Ch.4646. Approaching (3)

Looking at a soccer player watching his team while injured, is this how it feels? I was killing time in the ward, repeating training and recovery. The noise coming through the window had been getting louder since yesterday. There probably wasn’t much time left before the monsters began their invasion.

“[How can you talk about killing time when it’s only been a few days?]”

The Holy Sword scolded me. Well, I was anxious, that’s true. Even without me, they probably had enough capability to fend off monster hordes, but I was frustrated that I couldn’t confirm it with my own eyes.

“…Still, I’m glad my recovery seems to be going smoothly.”

“[That’s fortunate, but seal away that dual-wielding technique for now. Your body has already been wrecked once, so you need recovery time before making it a mess again. There’s no guarantee your body will withstand it properly the next time you use that technique.]”

As the Holy Sword said, my body had been under some strain, but dual-wielding was definitely powerful. Operating two different powers would make it much harder for enemies to counter. I thought that since I’d overcome the strain from using the Holy Sword, dual-wielding might be possible too, but the Holy Sword seemed to have a different opinion.

“[Don’t do unnecessary things in the middle of war and abandon the battlefield.]”

Being dismissed so directly, I couldn’t think of anything to say in protest.

“[Instead of wasting time, you’d be better off diligently practicing the swordsmanship that Northern Duke taught you.]”

“What about you? Don’t you want to teach me sword techniques?”

“[It’s impossible to guide someone who doesn’t know swords well with just a few words. It might only get in the way. All I can teach you now are basics and movements.]”

I should be grateful for even that. Thanks to those teachings, I’ve overcome several crises.

“[When you become more familiar with the sword, I’ll gradually teach you. The sword techniques used by heroes of ancient times, techniques that have become myths.]”

The Holy Sword said this as if to console me.

“Alright. For now, I should focus on opening the second stage.”

It was good to have more time to challenge the crown’s test. Since starting training with the Duke, I’d been lasting longer in the tests. Whether that was a positive sign or not, I wasn’t sure.

“[Thanks to that, you got to sleep comfortably on that nun’s thighs again.]”

…As the Holy Sword said, since there was no way I could tie myself to a pillar, I asked Marianne for help. She helped as requested, making sure the crown’s thorns didn’t pierce my head when I collapsed, but it was awkward how she gave me a lap pillow every time I fell. I had asked her to just put my head on a regular pillow, but when I opened my eyes, I always saw Marianne’s face. What was more troubling was that I was getting used to that feeling. Because of this, the Holy Sword’s nagging increased day by day.

“I couldn’t help it.”

“[Still, you looked quite comfortable.]”

I buried my head in the pillow with a hollow laugh. Since I’d received permission to go into battle starting tomorrow, I should just go to bed early tonight. I planned to wake up early and head to the walls. I placed the Holy Sword against the window frame and closed my eyes to sleep.

Boom boom boom.

As soon as I heard that noise, I grabbed the Holy Sword. I wanted to jump out the window right after getting dressed, but I obediently ran down the ward’s stairs.

“[They’re coming. It’s fortunate in our misfortune that they’re starting just as you’ve almost fully recovered.]”

“The days of being stuck in bed are finally over.”

Soldiers and knights rushed past me as I left the ward. Some were even riding horses. I could feel the momentum of the approaching monsters without having to look toward the outer walls.

Boom. Boom.

Explosions could be heard. The mages seemed to have started using magic in earnest. Shouts, battle cries, the chaotic sounds of weapons, and bowstrings being released reached my ears. The sounds became clearer as I approached the walls.

“…Drop it!…”

“…Throw it into the fire pit!…”

Amid the occasional shouts from the wall, something pitch black fell. It was a monster cut in half. I continued running without slowing down and reached the stairs leading up the wall. The soldier guarding the path was startled but immediately stepped aside.

I climbed the stairs, drawing the Holy Sword and circulating mana. My body felt light. The past few days of rest seemed to have had a positive effect. At the top of the stairs, I saw a Crawler grappling with a knight. I immediately thrust my sword forward, and the head of the Crawler, which had been howling with its mouth open, was severed and rolled down behind the stairs.

“Thank you, Hero.”

The knight, covered in monster blood, simply nodded before heading back to battle, and I followed, looking around to see where help might be needed.

Kieeek, kueeek.

But somehow, there didn’t seem to be many places that needed my help. Among the screams and death throes, I couldn’t hear many from soldiers and knights. I approached Quenore Strope, who was sweeping away monsters with overwhelming force at the center. The Duke kicked a white wolf off the wall and turned to me.

“You’re late.”

“How can you scold me for being late when you’re the one who put me in the ward?”

“True. No one would have said anything if you had stayed there quietly until tomorrow.”

“I’m fully recovered. No need to worry.”

I frowned as I pushed off a monster that had climbed up the wall. It flailed its limbs in the air before being engulfed in flames and letting out a death cry.

“But this way, I have nothing to do.”

I wondered if my help was even needed. In the distance, I could see Daphne Ephiphone with her pink hair flowing, pouring out 5th circle magic without restraint. George Gunther, true to his role as a heavy warrior, stood firmly in place, swinging his mace and turning monsters into pulp. And near them, a spear warrior in full armor was piercing through monsters like a beam of light, jumping across the wall.

“Why wouldn’t there be work for you?”

The Duke pointed to the wall. Monsters, soldiers, and knights were entangled in a desperate, bloody struggle. Soldiers’ spears pierced monster abdomens, and knights’ swords severed monster heads that had been skewered. At that sight, I gripped my sword handle tightly.

“I entrust the soldiers to you.”

“Of course.”

The Duke and I stood back to back, then simultaneously kicked off the ground and rushed forward. The cold wind of the approaching boundary line brushed against my cheek. As I propelled my body almost skimming the ground, I recalled the Duke’s teachings.

‘Your movements and basics are excellent enough that I don’t need to fix them. However, what you lack, in my view, is in the details of combat. It’s ultimately about how you use the power you have.’

I raised my blade. There were many targets ahead.

‘Your instincts are good, but fighting based solely on instinct is ultimately a fight that doesn’t consider the total capacity of your physical abilities. Hero Ilroy, observe my movements carefully.’

I exercised restraint. I minimized arm movements. I distinguished between what I could and couldn’t do within my body’s limits.

‘War isn’t short, Ilroy. There’s a reason for the saying that you don’t need a knife for slaughtering cattle to kill a chicken. Power is most effective when it’s well-distributed.’

“[The Northern Duke taught you something good. Use it well.]”

I maintained the momentum of my charge. I naturally split the first monster’s body in half. Without using much force, the monster was cut cleanly. The Yeti that had been struggling with soldiers died that way.

“Hey, Hero!”

“Are you stealing our achievements?!”

Complaints erupted from behind me. I turned my head, flashed a grin, and then began slicing through monsters in earnest. Wherever there was pressure, I rushed in and swung my sword. I killed every monster in sight, and then killed more. In less than two hours, I had slain nearly a hundred monsters.

“…I knew this would happen.”

When I came to my senses, all the surrounding monsters had turned their attention to me. It seemed I had become their priority target because of how active I’d been. I caught my breath while facing off against them.

“Kill that one first.”

A Yeti that appeared to have intelligence growled lowly. With those words, monsters that had climbed the wall immediately pounced on me. I cut them down, pushed them back, and dodged. Meanwhile, more monsters were approaching from behind me. It’s fine. If I circulate mana, their teeth won’t even properly sink in. I gritted my teeth in preparation for the impact.

Crash.

“Hero, are you alright?”

I could only let out a hollow laugh as I relaxed my body. Marianne’s holy spear had instantly pierced through two monsters approaching from behind me.

“Perfect timing, Marianne.”

“Let me clear the way.”

George rushed in front of me, clearing a path with his mace and shield. The monsters were swept away before they could properly resist against George’s strength. Then—

“Lightning Bolt.”

Daphne’s magic struck the body of a Yeti standing at the edge. The Yeti twisted its body, letting out a painful cry. Daphne was smiling slightly beside me.

“Isn’t the final blow the Hero’s role?”

“…You’re making me look bad.”

Yet my legs were steadily moving toward the Yeti. With a single strike, the neck of the Yeti, bound by Daphne’s magic, was severed by the Holy Sword’s blade. The initial strong onslaught of monsters was gradually subsiding. Monster corpses became firewood, intensifying the flames, and the wall of bodies formed a barricade preventing monsters from reaching the wall.

“Push them back!”

Monsters that had been clinging desperately fell as they were cut down. Thanks to the still brightly shining sun, I had lost track of time. The sky might have briefly turned a deep orange, but now the pale morning light was streaming in again. The last monster rolled off the wall. I looked at the pile of corpses burning fiercely and emitting a terrible smell. The monsters couldn’t approach beyond that hill of bodies. Then, as if some order had been given, the monsters began to turn back and disappear into the forest.

“Regroup. Today’s battle is over.”

With the Duke’s declaration, soldiers exhaled in relief and began to organize the battlefield. The Duke’s eyes were still burning with fighting spirit as he looked at the monsters beyond the wall.

“…We can’t just keep defending forever.”

When I spoke, Quenore Strope nodded.

“Indeed. Once the boundary line hits this fortress, it’s over. As you said, one kick from a giant would bring everything crumbling down.”

The Duke didn’t call today’s battle a victory. The soldiers, too, seemed not to have let go of their tension.

“When reinforcements from the royal palace arrive, we’ll entrust the defense of this fortress to them and head out to defeat the giant, but we don’t know if those monsters will move as we want them to.”

Quenore Strope narrowed his eyes and sighed.

“…I hope our soldiers don’t fear the coming of tomorrow.”

==

The monster offensive was regular, as if they were conducting reconnaissance. We fought the monsters that came in the morning, and after countless sacrifices, they retreated at night. The siege continued for days, but the enemy always came with the same intensity. The casualties from each battle weren’t many, but they gradually accumulated like clothes getting wet in drizzle.

‘I am the Legion Commander, ‘Mur’.’

Ten knights died to one Legion Commander that climbed the wall. Over a hundred soldiers must have died. The Duke beheaded it. That day’s battle ended earlier than usual. That day, I didn’t speak to the Duke even after the battle ended.

Night was beginning to approach this land more closely. The sun that had been blazing all day was now past afternoon and beginning to cast twilight. Night would disappear after just a couple of hours of waiting. The night that came to the battlefield wasn’t exactly a welcome guest.

“…Doesn’t it feel a bit colder?”

On a night after a battle. Soldiers huddled against the wall, shrinking from the sudden chill. The stench of monsters still made heads dizzy.

“How much longer do we have to hold out like this?”

I heard soldiers muttering. I approached our party gathered together, took a spot in one corner, and sat down.

“This feels different from the Kraken incident. Back then, it felt like facing a typhoon, but now it feels like something gradually tightening around our necks.”

George clicked his tongue and shook his head.

“They say when reinforcements arrive, we’ll open the gates and go to attack the giant. I don’t know if the monsters will wait until then, though.”

Daphne was taking a short nap leaning against the wall. She must be extremely tired after using so much mana over the past few days. Marianne was still awake, but she looked just as tired. Then, a chill ran up my spine. I felt a strange sense of déjà vu and jumped to my feet. Yes, it was a feeling I’d experienced before. The winter landscape that the crown of thorns had shown me.

“Ilroy?”

BOOM-!!!

The world shook. Soldiers and knights who had been resting against the wall all rose to their feet and sounded the alarm. I approached the edge of the wall and looked toward the forest.

“…Damn it.”

Beyond the hazy veil of the boundary line, I could see the silhouette of something.