Published at 26th of March 2019 2:42 am

Volume 13, Chapter 4 The Siege Part 3

This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml

There were large movements in the demihuman camp ― upon receiving that report, Neia knew that the time had come.

There was no doubt about it; this was a prelude to an attack.

Neia ran through the city, wearing in the gear she had borrowed from the Sorcerer King.

She knew that the people she was running past were staring at her.

Their line of sight was drawn to the magnificent bow she had borrowed from the Sorcerer King, and then they looked at the armor previously worn by the ex-ruler of the city, the Grand King Buser, and they were filled with shock. Neia’s acute hearing picked out people asking a question through the noise of the crowd: “Who is that warrior?” It was answered by “It’s the Sorcerer King’s squire” or “The woman from the Sorcerous Kingdom.”

I’m not from the Sorcerous Kingdom...

It bothered her every time she heard false rumors like that. Part of her wanted to know, yet did not want to know how the rumors had wrongly depicted her. However, she would need to clearly and firmly deny any rumors which might inconvenience the Sorcerer King.

Still, the Sorcerer King’s squire...

It pleased her, but just as she was about to smile, a quiet groan came from one of the people she ran past.

Even if he does resemble Father...

That thought passed through Neia’s mind as she arrived at the wall adjoining the west gate, where she had been assigned. That was also where practically all of the demihuman forces were gathered.

Close to eighty percent of all the paladins, priests, soldiers and able-bodied men in the city had been stationed at the west gate or in its vicinity. The remaining twenty were assigned to the east gate, while the women, children, old folks, and other non-combatants were keeping watch from the north and south city walls.

Remedios Custodio commanded the west gate. Gustav Montagnes commanded the east gate. Caspond Bessarez was the nominal supreme commander. Of course, the supreme commander stayed within the headquarters in the center of the city and did not venture out.

She could see the west gate at last.

The Sorcerer King had demolished the east gate’s portcullis, but the west gate’s portcullis was still intact. However, many demihumans were stronger than human beings. They could probably wreck it easily with logs.

Neia clenched her hand into a fist before it could tremble.

If they broke through this point and made their way inside, it would be very difficult to deal with the demihumans once they began spreading through the city. In other words, the city would be lost.

Given the circumstances, Neia could not run. She would probably fight and die in combat against a vast swarm of demihumans.

Neia brought her trembling hand to her mouth, and then bit down.

Don’t be afraid! If you’re scared, you’ll miss a target you could have hit!

The magic item she borrowed from the Sorcerer King could defend against magical mental attacks, but it could not suppress the fear born of her own heart. Even so, she would probably have been even more frightened if she had not worn it.

As she felt the pain spreading from her fingers, Neia entered a tower on what seemed to be the left side of the city and ran up the stairs to the top of the wall.

Neia had been assigned to the Sorcerer King’s side, and so she was apparently the last to show up ― of course, her superior officers had granted her special dispensation so she would not be censured for being late ― and the other people who were supposed to be here were already present.

As Neia prepared to rush off to her station, the paladin commanding the left flank of the western wall stopped her.

“The Sorcerer King ― His Majesty seems to be missing.”

For a moment, Neia looked at the paladin in surprise. She had already reported to her superiors that the Sorcerer King had no intention of taking part in this battle, but they were still asking her this question. Did that mean they had not yet informed the others about it?

However, Neia immediately sensed that this was not the case. This man was holding on to a sliver of hope ― he was wondering if the Sorcerer King would change his mind and show up.

Neia looked upon the demihuman army that was sprawled outside the city. There were well over 30,000 demihumans there, but the pressure of looking directly at them made them feel more numerous than they actually were.

Neia could understand why anyone would wish for the aid of the overwhelmingly powerful Sorcerer King in the face of such a force. That was because Neia had once felt the same way too. However―

“Yes. The Sorcerer King is not here. That’s because this is our ― the Holy Kingdom’s battle.”

The paladin was speechless for a moment.

Neia slipped past him and ran to her post―

“―Hold on! Squire Neia Baraja!”

“Yes!”

Neia stopped and stood at attention.

“Stand by here for the time being.”

“Eh!?”

Neia looked around. This place was close to the exit of the tower which led to the top of the city wall. A lot of people would be moving through this place. Would she not be getting in everyone’s way if she stood here? In addition, this place was far from Neia’s assigned position, which was close to the center.

“May, may I ask the reason for this? Is there something you need me to do?”

“No, no, it’s not like we need you to do anything, it’s actually a little troublesome. ...Squire Baraja. Just stay put here. Do you understand!?”

“Ah, yes…”

She had no idea what was going on, but there must have been some reason for it. There was no reason to keep a trained soldier here for no reason when the fighting might break out at any moment.

Was my assignment changed? Is it so that I can focus on sniping the enemy commanders? ...The bow I borrowed from the Sorcerer King looks amazing even at a glance, so does that mean they’re using me as a trump card?

“I understand. How long will I be waiting? Also, where shall I wait?”

“Ah, um, well, just until the enemy moves in. As for where, anywhere is fine.”

“Huh? I need to wait right until the last moment?”

It was indeed weird. Just as a sense of wrongness began to fill Neia, several men who looked like they had come from the militia carried a huge pot up the stairs. This was probably food for the defenders standing by on the walls. They were sweating far more than the cold weather warranted, and it was clear that these men had come back and forth many times. It was only to be expected, given that they were feeding several hundred men.

Neia leaned against the wall to give them room to pass, and the men moved hurriedly past her. However, one of them lifted their head a little and noticed Neia’s face.

“Huh? Aren’t you the Sorcerer King’s squire ― ah, no, would that be you, ma’am?”

“Ah, no need to be so formal… er, forgive me. Yes. I have been assigned the duty of serving as the Sorcerer King’s squire.”

Perhaps they had heard Neia speak with the man, but the other pot-bearers stopped and looked at Neia in surprise. It was probably for the same reason as the man from just now.

She was slightly embarrassed to be known as the Sorcerer King’s squire, but at the same time she felt very proud of herself.

The men did not know how Neia felt, and they worriedly asked, “I say, ah, actually, there’s something I’d like to ask the Sorcerer King―”

“―Stop that! No, could I please ask you to save it for later? She’s very busy. Would you mind carrying on with your work?”

Suddenly, the paladin stepped between Neia and the men, as though to hide her.

That was a strange thing to do. It looked as though he did not want her to speak with those men―

Was that the reason for the order just now? He doesn’t want me to talk to them… why is that? Is it because they were going to ask a question about the Sorcerer King?

She did not know why he was doing this, but finding the answer would be simple enough.

“I don’t mind. What seems to be the problem?”

Since the paladin did not want her to speak, then she would just have to address them directly.

“Squire Baraja!”

“Are you trying to keep people from asking about the Sorcerer King!?”

Neia answered as loudly as the shout which had been directed at her.

In truth, it was quite shameless to keep borrowing the Sorcerer King’s reputation like this, but she had to make sure the Holy Kingdom was not doing anything which might negatively impact the Sorcerer King. She did not want her home country to disgrace itself.

Neia gently addressed the man who had asked her the question earlier. Of course, she knew that it was probably going to frighten him, even if she felt her tone was gentle.

“I will answer to the best of my ability if your question is related to the great Sorcerer King. That said, I am not of the Sorcerous Kingdom, so I regret to say there are many things I do not know either.”

“Eh!? But you ― aren’t you from the Sorcerous Kingdom, ma’am?”

“Eh!? No, no, it’s not like that. I’m a squire from the paladins of this country.”

“Eh? Really?”

“Well, yes? So you don’t need to be all formal with me…”

The crowd burst into a commotion. Perhaps it was because the paladin had shouted at her just now, but at some point the militiamen on the walls had started looking her way.

While matters had taken quite an embarrassing turn, she could not look let herself look bad now that she had invoked the name of the Sorcerer King. Neia puffed up her chest proudly, determined to let all the soldiers present hear her. It would seem the paladin had resigned himself to the fact that he could not hide this, and so he stood to one side while glaring angrily at Neia.

“Then, first off… That armor of yours looked like something that the boss of those goat-headed monsters wore. Were you the one who defeated it?”

“No, not at all. The previous wearer of this armor was the Grand King Buser, and the Sorcerer King slaughtered him with a single spell.”

Ohhh, the crowd enthused.

She could hear snatches of conversation from the crowd: “He actually beat that monster!” “I can’t believe he used only one spell,” “Did he really take down a whole city by himself… he actually defeated so many demihumans…” “He’s super strong... I think I’m falling for him…” “He’s not like the undead I know at all…” and so on.

Even though they were whispering into each others’ ears or muttering to themselves, Neia’s keen ears could clearly hear them.

Of course, it made her very happy to know that others felt the same way about the great man she so admired. This was particularly true for those people who maintained that opinion despite knowing that he was undead.

His Majesty’s efforts were not in vain, there are people out there who get it...

“Then, then, ah, will His Majesty be lending us a helping hand this time round?”

The ruckus fell silent in an instant, and that reaction told Neia that this question was a critical one.

“...His Majesty will not be taking part in this battle. This is because it is a battle that we, as citizens of the Holy Kingdom, are fighting to save our nation, and not another country’s war. In addition, His Majesty needs to conserve mana for when he faces Jaldabaoth.”

The men’s faces fell as they heard her reply. Neia prepared herself for a rebuke―

“Well, that makes sense… normally, the king of another country wouldn’t come over by himself. Heaven will punish us if we’re not grateful to him despite all he’s done for us.”

“Yeah. Also, she said that he’s saving up his mana to defeat Jaldabaoth.”

“...That king is very cool-headed, but even so he’s a man who’ll choose a method that saves more people… no, he’s undead. In that case, there must be a reason why he won’t take part in this battle. I mean, I saw it back then.”

“Ahh, I saw it too. It’s true that we’re the ones who value this country the most. ―I’ll protect my wife!”

“What are you talking about?”

“We came from the prison camps before this city was liberated―”

She could hear voices of goodwill from all around her.

Of course, there were some who were unhappy that the Sorcerer King was not coming to help. However, they were outnumbered by the people who could understand the Sorcerer King’s considerations, and it warmed her heart.

“May I return to my post now?”

Neia addressed her question to the paladin. She now understood why he did not want her to go to her post earlier. In that case, there ought to be no problems in letting her head there now.

The paladin did not hide how he felt as he told Neia to “Go,” with a bitter look on his face.

Neia walked past the soldiers who were loudly discussing the Sorcerer King and arrived at the place she had been assigned to. She then intently studied the enemy encampment.

It was a vast army. It boasted enough manpower to devour everyone here in one gulp. It was the enemy which would be attacking them.

She felt like she was going to throw up again.

How many times had her father felt like this when he was manning the fortress line?

Neia looked up at the sky, which was as overcast as her heart.

***

The demihuman army made their move during the day.

Neia hurried to finish up her porridge.

Said porridge was made of oat grains boiled with milk and served in a wooden bowl. Thanks to the winter air outside, it was cold by the time it reached Neia’s hands and, frankly speaking, it was awful. However, if she did not eat her body would not be able to endure the extended exertion it would have to go through afterwards, and there would be no more food waiting for her. In addition, while there was supposed to be a relief shift for her, Neia had the feeling that she would not be successfully relieved, and that she would be too busy for a proper meal later on. That was why they had been given such a large portion for lunch

She forced the spoon into her mouth, forcing herself to swallow the thick, white clumps of oatmeal that were swollen with milk.

The sheer amount she had to swallow bloated her belly, and the knowledge that this horrible stuff might be her last meal filled her with despair.

At the battlements overlooking the demihuman army, Neia curled herself up on a cotton mat. Her grey-colored coat would be her only defense against the winter cold from now on. The militiamen had started eating at the same time as her but they had not yet finished.

Everyone was frowning. Clearly nobody was happy with the taste. That could not be helped.

However, their tense expressions were not due to the oatmeal porridge. Their eyes were not looking at the food in their hands, but the demihumans making their advance.

There was no way anyone could be happy ― or hopeful ― when looking upon those overwhelming numbers.

Then there were those who had once been prisoners. Their taste of demihuman rule had engraved an intense fear into them. They were under so much stress that they were unable to eat.

What would the Sorcerer King do under these circumstances?

Would he give a grand, spirited speech to heighten their will to fight? Or would he laugh it off?

Neia had no idea what heroic actions he would take. Still, even if she knew, she could not emulate him. After all, she was completely different from the Sorcerer King, who was both a hero and a king.

Also, it would probably cause problems if Neia said something like “relax and don’t worry” to them. After all, appropriate tension was what drove things forward.

Their faces might have been downcast, but there was no sign that they had given in to despair, nor were there any signs that they wanted to flee. There was something about them, something that one could only find in soldiers who had prepared themselves to meet their fate.

The reason for that was apparently due to something that one of the militiamen ― who had been one of the first to be freed from the prison camps ― had said about the Sorcerer King. It spread through the soldiers stationed at the walls like wildfire.

Lives were not equally important.

They were unhappy when they heard he had killed a hostage whom the demihumans were holding. It was a ruthless act that was very characteristic of the undead. However, the people who had been there strenuously insisted that it was not the case. They spoke of how that incomparably powerful Sorcerer King had said, “Even I would become the victim in the face of someone stronger than me.”

Neia remembered those words too. Back then, he had seemed extremely human, even radiating a tragic stoicism which felt like determination and resolve personified. It was a powerful promise to protect those things which were important to him and it had a persuasive power to it which could not be put into words.

And then, they thought about what would happen to the people dear to them if they were defeated here.

Their fighting spirit was strengthened by a powerful sense of purpose, which said “I don’t want to let my loved ones go through hell again.”

Had His Majesty considered that things might end up like this all that time ago?

If he had not said those words to stiffen the people’s resolve, their forces might have lost their morale in the face of the overwhelming army before them, and they might even have dissolved into a rout.

Neia had only seen the Holy Queen once. She had almost no idea of her abilities or her character. Still, she was certain the Sorcerer King was superior to her as a ruler in both aspects. Or rather, the Sorcerer King was probably the sort of sovereign who was known as the King of Kings, the highest order of monarch, even among other kings.

“And here I used to feel that the people of the Sorcerous Kingdom were pitiful because they were ruled by the undead…”

However, they might have been very lucky now that she thought about it. Those words caught in Neia’s throat, did a loop and refused to leave her mouth. After all, it would not be good if the people around her heard them. Just then―

“Confirmed enemy advance! All hands prepare for battle!”

A great shout came from the distance.

Everyone gulped down their porridge and went to battle stations.

If an army which was over 10,000 strong made its move, the air would shudder, to the point where it might even shake the walls of the city. It felt like the oncoming pressure would squash them flat.

In fact, Neia’s acute hearing had picked up the earthshaking clamor of an advancing army, and despondent wails rose up from the militiamen.

Morale was falling fast.

Still, there was nothing Neia could do, and she was not in a position to do anything either. Neia’s job was to fill every enemies who entered her range with arrows.

Ever since this city had been taken back, she had spent every waking moment practicing her archery when she had not been performing her duties as a squire. She mused that it was thanks to that practice that she had gotten used to Ultimate Shootingstar Super, and she was now able to use it properly.

Still, why are the demihumans attacking now? Attacking at night would be better for them… do they have something in mind? If the Sorcerer King were here, I could ask him about this…

The absence of the magic caster who had walked beside or in front of her for the past month made her feel like there was something important missing from her heart.

No. I can’t rely on His Majesty for everything. I need to stand on my own two feet... Although I’m not sure exactly what the demihumans are planning, there ought to be a reason for launching their attack in broad daylight. In that case, it would be best not to be careless.

As Neia observed the demihumans from the battlements, the frontline of demihumans drew her attention.

...Hey, that’s…

There was an Ogre standing three meters tall in the front rank. That demihuman carried a massive weapon.

It was some kind of ranged weapon that was protected by a wooden shield. It was a ballista. Although it seemed just right for the demihuman due to the latter’s massive size, the fact was that they could be used as siege weapons.

Many Ogres carried these weapons, which ought to have been mounted in place, and they stood in a row.

Had they scavenged them from a city and remodelled them for upright shooting?

The drums thundered, and the ballistas were prepared to fire.

And then―

―The city walls literally began to shake. The battlements collapsed in some places. While they would have to have been lucky not to take any casualties given the circumstances, luck was with them for now.

A gigantic arrow shattered the battlements. It was not so much an arrow as a javelin. A thick javelin that was longer than Neia was tall raced through the air and embedded itself in the walls. At this point, the only word for it was “siege weapon.” Surely nobody could take a hit from it and survive.

The Ogres looked like they were preparing for a second volley.

“You bastards!”

Neia stared at them.

The Ogres were far, far away.

Given the power of her bow, she could probably hit them at that range. However, its penetration ability would be greatly diminished, and the fact was that she could not practice long-range shooting like this within the city limits. She did not know the range to them, and she was not confident that she could shoot through the ballistas’ shields and kill their wielders.

That being the case, all they could do was open the gates and fight a pitched battle to kill the ballista team, but that would be an extremely foolish move.

In other words, all they could do was keep on taking this one-sided attack.

We have to pull back… but if we do, we can’t stop the enemy advance. What kind of plan does the brass have?

Although the enemy was only shooting so far, they would move to take the walls if the men retreated, and if the enemy seized the walls, then the city was all but lost.

They would take control of the stairs leading down from the walls and force the soldiers around it back to open the gates in order to let the main body of their forces into the city. All they needed to do was force that sequence of events through by dint of sheer power. There was nothing they could do about it. Even Remedios would have a hard time being surrounded by enemies in a melee.

In that case, all they could do was sacrifice their rear guard and flee the city from the east. However, that would probably lead to the situation they had discussed in a previous strategy meeting ― they would be harried along the plains, or they would be crushed between this army and the one arrayed against the south.

What would the paladin commanding the west gate decide?

Would he fall back, or would he fight to the end?

As Neia contemplated the matter, a second volley came from the enemy.

The walls shook again as the lance-sized projectiles struck it. The trembling felt more intense than the last time, and at the same time she heard an unrecognizable sound.

“Abbbahhhhh!”

She looked at the source of the sound and witnessed a horrific sight.

One of the ballista bolts had shot clean through a wall and impaled a militiaman hiding behind it. Blood bubbled out of his mouth. Several seconds later, the man’s twitching stopped and he collapsed like a puppet whose strings had been cut. The bolt had nailed him to the wall like an insect specimen, and his arms and legs dangled limply downwards.

Screams broke out from around her as the men saw the hideous corpse which had suddenly appeared among them.

Neia grabbed the necklace which the Sorcerer King had lent her, and bit her lip.

That was a fatal wound. No amount of healing magic could cure that.

The death of one soldier did not greatly affect their fighting strength. However, the fear generated by his gruesome death infected the surroundings. The thought that they might be next and that there was nowhere safe for them triggered the survival instincts of the men, and their bodies trembled.

“「Under Divine Flag」!”

Someone cast a spell.

The terror coursing through the militiamen was suppressed in that moment. This was the result of using magic to improve their resistance to fear. While the divine spell 「Lion’s Heart」 provided complete immunity to fear, it was only effective on a single target. In contrast, 「Under Divine Flag」 affected everyone in a sphere around the caster.

That was why the paladins stood among the militiamen.

“Don’t be afraid!” The paladin who had cast the spell shouted, “Take up your weapons to save those who have gone through the same pain as you!”

Spells and certain special abilities could briefly panic people, but the fear they felt now came from their own hearts. Under the effects of the fear-suppressing spell, the fire blazed anew in the militiamen’s eyes.

Still, that was simply covering up the actual problem. The important thing was whether they could do anything about the one-sided attack they were taking from the enemy. Otherwise, the only thing that would come of it would be more dead and wounded. However, Neia could not come up with any good ideas.

“Take cover! The enemy doesn’t have unlimited ammunition! They couldn’t have brought so much with them!”

I see, Neia thought. Most of their resources ought to be going to the south in order to provision the army standing off against the southern forces, so was that why they thought that they would not have brought enough ammunition for their weapons here? Still, even a captive craftsman could make a lot of those bolts in a short time, although the crossbows were a different matter. This was a gamble.

―The third wave came.

The ogres were not used to archery, and many of them missed their shots. Even so, many of the battlements crumbled under the third volley, and there were many casualties among the militiamen.

The massive, lance-like bolts could pierce a man and the man behind him as well.

「Under Divine Flag」was a spell that was centered on the paladin who had cast it, which meant that its effect were strongest when many people were bunched up within its effective radius. However, that only led to more casualties.

The sound of flapping came through the air before the enemy could fire a fourth time. Winged angels flew through the sky and passed over the heads of Neia and the others.

While they were angels of the lowest order, they headed straight for the demihumans. They had burning brands in their right hands and they held pitchers with cloth sticking out of their mouths in their left hands. Those pitchers clearly contained oil or powerful spirits.

In other words, they were carrying explosive throwing weapons ― firebombs.

Of course, the flames produced by those weapons would not harm fire-resistant opponents in the slightest, or demihumans with thick hides or large bodies. They might not even have an effect at all.

On the other hand, there were also those demihumans who could not deal with fire, and damaging the ballistas would also stop the enemy attack.

The angels filled the sky above the ballista-wielding Ogres and lit their pitchers. However, they did not even have the time to cast them down.

There was a flapping sound as demihumans took to the sky. They were Pteropuses. Their hands were shaped into leathery wings, and their arms remained still as they rose straight into the air like they were riding the wind. That was probably the effect of some kind of spell.

A white weblike substance flew out at the same time, entangling the angels. It had probably been produced by a special ability of the Spidans.

The angels looked like butterflies caught in a spiderweb, and they plunged to the ground since they were unable to move freely. They were swallowed up by the demihuman hordes, and it was needless to say what happened to them after that.

However, the angels had not sacrificed themselves in vain.

Several firebombs hit the ground, and roaring flames splashed all around.

Neia judged that this was the best chance she would get, and tensed her bowstring.

Until now, it had been impossible to aim directly at the Ogres due to the shields mounted on their ballistas. Even if she took aim at their unshielded legs instead, it would be nearly impossible to kill them in one hit.

Her father would have been able to shoot out an Ogre’s eye through a tiny opening. However, Neia’s skills were not as honed as his. However, the Ogres raised their ballistas and pointed their shields upwards. Perhaps it was because they feared the flames or they were afraid for their ballistas, but whatever the reason, their attention was focused on the fire, and they did not pay her any attention.

If she missed this chance, she would probably not get another.

She drew her bowstring to its limit, and then loosed her arrow.

The magic item she had borrowed from the Sorcerer King aided Neia in bringing forth a result that approached what her father could do.

The arrow flew on a startlingly straight path, and struck an Ogre’s head.

Neia had not aimed for the thick skull, but a squishy eyeball. While some monsters possessed a protective membrane over their eyes, she judged that it would be easier to strike a fatal blow there rather than targeting the skull.

However ― things did not go as planned.

Her arrow sank into the vicinity of the Ogre’s jaw.

The stricken Ogre howled loudly, shuddering from the pain.

The Ogre dropped its ballista, and it clutched its face ― the part where it had been shot. Then, it shakily turned its back on Neia before falling back. While she had not dealt it a mortal blow, she had at least broken its will to fight.

If the demihuman army had healers, it would probably be able to return to the frontlines in no time.

“Tch!”

This was all Neia could accomplish, even with the aid of the powerful magic items the Sorcerer King had lent her.

Neia clicked her tongue and immediately took cover behind the battlements, then pressed herself to the city side of the wall and began to move. The militiamen beside her stared in surprise as she suddenly left her post, and she addressed them in harsh tones.

“―Get out of here! They’re going to counterattack this place!”

It was not because they had heard Neia’s shout, but several of the ballistas discharged their projectiles in her direction. While most of the bolts had gone awry, some of them landed in Neia’s vicinity, and they wrecked the nearby wall.

If Neia had been unlucky, she might well have been impaled by those bolts.

She peeked at the demihumans again. The chaos from the angels and fire attack was being steadily contained, and the Ogres raised their ballistas again. It would seem news of being hit by an arrow had spread throughout the enemy army. In that case, they would probably not make the mistake of lowering their shields again. Therefore ― would she gamble on being able to emulate her father’s skill by a stroke of luck, hitting them even if she could only strike their exposed bodies? Or would she shrink up like a turtle and wait for her chance?

Amidst her confusion, the bow she had borrowed from the Sorcerer King caught the sun’s light and gleamed beautifully.

You won’t be praised for rashness...

Yes. She had managed to borrow such incredibly potent items, and she had to return them no matter the cost. Therefore, she ought not to take risks.

They can’t have that many special bolts!

It would seem the demihumans were volleying an endless hail of lance-sized bolts at them. However, their crude manufacture meant that very often, they flew towards places with nothing to hit, and some of them even fell into the city streets without striking anything.

She could not return fire, so all she could do was hunker down and wait for the enemy attack to stop.

Fragments of the destroyed city walls showered Neia. Some unlucky militiamen were hit and died on the spot, but while others silently prayed for the enemy attack to stop, since they could not do anything else.

Soon, she heard a mighty doom, the beat of a drum. The same sound repeated itself four times. In the distance, the same sound came from what should have been the left wing of the enemy’s formation.

...They’re coordinating their movements with the number of drumbeats. It looks like the right and left wings are using that to communicate. If I could enter the enemy camp and steal one of those drums, then beat wildly on it, that ought to disrupt the enemy’s cohesion ― that said, it would be impossible.

The enemy ought to know the importance of their drums. Therefore, they would be heavily guarded. In that case, who could charge into their camp?

Perhaps an adventurer could use 「Invisibility」 or 「Silence」 or other spells to cause chaos among the enemy and then sneak in.

There’s no point hoping for the impossible...

Still, there was no doubt that the enemy was changing tack. Neia ― and many militiamen ― nervously rose up to peek at the enemy’s movements.

After that a great commotion rose up from them.

It was a feeling which combined shock, fear, and furious anger.

The army arrayed on the other side of the wall was advancing at last. The left and right wings of the Demihuman Alliance forces moved forward in parallel. The center detachment approached the city gate in a layered formation.

The demihumans advanced with earthshaking steps, as though they wanted to hunt down and kill Neia and the others.

And then there was another unit ― a very small one ― which seemed to be flanking the city. Were they planning to scale the walls, or was this a feint?

In any case, the enemy had already launched the second wave of their attack. From now on, it would not be a one-sided struggle, but a mutual struggle of savage bloodshed.

However, that was not where the problem lay. After all, they had been waiting a long time for this, though they could not take joy in the fact that the time had come at last.

What angered the militiamen was the advance of the left and right wings. Their foremost units were composed of many different species. While they lacked a sense of unity, they had two things in common.

One was that they were all carrying assault ladders.

In other words, their unit was meant to scale the walls and break into the city. That also implied that they were Neia’s objective.

The other thing was that they had human children bound to their bodies.

Some of them were crying and wailing, while others hung limp. All of them were naked, and all of them were alive.

Neia bit her lip hard.

But at the same time, Neia’s heart was surprisingly calm.

From her darkened nook in the walls, she watched the demihuman tide pressing down on them. Neia then slid an arrow out of her quiver and began to draw her bow.

Even if the enemy pioneers had entered her shooting range, she had to hold on.

It was still too early.

She took several deep breaths, focused herself, then turned as fast as she could and drew her bowstring taut.

She had only a moment to aim, and there was only one point where she could aim.

―Here!

She released her arrow.

Her unhesitating shot pierced the human shield ― the chest of a child ― and the demihuman behind it.

Perhaps even that powerful shot would have been hard-pressed to bring down something with the toughness of an Ogre. However, the demihuman she had just hit did not seem to possess such unreasonable vitality.

Neia paid no heed to the demihuman she had downed and drew another arrow.

She had killed a person, the child bound in front of the demihuman.

Her hands would not stop shaking. Her vision turned black, and her heart trembled.

Though she knew this would happen and had prepared herself for it, this was how she had reacted.

She reached for the hilt of her sword by force of habit, but her fingers touched the bowstring instead.

It was as though her bow was chiding her, telling her that now was not the time for that sort of thing.

A faint lamp lighted up in Neia’s frozen heart. It spread like wildfire, and dispersed the chill winds blowing through her soul.

She stopped shaking, and her vision no longer felt narrowed. What filled her heart were the words of the person who embodied an unshakable justice.

Ahh, to think it would have such a great effect.

Neia reconfirmed that what the Sorcerer King said had been correct.

The demihuman pioneers that Neia had attacked were visibly slowing down. That was because they had been shaken to discover that their human shields were not effective.

Therefore, she shouted.

Neia opened her eyes, and shouted at the staring militiamen.

“What are you doing? Hurry up and throw your stones down! We can’t save those hostages!”

indeed. Neia and the others could not save the hostages. And then, they had already seen what the enemy would do to hostages that had lost their value. Therefore, what could they do?

She fired another arrow to speed the demihumans on their way to the afterlife.

Neia used her practiced vision and saw that her shot had pierced a boy through his forehead. She did not know if it was because she had been aiming for an Armatt or because the boy’s skull had lessened the impact, but this arrow had not been immediately fatal. However, the enemy’s front line was in chaos. That was only to be expected. Both humans and demihumans would slow their pace when things did not proceed as planned.

However, all she could see of the enemy lines stretched from one edge of her vision to the other.

Neia had only had an effect on the region where she had shot. Everywhere else, things were continuing as though nothing had happened. It looked like a small dent in a long, long line.

“Hurry up and throw the stones!”

Neia shouted at them again.

If they did not throw their stones, everything Neia had done would have been for nothing. That was something even more unforgivable than taking the lives of people ― children who had futures ahead of them.

The enemy was attacking on the left, right, and center at the same time. A head-on clash with an enemy that outnumbered them several times to one result in them being crushed under the sheer weight of numbers. However, if even one of the enemy elements slowed down, it would relieve the pressure on them.

If the enemy reached the walls, they would climb up while using the children as shields. If they managed to make it up the walls, the militiamen would not be able to resist the demihumans. What she had to do now was see how much fighting strength she could shave off the enemy before they arrived.

It’s very difficult for militiamen to kill children. Therefore, there has to be someone who’s willing to set an example, even if they get their hands dirty!

Neia fixed her eyes on a paladin in the distance.

You should have realized that when you took the prison camps and this city! You ought to have known that the Sorcerer King was right! You ought to know that you can’t do anything else! And you certainly ought to know that it’s pointless to obsess over lives you can’t save! What you should be doing is devoting all your strength to save the people you can save!

Neia fired another arrow.

Just like before, her shot killed a girl and the demihuman to which she had been tied.

“Hurry―”

“―Uooooohhhh!”

A shout echoed all around Neia as a stone flew. It seemed to sweep away the anxiety in her heart.

The thrown stone hit the demihumans, who were still hesitating. While it was a long way from being fatal, it would seem that it had done some damage.

“Hey, you guys! Hurry up and attack the demihumans! Give up on the kids they’re holding hostage!”

Neia recognized the militiaman who was shouting.

He was the father of the boy that the Sorcerer King had killed when they had liberated the first prison camp.

Neia was surprised to find him here.

“If they get past us, the women and children will suffer worse than they did before we saved them! If you still love your children, then throw those rocks as hard as you can!”

His voice seemed to banish all their doubts, and it was shortly followed by a volley of several rocks. While they flew on weird paths and there was no telling where they were aimed at, the fact was that they had been hurled out.

By the time Neia drew her bow again, a hail of stones descended on the demihumans. Many of those stones hit the front-running demihumans, the ones using children as meatshields. Rather, it would be more accurate to say that they hit the children tied to those demihumans, than the demihumans themselves.

The children cried and wailed in a heart-rending way. Even so, the rocks smashed mercilessly down on those pitiful children. They were the most tragic sacrifice of all, caught between the savagery of both sides.

Neia prioritized aiming for those children.

She did that to liberate them from their pain and torment as soon as possible.

This was a sign of respect for the few which had to be sacrificed to help the many.

Neia leaned out to find her next target, and then she felt something tearing through the air as it approached her, but all she saw was a burst of light.

Is this an enemy magic attack ?

Neia froze for a moment. At the same time, she felt a gentle impact from her belly. It felt like something had struck her lightly there.

Startled, she stumbled a step back and then she heard a clattering from her feet. She looked closely and saw something that looked less like a lance than a gigantic arrow ― in other words, a ballista bolt.

Its tip looked like it had been hammered into a right angle by a hammer.

Neia hurriedly ducked back behind the wall. After that, she heard a scraping sound as something huge struck the city walls.

Cold sweat ran down her back.

Neia unconsciously stroked the part of her where she had felt the impact.

She thought of how the Sorcerer King had thrown his sword earlier, and it had been deflected by the bubble of light from Buser’s armor. That would explain what had taken place just now. It would seem Buser’s armor ― which the Sorcerer King had lent her ― had protected her. In other words, Neia’s life had been saved in the nick of time.

Is that some kind of protection from ranged attacks? My chest, shoulders, and belly are protected by the armor, but what about other places? Does that ability have to be activated? No, more importantly, how many more times can I use it? Or has it already been used up?

Without the armor that the Sorcerer King had lent her, there was no doubt that Neia would have been impaled through her abdomen.

That fact sent shudders through her body.

“Huh… huh… huh. Come on, come on, dammit!”

Neia had not entered the radius of 「Under Divine Flag」. She had felt that it was unnecessary because she had the circlet which the Sorcerer King had lent her. That was why she could feel the fear of death like this. However, there were no tears in Neia’s eyes ― instead, she gripped her bow before revealing herself.

She had resolved herself to continue fighting, even if it meant taking the children’s lives. She could not allow herself to lose the will to fight after taking a measly little ballista bolt.

This was to keep the children they could not save from suffering any further. At the same time, it was also to slay the demihumans who had dragged them into battle. The arrow she loosed embodied both these things.

The intention to attack without regard for the children spread from her portion of the wall, until everyone was throwing rocks at the demihumans.

Neia even saw the paladins throwing rocks.

“Bastards! You bastards!”

“Ahh, dammit, those demihumans…”

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!’

“I’m sorry… please forgive me…”

Although those cries of remorse echoed up and down the line, they did not stop throwing their rocks for a moment.

This was the attack made by those people who had accepted that some blood had to be shed to save the highest number of lives.

However, the enemy was far too numerous. By the time they had struck down the front row ― the ones who were using children as shields ― the demihumans had already reached the vicinity of the walls, and they began deploying their ladders one after the other.

While the technologically-backward demihumans could only make battering rams and assault ladders when it came to siege weapons, the truth was that there was no perfect countermeasure against both of those. Several men pushed the ladders away with long sticks and the angels destroyed several more, but regretfully, there were just too many enemies to face.

“How are the firebombs coming? Get the priests to assist with their spells!”

“This is bad! They’ve got a ladder up over there! I’ll be going over, take care of this side for me!”

“Throw those rocks!”

There was a big commotion on top of the walls. The defenders were throwing rocks or stabbing with longspears to repel the demihumans who were clambering up the ladders, but the ladders went up one after the other, and it became difficult to deal with all of them.

Several demihumans nimbly avoided the spear thrusts from the militiamen, instead grasping the spears and pulling their wielders off the wall. Then there were those demihumans like the Armatts and the Bladers, whose natural defensive strength was comparable to full plate armor. They ignored the spears and rushed all the way up.

While the paladins had been trained in combat and could deal with these heavily-protected demihumans, the number of demihumans on top of the walls grew and grew. Any gaps which appeared were immediately filled up.

After stiffening her resolve, Neia leaned out from behind a battlement and shot a climbing demihuman from the side.

It was not Neia’s skill so much as the weapon she wielded which killed the demihumans in one shot. She could slay the resilient Armatts and Bladers because she possessed the Ultimate Shootingstar Super.

Neia’s body was clearly visible as she leaned out, and she was hit several times by stones spat by Stone Eaters. Although those stones could put dents in metal plates. Neia was protected by Buser’s armor. Still, she would probably be bruised and she might have suffered a fracture or two.

Though she was sweating heavily, she did not stop firing on the demihumans for a moment.

I can still do this… I only have enough mana to use the necklace of healing which His Majesty lent me once, so I need to save it!

As she continued landing shot after accurate shot, part of her mind tried to estimate how long she could hold out. After all, Neia’s single use of recovery magic was her trump card.

She pulled an arrow from her quiver, nocked it to her bow, took aim at a demihuman’s head or heart, and then loosed it. She repeated that sequence countless times.

A rock hit her hard enough to knock the arrow from her hand.

Neia hurriedly ducked behind a battlement.

She had dropped her arrow because the Stone Eater’s attack had made Neia’s entire body groan in pain, but that was not the only reason.

Paladins were sword-users. As a squire, she had trained with swords, so even if she knew the fundamentals of archery, she had not spent much time practicing with bows. This lack of practice made her arms cramp up and her fingers ache.

If she could not use a bow, then she would only be getting in the way. It was far too soon for her to use her trump card now, but she had no other way to restore her ability to fight.

“Activate:「Heavy Recover」!”

The mana drained from Neia’s body, and it made her feel a little dizzy. She would not be able to do this a second time.

At the same time, all the pain in her body vanished, be it the cramps in her arms or her aching fingers.

“I can do this!”

Neia leaned out again and continued shooting.

Fortunately, Jaldabaoth’s forces possessed some degree of leadership. Otherwise, the ballistas would have fired on Neia to kill her without hesitation, but since they were being led, they did not shoot for fear of hitting their friendlies.

Neia continued shooting as if she were in a dream. Eventually the hand that reached down to her quiver came up empty.

She looked down in panic and saw that she was out of arrows.

Just then, a scream came from the militiamen.

There was a very strong-looking demihuman standing in front of a ladder. While it was no different from the Stone Eaters who had fired rocks at Neia, its physique was excellent. Though it was no match for Buser, it still radiated the aura of a powerful being.

It held a crude-looking greatsword in its right hand, which resembled a meat cleaver. The other held a helmet that seemed to contain something. It was the head of the paladin which commanded this area.

“The great Jajan-sama of the Lagon Tribe has taken the head of the enemy commander! Now, you dogs, kill them! Kill all the humans!”

***

The situation immediately turned grim.

Paladins were few in number, and a death from among those small numbers meant that the defensive strength of this area would plummet. And then, there was one more thing.

There was a tremendous disparity in fighting strength between a militiaman and a paladin, even if the latter were not part of a hand-picked elite. There was no way the militiamen could win against a demihuman that could kill one of those paladins.

As the militiamen froze in fear, the demihumans scaled the ladder behind the Stone Eater from just now ― Jajan. They burst forth like water from a broken dam, one becoming two, and two becoming four. It was like mitosis.

Demihumans began to fill the top of the wall, and in turn, the number of militiamen began to diminish.

Demihumans and militiamen. The difference in their individual abilities was plain to see.

She looked around in panic.

Arrows. She could not do anything without arrows.

She cast her eyes around like a traveller in a desert searching for an oasis, and then she saw a thoroughly exhausted soldier leaning against a battlement. There was a quiver with arrows beside him.

That’s it! I’ll take the arrows from that wounded man and send him back to the rear.

But Neia sucked in a breath as she ran over. The man who looked like an archer was missing half his face. He was clearly dead.

He had probably taken a direct hit from a Stone Eater. His brains were oozing out, his glassy eye stared out into nothing, and his fate might very soon be Neia’s as well.

She looked more closely, and found several similar corpses. Her usually-sensitive nose finally picked up the thick scent of gore in the air. No, her nose was fine, her brain simply had not received the input from it.

As the porridge suddenly rose in her throat, Neia forced herself to swallow it back down with all her might. She barely succeeded, but there was no telling if it was because she had been lucky, or because she had become resistant to this after watching the “live eating performance” earlier.

(TL note: the term here is 踊り食い, or eating live and twitching seafood)

Neia grit her teeth and transferred the arrows remaining in the nameless archer’s quiver to her own. Restocking her quiver felt like she was restoring her own fighting spirit.

I can still fight. There’s still things I can do….

After quickly finishing up her work, Neia put the corpse’s hands together and closed his remaining eye. There was no time to spare on doing that, but she could not stop herself from doing it.

“I’ll fight for your sake too. Until the very end...”

As Neia turned and rose, she no longer muttered to herself.

Her spirit rose to a peak it had never reached before, and her senses were incredibly keen. She felt like she was a part of the bow which she held.

The top of the wall was now a chaotic melee. Considering Neia’s skills, it seemed almost impossible to snipe Jajan ― who was holding up the head of the paladin ― given the sheer numbers of friends and foes between them. However―

I still have these gauntlets! And the Ultimate Shootingstar Super His Majesty lent me! ―I can do this!

She loosed her arrow as she filled herself with that powerful conviction.

By the time Jajan noticed the whistling in the air, it was too late.

The arrow pierced his head, and Jajan fell limply to the ground.

“Jajan of the Lagon Tribe has fallen by the hand of Neia Baraja!”

Although she shouted those words, she was not answered by a cheer. That was only to be expected. There was no time for a long hurrah in the middle of a life-and-death battle. Neia felt a little embarrassed as she realized that, but she had succeeded in shaking the demihumans’ morale. She could feel the pressure on them easing off.

It would seem this had not been a complete defeat.

Neia took up her arrow again, then turned to face a suitable demihuman before sending an arrow his way. She shot the demihuman through the head and he fell from the wall.

Neia drew another arrow from her quiver. She was doing it like it was nothing, like it could not be helped. Was she a master archer like her father now?

Her bowmanship had rapidly improved during the course of this battle. That was how she had managed to kill Jajan, though the latter had been wounded during the battle with the paladin.

Amidst the chaos of war, Neia sought new prey to bring down.

―I’m an archer, so why aren’t they targeting me?

That question was answered as her next arrow pierced another demihuman skull.

“Don’t approach that human carelessly! She’s wearing the Grand King’s armor!”

“The Grand King?”

“Grand King Buser? Grand King Buser’s armor?”

Neia’s sensitive ears caught the chatter which the demihumans exchanged.

“No doubt about it! That’s Buser’s armor!”

“Don’t tell me that human brought down…”

Ah! Is that it!? When the Sorcerer King said it would protect me, was he not referring to the armor’s ability to defend against ranged attacks but the reputation of defeating Buser!?

The Grand King Buser’s name was well known throughout the demihuman forces. Therefore, the demihumans who had mounted the wall were under the false impression that they were fighting the warrior who had defeated Buser. The fact that Neia had killed a leader-class demihuman in one shot only added to that.

That was why they refused to advance against her, even though they knew Neia was an archer.

I have to hand it to the Sorcerer King, did he take this into account as well?

In all likelihood, few demihumans would chase her now even if she turned tail and ran. They would probably prioritize holding their ground over chasing a strong foe, even if they were making a mistake. Therefore, Neia’s life was probably in no great danger. The Sorcerer King’s advice to “flee to the east gate” suddenly came to mind, but she could not do it after all.

Anyone like that would never have come here in the first place.

Neia loosed another arrow, and killed another demihuman.

“Uoooh! That… that glare again…”

Glare… well, I am looking at them...

“It’s the eyes of someone who hungers for slaughter! That, that female human, at least, I think it’s probably a female, she’s no ordinary enemy!”

Probably… a female…

“Look at that bow! It’s amazing! It’s not just her skills!”

Hehe!

“The Mad-Eyed Archer!”

...Eh?

“What, what do you mean by that name? Do you know that human?”

...No, no...

“Does that female human have a nickname?”

...Hang on!

“I once heard there was a human archer with a devil’s face and amazing skills with the bow… could that be it!?”

That was Dad!

“The Mad-Eyed Archer! The archer who killed Buser!”

For some reason, the phrase “Mad-Eyed Archer” spread through the demihuman ranks like a wave. They’ve already decided it! As that thought ran through her mind, Neia no longer had any opportunity to correct them.

As Neia loosed her arrows, the militiamen began moving.

“―Everyone, hold the line! Don’t let the demihumans near that girl!”

“Ohh! Form ranks! Remember your training!”

“I’m moving up!”

About twenty militiamen moved to act as shields for her.

“Just kill those bastards for us! We’ll protect you!”

“Got it―”

The sound of flapping wings came from the enemy encampment.

Neia pivoted and pointed her arrow at the source of the sound.

Her eyes were filled with the sight of Pteropuses rising from the enemy formation. There were many of them.

While it seemed as though bypassing the wall should have been their objective, several of them dove from the flock and descended on Neia.

She had long since abandoned the thought of who to aim at. In this silent, pure white world where all she could see were her enemies, Neia calmly loosed an arrow at each and every one of her enemies. Her shooting was inhuman, unhesitating in its mechanical precision.

After downing the Pteropuses heading at her, Neia exhaled lightly. She could hear again after being released from that state of hyperfocus.

To the side―

She wanted to dodge, but a torrent of pain came from her left arm.

The Armatt beside her had torn her arm apart.

“Gwaaargh!”

Despite her cry of pain, Neia still made to pull out another arrow, but then she thought that she might not be able to properly brace her bow. In that case, perhaps drawing her sword might be better.

Her hesitation was a huge weakness, and the savage-looking Armatt raised its arm, preparing to follow up on its previous attack with a strike to the face.

She wanted to backstep, but her opponent was a superior fighter and managed to close the distance to her, so she could not evade it.

Intense pain filled her face. While she had managed to turn her head and thus avoided having her eyes shredded, the claws had ripped through her left cheek and opened a wound that exposed the interior of her mouth.

Fresh blood filled her mouth, and the taste of blood spread over her tongue. In addition, she could feel her warm blood oozing from her cheek, the sensation spreading down her neck and chest.

Neia had no time to draw her sword, and so she slammed Ultimate Shootingstar Super into the Armatt’s face.

The Armatt had probably not expected her to do that with the bow, so it tried to back up to avoid the attack.

Since she could not move her left arm well enough to brace her bow, Neia drew her sword with her right arm.

Neia performed a ramming stab like she was prepared to die for it. The Armatt immediately countered with razor-sharp claws, but a nearby militiaman had wounded its leg and its aim was off. The claw missed her ear by a fraction of an inch, and in turn her steel blade sank into the Armatt’s throat.

She glanced down to the Armatt as it collapsed and then surveyed the situation.

While she had been focusing on loosing arrows, the militiamen on the wall had been almost completely wiped out. The demihumans had reached Neia, and there were only five more men remaining, all pressed close to the wall.

The nearest reinforcements were fighting on the other side of the demihumans who had scaled the ladders, and they would be hard-pressed to help her over here. Frankly speaking, they seemed to be engaged in melee, so they would not have the free time to come help her.

There were over thirty demihumans in Neia’s block, and there were only six people on her side.

Neia glared at the demihumans and they backed off. The pressure on Neia and the others eased a little.

“Sorry about that, Baraja-san!”

The militiamen who had been pressed to the wall took a defensive formation in front of Neia.

“We won’t let those bastards past us, even if it’s the last thing we do!”

The person who said this looked like a cowardly man in his forties, with an unhealthy, protruding gut. However, his face was flushed with what seemed like the excitement of battle, and his body was covered in so much blood that one could not tell if it was his or the enemy’s. Even so, he refused to kneel, standing tall with an indomitable spirit.

He certainly looked like a reliable warrior.

“Thank you very much!” Neia said as she spat out a mouthful of fresh blood which had pooled there. Then, she continued ― “I’ll leave this to you!”

He was not the only one who was like this. None of the fallen militiamen showed any sign that they had attempted to leave the perimeter they had formed around Neia. What else could she say except that she trusted them?

The man’s eyes went to Neia’s left arm, and his face stiffened.

“I can see the bone…”

“Please don’t say that, it hurts a lot when you point it out.”

“Ah, ahhh, sorry.”

Once one reached a certain degree of skill as a paladin, they would be able to use low tier recovery spells. However, Neia was only a squire, so she could not do so. There were no paladins or priests by Neia’s side, and her mana had not yet recovered enough to use the magic item again. It would probably be best to abandon the thought of using her left arm in this battle.

Neia glared at the demihumans, but just moving her eyeballs made the wound on her face ache.

The pain made her gaze that much more ominous, and as the demihumans felt it, they went on their guard.

“Thanks to your shots, nobody else made it up here like that guy just now, Baraja-san. It’s because of you that we managed to survive this long.”

If the demihumans before Neia’s eyes rushed them all at once, the militiamen would probably be routed in an instant. However, they were all wary of Neia the archer, so they could not move together. In truth, she could understand their caution once she heard what the demihumans were saying.

“The Mad-Eyed Archer… could it be that she’s nothing much with a sword?”

“Don’t get careless, she’s just pretending she can’t use a sword to throw her opponents off.”

“Really? You’re a real smart guy.”

“Should we get the Snakemen over and kill her from a distance with spears?”

Neia laughed in her heart. It would seem that she had gained quite an undeserved reputation thanks to the power of the magic bow she had borrowed.

“...Is there hope for me?”

Neia asked herself that question quietly enough that the demihumans could not hear, and then she laughed.

“...If it’s the bow… the bow I borrowed from His Majesty, the Ultimate Shootingstar Super, shooting wouldn’t be a problem, but…”

The man tried saying the name Ultimate Shootingstar Super, and then he laughed forlornly.

“I see… so it’s very bad, huh. Say, Baraja-san… you jump down from the wall and flee. You should live on.”

Neia looked at the man.

“Aiieee! For-Forgive me. It’s only natural for you to be angry at such foolish words. But, but, while I don’t know what sort of hell you’ve gone through, you’re around my daughter’s age… I think, but letting a girl like that die is just…”

I wasn’t angry, I was just looking normally at you. The thought crossed her mind, but this was a common thing by now and Neia did not take offense at it.

The man was speaking the truth. It would be wiser to fall back for the time being and heal her wounds until she could use her bow, rather than swing a sword she was not used to.

―What’ll happen to them if I do that? I know very well. I can’t help them even if I stay and fight. I’ll just die for nothing. But...

Neia swept the bow in her left hand down and to the side.

I need to return this weapon. There’s many reasons why I should run. But, but, what will His Majesty’s enemies think if I run away while I’m wielding a weapon that He lent me? In that case―

“How could I run!?” she bellowed. “How could I, as one who holds a weapon borrowed from His Majesty, turn and run!?”

She tightly gripped the sword in her right hand.

Repaying one’s obligations was only natural for a human being.

The people of this country ― specifically, the head of their paladins ― were not the sort to do that, but she wanted to show the Sorcerer King that not everyone in this country was like them.

“Uwaaaahhhh!”

Neia’s shout sounded like she was wailing. Since she could not use her bow, the militiamen would die for nothing protecting her. In that case, she ought to take advantage of the demihuman’s mistaken fear of her power and attack while they could not bring their might to bear.

The enemy had probably not expected Neia to charge so many enemies, and they moved slowly enough that even Neia’s meager swordsmanship was enough to cut them up.

The remaining militiamen behind Neia followed her lead.

Neia swung her sword.

It bounced off, and the demihumans swung at her open body, only to have their attacks deflected by Buser’s armour.

Neia thrust her sword.

She stabbed into a demihuman’s body, and when she pulled it out, its organs followed. Before that demihuman hit the ground, another demihuman’s claws struck at Neia’s face. The wound on her left cheek was followed by one on her right, and the blood which flowed out got into her eyes.

Intense pain filled her legs.

A demihuman drove his dagger deep into flesh.

One of the militiamen fell.

Swords swung.

Two more militiamen went down.

One demihuman collapsed.

All the militiamen were dead.

There were nothing but enemies in front of her and to her sides.

Her breathing was ragged, and her heartbeat irritated her.

The parts of her body which had been struck by the enemy blazed hot, and every time she moved them, waves of seizing pain filled Neia with agony.

―I’m scared.

Neia was afraid.

She was going to die, and the thought of that frightened her.

She had been prepared to die here.

The enemy outnumbered them several times to one, and their individual fighting power was superior as well.

The enemy had all the advantages, and the only advantage her side had was their defensive position.

That being the case, it would be stranger if she did not die.

Still, looking death in the eye was terrifying even if she had prepared herself for it beforehand.

The word “east gate” ― said by the person she deeply respected ― echoed through her mind. Though she was prepared to die, she still wanted to live.

Neia had once thought about what would happen when people died.

What would the moment of her extinction be like?

Her soul would return to the great flow, where the gods would judge her, and those who did good as written in the scriptures would go to a land of eternal rest, while the wicked would be delivered into a land of torment.

Still, even if she had accumulated good deeds throughout her life with the aim of reaching her eternal rest, she was afraid to face the end of her life.

She swung her sword.

That powerless strike could not possibly slay a foe in one hit.

Anyone attacking even when surrounded, would take vicious counterattacks from the enemy.

A sword pierced Neia’s armor and cut into her

Neia was still alive thanks to the armor which the Sorcerer King had lent her. She would have died long ago without it. Indeed, she would have become a corpse like the countless dead militiamen and civilians who had been scattered throughout the city like they had been carelessly thrown away.

I must be in really bad shape...

Neia laughed at herself for being able to think about such inappropriate things even as she was this close to the afterlife.

Her feet slipped due to the force of her swing. Her left thigh seized up and her right thigh was injured and could not hold her upright.

She lost her balance and fell. She leaned against the battlements, but it was all she could do not to collapse.

The world was turning white and cloudy, and she could hear a distant, wheezing panting.

It was an annoying sound. She wondered who was making it, and realized that it was herself.

She was at her limit

Neia was going to die.

“Just a bit more and the Mad-Eyed Archer will be dead!”

“Ahhh! All together now!”

The voices of the demihumans came from far away.

This is… a real pain...

Neia could no longer tell what the demihumans were saying. However, they were probably not singing her praises. As her thoughts scattered into the void, a part of her mind thought only of things like that.

She was simply waving the sword she held ― her attacks were meant to keep the enemy at bay.

I’m… so scared… but everyone… is waiting for me…

In that white and cloudy world, she saw the smiles of her mother, her father, and her friends from her home village.

Who… are they… ahh… Bu-chan… Mo-chan.. Dan-nee…? I’m… scared… Your… Majesty…”

Her lungs and her heart and her arms and her brain wanted to rest.

Neia could no longer resist that temptation, but still, she had not broken yet. Why was that?

She was afraid of death. She was filled with her squire’s conviction to fight to the very end.

Apart from that ― she wanted to perform feats that were worthy of the wargear she had borrowed.

The demihumans’ weapons thrust out all at once, stabbing into Neia’s body.

And thus, Neia Baraja died.

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