Ch-61: Behemoth (3)

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"I don't need it."

Cloud rejected Duke Oler's offer of support without an inch of hesitation.

The members of the Oler family, who could not have imagined the flat rejection, were all left totally perplexed.

"Hero Cloud. Are you sure you heard us properly?"

"The Duke and the Oler family officially wants to support me, right?"

"Yes, you heard it right. Indeed, none other than us, the ducal Oler family, will be the backbone of the hero. Are you still going to refuse it?"

"I will decline."

"Please reconsider!"

Callion got up slamming the table and interrupted the conversation between the Duke and the Hero.

"I understand that our hero feels a little burdened. But we are the Ducal Oler family, and not any of those miscellaneous families out there. This is definitely beneficial to hero, it will be a solid advantage, and there's no harm. So, please reconsider."

"There is no need to reconsider. My decision won't change."

"…are you already receiving support from other families?"

Are you backed by a family or families other than us? If not, then why dismiss the Ducal Oler family's sponsorship offer?

To Callion's words filled with deep meaning, Cloud shook his head.

"I'm not supported by any noble family or families."

"Though…"

"The royal family is no exception."

"…!"

Except for the duke himself, all the members of the ducal family hardened as if struck by lightning.

Even though the duke seemed to have maintained his composure, but if you looked closer, you would still find that his lips were twitching ever so slightly.

"Don't get me wrong. Because I have no intention of abandoning my duties as the hero of this kingdom. I just don't want to have a big debt on my head."

"…haven't you already received quite a lot of money from the royal family?"

That being said, he has not accepted any support since crossing over to this world, but talking about the situation before he crossed over is another matter.

Cloud sighed.

"That's still quite an issue of my concern. I also want to know how to pay it back… Anyway, I have no intention of adding more debt with another sponsorship. So, let's quit talking about sponsorship and talk about the Behemoth. When do you think the other heroes will arrive?"

"Hero Cloud, but…"

"Stop it."

The Duke stopped Callion.

He seemed steadfast to Cloud's notion of not accepting sponsorship, and they'll only attain animosity from slurping more.

The Duke quit mentioning his sponsorship and answered Cloud's question.

"I asked of them to arrive as soon as possible, so they should be here within three weeks at the latest."

"Three weeks…"

Cloud fell into his own thoughts as he tapped the table with his index finger.

He looked over to the Duke of Oler and asked.

"Didn't you mention stationing soldiers in front of the forest?"

"Yes."

"Then lend me a soldier to be my guide, to take me there. Uh, you guys get ready to move too. We will be leaving soon after we get ready."

"Hero Cloud, please wait. Do you mean that you will be waiting for the other heroes at the military camp instead of advancing after joining them here?"

To Callion's question, Cloud answered while inserting his chair into the table.

"According to what I have heard, the number of monsters have been increasing rapidly. It wouldn't be strange if they brought a beast tide out at any moment. I have to reach there quickly and reduce the damage we are facing. When the other heroes arrive, let them rest for one day and send them straight to the camp. If Gis or Lorrian deny, say my name."

"…I will do as the hero wills. Though we can say that to the two heroes, we honestly don't dare compel Frillite-sama in any way."

A duke of a kingdom wasn't capable in the least—of imposing anything on Frillite, the hero of the Empire.

To Callion's words, Cloud smirked.

"She will most probably try to force her way right to the frontline, alright? Convince her somehow and make her take rest for a day. If you ask nicely, she will probably listen."

With those words, Cloud left the dinner table.

The atmosphere quickly became awkward.

Eri, Neria, and Ophelia cautiously got up and left.

* * *

The forest where the quantity of beasts and monsters had soared in great numbers.

The forest was not far from the ruling city of Duke Oler. It was only at two hours distance on horseback from there.

"You are Hero Cloud, right? My name is Randolph Arc, the one in charge of this garrison"

Inside the commander's barracks, Randolph reached out. The dignified old knight exuded the atmosphere of a veteran.

I held his hand.

"A hero, and Cloud—you got it right. So your last name is Arc? Isn't it the vassal family of the Ducal Oler family?"

"That's right."

"For a task like this, the duke didn't take direct command, but handed it over to a member from a vassal family. You seem to be very trustworthy."

"I'm being trusted way more than I deserve."

Randolph smiled bitterly.

I'm sure he understands.

The reason he received the control is not because of the duke's trust in him, but rather that the duke's intention to take care of their own well-being was overwhelmingly high.

If not for that reason, there is no reason why the direct descendants of the duke wouldn't appear on the battlefield where they can make a big name for them in the whole kingdom.

'From the perspective of the soldiers, an experienced old man would be a better choice than a young aristocrat.'

Though from the perspective of the vassal family that serves the ducal household, this may be an undesired choice.

"We just arrived, so we aren't exactly aware of the situation. I wish you could explain the situation in detail."

I decided not to give him time to indulge in negative thoughts.

"All right. You may have already heard about it to some extent, but the exact situation in the field is different. Let's go out together. I will explain as we walk to where hero and your companions will be staying."

When we got out of the barracks, Randolph led us and started explaining.

"The total soldiers mobilized is about six thousand in numbers."

"That's quite a lot."

"More than half of the duke's army is mobilized. That's how unusual the situation is. But, the problem is that the forest is so large that even this number cannot cover it completely. If we really want to force it, we can barely make do, but…"

"The line of defense will get weak. Then there's a chance that lines of defense will get penetrated one by one in a row, and if that continues…"

"There will be chaos."

I'm glad it has not already happened.

The moment the lines of defense are broken, the massacre will happen.

A human army that is not united as one is nothing more than a group of mob.

"How are you dealing with the monsters who escaped in a direction without a defense line?"

"We're sending squads to take care of them."

"Did you evacuate the residents of nearby villages?"

"All the villagers of the five villages near the forest have been evacuated safely to the city."

"That's a relief."

I can fully focus on the Behemoth without worrying about other issues.

I can fully focus on the Behemoth without worrying about other issues.

While cudgeling my brains about it, I saw Randolph look over at me with a look of bewilderment.

"Any problem?"

"…the hero is so contrary to the rumors I've heard so far. So true—one should not believe in rumors. To be swayed by such nonsense even at this age… It's just shameful."

"Yeah, kinda embarrassing. It was true even for me until a few years ago, I was only an ignorant, salaried employee."

"Ah, I–"

Just when Randolph felt staggered from listening to my self-abusive rant.

"Commander! Monsters have launched another attack!"

A soldier on horseback hurriedly came up to report the situation.

Randolph's expression turned serious.

"Which line of defense is it?"

"This is the third line of defense. The number of monsters is way bigger than expected, the defense line is struggling to hold them back."

"Alright, I'm coming right up. Hero, please wait in the barracks."

"No. We are coming along."

"…it may be dangerous."

"What's being a Hero without facing risks, eh?"

Randolph pondered for a moment, then nodded his head.

"Alright."

Me and my party readily got on horses and galloped in toe with Randolph and his soldiers rushing towards the third line of defence.

It wasn't long before I could see the soldiers fighting fiercely at the entrance of the forest.

The shield soldiers stood in a row at the front, holding back the monsters, while the soldiers standing behind them stabbed or skewered the monsters with their swords and spears.

The soldiers tried their best keeping the monsters at bay, but there were just too many in number.

The situation at the defense line looked so precarious that every next moment seemed to be the decisive one in monsters' favour.

"Fortunately, we arrived on time. All troops! In positions!"

He barked orders in quick succession.

While as I approached the defense line, the horse galloping under me did not slow down, but became even faster. I stood up on the back of the galloping horse. Taking heed of the timing, I kicked myself off the horse to launch me into the battlefield.

– Hero!

By the time Randolph's startled voice echoed, I had already crossed the line of defense.

I landed on an empty spot right behind the group of monsters.

– Kreung…

Perhaps they were wary of the sudden appearance of a foolhardy human, the monsters only menacingly bared their razor-sharp fangs and did not rush in.

Thanks to which, I was able to examine my furry adversaries.

'As expected, these twerps are not some ordinary beasts or monsters.'

Either their muscles were abnormally enlarged, or they had extra horns on their body, or their hides were much thicker.

The strengthening was branched in several different directions.

Most probably, the Behemoth's appearance was at fault.

'With such extreme numbers, they can even trample over knights.'

Looking closely, I could even see the corpses of what I assumed to be knights torn in shreds and lying on the ground.

Not many.

By rough estimate, around four.

Seeing the corpses' different positions, it seemed that they were planning to annihilate the horde of monsters while the soldiers held them out.

– Crrrrr!

– Kunhhhg!

The monsters began to move.

A savage wolf with large horns, a wild boar with huge ripped muscles bulging on its forelimbs, and a tiger with its pointed fangs attacked at the same time.

I drew out my sword.

[Strike]-!

In the next second, the lifeless bodies of the three monsters dropped down with a thud. No matter how powerfully the Behemoth's buff fortified them, my level status was also in a different league from before.

============

Lv.42

Strength: D (312)+(62)

Agility: D (301)

Durability: E (266)

Mana: E (248)

==============

I went through my upgraded status after clearing the dungeon.

These are pure stats excluding the effects of equipment or other accessories.

It was no longer necessary to use a high power attack skills like [Wolf Buster] against these beasts and monsters whose level and stats were far lower than mine.

Even a range skill like [Rampage] was enough to slaughter a large number of them in one move.

I teared a path through the horde of monsters and swung my sword.

* * *

"Neria, did you bring a towel?"

"Yup. I brought it. I will wipe it for you."

"Don't mind, I'll take care of it myself."

"Okay, got it…"

"Hero, are you injured anywhere?"

"There are bites and scratches all over the place. These monsters attack like damn thugs."

"Fortunately, these are minor injuries. I will heal you right away."

The corpses and blood of dozens of monsters littered the floor. The hero and his party members conversed peacefully on the hellish battlefield that made out the scene to be horrific.

The soldiers who saw the scene felt terrified.

In particular, Randolph looked at the hero and found himself dumbfounded.

He was the one who first decided to dismiss the rumors surrounding Cloud as nonsense. But, no matter how overstated it may be, isn't there a reason for which he is called the Incompetent Hero?

He originally assumed that Cloud, who showed a sober state of thought, would be weak in strength.

But, far from being weak, he alone repulsed the whole horde of monsters that had gobbled up even the knights.

Randolph tentatively asked Cloud.

"Hero. Can other heroes also do it this… lightly?"

Cloud paused wiping the blood off his body for a moment. He looked around at the corpses of monsters that laid still on the floor.

"Um."

He replied as if it was obvious.

Randolph wanted to ask more, but he closed his mouth shut.

He had no idea what to say anymore.

* * *

After arriving at the camp, he spent most of his time dealing with the monsters that were aiming for the defense line.

About a week later, Gis and his party arrived at the camp. Contrary to what I had expected from being bothered as soon as they arrived, Gis was not the one who appeared in front of me.

Instead, someone else took the job.

"Hello. Miss Adreana Salierre. I know you want to talk. But was there a need for it to be so late at night?"

A team member of Gis suddenly appeared in front of my tent pointing that she wanted to have a conversation with me at this hour.

Same was with Neria and Ophelia, and now her.

Do all people who associated with Gis forget the basic concept of time?

Please, please kindly come in the morning. Fuck you Gis!

"The pommel of your sword. Where did that come from?"

Whether she knew my thoughts or not, Adreana only bothered with what she wanted to say.

Gosh…

I sighed and didn't answer, she continued.

"Did you inherit it from your mother?"

"Yes. But why do you care?"

"…your mother didn't explain it to you?"

"Explain? Yeah, she looked like she was going to say something… but she breathed her last before she could."

I lied in moderation to find out the intentions that brought Adreana to me.

She clicked her tongue in annoyance, pointed to my pommel, and started her explanation.

"The pommel pattern. It is the emblem of our Salierre family. That pommel is a gift my father gave to the woman he had affection for. Now do you understand why I came?"

Now he did.

'The owner of this pommel was an illegitimate son of the Salierre family.'

But the real owner of this pommel died in the contest, and I picked it up there. Because of that, she mistook me for her half-brother.

If so, what I need to do is simple.

"Age?"

"Twenty-four."

"Sister!"

"W-What?!"

I hugged Adreana tightly.

A sibling hug.

Though none of us shared a single drop of blood.

You can read fully translated chapters, including the last chapter, for $20.

p(a)treon.com/Daoist02