Chapter 30 – Roholon Defense Battle (3)

Heinzel kicked things off.

With a laugh that seemed out of place given the dire situation, he charged headlong into the midst of 1,200 gnolls.

His halberd swung wildly, not discriminating between friend or foe. Though it looked careless, each swing sent over a dozen gnolls flying in pieces.

Next up was Luchi, who clicked his tongue before joining the fray.

Unlike Heinzel’s raw destructive power, Luchi’s strikes were surgical, slicing through gnoll necks with precision. His attacks weren’t as flashy, but they were efficient, conserving stamina while maintaining lethality.

And then there was me.

I grabbed the greatsword I liked least.

I wanted to use my favorite one, but if it broke right at the start, I’d be devastated. So, I left it safely behind for later—like saving the best, peach-flavored jelly for last.

I’d use it when it mattered most.

Feeling the weight of the greatsword in my palm, I swung it a couple of times to get a feel for it. Thanks to my high swordsmanship skill, I quickly adjusted.

After catching my breath, I scanned for a spot where I could move freely. Once I found the right place, I threw myself into the battle.

First target down.

As always, I swung my greatsword from left to right. The blade, though old and worn, was still razor-sharp.

The gnoll’s body split in half like a cucumber being sliced.

Now wasn’t the time to imitate Luchi’s precise movements. I needed to channel Heinzel’s brute force style instead.

I pictured his overwhelming strength as he swung his weapon.

Recalling our sparring sessions, I gritted my teeth and absorbed the recoil, lifting the greatsword into a diagonal slash, followed by a downward strike.

With a single motion, I crushed the skulls of four gnolls.

A gnoll’s club came swinging toward my right leg.

I reversed my grip on the greatsword, pulling it toward my body.

The club slammed into the blade, the impact sending a jolt through my hands.

“Haa…”

My body was heating up.

Clenching my teeth, I swung the greatsword in a wide arc.

The sensation of slicing through flesh was vivid and unsettling.

That made 10 gnolls down.

[Graaah!]

Before I could catch my breath, a gnoll charged over its fallen comrades, thrusting its spear at me.

I lifted the hilt of my sword, deflecting the spear’s shaft.

Without hesitation, I grabbed the gnoll’s gaping jaws and slammed its head into the ground.

I sliced through the gnoll behind it and kicked another in the chest as it tried to stab me with a dagger from behind.

Crack.

I felt its spine shatter under the force of my kick, knocking over the gnolls behind it like dominos.

Spinning around, I slammed my greatsword down on the pile of gnolls.

Blood and worse splattered everywhere.

Wiping the gore from my face, I surveyed the battlefield.

The berserk gnolls, driven mad by the Frenzy Horn’s effect, were attacking friend and foe alike.

If I use this chaos to my advantage, I can finish them off more easily.

Taking a deep breath, I charged forward again.

I shoved the first gnoll aside, slashed through the next, and kept advancing—punching, kicking, headbutting, and even biting when necessary to clear a path.

My entire body was soaked in blood.

The sticky sensation and acrid smell only fueled my battle frenzy.

I expanded my senses.

No gnolls behind me now.

I didn’t need to worry about my rear. I only needed to focus on what was in front.

I snatched up a dagger from the ground.

I motioned toward the gnolls…

Wait, they don’t understand words.

So I barked.

“Woof…! Arf arf…!”

Whether it worked as a taunt or due to their berserk state, the gnolls charged at me, drooling and snarling.

Grinning, I swung my greatsword.

“Woof, woof!”

***

I tossed aside the now-toothless greatsword and picked up my fourth one, scanning the area.

About 50 gnolls were still alive.

But out of those, fewer than 10 were even standing properly.

Finally, the vanguard was wiped out.

Wiping the caked blood from my face, I spoke.

“Phew… Looks like we’re finally done with the vanguard, woof—uh, I mean… Ahem.”

Judging by their reactions, no one seemed to have noticed my slip-up.

That was close… How embarrassing…

Whether it was because Luchi and Heinzel were ridiculously strong or I’d gotten stronger, the fight ended faster than I’d expected.

I’d used quite a few potions, but considering the situation, we were lucky to have gotten through this with minimal injuries.

It was easier than anticipated, so my nerves eased up a bit.

If things continued like this, we should be able to finish up without any major problems.

Still… I wondered how Rubia’s side was holding up.

I considered expanding my senses to check on the west side, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to handle the second wave if I did that now… I had no choice but to trust Rubia.

Besides, unlike here, the gate on the west side was narrower, so the gnolls wouldn’t be able to rush in all at once.

Even if they just stood in place and swung their swords, they should be able to fend them off.

As long as they didn’t run away, that is.

“Hey, kid! How many did you take down?” Heinzel’s voice boomed cheerfully as he approached, his body cooling down after the fight.

“What about you, old man?”

“I got 404!”

“Hmph, I’m at 410,” Luchi chimed in. “What about you, Noah?”

“I-I got 396—ugh, now 397!” I exclaimed, swinging my greatsword at a gnoll that rushed at me, its guts spilling onto the ground.

“Oops, I guess I’m at 411 now,” Luchi added, using his special technique to decapitate a gnoll reloading a crossbow in the distance. “Looks like you’re in last place, Noah.”

“I’m… not done yet… just you wait!”

I slammed my greatsword into the head of a gnoll crawling on the ground.

“Well, it seems like the first wave is wrapped up,” Heinzel said, pouring a potion over his head. “Kid, how long until the next wave arrives?”

Why is he pouring it on his head…? That’s not going to make hair grow…

“Hmm… they should be in sight within five minutes,” I replied. “Let’s go back and prepare. If we wait any longer, it’ll be too late.”

“Noah, did you bring the ignition stones?” Luchi asked.

“Yeah. Ah, two of them broke, but I still have plenty.” I opened my pouch to show them the pile of ignition stones inside.

“Looks like we’ve got enough. No point in wasting time here. Let’s move.”

“Good idea… Now, that makes it 405!” Heinzel stomped his foot down, crushing the gnoll beneath him.

Looks like all the remaining gnolls are dead now.

“Umm… could you help me carry these greatswords?”

I had six greatswords still stuck in the ground, three I’d discarded, one in my hand…

And my beloved greatsword waiting for me near the wall… I’m coming for you soon!

“I’ll help, but seriously, kid… How do you manage to ruin your swords like this?” Heinzel kicked at one of the broken greatswords on the ground.

“That’s true,” Luchi added. “Noah, you need to take better care of your equipment. As an adventurer, your gear is your lifeline. You should always—”

Luchi started lecturing me like an old man.

Ugh… Boomer.

I ignored Luchi’s rant and pulled three more greatswords from the ground.

Thanks to my high Strength stat, I could carry two greatswords in one hand, though they dragged along the ground since I wasn’t tall enough.

“—So remember that. Did you understand?”

“Yes, yes, I understand perfectly,” I answered absentmindedly, nodding as I turned away.

I didn’t want to talk anymore.

Scrape, scrape, thud.

Scrape, scrape, thud.

Dragging four greatswords, I headed for the village gate.

“A kid not much bigger than a gnoll, swinging those massive swords… Impressive,” Heinzel remarked, picking up the last two greatswords.

“I’m still taller than a gnoll, okay…? By, like… 50 centimeters…”

Technically, it’s 45.7 centimeters, but let’s just round it up!

“Kuhaha! Watching you swing those swords, it looked like the sword was swinging you!”

“You lost to me in arm-wrestling, remember? You’ve got no right to joke about that!”

“True. Noah’s got a point. Heinzel, you can’t really talk,” Luchi interjected, examining me closely. “If you look carefully, Noah is actually using the recoil to her advantage.”

“Hmm? Really?” Heinzel asked, intrigued.

Oh, looks like Luchi’s sharper than I thought.

“Exactly!” I exclaimed. “My second strike is always stronger than the first, and the third stronger than the second. Luchi, you know your stuff. Is it because you’re also a swordsman?”

From an outsider’s perspective, my movements might seem odd, but I’m just being efficient. Sure, I might be small, and wielding such a massive sword may look ridiculous, but the truth is, this is what true greatswordsmanship looks like!

“Of course, a greatsword can be a bit… crude. But a sword is still a sword. They’re more similar than you’d think,” Luchi said.

“Yeah! Greatswords are elegant, flashy, and… refined. Completely different from those brutish axes.”

“Brutish? Kid, this is what we call ‘bold.’ If anything, you’re the crude one,” Heinzel retorted.

“Me? Crude? I’m the picture of elegance, flash, and… and refinement!” I protested, pointing my sword at Heinzel.

The bald brute! How dare he call me crude?

“Kuhaha! Watching you with blood all over and your sword dragging behind you—refined, huh? But… I’ll admit, it was flashy enough.”

Luchi grinned as he looked me up and down.

I tilted my head in confusion and quickly extended my senses to check myself.

Just a bit of blood here and there. Nothing too crazy, right? At least I wasn’t covered in monster innards like the last time…

As we bickered, we passed through the southern gate and reached our destination. And right then, the earth began to tremble once more.

The second wave was approaching, the gnolls howling loudly as they charged toward us.

This time, the ground shook even more violently than before, reigniting the heat that had cooled in my body.

“Kuhaha! If the first wave was a net, this one’s a tidal wave!” Heinzel roared, his eyes lighting up in excitement.

“This… this many monsters is something else. It’s quite the sight,” Luchi added, though his tone was more composed.

“Now’s not the time to admire the view!” I barked. “Hurry up and get ready! Heinzel, take the ignition stones!”

“Hmm. So I just throw all these forward?”

“Yes, exactly! Then Luchi will use his special skill to ignite them. Can you handle that?”

“I’ve never done it before… but it shouldn’t be too difficult,” Luchi answered as he climbed up onto the watchtower.

“Alright… I’ll give the signal. Heinzel, as soon as I say, throw the stones. And Luchi… make sure you don’t mess this up.”

Both nodded in agreement, and I spread out my senses once more.

A searing pain washed over me as I pushed my senses to their limits.

I blocked out all unnecessary information, focusing only on the target—the incoming wave of gnolls.

“KID! IS IT TIME?” Heinzel shouted.

“N-not yet. Wait for it…”

I needed to wait for the right moment.

Ignore the ones in the front. We have to take out the middle.

Five seconds passed.

Just as the gnolls’ growls echoed near us—

“NOW, HEINZEL!”

“Huup—cha!”

At my signal, Heinzel hurled a large number of ignition stones toward the gas barrels we had prepared earlier.

“Luchi!”

Immediately, Luchi unleashed his special skill, slashing through the gas barrels and twisting the trajectory of the flying ignition stones.

“Cover your ears and get down!”

The ignition stones collided, their tiny sparks igniting the gas that had filled the air.

And then—

An explosion that seemed to shatter the sky erupted.

The entire southern wall collapsed under the force of the blast.

Of the 7,000 gnolls charging toward us, around 4,000 were crushed, burned, or blown apart in the explosion.

That left about 3,000.

I gripped my beloved greatsword, which I had been saving for this moment.

“Arfff…!”

Taunting the disoriented gnolls still reeling from the explosion, I dashed forward.

“Bark bark!”