Chapter 56: Clash

「Whoa, Shishō, it’s full of monsters!」

「That’s a lot more than I expected. Also, they seem to have good equipment.」

「……… (doki doki)」

Haru and Chinatsu, who are in charge of the north, and I, their guardian, are watching the goblin army in front of us. Rather than worn-out equipment, they are wearing well-made ironwork such as helmets, armor, swords, spears, etc. I don’t remember hearing large-scale damage caused by goblins these days, so I guess there are blacksmiths among them. Also, it seems that the ogre race joined them too. This is quite interesting.

「I wonder if the smoke and the smell of the meat really lured them here? Well, they are coming straight here anyway. Now, are you guys ready? Especially Chinatsu, don’t be so nervous.」

「I-I’m fine… (doki doki)」

She doesn’t look fine at all… Come to think of it, it’s her first time facing monsters, isn’t it? I guess asking her not to be nervous is too much when facing this horde in her first battle.

「In terms of status and level, you are far above Haru. I’m sure you can fight against goblins without any problems. So, you don’t need to be so nervous, just relax. There are a lot of enemies, but you have a friend that you can rely on. Keep that in mind.」

「A reliable, friend…」

I put my hand on Chinatsu’s head and secretly cast light magic, 『Refresh』. Contrary to Haru’s 『Heart Hash』, this magic has the effect of stabilizing the mental state of the touched target. This may be temporary, but the tension is something that rises before the actual battle. Once the battle actually begins, I’m sure Chinatsu will begin to get used to it even without this charm.

「… Thank you. I feel a little calmer.」

「Okay, then go――」

「Um, Shishō. What about me?」

Haru presents her head to me. No, with your steel mentality, you definitely don’t need it… Well, whatever.

「Let’s see… Haru, I’m sure you will make another great progress in this battle. The goal is level 4. But for now, don’t think about it. Just attack your enemies with all your might as usual. I guarantee you will win if you do so.」

I pat her head and give her a Refresh too just in case.

「Alright, I’m fired up! Chinatsu-chan, let’s go!」

「Yes. Deris-san, we are going.」

「Take care~」

I see them off while waving my hand. That said, I will follow them from behind, though. Please don’t mind about that.

「Haruna, I’ll be casting support magic now.」

「Please do!」

Chinatsu applies 『Regen』 and 『Recover Bless』 to herself and Haru. Regen is a light magic that grants an automatic recovery effect, it can be learned at level 40. As for Recover Bless, it grants resistance to abnormal status and can be learned at level 80. They are both effective for a certain amount of time, so it is preferable to cast this support magic before a battle if possible.

「Haruna, I think I won’t be affected by your poisonous fog as long as the Recover Bless is in effect. So don’t worry about me, just use it as usual.」

「Okay, light magic sure is useful.」

「It’s useful, but it’s not all-purpose. Shallow wounds can be healed quickly by Regen, but don’t rely on it if you received a serious injury. I will heal it if you get injured, so you have to evacuate obediently when things get dangerous, okay?」

「Got it! I’ll fight with the intention of dying without overdoing it!」

「Y-Yeah…? W-well, let’s go! (doki doki)」

I feel somewhat uneasy about their conversation that somewhat missed each other, but let’s believe in them. Then, the two charge into the goblin army. Their scouts have been peeking in a few times, so I’m sure they already aware of our existence. The goblins, with their iron helmets, iron armor, iron weapons, and shields, are marching in a horizontal line, lined up in layers to strengthen their defense. In the back, goblins equipped with bows can be seen here and there. As for the ogres… they are further back, huh?

「Chinatsu-chan, I’ll scatter the poison around here first. Let’s annihilate them after that!」

Haru puts her hands on the ground and activates her Fume Fog magic. She doesn’t really need to put her hands on the ground, though. Is she worrying about the pose? The purple poisonous fog is spreading out with Haru as the center, polluting the air enough to cover the marching line of the goblin army as long as they don’t make a big detour. I also put Recover Bless to myself.

「…. From what I see it, they don’t seem to particularly mind about it, huh?」

The goblins could see the poisonous fog appearing in front of them. However, they are not avoiding it and continue to march straight ahead.

「Is that because they want to defeat us at any cost? As expected of Gobuo-kun’s bloodline, how brave!」

「Who is that Gobuo-kun…? Anyway, let’s reduce their number while we are at it. Haruna, are you going to use the iron balls?」

「Yeah. There’s a limited number of them, though, so I have to make sure I get them back after using them. Chinatsu-chan, what about you?」

「I’ll use magic. Glitter Lance

.」

When Chinatsu chanted the magic, a large spear was created from the light particles in the air. Glitter Lance is a light magic that can be learned at level 50. Its use is―― well, Chinatsu will show it now.

「S-So cool…!」

「I-Is that so? W-Well, I’m going to shoot it!」

Being praised by Haru, Chinatsu looks embarrassed. With her face slightly red, she shoots the lance grandly, perhaps to hide her embarrassement. The light spear flies vigorously through the air and hits the leading group of goblins directly. The spear was glittering and stood out, so they should have known that an attack was coming at them. However, they took a defensive position with their shields, but then the shields were pierced and they turned into miserable figures. In the first place, there’s too much difference between Chinatsu’s magic power and the goblins’ durability (+armor). Then, the front lines are confused by the unexpected attack. The damage was extended to the line behind them. About ten of them were killed by this attack, huh? The Glitter Lance, which pierced deeply into the ground, became particles again and dispersed after finishing its role.

「Wow, that’s amazing…!」

「Yeah, it’s quite powerful. Glitter Lance is one of the few means of attack with light magic. You are not in their bow’s reach yet, so it looks like you can attack them outside their range for a while.

「Alright, I’ll also throw a ball at the front!」

Haru seems to be motivated. She takes out the usual super heavy ball with Gan-san’s mark. As if applying the anti-slip powder in her hand, she carefully generates poison and makes the ball heavier. Okay, the player Haru swings the ball and―― she threw it!

「Giah!?」

「Ugah!?」

「Evade it! E―― gah!?」

…… What should I say about this? It’s like, using a crane’s wrecking ball toward the bowling pins? The pins were shattered because it was too powerful. The iron ball thrown by Haru pierced from the front to the back of the enemy troops, and finally stopped after killing the commander-like goblin. Everyone who was hit was killed instantly regardless of the poison that was applied. The middle of the enemy’s leading unit died cleanly, eh.

「Alright!」

It seems that it was fine for Haru.

「………」

「It’s a splendid overkill, isn’t it?

「Um, were Nell-shishō defending against that…? Moreover, in succession…? With bare hands!?

「Chinatsu, you know, she is the kind of person who shouldn’t be measured by human logic. Don’t think too much about it.」

I’m sure she’s hustling against the orcs right now. Massacring them, I mean.