Chapter 53
"Ughhhh! I'm sick of thisssss!!"
Jigoro complains as he punches one of the Toadmen. Its head promptly explodes, scattering pieces everywhere. I'd like him to stop because it's filthy, but I've gotten used to it by now.
"Just hang in there until Ruby gets back!"
As he says that, Genzuro swings his great katana and bisects several Toadmen. The cross-sections aren't visible, of course, but the upper halves of the Toadmen reaching their arms toward us and the lower halves twitching violently where they've been severed are gruesome. Well, I've gotten used to that too.
"Why are you two so... relaxed!?"
Iris screams as she swings her wooden mallet and hatchet around. Compared to the two whose combat abilities are real-life cheats, she makes more attacks that go to waste and has almost no leeway.
However, from the outside, it would probably look like the Toadmen were fearlessly charging into countless rampaging tentacles and dying. Of the three, Iris might actually be the most vicious.
"Tomoe Magic Circle, activate—Dark Wave."
I cast an area spell that could kill in one shot, keeping its power low to conserve mana, and provide support. About ten of them are caught in it? Normally, that would have been enough, but in our current situation, it was like a drop in the ocean. More and more of them were still pouring out.
"How much longer!?"
"Not yet."
We mindlessly cut down the enemies surging toward us. I had too many things to manage—my own mana, the stamina of the three others, the timing of my undead summons to provide support while we recovered... I had no room to open my mouth except when casting a spell.
Jigoro, move your hands before you start complaining! You're the most nimble one here! Thinking that, I use the Flying Slash of 【Scythe Arts】 to cut apart an enemy approaching Iris from behind.
How long had it been since the battle began? My sense of time was starting to fade. It felt as though only five minutes had passed, but at the same time, it also felt like more than an hour.
"Gerororoo! Geko! Gero!"
"Geko!?"
"Geroro!?"
That was when we heard the deep voice of a Toadman from far ahead. At its signal, the Toadmen who had been charging at us without any concern for their lives turned around and began to retreat.
The front—that is, the direction where their nest was located. Something must have happened there. And Ruby had to be the one who caused that something. Well done!
――――――――――
You won the battle.
Your Race level has increased. You acquired 1 SP.
Your Job level has increased. You acquired 1 SP.
【Staff】 level has increased.
【Scythe Arts】 level has increased.
【Intelligence Enhancement】 level has increased.
【Spirit Enhancement】 level has increased.
【Health Recovery Speed Increase】 level has increased.
【Mana Recovery Speed Increase】 level has increased.
【Mana Control】 level has increased.
【Mana Control】 has reached its growth limit. Evolution is possible.
【Earth Magic】 level has increased.
【Water and Ice Magic】 level has increased.
【Fire Magic】 level has increased.
【Storm Magic】 level has increased.
【Wood Magic】 level has increased.
【Lava Magic】 level has increased.
【Sandstorm Magic】 level has increased.
【Smoke and Fog Magic】 level has increased.
【Lightning Magic】 level has increased.
【Explosion Magic】 level has increased.
【Light Magic】 level has increased.
【Dark Arts】 level has increased.
【Void Magic】 level has increased.
【Summoning Arts】 level has increased.
【Enchantment Arts】 level has increased.
【Magic Circle】 level has increased.
【Necromancy】 level has increased.
【Curse Arts】 level has increased.
【Trap Magic】 level has increased.
【Spirit Channeling】 level has increased.
You have learned a new spell: Summon Evil Spirit.
【Malefic Arts】 level has increased.
You have learned a new spell: Necrosis.
【Linguistics】 level has increased.
――――――――――
It's over... It's finally over... That was such a fierce battle that nearly every combat-oriented Skill increased in level. But we made it through! We have every right to be proud.
"Is everyone all right!?"
"Our savior has returned!"
Ruby, our savior, appeared from behind us. She must have taken a detour while fleeing from the Toadmen.
"Savior...? More importantly, listen! This quest isn't over yet!"
...Tell me everything.
◆◇◆◇◆◇
Before hearing Ruby's report, we visited the Lizardman village chief's house. The village's War Chief happened to be there as well, so he joined us for the report.
To summarize what she told us, she had infiltrated the Toadmen's nest and successfully assassinated a giant Toadman that had continued laying an abnormal number of eggs. This had thrown the Toadmen into a panic, causing them to start withdrawing their comrades.
However, the giant Toadman laid a huge number of eggs at the moment of its death. The estimated total was several hundred. Ruby had considered crushing the eggs while she was there, but she had been forced to retreat before the enemies discovered her.
...Are you actually a ninja or something? I thought it would be enough if you just gathered information! And yet you assassinated the boss? Alone, even while we were drawing their attention?
"Ho ho ho! As expected of my granddaughter!"
Genzuro was delighted, but we couldn't help being astonished. Just look—the village chief and the War Chief were standing there open-mouthed as well. It seemed to be an astounding achievement even for the NPCs. I was glad my own senses weren't the ones acting strangely.
"Ahem! Er, Chief. I'm not familiar with Toadman biology, but do you recognize the giant Toadman Ruby mentioned?"
"Y-Yes! Yes, I do! I know of it only from legend, but it was probably the Toadman Grandmother."
"Toadman Grandmother..."
That's a long name. No, that wasn't important. It was obvious from the name alone that this wasn't an ordinary Toadman. What kind of individual was it?
"According to legend, the Toadman Grandmother is an individual that gives birth to Toadman King offspring."
"The king of the Toadmen..."
A king, huh? Just the other day, we'd fought the Ratman King. It had been in a league of its own in terms of strength. We had been far behind it in level, which was certainly part of the reason, but even setting that aside, I thought it had been absurdly strong.
After all, it had been able to slug it out head-on with a Gravekeeper more than ten levels below it. Perhaps monsters with "King" in their names were several grades stronger than individuals in the same level range. That was merely my personal opinion, of course.
"A Toadman bearing the title of king, huh? The king of the opponents we've been slaughtering until we were sick of them... I can't imagine it."
"According to legend, the village at that time was driven to the brink of destruction. They say it was saved thanks to Agnaslerim-sama detecting the anomaly."
"In other words, it was so strong that they couldn't win without borrowing the power of Dragon Lord-sama, right?"
The village chief slowly nodded. If Dragon Lord-sama came in person, of course they would win. I didn't know how many years ago this story had happened, but it was probably a level of strength the Toadmen could never reach no matter how much they struggled. An opponent they couldn't defeat without that much military strength, huh.
"...Bone Dragon-sama. This concludes the request we made of you. Please accept this."
――――――――――
Hidden Quest: 'Solve the Mystery of the Toadmen!' cleared!
Rewards will be granted.
――――――――――
The village chief smoothly laid out five objects resembling friendship bracelets in front of us. They looked like nothing more than ordinary vines woven together, but they had a faint bluish tint.
"What are these?"
"These are talismans woven with powder from that revered one's scales, which we received from Agnaslerim-sama. We Lizardmen revere Agnaslerim-sama, but precisely because of that, no one would dare commit the discourtesy of approaching that one without due cause. If you wear these, we will recognize you as Agnaslerim-sama and will not approach you without a serious reason."
I see. If we wore these, the Lizardmen would regard us as Agnaslerim-sama and keep their distance out of awe. How convenient.
"And with that in mind, I have a request! Would you please lend your strength to this village's crisis!?"
――――――――――
Will you accept Emergency Quest: 'Save the Lizardmen of the Lake!'?
※If you decline this quest, you will never be able to accept it again.
Yes/No
――――――――――
First a God Quest, then a Hidden Quest, and now an Emergency Quest. I really have no restraint.
Still, I couldn't refuse at this point. Besides, the other four were raring to go. And I felt the same way.
"I can't just say, 'Yes, goodbye,' here, Chief. We'd be honored to help."
"Oh, you have my gratitude!"
"Now that that's settled, let's make a plan."
"Indeed. War Chief, could you bring the principal members here?"
"Yes, sir!"
◆◇◆◇◆◇
Within minutes, the people who held the village's various leadership positions had gathered at the village chief's house: the War Chief, Head of Agriculture, Head of Fishing, Head of Rituals, and the Female Chief.
The village chief, the five of us, and those five leaders made eleven people in total, and we began considering our strategy. Though, in truth, there was only one course of action available to us.
"I assume you've already heard from the War Chief, but the legendary Toadman Grandmother has been born. Fortunately, Ruby-sama, companion of Bone Dragon-sama, slew it, but there is a high probability that a child of the Toadman King has been born as well."
Tension ran through the meeting. Naturally so—we were facing the threat of the village's complete destruction.
"However, the Toadman King should not yet have fully matured. Therefore, we will strike first!"
Everyone except us and the War Chief looked shaken by the village chief's declaration. But it was easy to understand with just a little thought.
"...So we'll kill the threat before it has fully grown?"
"Indeed. That is the plan."
The village chief nodded in response to the Female Chief's question. We had an enemy highly likely to destroy us, and that enemy was still developing. That meant this was an opportunity. There was no reason to wait for the enemy to grow stronger. We should cut it down while it was still weak.
Cowardly? No, no, this was a survival strategy. Waiting for the enemy to grow strong and then fighting fair and square could be left to the knights. We were monsters. It was eat or be eaten.
"We have no other choice. Now, who will we send to attack?"
"That has already been decided. We will leave five veterans and five newcomers behind, and everyone else will attack. We cannot allow even one of them to escape."
This was the War Chief's decision. The aim was to launch an all-out attack and ensure the immature Toadman King was defeated.
"The other adult males will join the village's defenses, while the women will protect the children. And, Ritual Chief, in case of emergency, send a message to Agnaslerim-sama."
"Understood."
Agnaslerim's setting out would be a last resort. If that Dragon Lord appeared, it would mean we had already been defeated. But I would never allow things to reach that point.
"Everyone, the fate of our village rests on this battle! Let's remind those idiots that Agnaslerim-sama is the ruler of the lake!"
"Oooooh!"
The Lizardmen's morale was high. Naturally so, since this was a defensive battle.
Then we should prepare as well. We had to repair our equipment, check the new spells, and deal with the pending Skill evolution too!