The Mob Noble Who Got Reincarnated in a World Where Men Are Naturally Protected—So I Trained Like Crazy to Protect Girls Instead, But Their Love Got Way Too Heavy - Chapter 11: The Pile Bunker and the Blood Rose Staff

Chapter 11: The Pile Bunker and the Blood Rose Staff

This was something Wiz told me later.

“For those of us from the Archmage Scholar bloodline, that title… it’s actually more like a curse name.”

She said it one quiet evening.

“In the Constantine Kingdom, original magic isn’t something you’re supposed to research or develop. It’s something you hone and pass down within your bloodline.”

I’d heard a similar story before—from the Lady of my territory, born of the Little Fortress bloodline.

“In that sense, Archmage Scholar really means ‘the heretics who failed to create unique magic within their bloodline, and instead focused on building magical weapons.’”

That was why Archmage Scholar had turned into a name of disgrace. A mark for fools who misunderstood the duty of their lineage.

“But that side of it—that curse-name part—only really applied up until about twenty generations ago.”

Wiz continued.

“Back then, the women of the Archmage Scholar bloodline twisted under that scorn. Mockery from other nobles, resentment… it warped us. More and more girls like me were born—gloomy, antisocial, caring nothing for humanity, interested in nothing but research.”

In short, the bloodline had started producing a streak of mad scientist types.

That was what the Archmage Scholar name had come to mean.

“This nickname spread across the country because an ancestor of our bloodline, in a certain war, single-handedly slaughtered thousands of enemy soldiers—about twenty generations ago, roughly five hundred years back.”

Wiz kept a flat, unreadable smile and continued.

“Ever since then, the Archmage Scholar line has been watched with both caution and expectation—”

Wiz lifted the rose and said,

“Sip, drip, and then, bloom—Blood Rose Wand.”

She gripped the rose’s stem. 

The stem was covered in thorns. Of course it hurt to hold; the thorns pierced her palm and blood welled up.

Wiz’s blood ran down the stem and dropped to the ground.

The instant that blood touched the earth, a grotesque, deep-red magic circle spread out from the contact point.

“—!? Wiz, what is that?”

“This is a magical weapon I developed: the Blood Rose Wand. It’s unfinished, so it only kills things like goblins for now… but against goblins, even if there are dozens, it’ll wipe them out.”

A chill crawled up my spine at that. Wait—she’d said weapon. A weapon… what did she mean by that?

But some folks didn’t wait for polite questions.

“If you’re gonna talk big like that, I’ll have my minions attack you through the whole forest!”

“Gii!”

At the intelligent orc’s command, a horde of goblins burst out from the thickets.

A quick glance said around twenty—but I could feel more lurking in the bushes, waiting for their chance to ambush. Judging by the pressure, the total could easily be over fifty.

“…Seriously? You’re a bigger deal than I thought, huh?”

“I’m the ruler of this whole Orc Forest!”

The stone axe came swinging down at me. I focused, exhaled sharply, and caught it with my blade.

Parry.

Kiin! The steel pressed against the side of the axe and turned the blow aside.

“What the hell are you, you weak male!?” the intelligent orc roared, veins bulging.

“—! Tect, you can parry that with just a sword!?” 

“Compared to one of Mom’s hits, that’s nothing! Quit worrying—Wiz, cast your magic!”

“R-Right!”

Wiz drew a deep breath, tightened her grip on the Blood Rose Wand, and began her chant.

“First flower language—‘There is no one but you.’”

The effect was instant, and overwhelming.

The spell targeted every creature standing on the magic circle—everyone except me and Wiz.

Seven goblins—and the intelligent orc.

From beneath their feet, thick crimson vines erupted with terrifying speed.

“Gii!?” “Gigyah!”

The goblins didn’t stand a chance. Vines crushed their small bodies, squeezing blood out like wringing a rag.

The orc wasn’t finished, though. Vines coiled around one of her thighs, but she kicked them away before they could bite in deep.

Still, the orc wasn’t the point. Wiping out the goblins in one sweep was perfect.

“Nice, Wiz!”

If she kept that up, the goblins couldn’t close in—and I’d get a clean opening on the orc.

But then Wiz said,

“No. This won’t stop at just that.”

Blood dripped from the seven crushed goblins. The drops sank into the magic circle, warping it—expanding its size, dragging more ground into its reach.

I see. The spell fed on its victims to grow.

A chill shot down my spine.

What brutal efficiency. What insane scaling. What sheer murderous intent.

And the terrifying part was… this wasn’t some ancient bloodline technique. Wiz had invented it herself. Refined it. Improved over time, it could probably wipe out an entire town.

“Damn! What a weird trick! Goblins—kill that weak female first! Pin them down from both sides!”

“Gigi!” “Gyagyagya!”

The intelligent orc swung her axe in a wide arc as goblins rushed from behind.

Normally, this would’ve been bad news. If it were just me, the only smart move would be to run.

But I’d already put my back to Wiz.

“Second flower language—‘In this world, there’s only you and me.’”

Over ten goblins were crushed at once by the blood vines. Again, the magic circle spread—expanding so far it stretched beyond my sight.

“What the hell!?”

The stone axe came crashing down, but I parried it again—this time easily enough to slice clean through a goblin standing beside the orc.

“Wiz! This magic’s incredible! Hey, orc—bring more goblins onto the circle! We’ll wipe them out all at once!”

“Damn it! Damn, damn it! Goblins, pull back! Step on that circle and you’ll all be wiped out!”

At the intelligent orc’s order, the goblins scattered instantly.

Wiz bit her lip.

“I’m sorry, Tect! The Blood Rose Wand only hits targets standing on the circle! If the goblins stay away, then—”

“It’s fine, Wiz! The goblins were just in the way. I was waiting for this—the intelligent orc, all alone!”

As I spoke, I slotted the magic stone into place and activated the pile bunker’s circuits.

Sparks flared across the weapon. Flames roared inside its chamber, heat building up, begging to be unleashed.

“W-What the hell is that!? What are you—ugh!?”

“Orc, you’ve been swinging that axe around all bloodied up for a while now. Don’t you think you’re running low on blood by this point?”

The orc’s body lurched, her limbs faltering as strength began to drain away.

“Y-You weak male… you provoked me on purpose…?”

“Damn right I did! I’ve only got one shot with this thing—I wasn’t about to waste it on goblins. I had to peel them off first.”

I closed in on the orc. She swung her stone axe, but the force was gone. With a single step, I slipped past it.

“Thanks for moving just the way I wanted! Now—time for the big one! Take this!”

“S-Stop—don’t do ittttt!”

The orc dropped her axe and tried to fight barehanded, but it was far too late.

I clenched my fist and let the strike fly.

“PILE BUNKERRRRRR!”

BOOOOOM!

A sharp metallic blast split the air as a flower of fire bloomed in midair.

The stake launched at blinding speed, flames gushing from the barrel.

The impact tore a massive hole straight through the orc’s torso. Fire seared her flesh black, until her whole body crumbled apart in the forest like brittle pumice.

“Gii!” “Gyagyaaa!” “Gigigya!”

The goblins screamed in terror and scattered. Without their intelligent commander, their unity collapsed.

I shook my arm, scattering the sparks still smoldering inside the pile bunker. The red-hot stake slowly cooled back to dull steel.

“Phew, guess that wraps things up.”

With the test-fire done using a high-purity magic stone, from now on even goblin-grade stones would be enough to power the pile bunker. Which meant—yeah, it was complete.

I retracted the stake and called out,

“Wiz! You okay?”

“Y-Yes! Tect, are you alright too?”

“Perfectly fine! The pile bunker’s finished, and the enemies are all gone!”

Grinning wide, I walked over to her. Wiz, finally starting to relax, stepped toward me as well.

But then her expression twisted.

“T-Tect!? You’re… y-you’re hurt!”

“Huh? Where?”

I twisted around, confused—then spotted blood spurting from my torso. Ah, so that’s where it was.

Probably a goblin’s thrown weapon had grazed me at some point. Shallow cut, nothing major.

“Well, if it’s just this kind of scratch, spit’ll fix it… Wiz?”

“Uuuh… uuuuhhh…”

Wiz clenched her fists tight, trembling, teeth gritted.

“I… I’m pathetic! Because I was weak. If only I’d made up my mind sooner, you wouldn’t have gotten hurt at all…!”

“Uh, Wiz? It’s such a small wound I don’t even remember getting hit. Seriously, it’s nothing to worry about.”

I gave a wry smile, and Wiz lifted her face.

Her cheeks were wet, tears spilling down like beads of glass—her whole expression twisted in frustrated crying.

“…Wiz.”

“For girls, it’s natural to protect boys. We’re supposed to—it’s expected. We have to give our all to make their wishes come true, because boys are that important… and yet—”

Wiz squeezed her eyes shut.

“I… I let Tect protect me. Even though I’m a girl, and I should’ve been the one protecting you.”

“…No. That’s not true.”

I spoke gently to Wiz, weeping her “girl tears.”

“You did protect me. I couldn’t have handled that many goblins on my own.”

“But… but if you hadn’t been there, I never could’ve beaten the orc!”

“Then it’s simple.”

I shrugged and smiled at her.

“We both protected each other, and somehow we pulled through alive. That’s the best outcome, isn’t it?”

“Ah…”

“Come on, don’t cry so much. Boys are weak to a girl’s tears, y’know.”

I wiped away Wiz’s tears, then took her hand and helped her to her feet.

“Alright, let’s go home. Turned into more of an adventure than I expected—if we don’t hurry, we’ll miss the dorm dinner.”

“Ah, y-yes… but, um, I really think you should stop by the infirmary first.”

“It’ll heal once I eat.”

“Eh!? N-No, that’s no good! You’re definitely going to the infirmary, okay!?”

And with that light banter, we started walking.

As we left the orc forest behind, the red sunset painted our path home in a deep, burning glow.