Published at 25th of March 2019 11:06 pm

Volume 4: Chapter 4: Chase that back

Part 1

After Raynesia left, the meeting had an atmosphere of chaos and exhaustion. The senate leader of the

Round Table Council left with Raynesia, followed by Shiroe who the nobles saw as a politically moderate tactician.

The only envoy of the Round Table Council left was the hardliner hawk Michitaka.

The nobles didn't know where to throw the clenched fist they held up in the air. No, holding fists up in the air was still fine, whether they could throw out the fist was another problem. Those who were willing and able to pick up the pieces had already left, the group didn't know what to do.

Following Krusty 's departure, the pitiful Baron Craindit lost his ability to moderate the meeting, his face alternated between green and red, even his attendants were unable to help him. In the end he begged permission to leave as he walked out gasping for air.

Even if they were not at the level of Baron Craindit, all the nobles should have a certain degree of the

Baron's confused emotions.

As it had come to this, the meeting ended temporarily.

Michitaka sighed as he walked to the corridor.

(This is going to be troublesome.)

Michitaka might be the guild master of a major production guild, but he was not proficient in negotiating the details. He thought a merchant just needed to produce quality goods and sell them at an appropriate price.

(And I am a blacksmith…)

He still saw himself as an active blacksmith, he had been wielding his hammer everyday even after joining the Round Table Council. With the drop in players raiding high-level dungeons, there had been a drop in the supply of high-level magic ingredients which made him sad. But this type of problem could be solved by managing the supplies strictly.

He was made a leader by his comrades because he liked to socialize with others and wouldn't reject conversing with others. This was how Michitaka judged himself.

The nobles saw him as a hawk, but Michitaka only yelled angrily at a certain idiot once, he did not bear any hostility towards the 'League of Freedom Towns Eastal'. He only opposed sending military aid because that was his assigned role among the three, he did not oppose this personally.

… But he was a production player, he had a lower risk of dying compared to the battle players. Even if there were a war, he and his guild should be responsible for the resupply and support role of Akiba, so how could he agree to wage war so easily? He couldn't deny that he felt a sense of guilt over this.

(… The situation has already progressed to this stage, I am just ranting.)

His thick and strong fingers reached through his black hair and scratched his head. He felt low-spirited and unable to let go.

Michitaka was followed by a male attendant, walking down an empty and long corridor. He casually looked towards the balcony as he turned the corner. There was no hidden meaning behind his action, he was just turning his head after seeing the moonlight on the floor.

"Soujirou-sama, is this egg dessert tasty?"

"Soujirou-sama, please listen to me too!"

"Soujirou-sama seems tired, let me sing you a gentle lullaby and let you rest for a while…"

There was a luxurious couch in the balcony under the moonlight, a place suitable for tea parties. A colleague of Michitaka, West Wind Brigade's guild master Soujirou was being surrounded by princesses and maids of the People of the Land, making Michitaka feel a sense of desolation.

The dark clouds were hanging over the future of Akiba, his sense of guilt, an inexplicable feeling of unease, all these things he was thinking about didn't seem to matter anymore.

Compared to the sight and atmosphere around Soujirou, everything about the Round Table Council and the 'League of Freedom Towns Eastal' was colorless and boring.

(Ah ah, the expression on my face probably looks like a graffiti drawn with a left hand.)

Michitaka did not approach Soujirou and headed towards the zone where his bedroom was.

(That's it for tonight, what should we do tomorrow?)

Michitaka thought so, but he found that the development that followed would be complicated.

Duke Corwen, grandfather of Raynesia, was waiting at the rest area in front of the Round Table Council's zone. The old duke was accompanied by a single knight as he bowed to greet Michitaka silently. The long meeting must be tiring on his body but he showed no signs of fatigue, which earned Michitaka's respect.

The elderly Duke simply said: "Is it convenient?"

Michitaka realized what he meant and led the way.

He invited the Duke to a small meeting room, this was where the Round Table Council… Krusty, Shiroe, and Michitaka held their usual meetings. Small was only relative to the size of the whole palace, 2 such rooms would be big enough to be Michitaka's home back in Japan.

Michitaka ushered him to a seat and took out tea from his Bag of Holding to serve. The old Duke looked surprised, but someone like the Duke definitely knew about Bags of Holding, so Michitaka didn't understand his amazement and decided to ignore it for now.

"Sorry to disturb at such a late hour."

"Please, don't mind me, if we don't clean up this mess of a meeting, we won't be able to sleep well."

"Hahaha, indeed."

The elder nobleman stroked his grand beard and laughed without reservation.

"The Corwen family must not fall because of the reckless actions of my granddaughter."

He was in a very delicate position right now.

Duke Sergead was the chairman of the 'League of Freedom Towns Eastal' and commanded great influence. But right now this influence was becoming a negative burden.

"As you have judged, it is possible that the girl's actions fractured the relationships between the league members."

His words hinted at the doubts the other nobles had of clan Corwen. Maihama was a strong city under Sergead's governance, if he pulled in a few other counties and allied with Akiba, their power would be strong enough to subjugate the rest of the 'League of Freedom Towns Eastal'.

Raynesia did not harbor such grand ambitions. The Round Table Council including Michitaka also thought all the events leading to their present situation happened at the spur of the moment, and there were no hidden meanings behind them.

But in that kind of situation, the most important thing was how others interpreted it.

Even if there were no hidden motives now, it might be significant in the future.

(Even this conversation might be interpreted as some sort of conspiracy…)

"Speaking of possibilities, Maihama might lean towards allying with the new rising force of Akiba?"

Michitaka asked directly, he was not good with testing the waters or scheming.

"That might work too, ermmm… What do you think Michitaka-dono?"

Michitaka resented being addressed as lord during the meeting, so the Duke made a good impression on him by addressing him as "-dono". Michitaka had no grudge against the word lord itself, but this elderly man was wary about using terms that might anger Michitaka, which made him want to continue negotiations.

(But I am not as talented as Shiroe…)

Michitaka moved his thick neck to tilt his head.

There was the gentle sound of door knocks.

After Michitaka gave permission to enter, Henrietta entered pushing a cart of snacks. The envoy reinforcement requested by Shiroe included chefs, and they had been preparing all sorts of dishes to complement all the meetings and parties in the Round Table Council zone of the palace (they had been working their asses off).

These snacks and beverages had been arranged for by Henrietta.

"Ah ah, you came just at the right time Henrietta-san, please join us."

"No, I'm just here for…"

"Ay, please don't hold back."

Henrietta frowned at Michitaka's invitation, but she took a seat besides Michitaka after setting the table.

"You are the lady who danced with Shiroe-dono at the party correct?"

"Yes, I am Henrietta from Crescent Moon Alliance."

"Crescent Moon Alliance is one of the 11 guilds that forms the Round Table Council, this lady is the guild tactician."

Michitaka took a breath after finishing his introduction.

He did not intend to dump all the responsibility on Henrietta, but this meeting was too important and Henrietta should be able to look out for Michitaka's blind spots and hint the direction the meeting should take.

But first, they helped themselves to the snacks.

Cold-cut chicken sandwich, warm veggie salad, fruits, and diluted alcoholic drinks.

They chatted casually while enjoying the food.

Michitaka and Henrietta gave a brief summary of where they stood, Sergead described the streets of Maihama, the topics took a detour before coming back to the main topic of the night.

"I have a general understanding of what you meant… let me think…"

Henrietta gracefully put down her teacup and said.

She continued expressing her views to Sergead who looked like a kind gentle grandfather.

"I think the most important starting point is Duke Sergead's long term plan, I think we can come to a consensus with that."

Michitaka grunted.

This was a simple conclusion. The painful and confusing 5 hour meeting could be summarized in this one sentence, how pathetic. But he should be thankful for Henrietta's intelligence and capabilities instead.

They say 2 heads are better than 1, but Michitaka understood from his experience on Earth that such meetings would seldom yield the benefits of brainstorming.

"You are right, hmmm…."

Duke Sergead closed his eyes.

"It might be wrong for me to say this, but we won't make any progress if we keep testing the waters. I want to use this opportunity to find out your straightforward views and what you wish to achieve for your side."

Michitaka added.

He did not want to be treated like a cat or a dog, but this old man would treat him with proper respect. If the chairman of the league also acted this way, there would be no point in further discussion.

"To start, I would like for your aid to defend against the goblin army and to exterminate them. In our long years of battle with the demihumans, protecting this land that nurtures us is our top priority."

Michitaka agreed with him.

Nobles who did not want to protect their people and lands were not real nobles.

Instead of being a goal or condition, this was akin to the premise of their discussions.

"Next, I will not be inviting you all to become the 25th member of the 'League of Freedom Towns Eastal'."

This stunned Michitaka.

"Right now, I feel that treating the Round Table Council as another fortress or territory's feudal lord is the reason for our failure. I do not wish to exclude or keep a distance from the Round Table Council, to put simply, I have come to realize that the Round Table Council is an organization that is equal to the 'League of Freedom Towns Eastal'. The Round Table Council and Akiba are able to rival the whole 'League of

Freedom Towns Eastal' in both their structure and strength. We the 'League of Freedom Towns Eastal' are an alliance of all the feudal lords while the Round Table Council is made up of clans… I remember you call them guilds? It is a council made of guilds, the two of us are very similar. You might only have just one city, and we have the preconception that one city is too small and underestimated you. We have been making rude and one sided requests, I want to apologize for our impudence."

Michitaka considered Sergead's words.

"That's the way Akiba is, their influence does not match its territory. If we force Akiba into the frame of the League, problems are bound to arise and will end up hurting or ending the League. Even if we succeed in putting a bell on the neck of the wolf, there is no way we can chain it, it is even more impossible to do that to the griffon flying in the sky. I think the 'League of Freedom Towns Eastal' and the Round Table Council should be on equal standing, that is the best relationship for us. We need to sign mutual nonaggression treaties and open up trade routes and use this as a basis of our relationship."

"No problem."

Michitaka's reply made Sergead eyes open wide.

"The Round Table Council has no ambition of fighting for territory or harboring any intention of invading other territories. We just want to protect our home in this world and realize our own dreams… a way back to our old world, and we will be content. For this, we need to live in this world in the meantime, we need to visit the ruins and relics all around the world, we will also need to trade for food and resources. To achieve this goal, it is not necessary to alienate our neighbors, being able to work together is a good thing."

Michitaka replied in one shot and looked toward Henrietta. Henrietta frowned for a moment and added:

"This is a very possible but rough policy correct? Even if we announce that we will be on equal standings, we need to see the content of the treaties and confirm to what extent we can honor them before we can make any concrete promises."

Michitaka nodded and agreed to the words she spoke a little bit too fast.

He was hoping that Henrietta would watch out for such details.

Duke Sergead was speechless for a while, stunned by the speedy response and sincere attitude of the 2 of them.

"But since we are dealing as equals, signing a treaty of non-aggression… meaning we will not attack each other, and to maintain our relationship as trading partners. Sorry to be blunt, but the countermeasures of the goblin attack would not be included in this treaty correct? I am not using this as an excuse since we have not signed anything, but for Maihama and the 'League of Freedom Towns Eastal', dealing with the goblins is a matter of grave importance correct?"

Both Michitaka and Duke Sergead nodded and agreed on Henrietta's point.

The topic went back to this point in the end.

The burdens on the People of the Land and the Adventurers were not the same.

Their positions and views differed, making them distant.

"Let's not talk about this for now."

Michitaka shrugged as if to tease the increasingly heavy atmosphere.

He was thinking about what Soujirou was doing, just remembering that scene made him feel silly for thinking so seriously.

The Adventurers had limitless powers, the People of the Land envied them and had to resort to schemes?

The dirty side of politics made his heart heavy, but after looking at Soujirou and his harem, everything seemed to not matter anymore. It was an experience that made you lose strength in your legs. No matter if it were envy, anger, or doubts, they were all easy to comprehend in comparison.

In the end, Michitaka did not need to burden himself to this extent.

"The parties involved, Krusty-dono and Princess Raynesia are not present, so it might be inappropriate to say this. They might have some concrete plan on what to do, so it is unfair that only we have to rack our brains. We need to include Shiroe-dono too and make the 3 of them think about it, that is the correct distribution of labor."

Michitaka's view was a bit crude, but the other two also felt the same.

Even if they came to a consensus or their negotiations broke down, the events had already been set in motion. The troops from Akiba should be moving out at dawn, neither Michitaka nor Duke Sergead could stop them.

Since both Krusty and Shiroe were on it, there was no way they would fail.

They had always been successful in achieving their goals when they took matters into their hands.

For Michitaka, this was a guaranteed result.

So they could only wait and see how things turned out.

"Shiroe-sama will think of something."

Henrietta pouted as if she were angry and her words seemed to belittle Shiroe, but her eyes seemed to be full of confidence. Michitaka grunted in agreement.

"And so, I will let my granddaughter shoulder the responsibility for this incident."

Duke Sergead's teasing words concluded this conversation.

Part 2

(What was that noise… ? Just in the bushes under that tree… Could it be… Could it be goblins?)

Beside Raynesia was a female knight wearing the conservative military costume from D. D. D. Instead of weapons, she was holding a map in one hand and several reports in the other, talking nonstop through telepathy.

"A big group at 2 o'clock, a strike team at 9 o'clock, total of 18, 2 giant beasts."

The sound of simple reports, different from the style of the knights, not like anything she had heard of.

When Raynesia's eyes were not used to the dark and she was feeling scared, this lady rubbed some balm gently on her eyelids. Raynesia was able to see after blinking a while, her vision was clear and the surroundings had a rose colored tint.

But the sounds from the dark were still scary.

This was not deep in the mountains or valleys, but Raynesia grew up in the city and lacked resistance to this type of environment. She shuddered at every movement in the dark bushes.

(Calm… Calm down, I need to be strong… right, stay calm…)

Her emotions were still intact.

She could not lose the grit to move on.

But her body was more honest, she was tense and shivering as she felt her life was in danger. She mobilized all her strength from her years of education as a lady to push on, but the cat was almost out of the bag.

"Princess Raynesia, if we go further up the ridge, we will be able to have a better view, we will rest when we reach there."

The female knight informed her.

The warriors around her seemed to know of this arrangement as they changed their formation smoothly.

Only Raynesia and two People of the Land stood blankly in the middle of the formation. The two of them provided details of the geography to the female knight when she queried them. There was a small stream ahead you could cross in one stride, a short climb after the river would lead you to the rocky region, there was a platform there where you could see the whole valley.

Raynesia's group bashed through the vegetation and advanced.

The leading warrior would clear the bigger branches, but the sharp and thorny undergrowth was still in the way. But Raynesia's 'Valkyrie Mail' was quality armor, akin to an invisible barrier of air protecting her.

(The performance is great, but this is really…)

She was concerned with exposing her thighs.

If it were winter, she would be able to wear a long cloak using the cold as an excuse. But she could not do that in the summer, Raynesia was wearing a thin cape that only reached her waist, she was reluctant to even call it a cape.

(Ah…)

She had unexpectedly walked a long way while thinking about this. Going around a cluster of tall beech trees and up the slope the height of a man, the view became wide and open. This was a rocky platform 6 meters wide and you could see the mountain ridges and valleys from here. The river and forest under the cliff were also visible from here.

There were countless lights dotting the area, probably the torches of the goblin army? The lights squirmed and wiggled like a procession of evil bugs.

"Please take a seat."

The female knight ushered her to a foldable field chair. It didn't have a backrest or armrest, but she was grateful to be able to sit and close her legs.

Raynesia thanked her politely and borrowed the seat.

Raynesia understood from that speech that Adventurers and the People of the Land were fundamentally different. Not only Krusty and the Round Table Council, she had to be prepared that everyone had the upbringing and courtesy on the level of nobles.

So she could not forget to show courtesy and gratitude in her behavior.

But the Adventurers seemed to dislike empty formalities, was her expression of gratitude adequate?

Raynesia observed the female knight, she seemed to be busy studying the map and talking through telepathy, so it should be okay.

The Adventurers around her took out foldable equipment, including a 3-legged table and several tubes that were probably telescopes.

"It begins."

"Ah?"

The moment Raynesia turned at the knight's words, a flash of light fell into the valley, followed shortly by a loud explosion and their surroundings shook because of the tremor. The female knight pointed into a corner of the dark valley with her white finger guiding the confused Raynesia.

Raynesia focused at that area and felt the faraway scenery that was glowing become bigger. She could even make out the shape of the trees and leaves.

"This is 'Fairy Balm' used for sniping, the view from the distance looks very clear right? Please avoid pulling your focus too far… It is starting, please watch this closely."

That white flash was only for an instant.

The lightning strike right at the center of the goblin group, the bright hammer that fell from the sky was more like dynamite than an electric attack, the explosion blowing the goblins away.

Raynesia could see Krusty's body clearly in the bright flash of light, he wielded the double-edged axe twice the height of Raynesia agilely, his tall body moving swiftly in the forest.

In the wake of Krusty's path, about a hundred people followed him along the stream. It felt like the cape fluttering on Krusty's back was elongating and corroding the whole forest.

They striked at or pierced the goblins without mercy upon contact.

The flashes of light every now and then should be magic spells. She could not tell from this distance, but they probably had overwhelming destructive power.

But, compared to the unstoppable charge of the group, she had more interest in Krusty himself.

Leading his men from the front, guiding the knights with his back, Krusty was emitting a strange air. The different emotion she felt back on the ship deck had taken physical form and was rampaging through a mountain of corpses.

He was smiling with his lips the shape of the crescent moon.

His eyes squinted with joy.

The glasses reflected silvery lights.

Krusty rampaged in the battlefield happily, like a child rushing around in a festival.

He swung his hands.

His axe was like the wind, you could not see its tip.

A 3-meter wide vacuum suddenly surrounded him.

Some monsters attacked Krusty occasionally. A wolf the size of an ox charged at him and Krusty stopped it with his left hand while he sent out an order. Dozens of arrow and several swords strengthened by magic pierced through the wolf immediately.

The beast turned into pieces of meat in Krusty's hand. He tossed it aside causally like a wheat bag and shifted his interest to the next group of goblins.

Ominous.

Eerie.

A disgusting feeling of fear.

But in Raynesia's eyes, this scene felt very sorrowful.

It was ominous and eerie because this was how Raynesia interpreted it. But to bear such thoughts for a warrior protecting her homeland, Raynesia thought that was a shameful thought.

But what about the feeling of sorrow?

Why was there a feeling of solitude?

"50 ahead, 2 hill giants, healing team standby at the side, start destroying the small teams from the outside."

She could hear bits of the female knight's conversations.

Raynesia opened the eyes she closed unconsciously, 2 colossal giants the size of siege towers were approaching Krusty from the front.

"…!"

A club as thick as a tree struck downwards, Krusty handled his two-handed axe like a dancing sparrow and positioned himself between the two giants. To Raynesia, the giants with their devastating size could crush Krusty in an instant. But the smile on Krusty's face deepened with no signs of fear.

Krusty swung his glowing red axe at the giants and they retaliated furiously focusing only on Krusty.

The two giants fell into a frenzy and attacked Krusty relentlessly in a fury, Krusty seemed to be barely hanging on and defending.

These two should be the secret weapons of the goblin attacking squads, a large number of goblins equipped with stone bows and spears scattered around them. But the 'Legion Raid' Krusty was leading seemed to stop holding back and attacked at will.

The 'Legion Raid' divided roughly into 4 and each splinter group split further into 4 parties, spreading out and taking on the goblins, surrounding them from one side and flooding the goblins in the forest.

The movements of the Akiba army was fast and flawless, the goblins without a well-defined command structure could not match them and was cut down one by one in the dark by sword or sorcery.

From Raynesia's vision enhanced by the Fairy Balm, their dancing figures rushed through the forest.

Krusty was in the middle of the dancing formation.

He swung his hand down like a conductor.

A volley of fireballs like a burning avalanche swallowed the group of goblins.

Krusty looked so elated.

He had so much more freedom than his time in the palace.

This made Raynesia sad.

Raynesia didn't know why she was sad and lonely as she watched Krusty.

He swung his axe with all his might, cutting open enemies, blocking attacks. Both his arms were bleeding but his footwork was strong and steady, Krusty's heroic command inspired the troops like a god of war.

The Krusty in Raynesia's eyes was so free that he might just turn transparent and disappear into the morning light.

(This…)

This was a sorrow that weighed heavily in her heart.

The invincible and strong Krusty in both the palace and the battlefield seemed so fleeting to Raynesia, making her wonder if there was anything wrong with her mind.

Krusty seemed so delighted, but the end of this happiness was probably emptiness and solitude. This doubt rose in Raynesia's mind.

The blitz group led by Krusty continued their advance in the forest.

Raynesia who was watching all this straightened her back, following the back of that burly Adventurer with all her heart.

Part 3

Maryele's group used the fisherman's warehouse by the Sand Leaf River as their temporary base, keeping in contact with the team patrolling around the town, updating them on the situation while coming up with a defensive plan.

There were no goblin sightings for half a day.

The goblins seemed to have pulled back from the forest and the Adventurers were taking turns sleeping in the hotels or this warehouse.

It had been 24 hours since the goblin attack, Maryele's group had successfully defended Choushi during this period.

The more you looked down on the beginners, the more passionate they were in adjusting and helping,

Maryele was surprised by this.

She thought this was probably natural.

(These kids joined 'Elder Tales' because of the release of the new expansion pack, this is all new to them, so they will not have any bias…)

In Elder Tales, new players meant characters with low-levels and immature battle prowess. With this kind of disadvantage, the veteran players would treat the beginners as weaklings.

But they did not have any preconceptions of the game, this was their advantage.

When Shiroe revealed that the People of the Land were the same as players, they had personalities, desires, sense, and understanding like humans… this had a huge impact on the veteran players.

But the impact was lighter for the beginners.

They had short contact with the game, they had not grown accustomed to the idea that Elder Tales was just a game. Because of this, they just felt like they had been abducted to this alternate world that had nothing to do with Elder Tales.

Hence, they were more passionate and aggressive about protecting the People of the Land and were serious about actually doing it, this made Maryele happy. The summer training camp beginners did not need much convincing before agreeing to fight and protect Choushi.

Seeing the beginners volunteering themselves, the veterans could not stand by and do nothing.

The summer training camp started out on a voluntary basis, so the veteran participants were all kind and caring to the beginners. Under the passionate and burning eyes of the beginners, the veterans had to put on a brave face and lead them.

On top of that there was the smiling support from Maryele who was not aware of it herself, pushing the morale even higher.

Minori and Nyanta conspiring to go up the hill made her feel hurt, but it all ended spectacularly well.

From what Maryele knew, there were 26 defensive actions at the borders that night, about 4 battles per hour. Compared to raiding dungeons, this was a relaxing pace.

The expression of the beginners changed as dawn broke.

Fighting in this world was not the same as fighting in the game Elder Tales, there was another type of hardship. Instead of saying the battle was grueling, it should be the air of the battle that was acrid.

Their bodies inherited the high physical abilities of the characters. Although it might differ from class to class, but stamina, strength, toughness, and agility were not a problem for them. They could heal their wounds by magic, if it was just a scratch, it would recover in half a day without the need for recovery spells.

The horror of fighting was more of a psychological thing.

Even if they were monsters, taking lives was still a terrifying experience, some Adventurers might even be traumatized, Maryele could understand their feelings too.

If they wanted to carry on battling in this world, they must get used to this no matter what. Before the beginners grew accustomed to this, they would need the guidance and motivation from their veteran companions.

In terms of opportunities and motivation, the defense of Choushi was a big challenge for the beginners, it was also a rare chance for them as well.

The first to notice there was something wrong with the ocean were also the spirited beginners. Their high morale would reflect on their fighting spirits and determination, but the most obvious effect was the increase of their concentration.

A trio of beginners on their way to guard Choushi noticed white foam and bubbles in the direction of the coastline and informed Maryele immediately.

It might be their memory of the horror of being assaulted at the beach, but this fear produced positive results this time.

Because they detected them early, the Sahuagin were still on the far side of the beach when the veteran players arrived.

The Sand Leaf River was very wide in this zone and the river mouth connected to the sea. The fresh and salt water mixed with the tides and several piers stuck out into the river.

The veterans groaned as they looked at the surface of the sea, there was a lot of white foam on the surface, the enemy was much more than just 100 or 200.

(This…)

Maryele also felt it.

Choushi was a peaceful town centered around fishing and farming, so their town was built along the Sand Leaf River. Considering the problem with the river flooding and the tides, the residents maintained at least a 100-meter distance from the river, which was very near.

And this 100m was not in the forest or on the hills.

This was just an open beach of sand and stones for the fishermen to pull their fishing boats and tools to shore.

The flank of the town was fully exposed with such a wide avenue of attack, protecting the town from such a large number of Sahuagin was almost impossible.

(No, instead of saying impossible… It is easy for us to survive, we can just run away, we can take them all down if we have enough time. But to completely protect the town and the People of the Land from harm… it is probably impossible…)

But as Maryele was at a loss for words staring at the foam, the sound of bowstrings tightening came from either side of her.

To her right was Naotsugu with Tohya beside him.

On the left was a beginner assassin and many other warriors holding their bows getting ready for battle.

Shouryuu who was not proficient with bows was holding thick metallic needles taking the stance to throw them like knives.

"Mary-san, please say a few words to motivate us."

Naotsugu said with a bright smile.

This smile lightened her mood.

There was no need to worry.

Maryele was always surrounded by a group of reliable and helpful companions. Just this smile made her heart grow wings and flutter.

"I understand, that… Eh, everyone listen up!"

Maryele raised her voice.

The bubbles were squirming even more as it approached the river mouth.

"Thank you everyone for your support! With the help of everybody, there have been no casualties in Choushi and the damage to the farms are kept to a minimum. We successfully fended off the goblins, this is great news. But we are not done yet, we need to defeat the enemy coming from this side before it ends… before we are really done in protecting this town. This is the final battle, please lend me your strength… I believe everyone can do it, yeah, let's go! Move out!"

The bowstrings sounded out loudly.

After 3 waves of sound, Naotsugu led the charge towards the coastline with Shouryuu and Rezarick behind him, Nyanta waved gracefully at Maryele before joining them.

The Adventurers rushed towards the coastline in a line.

But there were a few parties that did not take part in the assault. At the corner of the road farm trail where you had the view of the whole coastline was Minori sitting there. When Maryele looked at her with puzzled eyes, she replied: "We will need to substitute another team soon."

This was a calm observation, and Maryele started to doubt if she was really in middle school. But she had a point, since they would be defending against such a large group of enemies, they would need to plan a roster for resting and fighting.

A fierce fight broke out at the coastline.

If that was the case, Maryele should rest too.

It was very draining for the healers in a long fight, Maryele as a high level cleric would be needed in the coming battles.

Part 4

Midoraunto Equestrian Garden.

Simple defensive outposts were being built and the parties were being formed. After the confirmation of their responsibilities the parties were sent out one by one, so the number still in the camp was only a third of the whole army.

The situation was changing by the moment.

Krusty's blitz group had already engaged the enemy early this morning, from the reports of the surveillance team, they had inflicted casualties of more than a thousand enemies. They would know soon what this figure meant in the whole war.

Shiroe was known as a tactician, but he was not familiar with the military tactics of the real world, so he didn't know if that figure was big or small, or if the goblins would retreat from this loss.

Commonly speaking, if 30% of an armed force was unable to fight, this was as good as a total loss. This was the crude knowledge Shiroe had but he had doubts about it.

Would the goblins flee in a fight? It was possible, but that only happened if there was only 1 left. Elder Tales was a game, the monsters in the game would only attempt to flee at this stage and would never surrender.

Considering this, the 30% rule might not be applicable applicable here, or the military knowledge of the real world might not be applicable in this world at all, or maybe demihumans like goblins did not understand the concept of retreat.

But they also received good news.

Krusty's army managed to defeat giant beasts and 2 giants in the goblin army without much loss. Unless the goblins had other cards up their sleeves, it would be fine for Krusty's army to continue their raid.

(If there are enemies Krusty's army cannot handle, nobody else in Akiba will stand a chance.)

Different enemies had different affinities, if you understood the enemy, you would be able to organize and plan accordingly to take them out.

So even if Krusty's army failed, it didn't mean it was an enemy that could not be defeated. When Elder Tales was a game, they had to go through countless failures and get wiped out multiple times before they found the right way to complete the raid. The intelligence gained would become their strength in the next fight. If both sides were equal in strength, the one with the best intelligence of the opponent would gain the upper hand.

But in the situation with no intelligence, Krusty's army was without doubt the strongest sword in Akiba.

(I will leave the heart of the goblin army to Krusty-san.)

Shiroe placed a black pebble in the center of the map representing Krusty's position, then a white pebble at Midoraunto Equestrian Garden and a green one at Choushi.

Now he needed to focus on Choushi.

He felt great pain when he received the reports of the Sahuagin attacks, but the important thing was if that cape of land fell, the Sahuagin might even make their way to Maihama.

The common thing about all the towns was that they were not built with an attack from the sea route in mind.

Why did the Sahuagin attack?

The reason was unclear, but Shiroe deduced that it had something to do with the goblin invasion, the two of them were probably in cahoots. Maybe the Sahuagin were trying to take advantage of the goblin attack and reap something for themselves. No matter which was the case, the fact they had to fight on both fronts remained unchanged.

(For this portion… We can consider it roughly complete.)

Shiroe toyed with a bigger pebble and put it on the map, its shape looked like a cute seagull with its wings closed, it was placed in the sea.

The prototype paddle steamer Ocypete.

This ship had been utilized to the limit in this war.

After Krusty made landfall, Ocypete waited at the abandoned pier Narashino for another group. They should have linked up by now and was ferrying the 4 'Full Raid' groups detailed by Shiroe towards

Choushi.

Ocypete was a cargo ship and was not armed, so it was a leisure ship.

But it was a prototype so the hulls had been reinforced and it went through many strength tests so it had high defense. The Adventurers it was ferrying were the ship's weapon.

The group detailed by Shiroe had a high percentage of summoners and bards. The direct attacks of summoners were not as strong as sorcerers', but they had the ability to conjure elementals to conduct ranged attacks, so they had twice the range of sorcerers. The bards would be able to reinforce the attack spells and reduce MP usage.

What was left was a race against time.

Shiroe held discussions with the various telepathy communication operators that entered the tent, tying down the details of the formation of parties and where to send them.

It was easy to win in this war. But if they destroyed the core of the goblins' battle group causing the remaining goblins to go rogue and pillage the 'League of Freedom Towns Eastal' towns and cities, it would become a mess.

Shiroe remembered the People of the Land's village he visited on his journey back from Susukino, including the elder and the villagers toiling the land and herding sheep. In this dangerous world, they must have some defense ability, but if something happened to them, it could be argued that it couldn't be helped.

But if there was a chance to save them of course they should do that, that was the right thing to do.

Fortunately Shiroe was in a position where he could do something about it.

The duty of destroying the heart of the goblin army could be safely entrusted to Krusty, the crucial thing was how to handle the nearly 20,000 goblins after the invasion army dissolved.

Unlike the 'Legion Raid' blitz group Krusty was leading, they needed to organize smaller and more agile groups to surround the enemy, doing what they could to seal the damage within the hill regions. Shiroe was now working on turning this concept into a practical war plan in order to achieve this goal.

The main point of the strategy was to herd the goblins into the central mountainous region of Sand Leaf.

To do this, Krusty was starting from the west and going clockwise, 'peeling' the outer edge of the goblin main force. The goblins were forced to head in the direction of Sand Leaf, if they maintained this guiding tactic, they should be able to herd them to the most optimal position.

Sending out teams to support Krusty's advance and seal the goblins in Sand Leaf, or the sharp end of Chiba prefecture known as Boso peninsula in the real world, the surrounding regions should be relatively safe. This war plan hinged lastly on the defense of Choushi and whether the reinforcements on Ocypete could get there in time.

"My lord is not going to the battlefield?"

Akatsuki who claimed to be his bodyguard followed him here to ask while seated on a cushion in the tent.

"I want to, but I can't leave my work alone, I still need to finish forming the parties… We should see the ending in a day or 2, I will go then."

"I see."

Akatsuki nodded.

Shiroe was one of the griffon riders that numbered less than 200 in the Japanese server, its speed could only be rivaled by a red wyvern.

Leading the march through the hills would take a lot of time, but if Shiroe needed to move by himself, he could get to Krusty or Choushi in 30 minutes.

There were 2 reasons Shiroe set his base here.

First, he could relay his orders to the whole army speedily with so many communication operators around.

Second, the situation of the war changed rapidly, Shiroe wanted to stay between Krusty and Choushi so he could rush to either side if there was a need.

Shiroe was still setting up the communication networks for the whole expedition army.

Once he finished it, this expedition force would be gathering veteran Adventurers, and they could proceed with half-autonomous battles. A leader would command each party to keep communication with headquarters on a vertical level, as well as other parties on the horizontal level. A communication operator would be assigned to maintain horizontal-level communication between parties. By writing the details of the report received by communication operators on the map, they could convert the situation into a visual format.

The level of strategy and tactics Shiroe was thinking about was nothing impressive.

It was similar to how he planned his schemes.

Sorting the intelligence and visualizing it, looking for abnormalities and analyzing it, if there was any point of interest, utilize it by sending out orders. The strategy Shiroe was thinking about was just the combination of investigating and commanding.

And similar to now, most of the work was dull and boring, Shiroe ranted that he was totally a bureaucrat now.

The shout of a communication operator filled the tent and broke Shiroe's train of thought.

"Shiroe-san! Choushi's summer camp group is under attack by Sahuagins, there are only 60 Adventurers, but there are over a thousand Sahuagin, they are critically outnumbered!"

"Request the Ocypete to move at full speed! Ask Charasin-san to come here, the formation of parties needs to be completed, we need to complete the communication network in one day… no, half a day!"

Shiroe opened the documents full of scribbles and annotations, and explained briefly what he expected would happen in the future to the dozen or so communication operators, his voice unwavering.

He needed to complete the communication network as soon as possible.

Shiroe bit his lips and thought hard.

Part 5

"Huff… Huff…"

Regulating his breath while taking water from his backpack to drink.

Shouryuu lay on the ground exhausted as Naotsugu covered him and looked out for enemies, smiling bitterly as he thought about how critical the situation had become.

Naotsugu, Nyanta, Shouryuu and Rezarick were catching a breather under a pine tree a short distance away from the coastline, but you could not say they were really resting.

The battle had gone on for 4 hours since the morning, the bright summer sun shone at the beach where grueling consecutive battles were taking place.

This was the 3rd time Naotsugu's group was resting, but they took a 10-minute break the other 2 times.

The Sahuagin had many landing points but the Adventurers were few in number, so they needed to run up and down the entire beach and river bank to fight. To build an effective defense net with so few people, the teamwork between the parties was important. If the Adventurers concentrated on one area, the

Sahuagin would slip past them from the gaps.

If that happened, Choushi behind them would be attacked.

They had already asked the mayor to hide the People of the Land in the most sturdy building in the town, the men should be armed and ready to fight.

But the town had no walls, so the resistance of the townsfolk against the Sahuagin would only delay the inevitable of them being overrun.

Three beginner parties were fighting continuously at the edge of the water. In the eyes of the level 90 Naotsugu, they had many things to improve on but they were still putting up a good fight.

But there were many breaches in their defensive formation which was in danger of dissolving, which was common for most mid-level players.

This could not be helped, their skills and range were much inferior to Naotsugu's group. Another thing they lacked was the high-quality items Naotsugu's group possessed.

Elder Tales had a item lock system, most high level magic items needed to be locked before it could be equipped, and only the Adventurers that they had been locked to could use them.

The concept was the same as customizing the item for personal use, the locked item could not be equipped by others, so it wouldn't be stolen or sold. It would not be lost when you died, and it could sometimes unleash hidden powers.

Level 90 Adventurers from normal guilds would have several high-level magic items. For veteran players like Shiroe who engaged in high difficulty raids, they would have dozens of high-level items or even legendary items.

These magic items were not only superior in attack or defense, they may have unique abilities as well, there were some that could change the performance of the player's skill.

For instance, Naotsugu's sword 'Chaos Shrieker' could increase the range of his taunting skill 'Taunting Shout' from 10 to 15 meters. The convenience of 'Taunting Shout' would also change.

Mid-level Adventurers did not have the support of such powerful high-level weapons, so they could not match the high-level players. Since the items were locked, they were unable to loan it to them.

The worried Naotsugu wanted to stand up but Nyanta stopped him from his back.

"Our job now is to rest nya."

Nyanta warned sternly which was rare for him.

Naotsugu, Nyanta, Shouryuu and Rezarick had depleted their MP. Unless they were supported by some special effects, their MP recovery rate during battles would be insignificant. If they returned to the frontline now, their formation would be broken instantly because of the lack of MP.

When they were fighting the goblins on the hills, they could hide in the shadows and rest periodically. But this battle could not be done at their pace, they needed to take turns with limited time to rest in order to stop the attacks of the Sahuagin.

Naotsugu's group could last longer than the beginners, but they still had a limit. This level 90 group only had the MP to last for an hour.

The group was 2 members short of a full party, so they needed to give 50% more effort to work as a team.

"Please take this Naotsugu-san."

"Sorry for the trouble."

Naotsugu drank the potion Rezarick gave him, this blue potion could recover MP but the effect was poor.

There were many ways to recover HP in Elder Tales, but there were relatively few ways to restore MP, and the recovery amount was limited. These potions might be expensive but the effects were limited.

Naotsugu watched Tohya's battle anxiously.

The young boy ran on the beach waving his blade to attract the aggression of the Sahuagin and attack them repeatedly.

Tohya had grown strong.

His skills and execution were still rough, so his technique did not become better. But he was stronger, and he didn't need to rely on techniques for now.

One of the necessary elements for a warrior was spirit. It was the spirit of determination and fighting spirit, a positive attitude and mettle you bore in order to reach your goals.

Tohya had spirit when he fought, an irreplaceable quality for tanks. Naotsugu thought that to protect your comrades, you must have the will to break a glass door with your bare hands and possess the brave soul that was not afraid to bleed.

(Tohya has so much potential…)

Shifting his gaze, his comrades were a girl named Isuzu and a sorcerer called Rundelhous, he remembered that Isuzu was a bard.

She had technique unlike Tohya. Her positioning and attacks reflected her exquisite sense of rhythm and gauge of distance. The untrained eye wouldn't be able to tell her dexterous technique, so even relatively experienced players might think of her as an inconspicuous Adventurer.

But she used her support skills to bring the party's attack, defense, mobility, and recovery to another level.

Her teamwork with the young sorcerer was worth mentioning. Her position and timing of support seemed to meet all the expectations of the young man. She used all sorts of actions to protect the sorcerer with low defense from harm while ensuring he had a clear view to attack the Sahuagins.

The young sorcerer who was being supported was full of spunk. Sorcerers had naturally high attack, for Adventurers of the same level, they ranked along with assassins as the class with the most attack power.

But the attacking young man seemed to rely more on his emotion than the natural performance of his class, giving a sense of desperation. The lava balls danced and smashed the enemies, the ice spears skewered the Sahuagins as he was channeling his obsession into his magic.

And the young girl Serara who had a thing for Nyanta.

She was starting to evolve too. When he met her for the first time in Susukino, he could see her speed and decisiveness in casting spells, now her movements were even smoother. She did not only think about healing now, she would also summon the spirits of nature to fight or use support magic to help the party.

She would become an excellent healer Lastly was Minori.

Minori was probably the only one who was fighting the Sahuagins from a different viewpoint. Naotsugu got goosebumps from the feeling she gave him.

The party changed formation on her command and reestablished their duties.

"Rudy-san, suppression attack!"

"Alright Miss Minori!"

"Serara-san, I will take over healing, please concentrate on attack!"

"Casting 'Icicle Ripper' to the left!"

Naotsugu knew what she was doing.

He had been partners with Shiroe for many years, so he knew.

She should be trying to grasp the MP consumption of all her allies, she needed to be familiar with all the skills she and her allies had in order to do this. Not only how much MP it consumed, but also its effect and the condition for it to be effective.

Furthermore, she needed to manage her comrades' teamwork and the relative position of the enemy, even the order of battle and the priority of each enemy.

Put simply, she was turning the sentence 'destroy enemy' into an essay called 'battle', and reconstructed this essay into a story known as 'tactics', and was in the process of 'reading'.

The battle was in real time and there would be all kinds of things happening at the same time. The 'reading' here was changing the battle into immobile words, but to confirm all possible futures, 'reading' it while improvising the 'story' on the fly.

It was still very crude, but Minori was imitating Shiroe's 'Full Control Encounter'. This petite young girl was chasing Shiroe's back.

Using 1% as a unit, forecast 30 seconds ahead.

That was how Shiroe described it.

This sentence meant that he could envision the battle 30 seconds into the future and grasp his allies' remaining MP with an error of 1%.

In high-level battles, understanding the environment was a basic principle and Naotsugu could understand this point. When he was fighting on the front-lines, he could gauge about how much MP his teammates had left, but only to the extent of full, enough, half, waning, danger, empty, these 6 levels. Mid-level player probably could gauge 2 levels of enough and not enough, if it was just your own MP it should be easy, but to know the MP of your allies of different classes was difficult.

When Elder Tales was a game, the events that could happen were more or less scripted, you could anticipate the monster's action after you got used to it.

Shiroe's 'Full Control Encounter' was not only grasping the remaining MP of your allies. He would also know all the remaining resources of the party and the enemies, looking at the battlefield from a bird's eye view and controlling everything by his will.

When Elder Tales became an alternate world, the unpredictable elements in battles were more significant.

It should be impossible for Shiroe to maintain his 30-second forecast, but Naotsugu hoped he could still do it. Because Shiroe was not joking or boasting when he said 'Using 1% as a unit, forecast 30 seconds ahead', seconds ahead', it was something he said after researching and mastering it.

Naotsugu only heard about the details because of his long-standing friendship with Shiroe. For Naotsugu who was focusing on the enemy at the front-lines, he knew this ability took a lot of effort for Shiroe to master, but he also felt that this 'sense' was akin to superpowers. Naotsugu could only understand the sentence 'destroy enemy', but he could not compose it into an 'essay'.

But the Minori in front of him was chasing Shiroe's back.

(How many seconds into the future can Minori see… What % is she using as a unit to gauge her allies?

20%? Or with her low level, is she already proficient enough to do 10%… ?)

Just as Naotsugu thought it was time to take over for the beginners, there was a sharp shriek in the distance from the direction north of Choushi. This was a unique attack skill of a druid… 'Shrieker Echo' being activated.

Naotsugu's reaction was slow by half a beat.

He didn't know why the shriek came from the direction of a farm far from the Sand Leaf River.

Minori's group at the front line returned to Naotsugu's side like a gust of wind.

"Teacher, we will go!"

"Please take care this place!"

"Ha ha ha! We will handle things over there! Move out!"

"Eh… Nyanta-san! Good luck!"

The 5 of them retreated from the coastline and headed north leaving the battlefield to Naotsugu's group.

The figure of them running under the summer sun looked like swallows flying straight into the sky.

Shouryuu and Rezarick knew that they had to fill the gap left behind by Minori's group and rushed over.

Naotsugu looked at Minori with a perplexed face, the young girl was drenched in sweat but her eyes shone with determination.

"The spirit alarm Serara set in the hills went off, the goblins are probably attacking again. Since they are goblins, we should be able to handle them… My party has a bard, so we can fight for a long time, so we are more suitable for this battle… So Naotsugu-san, please take care of things at the beach!"

"Minori!"

Minori waved her hand to acknowledge Naotsugu.

They ran into Choushi and Naotsugu lost sight of them.

Part 6

The one leading the way was Rundelhous.

He had been focused since the morning, his magic attacks seemed to be stronger.

The loot they found in the depths of Ragranda Forest was appraised by the high-level players to be a magic item named 'Magician Gauntlet'. It could be equipped at level 25, a common equipment that could be found anywhere in the server, but it was a magic item that Isuzu's group obtained through their own strength.

Isuzu's group looked at this slightly scratched deep-silver gauntlet with magical sigils carved on it as if it were a rare treasure back then. There was only 1 item so they could not share it, but they would feel sad and lonely if they sold it and split the money.

After Isuzu's group talked it over, they decided for Rundelhous to use it. It was an item made for magical attacks, and Rundelhous was the only mage in the party.

Rundelhous was a little hesitant to accept it at first, but he equipped it happily after the group talked him into it.

Rundelhous who was running in front of Isuzu was wearing this pair of gauntlets.

This was a magic item that increased maximum MP by about 5 percent, so it was enough to cast just one more spell. But Isuzu's group understood that the percentage when accumulated would have a big effect in fights. The shimmering red crystal embedded in the center of the gauntlet seemed to reflect Rundelhous' fire spells and his fighting spirit.

Isuzu changed her permanent buff support song from 'Meditation Nocturne' which recovered MP faster to 'Fawn March' which increased movement speed and support skills.

"Thank you Miss Isuzu."

"Slow down Rudy!"

Isuzu pointed out as Rundelhous thanked her. It was a good thing to be energetic, but it was unwise for the mage with armor as thin as paper to be at the front.

"Woo, sorry."

Rundelhous slowed his pace after saying this, Isuzu gave him a bottle from her bag which was filled by the daughter of the innkeeper this morning. There was orange juice mixed in, so it tasted refreshing even though it was warm.

"… Are you okay?"

"Do you even need to ask? The great Rundelhous Code is in top condition as usual, I feel I can take on the whole world, hahahaha!"

Rundelhous responded after taking a big gulp, even though drinking and walking was bad manners (as well as laughing out loud), he did not give off an uncouth feeling.

His big eyes with the corners slightly drooping, his silky smooth blonde hair, his appearance gave an impression similar to a golden retriever, Isuzu smiled.

"You two are such good friends."

Serara giggled, Isuzu shrugged and replied: "I guess so." In Isuzu's mind, Rundelhous was a friendly puppy.

A handsome dog owned by a rich family in the neighborhood with a certificate of pedigree. Because their gardens were next to each other so he also came to visit the Isuzu family, a furry and bushy golden retriever.

Because of its pedigree it was handsome with elegant features, its movements polite and graceful with no signs of crudeness. But you would notice he was an idiot after growing accustomed to him, he would run until he was exhausted playing catch and shake his tail until it hurt, that kind of stupidity.

He would sometimes give overly self-conscious and arrogant speeches as if he had a screw loose or was just ranting off-topic. But he was just displaying his dumb nature so it didn't make her angry.

This dumb puppy was already friends with Isuzu, they were comrades the moment her hands were licked, that's why she could be direct in replying to Serara's teasing words.

"Had enough? Okay."

Her movement of collecting the bottle from Rundelhous, casually wiping it before keeping in her bag was done very naturally.

"Sorry."

"Ku ku ku, Rudy-nii is always apologizing."

"No such thing, right Miss Isuzu?"

Rundelhous retorted Tohya's teasing words, but Isuzu paid them no heed.

"Rundelhous is a mage, so being a bit bossy and looking stupid suits you better."

Rundelhous moved toward Isuzu and rebutted after hearing Isuzu: "What are you saying! What do you mean by stupid! You keep using that word!"

Strange.

This highschool girl from the country with freckles, skinny body, and lacking feminine charms, was treating the prince-like Rundelhous who seemed to have come out of a picture book like a puppy… That sounded too mean, it should be she was treating him like a spoiled middle-schooler with a screw loose.

Objectively speaking, this was a mean thing to do, but Isuzu did not think this way, her teasing interaction with Rundelhous was a relaxing and fun way to spend time together.

Just as Isuzu wanted to bully him again, a 2nd 'Shrieker Echo' went off nearby.

Isuzu's group looked at each other and increased their pace after the turn.

Choushi had an unique shape, the town was built on a narrow strip of land along the Sand Leaf river, the midpoint of that strip was intercepted by a major road leading perpendicularly out. There were other smaller roads branching out from this major road, but they were all short distance bridging roads.

So if they followed the road and turned north, it would be farmland as far as the eye could see. The tomatoes and eggplants swayed with the wind in this season, the maize planted in the spring was a sea of lush greenery.

3-4 shadows were running in the field.

Isuzu immediately cast 'Ballad of the Lazy Snail' and the goblins slowed as if they lost strength in their feet. Just this tiny glimpse of chance allowed Isuzu's reliable companions to attack preemptively.

"Sorry Rudy-nii!"

Tohya shouted as he lowered his center of gravity and bent backwards. This was not the stance to provoke the enemy, but something more aggressive.

With the targets spread so far out, the efficiency of taunts was low, it would take a lot of effort to run around and draw the enemies together.

"Leave it to me Tohya! Let them taste my elegant magic! 'Serpent Bolt'!"

The blue and purple lightning Rundelhous shot out split into several snake-like electric entities and surged through the fields, a preemptive strike by a mage was usually a bad tactic.

There were 8 goblins that emerged from the field, more than expected. Minori at the rear of the formation cast damage intercept magic on Rundelhous instead of Tohya.

The light blue mirror like barrier wrapped around Rundelhous who was holding his staff up anticipating an attack. The first goblin struck followed closely by another enemy with his axe raised high, but their attacks were blocked by Minori's barrier.

Damage intercept spells were the unique magic of a Kannagi, it could be cast on players before battles to offset a fixed amount of damage.

The most well-known spell was 'Purification Barrier', but there were other types as well. The spell she cast this time was 'Protective Barrier', which was 4 times as strong as 'Purification barrier' but it had a very long cool-down, not a skill she could use at will.

(But…)

Isuzu played her note rapidly and thought.

Minori's judgement was correct, Rundelhous had higher defense than Tohya at this moment because of the spell. Rundelhous provoked the goblin with his attack and lured them into the front of the party.

The moment the goblins gathered, Tohya's 'Whirlwind Vacuum Slash' activated and paralyzed the goblins.

Rundelhous, Tohya, and Isuzu started to take down the monsters one by one.

Isuzu's party knew the basic tactics after experiencing many battles, and had learned some unconventional tactics.

These tactics were limited by various conditions and were not effective in most situations, but it was very powerful when used under the right conditions, giving them more ways to solve the problems.

This was because…

"How was that Miss Isuzu! Did you see my beautiful magic?"

This dumb young man dragged them all over the place.

Isuzu patted Rundelhous' head with a smile.

The spell was good, hitting the targets from such range accurately. This was not only due to the performance of the spell, but also the long hours of practice by Rundelhous.

Everyone was becoming stronger, so Isuzu didn't want to be left behind.

Part 7

The chaotic battle continued.

The sun was already setting in the west.

In the whole battlefield, only the 5 Adventurers were fighting with their back to Choushi, a solitary defense party. The goblins probably suffered heavy losses the previous night, the parties attacking were uncoordinated and undermanned, the command structure must be in pieces.

This resulted in the attacks being sporadic.

The goblins were not taking any organized actions, they probably wanted to sneak into Choushi under the chaos of the Sahuagin attacks to raid the town.

The short goblins howled nastily as they appeared out of nowhere to attack the town. Minori's group used the farm near the road to the hill to ambush and destroy the attackers repeatedly.

Serara used the druid spell to set many 'Shrieker Echos' all over the place as an early warning system, helping Minori's group to overcome their problem of manpower shortage.

"Sorry Minori, you got anything to drink?"

Minori handed the 3rd bottle over to the moaning Tohya, she already prepared for this situation. When

Tohya sat down under the tree by the road, Minori cast 'Instant Heal' on him.

The recovery abilities were activated after the battle. The damages on the armor that were not too serious would gradually fade, Tohya's wound was also starting to heal. But like the sweat drenching his body, the long grueling fights raised his body temperature and he was unable to regulate his breathing for a long time.

Minori was worried, but did not say anything.

She was unable to prepare a few days of vacation for Tohya to rest leisurely. Tohya wouldn't want that too, this was not only Minori's fight, this was Tohya's fight too.

Minori could only give him a handkerchief she squeezed dry.

"Thanks."

Minori nodded to acknowledge Tohya and noticed that her body was heating up too. She looked at her companions, they were all trying to catch their breath and recover their mental strength.

Minori's duty was the Field Monitor, and she was also supervising all the information for this battle.

Monitoring all party's MP was Serara's job, but after Minori took over this task, Serara's support, healing, and reaction speed increased significantly.

Minori had to take note of her allies, the environment as well as the enemies information, monitoring the whole battle was a heavier responsibility than it seemed.

(It is still very crude…)

Minori even memorized the MP recovery speed of everyone as she checked their status. During battles, Minori used 5% as a unit to gauge the changes in MP of her allies. She was able to forecast 5-10 seconds into the future based on the rate of MP and HP consumption as she 'read' the battles. Although the accuracy needed to be improved, this forecast had been useful in preventing MP wastage.

Unlike fighting in the dungeons, this was a consecutive battle where you could rest at will, allowing Minori to practice her battle managing skills.

Minori thought this was child's play compared to Shiroe, but Naotsugu would be stumped if he heard these words.

Using 5% as a unit meant she knew the number of times a spell could be cast by her allies, such as enough to cast a mid-level healing spell twice more. This level of observation was far beyond that of a normal level 30 Adventurer. The party, including her, did not realize the hidden talent she was nurturing.

"Everyone, Maryele-san contacted me during the previous battle."

Minori propped herself up and reported.

When Minori was concentrating on battle management, she was on standby mode and treated herself as the reserve unit. She resisted the urge to cast spells repeatedly and focused on observing the surroundings.

Hence, Minori noticed the telepathy call and took it.

"Maryele-san informed me that a special unit from Akiba is on their way here by ship and would arrive in the evening."

"Speaking of evening, the sun is setting soon…"

"You are right."

"Eh, slight delay?"

Minori tilted her head. The summer sky was still bright but the day was coming to an end, it was not a far stretch to say it was evening now.

"Maryele says the reinforcements will be coming by sea and relieve the coastline forces first. They will send help this way right after, so we just need to hang on another 3 hours at most."

Serara and Isuzu's faces became cheerful, Tohya and Rundelhous remained alert and tense, but they gave off the feeling of a heavy burden off their shoulders.

They had defeated 30 goblins in this half day of fights.

It was not a big number, but the cumulative effects were a heavy burden. They didn't know where in this wide space the goblins would strike and could only rely on the alarm from 'Shrieker Echo' as their clue, playing a game of whack-a-mole in this wide field giving them no time to rest.

'Shrieker Echo' was a convenient alert too but it was not perfect. They worried about the goblins that managed to sneak through the defense net to attack the town. There were a few that made it through, forcing Minori's group to double back and hunt them down.

The party patrolling the borders needed to be close enough to rush back if the enemy broke through, so they could not push their defensive out further.

The good thing was the goblins lost their chain of command. If they had a good commander, they should be able to disrupt their defenses with tactics such as setting fire to the farm, Minori's group was afraid this might happen but so far they were doing fine.

"Right, when the ship arrives, there will be people here to support as well."

Serara nodded in agreement.

They were suffering right now because they had to fight on two fronts, if the goblins and Sahuagin didn't send big and powerful beasts, they were not formidable opponents.

"Just a bit more, let's give it our all!"

They stood up at Tohya's words.

The afternoon breeze was as hot as a frying pan, but reinforcements would come if they hung on for a little longer. This news was enough to rejuvenate the faces of the party.

After another 15 minutes of patrol, something serious happened.

Minori's party was hoping that they could pass the time peacefully, but you couldn't always get what you wanted.

A sound of a loud smash could be heard on the major road behind them. They rushed back thinking the enemy had penetrated so deep and met with a goblin party with 2 ferocious dire wolves.

Part 8

The battle was progressing badly.

"Don't even think about it!"

Tohya struck again, keeping the wolf attacking Isuzu in check. But this strike allowed the hobgoblin he was suppressing to break free.

After consecutive battles, the party's skills with long cool downs had been exhausted. They still had plenty of MP because of Isuzu the bard, but that was not enough for them to gain the upper hand.

The hobgoblin swung his two-handed hammer like a baseball bat, hitting Tohya in his unprotected flank.

"Tch! Not enough!"

This strike did not produce any cracking sound as it landed on the 'Purification Barrier', it only produced a sound as if it hit thick glass and damaged the light blue barrier around Tohya.

Damage intercept magic could be cast before battles to negate a set amount of damage. If the attack did not break through that set amount, they could prevent any damage to the subject. But if the damage went above its limit, it would break before the effect wore off.

Minori looked at the barrier shattering like glass and instinctively judged it did not offset all the damage.

"Four Side Prayers!"

Minori cast her emergencycast her emergency damage intercept skill in a hurry. This spell was for emergency use, didn't cost much MP and had a short cast time. It cast a barrier on all allies equivalent to 'Purification Barrier'.

But it had a disadvantage.

(… I won't be able to use this again.)

Minori turned pale and bit her lips.

Emergency spells were used in times of great danger and had very long cool down times of 24 hours.

"Stop! Stop!"

Serara cast 'Willow Spirit', the vines on the warehouse wall were guided by the magic and entangled the wolf. The wolf howled in anger and clawed the ground as it struggled to break free.

This was the 3rd time Serara used this spell, The wolves could use their burly bodies to rip the binding vines apart, but her efforts were not in vain. Serara was able to stop one wolf for a period of time for Tohya and the others to focus on the other enemies.

But since Serara was dealing with the wolf, Minori needed to take over the healing duties.

"Didn't you hear me! Don't even think about it!"

Tohya swung his blade with all his might.

This attack using brute force without any technique knocked a goblin into the hobgoblin behind.

The hobgoblin pushed the goblin aside with its massive body and struck at Tohya again.

The hobgoblin was a subspecies of the goblins and was stronger than normal goblins. Goblins were a tribal group, but they were not governed by any laws. They formed an invasion army because the goblin king survived his coronation, but they remained a tribal community, a demihuman group that pillaged and raided others violently.

Another demihuman group based in the south, the evil orcs liked to form armies and nations. In comparison, the goblins were more chaotic.

The hobgoblin inherited the nature of the goblin and was a fiercely loyal subspecies. They were usually more intelligent than goblins and were proficient in using equipment robbed from the humans.

This hobgoblin was the same, wearing pieces of armor and wielding a giant hammer he got from somewhere. A formidable opponent, maybe around level 30? To be honest, Minori's group would have trouble with this hobgoblin alone.

And the hobgoblin had the support of 2 dire wolves and 4 goblins. The reason Minori's group was still holding on was because they were familiar with the streets of the town, keeping a retreat route open so they wouldn't get surrounded. With their high-level of teamwork through countless practices, they were fighting above their battle limits.

"Switch Tohya! Suppress the wolf and the boss!"

But they couldn't fight above their limit for long, and they were getting shaky and on the verge of defeat. If that was the case they should give it all they had and unleash their emergency skills.

Minori charged to the front line with determination.

'Four Side Prayers' cast a barrier the level of 'Purification Barrier' on all allies and the effect would last for another 32 seconds. Minori as a healer would be able to endure the attacks of the goblins within the time frame as well.

Minori made up her mind and rushed forth, she almost lost her footing from her shivering legs. The dusty street under the summer sky seems so fluffy like it was made of cushions. But Minori shook off this illusion and kicked at the goblin in a un-ladylike manner.

"I understand! Miss Isuzu, let's go!"

"Roger Rudy!"

Supportive voices came from her back. When Minori heard the first part of Rundelhous' chants, she knew her intention had been communicated to her comrades correctly.

The goblins laughed maniacally as they attacked and Minori defended with her stance, relying on her barrier to protect her. She only avoided the attacks that came at her vital points, leaving the rest to the durability of her leather armor. She did not dodge the attacks, but threw herself at the goblins before their weapons landed.

(Terrifying, terrifying, terrifying… but!)

Tohya looked at the crazy actions of his sister and began to emulate her to fend off the hobgoblin and wolves.

Even if they managed to intercept most of the damage with the barriers, the battle had gone on for a while now. The twins with dirt and blood all over were enduring the knives of the goblins while the others were exposed to the fangs of the wolves, building up their front-lines.

They used the time earned by the twins to chant.

This was the strongest area attack spell Rundelhous had, it had a long cast time, a freezing spell that would hit for major damage. This was supported by Isuzu's singing.

Rundelhous finished chanting 'Freezing Wind' with Isuzu singing in harmony with him at a higher octave, freezing all the goblins in ice.

Minori retreated from the chilly front-line and checked her allies' statuses. She was unaware of the situation and cast another magic intercept spell in an absentminded manner, she did not look good.

Rundelhous took care of all the goblins, but Tohya had been under attack all this while without support from his sister.

Minori recast 'Purification Barrier' on Tohya, but damage intercept spells didn't recover HP. This was the weakness of Kannagi with the unique damage intercept skills. The Kannagi that focused on preventing damage to her allies was not proficient in using normal healing magic.

Minori had also lost half her MP from her emergency use of spells.

The situation was bad.

The good news was the goblins were gone, their advantage in numbers had been eliminated, bringing the battle to a higher level of balance. Minori cast damage intercept spells and inferior healing magic and instructed Rundelhous and Isuzu to concentrate on attacking the wolf.

… When facing multiple enemies, there were all kinds of tactics to employ. If you wanted to take them by surprise, taking down the strongest enemy would be most effective in sapping their morale. If it went well, the minions would scatter off. If the situation was a fight to the death, the key to victory was to take out the weaker foes to diminish their numbers and manage the damage you took on.

Shiroe's teaching came to her mind.

Minori's brother she was so proud of was bleeding and his face was contorted in pain. But that was the reason for them to focus on diminishing the enemies' numbers.

While Tohya used his blood to solidify the front, Rundelhous and the others needed to defeat the wolf to repay Tohya's efforts.

Minori who followed Shiroe's teaching to the letter began to 'read' the battle.

Knowing the HP and MP of your allies, giving instructions, supporting her friends and creating synergy…

Minori was studying the flow of the battle, becoming the wind on the battlefield, giving her all and living in the moment.

But Minori could not predict everything.

Her talent could not compensate for her lack of experience.

Any unexpected event could upset the balance.

The 2nd wolf broke free from Serara's binding spell and charged at Tohya. The two wolves and the powerful hobgoblin broke through Minori's barrier in an instant.

Minori digested the new information and calculated, part of it done subconsciously.

9 seconds… Tohya would die in 9 seconds.

Minori looked at her spell status with crazed eyes, 'Purification Barrier' still had 8 seconds of cool down.

But as she had just seen, this level of damage intercept magic could not stop the attack of the 3 foes.

"Don't give up!"

Serara shouted and cast 'Heartbeat Healing', the unique spell exclusive to druids. The healing over time magic should be regenerating Tohya's health over time, but that did not seem to happen.

The rate of damage was higher than the rate of healing, Serara's regenerative spell was only delaying his death.

Re-calibrate.

Re-calibrate.

Re-calibrate.

Minori cast her weak recovery spell and thought furiously. Even if Minori and Serara used all their recovery magic, they could only delay Tohya's death by 35 seconds.

Emergency healing magic and high-level healing spells had been exhausted, the cool down prevented Minori and Serara from using half of their healing spells in their arsenal.

(If this is it…)

A disgusting taste spread in her mouth, an irritating chill went down her spine.

Tohya was a crucial tank, if he fell, the chance of them being wiped out increased exponentially.

Not only that.

Minori felt through instinct the smell of death.

Unable to breath smoothly.

The air seemed to become fluid and could not enter her lungs. Time became rubbery and heavy, frustration and helplessness filled Minori's body.

Too late.

Too late.

She could hear her blood pumping loudly, Minori who was imprisoned by the cold could only watch Tohya's HP drop gradually towards 0.

Time seemed to accelerate to normal speed.

Rundelhous rushed past Minori and slammed into the wolf, forcing both his hands down its mouth.

"Rudy?!"

"Miss Isuzu, leave this to me! I… I am an Adventurer! I won't lose to this filthy dog ahhhh!"

The dire wolf was as big as an ox, its mouth was full of sharp fangs. It could bite off Rundelhous' upper body in one move, but Rundelhous jammed both his hands and shoulder into its throat. The dire wolf stomped its steely limbs and shook Rundelhous around, destroying the walls with his swing.

"Rudy!"

Isuzu screamed as she stabbed her spear into the wolf, but did little damage to its body covered with bristles.

"Calm down Miss Isuzu, as a gentleman… I need to maintain the image of a nobleman…"

Rundelhous was dragged along the road, the dire wolf with its eyes like hellfire blew out its pungent breath in an attempt to force Rundelhous out. But Rundelhous grabbed onto the fangs and refused to let go as he was covered in sweat and mud.

The wolf continued to cough and hack loudly, spewing the smell of the stinging taste of blood into its surroundings. Isuzu attacked with her spear relentlessly as Rundelhous continued to suppress the dire wolf.

"If I let go, this beast… will attack Tohya, even Tohya… cannot handle… all three of them…"

Absolutely right.

Tohya escaped his fate of death because Rundelhous threw himself into the fray. The damage he was taking lowered, the situation was changing for the better.

"But Rudy!"

"Isuzu! We are damage dealers!"

Rundelhaus looked like he was offering his hands as he dug deeper into the wolf's mouth. Wolves were canine, because of their body structure, it couldn't attack others if they didn't spit out the thing in its mouth.

"But…"

"Attack them!"

Rundelhous shouted and started chanting as if he didn't want to waste his breath. His arms were hurt badly, just two pieces of meat connected to his shoulders. But he forcefully willed his hands to gather magical flames as Rundelhous chanted his magma ball magic. He was burning the wolf from the inside without shooting it out.

There was no need to shoot it out.

Rundelhous' magic was directly affecting the wolf from its mouth.

The dire wolf could not withstand the pain and struggled to break away from Rundelhous, but he grabbed on as if he was possessed, refusing to let go of the dire wolf no matter what.

No, the saw-like teeth on either side of its mouth dug into the fabric of Rundelhous' clothes and the gauntlets on his hands, it would be hard for him to withdraw his hands even if he wanted to.

"Don't underestimate me, I am…"

The road in the evening sky was filled with the sound of Rundelhous' hoarse scream.

"I am Rundelhous Code! I am an Adventurer!"

Part 9

The air was filled with a charred burning smell.

As Rundelhous had planned, 'Magician Gauntlets' went out of control and burned the dire wolf from the inside and the right half of the hobgoblin along with it.

Isuzu's party gained the victory in this battle.

And the most valuable player of this victory, Rundelhous who should be laughing arrogantly, was lying in the mud in front of Isuzu.

"Nature Revive!"

Serara's resurrection spell did not have any effect.

This was as expected. The one lying on the ground with his pale face full of mud, his prince-like face looking smooth despite being dirty, just like a nobleman in his dreams…

He was a Person of the Land.

"… I am sorry."

Warm water dripped on Isuzu's palm.

"Why didn't he revive? Hey Minori, one more time!"

The confused Tohya shouted, Minori nodded and cast 'Prayer for the Soul', but Rundelhous did not wake up.

This was as expected.

"I am sorry… Tohya, Rudy is… a People… of the Land…"

Isuzu said slowly.

The words were stuck in his throat and wouldn't come out, and he relaxed his fist as if he accepted this.

Minori in the corner of her eyes clenched her fists, Serara saying softly "How could it be…". But Isuzu thought all this didn't matter.

"… Rudy is a People of the Land… He partied with us, adventured with us, ate with us… But Rudy is a People of the Land… So… If he dies…"

… He wouldn't revive.

Isuzu's heart hurt so much it almost shattered.

She already thought about this.

That's why Isuzu objected to battles, but since she couldn't win against the majority, she decided to support Rundelhous, and stop him from overexerting himself.

But she couldn't stop him.

(If only I had stopped him at the very beginning.)

When she noticed this during their time in Ragranda forest, she should have turned him down. No, she just needed to expose him to everyone, it wouldn't have ended like this.

To fulfill Rundelhous' dream, Isuzu lied along with him.

Because Rundelhous said he wanted to be an Adventurer with such a pure and sincere expression.

But they were fundamentally different.

It was impossible for him to become an Adventurer.

That's right, Rundelhous was sad and troubled before, complaining why he couldn't accumulate EXP no matter how much he fought. His growth speed was less than a quarter of Isuzu and the others'. He was troubled by his slow leveling speed, that's why he was so anxious about training.

Isuzu had never seen Rundelhous relax casually in the tent, he would meditate strictly whenever he had time. He claimed this was expected of a nobleman and was a measure of a true man's worth, but he must be filled with worries and frustrations.

Isuzu knew about this, but she still let him go on.

"Rudy… I am sorry, I am sorry…"

Rundelhous' wish was too naive, too pure, so Isuzu dreamed together with him, hoping a People of the Land could become an Adventurer.

"Rudy-nii is… a People of the Land… ?"

Isuzu nodded, the tears flowing down her cheeks dripped as she nodded. But this didn't matter, this was Isuzu's punishment.

Rundelhous was so gentle.

She was just a skinny brat from the country side, but Rundelhous treated her like a lady.

She was very conscious of her freckles and didn't look pretty at all, but Rundelhous kept addressing her as 'Miss'.

She was always dragging the group behind, she did not stop him properly in the end, and she treated him willfully like an idiot or a puppy.

(I am so happy he talked to me.)

(I am so happy he complimented me.)

(I am so happy he treated me like a lady.)

The words surged out like crazy, but they were stuck in her throat and couldn't come out, she could only moan and push her tears out of her eyes.

Gentle, kind, and heart-warming memories, it was all her fault she pressured Rundelhous to his death.

"Ah…"

Serara made a small sound, cast 'Instant Heal' and put her ears on Rundelhous' chest. She cast it again with a grim expression.

"Hmm, could it be…"

Isuzu searched for this impossible hope and came to Serara's side.

"I don't know why, his pulse is almost stopping, but when I cast healing spells, there seems to be some sort of effect… but I am sorry, resurrection spell is still ineffective."

Isuzu felt the hope she picked up shatter again, but the young girl continued staunchly.

"We can't give up yet."

"Ah?"

"… Please help us, we need your strength Shiroe-san!"

Name: Takayama Misa

Level: 90

Race: Wolf Fang Tribe

Class: Bard

HP: 8040

MP: 12237

Equipment

Calamity Hearts

God of Death's scythe, which was said to cause calamities with a single swing. A cruel weapon which grants high critical rate with multiple hits. A rare item with high popularity due to not only its performance, but also due to its ill-omened, divine design.

Red Dragon Horn Baton

Baton made of a Red Dragon's horn. A highgrade

Production-class item for Bards.

Increases the effect of support songs used by raid members. It is difficult to use in standard parties, but it shines in large-scale combat.

Knitted Silver Thread Gambeson

Production-class armor requiring an Artisan to create "Silk Thread of Cocoon Butterflies", a Blacksmith to create "Fine Silver Thread" and a Tailor to put it together. Although it is an item requiring a complicating crafting process and rare materials, because of that it is light and durable, and is an article of rare beauty with high magic resist.

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