Chapter 55

Ignoring Father’s protests that it was out of the question, I had lightly brushed him off and finally ridden out alongside the knights to see the monsters I had been longing for so much. Well, if there was a flaw, it was that Carusien was right next to me.

Anyway, my heart wouldn’t stop racing with anticipation as I was about to encounter one of the elements that would finally make me realize I had truly come to a fantasy world. The knights were encouraging the nervous soldiers, and Father took the lead, riding on horseback at the very front.

Normally, when a massive army of monsters came surging in, the standard procedure was to defend from the top of the city walls, but perhaps because the town ruled by the Celion Ducal Estate didn’t have walls that high, we were currently heading out to meet the monsters head-on instead.

“Come to think of it, monsters must have a hard time finding food in the winter too, right?”

Wondering if that was the reason monsters, which hadn’t shown even a hint of their presence until now, were suddenly appearing in winter, I asked, and Carusien nodded.

“Winter is a difficult time for everyone. The monsters must be hungry.”

Oh, hungry monsters. A massive army of monsters attacking people driven purely by instinct. It was slightly scary, but perhaps because my desire to see monsters was so overwhelmingly strong, I didn’t feel nervous. No, I was nervous, but that tension wasn’t from fear of being attacked or terrified by monsters; rather, it was because…

‘What if I can’t even see the monsters this time either?’

Fortunately, the weather was clear. This winter hadn’t brought much snow, so there was no risk of being suddenly caught in an avalanche and crushed to death before a monster even appeared in front of my eyes, nor was there any chance of freezing to death from the cold. And since they said it was a capital-level army, it certainly wouldn’t be small, so there was no way they would just vanish halfway.

“The monsters must be in a ferocious state right now because they’re hungry, right?! They’ll come charging in while howling like crazy, won’t they?!”

“Yes, well, that’s true, but… Lady Armienne seems rather excited about the current situation.”

Oof.

Compared to the others who wore relatively solemn expressions, I was practically radiating light from my eyes, prompting him to say that, and I hurriedly made an excuse.

“Well, with the strongest teacher in the world right right next to me, what is there to be nervous about?”

Damn it, just you dare touch a single monster meant for me. I’ll add that to my un-avenged grudge from earlier and stab you right in the back of the head. Still, it was a believable excuse since, to anyone else, Carusien was a reliable enough figure.

“I-is that so? Understood.”

Hm? Why is this guy’s face turning red?

Even though I had just said it casually to avoid showing how excited I was, I was startled to see Carusien suddenly stutter, drop his head, and turn red all the way to his tips of his ears.

As expected, is Carusien a man after all? He must be thrilled that someone as perfect as me praised him!

That reaction was so amusing that I decided to tease him a little more. Since I used to be a guy, I knew very well how to sweep a woman off her feet in situations like this—or rather, what kind of treatment made a guy’s heart flutter.

I gently took hold of his hand and said.

“I’m counting only on you, Teacher.”

Inside, I felt my hands and feet curling up from the cringe as I thought.

‘Good grief! Surely this won’t suddenly make him fall in love with me or anything, right?’

However, as if my actions were unpleasant rather than flattering, Carusien yanked his hand away roughly. When a guy with physical strength far superior to mine suddenly jerked his hand back, the palm of my hand that had been holding him actually stung. What a damn jerk. Can’t even joke around.

Well, was I perhaps a bit too much?

“What on earth do you think you’re doing?!”

Even so, getting mad about it… making a person feel awkward like that.

“Well, just telling you to cheer up.”

Anyway, this guy definitely didn’t like me. I would’ve been happy enough to die if any passing woman had done that for me. Though I suppose if a woman you disliked did something like that, it might feel unpleasant instead?

Noticing that he had turned his head away entirely as if thoroughly sulked, I completely lost interest in him.

And once again, I let my imagination run wild about the monsters. This wasn’t just some small-scale skirmish—it was a battle between the ducal estate’s knights, soldiers, and a massive army of monsters, featuring not one, but two Sword Masters. Just thinking about it gave me goosebumps all over my body.

[Krrrk, if you humans surrender nicely, we’ll at least spare your lives!]

[How dare mere monsters threaten humanity! Everyone, show them the bravery of the Ducal Estate! It’s time for battle!]

[Lok’tar Ogar! For victory!]

Huh? Is that not the right line? Well, it’s a line I like, so let’s just use it anyway.

At the same time, a bloody battle begins. With my skills still lacking, I wouldn’t be able to do much more than cover the dangerous spots for the soldiers, but even just that made my chest swell and my blood boil.

[Die, human!]

[Is this the end?]

Right then, my sharp longsword suddenly cuts right through the space between them, accompanied by a Fire Arrow blooming from my right hand!

It was a truly flawless entrance. The monsters stare in shock at the sudden intruder, only to find a stunning beauty who hasn’t even fully shed her girlish innocence.

[No, not only can she use magic and swordsmanship at the same time, but she’s this gorgeous!]

[To think the Young Miss has saved me!]

[Hurry up and run! I’ll take care of this place!]

Lost in imagination up to this point, I couldn’t stop my jaw from dropping open on its own. When you think of fantasy, isn’t this exact kind of development a must?

“Ke-kheh-he-he-he. Heh-heh-heh-hehehe.”

“………….”

Carusien seemed to be staring at me laughing weirdly for a moment, but I was already so lost in my own daydreams that I couldn’t even care about his gaze anymore.

I want to see them soon. Really, really soon.

Just then, one of the scouts at the very front shouted out.

“Monsters!! Monsters have appeared!!”

Thump.

The moment I heard those words, my daydreams vanished in an instant, and a tense atmosphere began to wrap around my entire body. It wasn’t just me; everyone else must have felt the same way, because the quiet murmuring noises suddenly disappeared, replaced by a heavy silence.

Naturally, the one who opened his mouth amidst it all was my father, who led them all.

“Listen, everyone. And remember. Behind our backs are our beloved families, and ahead of you is always me. Never be afraid, strike down the monsters, and do not be afraid—if it gets dangerous, hide behind me, right here in front of you. I am with you.”

Discarding his usual foolishly doting image, Father’s solemn appearance was so cool it made me swoon for a moment. Every single heavy word made my heart race just by listening, and his back, looking tensely thousands of times wider than usual, brought an instant sense of security.

As the knights shouted first in response, the soldiers following them cried out together.

“Uwaaaaaah!!!”

“Long live the Lord Duke!”

“For our families! For victory!”

I was included among them. Along with a feeling of a massive adrenaline rush, my mouth was opening right along with them.

Thump, thump, thump.

At the massive sound of footsteps echoing from far away, the Duke gave his command.

“Advance!”

We were finally going to meet the monsters. In tune with the sound of the monsters’ footsteps echoing from the distance, without anyone even giving the word, we matched our strides as if we had all become of one heart.

Thump, thump, thump.

Thump, thump, thump.

The sound of footsteps made by the two massive armies grew closer and closer, bringing us face-to-face with the monsters. We naturally came to a halt. The monsters also stopped their march and stared at us, until a giant-bodied beast walked out from among the monsters and let out a roar.

-Mooooooo-rooar!

The identity of the monster was a Minotaur. Half-human and half-bull, the beast’s body possessed muscles that drew gasps just by looking at them, and the massive battle-axe slung across its back looked capable of splitting soldiers right through their armor if it were swung.

Hearing that roar, I muttered to myself before I even realized it.

“I-incredible.”

Just listening to it suddenly made fear well up inside me, causing my body to tremble. Was this what they called Fear, the thing you only ever heard about? This effect didn’t seem to be limited to me alone. The knights who knew how to handle mana fairly well looked completely unbothered, but the soldiers whose training was mostly basic were beginning to lose their formations bit by bit.

Yet why was I getting even more excited? Could it be that I had some hidden perverted streak I never knew about?

Felt like our momentum was being crushed even before the fight started, so the Duke decided to hold off on giving the attack order and take a moment to regroup our stances. Taking advantage of that timing, the Minotaur retreated back into the crowd, and this time, a sneering, cunning-looking Kobold revealed itself.

What the hell?

I couldn’t understand why the Minotaur, which looked the strongest, was pulling back while a tiny grunt that looked overwhelmingly weak suddenly popped out instead.

At that moment, the Kobold opened its mouth in a sharp, shrill voice. And unexpectedly, the Kobold was quite fluent in human language; hearing what the Kobold had to say, I slapped my forehead.

-K-krrrkt! We are monsters who love peace!

Damn it, this pattern again.

Since I couldn’t exactly say anything in this situation, I stayed silent, while the Duke watched on dazedly, as if he found the Kobold’s words absurd.

Seeing us standing there in a daze, the Kobold nodded once and continued speaking.

-Humans! If you just hand over a moderate amount of food to us! We will head right back to the forest just like this! Krrkt!

It wasn’t even telling us to hand over all our food, just a moderate amount. Where on earth did this neighborhood charity group crawl out from?

-J-just! A little bit of food! Just a veeeeeeery little bit! By making that concession! Both sides can avoid spilling blood!

The longer the Kobold went on, the more anxious I started to feel. If things kept going this way, the battle I had been looking forward to might end anticlimactically like a deflated balloon. At that moment, infusing mana into his voice, the Duke shouted loudly.

“How can we trust your words! You damn turd-sized monsters! If that were true, you shouldn’t have swarmed here like this in the first place. Damn it! I was right in the middle of admiring pictures of my daughter when you lot came over and started making a fuss! What? Peace? You sea-anemone-brained bastards, no need for long words. Come at me.”

Nice, Father!

Watching Father look ridiculously cool today, I kept cheering him on. Who would have thought that his usual obnoxious personality would come in handy in a situation like this? If I had been a monster—no, even if I had just been a passerby—hearing words like that would have surely made my blood boil.

Let alone monsters who had surrendered themselves entirely to their starving instincts. There was no doubt they would now come rushing toward us howling with rage.

…Or so I thought.

-K-krrkt. S-sorry about that! We hadn’t thought that far ahead.

Why are you apologizing?!

The Duke, who hadn’t expected them to apologize after he suddenly hurled a torrent of abuse at them, was left momentarily bewildered. It was the first time in his life he had ever cursed someone out only to receive an apology back, so he was a bit taken aback.

“U-uh, w-well, nothing to be done about it then.”

No way. Damn it.

If things went on like this, Father was actually going to hand over food before a war could even break out, so I hurriedly ran over to where the archers were stationed and pointed straight at one of them.

“Hey.”

“Gasp! Young Miss.”

“Never mind that, shoot.”

“Pardon?”

Pointing at the Kobold currently flapping its jaws in front of the massive army of monsters, I spoke once more. Tsk, looking at that mug up close again, it really did look deeply conniving.

“I said shoot your arrow.”

“Gasp! T-that’s…”

For the record, suddenly firing an arrow in a situation like this made you a madman. But what if? If we didn’t shoot right now, our battle with the monsters would fly straight out the window and vanish. Isn’t peace the best, you ask? A person cannot live on peace alone. Especially me.

“Are you going to shoot? Or do you want to die by my hands later?”

Only then did the soldier seem to recall the name of the villainess Armienne; he turned pale as a sheet, drew his bowstring, and began to shed tears. Looking like the epitome of misery to anyone else, I met his gaze with unyielding coldness.

“Sn-sniff. Do I really have to shoot?”

“Yes.”

“Waaaaah, Momma.”

“Your mother is doing just fine at home, so hurry up and shoot.”

At my words, the soldier ultimately had no choice but to fire his arrow; not expecting a projectile to suddenly come flying at him right in the middle of talking, the Kobold took the arrow square in the chest.

-So the amount of food we desire is– Pukiiik!!

That’s it. Now it’s a real war. The monsters started murmuring, looking like they were about to charge at us any second now. I clenched my fists tightly, and while Carusien kept staring at me with a strange expression from beside me, I couldn’t care less.

I don’t know how massive of a middle finger this world is trying to flip at me, but I can just smash all of that to pieces myself.

“It’s war! War!”

As I was shouting out like that, the Kobold clutched its chest and spoke with great difficulty.

-K-krrkt. I am fine. This much is nothing. Everyone calm down.

Damn it, stop it. You crazy pacifist monster.

You’re making me look like the bad guy here.