I followed the path where the demon reinforcements were coming.
　I bathed in the blood of the demons I defeated to remove their scent, hiding my presence, and moving away from them until I just barely managed to keep my eyes on the road.

I proceeded cautiously and boldly. It would be tricky if they noticed us and got into a battle.
　At any rate, once they find you, it's obvious that while you're fighting, reinforcements will arrive and you won't be able to keep up with them.
　........it's chilling.
　And so, roughly three kilometers away, it was there.

It looked like an orc, but it was clearly dressed differently from the others.
　It wore the skin armor of a demonic beast, and its entire body was carved with old scars.
　Combined with his white hair and long beard, he had the distinctive look of an old warrior of the past.
　That fellow had his jaw completely off and his mouth was wide open.
　Then out of his mouth came orcs and goblins.
　It's a grotesque sight.

"It's not a very pleasant sight to behold.

That's how they keep adding to their numbers, and the fight will never end.
　I take out a tool from my pochette.
　It's a signal bullet.

It is specially made for those tasked with identifying the demon race and given to them by the school.
　It is used to light a fuse.
　The tip flies like a rocket firework and causes an explosion in the sky that emits a red light.
　With this one, you can see it no matter how many kilometers away it is.
　Epona should be here soon.
　If there's a problem....

'Well, it will, won't it?'

All at once, a group of orcs and goblins attacked us.
　With the signal bullets now, it was good to let the brave men know our position, but of course it would also let the enemies know their own position.

It was safe to use it from a distance, but that would be too accurate.
　Moreover, we can't leave this place. If the old orc warrior, who looks like a demon race, moves, it would be meaningless to launch the signal round.
　We must keep a close watch on them.

The light-weight goblins are flying around the tree branches like monkeys to get close to you.
　The moment they leapt into the air, a throwing knife pierced them between the eyes and three of them crashed down.

Since I'm in the forest, the large orcs are blocked by the trees, making it difficult for them to move.

Hence, there was time to chant.

''[Fire Storm]'

The entire thick skin is burned off in a storm of flames.
　By increasing the precision of his magic, he traps all the heat in the storm and completes what he calls a flaming cage that doesn't sparkle.
　He burns two orcs into orcs.
　But...........

'Is it nothing but water for burning stone?'

There are hundreds of them, both goblins and orcs.
　Thus, killing a few of them would be meaningless.
　I close my eyes and take out a flashlight ball and throw it at them.
　There are only three of these precious things, but this is no time to be stingy with them.
　The world will go blank.

I already know that this move is effective against the orcs as well. In that split second, I leaped and hid as fast as I could.
　The demons search for the place where I was.
　The search ability didn't seem to be too high, so I was saved.
　.........Well, let's keep lurking until the hero-sama comes.

◇

They continue to hide, changing their position periodically as we monitor them.
　So far, there's no sign of them being found.
　But it's strange.
　As far as this strategic move is concerned, this demon race is quite intelligent.

They should know that those were signal bullets and that they called the brave men.
　Then why aren't they moving?
　That demon must have known the position of the brave men and women long ago.
　Even though they knew, they didn't fight the heroes directly because they didn't want to fight the heroes.
　And yet here you are, waiting.

Look carefully, there must be something.
　Speaking of which, not only are there demons leaving this place as reinforcements, but there are also demons coming back.
　If you look closely, it looks like they are carrying something.
　It's like a large jute bag, sometimes moving inside.
　When the Orcs opened the jute bag under the direction of the demon tribe, there was a student who became unable to move, perhaps because of the paralyzing poison used.
　So that's what it is.
　Originally, orcs have the characteristic of kidnapping and impregnating females to increase their numbers.
　By taking advantage of that, they were able to collect students.

To use as a shield.
　The reason he prepared that shield was probably because he learned of Epona's weaknesses in the last attack.
　It was a strategy because they knew that the brave men were afraid to get their allies involved.
　We didn't realize it because the Eastern side we were on had the upper hand, but the rest of them were outnumbered, and that's how they were kidnapped.

........this is not good.
　Epona can't fight with all her might in this situation.
　Is it possible to rescue her before Epona arrives?

One or two I can handle. Twenty-three.

It's impossible. I can take out the orcs that are close to the hostages, but it's not practical to collect nearly twenty hostages by myself and get out of here.
　I hear an explosion and look in that direction.

'I finally found you. My enemy. I'm going to kill you and complete my mission. I'm going to kill you and complete my mission. I'm going to be the hero, the one they want me to be.

While I was thinking about my hand, Epona came to me.
　The trail that Epona had come through was the path.
　The wind pressure had knocked down everything around her and created a crater in the ground where she had been kicked. It was as substandard as ever.
　A group of orcs laughed, and an old warrior-style orc...a demon race stepped forward.

'This brave man is inexperienced. Immature, immature, he is just a child chosen by the brave.
Maybe. But I'm going to make it through.
Oh, that's brave. Oh, you are very brave. I will tell you my name. Well, if I tell you my name, you won't hear it, so I'll tell you my name in your own language. Orc General. The ultimate Orc.

When I say tailored to this one, I mean that they chose the same nuanced word.
　An orc general. A really obvious leader.

"...Epona, Epona the Brave.
Woo hoo. Epona, I've learned. Let's get our first hero. We need to score some points before they wake up.

Wait a minute, what did you say?
　The first brave man.
　If that's not a misstatement, then there was more than one brave person in existence.
　Even in the past literature, there is no record of more than one brave person existing in the same era.

While they were wondering about this, the battle began.
　A group of strong orcs attack Epona.

But Epona is not a thing.
　With just a bothered arm, as if it were a featherworm to get rid of, a few of them are torn off collectively and blown away, and the orcs are scattered to the four corners by just hitting them with a mere lump of magical power that is not even magic.

Overwhelming power.
　And yet, the Orc General is laughing.
　It continues to create orcs with its mouth open while laughing.
　Epona's movements have slowed down.
　The orcs have started using the students they kidnapped as shields.
　They have strapped the students to their ugly bellies with what looks like a cord.

'Cowards!'
It's a strategy. A brave man can't fight a monster for real.

You can hear the Orc General's high-pitched laugh.
　In the midst of it all, Epona fights.
　In order not to hurt the students.
　Originally, it's Epona who is too strong to control the details, she can't fight well.
　Even so, the fact that she's not inferior with her unreasonable defensive strength is typical of a brave man.

I'm sure you don't need to go out of your way to say it out loud, but since you don't seem to understand, I'll say it. You have to quit fighting, you understand?

As the Orc General gave the signal, one of the boys was eaten out of his head and died.
　Epona grits her back teeth and glares at the Orc General.
　But she doesn't stop fighting.

''Mmmm, the brave one has no blood or tears.
If I lose, they'll kill me anyway.

Surprising.
　I thought for sure that Epona's character would comply with their demands, but it seems that she is seeing the reality.
　She's right, it would be the end anyway if Epona dies, so there's no need to worry about the hostages.

Was I mistaken? Epona doesn't hate the fact that her allies are hurt, but she only abhors killing them by her own hand.

''Gahahahahaha, shish, shish, shish. He's not an idiot. And yet, why do you seem to move so poorly?

All the orcs with hostages strapped to them are now in front of them.
　Epona fights to avoid the hostages, though clumsily.
　It was still true. Epona is only extremely afraid that she will become a murderer.
　You can tell by her expression that she is thinking. I wish she'd just kill the hostage. She says that this would relieve her of the situation where she might kill them.

What could have happened to make her so warped?

As the fight continues, Epona is getting stranger and stranger.
　She became more and more messy. Her eyes glowed brightly, her mouth hung up, her magic filled, and her muscles rose.
　She's drunk on blood and fighting.

'It's so annoying, it's so annoying, it's so annoying!

Then he finally shook his fist with all his might.
　He pierced the entire orc hostage.

Seeing such a scream, the more orcs pounced on it, poking at the hostages blindly.
　Epona fought back, almost unconsciously, killing more people.
　Her face is pale and rattling and trembling.
　........As she fought, she lost her ability to reason with something in her possession skill and came to herself with the shock of killing people.

I can understand being shocked by a murderer, but it's beyond the point.
　There seems to be something deeply traumatic about it.
　I vomited on the spot and finally sat down.
　I can't fight like this anymore.
　I can't just sit here and watch.

There was no way I could save the hostages by myself.
　But now that Epona is here, we can rescue her.
　I'll join the fight, and I can't afford to lose to a brave man now.