In the darkness of the night, we hid in the bushes to observe the target location.
On the top of the walls surrounding the base, there are people who look like knights. They are equipped in the same way as those who fought in the lava ruins, so it is safe to assume that they are Krisnadam men.
They haven’t had time to fully secure the area yet, so all the knights seem relaxed.
“How dare they take our base as if it were their own! I won’t let them, I’ll defeat them right now!”
“Wait, don’t rush. What now, leader?”
Takigi grabs Chiba’s shoulder as he tries to run forward.
Those who accompany me are Takigi, Benare, and Chiba. In the current base, there are also many members of the Manyu Brigade. They don’t have to worry about defending themselves, since the Behemoth is lurking in the surrounding areas.
Now that they have made it this far, it is still unclear what the enemy’s goal is. Chiba’s explanation is that they attacked to obtain relics, but why they committed such a violent act is unclear. Perhaps there is a reason behind their actions.
“Let’s talk to Spike first. Then we’ll decide whether to fight or not.”
“And what about our promise?”
“We will cooperate. At the very least, I’ll provide them with food and shelter.”
If Chiba’s statement is legitimate and they do not harm their group, cooperation will be something personal and indirect. However, Spike, who attacked them for no reason, is still there. It is not possible for him to be innocent.
“Benare and Chiba will come with me. Takigi will wait nearby until we give the signal.”
“Understood.”
“Okay.”
“Of course.”
The three nod briefly and begin to move.
With a single blow, the door of the Isa’s base is shattered. The deafening noise makes the knights draw their swords and rush towards me.
“Who are you? Did you know that this is Krisnadam’s territory?”
“I want to talk to Spike. I am Toru, leader of the Manyu Brigade.”
When my name is mentioned, the knights are surprised and take a step back. But their shock lasts only a moment as they swing their weapons again and show their fighting spirit.
Will they confront me even though they know my name? Are they underestimating me or is it their duty as knights? Considering what happened with Spike before, it’s probably the former.
“Oh, Toru, what a pleasant surprise. It seems that fate wants us to meet again.”
“I see you survived my attack, Spike…”
Spike Stars appears among the knights, brandishing his scythe and grinning ironically.
Chiba reacts and draws his sword.
“How dare you do this to our friends!”
“Friends? Ah, those trash. If they had fled without resisting, they would still be alive. Thanks for wasting their lives. Gyahahaha!”
Spike kicks the face of the dead adventurer. Chiba, on the other hand, grabs his sword with an angry expression and trembles in his hand.
“So this is how Krisnadam behaves? Have you been ordered to kill and steal?”
“Don’t call me a monster, Toru. I only follow orders. It’s even an order from the king. We must use the power of the collected objects to eradicate the demons that infest the continent. We can use any means necessary. What a shame. Anything goes, no matter what we do.”
Really? Were they seriously thinking of confronting all the countries? The king of Krisnadam is crazy.
“By the way, Toru, do you really think it was a good idea to come here? Are you so sure of your powers and abilities?”
“Silence, you damned bastard! How dare you come to our base?”
“Gyahahaha! You weaklings who managed to escape were just bait to lure in other idiots like Toru and his pathetic members.”
“Bastard… I won’t be satisfied until I completely destroy you and kill you with remorse.”
I see.
Chiba and the others were released on purpose. But I’m not sure I can save them all.
At this point, I think it was better not to get involved.
“Well, Toru, I’m glad that you came here. You have no idea how impatient I was to see you again. I’m going to cut off your head with this new weapon.”
Spike wielded a shiny scythe with a new blade.
In an instant, I barely dodged the scythe and took a step back.
“Have I surprised you with my speed? Then let me surprise you even more.”
With a loud noise, Spike took off the gauntlets he wore on both arms.
They were much heavier than they looked and sank to the ground.
“My opponent is you! You are the enemy of my friends!”
“You’re a nuisance, samurai!”
“Gyaaah!”
Chiba, who stepped forward, was sliced in an instant.
The scythe blade broke and blood gushed from the wound on his shoulder.
Spike was even faster than before.
“Chiba!”
“I’m so sorry… Just leave me here and make sure the others survive… Muggh!”
I opened a bottle of potion and poured it into Chiba’s mouth.
I had told him not to fight because of his injuries, but he turned out to be a very stubborn person.
I would let him rest somewhere where he wouldn’t hurt himself.
“Stop interfering and go rest while you watch me fight.
“That’s very rude!”
I grabbed Chiba’s arm and threw him aside.
Since he had a fairly high level, he wouldn’t die if he fell.
“Surround them! Don’t let them escape!”
The knights surrounded Benale, Takigi and me.
“I have no intention of running away. Benale, Takigi, take care of them.”
“Leader, that’s not fair. He seems strong.”
“It doesn’t matter, just do it.”
Every time Takigi’s mace swung, the knights were sent flying, their shields and armor shattered.
A yellow smoke rose behind the enemies. It was Takigi’s paralyzing smoke.
As the knights slowed down, Takigi finished them off with his collapsible bow.
“Benale, help them!”
“Yes, sir.”
Benale’s attacks cornered the enemies even more.
Despite their numerical superiority, Spike was frustrated to see his knights being defeated by us one by one.
“How can we lose to mere adventurers? What’s going on?”
“We are not mere adventurers. We’re warriors. And I, I am a man married to many beautiful women and with adorable children. Right now, I just want to eat Kaede’s dinner, so let’s finish this quickly.”
I drew the holy sword from my back, and its shining blade illuminated the area.
“Ahhhh! I didn’t want this! This isn’t fair!”
Spike vanished in an instant with a single stroke of my sword.
And it seemed that most of the knights were also dead, and Benale and Takigi looked bored.
“Good work. Some managed to escape, but I’m sure the king of Krisnadam won’t mess with us for a while when he finds out what happened here.”
“I hope they reconsider their position.”
“Yes, but we’ll be back if they try to attack us.”
However, when that time comes, we will all be even stronger.
Now, we should see how things are at our base.
“Oh, I almost forgot. We should take Isa’s belongings.”
“Yes, I think Chiba will be happy to see that we’ve recovered some of his belongings.”
On the way back to our base, we met Chiba on the path, staggering with a branch he was using as a makeshift cane.
“Oh, hello Chiba, I see you’re feeling much better now.”
“Please… never throw me like that again.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
