kscans

Chapter 195 - Battle Against the Lizardman Hunter

Our battle against the two Lizardman Hunters began.

Tina was on high alert.

At first glance, it looks like a small Lizardman, but its leg strength and charging power are superior to the regular kind. I can't look away for even a second.

The two sides stared each other down. It was the monster that made the first move.

Tina dodged the spear wielder's thrust to the right. Just as she was about to counter, her opponent spun halfway around, swinging the butt of its spear at her. Tina quickly blocked it with her sword, but the force sent her flying back slightly.

The spear wielder pressed its advantage, charging the fallen Tina.

"Air Accelerate!" Tina cried.

A blast of wind erupted from both her feet, launching her backward like a rocket.

"That was close," Tina said, thanking her lucky stars as she got back up. "I was saved by an idea from Earth."

She had remembered a scene from a manga where a character shot fire or wind from their feet to fly, and she had just tried it out in a real battle for the very first time.

The fact that it succeeded was proof that Tina had not neglected her magic training. The spear wielder was momentarily surprised but quickly reset its stance.

"As expected of a high-level monster," Tina muttered, a cold sweat breaking out on her brow. "I can see why Shinsuke wanted to finish them off quickly."

Against ordinary monsters, taking her time wouldn't be a problem. They had no intelligence. Creatures that moved on instinct could learn to a certain degree, but it was negligible. High-level monsters, however, had a terrifying capacity for learning.

And monsters that used weapons were a threat in and of themselves.

But trying to defeat it quickly was difficult; its skill was high. In human terms, it was equivalent to a B-rank adventurer. On top of that, its physical abilities surpassed a human's. A-rank, no doubt. Tina glanced at the broadsword hanging at her waist.

With this sword, defeating the Lizardman would be easy.

It was a legendary-class weapon, imbued with Light Magic. But to use it recklessly would be like giving away information to the enemy.

She wanted to avoid that at all costs.

"In that case... should I use magic?" Tina pondered. "But there's no guarantee it will wait for me to cast. If it comes to this..."

Tina took a deep breath and readied her sword.

Seeing this, the spear wielder sensed an opening and charged. It was fast, closing the distance in an instant. Tina dodged the spear's tip with the most minimal of movements. As if it had anticipated this, the monster spun the butt of its spear around again.

It was the same move as before, but that didn't matter in the heat of battle.

This time, however, Tina swung her sword with the slightest motion and sliced off the end of the spear shaft. The creature was stunned, but it quickly recovered its composure.

That brief moment—a mere second—was all Tina needed.

In that time, she lopped off the spear wielder's right leg.

Before it could even process what had happened, the creature collapsed. As it struggled to get up, Tina mercilessly approached and sent its head flying.

Meanwhile, my own battle with the sword wielder had begun.

Unlike the one from yesterday, this one wielded a longsword. It seemed too large for a small Lizardman, but this was a monster. Its physical strength was on a completely different level from a human's.

I thought it would charge straight at me, but instead, it approached while weaving left and right in a series of side-steps.

A feinting tactic. It was up to the monster which direction it would attack from.

I remained calm and waited, unfazed.

No matter how it moves, it has to get close to hit me with a melee weapon. The sword wielder gradually drew nearer.

Left or right? The moment it moved left, its footwork changed. Left it is!

The creature appeared before me and swung its sword down.

I blocked it with my own blade. We were locked in a stalemate.

Perhaps because of the height difference, I had a slight advantage, just like yesterday. The monster must have realized this, because a stream of water shot from its mouth.

It wasn't saliva; it was ejected like a water gun.

It hit me square in the face. Taken by surprise, I immediately jumped back.

After regaining my footing, I checked my face. It seemed to be just water. It was unpleasant, but in a fight, there was no room for complaints.

I expected the sword wielder to attack immediately, but it was also resetting its stance.

That seemed less like a planned ambush and more like a tactic it had just improvised.

"Looks like you're just as troublesome as yesterday's opponent," I said. "If this drags on, the next fights will be tough. Time to end this."

With that, I infused my sword with magic.

Seeing my blade glow red, the sword wielder did the same, shrouding its own sword in water.

Two magic swords facing off. Would it be over in an instant? Or would we clash?

The two of us glared at each other... and then we both charged.

We collided. Swords rang against each other.

But it seemed my blade was superior in strength. A small crack appeared on my opponent's sword.

Realizing this, it shifted its blade slightly, parrying my attack as it dodged to the left.

Sensing my chance, I slammed my body into the creature. I couldn't give it any time to recover.

The sword wielder lost its balance and staggered.

From behind, I brought my sword down in an overhand strike. The monster was cleaved in two, its life extinguished.

"Phew... Well, that's over, for now... Huh?"

I sensed a presence approaching me.

I turned to see Tina hurrying over.

"Looks like you're finished, too," she said. "The tide seems to have turned on that battlefield as well."

I looked where she was pointing.

The battle between the adventurers and the monsters was now leaning in the adventurers' favor. Instead of charging blindly, they had formed a defensive line, absorbing the enemy's attacks while archers and magicians provided support from the rear. The monsters, meanwhile, had archers supporting their vanguard, but the adventurers' accuracy was higher. That difference was changing the course of the battle.

"Should we go help them?" I asked.

Tina nodded.

But just then, a soldier ran up to us.

"I'm glad to see you're both safe. You appear to be injured, so please return to the base immediately."

"It's fine," I replied. "They're just scratches. You're overreacting."

Tina nodded in agreement.

It was true we had a few cuts, but they were all minor. No need for treatment.

"No, I must insist," the soldier said. "The General ordered me to have you return to the base as soon as the rescue was successful."

An order from the General, huh?

As hired hands, we had no choice but to obey.

"Alright, we'll head back," I said. "But just one thing. Was there damage anywhere else?"

To this, the soldier replied, "Shortly after the main battle began, we were ambushed from both the left and right flanks. It took time to respond and reallocate our forces, which is why reinforcements were late in getting to you."

He looked apologetic.

"Don't worry about it," I said. "We're not blaming you. In fact, we're grateful you came at all."

Tina smiled and nodded as well.

The soldier seemed relieved.

"Thank you very much. This way, please."

We followed him as he led the way.

And so, we managed to fend off the surprise attack on the front-line base.

However, in the Kingdom...