The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I'm a "Farmer", Not a Demon King! ~ - Chapter 301

The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I’m a “Farmer”, Not a Demon King! ~

Chapter 301   Divine Soldier: There’s no way I can win.

“Oh? Finally, you came out—”

“What…!?”

I was stopped!?

I pretended to comply with the enemy’s words, slowly opening the door, but that was only part of the plan. When I judged that it was open enough, I exerted full force toward the direction where I heard the enemy’s voice, thrusting the spear. However, it was easily deflected by the man’s sword who stood there.

“Darn it, not yet!”

The initial strike was deflected. However, not yet. My attack wasn’t over. I have to defeat him quickly and escape!

However, whether it was a thrust with the spear, a slash with the sword, or martial arts with fists and feet, everything was blocked by the man’s black sword.

“Suddenly, quite rough, huh. I heard you weren’t such a rough person. If someone else took that hit, they’d be dead, you know?”

“…Even if a criminal dies, it wouldn’t be a problem!”

In the current situation, I don’t want to use skills too much, but there’s no other choice.

—《Thrust》!

I tossed the sword I held in my right hand into the air, gripped the spear with both hands, and firmly stepped in, repeatedly thrusting multiple times.

However, these thrusts were slightly different from the ones before. Not only because I held the spear with both hands, but more importantly, I interspersed one thrust among the continuous ones that utilized a skill. This way, by introducing a skill into the attacks after the opponent had grown accustomed to the previous strikes, I could surpass their defenses.

That was my plan.

“Here,《Slash》!”

However, the powerful thrust I unleashed was effortlessly deflected by the opponent’s skill-enhanced sword, accompanied by a dismissive voice as if it were of no consequence.

“No way…!”

Originally, I had planned to grab the sword I had thrown into the air after the thrust, but I couldn’t. The impact was so overwhelming.

Even though I’m currently fatigued, I am the Tenth Rank chosen among the Eight Heavens. The skill I unleashed with all my might naturally possessed the power and precision equivalent to the Tenth Rank. If it could be so easily deflected…

“… ‘Black Sword’ Volke.”

That’s right. There’s no other explanation. Rather, realizing it now is almost too late to be considered timely.

Considering that the sword the man held emitted black light, it could be concluded that he was using a swordsman skill.

The swordsman skill,《Magic Sword》. Anyone with reasonable skill could use it after learning it at the Sixth Rank.

However, among the swordsmen in this city who wield black swords and are capable of effortlessly defending against my attacks, there is no one other than the individual who killed the Sword Saint, a sword master, and is ranked Tenth just like us.

I should have considered such things the moment the initial attack was deflected.

And at the same time, I realized. He approached me not because he had prepared a trap, but because he had the confidence to defeat me without falling into a trap.

…Damn! Perhaps, I should have just run without engaging in conversation.

However, even if I had run, with him as the opponent, he would probably have caught up.

“Judging by the looks of it, your injuries seem to be healing nicely. …But to deal with ‘that,’ I think it comes down to either withering it or forcefully pulling it out. You endured quite well. Having the Healing Specialist job is handy, huh? I’m envious.”

‘That’ refers to the plants growing from my abdomen. Indeed, if I could wither the plants, there would have been no need to tear open my abdomen.

What should I do… Should I stall for time for now?

“…You mentioned that besides me, other Eight Heavens survived. Is that true?”

“Oh, interested, huh? Well, yeah, I guess you would be. One of them is a woman. You know, that water user, what was her name… Ah, ‘Witch of Misfortune.’ She somehow managed to escape into the city, dealing with the plants inside her stomach.”

Adriana, huh… Certainly, with her ability to control water, she could have extracted moisture from the plants and withered them. Moreover, with her secondary job, entering the city wouldn’t have been too difficult. She could have arranged for medical treatment as well.

But I see… We haven’t been completely wiped out yet. If we can somehow deal with this man, we might still have a chance to recover!

“How is she doing?”

I didn’t have high expectations but decided to ask anyway, hoping to glean any information.

“She’s currently dealing with the old lady… Ah, would it be easier for you if I said she’s facing one of the ‘former’ bosses? That’s who she’s up against.”

However, facing the boss—no, the ‘former’ boss would certainly complicate matters. But with the presence of Black Sword here, dealing with other former bosses might be feasible.

“And there’s one more… Well, she’s also a woman. An elf archer. You know her, right?”

“Lancia…”

It seems she survived too. I had suspected that once she missed her attack, her location might have been exposed, leading to an enemy counterattack. But it seems she’s alive—

“Oh, her, her. She’s probably resting in the castle now—well, not exactly a grand castle, but she’s likely taking a break as a guest.”

—she’s here. What the hell?

A guest? That’s absurd. After all, we came to attack this city. In fact, Lancia was attacking the enemy leader. So, instead of being a prisoner, she’s a guest?

The only plausible explanation is…

“…A guest? …N-no way… did she betray us?”

“From your perspective, you probably wouldn’t want to admit it, but yeah, that seems to be the case.”

“That’s absurd…”

Eight Heavens, sworn to serve the nation, turning traitor…

Certainly, besides myself and Sword Saint, the other members of the Eight Heavens didn’t hold deep loyalty to the country. But even then, betrayal should have been unthinkable.

“For her, it seems like what’s more important than the will or orders of the country is what’s happening with the elves. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but there are no elf slaves in this city. The Demon King is on good terms with the elves. It’s like the parent nation of the elves, and that’s what this place is. There’s no reason to oppose those fighting to help the elves, considering the elves here are not enslaved.”

… Lancia became one of the Eight Heavens to protect her homeland, the Elven Forest.

Therefore, someone fighting to protect their homeland—more precisely, someone fighting as one of the Eight Heavens to protect their territory—should have been diligent in fulfilling their duties. But to attack one’s own kind, to attack fellow elves…

…This idea should have been obvious. In fact, I should have realized it much sooner. I berated myself for not noticing.

“So here’s a proposal. Do you have any intention of joining us?”

“Join you…?”

For a moment, I didn’t understand what was being asked, and all I could do was respond with a hesitant voice.

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“…Joining you? Are you telling me to become a criminal?”

But after a while, I began to understand the meaning of those words.

And once I understood, my mind gradually heated up, and with a shout, I wielded my spear, activating a skill.

“Don’t get all worked up. Everything I’ve done, going along with your story, answering honestly, it’s all my way of showing sincerity. Do you think I can’t cut your weapon? Actually, I could have killed you anytime, but I refrained, you know?”

But even with that sudden attack, Black Sword skillfully parried my spear as if it were nothing, matching the edge of his sword with the tip of my spear.

“So, that’s how it is…”

Even so, admitting defeat or giving up was out of the question. I glared at the man in front of me.

Ignoring my gaze as if it meant nothing, Black Sword frowned as if annoyed.

Then, despite me still holding a weapon, he relaxed his stance and made his sword disappear.

“…What are you planning?”

“I’m getting tired of this, and the conversation’s not going anywhere, so let me get a little more serious.”

With those words, Black Sword clasped his hands in front of him…

“—《Divine Sword》.”

Just those words.

After uttering that phrase, Black Sword’s hands, which had been apart, created a small but overwhelming light between them the moment his fingertips completely separated.

That light gradually increased in size, transforming into the shape of a single sword.

…Oh no.

The power I sensed was immense. My mind screamed urgently that I needed to either run away or stop this immediately.

However, my legs froze, and I couldn’t move.

“Now… ah, what was it? Oh right, ‘Divine Soldier.’ Do you still intend to continue?”

…It’s no use. There’s no way I can defeat such a monster.