A short distance from the Treant, Elise, the副長 (sub-leader) of the “Princess Harem,” along with Party Members Ly, Edele, Dietlinde, Shera, Eria, and Sophie, took their positions and faced each other.
It seemed they intended to attack the unruly Treant.
That Treant was an enemy to all women.
The remaining Alicia, Kirika, Tirna, Freya, Liliana, and Ilisha observed from near the carriage.
Originally, Kirika would have joined the attack, but currently, they were short their most powerful asset, Mimic Mimic #1, so it couldn’t be helped.
In the air, Swan Hilda was watching for an opening in the Treant’s defenses.
For now, I, having some free time, joined the attackers led by Elise.
“Elise, what’s the situation?”
“Hal, that Treant claims to be named ‘Princess Knight Eater’.”
“What a fearsome name, ‘Princess Knight Eater’.”
“Indeed. And Sophie, enraged by that crazy name, charged in a huff and was initially captured, but the Treant, after a small taste, spat her out saying she was unpleasant. Apparently, she had too much of a rough flavor… It also claimed to be a gourmand.”
Receiving Elise’s report, I felt a headache coming on.
Could that self-proclaimed gourmand Treant have seen through the disguise of the Mimic’s limbs and the change in appearance caused by the magical wig, solely by taste?
“I, a legitimate Princess Knight, am ‘unpleasant’… unpleasant…!? Wh-what has happened?”
Sophie, having been judged as “unpleasant” by the Treant, muttered to herself, looking down.
“Y-you all! How dare you steal my feast! It’s better for you to become my food!!”
As Swan Hilda had reported earlier, the Treant seemed enraged.
It appeared most wary of Swan Hilda, who had snatched away two of its prey.
Half of its vines were positioned around the female knights, while the tips of the remaining vines were aimed at Swan Hilda, who was soaring through the air.
Because of this, Swan Hilda was able to maneuver freely in the air, taunting the Treant, but she couldn’t get close to the well-guarded, captured female knights.
Occasionally, the vines were suddenly severed or burned away, a result of Elise’s party’s attack magic.
However, most of the attacks appeared to be lower-level, to avoid harming the victims.
“With my precisely guided Fire Spirit Magic, I’m burning away the vines one by one, but there are too many for it to make a difference.”
“I’m also cutting the vines with Fire Arrows and Water Cutters, but I can’t keep up.”
Dietlinde and Elise, who were casting magic attacks, grumbled.
“Eria has also learned to use Water Cutter.”
“Elise, thank you very much for your guidance. Please savor the tea and sweets served at the next resting place as per our agreement for tuition.”
“Hehe, I’m looking forward to it ♪”
Beside Elise, Eria, who had recently awakened to water magic, was receiving instruction.
The reward was the tea and sweets to be served at their next break.
Well, it was peaceful, but if my stomach became ‘puffy,’ it wouldn’t be my concern.
“Hey, everyone. If cutting the vines around the victims isn’t working, why don’t we just cut down the whole thing at the root?”
“Ah! That’s right.”
At my suggestion, Elise, who was commanding the attack unit, tilted her head and put on a “Oops!” face.
I almost said, “It’s not cute when a devious person like Elise makes that face,” but her gaze silenced me.
What, Elise, of all people…
This was the moment it was decided that she would be punished during the next night duty.
“Master, this looks pretty interesting. I’ll cut it down for you!”
“I will escort Shera.”
“Then I’ll go with you.”
Shera, who had somehow transformed into Elder Sister Shera through beastification, took out a long Zantou from her item box and started running.
Beside Elder Sister Shera, Ly, holding her rapier, and Edele, having drawn her twin swords, ran in parallel.
The Treant, distracted by Swan Hilda’s aerial attacks and Elise’s party’s magic, hadn’t noticed the three approaching on the ground.
*ZUGAAAN!*
Elder Sister Shera’s charge, imbued with speed, struck the Treant’s trunk, but she was only able to cut about halfway through.
The Treant, noticing their charge, began attacking with its vines, but these were intercepted by Ly and Edele, who boasted elegant swordsmanship.
Three vines moved towards Ly, opening their mouths wide to deliver poison fang attacks, but they were easily dispatched by the thrusts of her rapier.
It was a skillful maneuver, like a bee stinging its prey.
And every time Ly moved, her large breasts bounced, which was a pleasing sight.
The fact that the vines went silent from Ly’s rapier thrusts suggested that their tips had some vital organs.
Meanwhile, two vines also approached Edele, but she elegantly dodged them just before they touched her body and severed both vines with a single swing of her twin swords.
Edele’s swordsmanship, honed by the Demon Lord Army, was indeed not for show.
Furthermore, five vines were heading for Elder Sister Shera directly in front.
“To try and excite me with such a ‘rough finish’ you’re still a thousand years too early!”
Elder Sister Shera swung her Zantou with ease and cleaved all the vines.
“Ouch! That hurts!! — How could you do such a cruel thing to me! But there are also two ‘Princess Knights’ here! They look so delicious—”
The Treant, with its trunk half-cut, violently shook its branches and moved its vines to its trunk to protect itself.
However, it seemed to have recognized Ly and Edele as its favorite “Princess Knights.”
“Why are Ly and Edele ‘Princess Knights,’ but I’m not… Those Treant’s eyes must be blind. They definitely are. No, they absolutely are!”
Meanwhile, Sophie, having heard the Treant’s words, was a mix of crying and laughing.
Despite being judged a “fake Princess Knight,” the fact that Ly and Edele, who had never claimed to be Princess Knights, were declared as such must have been a huge shock.
“Now’s our chance!”
Seeing that the vines around the victims had decreased, Swan Hilda charged, slashing through the remaining vines with her divine sword, and successfully rescued the captured female knights.
“Now there’s no need to hold back. I’ll be using fire-based attack magic from now on, so Eria, you can just observe.”
“Yes, Elise.”
“I will also go all out.”
“I will assist you with my humble power, as well.”
With Swan Hilda’s rescue of the victims, coupled with the magic attacks from Elise, Dietlinde, and Shera, who had transformed into her second beastified form, Elder Sister Shera, the despicable Treant was only waiting to be vanquished.
Shera’s first beastified form, Elder Sister Shera, was a muscle-bound, sword-focused magic swordsman, but her second form, Elder Sister Shera, with her split tail, was a magic-leaning magic swordsman.
Her speech also differed; Elder Sister Shera spoke in a rough, sisterly tone, while Elder Sister Shera used polite language, and her appearance reflected that image.
Elise’s Fire Lance gouged a large hole slightly above the trunk Shera had cut, and Dietlinde’s Fire Spirit Magic, a giant ring of flames, surrounded the Treant and set it ablaze from its roots.
Furthermore, large foxfire, about as big as a person could hug, that floated around Elder Sister Shera, ignited upon contact with the Treant’s crowns and branches.
Elder Sister Shera’s two tails swayed happily.
This was clearly an excessive use of force, but since they had brought the full members of “Princess Harem,” it couldn’t be helped.
“G-gyaaaaahhh!! I-I don’t want to burn… Ah…. Ahhh… Ahhh—”
The Treant, engulfed in flames, its death throes echoing through the mountain road.
And then, it crumbled into ash all too easily.
Thus, the wicked and immoral Treant that preyed on young women was vanquished by the party members of “Princess Harem.”
“Hal, this is the last victim.”
As I watched the Treant’s remains rapidly turn to charcoal, Swan Hilda descended, holding the last victim, a female knight, in her arms.
The female knight was also unconscious, almost completely naked, and there were bite marks on her left breast.
Her body was slender and free of excess fat, but her breasts were small, only slightly bulging.
Her hair was red, and her pubic hair was also red.
Her breathing was shallow, but for now, her life seemed to be out of danger.
Thanks to our intervention, she was spared only being stripped of her clothes and knocked unconscious.
Honestly, if her life force had been sucked through every orifice of her body like Saintess Lunamaria, I, exhausted as I was, would have been helpless.
Even now, using the mental energy equivalent to “Resurrection Magic” required subsequent assistance from Magic Potions, but taking them continuously had side effects.
Upon examination, this female knight, like the Saintess before her, had her light armor and underwear removed, and poison injected from her left breast, but her life force had not been drained.
At this point, it should be fine to leave her to Mai.
“Mai, can I leave the healing of this woman to you as well?”
“Mm… I’ll do my best.”
While Mai was treating her after drinking a Magic Potion, the horses of Saintess Lunamaria and her party returned.
These horses seemed well-trained.
There were two white horses and one brown one amongst them.
In the Asgard Holy Church, saints and saintesses were also figureheads, so they were provided with presentable white horses.
Currently, the three rescued women were asleep, so we needed to find a place where they could rest safely.
However, Sophie, who should have known the geography of this area best, seemed to be on the verge of collapse.
Sophie had been deeply shocked by being designated a “fake Princess Knight” by the Treant.
Thank you for reading.
Episode 29-7: Encounters and Intrusions is scheduled for release at 0:00 on February 9th.
