Chapter 51: The Wanderer: Isamu Matsumoto

Initially, Selfars displayed surprise, but after taking a deep breath, he began to give calm orders.

“Thank you for the report. Do you know the number and types of enemies?”

“Yes. The details are unclear, but it’s estimated to be between 100 and 200 based on the number of enemy engagements. The main types are goblins and orcs, and there were even larger creatures among them.”

“Tsk, goblins are one thing, but having a large number of orcs can be troublesome… Do you understand. Marcella continue the treatment of the knight who informed you. He’s the most accomplished person, so don’t let him die, okay? Felix, as soon as Diluc arrives, please come with me to my office. The others should prepare for battle…”

Selfers took a moment to breathe and, noticing that Isamu was still standing there in shock, he kindly asked.

“Isamu-dono, as you heard, things are like this. It’s likely related to what Silvio-dono mentioned earlier. We’ll have to act. Now, how far along are the production of the Felis series devices?”

“Uh!! Well, the first type has about 50 units, and the second type is still at around 20 units. We haven’t started working on the enhanced first type yet.”

The Felis series was classified as top secret, so only Isamu, Eto, and Willem had been working on all of them. While about 20 days had passed since the decision to mass-produce them, they had been working on creating magic stoves and refrigerators in parallel, and there were also visitors, so they hadn’t been able to produce as many.

“I’m sorry; if I had known this would happen, we should have made more as a top priority…”

Isamu expressed regret as he bit his lower lip.

“Fufu, what are you saying? The horde of monsters was on its way regardless of whether you were here or not. Thanks to you, we now have 50 magic swords! It’s an extremely fortunate situation, something you won’t find anywhere else in the world. All we can feel is gratitude. Don’t you all agree?”

“OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHH!!!”

Suddenly, at the sound of their voice, Isamu turned to find many knights who had prepared for battle standing behind him.

“It’s our long-awaited first battle with magic swords! It’s time to test our skills.”

“I never imagined the day would come when I’d fight with a magic sword. It’s so exciting, like a knight from a heroic tale.”

“Oh, Orihime-sensei! Please watch us. We’re going to decapitate our enemies left and right, just like you!”

“Nya?”

The knights spoke enthusiastically, and their faces were filled with determination.

“Everyone…”

Feeling something welling up inside him, Isamu wiped his eyes and faced forward.

“When is everyone setting out? If there’s still time, we can make more devices, even just a few!”

“The reconnaissance team will depart immediately… and, yes, we have about two more hours.”

“Understood! Which is better, swords or spears?”

“Spears. We have about 50 swords, so we can somehow distribute them to all the knights. I want to equip the soldiers with spears, so we’ll go with spears.”

“Understood! With two hours, Eto-san and Willem-san are staying at the research institute today, so the three of us can probably make an additional 10! I’ll get started right away. Someone, please take the spears to the research institute! Now excuse me!”

With that said, Isamu dashed away, leaving for the research institute.

“Hehe, it’s very much like Isamu-dono,”

 Diluc, who had appeared at some point, observed with a narrowed gaze.

“That’s right. Now, let’s plan our strategy carefully to avoid saddening Isamu-dono. Shall we?”

“Ha!!!!”

With that, Selfers, accompanied by Diluc and Felix, headed to the strategy headquarters, which was now his office.

Two hours later, as promised, Isamu and his team arrived at the assembly point with ten Felis Type 2 devices. The knights and soldiers, fully prepared, were waiting for them.

Diluc, noticing Isamu, called out.

“Isamu-dono! Please come this way.”

Guided by Diluc, Isamu was brought to a kind of podium, similar to a morning assembly stage, where Selfers and a large crowd of knights were standing.

“Hello, Isamu-dono. We were about to make a departure speech, so the timing is perfect.”

“Yes?”

Isamu didn’t understand why it was perfect, but he overheard someone whisper something to him.

Startled for a moment, Isamu nodded slightly, and Selfers began his speech.

“As you all know, Yanseil is under attack by a horde of monsters. Yanseil itself has defenses, so we believe the damage is not too severe. However, the horde of monsters has apparently headed east from there. According to the reconnaissance team that returned just now, they haven’t entered our territory yet, but it’s only a matter of time. The villages along the highway are not very well defended. If we are attacked by a large number of monsters, it will result in significant damage. Therefore, from now on, we will leave some of our forces for Klaufendamm’s defense and launch an offensive!”

“OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

Selfers’ speech boosted the morale of the knights.

“Do not fear anything. We have magic swords and magic spears! Let us slay the monsters and lay their heads in front of Isamu-dono, the wanderer who created the magic swords!”

“OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHH?”

Another big cheer. However, the knights and soldiers notice the words that cannot be ignored and begin to make noise.

Up until now, the fact that Isamu was a wanderer had been kept secret from everyone except a few knights, but it had finally been made public.

“Wanderer? Isamu-dono?

“Ah, I see. That’s why he was able to make the magic swords.”

“Amazing, it turns out that the legends are true, and the wanderer indeed possesses great power!”

These words gradually spread within the group, and the commotion became louder.

“If we have the power that Isamu-dono has given us, there’s nothing to fear from monsters! Now, Isamu-dono, won’t you say a word to everyone?”

Isamu panicked at the sudden request. While it had been confirmed that it was acceptable to disclose his status as the Wanderer for the sake of boosting morale, no one had asked him to make a statement.

He gave Selfers an exasperated look, but in response, Selfers just grinned.

Resigned, Isamu took a deep breath and looked at the assembled troops.

“Everyone, as the wanderer, I’ve been here for more than two months now. Even though I knew nothing at first, the nobles and everyone here have been incredibly kind to me. Despite this short time, I’ve come to love this city. But now, I’ve heard that this city and territory are in crisis. Unfortunately, I don’t possess the direct combat abilities needed to protect them. However, I have the good fortune to create magic devices. I believe that I received this power for days like today. I’ll do my best to assist, so please protect this city and territory with all your might!”

Unable to say anything clever, Isamu conveyed his sincere feelings without pretense and bowed his head.

It might be relying on others, but there was no other option. He could only make a sincere request.

“OOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

A third round of enthusiastic cheers erupted.

“Leave it to us!”

“With these magic swords, we’re invincible!”

“We’ll hunt them down quickly, so please continue developing new magic devices!”

The soldiers offered words of encouragement one after another, causing Isamu to shed tears.

Then, when Selfers felt the time was right, he made a loud declaration.

“Set out!”

“OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

With the energy at its peak, the extermination team finally departed.

This operation divided the forces into two main units. One was the extermination team, which left the city to eliminate the monsters attacking the highway and nearby villages and towns. The other was the defense unit, which fortified defenses to safeguard Klaufendamm and provided reinforcements in case of emergencies.

The participants included all the troops in the capital, a total of 200 individuals. The knights numbered 50, and the soldiers and guards together numbered 150.

Of these, all 50 knights were equipped with Felis Type 1 devices, and 40 of them were deployed to the extermination team. The soldiers included 100 members in the extermination team, with 30 of them carrying Felis Type 2 devices.

The extermination team was commanded by Selfers himself, with Diluc assisting, and they likely planned to split up the squads and have each leader take command at some point.

The monsters seemed to attack villages and towns along the way while moving along the highway, and then the remaining ones would advance along the highway again. For this reason, they would need two groups: one traveling along the highway and another heading to the villages and towns.

On the other hand, the defense unit was led by Vice Captain Felix. The knights numbered only 10, but many of them were skilled in magic, making them effective in long-range defensive battles. Additionally, those with high magic power, like Nicolette, and those who could use ancient magic, like Annemarie and Isamu, had joined as part of the defense force. The defense team had exceptionally high morale.

“Nyaan.”

“Oh, it’s Orihime-sensei! If you’re here, there’s no problem with the city’s defense!”

Surprisingly, Orihime was visiting the defense unit to console the troops. She moved nimbly, going to where the soldiers were on the walls and watchtowers. Then, just when you thought she was visiting the next group of soldiers, she appeared in the standby area with her comings and goings like a phantom, playing the role of relieving tension and boosting morale.

The extermination team, which departed in the late hours of the night, finally encountered a horde of monsters on the highway shortly before dawn.

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