A platinum light streaked past me and Christine, piercing a Golem and scorching the castle wall.
The Golem split in two, collapsing in a cloud of dust. The 7th Unit of the Makjuru army let out a cheer. But the two of us couldn’t take our eyes off the white-robed figure at the origin of the light.
It’s a foolish question to ask why a platinum light was fired. It’s absurd to ask who fired it. The real question is whether that shot was intentionally off-target or a lucky miss. Why did it fly so close to me? That’s the problem.
“…Sophia is as incorrigible as ever.”
Christine glared at Sophia with a chest full of hostility. I wonder whose range is longer, Christine’s or Sophia’s. Yet, there’s no reason for them to dislike each other.
“…Perhaps she needs a bit of discipline.”
Christine is quite talkative today. For her, she’s speaking a lot. And she’s showing interest in someone else, in a negative way.
“I’ll discipline her later… More importantly, the Mages who are supposed to be healing from the rear aren’t coming.”
Looking around, I couldn’t see a single Mage healing the injured. From the rear lines, it was clear that the left flank had advanced too far. They were ahead of the center, and with stone-throwing attacks continuing in the center, their advance had slowed.
Did I push too far? But if I and Christine returned to the front, we might be able to crush the enemy’s right flank. The Golem and Christine are not a good match, but I’ll cover for her. …I can’t count on Sniper support from behind.
Even though I’ve sent signals, reinforcements from the 8th Unit are late. I can’t just leave my unit, but the number of injured being brought back is high. It’s scary even if it’s Sophia who’s being carried back.
Should I carry them? …I still don’t want to. It’s not that I dislike lifting men. It’s because I don’t get paid if I don’t defeat enemies. I get a bonus for defeating one enemy, so I can’t afford to save people. Still, I’ll carry them to the rear of my unit. If a Mage arrives, they might not die.
Leaving Christine, I returned to the front lines. Since Sophia defeated such a large Golem, the bonus should be considerable, and I could relax with a drink in the back, but I was still worried about everyone.
“Priscilla, what’s the situation?”
I asked while I was in the middle of cutting down enemies. Orietta was hitting home runs. Rufina seemed bored and had retreated to the rear to rest.
“It was the right decision to pull Christine back. They’re deploying small, fast-moving Golems.”
No wonder I thought that strange mound of earth was there. The 7th Unit couldn’t handle the small Golems either, and the number of injured was increasing. There’s no order to retreat, so are we going to push forward like this?
Popular me was surrounded by small Golems, but I dealt with them using Godspeed. These things are only about waist-high, but they have four arms. They all wield swords, and their low attacks are annoying. What’s worse is that they have no fear.
Glancing towards the 8th Unit, I saw white-robed figures and demi-humans running towards us. It was probably Sophia and Alana. Why are they only arriving now? And just the two of them. Where is the support from the 8th Unit?
Before I could return my gaze forward, I saw enemy cavalry charging. There were over thirty of them, and their angle of attack would hit the rear of the 7th Unit or the front of the 8th.
Sophia and Alana are in trouble. I’m surrounded by four small Golems, and I can barely dodge the sixteen slashes coming from their four arms each.
“Sister Sophia, cavalry is coming from the left! Please keep going as you are!”
With those words, Alana turned towards the cavalry and accelerated.
“Alana!”
Sophia’s voice was no longer audible. Alana’s eyes widened, her claws sharpened, and her fur bristled as she entered her cat-like combat form.
Alana ran towards the cavalry. She dodged the spear thrown by the lead cavalryman, jumped onto the second, and her sharp claws pierced the thick Plate Mail, tearing out its heart.
Alana leaped from one cavalryman to the next, ripping out their hearts and severing their heads. By the time she passed in front of Sophia, no one on horseback was alive. There were thirty-three of them. Alana earned the title “Cavalry Killer” from Nuyoo.
Alana, you reckless fool. These Golems are such a nuisance. Their numbers are overwhelming. I don’t know how Priscilla managed to defeat them. With just my strength, the sword tip cutting through the small Golems stops midway. An ordinary person would be finished here, but the Golems attacked me as if unfazed.
If that’s the case, with Godspeed, although I’m busy dodging attacks, I can still cut them if I strike with Godspeed. Still, sixteen-on-one is tough for a sleep-deprived me.
As I got used to it, a little sense of relief and余裕 came with it. With renewed spirit, I defeated one of them. Beyond the Golem that turned to dust, a group of archers appeared on the castle wall. From their angle, it looked like the rear of the 7th Unit. No, it was towards Alana.
Alana has a bad habit of toying with the weak, and she wouldn’t move from her spot. She was playing with the knights who had fallen and were still alive.
“Alana!”
Even though I shouted, my voice was drowned out by the surrounding noise and couldn’t reach her. The three Golems continued their relentless attacks, and I couldn’t break through the encirclement. The archers drew their bows, and a large volley of arrows flew over my head.
Damn it! Godspeed, full power! I took a few hits from the Golems’ swords to break through the encirclement, but I’m still alive, still able to run! I slipped through the 7th Unit and leaped towards Alana.
“Alana!”
I finally reached a position where my voice could be heard, faster than the arrows landed. I scooped Alana up to escape. Just barely, but there was plenty of time for a kiss.
Alana looked at me and then extended her deadly claws towards my heart. I instinctively raised my shield, but a cheap shield couldn’t block Alana’s claws. They pierced through the shield and my leather armor.
By a hair’s breadth, I blocked with my prized muscles… By a hair’s breadth, even the fat was pierced and stopped by my sternum. As I endured the pain and swept Alana’s legs out from under her, falling on top of her, arrows rained down on us.
“Ouch, ouch.” This must be what they mean by being attacked from the front and back. Arrows pierced me, and several pierced Alana as well.
But I can move. I don’t know how many hit me, but if Sophia is here, I’ll be fine. The problem is Alana, who is still digging into my chest with her claws.
“Alana! Snap out of it!”
Before I could hold down the arm with the embedded claws and swat her, Alana began to writhe in pain. I haven’t even touched her breasts yet.
“Alana! Snap out of it!”
This time, it wasn’t anger but concern… Alana’s body trembled and her grip on my arm tightened painfully. She dug her claws into a spot without armor.
We were transported to Sophia with a speed that seemed faster than when we arrived. She simply said, “It’s poison.” Alana had two arrows in her, but I had five piercing my back.
I gained the Poison Resistance skill. I wonder if it exists in this world. I feel nothing but pain and nausea. I pulled out Alana’s arrows, and Christine pulled out mine, but I didn’t feel any tremors in my body.
“It’s blood~”
Before I knew it, Orietta had left her batting position and come over. Hey, number four hitter, your job is to hit home runs.
“The blood for the Captain is specially made, so this much poison is nothing~ Her body is recovering too~”
Hey, home run hitter, I’ll praise you. I’ll let this blood incident slide. But Alana looks like she’s suffering.
“Sophia, is Alana okay?”
“Demi-humans are particularly weak to poison. I need to treat her properly.”
Just then, the signal for retreat sounded.
