Log Horizon Book 4 chapter 4

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Chapter 4: Chase that back

After Raynesia left, the meeting has an atmosphere of chaos and exhaustion. The senate leader of the round table council left with Raynesia, followed by Shiroe who the nobles see as a a politically moderate tactician.

The only envoy of the round table council left is the hardliner hawk Michitaka.

The nobles don't know where to throw the clenched fist they hold up in the air. No, holding fist up in the air is still fine, whether they can throw out the fist is another problem. Those who are willing and able to pick up the pieces has already left, the group don't know what to do.

Following Crusty's departure, the pitiful Baron Craindit lost his ability to moderate the meeting, his face alternate between green and red, even his attendants is unable to help him. In the end he beg permission to leave as he walks out gasping for air.

Even if they are not to the level of Baron Craindit, all the nobles should have a certain degree of the Baron's confused emotion.

As it has come to this, the meeting ended temporary.


Michitaka sigh as he walks to the corridor.

(This is going to be troublesome.)

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

(And I am a blacksmith...)

He still sees himself as an active blacksmith, he has been wielding his hammer everyday even after joining the round table council. With the drop in players raiding high level dungeons, there has been a drop in the supply of high level magic ingredients which makes him sad. But this type of problem can be solved by managing the supply strictly.

He was made a leader by his comrades because he likes to socialize others and won't reject conversing with others. This is how Michitaka judge himself.

The nobles see 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 Cities Eastal'. He only oppose to sending military aid because that was his assigned role, he does not oppose this personally.

...But he is a production player, he has a lower risk of dying compared to the battle players. Even if there is a war, he and his guild should be responsible for the resupply and support role of Akiba, so how can he agree to waging war so easily? He cannot deny that he feels a sense of guilt over this.

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

His thick and strong fingers reach through his black hair and scratch his head. He feels low spirited and unable to let go.

Michitaka is followed by a male attendant, walking down an empty and long corridor. He casually looks toward the balcony  as he turns the corner. There is no hidden meaning behind his action, he is just turning his head after seeing the moon light on the floor.

"Sir Soujiro, is this egg dessert tasty?"

"Sir Soujiro, please listen to me too!"

"Sir Soujiro seems tired, let me sing you a gentle lullaby and let you rest for a while..."

There is a luxurious couch in the balcony under the moonlight, a place suitable for tea parties. A colleague of Michitaka, West wind brigade guild master Soujiro is being surrounded by princesses and maids of the people of the land, making Michitaka feels a sense of desolation.

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

Compared to the sight and atmosphere around Soujito, everything about the round table council and the 'League of Freedom Cities Eastal' is colorless and boring.

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

Michitaka did not approach Soujiro and head toward the zone where his bedroom is.

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

Michitaka thinks so, but he find that the development that follows will be complicated.

Duke Corwen, grandfather of Raynesia, is waiting at the rest area in front of the round table council zone. The old duke is accompanied by a single knight as he bow to greet Michitaka silently. The long meeting must be trying on his body but he shows no signs of fatigue, which earns Michitaka's respect.

The elderly Duke simple says :"Is it convenient?"

Michitaka realize what he means and lead the way.

He invited the Duke to a small meeting room, this is where the round table council... Crusty, Shiroe and Michitaka hold their usual meetings. Small is only relative to the size of the whole palace, 2 such rooms will be big enough to be Michitaka's home back in Japan.

Michitaka ushers him to a seat and took out tea from his bag of holding to serve. The old Duke looks surprised, but someone like the Duke definitely knows about bags of holding, so Michitaka doesn't understand his amazement and decides 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 stroke his grand beard and laugh without reservation.

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

He is in a very delicate position right now.

Duke Sergead is the chairman of the 'League of Freedom Cities Eastal' and command great influence. But right now this influence is becoming a negative burden.

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

His words hint at the doubts the other nobles have of clan Corwen. Maihama is a stong city under Sergead's governance, if he pull in a few other counties and ally with Akiba, their power will be strong enough to subjugate the rest of the 'League of Freedom Cities Eastal'.

Raynesia does not harbor such grand ambitions. The round table council including Michitaka also think all the events leading to their present situation happened at the spur of the moment, and there are no hidden meaning behind them.

But in that kind of situation, the most important thing is how the others interpret it.

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

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

Raynesia understand from that speech that adventurers and the people of the land are fundamentally different. Not only Crusty and the round table council, she has to be prepared that everyone has the upbringing and courtesy on the level of nobles.

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

But the adventurers seems to dislike empty formalities, was her expression of gratitude adequate? Raynesia observes the female knight, she seems to be busy studying the map and talking through telepathy, so it should be okay.

The adventurers around her took out fold-able equipment, including a 3 legged table and several tubes that are probably telescopes.

"It begins."

"Ah?"

The moment Raynesia turns at the knight's word, a flash of light falls into the valley, followed shortly by a loud explosion and their surrounding shakes because of the tremor. The female knight points into a corner of the dark valley with her white finger guiding the confused Raynesia.

Raynesia focus at that area and feels the far away scenery that is glowing becoming bigger. She can 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 is more like a dynamite than an electric attack, the explosion blowing the goblins away.

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

Michitaka ask directly, he is not good with testing the waters or scheming.

"That might work too, ermmm... What do you think Sir Michitaka?"

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

(But I am not as talented as Shiroe...)

Michitaka move his thick neck to tilt his head.

There is a gentle sound of door knocks.

After Michitaka gives permission to enter, Henrietta enters pushing a cart of snacks. The envoy reinforcement requested by Shiroe includes chefs, and they have been preparing all sorts of dishes to complement all the meetings and parties in the round table council zone of the palace (They have been working their ass off).

These snacks and beverages has been arranged for by Henrietta.

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

"No, I'm just here for..."

"Ay, please don't hold back."

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

"You are the lady who danced with Sir Shiroe 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 takes a breath after finishing his introduction.

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

But first, they help themselves to the snacks.

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

They chat casually while enjoying the food.

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

"I have a general understand of what you meant... let me think..."

Henrietta gracefully put down her teacup and says.

She continues expressing her views to Sergead who looks like a kindand 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 grunts.

This is a simple conclusion. The painful and confusing 5 hour meeting can 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 understands from his experience on earth that such meeting will seldom yield the benefits of brainstorming.

"You are right, hmmm...."

Duke Sergead close his eyes.

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

Michitaka added.

He do not want to be treated like a cat or a dog, but this old man will treat him with proper respect. If the chairman of the league also act this way, there will 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 nurture us is our top priority."

Michitaka agrees with him.

Nobles who do not want to protect his people and land are not real nobles.

Instead of being a goal or condition, this is 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 Cities Eastal'."

This stunned Michitaka.

"Right now, I feel that treating the round table council as another fortress or territory feudal lord is the reason for our failure. I do not wish to exclude or keep a distant 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 Cities Eastal'. Round table council and Akiba is able to rival the whole 'League of Freedom Cities Eastal' in both their structure and strength. We the 'League of Freedom Cities Eastal' is 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 an council made of 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 request, I want to apologize for our impudence."

Michitaka considers Sergead's words.

"That's the way Akiba is, their influence does not match it's territory. If we force Akiba into the frame of the league, problems will bound to arise and will end 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 Cities Eastal' and the round table council should be on equal standing, that is the best relationship for us. We need to sign mutual non-aggression 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 harbor 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 contented. For this, we need to live in this world in the mean time, we need to visit the ruins and relics all around the world, we will also need to trade for food and resource. To achieve this goal, it is not necessary to alienate our neighbors, being able to work together is a good thing.

Michitaka replies in one shot and looks toward Henrietta. Henrietta frowns 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 extend we can honor them before we can make any concrete promises."

Michitaka nods and agrees the words she spoke a little bit too fast.

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


Duke Sergead is speechless for a while, sunned 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 Cities Eastal', dealing with the goblins is a matter of grave importance correct?"

Both Michitaka and Duke Sergead nods and agree on Henrietta's point.

The topic goes back to this point in the end.

The burden on the people of the land and the adventurers are not the same.

Their position and views differs, making them distant.

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

Michitaka shrugs as if to tease the increasingly heavy atmosphere.

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

The adventurers has limitless powers, the people of the land envy them and have to resort to schemes? The dirty side of politics made his heart heavy, but after looking at Soujiro and his harem, everything seems to not matter anymore. It is an experience that make you lose strength in your legs. No matter if it is envy, anger or doubts, they are all easy to comprehend in comparison.

In the end, Michitaka do not need to burden this by himself to this extend.

"The parties involved, Mr Crusty 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 too and make the 3 of them think about it, that is the correct distribution of labor."

Michitaka's view is a bit crude, but the other 2 also feels the same.

Even if they come to a consensus or their negotiation break down, the events have already been set in motion. The troops from Akiba should be moving out at dawn, neither Michitaka not Duke Sergead can stop them.


Since both Crusty and Shiroe is on it, there is no way they will fail.

They have always been successful in achieving their goals when they take matters into their hands.

For Michitaka, this is a guaranteed result.

So they can only wait and see how things turn out.


"Mr Shiroe will think of something."

Henrietta pouts as if she is angry and her words seem to belittle Shiroe, but her eyes seems to be full of confidence. Michitaka grunts in agreement.

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

Duke Sergead's teasing words conclude this conversation.

2

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

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

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

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

When Raynesia's eye is not used to the dark and she was feeling scared, this lady rub some balm gently on her eyelids. Raynesia was able to see after blinking a while, her vision was clear and the surrounding has a rose colored tint.

But the sounds from the dark are still scary.

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

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

Her emotions are still intact.

She cannot lose the grit to move on.

But her body is more honest, she is tense and shivering as she feels her life is in danger. She mobilize all her strength from her years of education as a lady to push on, but the cat is 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 informs her.

The warriors around her seems to know of this arrangement as they change their formation smoothly. Only Raynesia and 2 people of the land stood blankly in the middle of the formation. The 2 of them provides details of the geography to the female knight when she query them. There is a small stream ahead you can cross in one stride, a short climb after the river will lead you to the rocky region, there is a platform there where you can see the whole valley.


Raynesia's group bashes through the vegetation and advance.

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

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

She is concern with exposing her thighs.

If it is winter, she will be able to wear a long cloak using the cold as an excuse. But she cannot do that in the summer, Raynesia is wearing a thin cape that only reaches her waist, she is reluctant to even call it a cape.

(Ah...)

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

There are countless lights dotting the area, probably the torches of the goblin army? The lights squirms and wiggles like the procession of evil bugs.

"Please take a seat."

The female knight usher her to a fold-able field chair. It doesn't have a backrest or armrest, but she is grateful to be able to sit and close her legs.

Raynesia thank her politely and borrow the seat.

Raynesia can see Crusty's body clearly in the bright flash of light, he wields the double edged axe twice the height of Raynesia agilely, his tall body moving swiftly in the forest.

In the wake of Crusty's path, about a hundred people follow him along the stream. It feels like the cape fluttering on Crusty's back is elongating and corroding the whole forest.

They strike or pierce at the goblins without mercy upon contact.

The flashes of light every now and then should be magic spells. She cannot tell from this distance, but they probably have overwhelming destructive powers.

Compared to the unstoppable charge of the group, she has more interest in Crusty himself.

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

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

His eyes squint in joy.

The glasses reflecting silvery lights.

Crusty rampages in the battle field happily, like a child rushing around in a festival.

He swing his hands.

His axe is like a wind, you cannot see it's tip.

A 3 meter wide vacuum suddenly surrounds him.

Some monsters attack Crusty occasionally. A wolf the size of an ox charge at him and Crusty stops it with his left hand while he send out an order. Dozens of arrow and several swords strengthened by magic pierce through the wolf immediately.

The beast turns into pieces of meat in Crusty's hand. He tossed it aside causally like a wheat bag and shift his interest into the next group of goblins.

Ominous.

Eerie.

A disgusting feeling of fear.

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

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

But what about the feeling of sorrow?

Why is there a feeling of solitude?

"50 ahead, 2 hill giant, healing team stand by at the side, start destroying the small teams from the outside."

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

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

"...!"

A club as thick as a tree struck downwards, Crusty handle his 2 handed axe like a dancing sparrow and position himself between the 2 giants. To Raynesia, the giants with their devastating size can crush Crusty in an instant. But the smile on Crusty's face deepens with no signs of fear.

Crusty swings his glowing red axe at the giants and they retaliate furiously focusing only on Crusty.

The 2 giants fell into a frenzy and attacks Crusty relentlessly in a fury, Crusty seems to be barely hanging on and defending.

These 2 should be the secret weapons of the goblin attacking squads, a large number of goblins equipped with stone bows and spears scatter around them. But the 'Legion raid' Crusty is leading seems to stop holding back and attack at will.

The 'Legion raid' divides roughly into 4 and each splinter group splits 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 is fast and flawless, the goblins without a well defined command structure cannot match them and is cut down one by one in the dark by sword or sorcery.

From Raynesia's vision enhanced by the fairy balm, their dancing figures rush through the forest.


Crusty is in the middle of the dancing formation.

He swing his hand down like a conductor.

A volley of fireball like a burning avalanche swallows the group of goblins.

Crusty looks so elated.

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

This made Raynesia sad.

Raynesia don't know why she was sad and lonely as she watches Crusty.

He swing his axe with all his might, cutting open the enemy, blocking attacks. Both his arms are bleeding but his footwork is strong and steady, Crusty's heroic command inspires the troops like a god of war.

The Crusty in Raynesia is so free that he might just turn transparent and disappear into the morning light.

(This...)

This is a sorrow that weights heavily in her heart.

The invincible and strong Crusty in both the palace and the battle field seems so fleeting to Raynesia, making her wonder if there is anything wrong with her mind.

Crusty seems so delighted, but the end of this happiness is probably emptiness and solitude. This doubt raise in Raynesia's mind.

The blitz group led by Crusty continues their advance in the forest.

Raynesia who is watching all this straightens her back, following the back of that burly adventurer with all her heart.


3

Marielle's group uses 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 the situation while coming up with a defensive plan.

There are no goblin sightings for half a day.

The goblins seem to have pulled back from the forest, the adventurers are taking turns sleeping in the hotels or this warehouse.

It has been 24 hours since the goblins attack, Marielle's group have successfully defended Choshi during this period.


The more you look down on the beginners, the more passionate they are in adjusting and helping, Marielle is surprised by this.

She think this is probably natural.

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

In Elder Tale, the new player means characters with low level and immature battle prowess. With this kind of disadvantage, the veteran players will treat the beginners as weaklings.

But they do not have any preconception of the game, this is their advantage.

When Shiroe reveal that the people of the land is the same as players, they have personality, desire, sense and understanding like humans... this has a huge impact on the veteran players.

But the impact was lighter for the beginners.

They have short contact with the game, they have not grown accustomed to the idea that Elder Tale is just a game. Because of this, they just feel like they have abducted to this alternate world that has nothing to do with Elder Tale.

Hence, they are more passionate and aggressive about protecting the people of the land and is serious about actually doing it, this make Marielle happy. The summer training camp beginners do not need much convincing before agreeing to fight and protect Choshi town.

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

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

On top of that there is the smiling support from Marielle who is 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 end spectacularly well. From what Marielle know, there were 26 defensive actions at the borders that night, about 4 battles per hour. Compared to raiding dungeons, this is a relaxing pace.


The expression of the beginners change as dawn breaks.

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

Their body inherits the high physical abilities of the characters. Although it might differs from class to class, but stamina, strength, toughness and agility are not a problem for them. They can heal their wounds by magic, if it is just a scratch, it will recover in half a day without the need for recovery spells.

The horror of fighting is more of a psychological thing.

Even if they are monsters, taking lives is still a terrifying experience, some adventurers might even be traumatized, Marielle can understand their feelings too.

If they want to carry on battling in this world, they must get used to this no matter what. Before the beginners grow accustom to this, they will need the guidance and motivation of their veteran companions.

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

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

A trio of beginners on their way to guard Choshi town notice white foams and bubbles in the direction of the coastline and informs Marielle immediately.

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

Because they detect them early, the sahuagin are still on the far side of the beach when the veteran players arrive.

The Sand Leaf river is very wide in this zone and the river mouth connects to the sea. The fresh and salt water mixes with the tides with several piers sticking out into the river.

The veterans groans as they look at the surface of the sea, there are many white foams on the surface, the enemy is much more than a hundred or 2.


(This...)

Marielle also feels it.

Choshi is a peaceful town centered around fishing and farming, so their town will be built along the Sand Leaf river. Considering the problem with the river flooding and the tides, the residents maintain at least a hundred meter distance from the river, which is very near.

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

This just an open beach of sand and stone for the fisherman to pull their fishing boats and tool to shore.

The flank of the town is fully exposed with such a wide avenue of attack, protecting the town from such a large number of Sahuagin is 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 Marielle is at a loss for words staring at the foams, the sound of bowstring tightening came from either side of her.

To her right is Naotsugu with Touya besides him.

On the left is a beginner assassin and many other warriors holding their bows getting ready for battle. Shoryu who is not proficient with bows is holding thick metallic needles taking the stance to throw them like knives.

"Miss Marielle, please say a few words to motivate us."

Naotsugu says with a bright smile.

This smile lighten her mood.

There is no need to worry.

Marielle is always surrounded by a group of reliable and helpful companions. Just this smile made her heart grew wings and flutter.

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

Marielle raised her voice.

The bubbles is squirming even more as it approaches the river mouth.

"Thank you everyone for your support! With the help of everybody, there have been no casualties in Choshi town and the damage to the farm is kept to a minimum. We successfully fended off the goblins, this is a great news. But we are not done yet, we need to defeat the enemy coming form 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 lead the charge towards the coastline with Shoryu and Rezarikku behind him, Nyanta wave gracefully at Marielle before joining them.

The adventurers rush towards the coastline in a line.

But there are a few parties that did not take part in the assault. At the corner of the road farm trail where you have the view of the whole coastline is Minori sitting there. When Marielle look at her with puzzled eyes, she replies :"We will need to substitute another team soon."

This is a calm observation, and Marielle starts to doubt if she is really in middle school. But she has a point, since they will be defending against such a large group of enemies, they will need to plan a roster for resting and fighting.

A fierce fight breaks out at the coastline.

If that is the case, Marielle should rest too.

It is very draining for the healers in a long fight, Marielle as a high level cleric will be needed in the coming battles.



4

Midoraunto equestrian garden.

Simple defensive outpost are being built and the parties are being formed. After confirmation of their responsibilities the party are sent out one by one, So the number still in the camp is only a third of the whole army.

The situation is changing by the moment.

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

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

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

Will the goblins flee in a fight? It is possible, but that only happens if there is only 1 left. Elder Tale is a game, the monster in the game will only attempt to flee at this stage and will never surrender.

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

But they also receive good news. Crusty's army managed to defeat giant beasts and 2 giants in the goblin army without much loss. Unless the goblin has other cards up their sleeves, it will be fine for Crusty's army to continue their raid.

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

Different enemies have different affinity, if you understand the enemy, you will be able to organize and plan accordingly to take them out.

So even if Crusty's army fails, it doesn't mean it is an enemy that cannot be defeated. When Elder Tale was a game, they have to go through countless failure and get wiped out multiple times before they find the right way to complete the raid. The intelligence gained will become their strength in the next fight. If both sides are equal in strength, the one with the best intelligence of the opponent will gain the upper hand.

So even if Crusty's army fails, it doesn't mean it is an enemy that cannot be defeated. When Elder Tale was a game, they have to go through countless failure and get wiped out multiple times before they find the right way to complete the raid. The intelligence gained will become their strength in the next fight. If both sides are equal in strength, the one with the best intelligence of the opponent will gain the upper hand.

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

(I will leave the heart of the goblin army to Mr Crusty.)

Shiroe place a black pebble in the center of the map representing Crusty's position, then a white pebble at Midoraunto equestrian garden and a green one at Choshi town.

Now he need to focus on Choshi town.

He is pained to receive the reports of the Sahuagin attacks, but the important thing is if that cape of land falls, the Sahuagin might even make their way to Maihama.

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

Why did the Sahuagin attack?

the reason is unclear, but Shiroe deduce that it has something to do with the goblin invasion, the two of them are probably in cahoots. Maybe the Sahuagin is trying to take advantage of the goblins attack and reap something for themselves. No matter which is the case, the fact they have to fight on both fronts remain unchanged.


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

Shiroe toys with a bigger pebble and put it on the map, it's shape look like a cute seagull with its wings close, it is place in the sea.

The prototype paddle steamer Ocypete.

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

After Crusty made landfall, Ocypete waited at the abandoned pier Narashino for another group. They should have linked up by now and is ferrying the 4 'Full raid' group detailed by Shiroe towards Choshi town.

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

But it is a prototype so the hulls has been reinforce and it went through many strength test so it has high defense. The adventurers it is ferrying are the ships weapon.

The group detailed by Shiroe has a high percentage of summoners and bards. The direct attack of summoner is not as strong as sorcerers, but they have the ability to conjure elemental to conduct range attacks, so they have twice the range of sorcerers. The bards will be able to reinforce the attack spells and reduce MP usage.

What is left is the race against time.

Shiroe holds discussion with the various telepathy communication operator that enters the tent, tying down the details of the formation of parties and where to send them.

It is easy to win in this war. But if they destroy the core of the goblins battle group causing the remaining goblins to goes rogue and pillage the 'League of Freedom Cities Eastal' towns and cities, it will become a mess.

Shiroe remembers the people of the land village he visited on his journey back from Susukino, including the elder, the villagers tolling the land and sheep herding. In this dangerous world, they must have some defense abilities, but if something happens to them, it can be argued that it can't be helped. But if there is a chance to save them of course they should do that, that is the right thing to do. Fortunately Shiroe is in a position where can do something about it.

The duty of destroying the heart of the goblin army can be safely entrusted to Crusty, the crucial thing is how to handle the nearly 20,000 goblins after the invasion army dissolves.


Unlike the 'Legion raid' blitz group Crusty is leading, they need to organize smaller and agile groups to surround the enemy, doing what they can to seal the damage within the hill regions. Shiroe is now working on the turning this concept into a practical war plan in order to achieve this goal.

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

To do this, Crusty is starting from the west and going clock wise, 'peeling' the outer edge of the goblin main forces. The goblins are forced to head in the direction of Sand Leaf, if they maintain this guiding tactics, they should be able to herd them to the most optimal position.

Sending out teams to support Crusty'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 hinges lastly on the defense of Choshi town and whether the reinforcement on Ocypete can get there in time.

"My lord is not going to the battle field?"

Akatsuki who claim to be his bodyguard followed him here 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 the forming the parties... We should see the ending in a day or 2, I will go then."

"I see."

Akatsuki nods.

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

Leading the march through the hills will take a lot of time, but if Shiroe needs to move by himself, he can get to Crusty or Choshi town in 30 minutes.

There are 2 reasons Shiroe set his base here.

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

Second, the situation of the war changes rapidly, Shiroe wants to stay between Crusty and Choshi town so he can rush to either side if there is a need.


Shiroe is still setting up the communication network for the whole expedition army.

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

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

It is similar to how he plan his schemes.

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

And similar to now, most of the work are dull and boring, Shiroe rants that he is totally a bureaucrat now.

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

"Mr Shiroe! Choshi town's summer camp group is under attack by Sahuagins, there are only 60 adventurers, but there are over a thousand Sahuagin, there are critically outnumbered!"

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

Shiroe opens the documents full of scribbles and annotations, and  explain briefly what he expect will happen in the future to the dozen or so communication operator, his voice is no longer wavering.

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

Shiroe bit his lips as and thinks hard.


5

"Huff... Huff..."

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

Shoryu lies on the ground exhausted as Naotsugu covers him and look out for enemies, smiling bitterly as he think how critical the situation has become.

Naotsugu, Nyanta, Shoryu and Rezarikku is catching a breather under a pine tree a short distant away from the coastline, but you cannot say they are really resting.

The battle has gone on for 4 hours since the morning, the bright summer sun shines at the beach where a grueling consecutive battle is taking place.

This is the 3rd time Naotugu's group is resting, but they took a 10 minutes break the other 2 times. The Sahuagin has many landing points but the adventurers are few in numbers, so they need to run up and down the entire beach and river bank to fight. To build an effective defense net with so few people, the team work between the parties are important. If the adventurers concentrate on one area, the sahuagin will slip past them from the gaps.

If that happens, the Choshi town behind them will be attacked.

They have already ask 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 has no walls, so the resistance of the townsfolk against the Sahuagin will only delay the inevitable of them being overrun.

3 beginners party are fighting continuously at the edge of the water. In the eyes of the level 90 Naotsugu, they have many things to improve on but they are still putting up a good fight.

But there are many breaches in their defensive formation which was in danger of dissolving, which is common to most mid level players.

This cannot be helped, their skills and range is much inferior to Naotsugu's group. Another thing they lack is the high quality items Naotsugu's group possess.

Elder tale has a item lock system, most high level magic items need to be locked before it can be equipped, and only the adventurers that has been locked can use it.

The concept is the same as customizing the item for personal use, the locked item cannot be equipped by others, so it won't be stolen or sold. It will not be lost when you die, and it can sometimes unleash hidden powers.

Level 90 adventurers from normal guilds will have several high level magic items. For veteran players like Shiroe who engage in highly difficulty raids, they will have dozens of high level items or even legendary items.

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

For instance, Naotsugu's sword 'Chaos shrieker' can increase the range of his taunting skill 'Taunting shout' from 10 to 15 meters. The convenience of 'Taunting shout' will also change. Mid level adventurers do not have the support of such powerful high level weapons, so they cannot match the high level players. Since the items are locked, they are unable to loan it to them.


The worried Naotsugu wants to stand up but Nyanta stop him from his back.

"Our job now is to rest nya."

Nyanta warns sternly which is rare for him.

Naotsugu, Nyanta, Shoryu and Rezarikku has depleted their MP. Unless they are supported by some special effects, their MP recovery rate during battles will be insignificant. If they return to the front line now, their formation will be broken instantly because of the lack of MP.

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

Naotsugu group can last longer than the beginners, but they still have a limit. This level 90 group only have the MP to last for an hour.

Naotsugu is 2 members short of a full party, so they need to give 50% more effort to work as a team.

"Plese take this Mr Naotsugu."

"Sorry for the trouble."

Naotsugu drinks the potion Rezarikku gave him, this blue potion can recovers MP but the effect is poor. There are many ways to recover HP in Elder Tale, but there are relatively few ways to restore MP, and the recovery amount is limited. These potions might be expensive but the effects are limited.

Naotdugu watches Touya's battle anxiously.

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

Touya has grown strong.

His skills and execution are still rough, so his technique did not become better. But he is stronger, and he don't need to rely on technique for now.

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

Touya has spirit when he fights, an irreplaceable quality for tanks. Naotsugu thinks that to protect your comrades, you must have the will to break a glass door with your bare hands and posses the brave soul that is not afraid to bleed.

(Touya has so much potential...)

Shifting his gaze, his comrades are a girl named Isuzu and a sorcerer called Rundelhaus, he remembers that Isuzu is a bard.

She has technique unlike Touya. Her positioning and attacks reflects her exquisite sense of rhythm and gauge of distance. The untrained eye won't be able to tell her dexterous technique, so even a relatively experienced player might think of her as a inconspicuous adventurer.

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

Her teamwork with the young sorcerer is worth mentioning. Her position and timing of support seems to meet all the expectation of the young man. She use all sorts of actions to protect the sorcerer with low defense from harm while ensuring he has a clear view to attack the Sahuagins.

The young sorcerer who is being supported is full of spunk. Sorcerers have naturally high attacks, for adventurers of the same level, they ranks along with assassin as the class with the most attack power.

But the attack the young man seems to rely more on his emotion than the natural performance of his class, giving a sense of desperation. The lava ball dance and smash the enemies, the ice spear skewers the Sahuagins as he is channeling his obsession into his magic.

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

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

She will become an excellent healer

Lastly is Minori.

Minori is probably the only one who is fighting the Sahuagins from a different view point. Naotsugu gets goosebumps from the feeling she give him.

The party changes formation on her command and reestablish their duties.

"Mr Rundie, suppression attack!"

"Alright Miss Minori!"

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

"Casting 'Icicle ripper' to the left!"

Naotsugu knows what she is doing.

He has been partners with Shiroe for many years, so he knows.

She should be trying to grasp the MP consumption of all her allies, you need to be familiar with all the skills you and your allies have in order to do this. Not only how much MP it consumes, also its effect and the condition for it to be effective.

Furthermore, she need 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 is turning the sentence 'destroy enemy' into an essay called 'battle', and reconstruct this essay into a story known as 'tactics', and is in the process of 'reading'.

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

It is still very crude, but Minori is imitating Shiroe's 'Full control encounter. This petite young girl is chasing Shiroe's back.


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

That is how Shiroe describes it.

This sentence mean that he can envision the battles 30 seconds into the future, can grasp his allies remaining MP with an error of 1%.

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

When Elder Tale was a game, the events that can happen are more or less scripted, you can anticipate the monster's action after you get used to it.

Shiroe's 'Full control encounter' is not only grasping the remaining MP of your allies. He will also know all the remaining resources of the party and the enemies, looking at the battle field from a bird's eye view and control everything by his will.

When Elder Tale became an alternate world, the unpredictable elements in battles is more significant. It should be impossible for Shiroe to maintain his 30 second forecast, but Naotsugu hopes he can still do it. Because Shiroe was not joking or boasting when he said 'Using 1% as a unit, forecast 30 seconds ahead', it is something he said after researching and mastering at it.

Naotsugu only heard about the details because of his long standing friendship with Shiroe. For Naotsufu who is focusing on the enemy at the front lines, he knows this ability took a lot of effort from Shiroe to master, but he also feels that this 'sense' is akin to superpowers. Naotsugu can only understand the sentence 'destroy enemy', but he cannot compose it into an 'essay'.

But the Minori in front of him is 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, she is already proficient enough to do 10%...?)

Just as Naotsugu think it is time to take over the beginners, there is a sharp shriek in the distance from the direction north of Choshi town. This is a unique attack skill of a druid... 'Shrieker echo' being activated.

Naotsugu's reaction was slow by half a beat.

He don't know why the shriek came from the direction of the farm far from the Sand Leaf river.


Minori's group at the front line return 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... Mr Nyanta! Good luck!"

The 5 of them retreated from the coastline and headed north leaving the battle field to Naotsugu's group. The figure of them running under the summer sun looks like shallows flying straight into the sky.

Shoryu and Rezarikku knows that they have to fill the gap left behind by Minori's group and rushes over. Naotsugu looks at Minori with a perplexed face, the young girl is drenched in sweat but her eyes shine 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 Mr Naotsugu, please take care of things at the beach!"

"Minori!"

Minori waves her hand to acknowledge Naotsugu.

They run into Choshi town and Naotsugu loses sight of them.



6

The one leading the way is Rundelhaus.

He has been focused since the morning, his magic attacks seem 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 can be equipped at level 25, a common equipment that can be found anywhere in the server, but it is 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 sigil carved on it as if it is a rare treasure back then. There is only 1 item so they cannot share it, but they will feel sad and lonely if they sell it and split the money.

After Isuzu's group talk it over, they decide for Rundelhaus to use it. It is an item made for magical attacks, and Rundelhaus is the only mage in the party.

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

Rundelhaus who is running in front of Isuzu is wearing this pair of gauntlets.

This is a magic item that increases about 5 percent of maximum MP, so it is enough to cast just one more spell. But Isuzu's group understand that the percentage when accumulated will have a big effect in fights. The shimmering red crystal embedded in the center of the gauntlet seems to reflect Rundelhaus' fire spells and his fighting spirit.

Isuzu change her permanent buff support song from 'Meditation nocturne' which recovers MP faster and 'Fawn March' which increases movement speed and support skills.

"Thank you Miss Isuzu."

"Slow down Rudie!"

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

"Woo, sorry."

Rudie slow his pace after saying this, Isuzu give him a bottle from her bag which was filled by the daughter of the innkeeper this morning. There is orange juice mixed in, so it taste refreshing even though it is warm.

"... Are you okay?"

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

Rundelhaus respond after taking a big gulp, even though drinking and walking is bad manners (as well as laughing out loud), he does not gives off an uncouth feeling.

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

"You 2 are such good friends."

Serara giggles, Isuzu shrugs and replies :"I guess so." In Isuzu's mind, Rundelhaus is a friendly puppy.

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

Because of its pedigree it is handsome with elegant features, it's movements polite and graceful with no signs of crudeness. But you will notice he is an idiot after growing accustomed to him, he will run til he is exhausted playing catch and shake his tail til it hurts, that kind of stupidity.

He will sometimes give overly self conscious and arrogant speeches as if he has a screw loose or is just ranting off topic. But he is just displaying his dumb nature so it doesn't make her angry.

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

"Had enough? Okay."

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

"Sorry."

"Ku ku ku, bro rudie is always apologizing."

"No such thing, right Miss Isuzu?"

Rundelhaus retorts Touya's teasing words, but Isuzu pay them no heed.

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

Rundelhaus moves toward Isuzu and rebuts after hearing Isuzu :"What are you saying! What do you mean by stupid! You keep using that word!"

Strange.

This high school girl from the country with freckles, skinny body and lack feminine charms, is treating the prince-like Rundelhaus who seems to be come out of a picture book, like a puppy... That sounds too mean, it should be she is treating him like a spoiled middle schooler with a screw loose.

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

Just as Isuzu wants to bully him again, a 2nd 'Shrieker echo' sound off nearby.

Isuzu's group look at each other and increase their pace after the turn.

Choshi town has an unique shape, the town is build on a narrow strip of land along the Sand Leaf river, the midpoint of that strip is intercepted by a major road leading perpendicularly out. There are other smaller roads branching out from this major road, but they are all short distance bridging roads.

So if they follow the road and turn north, it will be a the farmlands as far as the eyes can see. The tomatoes and eggplants sways with the wind in this season, the maize planted in the spring is a sea of lush greenery.

3-4 shadows are running in the field.

Isuzu immediately cast 'ballard 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 bro Rudie!"

Touya shouts as he lower his center of gravity and bend backwards. This is not the stance to provoke the enemy, but something more aggressive.

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

"Leave it to me Touya! Let them taste my elegant magic! 'Serpent bolt'!"

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

There are 8 gobins that emerge from the field, more than expected. Minori at the rear of the formation cast damage intercept magic on Rundelhaus instead of Touya.

The light blue mirror like barrier wrap around Rundelhaus who is holding his staff up anticipating an attack. The first goblin strikes follow closely by another enemy with his axe raise high, but their attacks are blocked by Minori's barrier.

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

The most well known spell is 'Purification barrier', but there are other types as well. The spell she cast this time is 'Protective barrier', which is 4 times as strong as 'Purification barrier' but has a very long cool down, not a skill she can use at will.

(But...)

Isuzu plays her note rapidly and thinks.

Minori's judgement is correct, Rundelhaus has higher defense than Touya at this moment because of the spell. Rundelhaus provokes the goblin with his attack and lure them into the front of the party.

The moment the goblins gather, Touya's 'Whirlwind vacuum slash' activates and paralyze the goblins. Rundelhaus, Touya and Isuzu starts to take down the monsters one by one.

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

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

This is because...

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

This dumb young man drag them all over the place.

Isuzu pats Rundelhaus' head with a smile.

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

Everyone is becoming stronger, so Isuzu don't want to be left behind.



7

The chaotic battle continues.

The sun is already setting in the west.

In the whole battle field, only the 5 adventurers are fighting with their back to Choshi town, a solitary defense party. The goblins probably suffered heavy losses the previous night, the parties attacking is uncoordinated and undermanned, the command structure must be in pieces.

This result in the attacks being sporadic.

The goblins is not taking any organized actions, they probably want to sneak into Choshi town under the chaos of the Sahuagin attacks to raid the town.

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

Serara use the druid spell to set many 'Shrieker echo' all of 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 hand the 3rd bottle over to the moaning Touya, she already prepared for this situation. When Touya sit down under the tree by the road, Minori cast 'instant heal' on him.

The recovery abilities are activated after the battle. The damage on the armor that is not too serious will gradually fade, Touya's wound is also starting to heal. But like the seat drenching his body, the long grueling fights raise his body temperature and he is unable to regulate his breathing for a long time.

Minori is worried, but did not say anything.

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

Minori can only give him a handkerchief she squeezed dry.

"Thanks."

Minori nods to acknowledge Touya and notice her body is heating up too. She look at her companions, they are all trying to catch their breath and recover their mental strength.

Minori's duty is battle field sentry, and she is 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 increase significantly.

Minori has to take note of her allies, the environment as well as the enemies information, monitoring the whole battle is a heavier responsibility than it seems.

(It is still very crude...)

Minori even memorize the MP recovery speed of everyone as she check their status. During battles, Minori uses 5% as a unit to gauge the changes in MP of her allies. She is 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 needs to be improved, this forecast has been useful in preventing MP wastage.


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

Minori think this is child's play compared to Shiroe, but Naotsugu will be stumped if he hear these words.

Using 5% as a unit means she knows the number of times a spell can be cast by her allies, such as enough to cast a mid level healing spell twice more. This level of observation is far beyond that of a normal level 30 player. The party including do not realise the hidden talent she is nurturing.

"Everyone, Miss Marielle contacted me during the previous battle."

Minori prop herself up and reports.

When Minori is concentrating on battle management, she is on standby mode and treat herself as the reserve unit. She resist the urge to cast spells repeatedly and focus on observing the surroundings.

Hence, Minori notice the telepathy call and took it.

Miss Marielle informs me a special unit from Akiba is on their way here by ship and will reach in the evening.

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

"You are right."

"Eh, slight delay?"

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

"Marielle says the reinforcement will be coming by sea and relief 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 face became cheerful, Touya and Rundelhaus remain alert and tense, but they give off the feeling of a heavy burden off their shoulders.

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

It is not a big number, but the cumulative effects is a heavy burden. They don't know where in this wide space the goblins will strike and can 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' is a convenient alert too but it is not perfect. They worry about the goblins that manages to sneak through the defence net to attack the town.

There were a few that make it through, forcing Minori's group to double back and hunt them down.

The party patrolling the borders need to be close enough to rush back if the enemy break through, so they cannot push their defensive out further.

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

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

Serara nods in agreement.

They are suffering right now because they have to fight on 2 fronts, if the goblins and Sahuagin doesn't send big and powerful beast, they are not formidable opponents.

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

They stand up at Touya's words.

The afternoon breeze is as hot as a frying pan, but reinforcement will come if they hang on for a little longer. This news is enough to rejuvenate the faces of the party.

After another 15 minutes of patrol, something serious happen.

Minori's party was hoping that they can past the time peacefully, but you can't always get what you want.

A sound of a loud smash can be heard on the major road behind them. They rush back thinking the enemy has penetrated so deep and meet with a goblin party with 2 ferocious dire wolves.



8

The battle is progressing badly.

"Don't even think about it!"

Touya strikes again, keeping the wolf attacking Isuzu in check. But this strike allows the hobgoblin he was suppressing to break free.

After consecutive battles, the party's skill with long cool down has been exhausted. They still have plenty of MP because of Isuzu the bard, but that is not enough for them to gain the upper hand.

The hobgoblin swings his 2 handed hammer like a baseball bat hitting Touya in his unprotected flank.

"Tch! Not enough!"

This strike did not produce any cracking sound as it lands on the 'Purification barrier', it only produces a sound as if they hit a thick glass and damages the light blue barrier around Touya.

Damage intercept magic can be cast before battles to negate a set amount of damage. If the attack do not break through that set amount, they can prevent any damage to the subject. But if the damage goes above its limit, it will break before the effect wears off.

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

"Four side prayers!"

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

But it has a disadvantage.

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

Minori turns pale and bit her lips.

Emergency spells are used in times of great danger and have very long cool down time of 24 hours.

"Stop! Stop!"

Serara cast 'Willow spirit', the vines on the warehouse wall is guided by the magic and entangles the wolf. The wolf howl in anger and claw the ground as it struggles to break free.

This is the 3rd time Serara used this spell, The wolves can use it's burly body to rip the binding vines apart, but her efforts were not in vain. Serara was able to stop 1 wolf for a period of time for Touya and the others to focus on the other enemies.

But since Serara is dealing with the wolf, Minori needs to take over the healing duties.

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

Touya swing his blade with all his might.

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

Hobgoblin push the goblin aside with its massive body and strike at Touya again.

The hobgoblin is a subspecies of the goblins and is stronger than normal goblins. Goblins are a tribal group, but they are not govern by any laws. They formed an invasion army because the goblin king survives his coronation, but they remains a tribal community, a demihuman group that pillages and raid others violently.

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

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

This hobgoblin is 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 will have trouble with this hobgoblin alone.

And the hobgoblin has the support of 2 dire wolves and 4 goblins. The reason Minori's group is still holding on is because they are familiar with the streets of the town, keeping a retreat route open so they won't get surrounded. With their high level of team work through countless practice, they are fighting above their battle limits.

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

But they can't fight above their limit for long, and they are getting shaky and on the verge of defeat. If that is the case they should give it all they have got and unleash their emergency skills.

Minori charge to the front line with determination.

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

Minori made up her mind and rush forth, she almost lose her footing from her shivering legs. The dusty street under the summer sky seems so fluffy like it is made of cushion. But Minori shake off this illusion and kick at the gobin in a unlady like manner.

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

"Roger Rudie!"

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

The goblins laugh maniacally as they attack and Minori defends with her stance, relying on her barrier to protect her. She only avoids the attacks that comes at her vital points, leaving the rest to the durability of her leather armor. She did not dodge the attacks, but throw herself at the goblins before their weapons land.

(Terrifying, terrifying, terrifying... but!)

Touya looks at the crazy actions of his sister and begins to emulate her to fend off the hobgoblin and wolves.

Even if they manage to intercept most of the damage with the barriers, the battle has gone on for a while now. The twins with dirt and blood all over is enduring the knives of the goblins while the other is expose to the fangs of the wolves, building up their front line.

They use the time earned by the twins to chant.

This is the strongest area attack spell Rundelhaus has, it has a long cast time, a freezing spell that will hit for major damage. This is supported by Isuzu's singing.

Rundelhaus finish chanting 'Freezing wind' with Isuzu singing in harmony with him at a higher octave, freezing all the goblins in ice.

Minori retreats from the chilly front line and check her allies status. She is unaware of the situation and cast another magic intercept spell in an absent minded manner, she does not look good.

Rundelhaus took care of all the goblins, but Touya has been under attack all this while without support from his sister.

Minori recast 'Purification barrier' on Touya, but damage intercept spells doesn't recovers HP. This is the weakness of Kannagi with the unique damage intercept skills. The Kannagi that focus on preventing damage to her allies is not proficient in using normal healing magic.

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


The situation is bad.

The good news is the goblins are gone, their advantage in numbers has been eliminated, bringing the battle to a higher level of balance. Minori cast damage intercept spells and inferior healing magic and instruct Rundelhaus and Isuzu to concentrate on attacking the wolf.

... When facing multiple enemies, there are all kinds of tactics to employ. If you want to take them by surprise, taking down the strongest enemy will be most effective in sapping their morale. If thing goes well, the minions will scatter off. If the situation is a fight to the death, the key to victory is to take out the weaker foes to diminish their numbers and manage the damage you take on.

Shiroe's teaching came to her mind.

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

While Touya uses his blood to solidify the front, Rundelhaus need to defeat the wolf to repay Touya's efforts.

Minori who follows Shiroe's teaching to the letter begin to 'read' the battle.

Knowing the HP and MP of your allies, give instructions, support her friends and create synergy... Minori is studying the flow of the battle, becoming the wind on the battle field, giving her all and living in the moment.

But Minori cannot predict everything.

Her talents cannot compensate for her lack of experience.

Any unexpected event can upset the balance.

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

Minori digest the new information and calculates, part of it done subconsciously.

9 seconds... Touya will die in 9 seconds.

Minori look at her spell status with crazed eyes, 'Purification barrier' still have 8 seconds of cool down. But as she has just seen, this level of damage intercept magic cannot stop the attack of the 3 foes.

"Don't give up!"

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

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

Re-calibrate.

Re-calibrate.

Re-calibrate.

Minori cast her weak recovery spell and think furiously. Even if Minori and Serara use all their recovery magic, they can only delay Touya's death by 35 seconds.

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

(If this is it...)

A disgusting taste spreads in her mouth, an irritating chill goes down her spine.

Touya is a crucial tank, if he falls, the chance of them being wiped out increase exponentially.

Not only this.

Minori feels through instinct the smell of death.

Unable to breath smoothly.

The air seems to become fluid and cannot enter her lungs. Time becomes rubbery and heavy, frustration and helplessness fills Minori's body.

Too late.

Too late.

She can hear her blood pumping loudly, Minori who is imprisoned by the cold can only watch Touya's HP drop gradually towards 0.


Time seems to accelerate to normal speed.

Rundelhaus rush pass Minori and slams into the wolf, forcing both his hands down its mouth.

"Rudie?"

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

The dire wolf is as big as an ox, it's mouth is full of sharp fangs. It can bite off Rundelhaus upper body in one move, but Rundelhaus jam both his hands and shoulder into it's throat. The dire wolf stomp its steely limbs and shake Rundelhaus around, destroying the walls with his swing.

"Rudie!"

Isuzu screams as she stab her spear into the wolf, but did little damage to it's body cover with bristles.

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

Rundelhaus is dragged along the road, the dire wolf with its eyes like the hell fire blow out its pungent breathe in an attempt to force Rundelhaus out. But Rundelhaus grab on to the fangs and refuse to let go as he is covered in sweat and mud.

The wolf continues to cough and hack loudly, spewing the smell of stinging taste of blood into its surrounding. Isuzu attack with her spear relentlessly as Rundelhaus continues to suppress the dire wolf.

"If I let go, this beast... will attack Touya, even Touya... cannot handle... all 3 of them..."

Absolutely right.

Touya escape his fate of death because Rundelhaus throw himself into the fray. The damage he is taking lowers, the situation is changing for the better.

"But Rudie!"

"Isuzu! We are damage dealers!"

Rundelhaus looks like he is offering his hands as he dig deeper into the wolf's mouth. Wolves are canine, because of their body structure, if can't attack others if they don't spit out the thing in its mouth.

"But..."

"Attack them!"

Rundelhaus shouts and start chanting as if he don't want to waste his breath. His arms are hurt badly, just two piece of meat connected to his shoulders. But he forcefully will his hands to gather magical flames as Rundelhaus chants his laval ball magic. He is burning the wolf from the inside without shooting it out.

There is no need to shoot it out.

Rundelhaus' magic is directly is affecting the wolf from its mouth.

The dire wolf cannot withstand the pain and struggles to break away from Rundelhaus, but he grabs on as if he is possessed, refusing to let go of the dire wolf no matter what.

No, the saw-like teeth on either side of its mouth digs into the fabric of Rundelhaus clothes and the gauntlets on his hands, it will be hard for him to withdraw his hands even if he wants to.

"Don't underestimate me, I am..."

The road in the evening sky is filled with the sound of Rundelhaus hoarse scream.

"I am Rundelhaus Code! I am an adventurer!"


9

The air is filled with charred burning smell.

As Rundelhaus has planned, 'Magician gauntlets' went out of control and burn 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, Rundelhaus who should be laughing arrogantly, is lying in the mud in front of Isuzu.

"Nature revive!"

Serara's resurrection spell did not have any effect.

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

He is a people of the land.

"...I am sorry."

Warm water drips on Isuzu's palm.

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

The confused Touya shouts, Minori nods and cast 'Prayer for the Soul', but Rundelhaus did not wake up.

This is as expected.

"I am sorry... Touya, Rudie is...a people... of the land..."

Isuzu says slowly.

The words is stuck in his throat and won't come out, and he relax his fist as if he accepts this. Minori in the corner of her eyes clench her fist, she can Serara saying softly "How could it be...". But Isuzu think all this doesn't matter.

"...Rudie is a people of the land... He partied with us, adventured with us, ate with us... But Rudie is a people of the land... So... If he dies..."

...He won't revive.


Isuzu's heart hurts so much it almost shattered.

She already thought about this.

That's why Isuzu objects to battles, but since she can't win against the majority, she decides to support Rundelhaus, and stop him from overexerting himself.

But she can't stop him.

If only I have stop him at the very beginning.

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

To fulfill Rundelhaus' dream, Isuzu lies along with him.

Because Rundelhaus says he wants to be an adventurer with such a pure and sincere expression.

But they are fundamentally different.

It is impossible for him to become an adventurer.

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

Isuzu has never seen Rundelhaus relax casually in the tent, he will meditate strictly whenever he has time. He claims this is expected of a nobleman and is 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.

"Rudie...I am sorry, I am sorry..."

Rundelhaus wish is too naive, too pure, so Isuzu dream together with him, hoping a people of the land can become an adventurer.

"Rudie bro is... a people of the land...?"

Isuzu nods, the tears flowing down her cheeks drips as she nods. But this doesn't matter, this is Isuzu's punishment.

Rundelhaus is so gentle.

She is just a skinny brat from the country side, but Rundelhaus treats her like a lady.

She is very conscious of her freckles and doesn't look pretty at all, but Rundelhaus keep addressing her as 'Miss'.

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

I am so happy he talks to me.

I am so happy he compliments me.

I am so happy he treats me like a lady.

The words surge out like crazy, but it is stuck in her throat and cannot come out, she can only moan and push her tears out of her eyes.

Gentle, kind and heart warming memories, it is all her fault she pressured Rundelhaus to his death.

"Ah..."

Serara make a small sound, cast 'instant heal' and put her ears on Rundelhaus' chest. She cast it again with a grim expression.

"Hmm, could it be..."

Isuzu search 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 seem to have some sort of effect... but I am sorry, resurrection spell is still ineffective."

Isuzu feels the hope she pick up shatters again, but a young girl continues staunchly.

"We can't give up yet."

"Ah?"

"...Please help us, we need your strength Mr Shiroe!"


Chapter 4 end