whenever he had any question about magic, he would go to Eve to discuss it. Only when even Eve could not answer would he seek out Teacher Grace.

But Pei Renli had no idea what spells Eve knew. The ground here was covered in fire oil, so they could not use fire-based attacks. If Eve had no suitable spell, then even if the weakness he had noticed was real, it would be completely useless.

"I know a few, but I need time. And with his speed, he might be able to dodge."

Seeing Pei Renli draw the shortsword at his waist—which was now barely longer than a dagger—and looking ready to go all out, Eve added, "Have you thought of a way?"

Pei Renli took a deep breath.

"Not a specific plan yet."

"..."

For now, it was only an idea. He had no concrete method yet.

Just as he was racking his brains over how to exploit the weakness they had discovered, Sheriff Chatin knocked Koura and Kaya aside with a sweep of his hammer.

"I see. So you really are only as strong as novice adventurers. Then there's no need for me to keep fooling around with you."

Pei Renli knew he had found their weakness through observation from the rear, but Sheriff Chatin was no fool either.

The reason he had been tangling with Kaya and Koura was mainly to test the limits of their strength. As a battle-hardened veteran, that much time was enough for him to judge just how capable the group was.

The moment he said that, the two in the front sensed something was wrong. Then they saw Sheriff Chatin swing his warhammer and charge through them like a rampaging boar, heading straight for Pei Renli and Eve in the rear!

He had chosen precisely the gap that appeared when the two moved to avoid his warhammer. Having confirmed the level of their physical abilities and combat skills, he charged in without a shred of hesitation.

Even in games, everyone knew to cut down the back line first. Much less when Pei Renli and Eve had made no effort to hide their watchful gazes from the rear. To prevent them from truly thinking up some method that could threaten him, naturally he had to take them out at once.

Compared to the group that had gone on their first mission to the dam, Kaya, Koura, and Eve were not utterly inexperienced rookies. Judging by their performance so far, they had done quite well. But having some experience did not mean they were qualified adventurers.

Setting strength aside, Eve and Pei Renli had made a mistake novices often made: they were standing too close together.

Normally, unless circumstances were unusual, back-line members would keep enough distance between one another to support each other while still being able to spread out.

This was to prevent the entire back line from being wiped out in one pot when someone broke through to them.

Humans were social animals. Standing beside companions made them feel safer, and this was a common rookie mistake.

So when Sheriff Chatin charged at them with the force of a battlefield stampede, both Eve and Pei Renli assumed he was coming for them. One leaped left and the other right to evade.

BOOM!

The explosive crash of the warhammer striking the ground echoed beside his ears. Pei Renli had barely dodged when he felt a savage gust of wind strike from behind—Sheriff Chatin had targeted him.

Sheriff Chatin had seen every time Pei Renli buffed someone. A support like him naturally had to be eliminated first.

Unable to see behind him and knowing only that an attack was about to arrive, Pei Renli had no way to mount any effective counterattack. All he could do was use his life-saving divine skill again and roll along the ground.

BOOM!

Sure enough, he was the target. The second hammer blow landed even closer to Pei Renli, showering him from head to toe with dirt and shattered stones.

But rolling on the ground was not true invincibility. Pei Renli was not a ball; he could not roll all that far away.

The training Pei Renli had undergone recently paid off. He swiftly used the remaining momentum, braced a foot against the ground, and tried to spring upright into a dash.

But the warhammer fell faster than he could. The moment he raised his head, its rough striking face was already crashing down.

He raised a hand to block. Using flesh and blood to withstand a warhammer was obviously impossible; it was nothing more than a reflex.

With a loud clang, the warhammer struck precisely where it should have. But before it could touch Pei Renli, a layer of force shield that had been hidden until now emerged and protected him.

Mage Armor.