Bernard, the captain of the defense force in the hot spring town of Totorrent, gnashed his teeth at the terrifying threat of the giants.
Under the sunset sky, the giants, who had destroyed a part of the city walls and invaded the town, were laughing heartily for some unknown reason, carelessly demolishing buildings and chasing down fleeing people.
Though the giants’ movements were sluggish, their large strides made their effective speed far faster than that of an ordinary Human. Several people had already become victims.
Bernard, listening to the screams of the people fleeing from the giants, hid behind buildings and impatiently waited for his subordinates to finish preparing their crossbows.
It was a few minutes ago that such a desperate report reached Bernard.
Bernard, who was in the defense force’s barracks contemplating his dinner for the day, heard unbelievable words from multiple subordinates who rushed in. To summarize, they reported that three Hill Giants had attacked the town from the west gate, east gate, and the northern city wall.
Bernard hastily gave orders for his subordinates to mobilize. He himself put on his chainmail, took up his sword and shield, and rushed out of the barracks with a few subordinates.
The defense force of Totorrent numbered about twenty people, even including those on their day off. While this force could usually handle small groups of Goblins or Orcs, it was hardly enough to deal with Hill Giants. Moreover, when there were three of them, it seemed impossible to deal with them with such a limited force.
“We have to concentrate our forces on the west and east gates. For now, we’ll have to ignore the one attacking from the northern city wall,” Bernard thought.
As he was contemplating this, more devastating news arrived.
“Part of the northern city wall has been destroyed! A giant is inside the town…!”
“What?! Damn it, was it shoddy construction…! Alright, I’m going! Five men with crossbows, follow me!”
Leaving his副队长 (vice-captain) in charge of the west and east gates, Bernard headed to intercept the Hill Giant that had breached the northern city wall.
Upon confirming the target’s presence near the northern city wall, he ordered his subordinates to hide behind buildings and prepare to fire their crossbows.
Crossbows were powerful and easy to use, but it took tens of seconds to reload with a special tool. Those few tens of seconds felt agonizingly long.
But the moment he had been waiting for finally arrived.
“Captain, all crossbows are ready to fire!”
“Alright! Let’s go! Turn that monster into a pincushion!”
At Bernard’s signal, he and his five subordinates leaped out from behind the buildings. Five crossbows were aimed at the Hill Giant, which was brazenly wreaking havoc in the town.
“Fire!”
*Bangs, Bamm-bam-bam!*
Quarrels were fired in volley from the mechanical bows. One of them missed its mark, but the remaining four perfectly struck the Hill Giant’s body. However—
“Y-you mean it’s not working…!?”
One of the defense force members groaned in despair. At the moment the four quarrels hit, the giant showed a slight reaction. But that was all. Though the four quarrels pierced the giant’s body, they failed to inflict a serious wound, being blocked by its thick skin and fighting spirit.
“I-it’s no use…”
“There’s no way we can defeat a monster like that…”
The defense force members faltered, on the verge of fleeing. Bernard’s stern voice cut through their fear.
“How can you say it’s not working! That giant brute is so dull, he probably won’t even notice the pain until he collapses from exhaustion! —I’ll charge in and hold him off. Fire your next shots as soon as they’re loaded. But if you accidentally hit me, I’ll haunt your bedside, so you’d better be careful!”
“Y-yes!”
The subordinates, who had been faltering, regained their composure and began reloading their arrows. Bernard himself, sword and shield in hand, charged towards the Hill Giant.
Yet, even as Bernard encouraged his subordinates, he was sweating coldly on the inside. The distance between them was about twenty meters. Running towards the giant, Bernard thought, “Me charging in to hold him off, huh… can I really hold off a monster like that?” He gave a wry smile at his own words.
As captain of the defense force, Bernard had some skill with the sword. He could fight on even terms against three or four ordinary defense force members simultaneously during training. But how much could he accomplish against that giant? It wasn’t a question of “could he,” but “he had to.”
“—Well, whatever happens, happens.”
Thinking this, he had covered about half the distance when the Hill Giant, as if taking out its frustration on something, punched a nearby wooden dwelling. A corner of the dwelling was smashed to pieces, creating an opening.
“Perhaps the crossbows, even if they didn’t seem to be working, have actually been irritating it,” Bernard thought. “Serves it right,” he mused, but he soon realized his assessment was too optimistic.
“Kyaaaaaa!”
“Noooo! Mama, Mama!”
Female cries echoed from within the shattered dwelling. The Hill Giant peered into the opened dwelling, its ugly face contorting into a grin.
“Damn it, you’ve got to be kidding me…!?” Bernard cursed. It seemed there were residents hiding inside the dwelling who hadn’t evacuated.
Seeing a nearby prey, the Hill Giant began to reach its long arm into the now-ventilated building.
“I’m your opponent, you oversized brute!” Bernard shouted provocatively as he ran to the giant’s feet and slashed at its leg with his sword. But—
“It’s so tough…! This isn’t stone, you know!”
As expected from how the crossbow bolts had fared, the Hill Giant’s thick skin and fighting spirit wall prevented Bernard’s slash from landing a decisive blow. The attack inflicted a shallow wound and drew a little blood, but it didn’t cause significant damage. However, it did draw its attention. Bernard retreated from the giant’s feet and created some distance. The giant’s eyes glared at him.
“That’s it…! It’s me, target me, you slow-witted oaf!”
He was past caring. With a grim determination, Bernard confronted the Hill Giant. Then, a barrage of attacks rained down on him. The giant’s attacks had a long reach, and even if somewhat sluggish, they were effectively fast due to its size. Dodging with a sword and shield was nearly impossible, and a direct hit from any single blow would be fatal. It was not something an ordinary Human could possibly parry.
Nevertheless, relying on his skill, experience, and intuition, Bernard endured the storm of attacks for a while. He had bought enough time for the crossbow unit to fire a second volley, a feat worthy of praise.
However, even with the second volleys of crossbows hitting intermittently, they were far from enough to defeat the Hill Giant—and then, Bernard’s endurance finally broke.
“Gah…!”
Bernard failed to dodge yet another fierce kick from the Hill Giant and was blown away, his body slamming into the wall of a nearby dwelling. His shield and chainmail offered almost no protection against its terrifying destructive power. Or perhaps, it was thanks to them that he hadn’t died from that blow.
As Bernard collapsed weakly, the Hill Giant’s massive hands seized him, attempting to crush him with all its might.
“Gyaaaaaa…!”
Bernard accepted his death. Or rather, he had been prepared for it from the start, but this was the moment he thought had finally arrived.
But then—
The giant’s arms, which had been gripping Bernard, were severed from the wrists. The Hill Giant, its hands severed, stared at its own arms for a moment, seemingly unable to comprehend what had happened. But as blood spurted from the severed ends, it finally let out a cry of agony.
Meanwhile, the severed hands, the fingers that had been about to crush Bernard, were opened by the powerful arms of a man who had appeared on the scene. The brave defense captain was rescued before his life was extinguished.
“Nice fight, you did well. —Leave the rest to me.”
“Ah… who are you…?”
“Oh, just a passing Adventurer who stopped by this town to take a dip in the hot springs.”
A burly warrior, carrying a gleaming, magnificent axe, stood before Bernard.
