18 - Chapter 14: The Three Idiots' Serious Break Theory
Here comes Comedy-san's counter!
The traces left in the forest were mostly blatant. Not only were there numerous footprints, but trees had been knocked down as if following them. Later gave a wry smile, thinking that detailed tracking skills weren't even necessary here.
That said, it was not a laughing matter. A massive body capable of knocking down trees so easily. Considering the traces that looked as if the forest were being carved open, it was a herd. And since they were dragon-kin, he had a general idea of what it was, but...
"Whoa, whoa, whoa... this is insane..."
"Larc, we can't... there's no way we can win against this..."
Alan and Mira were speechless before the herd of earth dragons lining the canyon known as the Giant's Path. There must have been over a hundred of them.
When people hear "dragons that crawl the earth," they likely imagine something like a giant crocodile, but in reality, they were creatures that stood and ran, closer to triceratops or rhinos. However, even the small ones were over 4 meters tall and reached 7 meters in total length. They had surpassed moose and were practically the size of sheds. And the earth dragon that seemed to be the boss of the herd, being exceptionally large, was like a giant kaiju, 30 meters tall and 60 meters long.
And beyond them, separated by a barrier, were several people. Looking closely, Imperial soldiers could also be seen. They were undoubtedly the survivors of the pioneer village.
However, Larc had to make a bitter decision. It was impossible to face the earth dragons with this amount of combat power.
They couldn't be saved. They couldn't be helped. He had to abandon those who had managed to survive.
He wasn't noble enough to say it wasn't for the sake of his own life, but if he showed reckless courage here, it would only increase the number of corpses... if it stopped there, there would still be some salvation. What was truly terrifying was what came after. Where would the earth dragons go after filling their bellies with all the humans, including themselves? Naturally, they would seek their next prey. It would be fine if they simply targeted other wild animals, but since they had the experience of a successful hunt, humans would naturally enter that option.
In other words, they would start attacking other villages.
The Empire would likely put in a serious effort against this, but armies are fundamentally sluggish. Once they start moving, they don't stop, and their power increases in proportion to their mass, but on the other hand, their initial response is slow. There was no telling how many villages would be sacrificed before they moved to exterminate the earth dragons.
But if they retreated now and brought back information, they could speed up that initial response somewhat. By abandoning them, they could reduce the number of subsequent victims... considering the rationality, that was the best choice. Larc thought that he, as the leader, should be the one to take the blame.
"Alright, retreat..."
And just as he was about to voice his bitter decision, three idiots laughed loudly as usual.
"Hyaa! A herd of earth dragons, huh? I've heard dragon meat is delicious. What do you think, Teacher-nobleman?"
"Good grilled, good stewed, and you can even get broth from the bones, so nothing goes to waste. Once, in the middle of the night, I suddenly wanted to eat ramen and used it as an ingredient. Combined with the sense of guilt, it was super delicious."
"The taste is rich, like Shamo chicken. It's full of collagen, so the skin-beautifying effect is outstanding. Besides, the scales, horns, claws, eyeballs, and internal organs sell for a high price. They can be used as alchemy materials, so I'd like a few."
The Three Idiots.
Far from being afraid after seeing such a herd of earth dragons, they were fully intent on defeating them. Or rather, they were already looking at the earth dragons as nothing more than food ingredients.
"Huh...?"
The members of Hekireki, speechless at the sheer difference in perception, asked timidly.
"H-hey, you guys, what are you talking about? They're earth dragons!"
"They're earth dragon meat, right?"
"And it's a herd!"
"It's a huge catch, isn't it?"
"Didn't you say we should run from opponents we have no chance of winning against!"
"This is just a hunt, though?"
However, the perceptions of the Three Idiots were sadly mismatched.
"And look, they're motivated."
In the meantime, the situation seemed to be progressing, and the barrier between the refugees and the earth dragons was about to be released. Seeing the determined faces of the refugees, they had likely judged that further fortification was impossible and had decided to take a desperate gamble.
"Ooh! Fluffy! There are fluffy ones too!!"
"Oh my, there are little ones too. Shaking and trembling, how cute."
"Ehh..."
What was about to happen was undoubtedly a massacre (meal) by the herd of earth dragons, but the Three Idiots remained carefree, not seeming to mind at all. That said, they weren't psychopaths who could laugh while watching people be eaten.
"Hmm... there seems to be a difference in perception. If it's earth dragons, magic works on them, so there's no problem."
"My master apparently cut down a red dragon using this (Holy Martial Scripture) in the past, so earth dragons should be fine."
"My army is ferocious."
"Well, for that reason, something like that can be handled however we want."
They simply didn't view the earth dragons as opponents they couldn't win against.
"No, but still..."
To Larc, who was still hesitating, the Three Idiots, judging that it would be bad if they didn't step in to help soon, took a step forward.
"...In the past, we each had various constraints. Work, sexual preferences, ways of living."
They were talking about their previous lives.
Dreams shattered, buried in the daily grind of busyness, cast out by society.
"But I've grown tired of such tedious things."
However, to live in such a world, one had to conform to rules (common sense) whose origin was unknown.
"Now that I've become an adventurer, I've decided to do as I please under the name of a free person."
But they had reincarnated and been liberated from the laws and values of Japan, which were bound by the theory of innate goodness and lukewarm ethics.
"The great people of the past said it."
The essence of living beings, that power is justice, does not change even across worlds. Rather, since this is a world where wielding it without hesitation is accepted, they could do as they pleased as long as they could bear the responsibility.
"That depressing developments are meant to be crashed."
Naturally, they chose who to exert their power upon, but they showed no mercy in order to enjoy this world with loud laughter.
"Then let us break them, crush them, overrun them. All the irrationality (serious) of those who get in our way, with even greater irrationality (jokes)."
They would enjoy themselves enough to make up for their depressing previous lives. At the very least, they would destroy the mood-killing stories (serious) in front of them with smiles.
"Yes, we are..."
Because they were...
"The Serious Breakers!"
Declaring in unison, they had very fine smiles on their faces.
"Decode!"
Immediately after, the Three Idiots soared into the air with Geoglyph magic.
●
Kazuha saw the barrier being released. She would not redeploy it. What was about to begin was a game of tag with their lives on the line. The refugees would run toward the beastman village until their strength gave out.
"All personnel, get ready!"
"Ooooooh!!"
Whether they could survive that was unknown, but the Imperial soldiers would buy them time. However, Kazuha knew they were battered and bruised. That was why she and Latia would stay behind to buy time. So that at least her younger sister and as many refugees as possible could reach their hometown.
It had been hard to persuade them. After all, even young Sakura could tell that being the rearguard here was a suicide mission. Even so, this was the method with the highest survival rate.
Facing the earth dragons that radiated an overwhelming presence, her body trembled. Until just a moment ago, she had played the role of the dignified older sister. Kazuha whispered softly, wishing that for just this moment, she would be allowed to show weakness.
"Someone... help me...!"
"Coming right up."
As if responding to that call, an idiot fell from the sky.
To be continued tomorrow.