Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 480 – Slow and Steady Wins the Race
Day Two of the Saint and her entourage’s journey to the Haragura Marquisate.
Tauro and his group were riding in one of the carriages at the front of the procession.
The road ahead had some uneven terrain, making it difficult to see far into the distance. Dense forest lined the sides of the path, and most notably, the road itself was poorly maintained.
This was because the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Sart, who was also acting as the guide and overseer of the Saint’s journey, had chosen the shortest route to Marquis Haragura’s domain.
Had they opted for the better-maintained route, they would have had to take a significant detour along the main highway, which would have extended the trip to around two weeks. But in an attempt to make up for their lost time, the Crown Prince had taken the advice of his retainers and decided on this shortcut instead.
While it was true that the Saint’s entourage was a large group and a well-protected one—guarded by the elite Royal Guard Knights, the pride of the Kingdom of Sart, so there were no bandits attacking them, but there were also other threats who attacked them regardless.
Monsters.
The presence of such a large group moving through the forest path stirred the local wildlife, and the commotion inevitably drew the attention of nearby monsters.
“Ah… There are monsters heading this way… — Royal Guard Knight, five werewolves are approaching from the front left, 80 meters out. Please be on alert.”
Tauro called out from the carriage window to a nearby knight riding alongside them.
” Confirmed. It’s Werewolves? They’re nocturnal monsters, though… Royal Guard, halt and be on alert! Five werewolves incoming from the front left—prepare to engage!”
The Royal Guard Knight, who had detection skills, quickly verified Tauro’s information and called out to his comrades.
The message was relayed to the back of the procession, and the carriages carrying the saint and her companions began to stop one after another.
”There’s a group of twenty ogres approaching from the rear right as well. Stay alert!”
”From the rear too!? …Confirmed! Messenger! Twenty ogres approaching from the rear right! Fourth and Fifth Squads, form up to intercept!”
The captain of the Royal Guard issued immediate orders without waiting for approval from the Crown Prince.
He likely judged that any delay in seeking confirmation would be a waste of time.
It was the right decision for a field commander.
Meanwhile, Tauro climbed on top of the carriage and readied his bow.
The werewolves were moving through the forest at high speed, zigzagging and weaving between the trees, making them difficult targets.
But Tauro took no mind to this and calmly infused his arrow with magic. A white glow enveloped the arrow as he took aim and let it fly.
The glowing arrow flew cleanly through the narrow gaps between the trees, like threading a needle through the eye of a pin.
The target, of course, the werewolf leading the pack.
The arrow of light that Tauro shot went into a tree.
The next instant, the arrow shatters the edge of the tree trunk but didn’t lose its momentum. It kept flying straight ahead.
Just then, the leading werewolf emerged from the foliage.
The glowing arrow pierced straight between the werewolf’s eyebrows—no, it went right through it.
Still glowing faintly, the arrow continued and struck a second werewolf behind it in the throat, stopping it cold.
”Gyaa-uun!”
Two of the three werewolves were killed in an instant, but the remaining three continued charging forward undeterred.
Tauro was already readying a second shot—this time, with a regular arrow.
But it was still an arrow fired from a powerful bow, reinforced by the stat-boosting effects of his enchanted shield and leather armor.
“Gyaaaaah!” A sharp cry rang out from deep within the bushes as another werewolf went down.
The remaining two emerged from the brush and lunged at a nearby Royal Guard knight.
Just as the knight raised his shield to try and defend against the attack, the werewolves’ attacks were repelled by an invisible barrier—At the same moment, a visible slash of wind shot past the knight
It was a combination of Ragune’s Area Defense ability and a flying slash attack from Ankh’s Great Magic Sword.
The werewolf trying to attack the knight took a diagonal hit from the wind-slicing blow, let out a yelp, and fell dead.
The last remaining werewolf, realizing the danger, stopped attacking the Royal Guard Knight and tried to turn and flee.
But then Aeris cast a “Paralysis” spell., freezing it in place.
At that moment, a black shadow then dashed past the knight at lightning speed—Zion. She delivered a direct punch to the immobilized werewolf.
its back was turned to her, so when the hit struck the werewolf’s spine, it went slamming into a tree with a sickening “crack!” sound and died instantly.
”To think they’d take down C-rank monsters like werewolves so easily…!”
The Royal Guard knights who were nearby were stunned.
The Royal Guard weren’t necessarily monster specialists. If anything, they were trained primarily for combat against other people.
But they still had a grasp on the general threat levels of the monsters which served as benchmarks for their own strength. —especially C and B-rank threats.
In other words, the adventurers—composed of noble offspring with this boy, who had easily defeated a werewolf, as their leader—possessed strength surpassing even those monsters.
This meant they were either on par with or even stronger than the Royal Guard themselves.
“…They say the world is a big place, but to think ones so young to be this powerful…”
The captain of the Royal Guard, responsible for overseeing the escort, was deeply impressed by Tauro and his companions’ strength.
”Sir, we should go assist with the ogre group approaching from the rear right.”
Tauro called to the impressed captain of the Royal Guard down from atop the carriage.
”Ah—right! First Squad, hold position. Second Squad, move to support Fourth and Fifth Squads!”
Tauro jumped down from the carriage, gave a nod to Aeris and the others, and followed after the knights rushing to reinforce the rear line.