"Three, two, one, go!　Plus, next time you'll have an iron ball!　Three, two, one, release!

　Under Etowah's direction, a ball of steel roars as the ballista cuts through the air.
　The giant bone monster shatters into pieces.

'There's the next one!　It's a big monkey!　Close the center and five seconds later, barista!　...... 3, 2, 1, launch!　Confirmed hit. Close the west and lead them to the east!'

　I fired my ballista as instructed, and it stabbed at a gorilla-shaped monster that ran at a brisk pace at a bang.
　Immediately, the golem closed the western gate as instructed, and the wounded gorilla angrily came towards me.
　I took this down with my magic sword. The beast type has a short reach, so it's an easy opponent for me to fight after training so much against Shero-san.

　Of course, it depends on the characteristics of the magic sword and my vocation.
　You don't want to be the "fourth beast slayer" or some other mysterious vocation.

　I was in charge of sloth, so I was contracted to work on the east side.
　It's just me and Hetty-san over here. When I'm in trouble, Hetty-san helps me out, but other than that, I'm the one who fights, and it's pretty manageable.
　On the west side, the knightly trio of Marina, Rebecca-san and Aeon.
　In the center, Shero-san is camped out by herself.
　Priestess is also in the center. It's a job to run around to the west and east depending on the battle situation.

　This formation was suggested by Etowah.

''Bosses can absorb stamina from living monsters. With the current trend, 50% of the monsters are alive, so it would be more efficient to have those defeated by the boss as much as possible!''

　Etowah has clearly focused on efficiency in her strategy.
　The reason why Shero-san is in the center is also because he is the most versatile and able to fight. The skill of hitting the flying monsters with an arrow is the highest among these, and there is no danger even if you fight normally.
　Furthermore, many of the monsters that pass through the center are large, so Shiloh is the right man for the job. Every once in a while, Shamash or Shiloh will take out a nimble monster that comes over the wall.

''Next. Ho, the Bone Dragon!　Big!　Hurry, close the left and right aisles and get the ball ready!　Rebecca and Marina, move to the center. Work with Shero-san and the three of you to eradicate this. The monsters that come out in the meantime will be dealt with by the east side, the boss and Hetty-san!''

　Instructions flew in from Etowah.
　When I looked at it, I saw that a huge dragon-shaped skeleton, which looked to be about seven meters long, was about to rush through the passage.
　It is now 1:00 in the afternoon. It's 1:00 in the afternoon.

"Prepare the iron ball!　3.2.1, released!　Hit!　Oh, he's still alive! Prepare for battle, please!''

　The Bone Dragon, who survived the iron ball, closed in on Shero-san, who was holding his weapon at the ready, with a clattering and bone scraping sound.
　Seeing that he didn't die from a single iron ball hit, it might mean that he is stronger ...... than yesterday's living statue. He's also more agile in his movements than Statue.

　From this position, I can see everyone fighting.
　As expected, perhaps because it's after a powerful monster, no monsters for a while, and me and Hetty-san are in spectator mode for a while.
　I'm tempted to go support them, but I can't leave my post, either.

'Becky's sword is effective against dragons, as I recall?

　Hetty-san asks me casually.
　The amount of shiny swords and shards of light scattered around is far greater than when Rebecca attacked, so I could tell that she was probably doing the most damage.

That's right. It is said to be the holy sword of the dragon slayer. Well, Etoi told them that, so Rebecca must have called them to the center.

　Rebecca, Shero, and Marina ducked the bone dragon's tail attacks, bite attacks, and body blows while accurately attacking it.
　They've trained their formations very well. He's breathing well, and his fighting style is very stable.
　Shero has the impression of being a maniacal warrior and a straight line, but in reality, he has a very clever fighting style. Perhaps this is a result of the training of former mercenary leader Isaac.

'And yet she - Etowah - is also amazing. It's your first time commanding, isn't it?

　Mr. Hetty says, sounding interested.

'It's my first time in actual combat. Well, he said he wanted to be a military strategist, and I gave him some lectures. Hetty-san was asked about something from time to time, wasn't she?
'Yes. I thought you were a very clever girl, but I didn't expect you to be this clever.
I'm surprised too. It's difficult to judge what kind of monster it is and give directions to it right away. If you're a maggot, they'll be right in front of you.

　In fact, Etowah is giving instructions to the monsters to get out of the forest and instantly decide what to do.
　He can only do this if he has a proper grasp of the whole thing.
　It's a rare person who can be entrusted with this role.
　It's not impossible for me to do it, but I'm sure there would have been some confusion somewhere.
　In that respect, Etoi's instructions are all based on mathematical or rational judgment, so there is no hesitation. It's a blessing that he doesn't have any tricks up his sleeve because I'm his boss or anything like that.

Oh, you beat him.

　The Bone Dragon battle ended with Rebecca's jumping thrust.
　She should have been almost a boss-class monster, but as expected of a dragon slayer's holy sword. It seems that in this world, the difference in weapon performance is quite large. As expected of a former game.

'The Bone Dragon has fallen!　The next monster will probabilistically be an animal type. ''Boss, please be prepared!''

　Instructions flew from Etowah, and in fact, the next monster was a Hellhound.
　The golem opens the east passage.
　I use my magic sword to deal with the Hellhound that ran towards us. Animal types are monotonous in their movements and have few means of attack, so they are easy opponents under these circumstances.
　In addition, if the absorption skill is activated with the magic sword, you can kill two birds with one stone by removing fatigue.

''Priestess, how is the battle situation in the other spots?

　I will temporarily leave it to Hetty to check the battle situation.
　The trends in the other spots will be important as well. We can't split up any more people here, but depending on the situation, we may need to lend out the spirit stones.

'The spots that we let people out of here have picked up thanks to us. The other places seem to be able to do it while just barely getting ...... by.

　A dark color tinged the atmosphere of the priestess's, "just in time" tone.
　Perhaps there have already been a few deaths. If not, there would still be some serious injuries.
　I don't know the actual strength of the other spots, but in terms of numbers, they should be dozens of times larger than ours.
　However, they're just a bunch of crows. If a powerful monster springs up, they will only be able to defeat it in a boggy battle of attrition. I think they are using a tactic similar to the Zombie Attack using spirit stones. Or rather, there would be no surprisingly effective move.

''...... If you can return it later, I can lend you the spirit stone. Even if you use them today, even if you use them after this, you won't have ten of them. No, it's possible that you won't use a single one.

　And some for the ex-mercs. That takes priority.
　But I have 124 spirit stones on hand right now.
　You could say it's all I have, but if you want to lend them to Priestess, it's no problem. Strictly speaking, it's a loan to the city of Elishe, or the Hunter's Guild.

''Thank you, Jirou-san. I'm taking out an additional stone from the vault in Elishe today, so it should be fine ......, but it looks like I've been using it at a pretty good pace, so you may have to lend it to me on the third day. Elishe's storage of spirit stones should be adequate, but at a pace like this one, ......

　The spirit stone is an item called a miracle stone, and at the same time, it is also gold itself.
　If you use it, it won't turn into an economy like gold. It just gets consumed and that's it.
　In that sense, it is very dangerous indeed.
　But we can't turn our backs on them. If we are on the brink of death by a human crane, we have no choice but to use it.

Well, you just have to get through today ....... That's all.

　For now, there's nothing more we can do.
　We're really working hard here with a small group of people. I should really be in a position to get more support, you know.



　◇◆◆◆◆◇◇.



Next!　Oh, ...... it's a bone army!　Six in all!　Turn to the west. Marina, get the Lightning Fountain ready. I'll use it here!'

　Etowah shouted.
　The east passage was blocked off, so I couldn't see it clearly, but it was rare for six of them to spring up at the same time.
　Lightning Fountain is a unique skill of Marina's weapon, the all-around blitz attack.
　Moreover, if she finally used the chattering attack, does that mean she looked formidable from Etowah's point of view?
　As I recall, the chattering attack had a limit of once every 100 minutes. It's difficult to know where to use it, though, because of the timing.

'Oh, it's a party monster. They rarely spring up in Hitotsutsuzuki. Unlike other monsters, they have good teamwork, so it's difficult to destroy them.

　Hetty will tell you.
　I ran to the object yagura with Etowah.
　Six bone monsters are pacing carefully in formation.
　A suspicious black aura rises from every bone, which is truly evil.

　A skull fighter equipped with heavy armor and an axe.
　A Skull Lord equipped with white armor and a sword.
　A skull samurai in Japanese armor and sword.
　The black-clad Skull Ninja.
　A vestments-clad Skullpriest.
　A black-clad, somewhat luxurious robe--

　Hmm?　Only the one at the very back has a much different aura.
　Isn't that the one called Richie: ......?　
　It's not like you're a skull wizard or anything: ......?
　There's one of them, and he's got a pitch black aura about him.

Etowah!　Tell them to watch out for the last one!　Priests prepare the magical barrier!　Tell him to use the spirit stone well from time to time.
Yes!

　Etowah gives instructions over the walkie-talkie.
　On the other side, Marina, Rebecca, Aeon, and Priestess.

　When the monster is in range, Marina swings down a chili-clad war hammer.
　A shower of shining lightning rained down on the monster.

''Oh, oh!

　It was a blow that seemed to drive everyone into combat in one fell swoop, but the three rear guards were played off by the black barrier that the vestments-clad Priest instantly unfurled.

　With a slippery movement, as if the shadows were moving, the bone ninja crept up on the ion.
　The bone warriors in the vanguard have been chattered away and are unable to act, even if only temporarily.
　If you don't crush them in this moment, they will eventually be revived, but the problem is Richie.
　But the problem is Richie, who has a jet-black aura and a distinctly badass atmosphere.

　I thought I'd have to call Shero or Shamash-san to support me, but I'd also need to deal with the next time a monster springs up.
　Calling Ai-chan is another option, but once you call Ai-chan, you can't call her for a while. That said, it won't be very useful with other summoned monsters. You can't even use an iron ball without a golem.
　If you deal with them poorly, depending on how the monsters spring up, they will collapse one move at a time, just like a chess game.
　In this case, you have no choice but to do your best.

　In the meantime, the bone ninja flashed its blade at Ion.
　Ion ducks this in the nick of time and fights back, but is lightly avoided by the bone ninja, which moves as smoothly as if sinking into the shadows.

　Rebecca and Marina re-prioritize and run towards Richie, thrusting Rebecca's holy sword at him as if to strike him with her body.
　But--.

"Short teleportation?

　Just before he was about to make a direct hit, Richie scratched off and immediately appeared about ten meters away.
　Then he clasped his hands together and kneaded the black flames together in a darker color, as if they were maturing.
　Ion has his hands full with the bone ninja.

　In addition, the bone priest is chanting some kind of magic to the chattering warriors and trying to recover.

　A moment before Ritchie thrusts his hands forward, crunches his jaw, and mutters the name of some spell, an arrow pierces Ritchie's head, sending shards of light flying.
　Shero-san had hit the arrow from quite a distance away.
　However, Richie's spell didn't stop.
　As if he didn't care about the arrow, he just glanced at Shero-san.
　A monster that uses magic. Of course, he had thought about that possibility.
　But I had the impression that monsters were inevitably stupid by their nature, so I can't deny that my countermeasures were insufficient. I had thought about the attack, but was I neglecting the defense?

　The jet black flames that wrapped around the togro were swirling, and the supremely swollen magic power was ejected to where Richie was pointing ...... to where Marina and Rebecca-san were.

　A great snake of fire that spirals and unravels.
　Unlike physical attacks, there is no way to fully prevent this from happening. Moreover, both Marina and Rebecca-san are equipped with two-handed weapons and don't even have shields.

'Marina!　Rebecca!

　I exclaimed involuntarily.
　The two of us are taking evasive action, but the flames are huge, about three meters in diameter.
　You won't be able to duck it.
　I couldn't help but look away.

　Bash!

　When I opened my eyes at the sound of "I'm sorry, but the flames had stopped just before they hit the two of us, blocked by a wall of shining light.
　A shield of light that didn't freak out at the flames that were being sprayed at a tremendous rate.

''Good. Priestess.''

　It is Priestess's barrier magic.
　With the spirit stone in his hand, he used a very powerful defensive spell.
　It's a defensive spell that costs three million yen a time.

　Rebecca-san and Marina were not the ones to miss this opportunity.
　They nodded to each other and Rebecca-san ran towards Richie and Marina ran towards Priest.
　Richie's flame magic continued. Maybe it's a jutsu that, once activated, shoots flames for a while.
　Rebecca bypassed the flames and closed in on Richie, slamming her holy sword into the writhing opponent in rapid succession.
　Marina wielded a huge war hammer and crushed the bone priests who were chanting recovery magic and crushed the bone warriors who were on the verge of revival in turn as if they were mochi.
　As expected, Marina's war hammer was a weapon that came from a boss monster, or perhaps it was an affinity, but it was unusually effective against bone monsters.

　Aeon was still in single combat with the bone ninja.
　Aeon was already covered in wounds and shed not a little blood.
　Then Rebecca joined him after the battle and defeated the bone ninja.
　The bone ninja was a troublesome opponent, but it seemed to be nothing if it was two against one.

''You've managed to become ....... One by one, it's not a big deal, but it's still tricky when they're all together in numbers.

　Ion's wounds were quickly fully recovered by Priestess's spirit magic.
　However, the amount of blood we lost wasn't coming back, so I ordered Ion to take a break.
　In the worst case scenario, we could use Deanna's Super Recovery Magic (Time Back), but we decided that it wasn't enough to use it yet.

''One powerful enemy is scary, but a moderately powerful enemy in numbers is even scarier. Oh, boss, they'll be coming up next, so it's time to go back to your post. You have three hours left. More powerful monsters may appear.
Yes.

　And so, even though it was a tough fight, our preparations for the bone monsters were well prepared, and we didn't get into any kind of trouble until the last monster a little before 5 o'clock.
　And then the monster gushes suddenly ceased with a thud.

　Finally, the last monster of the second day springs up.