“Priscilla!”
My own safety came before my concern for Priscilla. To dodge the Cyclops’s fireballs, I used Godspeed Mode Two and Mind’s Eye, successfully evading all of them.
“Uoooh!”
Even after dodging, I could hear Priscilla’s enraged roar. Amidst the flames of the fireballs that vanished with her war cry, the golden Lycanthrope stood.
“Priscilla, are you injured!?”
“Damn it! Damn it! I almost got roasted alive!”
Why was she angry at me… She grabbed my collar. But I was glad she was safe. My test cutting was finished, and if Priscilla was also safe, there was no reason to linger.
“Priscilla, let’s retreat!”
Without waiting for Priscilla’s reply, I rolled a smoke bomb given to me by Orietta at my feet. It was shaped like a modern grenade; pull the pin and release, and smoke would erupt to cover our escape. It was supposed to cover us, cover us… but it didn’t.
Smoke did emerge. My hope was for white smoke to obscure our movements, allowing us to flee. Instead, a light pink smoke billowed out, carrying a sweet scent.
“Priscilla, don’t breathe it in! It’s poison!”
It wasn’t poison. That Orietta guy gave me this. Isn’t this an aphrodisiac gas?! Why do I have to party with a Cyclops at a time like this?!
I will die, undoubtedly die. I will die being utterly destroyed like trash. I absolutely refuse! Being battered was a common occurrence in the White Lily Corps, but this is not the place to do it.
However, with this thin pink smoke, we’d be found immediately. I pulled the pins of all the grenades I had and threw them. I was an idiot to think that even a little smoke would become dense if there were enough of them.
In my haste, I pulled the pins of all the grenades, unaware that one of them contained something far more dangerous.
“Bang!”
A flash of light and a deafening roar erupted before my eyes. Why would anyone have a flashbang? It’s also called a stun grenade, a special type of grenade used by SWAT or special forces to temporarily incapacitate the ears and eyes of enemies inside a building.
My ears rang, making me unable to hear. My vision was a blank white, leaving me blind. I felt Priscilla shouting, but I couldn’t hear or see anything.
I will die, defiled and die. The moment I pictured myself being violated by a Cyclops or an Orc, I finally remembered.
Mind’s Eye!
I have this, don’t I? The ability to see even when blind, my trump card. As I reached out to grab Priscilla’s hand, my fingers brushed against something soft, but I attributed it to Orietta’s aphrodisiac.
“Let’s run!”
I firmly grasped Priscilla’s hand and started running. Even though I used Godspeed, Priscilla was able to keep up. While running, I could see Priscilla behind me, but for some reason, she was running while covering her chest.
When my vision and hearing returned, the encampment was far behind us. We were in a small forest, and judging that pursuers wouldn’t come this far, I let go of her hand.
“Priscilla, that was a close call, wasn’t it? I never knew Orietta’s grenade would do something like that. That flashing light also made me unable to see.”
Priscilla and I ran until our lungs ached. The enemy was now far behind us, actually, it was just a short distance to Shreia’s castle walls. Instead of worrying about the enemy, I should worry about Priscilla.
Perhaps due to exhaustion, her body was slick with sweat from running. The current Priscilla was a golden Lycanthrope. But even her exhales were beautiful. An ordinary person wouldn’t notice.
“Priscilla…”
I placed my hand on Priscilla’s cheek, and we gazed at each other. Even as a Lycanthrope, she was still beautiful. Then, with a great fang, she bit my neck and threw me aside.
Damn it! I let my guard down. Did the aphrodisiac work on me too? I thought I hadn’t inhaled as much as Priscilla. To get so close at a time like this.
For now, my carotid artery seems fine. There’s blood, but it hasn’t reached the vessel, I think. There’s a sense of precariousness that makes me feel like it could tear if I moved, stealing my Godspeed.
“Priscilla, calm down! The town of Shreia is just ahead. This neck injury looks serious. Let’s take care of the wound first… At least in bed.”
She was no longer in a state to talk. Priscilla, drooling and approaching me with a “grr” or “garru,” was also beautiful. …Is it affecting me too?
For the next two hours, until the sun rose, I was battered and battered them while applying pressure to staunch the bleeding from my neck. I didn’t want to be with Orcs or Cyclops, but since it was Priscilla, well, it’s fine.
As the sun began to rise, I sat leaning against a tree, exhausted. Priscilla had returned to her human form at some point and had buried her face in my chest, naked.
“…It’s morning already. Last night was amazing…”
I bet. I’m completely exhausted and can’t move. I’ll have to thank and complain to Orietta later.
“Priscilla, it’s okay to sleep a little longer. I’ll rest for a bit too.”
“…Yeah, …”
I should rest a bit too. I’m tired from fighting non-stop since yesterday. I no longer have the strength to hold my neck, and I lower my arm. I can feel the warm blood flowing out. I want to fall asleep peacefully like this.
The sound of Priscilla’s booming laughter woke me up. And the realization that I was still alive. When I touched my neck, the wound was gone, and I was on a clean bed.
Looking beside me, Priscilla, Christine, Sophia, and Alana were gathered around a table.
“That idiot, with his neck all bloody…”
I felt a surge of anger at Priscilla’s words but swallowed the urge to say, “You did this to me,” and sat up.
“Good morning, everyone. What a dizzying morning. Could you explain the situation?”
I said this while looking at Sophia. Sophia must have healed my neck wound, and if I’m going to hear an explanation, it should be from her. However, Alana immediately glomped me like a tackle. My ribs!
“Good morning, Captain. I’ve healed your injuries, are you alright? It’s about ten o’clock now. This is a confiscated house, used for treating the injured. As for the enemy, they haven’t appeared yet.”
Yesterday, we scattered all the grenades we had, so they must be sleep-deprived and unable to move this early. The mere thought of fighting Orcs or Cyclops makes me feel sick.
“I seem to be alright, so please return to your units.”
With that said, everyone stood up. Christine pulled Alana off me, and Priscilla shot me a “lewd” smile before they returned to their units.
I need to change and head back to my unit too. The working conditions in this world are truly harsh. Injuries heal easily, and once healed, you have to get back to work immediately.
As I was contemplating whether I could raise this labor issue, the wall by the window suddenly splintered and broke apart.
By the time the loud “crack” and “boom” sounded, I had already dropped to the ground using Godspeed. I caught a fleeting glimpse of something like a giant snake destroying the wall before it slithered away.
“Enemy attack!”
It was all I could manage to shout. Debris rained down on me. Small wooden splinters can be surprisingly annoying and painful. But, have the enemies already arrived? I thought I had a little more time. Moreover, how could they breach the city defenses?
I searched for my Buster Sword but couldn’t find it. Could it be that Priscilla left my Buster Sword behind? She brought her own Halberd, how unfair.
What can’t be found can’t be helped. I drew my Orietta Knife and slipped out through the opened wall.
Before me, two ancient trees, at least a hundred years old, writhed like soft vines. In their center stood Rufina, clad in a black robe, glaring at me with eyes burning with rage.
I couldn’t think of anything I had done to anger Rufina. Yet, Rufina was angry. There was no other way to describe it as she manipulated the two massive trees. This was not magic that should be used in the city.
“Rufina! What did you do!”
My words are generally ignored. It’s lonely, but that’s reality.
“What have you been doing, yourself!”
Don’t they know that answering a question with a question is wrong? This is also, in a way, ignoring my question. And what have I been doing, you ask…
Last night, I launched a surprise attack, found a Cyclops, and tested how far I could go with a combination of Buster Sword and Godspeed since it could use magic. The super-vibrating Halberd worked, but I felt like I could penetrate its defensive magic with repeated strikes. Satisfied with the results, I encountered Orietta’s aphrodisiac gas while retreating with Priscilla, scattering it to teach the Orcs about forced servitude. On the way back, Priscilla and I had a fun, bloody duel, during which I sustained a severe neck wound from arterial bleeding and was saved just before eternal sleep.
…Living a fulfilling daily life. Even if I explained all of this, I’m sure it would be interrupted, and the writhing trees would attack.
“I’ve been rather busy.”
“Silence!”
To be told to shut up after listening? It was tough, truly tough, I almost died. …Despite saying “I’ll die, I’ll die” so often, I’m surprisingly resilient.
“To recklessly risk your life and lose so much blood is inexcusable! Your blood, your flesh, all of it belongs to me! I won’t let anyone take it, no one!”
Who are you? You sound like a bossy brat who thinks what’s yours is yours, and what’s others’ is yours too, with your peculiar way of speaking.
“First, put away those wriggling things. You shouldn’t unleash that in the city.”
The giant trees growing from Rufina’s feet, though only two, had an overwhelming presence. They must be responsible for breaking down the wall, so their destructive power is undeniable.
“I’ll squeeze everything out of you!”
The two giant trees attacked like living creatures. As the colossal trees descended from above, threatening to crush me, I dodged them with Godspeed, aiming to push Rufina down. However, countless thorns erupted from the fallen trees, pushing me back.
They’re not just big trees, are they? Capable of close-quarters combat, they are inconveniently agile giant trees. I’m more likely to be crushed than squeezed.
Dodging the giant trees and the thorns extending from them isn’t easy. After yesterday’s busy schedule, returning to action immediately after recovering from an injury means no time to rest.
Someday, I’ll assert the rights of laborers in this world.
