Chapter 218: The Kukkoro Male Knight and the Peaceful Elf Village Part 2

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“You bastard, you’re no ordinary man! You’re one hell of a monster!”

“With a base material like this, we’ll get strong children! Surround him and rape him!”

Even though one of their comrades had been cut down in the opening move, the elf soldiers showed no sign of fear. On the contrary, delight spread across their faces as they rushed at us with weapons in hand.

Even though getting pregnant means they’ll lose their immortality, why are they so desperate to rape a man!? Is this some kind of slow suicide!?

Be that as it may, if they were charging in, I had to intercept them. I tightened my grip on the saber hilt, still slick with blood, and charged forward. But perhaps because they had already seen this tactic once, the elf soldiers did not hesitate this time.

“Don’t go dyin’ just from losin’ an arm or two, you short-lived race!”

“KYEEEEEEE!”

Our blades collided head-on. At that instant, a ferocious blast of wind erupted from the elf’s wooden sword and sent my body flying.

“Uwaaah!”

“Gwaaah!”

But the elf did not escape unscathed either. Her wooden sword was cleanly severed, and her body was sliced nearly in half. It was a fatal wound. Even so, I had no time to properly confirm it. I was blasted nearly ten meters away by the wind, slammed into a large tree, and tumbled to the ground. Even wearing full plate armor, the impact hurt badly.

“Al-sama!”

“I’m fine!”

As I struggled back to my feet, Sonia came running over. I patted her shoulder and then turned my gaze back toward the enemy. The elves were inching closer, bows and wooden swords aimed at us.

“That wooden sword is pretty troublesome.”

“So the stories about all elves carrying magic swords were true…”

It was one thing when it was wind magic, but if flames or lightning started flying out, it would be no joke. Weapons like these, capable of activating magic instantly without incantations, were terrifyingly effective in close-quarters combat.

And if we tried to keep our distance, those Elven Bows would come flying instead, which was terrifying in its own way. Though the elves were barbarians, their combat ability as warriors seemed to surpass that of ordinary Galea knights.

“A good enemy! No, a great enemy!”

“Whether we die cut down from his sword or die pregnant, both are tempting! Makes all this living shame worth it!”

Two allies are dead and their morale is going up instead of down!? These guys are terrifying! How badly do they want to die!? Do I really have to fight enemies like this!? If our new recruits ran into these death-seekers, they’d be wiped out in an instant. The difference in training and morale is just too great. I really want to shut this down in some way other than fighting…

“Charge!”

At the shout of what appeared to be the enemy commander, the archers loosed a simultaneous volley. I used nearby trees as cover to endure the concentrated fire, but in that opening, the group of elf soldiers wielding wooden swords closed in all at once.

“A man took the vanguard! Ain’t that shameful!? Warriors, now’s the time to redeem yourselves!”

At that moment, the “Legitimate” elf warriors led by Lady Orphan charged in. Their archers broke the momentum of the enemy’s assault, then seamlessly transitioned into melee combat with wooden swords. Despite being different factions, the tactics of the “New” and “Legitimate” elves appeared largely the same.

“For now, it looks like siding with the ‘Legitimate’ faction is the better move.”

“The ‘New’ ones don’t seem willing to listen at all. They’re like beasts.”

Watching these elf soldiers made it clear just how rational Dalaiya-san and her companions had been. These soldiers were likely poorly disciplined irregulars.

And they’re this skilled even as irregulars!? That’s terrifying…

“Chesto—!”

One of the elf soldiers charged at me while shouting that. 

What do you mean chesto?! That’s my line!

“CHESTO!!”

I shouted back and charged. The elf archers fired suppressive arrows, but they were clearly aiming off on purpose, so I ignored them. They were probably trying to take me alive. The Elven Bow seemed to be an extremely powerful weapon. Its trajectory was straight, with tremendous power and accuracy, but that also made its path easier to read.

“KYEEEE!”

In any case, the elf soldiers’ wooden swords were dangerous. The only way to deal with them was to break them before the magic activated. I swung my blade with all my strength and cleaved the elf soldier cleanly in two.

“Nice chesto!”

A nearby allied elf soldier flashed a broad grin and gave me a thumbs-up. Even though she was covered head to toe in blood, she looked utterly delighted. I returned the thumbs-up and shouted, “Semper fi!” I didn’t really understand myself at that point. Maybe the excitement of battle had made me a little unhinged.

“—!”

Just then, an arrow came flying in with a sharp whistling sound. I rolled across the ground to evade it and, as I rose, aimed my revolver at an elf archer who was about to nock a second arrow. Keeping the trigger pulled, I cocked the hammer with my sword hand. A dry gunshot rang out, thick white smoke billowed, and the elf archer collapsed, blood pouring from her abdomen.

“What in the world is that weapon!?”

“UOOOOH!”

Sonia, having drawn her greatsword, charged straight into the confused group of elf archers. They fired in unison, but she was clad in enchanted armor capable of withstanding even direct rifle fire. Ignoring minor hits, she continued her charge, mowing down the elf archers like weeds. In the depths of the forest, even archers struggled to maintain effective long-range attacks.

“Every warrior from Liseben—men and women alike—are monsters, ain’t they?”

“A land of asura, for sure.”

I could hear the “Legitimate” elf warriors chatting cheerfully like that.

I don’t want to hear that from you people of all races!

As I was making that retort internally, I heard the chanting of a spell. Before I could brace myself, a magically generated gust swept up fallen leaves from the ground.

“Damn!”

A smokescreen! Multiple arrows flew in with cutting sounds. The elves switched fluidly between bows and wooden swords depending on the situation. This adaptability was extremely troublesome. I hurriedly leapt away from my position.

“CHIEEEEE!”

At that moment, an elf soldier leapt down from the trees above, wooden sword poised. I hadn’t anticipated that at all. I hastily raised my saber and blocked the overhead strike. A powerful shock ran through my entire body, forcing me back a step.

“Guh!”

I blocked the first strike, but the elf’s swordsmanship was superb. The instant she landed, she unleashed a sharp second blow. I barely managed to block it with my saber, but the impact sent the hilt flying from my hand.

“Now then, time to take a husband!”

The elf soldier grinned triumphantly and readied her wooden sword again. At that instant, the face of my swordmaster from my previous life flashed through my mind.

‘If ya ain’t got a weapon, just chesto with yer bare hands!’

Almost unconsciously, I lowered my stance, activated a body-enhancement spell, and kicked off the ground. A devastating tackle slammed into the elf soldier, sending her rolling across the ground with a scream.

“Gwaaah!”

“Careless for a moment, injured for life, you idiot!!”

I moved behind her and locked my arm around her neck, squeezing tight. The basic bodily structure of dragonkin and elves was the same. With her carotid artery compressed, the elf soldier’s eyes rolled back, and she lost consciousness almost instantly.

“Al-sama!”

Four knights clad in familiar Galea-style armor came running over. They were my subordinates, the ones I had dispatched to this village earlier. In a flustered rush, they helped me up and retrieved my saber, which had fallen to the ground.

“Oh, thank you. You saved me. …And it looks like everyone’s safe. What a relief!”

None of them appeared injured. I nearly let out a sigh of relief. I couldn’t afford to lose my precious subordinates in a place like this.

“You as well, Al-sama. Thank goodness you’re unharmed! Still, this is quite a troublesome situation. We’ll lend our strength!”

The knights drew their swords and spears as they shouted. The enemy appeared slightly disadvantaged, but they continued their reckless assault without regard for losses. Not a single soldier showed any sign of wanting to retreat. It was reckless, but terrifying enough that any lapse in vigilance could spell our end.

…Well, the “Legitimate” elf soldiers felt much the same way.

On both sides, the elf soldiers were all death-seekers. Their determination to fight until death or victory was overwhelming. If groups this fanatically resolved started a civil war, it was only natural that the result would be utter devastation…

“Yeah. I’m counting on you!”

Suppressing the ominous feeling rising within me, I gave the order. Unless this civil war was somehow stopped, peace would never come to Liseben. With them endlessly tearing each other apart from within, it was no wonder they couldn’t even sustain their own food supply…

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