Chapter 136

The next day, Mea and I were immediately allowed to participate in the private army teams thinning of the magical beasts .

Following the private army members, we walked side by side .

The total number of people participating in this magic beasts thinning out was fifty-one in all .

Each team was divided into three squads of seventeen people, and each squad moved to patrol the territory along the route they had set the day before .

This time, the plan for thinning out the magic beasts was as follows .

While on their patrol, they will move to kill or avoid the magical beasts, and the three teams will meet up with each other in front of the cliffs along the mountain .

Once they meet up with each other, they will exchange information with each other on the spot and decide on the return route based on the strength of each team .

In other words, this time, youre mainly investigating rather than subjugating magical beasts?

I ask, and Euris nods .

By the way, she, Euris, is the captain of the first unit .

Yes, thats right . Ive ordered the captains of other units to use their magic tools to detect the magical beasts early and move with safety first . Of course, its best to subjugate them, but the main thing is to investigate and not to pursue them too deeply .

So you dont want them to get badly injured because they dont have enough strength .

I heard that many people were injured in the Nalgarn battle, and on top of that, the adventurer support center isnt functioning .

I heard a member of the private army talking about how Euris also recklessly participated in the thinning of magical beasts this time, even though her wounds from the Battle of Nalgarn hadnt healed yet .

The morale of the entire Private Army would be lowered without Euris, so she were forced to come out, even if it meant dragging her body .

Even if we operate the Adventurers Support Center now, I dont think those residents who have an antipathy to their lordship would obey honestly .

The lord would not be able to afford to give them sufficient rewards, and they would inevitably be compared to the treatment of adventurers and the private army, so its conceivable that they might even receive unnecessary opposition if they were to operate it poorly .

The private armys remuneration, as the lord said, has a strong implication of supporting the lives of former drifters .

They wouldnt be able to afford to recruit new troops from the residents under the same conditions, and with the same substantial activities, it would be inevitable that dissatisfaction would increase if they made a difference .

On top of that, they dont have enough popularity to force them to cooperate .

Come to think of it, you dont use horses, do you?

I was told that horses were used in the Battle of Nalgarn .

I dont have any experience with riding horses, so Id appreciate it more on foot .

Well, the horse that faced Nalgarn was frightened and became almost useless . I thought it would take some more time to recover . But thinning out the magic beasts isnt a problem that can be postponed either .

I suppose .

As Lark said, were not sure how many magical beasts are in the area right now .

With Nalgarn gone, there will be a change in how the magical beasts around the Fage territory will operate .

Most likely, it wont be a battle that requires standing around like the Nalgarn battle where horses are essential but if we dont have horses, if we are surrounded by magic beasts, we have no choice but to die . To prevent that from happening, we need to make sure that we are safe and far away from them .

So this time were going to keep track of the numbers and movements of the magic beasts, and then move on to thinning out the magic beasts in earnest after the other soldiers and horses have recovered .

If were going to use the horses then, I . . cant participate .

Oh and speaking of which, what about the recovery of Nalgarns head and body?

I apologize . Since its expected to take some time to transport them, due to the thinning of the magical beasts, weve decided to ascertain the situation of the magical beasts around the territory before moving on . As long as there are no problems, we should be able to move everything inside the village by noon tomorrow, so dont worry .

I, I see

Its quite a lot of stuff but will we be able to bring it all in tomorrow?

I should tell them this, after all .

Well, actually, I guess I couldnt say it, or maybe I missed the timing, but

Hm? Whats wrong?

Oh no, As I thought, Ill tell you later .

Theres the corpse of Nalgarn on the route the second unit will take and Ill explain afterward .

I dont think it will come across well even if I say it with my mouth .

Mea was looking around happily with a tube that she said was a farsighted magic tool .

When she showed interest in it in front of the lord, he instantly gave one away on the spot .

Abel, Abel! This looks so far and beautiful! Would you like to see a little, Abel?

Mea, you didnt have to follow me, though . Even though the main purpose this time is to find out what the magical beasts are up to, it doesnt mean that there isnt anything that could happen just in case .

Mea can fight, too! Look, I even have the shooting wyvern that Abel made for me!

Mea twists and turns to show me the warbling bow shes carrying on her back .

I think youre certainly improving, but its just like an amateur growing hair on their head .

In the worst-case scenario, Ill teleport Asura 5000, and let her escape with it as a vehicle, so I dont think its unlikely that shell be surrounded by magic beasts .

If I house-sitting for once, next time, it looks like Mea will be left behind forever Mea wants to assist Abel even a little .

Mea casts her eyes down and hangs down her hand that holds the magic tool .

Im happy with what she feels, but I dont have a clue of how dangerous it is .

Somehow, Mea always seems to be holding on to extra thoughts .

is Mea still an unwanted child?

N-, no, Im not going that far, but

Hmph, it looks like we, the private army is being looked down for going out with kids .

Another private army man walking next to him said that as if he were making a fool of us .

Euris stopped and glared at the man .

Clark, be careful with your words . These men are the heroes of the Fage territory .

The mans name was Clark, apparently .

Clark was a young man with blond hair . He was probably around early twenty years old .

Captain-dono, arent you being too bad at this since earlier? It would only be a coincidence that he accidentally killed Nalgarn, who was dying from the side effects of magic, and thats all . If it were true, it would have all been our achievements

Clark says, wrinkling his brow, and then glares at me .

Youre lucky your timing is so good . Well be counting on your good fortune, too . But dont get carried away just because the lord has favored you . Dont let the women there show off .

What?

As expected, I was a little annoyed .

I certainly failed to mention the number of heads, and I humbly reasoned appropriately, but it annoyed me when he was so blatantly hostile .

Clark!

Uris yells .

Clark lets out a sigh and turns to me .

He smiles deliberately and lowers his head with an ostentatious motion .

Im sorry for my words, my apologies . I declare that you have defeated Nalgarn by yourself, Hero-sama of the Fage Territory .

To the back of its lowered head, Euris back fist entered .

Guh!? What are you doing! Its pretty much a no-brainer! Theres no way the three of them could get away with that! You say its dying, but maybe its already dead in the first place, right?

Did you see the cut on Nalgarns head that Abel-dono brought? That was a beautiful thing . Since you say so much, you must have the confidence to take its head off with a single sword .

However However

Enough, shut up . Look around you, dont let their morale get any lower before the mission .

The rest of the squad quietly looked away as Clark looked around .

Ever since Clark had called out to me, there had been an awkward atmosphere in the first unit .

The exuberant atmosphere that had existed before we left was completely tainted .

Clark let out a groan, Ugh and fell silent .

Seeing the situation, he felt some pent-up emotion .

If I get the chance next time, Ill move Nalgarns head with my magic and make him crawl around Clark .

I-, Im sure theyll be exposed soon enough anyway .

After Clark had left that last discarded line, the squad was restarted .