The village was darker than I expected when the night fell.


　It was darker than I had expected, probably because I was used to seeing the night in the capital.
　The moonlight and starlight were not enough.
　Everywhere was crushed in black as if ink had been spilled.
　Although the light from the "glittering glass" is leaking from the windows.
　This gives the impression of a deep darkness crawling out from between the houses.
　Thanks to the torches held by the villagers, the bonfires set up outside, and the , we could maintain a certain level of visibility, but even so, there were many places we could not see.


　In such a situation, if they were to slip into the village, it would be extremely difficult to find them.
　Hide in the dark and keep your breath.
　They would take advantage of the darkness and attack you.
　I can imagine such a scene.
　Therefore, the bandits must be stopped at the gate.


"Put the fence as far forward as you can!　Drive the stakes as far as they will go!　Don't stop!


　Noah's voice rang out in a clear voice to the villagers behind him as a heavy thud echoed through the gate.
　The fences and stakes that were still being erected were meant to impede the movement of the opponent. With these stakes in place, the enemy is unable to move freely, while the defenders can fire their long-handled weapons from behind them, as well as their bows and arrows.


You're used to it, aren't you, beautiful girl? Do you have any experience with this kind of thing?

...... My first battle was an offensive battle.

Really?　No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.


　Noah nodded quietly at Gills' words.
　I thought his first battle was when he followed his uncle Clive to the battlefield, but I guess that's not the case.


　Anyway, first things first.
　He opened the window of the steel lantern with built-in "glitter glass" on his waist.
　He flips his white cloak inside out.
　He drew his sword from its scabbard.


　And stepped in front of the fence.


"Are you two ready?

Yes, we're ready.

No problem.　Yeah.

Okay. I'll fire the first shot, then Noah will be in front, and Kazui and I will be behind him.


　When I announced the impromptu formation like that, Kazui suddenly said.


"No, I can go in front this time.


　He tapped himself on the shoulder with a large stick.
　He tapped himself on the shoulder with a large, long-handled stick, which meant that he was going to use it.
　It is a strange stick with an irregular shape and handles in some places.
　I'm not sure how it will be used, but I say to him, "Okay," and now I call out to the people holding the gate.


"Everyone, jump out of the way and cover your ears.

"Oh?　Are we doing that?

Yeah. So you two get those earplugs ready.

Yes, sir.

Got it.

What is it?　What are you doing?

No, no, no, no. Just cover your ears and shut up and watch.


　Gills gazed at me curiously. I give him an annoyed look and then direct him towards the gate.
　On the other hand, the people holding the gate are confused.
　If the gate loses its support, it cannot withstand the pressure and will shatter immediately.
　Certainly, it would not be easy for them to nod their heads when suddenly told to leave.
　When I added that I would use magic on them, they all jumped to the side at once.
　I think they understood that easily because they knew that they could apply the imprint.


　The destruction of the gates and bolts, which had lost their ...... support, accelerated further.
　The gate warped inward due to the pressure coming from only one side, and the bolts supporting it cracked with an unpleasant sound.
　Again, I reminded him to cover his ears.
　Just before the gate was about to break and the bandits were about to jump in...


"Pop! Go wild! Alarm trumpets, loud snoring. Dogs barking and screeching, fourth- and fifth-rate musicians. The tantrums of babies, the shouts of fathers. All that noise, wrap it up and throw it out. Deafening bubbles of soap!


　--Astonish Bubble.


　After chanting, a large number of [Arts Glyphs] are blown into the air and scattered about.
　The blueish-white glowing [Arts Glyphs] seem to expand, and then they turn into bubbles. The bubbles, which were covered with an oil film, were illuminated in rainbow colors by the prism, and drifted in the air, spreading out as they pleased.
　It was as if a special toy was used to create many soap bubbles. The difference between them and the soap bubbles made by toys is that they are much bigger and have magical powers.
　Perhaps it was because the light from the lanterns provided a certain degree of brightness, but the front of the gate suddenly became enveloped in a fantastic atmosphere.


"Wow, what a beautiful magic.

"That's why...

No, Arx-kun, you've got a pretty face, but you're really tough.



"......!


　The sudden surprise I had for Gills, who laughed and covered his ears, is now but .
　Don't touch me.
　Get as far away as you can.
　With that gesture, he urged the villagers without earplugs to evacuate.
　Soon, the gate burst open with a loud crash, and bandits carrying logs rushed in.
　Following behind them were the bandits who had been about to avalanche inside when the breach occurred.
　But the moment the spearhead of them hit the magic soap bubble that was waiting for them.


　--Papa papa papa papa papa papa!


　The explosion sounded like a firecracker multiplied several times, or even dozens of times, hitting the area.
　Of course, there was no one who could endure the direct blast to the eardrums that drowned out even screams.
　Aside from the villagers who had been instructed to protect their ears and evacuate in advance, the bandits fell to the ground, foaming at the mouth.
　Even those who were safe staggered unsteadily, as if they were drunk or dizzy.
　They catch their foot on a fallen bandit and fall down.
　They could not get up, but only crawled on the ground.
　In front of the gate, there were many fallen bandits.
　Naturally, the bandits who were to follow were completely thwarted and had no choice but to hesitate.


　The bandits were shouting something outside the gate.
　They were probably shouting to be careful because there was a mage. Since he was temporarily deaf, he could not grasp the volume of his own voice, and since most of them were deafened, he was not sure how many of his comrades were receiving his words.
　The bandits are unable to move as they should.
　Not only because of their fallen comrades, but also because there are still several soap bubbles floating in the air.
　If you move to avoid touching them, they will naturally slow down, and if you step into them, you will be at their mercy.


　A villager threw a stone at one of the bubbles, but it hit him and he was hit from the side.


"Destroy all those bubbles first!


　The bandits ordered to destroy the bubbles.
　After all, attacks that are difficult to defend against are very effective.
　If we continue to use this magic, it will not only buy us time, but it may automatically lead to our extinction or even our escape - but this time, out of consideration for the villagers, we will only do it once.
　We have imprinted earplugs, but the rest of us don't. If they continue to be exposed to this magic for too long, it may affect them as well. It consumes very little magic and is quite easy to use, but the problem is that it is difficult to use in this situation or in a melee.


　From outside the gate, arrows and stones aimed at the soap bubbles are flying.
　As the sound of popping echoes and the floating soap bubbles disappear as shattered [Arts Glyphs], the bandits enter with caution.


　However, the number of bandits was greatly reduced by the Astonish Bubble.
　There were only about ten of them.
　It's possible that they are still waiting outside the gate, though.
　Kazi suddenly bursts forward ahead of Noah.
　With his careless advance, the bandits immediately tried to surround him.


"Algol's Scythe. The sharp blade, always well-tended, clears away the garden weeds. Clear the weeds! Brush away the reeds. Uproot everything.


[Algol's Law of Cleaving].


　The farmer Algol depicted in the "Age of Spirits" is, of course, quoted as saying that he has been working in the field since Monday.
　From a week or day of the week with a cycle similar to the seventh day of the week in the world of men, often used in ancient history and biography.
　It depicts Algol engaged in field work on Monday, the first day of the work week.
　After the chanting, the brass-colored [arts glyphs] seem to concentrate on the tip of the long handle, and they take root with a brass-colored glow.
　Beautiful curves.
　Large blade surface.
　It looks like a scythe held by the god of death.


　That's true, but--


"It's a beam blade!　Beam Blade!

What?

What?


　A question mark appeared on his face at various points.
　In the meantime, Kazi twisted his body into a hunch and swung it out.
　The circle around him was sliced open like a scythe.
　Naturally, several of the bandits who were trying to surround Cazi took the brunt of the blow, and the top and bottom of the circle parted in tears.


"Don't get too close!


　The bandits shouted as they saw the devastation.
　Noah with his slender sword.
　Kazui with a scythe.
　With them standing in the way, they could not carelessly enter.
　However, the sporadic firing of bows and arrows made it impossible for them to attack.
　Some of the villagers stood behind the fence with spears, while others supported them with stones and bows and arrows.


　The battle continues for a while...


"Noah.

Yes, this is probably it.


　Noah nodded his head as he understood the purpose of my call.


　There's something wrong with the way they're attacking.
　If I had to pick a reason, it would be that they're not really attacking.
　They are coming at us to defeat us, but I don't sense any aggressiveness in this attack, which should be present in a group assault. Normally, the attackers would have been more numerous and would have pressed forward.

　There were still bandits in the rear.
　This can be seen from the number of bows and arrows and stone throwers.
　But for some reason, they did not deploy them.
　Nevertheless, they continue to attack.
　This is not a method of attack that can be conquered.
　So that means--




There's another bandit in the back!

Oh, they got him there too.


　It was a little too late to notice.
　The man who had been guarding the north gate came running in breathlessly to report it.


The other side's pretty good, too.


　Gills, who had been standing next to him for some time, smiled faintly.
　He was being attacked in the back, but for some reason he seemed to be relaxed.
　But why?


The reason for this is because... "Well, there are a lot of guards that Pirocolo has in the back, so I think we can handle that one.　We'll just have to defeat this one.


　Gills was right, the north side was filled with warriors guarding Pilocoro's cargo.
　They will defend their own cargo against the invading bandits.
　In the meantime, would it be best for us to defeat the enemy on our side?
　Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly heard a sound in the distance.
　Suddenly, the sound of a flute came from the distance.
　The high-pitched sound echoed in the night sky.
　Was it a signal of some kind?
　But the bandits who heard it--


"Retreat!　Retreat!


　They shouted and retreated in unison.
　We, who witnessed their retreat, were just stunned.


"This is it?　What does that mean?


　The battle was just about to begin.
　And now this retreat.
　Naturally, all we felt was confusion.
　Noah, who was staring into the darkness outside the gate, called out to me.


"How can I help you, ...... Mr. Arx?

I mean, what do you think ...... Noah should do?

It's not necessarily the end of the world, and it could be a trap. I think it's best to leave the village unguarded and carefully patrol the perimeter of the village.


　Nodding at Noah's words, I instructed him to capture the fallen bandits for now.
　All the while, nothing but questions swirled in my head.
　It's too easy for this to be over, no matter what.