What, Failure to Transition!? Volume 5 Chapter 8 (Patreon)

Chapter 8 – The Princess Knight Sorties!

There is still a massive swarm of monsters approaching the fortress.


Although Yoichi and his party had reduced their numbers by about half, they still numbered around 50,000.


The adventurers waiting at the fortress became increasingly tense as they began to see the shadow of forces of unprecedented size.


“If I hadn’t run out of ammunition, I’d give them hell even here.”


The distance between the group and the enemy was less than two kilometers.


This would be far enough to be reached by heavy machine gun fire or anti-materiel rifles, but most of the bullets needed for these weapons had already been used up by Yoichi in the first wave.


The most powerful long-range rifle with ammunition left was the Russian-made assault rifle, but if he wanted to strike an effective blow against the monsters, he would have to wait until the range was about 200 meters before he could fire effectively.


In the midst of his contemplation, an arrow was shot into the sky.


It flew in a parabolic line into the horde and pierced the brain of a huge hulk of a monster, probably an ogre, that was at the head of the group.


As soon as it fell, there was a cheer from the beastfolk with excellent eyesight and those with long range vision.


As I looked to where the arrow had been shot, I saw a dark elf woman in loose clothing nocking a second arrow.


“Fufu, that’s my grandmother for you.”


The Princess Knight, who had watched the scene from the vanguard station, smiled in amazement.


The archer was apparently Alana’s grandmother.


She was a beautiful woman, much like Hortense, but with a somewhat calmer disposition.


She was said to have lived for several hundred years, but she looked to be in her late twenties or early thirties.


“Oh… to be able to see Madame Françoise again… what great luck!”


Alana’s grandmother and former Guild Master of the Mage’s Guild, Françoise, had not been seen much in public since relinquishing her position to her daughter, Hortense.


Perhaps because of this, some of the older adventurers were grateful for her presence.


Two and then three arrows were fired, all of them hitting the monsters.


As the horde of monsters approached, the morale of the adventurers began to rise as more and more of them were able to see what was going on.


Perhaps Françoise was aiming for this effect, as she chose targets that were as easy as possible to see from a distance.


Next to Françoise was Karin.


[My, my. Then that makes you my grandchildren? Ufufufu…]


Françoise, who had learned about the relationship between Alana and Yoichi and the others during their meeting, was so interested that she had Karin, also an archer, stay by her side.


When the distance to the vanguard units was less than 1.5 kilometers, arrows began to be fired from the group of adventurers as well.


In this world, the bow is the most common means of long-range attack.


Their composite bows are made from metals such as orichalcum and mithril, wood from treants and other tree-based monsters, and other materials such as the bones and skins of other monsters.


The arrows shot by the Beastfolk, who have the superior physical strength to handle them, and other races who can receive skill assistance, can reach over a kilometer and still maintain their power to kill their enemies.


“They’re about to reach us! Keep shooting!”


The arrows that were released in fluttering flashes increased in density as the monsters approached.


Although not as heavy as a rainstorm, a considerable number of arrows still rained down on the monsters and began to thin out the crowd, albeit a little at a time.


Even Karin, who could not maintain her power beyond 300 meters when shooting straight at the target, could reach about a kilometer while maintaining some power as long as she shot her arrow in a parabolic line toward the sky. As expected, she could not hit her target 100% with this shooting style, but she could still do her part in the rain of arrows along with the other adventurers.


Karin joined the adventurers in shooting more and more arrows.


When the distance between the adventurers and the horde was less than a kilometer, the relatively high-speed flying monsters had begun to approach the fortress.


The adventurers began to divide into two groups: those who fired at the horde and those who aimed and fired at the approaching monsters.


“This is bad! We missed the griffon!”


A griffon, approaching with several small flying monsters as shields, increased its speed and came right at the fortress.


The fort is only 100 meters away.


The griffon’s flying speed would have allowed it to close the distance in a matter of seconds, but before it could hit the adventurers, it dropped its head and crashed in front of the fortress.


“All bow users! Leave the big ones to us mages!”


Hortense’s listless voice echoes through the fortress.


Chopping off the head of a griffon flying at full speed is an extremely difficult task, but as expected from the current Guild Master of the Mage Guild, it is now a task that can be easily accomplished.


The invisible blade created by the wind magic she manipulated easily shot down the aerial wonder that was approaching the fortress at breakneck speed.


Like her mother, Françoise, Hortense excelled with the bow, but she had the role of guildmaster of the Mages’ Guild, so she had to use magic to represent the mages.


“Well then, Misato, Yoichi. I’ll leave them to you!”


“Yes!”


Misato, who is a mage, and Yoichi, who is basically a long-range attacker, were placed under the command of the Mages’ Guild and positioned near Hortense.


From the top of the turret, which was built at a height that gave them a certain view of the battlefield, they used magic and AK gunfire to shoot down the flying monsters that were approaching the fortress.


But the horde of monsters continued to advance, until the adventurers, who excel in melee combat, were finally forced into battle.


〇●〇●


“Speaking of which, Alana. You use your mana to strengthen your body, right?”


Just before they split up to take their respective positions, Yoichi asked Alana as if he suddenly remembered something.


“Yes, I always use it to strengthen my body in battle, and also when I use Warrior Skills.”


“Warrior Skills?”


It was the first time he had heard this word from Alana, but since there was no time for a detailed explanation, he temporarily assumed that it was some kind of special move.


“Then, if you have a lot of mana, can you fight more than usual?”


“Of course.”


“In that case, if the mana regenerates unusually fast, or to the point where it cannot be depleted, does that mean that Alana will be at less of a risk?”


“Well, thanks to my dark elf blood, I have more mana compared to humans, and my recovery speed is faster, but I don’t think it’s to the point where it’s inexhaustible… Wait. Are you saying that…”


Yoichi’s sudden question made her realize what he was trying to say.


“Yes. Alana also has a [Healthy Body] now.”


To be more precise, it’s called [Healthy Body β(Beta)], which is far superior to the normal skill, but since [Healthy Body] is apparently quite a rare skill to begin with, he didn’t feel the need to explain it in detail, at least for now.


“And I’m the one who granted it… probably…”


“Mr. Yoichi!?”


Alana’s eyes widened for a moment, but then they immediately relaxed. Something must have occurred to her.


Not only Alana, but other women who had sex with Yoichi felt so well that they immediately noticed an improvement in their physical condition.


It was hard to say exactly when this was granted, but it goes without saying that they already knew what kind of action was involved.


Alana’s face immediately calmed, and she smiled softly as she patted her lower abdomen affectionately.


“I see… so I was as well… after all, I was always… with Mister Yoichi…”


But when she looked up again, her smile took on a ferocious color.


“Nothing could be more reassuring than that.”


With that look, Alana glanced at the oncoming crowd of monsters before returning her strong gaze to Yoichi.


“In that case, let me show you what happens when I get serious.”


〇●〇●


Alana has been known as the “Princess Knight” since the outbreak of the monster stampede five years ago.


At that time, Alana, who was just starting out but was accumulating adventuring achievements at an exceptionally fast rate, was ranked D.


When the stampede occurred, all the guilds and knights gathered to fight the stampede, and Alana’s lion-hearted performance earned her a B-rank, an unprecedented two ranks above the rest.


The tale of Alana’s heroism is still told in Meilgrad, and the battle sung of by the bards has spread not only to the frontier, but also to the capital and, according to some accounts, even to the neighboring empire.


Although it was only five years ago, it was already a legendary feat.


And now, that Alana, the Princess Knight and a living legend, appeared from the fortress.


“Oooh, it’s the Princess Knight…”


“The second coming of Alana the Princess Knight is here!”


“No, describing it as ‘second coming’ is a bit strange, don’t you think?”


“Then it is second reappearance!”


“Whatever it is, it’s a pleasure to see it with my own eyes! It’s the Princess Knight I only heard about in minstrels’ songs!”


Why was Alana called the Princess Knight?


It was understood that she was called a “princess” because she was the daughter of a frontier count, but a knight?


The reason Alana is called the Princess Knight and not a Princess Warrior is… obvious from her current appearance.


“Alana looks so cool.”


“Yes, very dignified.”


When Yoichi and Misato recognized Alana’s figure from the top of the turret, where the Mages’ Guild was in charge, they let out admiring voices.


As for Karin, she was probably watching the Princess Knight’s heroics with Françoise on another remote turret and muttering the same thing.


“How is she? Have you fallen in love with her again?”


“Yes.”


Yoichi answered the boastful question of the older – but not so older – woman next to them honestly, without taking his eyes off Alana.


In response, the elderly woman, Hortense – Alana’s mother and the guild master of the Mages’ Guild – let out a sigh of happiness, but also a bit of exasperation.


○●○●


Alana stood on the battlefield outside the gates of the fortress, astride a magnificent black horse.


“Fufufu, it’s been a long time since I rode you.”


When Alana patted its neck affectionately, the black horse snorted happily. Then it turned its belligerent gaze on the horde of monsters.


Horses are naturally shy creatures.


Even those trained as war horses would become frightened and unable to move when confronted with strong monsters.


Even more so for the untrained ones, it was not uncommon for them to sometimes forget to breathe and literally die of fear.


However, the black horse that Alana rode was brave, or rather, it was eager to run towards the horde of monsters.


The horse was a special horse, bred for such tasks.


There is a horse-shaped monster called a Night Mare.


Although extremely ferocious, these Night Mares are capable of mating with an ordinary horse.


Thus, when a Night Mare was captured and mated with a horse, this black horse was created and became known as the Nighthorse.


“Well then. Let’s get started.”


Two unique-looking battleaxes appeared in Alana’s hands.


Unlike the shape she usually used, this time the handles were long, like a spear, or rather, this time it resembled more of a halberd than the usual one-handed battleaxe with a protruding spear tip at the other end of the handle.


These two oddly shaped axes she liked to use were special weapons materialized by the skill called [Spirit Binding], and such weapons are usually called [Spirit Bound] or [Bound Weapons].


As the name suggests, [Spirit Binding] is a skill that allows you to store or “bind” your equipment remotely in something like a “spirit realm,” and it is done by fusing your weapons and armor with your “spirit.”


Because it is stored in the “spirit,” it has no material, or at least none once it is fused, so it can change shape, albeit slightly, according to the wielder’s wishes.


Just as the other end of the axe handle, which was originally a one-handed battleaxe, can be extended and sharpened to resemble a spear, it is also possible to change the length of the handle and the tip of the axe end to resemble a halberd.


-BOOM!


Alana swung her halberd over her horse and let out a gallant yell as if a gust of wind had blown in.


“Fufufu… Indeed, I can feel the power flowing out of my body.”


The Princess Knight calmly looked down at her own underbelly for a moment, then immediately looked up, changed her expression, and turned around.


More than 500 adventurers in the vanguard had already left the fortress, weapons at the ready, their heated gazes fixed on Alana.


“Alana, B-rank adventurer belonging to the Meilgrad Adventurers’ Guild, sorties! Everyone, follow me!”

“Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooh!!!!!”


A roar erupts from the adventurers as she raised her newly formed halberds in response to the command.


Alana, on her Nighthorse, charged into the crowd of monsters, followed by the other adventurers.


But even with their morale up, there was no way they could keep up with the speed of the half-monster Nighthorse, and Alana was left to fend for herself.


Of course, Alana knew this from the start.


Not caring that the adventurers were lagging behind, the princess knight charged into the monster horde on her own.


“Hmph!”


Just as Alana was about to make contact with the lead group of monsters, Vvung! She swung her halberd in a single motion, and dozens were blown away at once.


Monsters far beyond the reach of the halberd were severed, or at least shattered, as they were blown away by her Warrior Skill.


Alana, who always imbues her weapons with mana to increase their power, is able to attack enemies from a distance by causing the mana she has imbued in her weapons to fly with each attack.


However, normally, she would only be able to send slashes and stabs at a maximum distance of 10 meters, which is still impressive enough, but on this occasion, she was able to unreservedly put all of her mana into the weapon and unleash it mercilessly, achieving more than twice the power and range of normal weapons.


“Hmph, come! If you want to die, come to me first!”


Alana said to the monsters, who probably didn’t understand a word she was saying, and began to swing her two halberds in all directions while skillfully driving her Nighthorse again.


〇●〇●


As Alana charged forward, displaying her lion-like strength, the group of adventurers, their morale boosted by the sight of Alana, reached the horde of monsters.


“Don’t fall behind the Princess Knight!”


“Stand your ground here and make the knights lose their jobs!”


“Swing your swords and hit the monsters! Don’t think about it. Just swing!”


The adventurers, shouting and encouraging each other, rushed into the monster swarm, weapons in hand, and went on the rampage.


This is a mana-filled world.


Monsters and ‘humans’ alike carry this magical power in their bodies.


Activating this mana in the body alone strengthens one’s physical abilities, but handling this type of magical power is greatly influenced by one’s mental strength.


In other words, the adventurers whose morale was boosted by the sight of Alana’s heroic figure were able to exert more power than usual because their mental strength is stronger than usual, which in turn activates the mana flowing through their bodies more than usual.


Morale is extremely important in mass combat, and it is even more important in this world than in Yoichi’s original world.


Thus, with her ability to inspire her allies with a single action, Alana was not only a capable adventurer, but also an effective leader of an army.


“Oraoraoraoraora! Keep firing!”


“Burn them down! Blow them up! Crush them!”


While the vanguard units were fighting hard, the rearguard units were also doing quite well.


They did not dare to attack the group of monsters in the clash. Instead, they set up a kill zone where the vanguard couldn’t get caught in friendly fire, and rained arrows and spells on that area.


This way, the rear guard steadily reduced the number of monsters.


Meanwhile, Yoichi and Misato stood with Hortense, the guild master of the mages’ guild, in a turret built on the defense wall.


“Misato, let’s shoot over there, shall we?”


“Yes!”


Misato fired her magic where Hortense pointed.


The fireball from Misato’s wand flew as if guided by something and landed in the middle of a group of about 20 monsters, turning them into a whirlpool of flame and reducing them to ashes.


“Oh, you can’t do an area-of-effect spell. Next time, attack them one by one.”


“Yes.”


The next shot was a small bolt of lightning.


The lightning went far beyond its original range and blew off the head of an orc lord about 300 meters away from the struggling group of adventurers.


“Then up next…”


Misato unleashed her magic at Hortense’s command, efficiently reducing the number of enemies and covering her allies.


Hortense was not just pointing at the target.


She was supporting Misato with a spell called [Support Guidance].


Support Guidance is a spell that draws a “line” of mana to a target. Its effect is that whatever magic is cast on that “line” will hit the target precisely and with no loss of power, almost like how a laser-guided weapon or a spotter works in Yoichi’s world.


Thanks to this, Misato was able to extend the range of her single-target attack spell to about 500 meters, and even a medium-ranged attack spell to about 200 meters.


For Misato, who was a complete amateur in terms of tactics, it was significant that Hortense was able to choose her targets accurately and effectively, especially in this time of war.


In addition, Hortense also unleashed her magic spells while working as a “support guide,” so she also achieved great results.


This proves that the title of guild master of the Mages’ Guild was not a title given to her thoughtlessly.


“One by one, they were all defeated…”


On the other side, Yoichi used an assault rifle from the same tower to kill monsters that approached the fortress’s defensive wall.


The rifle was not very powerful against monsters, but by shooting from a height, he was able to increase its firepower a bit, so at least he could still kill D-ranked monsters like orcs without any problem.


As for the stronger monsters, Yoichi left them to the archers and mages and only concentrated on reducing the number of small fries.


“O-oi, what is that thing…?”


“It’s huge!”


“I-is that a dragon?”


The vanguard and the rear guard fought hard, but after defeating several thousand monsters, a huge monster appeared from the horde.


“Aah… it’s an earth dragon…”


The voice of an adventurer who was the first to recognize it trembled with fear.


〇●〇●


A carnivorous monster with a body the size of a large herbivorous dinosaur.


That was Yoichi, Karin and Misato’s impression of the Earth Dragon.


It was about 10 meters long and 3 meters high.


It was much more intimidating than a winged dragon of the same species, because when it approached them, it literally shook the earth by several magnitudes.


Yoichi had just defeated a winged dragon with a surface-to-air missile. However, he had only defeated it by crushing its internal organs and brain, or shattering its bones from the impact of the explosion, with almost no damage to its dragon scales or skin.


Could an earth dragon be defeated in the same way?


The answer is no.


A winged dragon compensates for a certain amount of its muscles and skeleton in order to fly.


Because no matter how much mana they have, winged dragons are not a species of such high rank that they can gain the ability to fly without reducing the weight of their physical structure.


On the other hand, earth dragons, which do not need the ability to fly at all, have grown muscles and skeletons that are incomparably stronger than those of winged dragons.


They would not be intimidated or harmed by the same missiles.


“Damn, and to think that I had already prepared for their existence a hundred miles back…”


During the contact at the border between the forest and the wilderness, Yoichi prioritized monsters with a high threat to be killed, including several earth dragons. It took three to four anti-tank missiles with excellent penetrating power against one.


But even though he had defeated three of them at the forest border, and two more as collateral damage when he defeated the Greater Land Turtle Emperor, there were still survivors.


“Guaooooooohhhh!!”


The earth dragon approached with a roar that was a mixture of a deafening high-pitched sound and a gut-wrenching low-pitched sound.


“Haaaaaaahhhh!”


But Alana, who was controlling the Nighthorse, lunged at the huge body without fear, storing one of her halberds in her spirit realm while holding the remaining one in both hands.


“Seeeii!!”


Alana jumped into its chest and raised her halberd, making a cleave at the side of the earth dragon. Then she charged into another group as if she was done with the huge figure.


――Slice.


It was then when the earth dragon’s head, which had raised its ‘paw’ to strike a blow at the puny creature that foolishly rushed at it, shifted, and the next moment it fell to the ground with a DUUUN, a sound like a rumbling of the earth.


“Ooooooooooooh!!!!!!”


The adventurers cheered at Princess Knight’s feat of removing the Earth Dragon’s head with a single swing as they passed each other.


Their morale, which had been on the verge of collapse due to the appearance of the earth dragon, soared to new heights, and they regained their strength.


“Haha, that’s incredible. It took me four or five anti-tank missiles to bring that thing down, you know?”


Yoichi marveled and Misato’s eyes widened in surprise.


Although Misato does not know the exact power of the anti-tank missiles, she can guess something from their name alone.


However, an attack with Alana’s [Bound Weapon] cannot be compared to four or five anti-tank missiles.


The reason why Alana’s attack is more effective against the monsters of this world than modern weapons is because modern weapons have no mana to be effective, while Alana’s attack has mana.


Anyway, based on this, Alana destroying tanks with just a physical attack with her [Bound Weapon] is already an obvious reality even without the innate mana in Yoichi’s world.


“This is the time to stand your ground, everyone!”


Hortense’s encouragement, amplified by the wind, flies from the turret of the defensive wall.


Thanks to the efforts of the adventurers inspired by Alana’s heroism, the battle near the fortress went reasonably well, and the number of monsters killed exceeded 10,000.


However, even a simple defensive fortress could not hold off all the monster hordes on its own.


The rearguard, with Hortense’s encouragement, fought to prevent the monsters from entering the fortress, but as expected, they could not stop the group from passing through outside the fortress’s range.


The group of monsters advancing through the side of the fortress is approaching the city of Meilgrad.


Meanwhile, as the defensive battle around the fortress intensified, Yoichi’s Russian-made assault rifle ran out of bullets.


〇●〇●


A group of monsters that had escaped from the fortress guarded by adventurers approached the border town of Meilgrad.


The fortress prevented most of them from entering, but the number of monsters heading for the city continued to grow, now numbering in the thousands.


It would only be a matter of time before the number exceeded 10,000.


To protect the city from such creatures, a group of knights led by William, the lord of the city, was deployed as the last line of defense.


The word “knight” does not denote a title, but rather a position as a member of the organization in charge of the city’s defense.


“All the men are in place, my lord.”


William, astride his Nighthorse, looks around with a stern expression at the ranks of the knights lined up several kilometers from the town.


The role of the knights is varied.


First, there is the Defensive Force, which guards the surrounding area and protects the city from monsters.


The Strike Force, which joins with adventurers to thin out the monsters in the Jana Forest.


The Security Force, which protects public order in the city.


The Military Police, which is the law enforcement unit.


And other specialized roles, but these are the main ones.


“The deployment of the ‘Criminal Slave Battalion’ is also complete.”


“Umu.”


In response to his subordinate’s report, William nodded exultantly.


A few hundred meters in front of the knights, there was a formation of people in simple clothing.


They are people who have committed crimes in Meilgrad and have been sentenced to hard labor.


Among those who have broken the law in this country, those guilty of serious crimes are sometimes put into what is called ‘criminal slavery’.


Such people are called ‘criminal slaves’ and are sentenced to labor depending on the severity of their crime, only to be released after serving their sentence.


There are also those who do not reach the level to be put into “criminal slavery,” and who are only guilty of minor crimes. Even then, such criminals cannot be exempted, so they now cooperate with the security forces that are in charge of maintaining security in the city.


More than 80% of the security is involved in this defense force, so this is to compensate for the missing hands that should be guarding them.


“Criminal slaves! Amnesty will be granted to those who survive this battle! Depending on your performance, your sentences may be shortened considerably! Atone for the mistakes you made with your own hands!”


“Ooooooooooohh!!”


The criminals generally responded favorably to William’s proclamation.


The positions and equipment of the criminals are differentiated according to the crime committed.


Those with minor crimes would wear moderately good equipment and be moved to the rear, while those with serious crimes would be moved to the front along with poor equipment.


In addition, each of the criminal slaves is engraved with a slave’s crest, which has a magical effect of subordination.


In short, thanks to their slave crests, they would not be able to defy their master and the knights.


In this battle, it is forbidden to flee from the enemy and attack allies at random.


If they dare to break this rule, they will be punished with a few seconds of stiffness and some pain, but it is easy to imagine what would happen if this penalty were applied in the face of a ferocious monster.


They have no choice but to fight for their lives for the sake of their future.


“Criminal Slave Battalion, advance! Kill as many monsters as you can!!”


Since it is useless to ask them to act collectively, this is the only order given to them.


All that remains is for them to fight their battles and, most importantly, survive.


“Vista. I’m sorry for dragging you out too.”


At William’s side is Vista, dressed in his butler’s uniform.


He, too, is astride a nighthorse, and his clothes look more billowy than usual because he wears chain mail underneath.


“No, sir. This is an emergency in the city.”


The old butler, Vista, interrupted his speech. Then his expression relaxed.


“But thank heavens he’s is not here, that little man.”


“Yeah. Me too.”


William, who had received Vista’s words, replied in a voice too weak for his stature.


Henry, William’s son and Alana’s brother, is currently in the royal capital for training.


“If he had been here, he would probably have done something reckless.”


“Yes. Because Alana is on the front lines.”


William did not have a firm grasp on his son’s unusual feelings for his sister, but he knew that Henry adored Alana, so it was easy to imagine that he would push himself too hard to look good for his esteemed sister.


As for Vista, although he already had a reasonable grasp of Henry’s true feelings, he was taking a wait-and-see attitude for the moment, thinking that as long as his childhood friend and personal maid, Hazel, was there to provide an outlet for his emotions, there would be no problem.


(Although what concerns me is the boy’s proclivities…)


Henry’s predatory feelings and actions toward Hazel are not normal, but Hazel’s willingness to be subjected to them is also abnormal.


However, Vista thought that the problem would not become serious at the moment because the cracked pot – Henry – still has the cracked lid – Hazel – to hold him back.


Although Henry is inexperienced and has his own problems, he is still an important heir candidate for Meilgrad.


His feelings for Alana aside, he is otherwise quite capable, both in battle and in political affairs, and it would have been a shame if he were to be lost in this battle.


(Then again, nothing would be lost if he died here, either.)


Up ahead, they saw that the group of criminals and monsters had made contact with each other.


Among the criminals in the frontier, there were many rough characters, and even among them, there were many former mid-level adventurers.


It was a battle in which one’s life and future hung in the balance.


However, even though the battle was raging, it seemed that they were making some progress against the monsters.


Vwuung! As if to revive his spirit, William swung the bardiche in his hand in a single motion.


The bardiche, also known as the “half-moon axe” or “crescent axe” because of the shape of its blade, is a weapon that looks like a combination of a glaive and an axe.


William raised the bardiche, which has a larger blade and a handle 10% longer than a normal bardiche, to the heavens.


“Knights, advance! Cavalry, charge!! Infantry, follow!!”


“Ooooooohhh!!”


The knights shouted in response to William’s command.


Of the approximately 2,000 knights, only about 200 are mounted.


The cavalry, about 10% of the entire army, burst out of the formation and charged the horde of monsters.


If the enemy were a human army, it would be effective to use their mobility to get around them and distract them with flanking attacks, but this time the enemy are monsters. There was no tactical strategy, no coordination, and no way to distract a group that was simply advancing in numbers.


“Let’s go!”


William, who was leading the cavalry, charged into the horde.


“All of you! Follow His Excellency!!”


“We will win our freedom!”


The criminals, who were the first to fight the monsters, were pushed back a bit, but William’s attack brought them back to life.


His style of wielding a long-handled weapon with brute force and taking down the approaching monsters one by one is somewhat similar to Alana’s, but that is to be expected.


After all, it was the father, William, who taught Alana how to fight.


“Fufufu, I can’t lose to my daughter yet.”


Unlike Alana, who has Dark Elf blood, William, who is a human, lacks a certain amount of mana in his possession.


But while he cannot rely on mana to enhance his physical abilities or perform warrior skills like his daughter, he has the muscle, skill, and experience to make up for it.


And even though he is not without decline due to aging, he still has enough ability to fight on the front lines.


“Master! This humble butler is ready to help you. Just give an order!”


William, who was riding his horse while wielding a bardiche, was followed a little later by his butler, Vista.


He was wielding a pair of unique twin swords.


The blade is just under 100 cm, which is too long for dual-wielding, but the width is narrow, the point is thin and sharp, and most importantly, the weight is comparable to that of short swords because the blade is abnormally thin.


Holding the long swords in his left and right hands, Vista swung them silently.


The thin blades were so sharp that they could easily cut through the hard skin of monsters, and the thin tips would hit the enemy’s weak points with precision.


But after defeating about 100 monsters with his special weapon and skillful swordsmanship,


–BAKIN!


One of the long swords broke, losing its durability in exchange for the sharpness it had gained from its thinness.


However, Vista did not panic and pressed a button on the hilt of the broken sword while fighting the monsters with the remaining sword.


The broken blade fell from the hilt.


He then placed the blade-less hilt against the unusually thick scabbard at his waist.


–Click!


As Vista pulled the hilt, he felt a solid sensation in his hand, and when he lifted it again, a new blade was attached to the hilt.


The scabbard at his waist contains spare blades.


“Oogaaaaaaah!”


“Haaa……!!”


After replacing the blade, an ogre approaches Vista.


Vista kicked the Nighthorse lightly in the stomach with his leg as a signal.


The Nighthorse, sensing the rider’s intent, jumped lightly toward the ogre and slipped past its flank.


“Fuuh…!”


In the blink of an eye, the head of the ten-foot ogre was at the tip of the long sword, which had a new blade and was being swung swiftly.


The ogre had rushed towards Vista like prey, but as he passed, its head flew off.


It had been decapitated.


“Even though I’m old, I still can’t lose against such monsters!”


And so Vista began to swing his sword at a new target, no longer paying attention to the recently-dead monster at his side.


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