The next morning, Zeros left the tent, basking in the sun shining on the grasslands while feeling refreshed.
Heâs, originally, up early in the morning because heâs used to farming. Thatâs why he goes to bed earlier than the others, but itâs proof that he has a healthy lifestyle.
The problem is that there are no fields to cultivate here. It was good until he got up, but he was infinitely free.
âIâm free so, What should I do?â
There was nothing to do.
In his former world, this is the time when eggs were collected from the henhouse and the fields were weeded out. Breakfast was the leftovers from the previous day and he would spent his time leisurely watching TV and playing online games in the afternoon. Even though he was unemployed, he wasnât troubled with his living expenses because of the rent from the house his parents left him. In a sense, he was in a privileged environment.
Heâs now a vagrant without a place to stay. Even if somehow he managed to get a home and a plot of land, he was still unemployed. Heâs a tutor, but in a month heâll just return to being out of work. He can sell the materials from the monsters he defeats but heâd rather refrain because it seems to be a dangerous way of living. He doesnât want to work for the country either, he just wants to freely live a normal life.
âThatâs not going to happen isnât it?âŠâ
In all honesty, he didnât want to get a job with many responsibilities attached. That is even more true if someone elseâs life is involved.
It should be a refreshing morning but his mood gets progressively worse.
âOhh⊠heâs out!! Oooooooooohhh!!!â
âItâs a white devil! The one that took my pants off!â
âCalm down! Is everyone alright?â
âI donât believe it! It ran away!!â
The watchman after the night shift seems to have encountered the Crazy Ape. The knights⊠no, the men have no choice but to think the Crazy Ape is a demon.
Even though she had a spear, Celestina attacked the knights without looking.
Seven knights got their pants removed, and two of them got not only their pants removed but their manly parts between their legs caressed. The dread is unimaginable.
In a way, it might be better to come across a dragon, the Crazy Ape was dangerous in another way, leaving enormous mental trauma on the knights.
âI can hear his voice âĄ!â
Well they donât seem to be suffering anymoreâŠ
It seems they had a traumatic enough experience to start hearing voices.
A sorrowful cry reverberates through the morning plains. Zeros feels heavier in a different sense and for some reason his tears donât stop flowingâŠ
âăăâăăâăăâ
âWhy is the breakfastâs mood so gloomy?âŠâ
âYouâre okay because youâre a woman, only men know true fearâŠâ
In response to Celestina, who gave her honest impressions, Zweit grumbles at her. Breakfast is on a day-to-night condition(*T.N: no idea whatâs supposed to mean ). Honestly, nobody can savor the taste of the meal.
They silently give up, just quietly chewing their breakfast.
It wasnât just gloomy, it was a despair equal to everything in this world, and it was wrapped in such an atmosphere as if all dreams and hopes were lost.
There are two female knights in this squad, but the Crazy Apes spared them not even a glance so only the male knights became their prey.
Zerosâ spirit was already driven to a corner before so there wasnât any more fear in him.
âThis is just a question, but if the males attack other males⊠then what about the females?â
That was a question that should never be considered because it can lead to further misfortune. But once you start wondering about it⊠Itâs something difficult to omit.
âAfter all⊠wouldnât it just attack a female?â
âWait, so would it attack a female if it pretends to be a male?â
âMaybe it does bothâŠâ
âI donât want to think about it!!â
âWait, hypothetically as to aim only for the females⊠Do you want to see such things?â
âI donât want to see it⊠not pretty to imagine.â
ââ You guys are perverts!!ââ
If you think about it, theyâre killing monsters because they are harmful beasts but they donât know anything about their ecology. There is certainly a breeding season as with animals but no one has confirmed the authenticity of that. It is likely that some of the people that have investigated in the past have died because thereâs not much knowledge about it in the present. Ecological investigation of monsters is difficult due to being full of dangers.
It is, therefore, obscure and full of mysteries, but whether anyone wants to investigate the Crazy Apeâs ecology is a great question. In another sense, the risk is too high.
âSo what about todayâs schedule? Weâre your escorts, so itâll depend on your actions.â
âWell itâs not like I have to do it. Letâs hunt the monsters after collecting their magic stones? Theyâll be extra revenueâ
âââDonât want to!!!âââ
âââŠâŠâŠââ
The Crazy Ape had too much of an impact. The wounds carved by it are quite deep. In the end, they all get along well an go to the depths of the forest. Thatâs the knightsâ job and role.
If you accept any job, you have to take responsibility until the end. Itâs the same in every world.
âăăâăăâăăâ
Far-flungâs large, deep woodlands is a forest that boasts a vast an area as its name suggests. More than half of the continent is covered by this forest, and only about a third of the area is where people can live. (*T.N: Yes, âFar-flungâ is the name of the forest. There were much cooler options but the reference wouldnât make sense if it didnât have the word âfarâ in it. )
The countries are scattered in a narrow territory, and at the time of the Evil God War, it was enough for a unified state to be formed for a while. The great nation eventually declined and, once again, returned to a situation where small countries were trying to conquer each other.
It may be difficult to make the ideal a reality, because the rise and fall of great empires is the norm of the world, and the downfall of the Unified State was in less than a hundred years.
This vast forest is a place that will never change as we continue to watch the situation of this world.
The environment in which many monsters live, in the providence of carnage and rejection of civilization, is pretty much hell, and itâd take being an elf to live in such a harsh forest.
Such elves try to not get too involved with humans, and donât show themselves in front of anyone except certain people.
The reason lies in the Unified State after the Evil God War, at that time it flourished as a country with a philanthropic spirit beyond tribes but it ended up corrupting and splitting up before human desires. The ideal is expensive and difficult to materialize.
The elves were so taken aback by the foolishness of the people that they went into this harsh forest to create their own country, and then secluded themselves. Because they lived for a long time, they looked too far ahead and despaired.
Itâs now unclear where the country is located, and many are trying to find it an obtain it.
Because of their excellence in magic, greedy individuals are trying to enslave them and incorporate them into their own armies. You can only say thereâs no salvation.
There are times you can see elves, but most of them are the descendants of those who have lived with humans without hiding themselves.
Nonetheless, the large and deep greenbelt of Far-flung is a harsh environment, although at the same time, is a rich forest. There are many medicinal herbs and minerals in this vast forest, so there are many people who set foot in it in search for them. The profits are higher than what you can make by farming alone, double the value of medicinal herbs, and ten times the value of special herbs such as mandrakes. If you can make an elixir or secret medicine, its value will continue to rise.
âThis forest⊠has an unusual concentration of magic, thatâs why the monsters are so strong.â
âThe trees are massive, too. They seem healthful and growing quite fast.â
âI donât care, It is not here, is it? I donât wanna see it in a place like this.â
The knights all nodded.
âIâm interested in femalesâŠâ
âââPlease donât say horrible things!!!!âââ
The cry of the soul of every knight.
No one wants to encounter a monster with a metamorphic habit. Celestina, who knows that thereâs no harm to herself is calm in her heart.
Itâs nothing other than fear for the men in this place and theyâre getting more vigilant than usual because of it.
âââ !? âââ
Whether it is happiness or misfortune, they have sensed the presence of monsters immediately.
âââ GruooorruururururâŠ
The monster has the body of a lion, the head of a goat, the tail of a scorpion and bat wings on its back. Itâs a chimera, famous for being a high-ranked monster.
Chimeras donât have an identical appearance with one another. Their appearances range from things that might be similar to completely different figures. Furthermore, they have special abilities that differ from individual to individual, and even if they are defeated thereâs the added difficulty of having to change your strategy for every single Chimera to be able to defeat them.
Thus, it was one of the monsters you didnât want to encounter in this vast forest.
âItâs a Chimera, level 124. Itâs a bit weaker than the previous one I defeated.â
âââ Level 124??!!! Impossible!! We canât possibly win!!âââ
The level is about four times the average of the knights, but much higher in terms of strength. If they are attacked, they would be overwhelmed enough to be killed instantly⊠except for one person.
âItâs alright! ă Chain of Darkness ăâ
A jet-black chain entangles from the shadow of the Chimera, sealing its movement in an instant.
âââWhat are you doing!?âââ
âAre you going to kill it? Please attack quickly, this magic consumes magic power so itâll drain mine eventually.â
It sounded like a joke, but Zeros was completely serious.
âIsnât it an attack? You have two swords, right? Didnât you use magic too?!â
âItâs a little bit of magic, but itâs the other characteristic of this magic that makes it tenable, if you do your best you can defeat it.â
âBy the way, the power is great but the restraining time is short, Itâll attack if you donât do it right now?â
âââWhatâs wrong with youuu!!!âââ
They cry and cry⊠No, theyâre pulling out their swords while actually weeping and charge towards the Chimera. There was nothing but fear, and the knights wielded their swords to live.
They donât know when the Chimera will be free of its restrains so the knights wield their swords in fear because they want to live, and theyâll surely do some damage.
Itâs no longer a controlled, precise technique, it just looks like theyâre slamming their swords blindly.
If you look from the side, it looks like a group lynching, but the Chimera is a formidable enemy and if you donât defeat it they will soon pursuit you.
If you do poorly, they could come after you in your country. There exist the bad example where, in the past, some nobles entered the forest and unsuccessfully tried to kill a Chimera. Later, the monster appeared in the territory of the foolish nobles and many people were sacrificed. The level of that chimera was around 200.
The average level of the worldâs strongest humans is around 250. Even Creston is level 243 so itâs no wonder they canât manage Wyverns who are around level 300.
They have the potential to be strong, but in reality, theyâve stopped growing. The people of this world should be able to go up to level 500 at the highest.
After a while, the Chimera stops moving.
Is it about forty minutes now? They continue to wield their swords, but theyâre mentally fatigued.
Even if each of them are weak, if they attack in group theyâll eventually manage to accumulate damage to the chimera. Moreover, a Chimera that has been deprived of movement and magic is just a target, and they should be able to defeat it without much difficulty.
âHahaha⊠Iâm level 43. It was 24 until a while agoâŠâ
âMe too⊠Iâm not happy at all.â
âMy body hurts⊠is it the side effect of rising your levels?â
âThe skill level has gone up⊠hahahaâŠâ
âMy level is 68âŠ?â
âI will be 50 soonâŠâ
But none of them were happy with the victory. More than that, fear has bound them.
Zeros who had been watching on the sidelines, examined the HP reduction of the Chimera and estimated that the damage points the knights dealt was about ïŒïœïŒïŒ.
Apparently, this Chimera is likely a defense-specific type, it seems to have had more defense than what its level implied. Though the defensive power was reduced by the magicâs effect, even if its magic power is further deprived, it seems to have some kind of resistance skill so there was a strong tendency for the effect to be resisted.
In addition, it seemed to have HP resilience as a special ability, but it was meaningless before the sheer number of the group attacking it. It would be difficult to break through Zerosâ magic, but the probability isnât nil so you canât judge whether you have good or bad luck.
âLetâs dismantle it, Can someone help me?â
ââWait, koorrraaaaahhh!!!ââ
The knightsâ angry voices contrasts Zeros who tries to start dismantling as if nothing even happened.
Fear turns into anger and that anger has already reached its limits. If thereâs no good reason, the brunt of that anger will be directed at Zeros
âHow do you fight it, What would have happened if we died?!!â
ââIt almost killed us!!ââ
âWho died?â
âThatâs not it! Thatâs what wouldâve happened if the restraining magic ran out!â
âDid it run out? The restraining magic?â
ââââŠâŠâŠ Ohh?âââ
Zeros said the restraining magic would break sooner rather than later. However, the magic actually lasted until the chimera died so there was a sense of incongruity there.
âZ-Zeros-dono? No way, did you lie to us?â
âI thought it was bad, but youâre too weak and thereâs no way of escaping when thereâs a powerful monster in front of you. However, if you raise your level, your chances of survival will increase.â
âWhy did you do that? If you say something like thatâŠâ
âYou canât fight strong monsters off-guard. Iâm not always by your side and I canât talk about fighting unless Iâm prepared to face a stronger opponent. This vast forest is inhabited by a myriad of horrendous monsters after all.â
Out of this group, Zeros is the strongest, however, his presence is a guarantee of safety for the knights, but heâs not going to seriously fight at the risk of his own life. It gives them a sense of security, the presence of a strong man being besides them and in their hearts, they unconsciously assumed to be safe so thereâs the possibility that it will eventually lead to failure. Itâd be too late to make such a fatal mistake by then.
âI think weâve got a lot of training to doâŠâ
âYou can raise your combat skills later, but now you need to raise your level as higher as possible. You canât be caught off guard in this forest⊠in many waysâŠâ
âDo you mean the peace of mind that Zeros-donoâs presence gives us makes us weak?
These knights are currently in the hands of Zeros(T.N: meaning that they depend on him for everything, I guess ). The only way to reverse that is to force all of them to be strong. In addition, in order to improve their abilities, Zeros only restrained the monsterâs movement.
The inner thoughts of Zeros at this timeâŠ
(Theyâre weak⊠Itâs the truth. I have no choice but to artificially rise their levels, but it feels weird to make them leech off of me, and if you think about the future, itâs better to get strong on your own.
This forestâs monstersâ levels are slightly over 500 at most, isnât it? They canât survive!! What kind of impossible game is that!?
I donât wanna see people die, and I have to raise their levels even if I make it hard. But, itâs troublesome to manage this number of people⊠or should I say, impossible!!)
âŠIt was like that.
The Orcs were stuck at a relatively low level, but monsters with levels over 100 suddenly appear.
Whatâs more, he said âIâm going to let you level up, so isnât it fine if the number of people increase a little bit? If it works, you guys might be able to manage some of the monsters around here, is what Iâm thinking.ââŠ
In short, the knights canât even guard them properly. Raising their levels would help but itâs like saying âjust protect yourselfâ.
No matter how strong Zeros is, depending of the strategy and circumstances, thereâs a high probability that it will be different for them. In the meantime, if they encounter some heinous monster, they knights will be wiped out without any way to counter-attack.
For the time being, theyâre fighting for themselves, but itâs still troublesome when there are many people to protect.
On the other hand, ArlevâŠ
(No way⊠Thinking about us⊠Iâve been thinking since I first met him, heâs definitely not an ordinary person.
Itâs true that knights are the elite who protect the people, but in this world there are so many of them as to sweep and overthrow the strong. What is a knight who doesnât challenge the strong. We must be brave!
Who can say that in a battle thereâs always an opponent whoâs weaker than you. Zeros-donoâs way of thinking is reasonable, and most of all, he thought about us and dared to take strict measures to help us grow.
I will accept this favor now, if there comes a time when this person needs our strength, we must be strong enough to return this favorâŠ)
The stocks were soaring without Zerosâ knowledge.
Because the knights have strict discipline they were tough⊠well no, more like all brawn and no brains. More than that, they were active professionals, no matter how refreshing they look, they are a group of hot-blooded people. Itâs the reason why they have a bad relationship with the science/magic division.
âEveryone listen! We were certainly spoiled by Zeros-dono. Thatâs evident considering yesterdayâs bout with the Orcs. But, is that really good?
We are knights who protect the people!! What can the knights protect if they are afraid of the strong!?
From now on, we will raise our levels according to Zeros-donoâs instructions in order to increase our own strength! You will become the shield of the people in case of any emergency and you will become a knight the people of this country can be proud of!!â
âââ Ohhhhhhh!!!! âââ
They were really energetic, without losing motivation, they also became some sort of war demonsâŠ
The monsters they encountered took the initiative to attack and so, the killing continued bathing itself with blood to become stronger.
Two hours laterâŠ
âShit! Watch out, left!! Itâs moving!!â
âDefend with a shield, intercept!!â
â Iâll cover you! ă Fireball ă!â
âSpearmen! Behind you! What are you doing, hurry up!!â
Theyâre against a Green Giant. Itâs a giant Troll with short legs and unusually long arms, and there are three of them.
A big blow knocks down some trees, but the knights are smaller than the Trolls so theyâre naturally more nimble. Taking advantage of that they were fighting well.
âWeâre gonna finish one soon! Knights be careful⊠take this! ă Bolganic ăâ
Zweitâs magic attack connects. The flames that erupted from the ground envelop the whole body of the Troll.
âââGuooooaaaaaaahhhhh!!
After being burned by the high temperature flames, the Troll collapses to its knees screaming, and the knights whoâve been fighting it turn their swords toward their next prey.
The remaining two Trolls are slow but their blows are heavy and hard to deal with.
This Troll monster was a relatively high-ranked one in terms of pure power and endurance.
âTrolls⊠the skin is their best material right?â
âThatâs right! Donât challenge it from the front, attack from the sides and the rear!!â
âIt makes an excellent leather armor but itâs weak against fire magic.â
âThatâs the problem, if it didnât have that flaw we, the knights, could use itâŠâ
âWhy? Isnât it okay given that fire magic is weak?
âItâs the nobles magicians who are the problem. There are decent people among them, but they canât go against their own factions.â
Zeros could tell that there were indeed decent magicians out there, but their factions is like a black company centered on the representative.
The representatives on the top try to make connections by asking for power without doing anything, leaving researching and so on to the magicians on the bottom, and if any useful magic is created, they try to gain more authority by taking credit for it.
If you look from the perspective of the low-ranked magicians, the higher ones are constantly messing with them but they canât go against them because they are nobles from famous genealogies. Whatâs more, their researchesâ results are taken away from them.
Too bad⊠the representatives are quite the magic casters.
Itâs a headache for the knights maintaining the countryâs order.
âI see, youâre using a lot of flashy and powerful fire spells, right? ⊠Oh, it was about time it was settled.â
âWell, even though theyâre not doing well, theyâre threatening it with magic. For the remaining trolls, Iâll go too.â
âI donât want to be associated with the bigwigs. Good luck, this is a service ă Blessings of the Great Gods ăâ
âNow⊠Donât let it get away! I know youâre tired but this is the right moment!â
Arlev unsheathed his longsword and ran towards the trolls. He scrapes the rampant Trollâs arm, watching his steps and glancing at its feet at the same time as he wields his sword again. His aim is the Trollâs achilles tendon.
The knights are like raptors attacking herbivorous dinosaursâŠ
( I donât care but Iâd like you to stop doing small talk and tactical command at the same timeâŠ)
The slash enhanced by Zerosâ body strengthening magic ă Blessings of the Great Gods ă cut the Trollâs tendon and the body over 7 meters came crashing towards the ground.â
Celestinaâs magic and Zweitâs attack are concentrated there. The former, using lightning magic, whereas the latter, fire magic.
Fire and lightning strike the Troll, and in its agony Arlev precisely slices its neck as it turns around.
With its neck severed, the Giantâs head fell to the ground while a large amount of blood scattered all around.
âYoshi! My level has risen. But my body hurtsâŠâ
âThatâs right⊠Sensei, I have reached level 50 already!â
Celestina happily frolics around. She could be taught one of Zerosâ original magics if she had a level over 50 and one skill at level over 30. As he was feeling suspicious about Celestinaâs bliss, Zweit started listening about the situation from her and sure enough, started feeling very displeased and envious.
âHow cunning! Shishouâs original magic?!?!â
âAfter that, itâs the skill level but I think Iâll be able to achieve it in a little bit more.â
âWhat kind of magic, tell me!!â
âHmm, I donât know. Sensei said he was looking forward to it.â
After getting under the guidance of Zeros, their relationship seems to get gradually better.
The two of them had quite a bad relationship, being the cause their respective mothers, the two duchesses, and Zweit has only now changed his mind about Celestina.
He bullied her since they were young due to his one-sided resentment as a result of his parentsâ influence and Celestinaâs lack of talent. But he has an honest side to him, he knows if he made a mistake he has to correct it immediately.
Although their relationship wasnât damaged by that alone, they were able to repair it in a considerable short amount of time due to their combat training with the golems.
Itâs uncertain whether he apologized or not, but itâs clear that heâs softening his stance against her.
The number of words was more than the number of battles⊠well, itâs a lot more complicated for LucerisâŠ
Such a Zweit-kun comes up to ZerosâŠ
âIâm going to be like Celestina! Donât be stingy, come on, give me some magic too!!â
âYou can use your familyâs original magic, right? Celestina doesnât have any.â
â⊠Then Iâll teach her the familyâs heirloom magic, so give me something!!â
â⊠Well, it doesnât matter if itâs the same magic⊠but only after you meet the conditions.â
âYoshi!! My motivation is going through the roof!â
Celestina, who listened to their conversation, puffs up her cheeks and sulks.
The knights are dismantling the Trolls but is difficult given the large number of them.
Since, from the beginning, they werenât mercenaries, they donât have the knack for dismantling. Given that theyâre working as a group the dismantling is proceeding at an efficient pace but itâs not careful enough for the parts to be used as suitable materials.
Even so, the knights are happy to continue doing this work given the extraordinary profits they can make.
The escort mission also serves as an exercise, part of the monsters defeated in the forest will go into their pockets while the knights cash in the rest. It will mainly be used for the maintenance of their weapons and armors though.
Whenever the knights are mobilized, it costs money.
While they were desperately working, Zeros muttered âI want to drink beer⊠I donât have anything to say if I can have chicken wingsâ.
(I love more the canned beer than the wine of this worldâŠ)
ă»
ă»
ă»
ă»
After all, when they returned to the base, it was already past sunset. They defeated Orcs, Goblins, Poison Snakes, and eventually, used all of their remaining strength in their last fight against the Trolls.
Their hunger and fatigue made it hard to go back to the plains, but when they saw the base, they were at a loss of words.
Their tents were destroyed and most of their belongings were ransacked. Food was the most damaging, almost all they brought was devoured.
âThis⊠This is⊠What the hell?âŠâ
âDid a monster attack? But, the base shouldâve been protected by Zeros-donoâs magicâ.
âThatâs right. Just what entered here?â
The area around the base was covered with earth walls made by magic, and when they left to the forests they broke down part of it and then closed it again.
The carriage used when coming to this place had already left to wait in a nearby village, leaving only one wagon to store the luggage. Four days later, until then, theyâll have to resupply the food they brought in. But their basic supplies were ravaged.
Zeros examines the place and discovers the hair of an animal there. And⊠its color was white.
âThis hair⊠I really donât want to thinkâŠâ
âWhite hair⊠Youâre kiddingâŠâ
âItâs a coincidence⊠it canât be.â
âIf the culprit is the owner of this hairâŠâ
It was enough for the menâs faces to quickly pale.
âOi⊠dick⊠something, thereâŠ?â
The knights look in that direction all at once. There was certainly a murky shadow hiding in the back of the wagon instead of the stored luggage and the sound of chewing as if eating something echoes faintly.
âââ Paki
A quiet sound could be heard in their ears as if someone stepped on a dead branch. Of course, thereâs also a presence behind the barrel.
It raises its head and slowly looks back here. The answer was the Crazy Ape although everyone denied it in their hearts. Moreover, it was apparently a female, the size of its body was twice as large as those of the males.
âUhh⊠a female, I still canât rest assured, but maybeâŠâ
âAh⊠thereâs hope unless youâre a maleâ.
While everyone was staring at it, the female Crazy Ape looked around licking the men with its gaze and made an âuhh-ohâĄâ sound.
ââThatâs rightâŠâŠ. !!ââ
Female Crazy Apes also loved males. Just like a hungry beast, it recognizes them as opponents to attack⊠Of course in a different sense.
That habit seemed to be no different from the Orcs.