Chapter 22 The Kingdom of Vedna (Royal Capital Road Journey) : Goblin hordes

"..."

　The outstretched hand did not grasp Sota shoulder.

　Elrain, who had regained her reason at once due to the shouts of anger outside, felt the sensation of blood draining from herself. She could not be unaware of the weight of the crime of attempting sexual contact without the man consent. At best, she could be imprisoned for a decade or more, and depending on the allegations made by the man, she could be beheaded on the spot.

　Elrain retracted her outstretched hand as if it had been rejected, and hugged herself.

(What I've been trying to do)

　Elraine, who was completely pale, was tormented by a painful ringing in her ears. It was because she was feeling tremendous stress due to her stupidity in trying to take the man down.

"Erm, Elrain-san ...?　Are you alright?"

　The young man in question, Sota, looked into Elrain face with concern and gripped her shoulder as if to support her.

"Oh, it's all right, rather than that, please stay here, Sota-sama I don't think it's from the Empire, but it seems to be an enemy attack. .."

"Yes, but the state of Elrain-san is somehow..."

"I'm fine."

After Elrein said that, she left the room as if she wanted to let go of Sota hand lightly

"Elrain-san ...?"

"What's happening?"

　As soon as Elrain left Sota house, she checked the situation with a soldier close at hand. The soldier, looking a little flustered, approaches Elrain, who is the head of the unit.

"It's a goblin horde. They probably got a whiff of the man scent from somewhere. There are many of them coming towards us"

"Directions and numbers."

"Two o'clock, just under one hundred and fifty ...!"

"Hundred and fifty ...?"

　Elrain voice trailed off.

　Goblins, which can handle weapons with some nastiness and also work with some wisdom, are quite troublesome opponents, even though they are weak in strength. All humankind hates the goblin monster because of its abominable habit of taking human men into its caves and exploiting them.

　However, the number of one hundred and fifty is astonishing, even though they were caught by the scent of men.

　The pheromones that Sota spreads may be that strong in this world.

"In any case don't let the villagers out of the house. Then, get your equipment ready and take position in the two o'clock direction. If we do this, we'll have no choice but to hit them head-on."

"But Elrain-sama, most of our troops have been left behind in the Great Forest, and and we lack too much fighting power. Wouldn't it be better to running away?"

"Do you want me to just sit back and watch the destruction of this village with my fingers in my mouth?　Besides, their target is Sota-sama. They are probably thinking of blocking the way out. In other words, we must consider the possibility of further subterfuge. If that is the case, the lowest risk is to intercept them here without spreading out our forces on the offensive and defence. We have no choice but to do it."

　Elrain tells them of a plan that can hardly be called a plan in rapid succession, and orders them sternly to "go". The soldiers straightened their backs and walked away.

"I have to protect you. ..."

　Elrain muttered quietly and gripped the hilt of the sword at her waist. In her eyes, determination and the will to atone for her earlier insolence burns with fire.

　◇ ◇

　About three minutes had passed after the Phyllis Squad and the goblin horde clashed.

　Battle after battle. Although they clashed at a distance from the village, the goblins were so powerful that the battlefield extended into the village.

(Elrain-san, ...)

　Sota peeked out of the window curtains and looked outside the house.

　Even if the power of each individual goblin is weak, But if there's a lot of them, even the most well-trained soldiers will have a hard time. The sight of the female soldiers who had just been travelling together being slaughtered by the monsters right in front of him was too much for Sota. The woman body was soaked in water, and she was soaked in her own blood.

A hot feeling rises from his stomach and he feels a burning sensation in his throat.

　Sota grabbed the poker by the fireplace and moved away from the window, glaring at the door with Phyllis bed at his back, as if to protect her.

(Don't worry, Elrain and the others are strong knights, just like Phyllis. There's no need for me to worry.)

　Even if you close your eyes, you can still feel the ferocity of the battle. The sound of wooden buildings collapsing , the deadly shivering of the goblins backbones, the screams of soldier being helplessly killed...

　All of them are so realistic that we cannot experience them in modern Japan.

　A fear different from that of killing each other human beings crawled down Sota spine.

　When he put his hand on his chest to calm himself down, a familiar scream burst Sota eardrums.

　The voice was -.

"Elrain-san, ...?"

　Maybe not.

　But Sota was also extremely nervous and couldn't stay.

"Guh..What should I do now...!"

　Sota gripped the poker tightly.

he was actually confused about what to do now, but he knew he had to make a choice. he is a "man" with a gentle soul. He can't make a choice he'll regret.

"Oosh!!!!!!!"

　He slapped his own cheek, checked the house keys and took a deep breath.

　... one or two.

　I can't take any more time than that.

"Phyllis-san, please wait for me"

　Sota made one big decision and rushed out of the house.

　Of course, he didn't forget to lock the door for Phyllis.

"This is bad. ...!"

　As he leaves the house, he is quickly pale at the sight in front of him.

　There is a battle unfolding everywhere in sight, but right in front of Sota, all the way to the front, Elrain is kneeling with her head bleeding. Around her, three goblins are trying to torture her with weapon in their hands.

　Sota saw the scene and acts faster than the wind.

　He scream and ran as fast as he could, furiously, and slammed into one of the goblins in front of Elrain.

　The goblin, knocked out of its stance, whined high pitchedly at the sudden event, but it was short-lived. The tip of Sota fire poker bit through the eyeball and even gouged out the goblin brain. All of Sota moves, which made him seem as if he were a first-class assassin, were just a coincidence. However, the experience of success caused an adrenaline rush in Sota brain and gave him confidence.

""Come on! I'll fight you, you monster!""

　As if to protect the injured Elrain, Sota charged forward with a flurry of fire.