Our group of seven from “Princess Harem,” traveling in a two-horse carriage, found ourselves stranded on a mountain pass along the Main Road leading into the Old Kingdom of Portland. A fallen tree blocked our path, and we were surrounded by eight men, presumed to be bandits.
Swan Hilda had been in rough shape when we found her, but these men were far worse. Their tattered clothes were stained with dark red splotches, likely dried blood from travelers they’d attacked. Their unkempt hair was greasy, and their faces were smudged with soot. Their eyes, cloudy and yellowed, held no intelligence, only raw instinct. Their clothing seemed to be a mix of traveler’s garb and lower-ranking soldier’s uniforms, completely ruined. They wore armor on vital areas, presumably stolen, and their weapons—rusty swords, spears, and axes—were a mismatched, unmaintained collection.
They approached cautiously, three on our left, three on our right, and two directly in front.
“Well now, little lords. Think you’re tough, hoarding all the ladies for yourselves?” one sneered.
“We want women too! You hear me, you punk?!” another shouted.
“Eek, eek, eeek! Just kill the little ones, that’s what you should do!”
The eight bandits taunted us with vulgar laughter and screeches, brandishing their rusty swords and spears, though their skill seemed lacking. Just as I thought this, a Fox Beastkin man on horseback arrived from behind. He held a well-maintained longsword, and he appeared to be the greatest threat.
I considered this our most dangerous situation since the formation of “Princess Harem,” but peeking through the small window of the carriage, I saw the others were surprisingly calm. Only Freya and Liliana, who lacked combat skills, were trembling, huddled together. However, thanks to Mai’s prior warning, we were fully prepared for battle.
Mai gripped her beloved short sword, loosening the sheath, ready to draw and strike at any moment. Her sharp black eyes were fixed on the two bandits approaching the front of the carriage, who seemed to be the leaders. Kirika had also secretly summoned Mimi No. 1, a Mimic, and disguised it on the ground to the right of the carriage. I, reflecting on the attack by the One-Horned Wolf in the Great Forest Zone, had also summoned Mimi No. 2 and disguised it on the ground to the left of the carriage.
The summoned beasts, Mimi No. 1 and Mimi No. 2, shared a part of their senses with their summoners, me and Kirika. This allowed Kirika, while still inside the carriage, to fully grasp the situation of the three bandits approaching from the right. Elise had her attack spells ready, only needing to utter the keywords. With a mage’s keen senses, Elise was gauging the perfect moment to initiate combat.
Swan Hilda, in her true form as a divine Valkyrie, gripped her divine sword. Normally, calling a divine sword would cause her clothes to dissolve into the air and her to transform into her lightly armored Valkyrie form. After changing, she appeared to have re-donned her hooded robe of disguise and her Valkyrie mask. This was a precaution; while we believed only bandits were present, given the attack occurred on the Main Road, there was a possibility of unseen observers.
Freya and Liliana, who had been trembling and clinging to each other moments before, were former princesses, after all. They offered prayers for our success with eyes full of admiration for their comrades ready for battle. They seemed particularly awestruck by Swan Hilda, who had revealed her Valkyrie form. For them, a Valkyrie was likely an object of faith.
“The battle will commence when Kirika’s and my Mimics engage their targets. Mai, take out the one-eyed man in front. Elise, use your attack magic to incapacitate the mounted Fox Beastkin. Swan Hilda, finish him if Elise misses,” I instructed.
“Yes, Hal!” they chorused, the maidens of “Princess Harem” listening intently with serious expressions.
Moments later, a bandit stepped onto the ground where one of the Mimics was disguised.
“Kirika, now!”
Kirika and I ordered our Mimics to capture and digest the bandits. Kirika’s Mimi No. 1 attacked the man with the rusty spear and the man with the club who had approached from the right side of the carriage.
“Gyaaa! What happened?!”
“Th-this is a slime?! It’s clinging to my feet!”
The two bandits struggled desperately to escape Mimi No. 1, but to no avail. Their swords and spears inflicted no damage. As Mimi No. 1 clung to their feet, their pants and shoes began to melt.
“Bro! I’ll save you now!”
“N-no! I don’t want to die…”
“My leg… it’s melting!”
The remaining bandits approached to rescue their comrades, but they too were caught by Mimi No. 1, incapacitating all the bandits on the right side of the carriage.
“What is this thing?! It’s clinging to my feet!”
Meanwhile, on the left side, my Mimi No. 2 attacked the man brandishing a battle axe, entangling his lower body.
“Damn it… this thing isn’t even fazed by the axe!”
“Bro! I’ll save you!”
“…”
Mimi No. 2 began melting the pants of the captured axe-wielding man. When the bandit next to him thrust a spear into Mimi No. 2 to aid his friend, both his arms were captured by the Mimic.
“I-I don’t want to die melting!”
“I’m caught too! H-help me!”
“…What are these things? They aren’t just adventurers…”
The last bandit stared blankly, unable to do anything as his companions were trapped by Mimi No. 2. In the end, the summoned beasts, Mimi No. 1 and Mimi No. 2, had become bandit traps.
Mai leaped silently from the driver’s seat, slitting the carotid artery of the one-eyed man holding a rusty sword. In the same instant, she pierced the chest of the shorter man next to him before returning to her seat. It was an exquisite killing technique… Her unsheathed short sword was stained with blood, but her hooded robe remained clean. She stood there, breathing heavily, watching the fate of the two bandits she had dispatched. Blood and smoke erupted from their throats and chests before they collapsed into a pool of their own blood.
Simultaneously, Elise leaped from the carriage and unleashed her signature wind magic.
“Wind Cutter!”
Three blades of wind shot from Elise, heading directly for the mounted Fox Beastkin. The blades targeted his feet, torso, and neck. The man instantly perceived the trajectory of Elise’s wind blades and leaped from his horse. It was a movement impossible for a normal human, but agile for a Beastkin. However, the unfavorable ground prevented him from gaining sufficient height. As the wind blade aimed at his neck was about to slice him, he swung his longsword down with all his might.
*Clang!*
The wind blade and longsword met with a high-pitched metallic sound, and the wind blade was severed. The remaining two wind blades struck the horse the man was riding, bisecting its neck and torso, reducing it to a lump of flesh. The man landed on the Main Road, but his left ankle was missing. It seemed he hadn’t entirely dodged the wind blade. Still, he stood with his longsword in both hands, glaring sharply at Elise.
The next moment, Swan Hilda leaped from behind Elise and charged at the Fox Beastkin with sky-soaring speed.
*Clank, Keen!*
Swan Hilda’s divine sword approached from below, attempting a reverse diagonal slash. The man calmly parried with his longsword. However, while still in the air, Swan Hilda immediately regained her posture and, with a swift stroke of her divine sword, attempted to slice the man’s abdomen in half with a flamboyant sword dance. The man, however, re-adjusted his stance with his longsword, but the weapon’s quality was vastly different. The longsword, upon direct impact, snapped like cheese being cut by the divine sword, which then proceeded to slice the man in half from his abdomen.
In the span of a single moment, eight of the nine bandits were incapacitated. The five bandits trapped by Mimi No. 1 and Mimi No. 2 were already being absorbed into the Mimics’ bodies, their entire forms beginning to dissolve. The last bandit, recognizing the overwhelming difference in power, collapsed and lost control of his bladder.
“Sis… Shera’s Sis! H-help me!”
Unable to stand, the bandit desperately called for help. The next moment, a hidden weapon thrown by Mai split the man’s forehead, killing him.
Were the bandits all wiped out? The last one had called for help, so there might be allies nearby. We couldn’t let down our guard yet. “Elise, and Swan Hilda, thank you for your efforts. Return to the carriage for now.”
“Yes, Hal.”
“Wow… that Fox Beastkin was strong… I’m really tired.”
“Mai and Kirika, thank you too.”
“Mm.”
“Is the battle truly over now?”
I praised Elise, Mai, Swan Hilda, and Kirika for their fight against the bandits.
“We won, didn’t we?”
“Thank you for your hard work, everyone. Elise, I’ll allow you to sneak some snacks later.” Liliana and Freya, who had peeked out from the carriage, their faces still strained with fear, also offered their thanks. By this time, the initial five bandits were completely digested, with only the metal parts of their weapons and clothing remaining as a marker within the Mimics. The Mimics’ appetites were insatiable, and they began processing the remaining corpses.
“What the heck… You were so loud, and you all got wiped out that easily—”
A large female bandit emerged from the shade of the trees. Was this the “Shera’s Sis” the bandit had called out to? My neck… prickled. I hadn’t felt this sensation since Lester the Cleric faced a formidable Demonkin in my past life. My sixth sense told me that woman was dangerous. I regretted not having Elise’s flame magic quickly clear the fallen tree and make our escape, but it was too late.
Thank you for reading.
Episode 17-6, “Sis Shera,” has been scheduled for posting on June 23rd at 0:00.
