The Defensive Battle of Cocomel

 
 
 ☆
 
 
 “Riflemen, ready fire! Shoooot!!”
 
 Bang! Bang! Babang! Bang!!
 
 With a command, the magic rifles fired off in volleys.
 
 A distance of 400 metres.
 The goblins approaching like a wave in the lead were taken down, tattered.
 
 However, overcoming that as if nothing at all had happened, the horde of monsters pushed on single-mindedly.
 
 Their numbers, force, and pressure sent chills down my spine.
 
 
 
 Right now, Anna and I had descended on the central part of the northern city walls, staring intensely at the approaching enemy.
 
 The trapezoidal embankments had created guiding paths in the west, centre, and east.
 
 The two precious heavy machine guns were deployed to the east and west, with Graham-sama and Otou-sama taking command in those respective directions.
 This is a measure to prevent them from going around to the east and west, by making use of the heavy machine gun’s long range.
 
 On the other hand, a little more light machine guns were deployed to the centre that had insufficient firepower, and I, capable of 『Scatter Fire』, came to protect here as well.
 
 
 
 The enemy before me advanced like an avalanche.^[1]
 
 “With this many enemies, it’s impossible to miss.”
 
 “Yep!”
 
 Anna responded to my encouragement.
 
 I readied the magic rifle, and called out to the teddies.
 
 “Coco, Mel, ——— 『Magic Power Stabilisation 《Queskio Magia》』.”
 
 ““’Kaaaay!!””
 
 Magic circles float from their hands, and magic power recircles back to me.
 
 Now the countermeasures against magic sickness are also complete.
 From here on I’ll shoot with all my might.
 
 I pulled the trigger just half way.
 
 Woom
 
 Ten light bullets began floating at the end of the muzzle.
 And then, two acceleration magic circles, one big and one small.
 
 I chose the enemies in front of me as my target,
 “——— get blown up.”^[2]
 and pulled the trigger.
 
 Boom!
 
 My body shook from the recoil.
 The light bullets shot out in a spread-out manner.
 
 ———Bababababang!!!!
 
 Gyaaaah!!
 
 Multiple light bullets exploded by the enemies in the lead, in the centre, with many goblins and orcs blowing up and being flung into the air.
 
 ““Ooooooohh!!””
 
 The soldiers raised voices of admiration.
 
 ——— it’d be good if this at least raised the troops’ morale.
 
 Along with these thoughts, I once again pulled the trigger.
 
 
 ☆
 
 
 Gugyaaaaaahhhh!!!!
 
 The monsters advanced while letting loose creepy screams.
 
 They quickly approached to a point where one could make out their red eyes, and like a wave they collided with the earthen embankment walls we made.
 
 However…
 
 “No way?!”
 
 I was astonished.
 
 To my surprise, the monsters, in spite of the embankment slant and the barb wire obstacles placed there, went straight up the steep slope.
 
 There were of course enemies that flooded the guiding paths.
 Yet as if to say 『something like that doesn’t even matter』, the enemy wave, their force barely dampened, marched on up its surface.
 
 The orcs bulldozed^[3] the goblins stuck in the barbed wire, pushing on as is.
 The goblin swarms trampled upon the corpses of their own species.
 It was nothing short of madness.
 
 “All hands, fire at full force!!”
 
 Lionel the territory army commander shouted from behind.
 
 Dadadadadadadadadadadada!!
 Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
 Bababababa!!
 
 The light machine guns mowed down the approaching goblins, and the fireballs fired from spellswords and my own magic power convergence bullets blew up the orcs.
 
 But the monsters kept pushing forward, regardless of how many times we took them down.
 
 And then the enemy finally reached the top of the earthen walls, tumbling straight down the path made in the gap between the city walls.
 
 That there was the final killzone we prepared.
 
 Pang! Pang! Pang! Pang!
 Dadadadadada!!
 
 Crossfire from the concealed trenches dug under the earthen walls and the trenches connected to the city walls concentrated upon the monsters that fell into the killzone.
 
 Gyaaaaahhh!!!!
 
 The monsters taken down let out shrieks.
 
 Even the individuals who clung to the concealed trenches and city walls were immediately blown away, spewing blood into the air.
 
 “… it’s fine. We can properly fight this!”
 
 As I looked down from atop the city walls confirming the war results, I convinced myself like this, and once again pulled my trigger against the advancing monsters.
 
 
 ☆
 
 
 A little over an hour passed from then.
 
 The embankments I devised with everyone are generally working well.
 
 However———
 
 “𝚂𝚑𝚒𝚝! These guys!!”
 
 The soldier beside me was hacking away at the goblin that climbed up to the city wall’s edge.
 
 “Hyaah!!”
 
 Dadadadadadadada!!
 
 Another soldier was drilling shots at point-blank range into the face of an orc clinging to the wall with half its body showing.
 
 Ghaaaaahhh!!!!
 
 Riddled with holes in an instant, the orc was taken down and fell backwards with a spurt of blood.
 
 With scaffolding of their companions’ corpses piling up in front of the walls, the monsters began climbing up the city walls.
 
 Already, there was a mountain of corpses formed in front of the concealed trenches, and the killzone too was no longer functioning much.
 
 
 
 “Miss!”
 
 Turning around when I was called, there stood the territory army’s commander Lionel with a grim face.
 
 “What?”
 
 “The east side that Graham-sama is defending is looking bad. The city walls are holding out, but the encampment construction has incompletely enclosed the hill.”
 
 “Can you hold them off?”
 
 “We’re constructing it at top speed. The personnel are centred around magic swords and magic bows, and there are barely any light machine guns. It won’t hold for long like this. So…”
 
 Lionel looked down from the city wall.
 
 “I’d like to pull out the guys in the earthen wall and focus them in the east, if that’s alright with you?”
 
 I see.
 The effect of the concealed trenches using the killzone has already been greatly reduced.
 If so, it’d be better to pass them around as support for the eastern hill and for the city wall’s defence.
 
 “Got it. Rearrange the troops immediately.”
 
 “Understood!! ——— Oi! Send out an order!!”
 
 Thus we abandoned the embankment we made of earthen walls.
 
 
 ☆
 
 
 Yet another hour passed.
 The situation was getting worse.
 
 The carpet of monsters before us was no different from one hour ago.
 To make matters worse, monsters other than goblins and orcs had begun to mix in.
 
 Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
 
 “A cyclops is charging in!!”
 
 Creating tremors as it moved, a single giant approached the city.
 Its height easily exceeded that of the city walls.
 
 “…-!”
 
 I set the left selector on my rifle to 『1』, switching the magic convergence bullets to multi-acceleration mode.
 
 “Coco, 『Mid-range Firing Mode ON』!!”
 
 “Gotcha!!”
 
 The vision in my right eye expanded, and I pulled my trigger the moment the sight appeared.
 
 Bang!!
 
 The arrow of light shot from the muzzle was accelerated by the five acceleration magic circles and flew in a straight line.
 And then,
 
 Kaboooooomm!!
 
 It impacts with and explodes the giant’s left chest.
 
 Ghaaaaaaaahh!!
 
 The giant, with the end of its right shoulder and part of the right side of its face blown off, let loose a dreadful roar and fell to its knees.
 
 However, it wasn’t taken down like that.
 
 Ughaaaaaaahh!!
 
 The howling giant stood up once again, and while guhing out a massive amount of blood, it began running this way with an enraged expression.
 
 “Ojou-sama!”
 
 “I know!!”
 
 I took aim once more, and fired.
 
 The light bullet pierced the giant once more, exploding its abdomen.
 
 Its four limbs were blown off.
 The giant did not get up this time, and tumbled upon the dug-up earth.
 
 
 
 “Hah, hah…”
 
 My eyes were spinning.
 
 Right up until I faced off against the giant, I had been blazing away in scatter mode.
 
 Then rapid firing two shots in multi-acceleration mode right after.
 The magic power stabilisation spell wasn’t keeping up.
 
 “Just, a small break…”
 
 And then it happened right as I fell to my knees.
 
 “Aaaaaaaahh!!”
 
 Dadadadadada!!
 
 A scream and a series of shots came from my left side.
 
 I turned around, only to see a giant tiger with its paws holding onto the city walls.
 
 A soldier with a light machine gun was hunched over, shooting the gun at a rapid pace.
 
 However, the tiger’s pelt caught most of the bullets, and the monster aimed at the soldier without being bothered.
 
 “Back off! It’s a Sword Fang Tiger!! Half-hearted attacks won’t do any damage!!”
 
 Lionel shouted out to the soldiers.
 
 In the meantime, the giant tiger kept moving, finally having completely climbed up onto the path atop the city wall.
 
 “Back off…!”
 
 Hearing my words, Anna reacted.
 
 “Everyone, clear a line of fire!! Ojou-sama is going to attack!!”
 
 The soldiers hurriedly backed off.
 
 Then, just as the line of fire opened up, the tiger looked at me.
 Our eyes meet.
 
 “… bye bye, kitty.”
 
 While on my knees, I pulled the trigger.
 
 Flash of light.
 Explosion.
 
 And then I collapsed.
 
 
 
 
 ——— Letty!!!!
 
 As my vision closed off,
 In the midst of my consciousness going far away,
 
 I thought someone called out my name.