Zakari, the captain, stared at me with a terrifying expression as I smiled, and then he shouted.
"F-Fira! Suddenly, you look like an emissary from hell!!"
"Please, stop making baseless accusations. I'm just a obedient new knight. I'm doing exactly as you, Captain Zakari, instructed, and behaving myself, am I not?"
"Liar! An obedient knight doesn't threaten the captain with a smile!!"
Zakari, the captain, shouted back at me.
"Threaten? Don't say such unpleasant things. I was just trying to encourage Captain Zakari with a smile, wasn't I?"
"Fira, I'm remembering my days at the knight training school!! There was a bald, muscular instructor who was just like you. He was far above us in knowledge and skills, and he would give us pep talks with a terrifying smile, but it was all intimidation. He would give us impossible tasks with a devilish smile, making us fight battles where we barely survived by a thread every time! This feeling of my spine freezing is exactly the same!!"
"…Bald, muscular? Do I really resemble a bald, muscular man? Haha, just fight to your heart's content!!" I raised my left hand towards the sky and lowered the level of the concealment magic. Just from directly below, the cage surrounding the familiars became visible.
Yes, I am calm. After all, he is the captain, and as a new knight, I have the right to speak my mind. And I also have the right to freely control magic!
The dreambird had tried to attack the familiars multiple times but was blocked by the invisible cage. It kept flying around the cage, frustrated. The moment the cage became visible, it was clear that it couldn't be broken. With a hateful cry, the dreambird left the familiars and flew towards the knights.
The archers and mages, freed from the illusion, seemed to have regained their composure and started attacking the dreambird again. They had learned from their previous experience, closing the distance to increase the power of their attacks and specializing in fire magic, which had the greatest effect among the spells they had tried.
Yes, this monster is troublesome because it creates illusions, but it's not much else. Its unique, floating flight pattern is hard to predict, but when it hits, the impact is significant. It's impressive that they figured out a strategy to defeat it in just one battle.
...But, I can't accept the captain who compared me to a bald, muscular man. No, it's not personal, just a pure observation. ...No, it's a lie. It's completely personal. But since it's a waste, I'll say it.
As a commander, it's necessary to have an overview of the situation. However, Captain Zakari's attack power is too outstanding. Not fully utilizing this attack power is a huge waste.
At the edge of my vision, I could see the dreambird descending in its unique, floating pattern.
Yes, the dreambird creates an illusionary space, so it needs to fly in a circle with varying heights. There is a pattern to the height changes, so it's not impossible to predict the lowest point of its flight. Therefore, if Captain Zakari reads the pattern and waits on the predicted trajectory, and then times his step, he should be able to take it down with one hit with that attack power. ...But, it might be too difficult to read the pattern on the first try. I tend to expect too much from Captain Zakari because he is so capable!
But, it's true that it's better to defeat it as quickly as possible. The dreambird isn't very strong when it's not creating illusions, but it knows this, so it usually appears with other monsters. It's a rare and fortunate situation that it has appeared alone this time. And being able to tackle a single monster with the entire team is a favorable situation. In this world where monsters have apparently decreased, this might be the norm. But...
"Three new monsters have appeared! They are moving from the 7 o'clock direction!!"
The scout shouted.
Yes, with the current erratic behavior of the forest monsters, it's entirely possible to encounter monsters in quick succession. I stood in a position to block the monsters from the holy women and turned my gaze to the 7 o'clock direction.
Pushing through the tall grass, two boar-type monsters and one deer-type monster appeared.
"Two Violet Boars and a Flowerhorn Deer!!"
The knight closest to the 7 o'clock direction shouted.
While the Violet Boars are manageable, the Flowerhorn Deer is a B-rank monster that requires 30 knights. We are already facing a B-rank monster, so this is quite a challenge!
"A B-rank monster and two more... We're in trouble," a knight muttered.
No, no, we're not in trouble. That's a bit exaggerated! A monster like this, Captain Zakari can handle. And if it comes to it, there are allies nearby, right?
...As I thought this, I heard the sound of a rescue whistle from the east. The east is Gideon's squad, isn't it? Are they calling for help?
...As I tilted my head, I heard the same sound from the west. The west is Quentin's squad, right? Could they be calling for help?
"Damn, what a bad day! The monsters are gathering too much! Shit, if they're calling for reinforcements, they must be in real trouble!!"
Zakari, the captain, shouted in a panicked voice.
...But, I couldn't help but tilt my head. What kind of monsters have appeared that they need to call for reinforcements? Quentin, with his attack power, should be able to handle B-rank monsters or lower. Gideon, too, should be able to defeat them with time. Besides, Quentin has an A-rank Griffin, so what's going on?
Thinking about it, I suddenly realized.
Wait, could Quentin be facing A-rank or higher monsters?
Zabiria confirmed my suspicion.
"Trouble, Fira. Two dragons have appeared in the west."
What?! Two dragons?!
"Hey, Zabiria. Dragons are S-rank, right? It takes 100 knights to defeat one. Isn't this bad?"
"Hmm... Most dragons, I can handle."
"Wow, that's reassuring! By the way, what kind of monsters are Gideon's squad facing?"
"One deer and one boar."
"Flowerhorn Deer and Violet Boar? Then it's fine. ...Even if we leave them!"
I shouted to Captain Zakari.
"Captain Zakari! Gideon's squad has encountered a Flowerhorn Deer and a Violet Boar!"
"Huh? Why do you know?!"
Ignoring his question, I continued.
"But we don't have the spare capacity, so they'll have to handle it themselves. Please signal with the rescue whistle."
"O-Okay!"
"Also, Quentin's squad has encountered two dragons! They need help, so I recommend joining them immediately!"
"Dragons? Two of them?! That's bad!!"
"You're right. To join them quickly, it would help if you could defeat the boar, deer, and bird as soon as possible."
"Damn, you're giving me another impossible task! This bald, muscular 2.0...!!"
What?
...It seems Captain Zakari is confused by the approaching monsters and is mistaking the new, calm knight for a drill sergeant from his student days who gave him impossible tasks.
Feeling a bit annoyed, I started casting a spell.
"Body Reinforcement, weight doubled!"
I cast the weight-increasing enhancement magic, which is usually used on myself or allies, on the dreambird. The dreambird, suddenly feeling heavier, let out a surprised cry and started flapping its wings faster. But it couldn't do anything. Despite flapping its wings desperately, it couldn't maintain its height and started descending.
---Ah, I've taken action.
Even though I felt bad for taking away the opportunity for them to learn, I couldn't help but act because I was worried about Quentin's squad.
With a sense of regret, I asked Captain Zakari to deliver the final blow.
"Captain Zakari, we don't have time, so please deliver one strike!"
"You really don't show any mercy...!!"
Despite his complaints, Captain Zakari ran up to the dreambird, drew his sword, and cut it down with one stroke.
I was momentarily mesmerized by Captain Zakari's impressive one-stroke kill. His sword is a large two-handed sword, which is rare but suits him well.
Then, I looked at the spot where Captain Zakari had originally stood and whispered, "Impressive."
That spot was near the lowest point of the dreambird's flight path. Reading the dreambird's pattern in such a short time, Captain Zakari is truly amazing!
"Excellent, Captain Zakari!"
I pointed to the west and shouted to Captain Zakari.
"Let's go help Quentin! Trust the others to handle this!!"
"Huh?! Fira, are you crazy?! There's still a B-rank Flowerhorn Deer left! We can't leave it to them!!"
Captain Zakari, always concerned for his subordinates, seemed reluctant to leave the monsters behind.
Ugh, I understand, but the dragons are much more dangerous. I think we should leave and prioritize the dragons. But the commander is Captain Zakari.
I bit my lip in frustration but knew there was no other choice.
Feeling defeated, I shouted to the Sixth Knights and the Monster Knights facing the Flowerhorn Deer and Violet Boar.
"Sixth Knights, you learned how to defeat the Flowerhorn Deer last time, right? You enjoyed that delicious meat, didn't you? This time, it's your turn to let me have that meat!!"
"Fira, that's a complete threat..."
One of the knights shouted back, but I pretended not to hear.
"But I also know when to give up. If the meat isn't as good as expected, just cut off one of the horns. If you can cut off even one horn, the Flowerhorn Deer will run away. You can do it by striking from the side!"
"Fira, you deliberately didn't share that information last time..."
"You look more like an emissary from hell than a savior..."
The knights muttered in fear, and I could only hang my head in disappointment.
Once a monster has faced humans and escaped, it becomes more cunning and cautious.
Therefore, letting it escape is dangerous, as it leaves a heavy burden for the next hunter. I didn't want to give such information, but there was no other choice.
I believed that even if Captain Zakari left now and returned after checking on Quentin, the knights would hold out without any casualties. But Captain Zakari, always concerned for his subordinates, seemed to need to reduce the risk further.
Of course, there's also the possibility of encountering more monsters, so I'll follow Captain Zakari's instructions. I am an obedient new knight!
I changed my mindset and looked up at Captain Zakari.
"Alright, now there's no lingering regret! Let's go to Quentin!"
"O-Okay!"
Then, I turned to the knights again.
"Monster Knights, dragons have appeared in Quentin's squad! We're going to help, so please lend us your familiars!"
"Dragons?! No way... Is the captain okay?! Of course, we'll lend them for the captain!"
"We're willing to lend them, but the familiars won't listen to you! They've been flying around on their own, ignoring their contract holders!!"
No, they're following my instructions. They're very smart familiars.
---I thought this but, knowing the value of silence, I didn't say it out loud.
"Thank you for your permission!"
As I said this, I removed the magical cage protecting the familiars. Then, three familiars from the sky and two from the ground approached me.
"Huh? What...?"
"They suddenly went towards Fira... Hey..."
The knights sounded surprised, but I didn't have time to answer and started running. At the same time, Zabiria flew up into the sky.
It seemed Zabiria understood without me saying anything and flew straight towards Quentin's location.
Yes, Zabiria is the only one who knows the exact location, so please lead the way.
With Zabiria in the lead, Captain Zakari and the familiars followed me towards Quentin's location. The knights shouted after us.
"Is Fira an emissary from hell or a legendary monster tamer?!"
"Hey, why are they more obedient to her than to us? They followed her on their own!!"
...Being called a legendary monster tamer, I have no idea what it means.
But, compared to a bald, muscular man, it's 100 times better!!