"Whoa, whoa, whoa, seriously?

　Docora's expression of surprise at the appearance of the knights quickly changed to a smile.

"You're the captain of this squad, girl?
Yes.
Is the guy who found this place here now?
...... I found him.
Don't lie to me, knight!　I can see it in your eyes. You're a serious f*cking knight. I'm not sure if you've seen this before, but I'm sure you've seen it before.　You can't do that, can you?
"......
They'll figure it out. The guy who figured this out is not a guy who lives in pride like you. He's a guy who knows how to live like us.

　Hmm, that Docola guy ...... has a better sense of smell than a quick mind.
　Or should I say that he is delusional in his empirically cultivated senses?

"Hey, let me talk to him. Let me talk to him, and I'll take him seriously, okay?　You're hiding, aren't you?

　Docola is looking around.
　--We've got to get out of here.
　Mr. Ilias had reminded him never to step forward, but he didn't want to draw attention to himself here.

Grandpa Kara, you take care of the rest.
"Oh, and be careful.

　He stood up and walked through the grass, appearing in the square.
　He controls Mr. Ilias, who seems to want to say something. 　

"You're not running away, you're fighting. If anything happens, you'll protect me, right?
Oh, yeah. ......
And that's what I need.

　I whispered the last word quietly so that Docora wouldn't hear.
　The last word is whispered softly so that Dokora cannot hear. Then he takes his place right next to Mr. Ilias and faces Dokora.
　For Docola, this conversation is not about stalling. It's an act to satisfy his own curiosity.
　It's necessary for us too. But we're not here to mend fences.
　I'll be free to respond as I please.

"Oh, you're that?　You don't strike me as the fighting type.
Yeah. I'm confident I'm weaker than any of them.
That's good, that's an open mind. But let me ask you a few questions to see if you really are.
I don't mind.
How did you find Gidou's base?
I was lost in the mountains and I stumbled upon a cave. That's it.
Seriously? Was that an idea you immediately rejected? Well, there's always at least one miracle or coincidence.

　So you're thoughtful enough to allow coincidences to appear in the corner of your thoughts. You show surprise, but no flicker of emotion.
　Docola believes in his method, but he knows that it is not perfect.
　That's why he prepares his next move and his next move after that.
　He's a prepared man. Then there is a good chance that he is prepared for the current situation.

Next question, how did you get him to give up the information?
We believe necromancy is involved because of your fear of the dead.
That's all right. That's a good point. Even if it's far from the knights, some of the clergy might have a clue. But what I'm asking is, how did you get them to give up the information?
"I've extended the execution date until the necromancer dies, first three people to arrive.
I see. Should I have said it could be used on the living?
Only if you can put it into practice. Falsehoods will eventually come undone.
...... One last question. What did you hunt me down for?
"Understanding.

　Docola is silent for a moment.
　Then he twisted his mouth in amusement.

All right. I'm sure it's you. I doubted it at first, but after seeing your eyes, I'm sure.
That's good.
Who the f*ck are you? You're not a good guy to be with, are you?
That's rude. I'm a good guy.
Good people don't understand people like me.
What kind of evil world is a normal person like you in? What do bad people do?

　I can't answer that question.
　There are many kinds of bad guys. There are tyrants who leave their names in history, and there are those who leave only a scar in one person's heart.


　Some of us have only heard of them, others have actually seen them with our own eyes and even been involved with them.
　I'm not going to give you a long story, but how to tell it well: .......

I'm doing everything. I'm doing everything.
"Oh, really? Kuro hair, black eyes. ...... Not exactly a tribal area I know. ...... No, wait.

　You're a Chicuki man.

You're from Chicchu?
I'm not sure.

　You know this guy?
　I didn't expect to hear that.
　I didn't expect the bandit leader to know anything about the Earth world. .......
　But if this happens, we can't leave it to Ilias to kill us, can we?
　I'm not sure what to make of it, but I'm sure it's a good idea.

I don't think so. I didn't think you were really here, or that I could meet you.
Now that you've answered my question, I'll ask yours. How do you know about Earth?
How could I not know, in my position, the necromancy that ruined my life and the reanimation magic that created the worst history in this world? I'm not sure what to make of that.

　Apparently, there is no Docola Earthling theory.
　I looked at Ilias. From the look of surprise on her face, it seems she didn't know that either.
　But still, an Earthling created reanimation magic. How is that even possible?
　Certainly, in the history of the world, there are anecdotes of alchemists and witches who are said to have created the foundation of the fantasy world.
　If so, we can't deny the possibility that these people came to this world in the past and created the magic that is called forbidden.
　But today, magic is an illusion that can only exist in the world of the imagination.
　It's hard to believe, but Docola doesn't seem to be lying.
　There is no need to lie in the first place.

Is there anything else you know?
What, you want to keep your mouth shut too?　Just like that!
I just want to know.
Well, that's too bad. What I know is only the beginning of the abyss. The necromancy is just a bonus.
"......
If you really want to know, you'll have to look it up yourself. It's a good start, right?

　With that, Docola pulls out the knife on his hip.

I got a good thing going here. It's not good for business, but it's a relief. Thank you.

　Mr. Ilias steps forward, wary of Docola's battle-ready stance.
　That's the end of our conversation. To be honest, I'd have liked to keep the conversation going for a little while longer, but it can't be helped.
　We've served our purpose. Now we just have to trust them. 　

"Hey, guys!　There's a little more than us!　And they're a lot stronger than the knights who just came!　They're also a lot stronger than the knights who just came! I'm not going to let you get away with it.
I'm not sure what to do.

　Unlike the bandits before, their morale is high and they have no fear of the knights.
　I'm not sure what to make of this.
　I can see it in his face. Unlike the bandits who were scared of necromancy, these guys have genuine trust in Docora.
　They're enjoying their lives.
　They're bad guys, but I envy them a little.
　If it had been Dokora instead of Ilias, ...... no, you shouldn't be imagining that now.
　In this melee, I have to concentrate on protecting myself.

Mr. Iliad, where should I be?
"Stay where you are. We'll protect you.
Okay.

　There was nothing I could do. All they told me was to trust them.
　That's a hard thing to say.
　Now the bandits are coming for us.
　Someone who can kill you easily is about to attack you.
　That fear is no less than that of a bear or a slime.
　No, there is a fear that I feel because I am human.
　I bite the sleeve of my left arm to hold my trembling jaw.
　Because I'm beginning to lose my composure, the force is stronger than it needs to be.
　But the pain in my arm barely keeps my mind calm.

"Let's go!

　Docola throws a knife at me.
　Mr. Ilias knocks it away.
　Two knives stick in the ground, two knives!
　He throws one - a hidden knife.
　He threw a smaller knife behind the larger one, and I didn't feel it at all.


　Ilias-san, who knocked them both down as a matter of course, is very reliable.
　With the throwing of the knife, the bandits scattered, and a melee began around them.
　Even to the untrained eye, the knights of Ragdoll's squad were superior to the bandits, as before.
　But what was overwhelmingly different was the movement of the bandits.
　They don't attack carelessly and get knocked down by a return blow.
　They keep each other in check and do not attack carelessly.
　Dokora also took out a new knife and exchanged blows with Ilias.
　His movements far surpassed those of the other bandits.
　If he is not careful, he can outrun even the knights of the Ragdoll Squad.
　There are two knights around you to protect you.
　If I could use these men for offense, I could win more reliably, but the downside is that there are civilians who are out of place and will end the game if they are caught in the act.
　I am grateful to them, realizing that they are slowing me down.

"Hahaha!　You're strong, girl. I've never seen anyone as strong as you in my life, even in Garne!

　Docola's forehead is sweating as she deals with Ilias's sword fight.
　If he were to take it seriously, he would probably be blown off his arm holding the knife, but he dexterously handles the pressure.
　Even though he is a ship's arm, the pressure must be extraordinary.
　Mr. Ilias, on the other hand, did not break a sweat. He doesn't even look like he's enjoying the fight.
　He swung his sword solemnly and hunted him down.

It's a pity he's not a good talker. Why don't we have more fun?　This is the perfect opportunity for you to let off some steam from your days of training.
"No need to please the bad guys. I don't want to!
Oh, no!　Boring b*tc*!　That guy's worth more to me than you!

　You can't say something that gives me the creeps in another way.
　But the fight is slowly losing its balance.

"I see. At your age, you're the head of these guys, despite being a woman. My arm is about to break.

　Docora is deliberately showing off her arm fatigue. And then he throws the knife he's holding.
　Mr. Ilias knocks it down without a single change in color.

"Well, it's enough that I've had this much fun for my abilities. Let's see what you can do.

　A new knife was taken out. Unlike the knife I had seen earlier, the blade was a hideous black.
　Ilias-san may have sensed something in the knife and regripped the sword.

"Hmm, your caution is top-notch, little girl. But don't worry, it's not for you.

　"But don't worry, it's not for you," Docola said, swinging it wide.

"This is how it works!

　He threw it high into the air, right above him.
　The knife reached an unseen height and exploded.
　A black haze spreads out and descends with tremendous speed.
　In an instant, the battlefield was enveloped in black mist.

"Warding him!

　At the same time as I shouted this, my body was enveloped in a kind of light film.
　It seems that one of the knights beside me has used some kind of magic on me.
　The vision around you darkens slightly.
　It doesn't look like it's meant to take away your vision. The warding means it's poison, or maybe it's that.

"Oh, good call. "Oh, good call. A man with no magic can do a lot of harm.
Necromancy. ......!
You know, I didn't use necromancy. I put the magic I created with necromancy into the knife I just used. A ridiculous amount of it. That's why the magic seal stone you're holding is useless.

　It seems that since he uses a lot of magic seal stones, he is good at using magic while evading their properties.
　I'm not sure why you're using necromancy now.　To reuse the corpses of your friends here?
　I look around.
　Some of the bandits are already dead, but there's no sign of them moving.
　The other knights and Mr. Ilias are probably thinking the same thing.
　Even in the midst of the melee, I kept my eyes peeled for dead bodies.

"Oh, this isn't like the undead multiplier we used to escape. This is the proper use of necromancy. To use the dead!

　Shouts rose from around the room.
　Not the bandits', much less the knights'.
　Then what does it mean...

"Look out!　We're surrounded!

　Hands crawl out of the ground around us.
　It reminds me of a scene I saw in a movie.
　The classic horror movie of zombies rising from the grave.


　When I realized the situation, the 30 knights surrounding the 20 bandits were surrounded by more than 50 undead.

"These guys move in response to my magic. They're not just small fry that run amok and attack the place. They're pawns that will obey my orders to the letter.

　The undead carry weapons.
　The undead are armed and follow their commanders.
　And then, from the depths of the forest, a particularly large undead leaps out.

"------!

　The giant undead roars. I know that figure.
　It was the boss of the bandits I had defeated the other day, Gidou, I think.
　It carried a large sword as big as the stone hammer it had been equipped with before, and began to charge towards Mr. Ilias.

"Yeah, it was an excellent material. And I think he has a grudge against you guys.

　Mr. Ilias receives a huge sword from a powerful arm.
　He seemed to have blocked it, but the pressure of the sword pierced through his body, creating a crack in the earth.
　It was much faster and more powerful than what I had seen before.
　Gidou's arm bursts in reaction to the use of power beyond his physical body.
　But that arm regenerates in the blink of an eye.
　This is the immortal undead ......, not just a moving corpse. It's the worst kind of soldier, one who fights inexhaustibly.
　In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the site, please do not hesitate to contact us.

I'm sure you can understand why I feel a little sorry for them.

　He then swung his sword and cut Gidou in half from the top of his head.
　But the Gidou begins to regenerate.

I can't help but feel a little sorry for him.　You can run away if you want.　We don't chase anyone who leaves, do we?
"Nonsense. What are you afraid of that won't kill you?

　The undead bandits. The knights are not overwhelmed by the undead bandits and the bandits that follow them into attack.

"We are the knights led by Sir Ragdoll, the strongest of the Targs!　Don't think we'll be intimidated by this.
"Oh, yeah, that's great. But how much longer can you hold out with your might?

　"But how long can you hold out with that kind of power?" Docora looks cool in the face of the knights who are flying high.
　I can understand that.
　You can handle the undead coming at you, but that's as far as you go.
　They regenerate one after the other, and at key points, the fast-moving living bandits take them by surprise.
　In this endurance battle, you are at a disadvantage.
　You need to think about running away.

"If we defeat the sorcerer...
I've already given my orders to them. As long as my magic exists in this area, killing me won't stop them. I'm not going to let them kill me either.

　What a nuisance. That's why it's forbidden.
　If Maja, a priestess, had been here, she might have known what to do, but she was not here.
　I checked beforehand, but there are no knights in the ragdoll squad with countermeasures against necromancy. They're all brainy gorillas.
　I wondered if there was anything I could do, anything I could do now.
　But my knowledge of necromancy is too limited.
　These undead are powered by the magic that surrounds them.
　The magic seal stone has no effect. So there's nothing we can do to disarm it.
　The only thing we can do now is leave or deal with the magic that's surrounding us.
　But there are a lot of magic seal stones around. There's no choice but to use magic.
　We'll have to retreat and hunt them down again...

"I see, so we just have to deal with this annoying magic.

　Mr. Ilias takes a deep bowed stance.
　The blade of the sword in his grip begins to glow.

I don't want you to use magic!

　I'm not going to let you use magic!" Dokora scatters the magic seal stones around Mr. Ilias. How many does he have?
　But the sword's glow won't fade. It shines so bright it dazzles the eye.

"Isn't that magic?
"All hands, fly!

　As soon as Mr. Ilias shouts, his body floats in the air. One of the knights picked me up and leapt.
　That's too high!　Why are you jumping five meters in a vertical jump carrying a person, you old man?
　At the same time, Ilias swung his sword to the side.
　At the same time, an enormous amount of light was released, the black mist was blown away, and the undead and bandits who had failed to flee to the ground were cut in two by an invisible flash.
　Sobbing and almost coughing from the impact of the landing, I looked around.
　The hall where the battle had been fought was empty, and the surrounding trees had collapsed.
　The undead that had been caught up in it had been transformed into lumps of flesh and were not regenerating.
　The undead that were caught up in the fight have turned into chunks of flesh and are not regenerating. Dokora jumps up as quickly as she can and lands with a look of impatience on her face for the first time.

I'm not sure what to do. It was a swing with a lot of magic, and it blew him away.



　It was the gorilla's way of covering his open mouth with his hand.
　Mr. Ilias points his sword at Docola. 　

"It looks like you won't be regenerating. If you have another choice, use it quickly.
"I can't resist showing it to you, now that you mention it. I didn't want to use this one.

　Then Docora takes out a black ball.
　You're not going to tell me he put magic in it again, are you?

"There!

　Docora slams the ball into the ground.
　This time, a thick smoke begins to fill the surroundings.
　That's a smoke screen!

Run, you coward!
"Run, honest!

　Docola turns on his heel, tries to leave, and falls to the ground.

What?

　A spear shot out from the depths of the collapsed forest and blew off both of Dokora's legs.
　In the direction from which the spear flew, Grandpa Kara was looking at him with a proud face.
　Ilias is also showing his surprise at the situation.

...... Ah, aren't you proud, knight?
It's not her order, it's our plan.

　I'm sure you'll be happy to hear that. You'll be able to find a lot more information on the web.
　His face is very quiet.

Was this the plan all along?
I escaped once. I figured you'd make a break for it and get away this time.
Yeah, that's right. Good timing.
I staged a moment when I knew I could get away.

　--Just as planned.
　Yes, I'd only discussed this strike with Grandpa Kara.
　Mr. Ilias had called it preparation for escape, and Grandpa Kara had been hiding.
　He told Kara that Dokora would probably start running away at some point, and asked him to keep his spear ready to throw.
　The reason why he stopped hiding and revealed himself was to avoid the risk of Docola looking around and finding Grandpa Kara.
　Even a pure surprise attack could have succeeded, since it would have exploited the blind spot of the knight's actions.
　However, since he didn't know how good Dokora was, he took a more successful approach.
　He instructed Grandpa Kara when to throw.

"Aim for the moment when someone shouts accusations at Dokora, who has started to flee.

　Mr. Ilias was the one who said it, but I had planned to say it myself if no one else said it.
　When Dokora heard our accusations, she would have been convinced that she had found an opening.
　That moment of conviction involves the process of checking and evaluating the success or failure of one's actions.
　Even if he was always aware of his surroundings, his accuracy would be somewhat diminished.
　For Docola, who believes in his craft, the moment of success of his plan must be satisfying.
　That is why it is the most vulnerable point.
　To create this situation, he said nothing to the other knights.
　I knew they would blame Docola for trying to escape with a trick.

"You understand, don't you? You know, it's nice to be framed like this.
I see.

　Docola let out a sigh and laughed, probably thinking the same thing.

Maybe you and I would have gotten along better.
Maybe. But I don't like the idea of looting people's lives.
You'll get used to it. I guarantee it.
I'll be careful to stay on the right side of the tracks.
Yeah, that's a good idea.

　Mr. Iliad walks up behind me, sword in hand.

"I have a map in my possession. I have a map in my possession that shows some of the locations of bases that only I know of. Check out the hardest one to find, parting gift.

　Docola laughs, already oblivious to the sword Mr. Iliad has raised.

"You're funny, you're funny.
Can I get your name?
"...... Oh.

　You say your name, and the sword comes down.
　D'cora's mouth ruminated soundlessly on my name, and then he laughed one last time.