「Lady Mira, is it? I will remember it. However, you said this is a summon? That is to say summoners are quite amazing, aren’t they!」
「It’s nothing much if it was only to this degree.」
「This fellow is ridiculous. To acquire a summoning skill which was not inferior to hobgoblins, you must have had a really good master.」
「 Hmm, well~ I suppose so~」
There are no such masters in the first place, but I’ll just pretend that there is. It became troublesome for Mira to think of an excuse so she had answered positively. The Dark Knight that had been kept out until then was made to return.
Graia disappointingly lifted his gaze from the location of the Dark Knight. Meanwhile, two groups came back from reconnaissance of the woods.
「Report. There are no signs of others in the vicinity. With regards to the companions of that young lady there, they have either already fled the surrounding area, or……」
One of the platoon leaders found it difficult to report the contents of his report. However, it was an imaginary fear. Mira stared at the platoon leader with a guilty feeling. However, the platoon leader misunderstood the glance, and exuded a cheerful air.
「Nay, I’m sure that it is alright, young lady. It is very likely that they managed to get away. It is because hobgoblins are lacking in agility stats. They are surely safe.」
To say that they were safe so many times, this platoon leader must have had a very conscientious character, almost to the point that one would think he was not acting. Basically, having come to this, she was having an internal conflict of this being a game yet not a game.1 And though she couldn’t completely abandon the idea that these were roleplaying players or NPCs, these completely human reactions2 caused her to feel quite shaken.
It was just that the existence of the bracelet terminal supported the idea that this was a game. Although she had heard Graia’s words that adventurers all carried the same thing, it was still very vague evidence and this worried her. In other words, evidence that this was a game only existed in Mira’s head.
「Report. Inside the hobgoblin’s fort, a number of high-class archgoblins have been spotted. However, we were able to confirm that there are at least 150 hobgoblins. They are thought to be the same number located in the inner premises.」
「Even for the weakest variety, there are 300. But for there to be a higher-class species as well….. We had better wait for reinforcements then.」
「Well, now that you mention it…..」
「What is it? 」
The commander hesitated to speak a little, then he opened his mouth gravely. The words caused a huge commotion among the group of knights.
「Begin to prepare battle formations against the hobgoblins. It seems the invasion is near.」
Graia’s face grimaced for a moment, and revealing a sigh, he crossed his arms as he made his decision.
「Is that so….. well there is no time to wait for reinforcements. We must somehow do it ourselves.」
Pondering a bit, the figure of the Dark Knight whom Mira had summoned appeared in Graia’s head. That overwhelming air of intimidation which caused even hobgoblins to be frightened. Also, judging from the traces of the fierce battle that took place here, the Dark Knight’s true strength was not inferior to a hobgoblin’s. Graia estimated that to be so.
Unexpectedly, the conclusion that Graia had reached through his own suppositions, was actually quite different from reality. Graia, when he first heard that the Dark Knight had killed them all, he had imagined a fierce harsh battle. Who on earth could fight with multiple opponents continuously without pause, the result was that he thought this the result of a grand battle.
The fact that Mira had dealt with 100 opponents at the same time, let alone in a span of two to three minutes did not cross his mind. Rather, it did not come to mind because he thought it was impossible. It was common sense for the elite Arkite magic knights who were dispatched to the front of battles to fight alone. The fighting method that a summoner would use to fight did not cross their minds.
「Well then, Lady Mira. Would you lend us a hand as an adventurer here? It may be useful later on to earn the knights’ gratitude.」
Their smiles ceased, Graia’s knight company protested at his decision.
Graia was keeping an eye on Mira’s summoning. Even if the odds were one-to-three for the knights, it would be unlikely for them. They had strength worthy of that of an elite. However, this time there were a large number of opponents. The danger had surely increased by six folds. This was where Mira came into play.
The summoned Dark Knight would bear the brunt of the enemy. There was no danger in dying because it could simply return. It was even better qualified as a diversion because of its dreadful appearance.
And then, while the hobgoblin’s attention was distracted, the knights would use a pincer attack to dramatically decrease their numbers. Their chances of victory would skyrocket should they be successful.
This was the plan that Graia made up.
「Hmm, well that’s fine. Then shall we go?」
「 Oh are you willing to do this? It is very kind of you. You will be compensated for this.」
Mira accepted the request. Although there was some self-interest mixed in when she accepted the request from Graia, she felt that she wouldn’t be able to sleep well if something happened to the people she just met.
What was her basis for thinking this? Not long ago, she had used 「Examine」 to get a glimpse of his status.
His stats did not amount to much after seeing this.
Looking around a little, the commander, Graia, had the highest status value. Mira assessed that his strength and stamina were rather low.
What?! The correction value of the equipment is basically non-existent! It is too low. Although it looks great, there’s nothing more than the basic performance and status on the armor he is wearing. There did not seem to have been any reinforcement items used on this.
Mira’s first impression was that a commander would have decent equipment, but that didn’t seem to be the case here.
◇──────◇
The sounds of footsteps mixed in completely with the murmuring of the stream flowing closeby.
The Millette Forest was located in the southeast of the Arkite Kingdom border.
The Arkite knights advanced jointly in order to observe the surroundings. After moving for a while, Mira and the group exited into an open space. Situated on a slightly elevated cliff was a cave which had standing trees enclosing its perimeter. A short distance inside were an overflowing amount of blue-faced hobgoblins standing in a line. A red-faced archgoblin in the vanguard raised its voice with an incoherent sound. Anyone could tell that they would soon be marching.
Graia signalled each squad to split from their platoons and hide in the shade of the trees. Each group surveyed the opponents and held their breaths.
The hobgoblins exceeded 300 as the report stated. There were only 15 archgoblins in sight. They had the premonition that it was going to be a tough fight. That’s if the knights were the only fighting force however.
Mira was lurking in a corner of the thicket that surrounded the front of the fort. With 10 reliable knights which included Graia.
The strategy was for the concealed Mira to summon the Dark Knight in the face of the enemy. It would be nice if the diversion drew up to 50 but 30 was good as well. It would prove to be a great success if the other goblin forces revealed a gap.
The company of knights had two groups stationed on the cliff top and another two groups on the sides of the fort. If the surprise attack reduced the number of goblins on the left and right sides, the Dark Knight would be expected to head to the entrance of the Goblin fort for cover. When they showed their backs, Graia would lead his 10 men to make an assault from behind.
This was the strategy that Graia had planned. He directed all the knights to do battle. He asked Mira to order the Dark Knight to act violently and attract their attention.
While feeling the sensation of sweat running down the hand that gripped his shield, Graia touched the worn sword hanging off his waist. He was waiting impatiently with bated breath for the signal from the detached force. The other knights felt the same way, with their bodies bent low, they turned their gazes to the area where the detached forces waited with deep slow breaths. The knights swallowed down their killing intent but this only served to increase their fighting spirit. The ambiance that surrounded them did not detract from their elite image.
However, Mira felt out of place in that situation. Although she felt uncomfortable with the sharpened tension, she sat cross-legged with her right hand caressing her chin while staring intently at the songbird pecking at the nut in front of her.
She observed it skillfully jostling the nut in order to eat it. The songbird pecked a hole in the seemingly hard nut. When Mira was reflecting on the songbird’s all too realistic behavior, she felt something suddenly flicker.
「It came, the signal. Fourth and Fifth squad deployment complete.」
「Second squad’s signal came.」
「This group as well. Third squad deployment complete.」
All of the deployed squads’ signals have been received. Graia closed his eyes momentarily and exhaling deeply, gripped his sword to confirm its presence.
「Alright, Lady Mira. Please summon it.」
Mira who had been floating around in her thoughts looked back at the voice in a panic, her gaze hastily removed from the songbird.
「Ok, then let’s move along.」
The emergence point for the summoning technique was decided to be a short distance away from the fort on a hill.
【Summoning Skill: Dark Knight】
The black knight who appeared to be clad in jet-black flames quickly caught the attention of the goblins with its overwhelming presence.
The sudden appearance of an unidentified party caused the goblin force to display bewildered expressions. While raising their voices with an incoherent sound, the goblins raised their weapons without breaking formation.
Mira, who was surveying the goblins, revised her outdated ideas about goblin behavior. Then, the goblins slowly switched their ranks and soon after, twenty hobgoblins commanded by an archgoblin began to run towards the Dark Knight.
At first glance, they seemed to have been following the command of the archgoblin leader to attack. But judging from the manner in which they started charging and the order, it seemed that they were not working together.
「There’s only twenty, it’s not enough for a distraction but there is no helping it.」
Graia quietly muttered. If there were only such a small number then they would be able to clean it up immediately.
However, a situation occurred which exceeded Graia’s imagination. The Black Knight who held the sword by its side suddenly crouched and spang off. Rather than a normal jump, it crouched so low that it almost kissed the ground and leapt off with immense force.
