Published: March 21, 2026
After Akira contacted us, Yoru and Amelia dashed through the town.
They were carrying elderly people who couldn’t evacuate on their own.
At first the elders resisted when they saw Yoru’s appearance, but once they could see the beasts rampaging in the distance and realized they didn’t want to die, they reluctantly allowed themselves to be placed on Yoru’s back.
“Miss Amelia, hurry and evacuate!”
After loading the last person, Yoru tried to use his tail to lift Amelia onto his back, but she shook her head and refused.
“There are still people ahead who haven’t evacuated. And since no adventurers have come yet, someone has to stay here and hold them off.”
The monsters were already almost upon them.
Yoru hesitated.
If he left Amelia now and something happened to her, there would be no way to contact her or find her location.
It would become the situation Akira feared most.
“Go now!”
Snapping back to himself, Yoru realized the monsters were only a short distance away.
Amelia, a silver rank, didn’t seem like the sort who would be defeated easily.
Still, an indescribable anxiety swept through him.
“...I’ll be right back.”
Thinking of the many lives on his back, Yoru kicked off the ground.
His hands were too stained now to save his own life, but still—he would prevent any more casualties.
“Maybe we’ll be the ones chasing them down, huh.”
Amelia reached toward the approaching monsters.
“Gravity.”
Her released magical power lifted her hair.
At her chest a silver dog tag swung with the excitement of battle after a long time.
“Now, I summon a great burning flame to turn all before me to ash!... Flame Hand.”
Sena began the incantation while I drew the monsters’ attention, planning to leave just as the spell completed.
The spell formed, and from Sena’s outstretched hand a gigantic hand of flame extended, burning the monsters in a line to cinders.
Still, the monsters gathered to fill the void.
Nearly an hour had passed since the front-line fighting began, but the monster numbers showed no sign of dwindling.
As Yamato and the others at the Adventurer Guild had said, the monsters from the Brute Labyrinth had inconsistent weaknesses, making coordination essential.
Still, the party composition being so reliant on adventurers was probably due to beastmen traits.
Beastmen had animal blood in them—that much everyone knew.
The problem was that animal blood influenced their personalities to some extent.
Beastmen of vicious animals were quick to anger and fought easily.
Beastmen of gentle animals were peaceful and disliked conflict.
Those from strong animals were, unsurprisingly, physically powerful.
In short, beastmen who lived solitary lives weren’t suited to group action.
That was likely why parties leaned so heavily on regular adventurers.
“Akira, can you hold the front for a few minutes?”
Hearing Sena’s strained voice, I looked back: he was carrying two adventurers from the front line.
Both were barely breathing; if they’d retreated a moment later they might have died.
I nodded and borrowed a dagger from one of them.
Just as I turned, the dagger I’d been using—the one borrowed from the Guild that had sliced through countless monsters—had shattered to pieces.
I’d noticed the dagger this adventurer carried showed no sign of dulling, so I’d been curious. Taking advantage of the moment, I seized it.
I swung it to test its feel.
It reached from my hand to about my elbow, weight perfect—clearly a fine blade.
“That—th-that dagger is Crow’s, so you gotta bring it back, got it?!”
No wonder it felt easy to wield.
I nodded at the panting adventurer and memorized his face.
If it was made by Crow, recommended by the former demon king’s right hand, it must have been expensive.
Given how broke I was, I was grateful he lent it.
“Sorry, I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
Sena said as he left the front line.
I smiled grimly.
Now I could fight without holding anything back.
There were still dozens of adventurers on the front line I couldn’t see from here.