The movements of the beastmen were fast, and their strength was greater than that of humans. Even against a single opponent, it seemed that she would have a hard time if she didn't put in her full effort from the start, let alone against three of them, who would likely finish her off instantly.
However, even if they were beastmen, they weren't several times faster than humans. Compared to a well-trained human, the difference was merely a few percent.
In battle, that few percent difference could be decisive...
But Mavis had the "True Godspeed Sword." The "Godspeed Sword," which she had mastered through diligent training, would not have been enough to handle three beastmen, but the "True Godspeed Sword," which included physical enhancement through the use of magic, was claimed to be 1.4 times faster. In reality, it was 1.3 times faster than Mavis's pre-use speed and 1.15 to 1.2 times faster than an average A-rank hunter. Thanks to Mavis's high base ability, this was a considerable combat power.
Of course, this didn't mean that Mavis could defeat an A-rank hunter. The differences in technique, experience, strategy, and endurance would make it impossible. However, against beastmen who relied on their physical abilities and tended to neglect the refinement of their skills, a significant battle was possible.
And then, the difference in weapons.
Mavis wielded a short sword, while the beastmen had tools that didn't seem designed for combat, such as sickles and axes. This created a difference in reach and handling speed, reducing the handicap caused by the physical size difference. Moreover, Mavis was a properly trained swordsman.
As a knight-in-training, she could not afford to lose in a battle where civilians were at her back, even against enemies with superior physical abilities.
"Roar!"
If she exerted too much force, her muscles would stiffen and her speed would slow. She relaxed slightly and put 100% of her speed into it! Whether the opponent wielded a sickle or an axe, and whether the angle of the blade was off, she had absolute trust in her unbreakable sword. Just a moment faster than the opponent's anticipated and prepared reaction, and just a bit off the expected blade position, their weapons collided. The weapon of the one who misjudged the timing was deflected or knocked out of their hand. Then, the 90-degree tilted flat of the sword struck the opponent's body.
... Since it was a double-edged sword, a peak strike would be meaningless. The opponent would die normally.
"Ugh!"
"Ugh!"
And two of the beastmen collapsed, while the remaining one stared with wide eyes, seemingly in disbelief.
On the other hand, Reina had started the battle under unfavorable conditions.
She had been in conversation with the leader until just before, so she couldn't retain a spell like Pauline could. As a result, she found herself in a situation that a magician would absolutely want to avoid: starting a battle at close range without any preparation against a quick and agile enemy.
However...
"Ugh!"
The tip of Reina's staff embedded itself in the stomach of the beastman who was about to attack her.
"Wha...?"
The remaining two beastmen, who had been smirking, now had their faces contorted in shock. They thought one person would be enough to subdue a human girl who couldn't cast spells, but by the time they realized their mistake and tried to get into a battle stance, it was too late. Reina had already dispatched one of them with her staff while continuing to chant a relatively short spell, which was now complete.
"... Hot Inferno!"
A very weak whirlwind of air enveloped the beastmen. The air, slightly reddish, gently wrapped around them.
"AAAHHHHH!"
The three beastmen, including the one who had been hit by the staff and was on his knees, clawed at their throats, tears streaming from their tightly closed eyes, and snot running as they rolled on the ground.
Reina, in fact, knew non-lethal magic, which she had learned from Mile and Pauline.
"Non-lethal magic can be used without worrying about involving allies or third parties, and it consumes less magic power compared to large-scale fire magic."
When Mavis heard this, she was taken aback, but Pauline nodded in agreement. Mile thought, "If it's non-lethal and flashy, there's the 'Starlight Destroyer,' which is a cool one..." but upon further reflection, realized, "No, Breaker is not good! Breaker is not good! There's no way people wouldn't die from that!" and decided not to teach it to Reina. Mile was a girl with a good sense of common sense.
The three beastmen who went after Mile included their leader.
Normally, the strongest leader would go after the strongest-looking member of the "Red Oath," who was also a swordsman, Mavis. However, Mile thought that the leader, perhaps by some wild instinct, had realized that Mile was the strongest among the four. Unfortunately, he couldn't sense just how strong she was...
When Mile tried to block the opponent's sickle with her sword, a ball of fire launched from behind the opponent hit her.
"Magic attack?"
Indeed, beastmen were generally weaker in magic and less skilled at it, but this was a generalization. Many couldn't use magic, and those who could were generally weaker than the average human. However, not all of them were. Some were on par with or even better than human experts. It was just that the proportion was lower among beastmen.
However, because the number of beastmen was much smaller than that of humans, this ultimately reinforced the notion that "beastmen are generally not good at magic." The few who could use attack magic were, of course, sent into battle.
The leader and the magician. The beastmen had thrown their maximum force at Mile, apparently holding her in high regard.
Mile, who had subconsciously believed that "beastmen can't use magic" based on past battles, was not shaken by the sudden magic attack. She released her left hand from the sword, blocked the leader's sickle with her right hand, and deflected the ball of fire with the back of her left hand.
The deflected ball of fire hit the stomach of the third man, who had been preparing to attack from behind the leader.
"Wha...?"
The leader and the magician froze, seeing their comrade blown backward by the ball of fire. The ball of fire had no explosive effect and dissipated quickly upon impact, and the temperature was low. It seemed that the man had been blown back half in shock and half to reduce the impact, and he didn't seem to have taken much damage.
However, the magician was greatly shaken and couldn't cast the next spell, and the leader, who had engaged in combat, had stopped moving.
"Ha!"
Mavis then deflected the leader's sickle with her sword and struck his side with the flat of the blade. The magician, who had regained his senses, tried to cast a spell but quickly abandoned it.
He had realized the situation. Mavis had defeated the third enemy, and now the only combat-capable beastmen were the magician and the young man who had been blown back by the deflected fire spell and had taken little damage.
The magician understood.
There was no chance of victory. If the last two of them fell here, their comrades would be wiped out. The humans, who would want to escape the forest as quickly as possible, wouldn't take the heavily injured with them. Even if they were left alive out of fear of starting a war, it was uncertain how long it would take to return to the worksite in such a state. If a search party was sent out to look for them, it would take days to be rescued. During that time, the nearly dead beastmen would be easy prey for monsters and wild beasts.
To prevent this, it was absolutely necessary for the two of them to remain. The young man would be sent to the worksite to report, and the magician would use healing magic to the best of his ability to treat the injured, protect them from monsters, and wait for rescue. Of course, it was uncertain whether this would work. The humans might decide to kill them all to avoid a war. Since the beastmen had initiated the attack, they could claim it was self-defense, and the beastmen, who didn't want a war, might back down.
However, there were no other options.
The only ones who could communicate properly were the magician and the young man. Therefore, the magician was the current leader. With a firm resolve, he shouted loudly.
"We surrender! Don't kill us!"
This work has now reached 100 episodes.
I owe it to all of you who have been reading. Thank you very much. Really, thank you!
Occasionally, I might write side stories or sequels to other works, but I plan to continue focusing on this main work.
If possible, I'd like to continue it as long as the Perry Rhodan series.
... What? In Germany, they have about 3,000 main volumes and around 4,000 volumes including side stories, you say? (^^ゞ
I don't know how long I can continue publishing, but as long as people keep reading, I'll do my best.