kscans

Chapter 209 - Pride and Disappointment

The Republic.

The battlefield between the army and the monsters.

As the humans stood by at the designated battlefield, monsters emerged from the forest and advanced toward them.

It was a horde of Goblins, Wolves, Anacondas, and Mantises.

Seeing this, Bradamante said, "Just as expected. Now, everyone, we will proceed as planned!"

The soldiers and knights let out a war cry and advanced.

Recognizing their enemy, both sides charged. And then, they clashed.

A fierce battle. The resounding clang of steel, roars, and screams...

A soldier impaled a Goblin with his spear. The Goblin writhed in agony, and just as the soldier thought it was dead, an Anaconda closed in from behind. He tried to pull his spear out, but it was stuck. The Goblin was holding onto it with both hands. The soldier clicked his tongue, let go of his spear, and tried to fight back with the knife he carried, but he missed.

The Anaconda's poisonous fangs sank into his left leg. As his leg went numb and he couldn't move properly, a Mantis appeared behind him and lopped off his head.

A pack of Wolves was about to attack a group of soldiers when the soldiers suddenly dropped to the ground. Then, the archers behind them fired a volley, turning the Wolves into pincushions and killing them instantly.

Both sides were taking casualties, and it was impossible to tell which side had more survivors.

One thing was certain: there were no adventurers here.

Near the entrance to the forest.

There stood the rear guard of the monster forces: Fighter Monkeys, Geckos, five Goblin Knights, and a four-armed gorilla, a Muay Thai Kong. The monsters felt that the battle was turning slightly against them and were about to sally forth.

Just then, they heard the scream of a Fighter Monkey.

They turned their gaze to see humans.

When did they get there? As they were thinking this, the humans attacked all at once.

*

A short time earlier.

When the adventurers arrived at the battlefield, the Guild Master told them, "Alright, we'll move according to plan. First, I want you all to put these on."

He brought out large, green cloths.

"Cover your entire bodies with these," the Guild Master explained, "and crawl forward across the grassland to infiltrate the forest without being noticed. While their attention is focused on the battlefield, we'll launch a surprise attack from both flanks."

An adventurer asked, "Question. Even if the cloth is the same color as the grass, isn't there a chance we'll be spotted?"

The Guild Master replied, "Normally, they would find it strange. But once the battle starts, both humans and monsters will be focused on the fight. Especially if they think our main force is all there. But we will not rush; we will move slowly. The Knight Order is set to act as a decoy and fight flamboyantly."

Another adventurer asked, concerned, "Will the Knight Order be alright?"

"To break this stalemate, we need to make a move," the Guild Master said. "We need to catch them completely off guard. The knights are a conspicuous presence among the human forces, making them perfect for a decoy operation. Of course, the knights have agreed to this through Captain Bradamante. Normally, they might feel a bit down about it, but the situation doesn't allow for that."

The adventurer's expression changed. "I see. So, the key to this operation is us, the adventurers."

The air grew tense, but it was also filled with motivation.

They were already prepared, but being given the most important role was a heavy burden for anyone, and it fired them up just as much. The feeling of being counted on can sometimes bring out more than one's usual performance.

The Guild Master's face was serious, allowing no room for weakness. "I know how you feel. But someone has to do it. You all came here with that resolve, didn't you?"

They didn't need the Guild Master to tell them that. There was no way they could back out now.

"That's right," an adventurer said. "It's too late for that now."

He covered himself with the cloth.

The other adventurers did the same. The Guild Master nodded with a smile, covered himself, and began crawling forward.

*

Back to the present, inside the forest.

The monsters were caught off guard by the surprise attack and failed to react.

"Hraagh! Hraagh! Hraagh!" the Guild Master roared.

He thrust his assault spear repeatedly, impaling all five Goblin Knights.

The other adventurers also cut down monsters with their swords and axes. But that didn't last long. The Fighter Monkeys were the first to counterattack. An adventurer was caught off guard by their bare-handed fighting style and had his neck broken.

Then, the Muay Thai Kong wreathed its entire body in lightning and swung its fist down in a wide arc.

The ground cracked, and lightning spread out, electrocuting several adventurers to death.

The Guild Master shouted, "Everyone! Get back!"

The adventurers retreated.

As they left the forest, the Fighter Monkeys and the Muay Thai Kong gave chase. What's more, another Muay Thai Kong emerged from the depths of the forest.

The Guild Master said, "The surprise attack was a success for now. Fortunately, we managed to slay the Goblin Knights. All that's left is to take down these monkeys."

He readied his assault spear. "Skill: Vibration!"

An invisible attack shot forward in a straight line.

He was aiming for one of the Muay Thai Kongs. The attack sent three Fighter Monkeys in its path flying. The Muay Thai Kong, however, didn't try to dodge the approaching attack, but braced itself.

The Muay Thai Kong wreathed both its hands in lightning and caught the attack. It was pushed back several meters but was not sent flying.

An adventurer gasped, "No way..."

Fear spread through the ranks.

Of course it did. The Guild Master's skill had been ineffective. It was only natural to be afraid.

The Guild Master shouted, "Don't falter! This is a high-ranking monster! This was within my expectations! What's important is that it was focused on blocking the attack! That means if we create an opening, we have a chance to win!"

His face was a mask of fighting spirit.

The adventurers exchanged glances. It would be tough to take on two of them at once. But if they could just buy time against one while they took down the other, they could win. They steeled their resolve for death and prepared themselves.

Just as they were thinking this...

"Apologies for the delay! Bradamante has arrived!"

Trident in hand, she joined the adventurers.

"Why are you here?" the Guild Master asked. "Is everything alright over there?!"

At her sudden appearance, Bradamante replied, "My second-in-command said, 'Leave this to us and go support the others.' Thanks to the adventurers' efforts, the burden on the knights has been lightened. All that's left is to defeat the high-ranking monsters!"

She looked at the Muay Thai Kongs.

The adventurers were half-relieved and half-dejected. They had just steeled themselves for death to face the Muay Thai Kongs. They had thought their heroic deeds would be told for generations to come.

Now that was all for naught. It was only natural to be disappointed.

But it was also certain that they would live a little longer.

"Then I'll leave one to you," the Guild Master said. "You guys, take care of the other monsters. It seems there are still some in the forest."

Where he was looking, a group of Geckos and Mantises had appeared.

It seemed they had still been hiding. The adventurers renewed their fighting spirit and readied their weapons. Then, the Muay Thai Kong let out a roar.

The Fighter Monkeys charged the adventurers. The adventurers stepped forward to prevent the Guild Master and the knight captain from expending unnecessary energy.

Both sides charged and the battle began.

They were thrown off by the Fighter Monkeys' martial arts, but they dealt with them appropriately, slaying them one by one. Elsewhere, however, another adventurer's bones were shattered by a single blow from a Fighter Monkey, his internal organs ruptured, and he died.

The two Muay Thai Kongs clashed with the Guild Master and Bradamante.

The Muay Thai Kong parried the assault spear with its right fist, while another right hand and a left hand came down simultaneously in a chop.

"Muscle Guard!" the Guild Master roared.

His muscles swelled, stopping the chops.

This wasn't a skill, but simply him circulating magic throughout his body to increase his strength and power. If anyone else tried it, they would dislocate their joints and be unable to move for a while, but the Guild Master, with his robust physique, could use it without any strain.

The Muay Thai Kong felt that its attack had no effect. The Guild Master's left fist sank into its abdomen.

The Muay Thai Kong let out a small breath. They both took a step back.

Bradamante was clashing with the other Muay Thai Kong.

She wreathed her trident in water and swung it in a slashing motion. The Muay Thai Kong dodged it by parrying with its left hand. The Muay Thai Kong's other left hand came at her with an open palm strike. Bradamante amplified the water around her spear and shot it out like a jet.

Like a water bottle rocket, she used the force to jump back diagonally to the right, evading the attack.

She was about two meters away, neither too close nor too far.

The Muay Thai Kong didn't pursue Bradamante, but fell back. It seemed it was surprised by the force of the water and was now wary.

Amidst this fierce battle, the group that had come from the forest drew closer.

Some of the adventurers headed toward them. If the battle became a free-for-all in one place, the adventurers would be at a disadvantage. The monsters had no sense of camaraderie; they would attack without mercy even in a one-on-one fight.

To prevent that, they split the battlefield to reduce casualties as much as possible.

In the Republic, three battlefields had formed, and the fighting was reaching its peak.

As an aside, the Muay Thai Kong was the same high-ranking monster that Shinsuke and Tina had defeated in the Empire. However, it would be much later that the two of them learned that the gorilla they had fought was a high-ranking monster.