Chapter 25
Using the 'Telescope' Skill, I observe the helicopter.
The helicopter had already drawn close to the shopping mall.
It helped that there weren't many obstructions, either.
I had a good view of the area around the shopping mall.
"...That helicopter doesn't seem to be landing anytime soon."
The helicopter was circling around the shopping mall.
Well, the traces left by the High Orc's Shout are visible all over the place, so they're probably checking whether there are any monsters nearby, too.
At least, there shouldn't be anything particularly dangerous within the range visible from the air.
The High Orcs are inside the shopping mall, after all.
The inside of the shopping mall is probably a scene straight out of hell...
Anyone who failed to escape was almost certainly killed.
If any are still alive, it would probably only be women being used as the orcs' playthings.
I can hardly call them alive, though.
"Oh, are they landing?"
The helicopter had continued circling, but at last it descended near the parking lot.
People who appeared to be Self-Defense Forces personnel climbed out.
One... two... five in total.
Coincidentally, that was the same number of people who had initially fought the orcs at that shopping mall.
They had their guns raised and were carefully scanning their surroundings.
As expected, they were amazing. There wasn't a wasted movement among them.
At the same time, I genuinely thought it was incredible that they were still trying to fulfill their duties in a world like this.
I had an acquaintance who used to be in the Self-Defense Forces, and the training he told me about was no joke... I could never have done anything like it. Incidentally, he was eventually injured, medically barred from service, and retired.
"Do they have levels and Skills, too?"
This is the world we live in now.
In Japan, the people who have had the most opportunities to confront monsters head-on are probably the Self-Defense Forces and police officers.
After all, they have guns—the weapons of civilization.
"If I gained experience points by running monsters over with a car, then shooting them to death with guns must give experience points, too."
The Self-Defense Forces soldiers advanced cautiously without breaking formation.
From their movements, it was obvious that they had already fought monsters several times.
There was just one thing that bothered me.
"...Huh? Why are some of them carrying guns while others aren't?"
Well, to be precise, the ones without guns had knives at the ready.
...Why was their weaponry so inconsistent?
In this world, the most dependable weapons should be firearms.
Why were they holding knives?
Was there a shortage of equipment? No, surely that would be ridiculous.
Could there be some 'reason' they had to vary their weapons?
"Woof!"
Momo barked.
Following Momo's gaze, I saw an orc emerging from the entrance of the shopping mall.
It must have been completely off guard.
It was casually yawning.
"Hasn't the orc noticed them?"
Ah, I see. From that position, it couldn't see the Self-Defense Forces.
It must have heard the helicopter, so why wasn't it on alert?
The orc stepped outside, and its gaze turned toward the Self-Defense Forces.
It finally seemed to notice them.
But by then, the Self-Defense Forces soldiers were already moving.
They raised their guns toward the orc and fired a volley.
Caught in a storm of bullets, the orc collapsed where it stood.
"Amazing... It's completely one-sided..."
Even conservatively, an orc's combat ability was several times greater than a goblin's.
And they took it down that easily... Guns really are unfair.
The dead orc's body disappeared, and a blue magic stone rolled across the ground.
Were orc magic stones blue, too?
Besides, I was amazed by the performance of 'Telescope,' which let me see things so clearly from this distance.
I wonder how far I'll be able to see when my level increases.
Perhaps drawn by the sound of gunfire, two more orcs emerged from the entrance.
But another hail of bullets killed those two orcs just as effortlessly.
Blue magic stones rolled across the ground.
"Huh? They clearly took firing positions before those orcs even came out of the entrance, didn't they...?"
This wasn't just keen intuition or anything like that.
They must have known in advance and timed their shots to coincide with the orcs emerging.
It's certain now. Those Self-Defense Forces soldiers have Skills.
I don't know whether it's 'Enemy Search' or 'Hostility Detection,' but one of the soldiers must have a detection-type Skill.
Unlike me, they probably share information, too, so there's no doubt every one of them has some kind of Skill or Job.
"...We might actually be able to do this at this rate."
I clenched my fist without thinking, and a grin spread across my face.
Overwhelming firepower.
A means of attacking from long range.
Coordinated movements, backed by their levels and Skills.
I couldn't imagine the orcs, who could only fight at close range, having any chance of winning.
"If this keeps up―――"
It was safe.
That's what I thought.
It was the very next moment.
―――I heard a 'Shout.'
'――――Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!'
The roar echoed all the way to where I was, far in the distance.
The air trembled, and the earth shook.
I reflexively hugged Momo and braced myself for the impact.
Momo immediately deployed 'Shadow,' too.
"D-don't worry, Momo. It won't have any effect at this distance..."
"Whiiine..."
Momo gazed up at me anxiously.
There was no mistaking it. It was that one.
It was the 'Shout' Skill possessed by that High Orc.
"―――!? W-what about the Self-Defense Forces...?"
Were they all right?
I raised myself up and looked toward the shopping mall.
Some of the soldiers were staggering or had dropped to one knee, but they all appeared to be alive.
The person at the very back, who appeared to be the commander, was giving some kind of instructions to the helicopter.
What was the commander saying?
I couldn't make out the commander's voice from this distance.
"...Where's the High Orc?"
Where was it?
The roar didn't seem to have come from inside the building.
The High Orc must already be somewhere outside...
"What...!?"
My prediction had been right.
There was a roar and an impact.
Suddenly, the helicopter the Self-Defense Forces had arrived in exploded.
It had been destroyed by 'something' that came falling from above.
A High Orc with reddish-bronze skin emerged leisurely from the flames and black smoke.
It held a giant meat cleaver in one hand.
"Did it jump and stomp it flat...?"
What kind of leg strength did it have, anyway? That monster...!
In its other hand, it held the corpse of a man who appeared to be the helicopter's pilot.
The High Orc casually tossed the corpse aside.
It looked as though it had merely waved its arm, but the corpse flew toward the soldiers at an impossible speed.
A comrade's corpse had been thrown at them.
That caused a momentary distraction.
One of the soldiers couldn't dodge in time and was slammed against the wall of the shopping mall along with the corpse.
The soldier slumped to the ground and stopped moving.
I couldn't tell from here whether he was unconscious or dead, but he probably wouldn't be getting back up after that...
The two soldiers carrying guns shouted and opened fire.
But the High Orc crossed its arms in front of its face and charged straight into the hail of bullets.
"You're kidding...!?"
The High Orc advanced unhurriedly through the storm of bullets.
I-is it not working?
No, looking closely, I could see that the bullets were hitting it, and that it had been wounded.
But that was all. None of the wounds were fatal.
...Hm? What is that?
At the moment a bullet struck, something resembling blood vessels seemed to rise beneath the High Orc's skin.
Some kind of Skill...?
In any case, the power of guns, which had so casually taken the lives of the orcs, was utterly ineffective against that High Orc.
It closed in on the Self-Defense Forces and used the giant meat cleaver in its hand to behead the two soldiers carrying guns.
The person who appeared to be the commander readied his knife and approached the High Orc.
The knife slashed at the High Orc's side―――but failed to cut it.
Instead, the High Orc seized the commander's arm.
The apparent commander struggled desperately, but the High Orc refused to let go.
The arm in its grip bent in a strange direction, and the commander's face twisted in agony.
Then, despite the commander's futile resistance, the High Orc slashed the commander's throat, killing them.
One more.
It was the soldier who had dropped to one knee at the sound of the Shout.
He stared dumbfounded at the scene before him.
The High Orc slowly approached the last soldier.
Perhaps his legs had given out completely, because he didn't even try to run. He simply sank to the ground.
The High Orc raised its blade and brought it down.
In barely a minute, the Self-Defense Forces soldiers had been wiped out.