In the Land of Leadale Vol. 5 Page 8

  Since monsters not locked in battle managed to evade the knights and press on, the adventurers in the rearguard blocked the way by using fallen foes as a barricade. They built the wall thicker and thicker, and the corpses piled up. However, the adventurers had to keep moving farther backward.

  Unlike the monsters, whose only goal was plowing past the opposition, the defense couldn’t afford failure. The situation didn’t allow for a moment’s breath, and the stress accumulated. Everyone was at their wit’s end.

  “Dammit! This is why I said show ’em a few dirty tricks first!”

  “What do we do, boss? The vanguard will be overwhelmed at this rate,” the second-in-command asked.

  Soon enough, the enemy would overwhelm and shatter their defenses. Although Arbiter had once been a knight himself, he and their commanders didn’t see eye to eye, and they struggled to cooperate efficiently. Assigning Arbiter as backup had backfired.

  The knights who typically served inside the capital walls as the main line of defense were much less experienced than the adventurers who constantly engaged in battle. There was no one to lead them against an unexpected swarm of erratic, unpredictable monsters.

  Just as Arbiter was contemplating whether to help or ditch them, the tide of battle shifted.

  In the worst way.

  There was a light fwump followed by a haze of pink smoke that covered monsters and knights alike. It hadn’t reached the adventurers in the rearguard yet, but everyone frowned in confusion over what was going on. They found out soon enough.

  Everyone fighting in the vanguard froze. This, of course, included any other knights and soldiers within range. Struck by an ominous foreboding, the adventurers in the rear prepared themselves as a faint white light coiled around the knights and monsters.

  Then their allies turned around in unison and stared blankly at the adventurers.

  “Hey, what’s goin’ on?”

  “Careful! Something’s wrong with these guys!”

  Eyes glazed and empty, each vanguard member stood ramrod straight and smiled faintly. They approached Arbiter’s group with swords drawn.

  Stomp, stomp, stomp.

  Apprehension filled the mercenaries and adventurers as they observed their comrades. The pink smoke and unnatural white light warned Arbiter this was some magical business, so he ordered his second-in-command and the adventurers to retreat.

  Stomp, stomp, stomp!

  With the knights now against them, he didn’t have much choice.

  STOMP, STOMP, STOMP!

  Putting distance between themselves, the monsters, and the knights as they slowly backed away from the defensive line, Arbiter finally exploded at the incoming rumble he’d been ignoring.

  “What the hell is that?!”

  “Boss! Over there!”

  Both the mercenaries and adventurers looked in the direction the second-in-command had indicated and were dumbfounded to discover something trampling trees as it shot out of the southern forest by the main road like a bullet. The brown cannonball cut straight through the flank of the monster army and disappeared into the northern forest on the opposite side.

  The massive swarm of monsters caught in the line of fire were haphazardly flung this way and that. A majority did elaborate tailspins high in the sky before plummeting to their deaths, but many died on impact as well.

  “…What kinda monster was that?”

  “I feel like I’ve seen it before.”

  As everyone stood there and questioned what was going on, the culprit popped back out from the northern forest.

  “Piiiii!!”

  ““Oh.””

  “…Boss, ain’t that Cayna’s?” Kenison asked.

  A round boar gave a gallant (?) war cry and puffed out its chest proudly (sort of). The familiar creature was summoned by a certain adventurer.

  Arbiter and his second-in-command were both struck speechless, and Kenison pointed at the short, stout crimson pig known as Li’l P. The mercenaries, who all knew Li’l P, let out sighs of relief. The adventurers, on the other hand, saw the situation as internal discord among the enemy and proposed retreat. No one had explained anything, so they seemed to believe Li’l P was one of the monsters.

  “Hey, Arbiter! We’ll get caught up in the friction if we don’t fall back soon.”

  “Nah, we ain’t backin’ down now. Reinforcements came in the nick of time.”

  “Hold on. If we get caught up in a fight between monsters, we’re the ones who are gonna pay!”

  The so-called monster Li’l P was looking adorable as it snagged clumps of enemies with its snout and tossed them high in the air before trampling each underfoot. The boar was surprisingly versatile.

  However, Arbiter realized those attacks were growing ever closer to the knights and that they had to do something before it was too late. The knights were part of his history; the mercenary couldn’t let them die in good conscience.

  “We’ll get the knights and everyone else away from those monsters. If that thing is around, she ain’t far behind!”

  The mercenaries followed Arbiter’s instructions and set about their various tasks. Some prepared rope for wrangling, others readied clubs they could use to gently (?) stun the knights, and magic wielders wove paralyzing and sleeping spells.

  The adventurers were surprised at first but realized Arbiter and his men were earnestly trying to save the knights and soldiers from the surrounding monsters. Although they laughed at the absurdity of it all, each eventually joined the interesting gamble.

  “Sounds pretty wild, Arbiter. We’ll give ya a hand!”

  “Those stuck-up knights are gonna owe us big-time. Count me in!”

  “We’re knockin’ everyone out so we can save ’em from the monsters, right? You can bet I’m not passin’ up a chance to hit a knight.”

  “…Don’t kill anyone. Please.”

  After encouraging a “less is more” approach for caution’s sake, Arbiter called out to Li’l P, who was still wreaking havoc among the monsters.

  “Hey! Pi-wee!”

  “Pipiiii?”

  Just as a death mantis moved to slice the boar with its sharp sickle, Li’l P sent the enemy flying with a heavy whomp. The piglet heard Arbiter and turned all the way around to face him. Those pure eyes glimmered with an anticipation that made Arbiter and his second-in-command flinch. They shook their heads and got down to business.

  “Where’s your master?”

  “Pi! Pipiiiii!”

  Li’l P pancaked a leaping goretiger and squealed happily. (That was the impression they got, anyway.)

  “…Boss, I have an obvious question.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Can you communicate with it?”

  “…Yeah, I thought about that after I called it. I have no clue what it’s sayin’.”

  The mercenaries and adventurers watching the situation from behind collapsed in unison. Li’l P continued goring monsters and sent them flying with a resounding “Pipiiii!” It seemed to be saying something, but the effort was in vain since the recipients didn’t speak boar.

  The commanders’ frustrations aside, the adventurer vanguard now faced the knights and demolished monster army. They mainly took care of the knights while the Flame Spears kept the monsters at bay. There were normally about one hundred knights in total, but only half were available to deal with the monster threat since the core unit was out of commission.

  Nonetheless, the mercenaries were accustomed to fighting as a group and parried the monsters with ease. Li’l P acted as backup and attacked from the sidelines, but there was no need to fuss about finishing the job. The goal of every non-monster was to get the knights to safety, so as long as they injured all four legs and left the enemy helpless, the sharp fangs of the goretigers and gaur lizards posed no threat. Each mercenary warded off attack, launched strikes from the wings, and backed one another up. Such flawless teamwork paralyzed their foes.

  Meanwhile, the adventurers successfully immobilized the knights and brought them to the rear.

  “Ha-ha-ha! The day I get to freely deck a knight has finally come!”

  “That’s what they get for swaggerin’ around town. This just feels right.”

  “Um, isn’t an iron club to the groin still kinda harsh?”

  “Better than sparing the root of all evil.”

  “Don’t sweat it. The castle needs eunuchs, right?”

  Some adventurers hit the knights’ helmets hard enough to leave a dent, while others cast them under a sleeping spell. A few used water spells to submerge the knights’ faces long enough to knock them out without actually killing them. Others mercilessly struck vital organs. The adventurers couldn’t hold back their resentment over daily transgressions but were also skilled and took great care not to kill anyone. At the same time, one had to wonder how the knights earned such treatment in the first place. They were undoubtedly reaping the fruit of their arrogance.

  Female knights had fought alongside the adventurers as well but could only shake their heads at such gratuitous violence.

  “Honestly, is fighting all they’re good at?”

  “No wonder the men are so excited to patrol the town.”

  “I’m reporting this to the captain.”

  The women’s assessment of the adventurers really couldn’t sink any lower.

  The earlier pink smoke had been infused with a Bewitch spell, but it wasn’t like the effects were permanent. The unconscious knights eventually woke and returned to their senses, but they obviously lashed out upon realizing they’d been roped and gagged. The adventurers, assuming the knights were still under the smoke’s spell, tossed them into carriages to be sent back to camp. Such outrageous treatment only exacerbated the knights’ animosity toward the adven
turers, but neither side noticed they were spinning in a vicious cycle.

  “Hey, even if we can handle the knights, there aren’t any fewer monsters…”

  “Where the hell are they comin’ from? It never ends!”

  Although the adventurers continued to neutralize the enemy while Li’l P tore the rest to shreds, the line of monsters queuing down the road was endless. Arbiter, his mercenaries, and the adventurers were on their last legs.

  Losing his temper, Arbiter thought to himself that Cayna would be able to take care of the problem in no time and shouted.

  “Hey! Miss! If you’re here, feel free to jump in anytime!!”

  “Gotcha.”

  Magic Skill: March of Sleeping Sheep

  The moment he heard that voice, the legion of monsters was suddenly overrun by a huge flock of sheep emerging from the sidelines. The semitranslucent beasts traversed past them from right to the left and disappeared upon reaching the opposite end.

  In their wake was a trail of monsters, monsters, and more monsters sprawled out and snoring across the ground. Of course, the enchanted knights and soldiers waiting to be neutralized and collected by the adventurers were no exception and slept like logs as well.

  The voice was surprisingly close, and Arbiter turned around to see Cayna pop out from the nearby forest.

  “Sorry I’m late. I was dealing with a different group.”

  “Nice timing. I hope you weren’t just waitin’ to make an entrance.”

  “Ah-ha-ha… No, you and your men just make such a stellar team that I wasn’t sure when to jump in.”

  Arbiter never thought she’d actually admit it and looked at her in exasperation. When Cayna bowed and offered a sincere apology, he could only scratch his head.

  “Well, no one died. Don’t sweat it.”

  Meanwhile, the group gathered up the remaining knights and soldiers. Their final task was vanquishing the throng of sleeping monsters while they had the chance, although the spell wouldn’t wear off for almost an entire day. For the time being, everyone retreated from the battlefield and tended to the injured. Li’l P stayed behind to take care of the monsters by crushing their heads one by one.

  The second-in-command took this opportunity to explain events to Cayna.

  “Ah. Yes, yes, I see. My guess is…they were controlled by Bewitch and Incite.”

  “Can Bewitch work on so many monsters? Never heard of a spell like that,” Arbiter said.

  “Lots of people used it two hundred years ago. Incite sends the target or targets toward an objective.”

  “So you’re sayin’ we’ll find the root of this if we figure out where those monsters came from?”

  “Um, well… Anything able to control an army that huge is a pretty big deal.”

  “Pipiiii! Pipiiii!”

  Li’l P, who had been cleaning up the monsters thus far, let out a high-pitched squeal. Frowning, Cayna drew the Rune Blade at her side and filled it with magic. The boar piglet came racing back, and she had it wait on the sidelines while she prepared for an imminent battle. Arbiter took note and immediately ordered both his subordinates and the adventurers to fall back before standing by her side.

  “That our culprit?”

  “Li’l P is on high alert, so they’re reasonably powerful. Stay behind me and act as a middle guard to prevent injuries, okay, Li’l P?”

  “Pipipiii!”

  The piglet trotted back at its owner’s behest and raised its snout in an intimidating pose. Arbiter smiled wryly and stood by Cayna’s side. Falling back without even a glance at the enemy commander went against his code.

  “Don’t complain if something weird shows up.”

  “Well, I don’t plan on gettin’ in your way at least. I’m a warrior, too, y’know.”

  Sword and spear at the ready, the duo waited by the river of monsters snoring by the main road.

  Its shoulders squared, the monster in question purposefully strode into view. Cayna prepared to confront the familiar figure, but Arbiter watched with wide-eyed cluelessness.

  “…What the hell? Never seen a lycanthrope like that before.”

  “I knew it. A leohead, huh…? Good thing I put those monsters to sleep.”

  Arbiter was mystified by her relief.

  Incidentally, lycanthrope was the general term for any animal-headed monster. This included kobolds, despite the race’s overall friendly nature. Most lycanthropes formed independent colonies and avoided outside contact, human or otherwise. Many were quite bloodthirsty, so they were treated as monsters that threatened humanity.

  This lion-headed lycanthrope wore leather armor affixed with heavily riveted metal bars and cracked a long metal whip against the ground. Beast tamers called it a leohead. It was a level-430 monster found in a quest for level-400 players and above. Back in the game, the leohead could call monsters from all around with a single crack of its whip, and you needed at least three parties of eighteen to beat the Big Bad of this endless quest with any guarantee.

  The leohead glared and growled at Cayna and Arbiter from a distance before giving its whip a solid crack. The whip came at Arbiter faster than he could react and nearly took his head, but Cayna’s Rune Blade rushed in at the last second. She sliced the tip and sent it flying in another direction.

  Soon realizing he was no match for the situation, Arbiter slowly and cautiously moved back.

  Seemingly determined to take out the weakest link first, the leohead swung at Arbiter again but was sent flying with a direct hit of Cayna’s Iyah Bomb.

  The monster drew a parabola and crash-landed in the pile of sleeping monsters, the impact waking up those nearby. Cayna’s March of Sleeping Sheep spell lasted a full day as long as nothing interfered, but any attack or significant disturbance nullified the effect.

  The leohead cracked its whip with a satisfied smile and woke the surrounding monsters. It then tried to rally the masses against Cayna, but everyone was still stiff and drowsy from their naps. Cayna used this extra time to cast Magic Skill: Maxi Iyah Graal.

  She raised her hand, and a hunk of darkness forty meters in diameter floated above her. It was covered in semitransparent film, and an even darker shadow swirled at its center.

  “Whoa there, miss. What’s that spell…?”

  “Gravity Magic. It has a pretty wide range, so I’d watch out if I were you.”

  “…Whaddaya mean, ‘Watch out’?”

  The very sight of the unfathomable darkness made Arbiter involuntarily tremble, and he tried not to look up as he prepared for the mysterious impact to come.

  Aiming for the slack-jawed leohead who had now taken a few steps back, Cayna wielded the darkness and tossed it with all her might. The Maxi Iyah Graal soared into the sky like a rubber ball before splatting to the ground and transforming into a semicircular pile of goop. Unsurprisingly, the leohead and any other monster caught in the drop zone were swallowed up.

  The darkness soon swelled like an explosive, and a huge black dome stretched over one hundred meters in diameter. It locked every single monster inside and stopped just short of Cayna and the others.

  No one could see inside or had any idea what misfortunes occurred in the hellish pit of dark gravity. The spell pulverized everything in its grasp.

  However, everyone shuddered with fear when the dome began to rumble and crack as it sank beneath the earth’s surface. The Felskeilo adventurers were once again struck by Cayna’s extraordinary abilities, and although this was nothing new to Arbiter and his Flame Spears, they gawked at the absurd sight all the same. The awakened knights were no different.

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa. What’s with that girl?!”

  “Yeah, what kind of spell is that…?”

  “Oh yeah, I guess you guys wouldn’t know.”

  “She’s the High Priest Skargo’s mother.”

  ““…………””

  One group fell into total silence. Those unaware of Cayna’s power until now stared in open-mouthed awe while the informants gave understanding nods. After all, none could forget the embarrassing time the High Priest came flying into a downtown inn. Most would assume Skargo was finally off his rocker, but his long-standing mother complex salvaged his position. In fact, many soon viewed the priest as a family man, which only further endeared him to the public.

  Comments from the peanut gallery aside, it was Cayna who was in trouble for a whole other reason.