Intermissions: The Misfortune of Puta Town [First Part]

"Kena! I've found the trace. This animal trail must be the one goblins use."

"Alright, good job Gadi. I'll treat you to a lot of ale when we come back."

"Tsk, you stingy. Get me better liquor will ya."

Gadi picks up a branch and stabs it on some fallen leaves, but I don't see where the trace is at all.

"Hey, Gadi. Where's the trace."

"You have knotholes for eyes? It's a goblin dung there see?"

Gadi poked me, but she also properly told me. I didn't need to have my head grabbed and pointed to the trace though...

Close, it's too close!

The dung will stick to my face!

It's hidden well behind the fallen leaves. How is she even able to find this hard to find location.

Crap, Kena doesn't look amused.

"Stop playing around, let's go quickly."

"Alright."

"Uy~"

"Okay, wait for me."

I hurriedly pick up the luggage that have been thrown on the ground, and shoulder them. There are strings for hanging luggage on my right artificial arm, so my left arm is free. Having one of my hand usable while walking on a slope like this is really useful. I'm not losing my balance and rolling down the slope like before.

◇

"Lower your head more."

"Ouch, tell me before you hit me."

Pomi who's hiding with me hits me on my head. Pomi is quick to use her hands.

We're currently preparing a surprise attack on the goblins that we've finally found. Looks like they're making a stronghold inside a cave in the mountain. The two goblins that are guarding the entrance are chewing some kind of raw meat.

Kena who's moving from the other side has given a signal.

Pomi and Gadi use short bows to attack the two goblins outside the cave. The arrow released by Pomi pierced the goblin's mouth, killing it in one blow. However, Gadi's arrow was slightly off the course, and hit its arm without defeating it. Pomi shoots another arrow in a hurry, but it's slightly too late.

"Gugyorau, guru, geroraa"

Damn, the surprise attack's failed.

Pomi's arrow hit the goblin slightly after it shouted. It's a single strike to the temple. Pomi's bow skill is amazing like always.

The goblin's shout has stopped, but the inside of the cave has become noisy.

Kena and Bahana cut the bushes, and give the signal to attack in front of the cave, we also break out of the bushes to assault.

Goblins that are rushing out of the cave fall victim to Kena's and Bahana's short spears. Both of them kill the goblins in one blow. The other goblins are attacking the two, but they use the chance when the goblins are startled from their friends' deaths and kick them to open some distance.

I also deal wth the goblin's attack while hiding myself behind the shield attached on my artificial arm. My weapon isn't as long as the two's, so if I don't block it each time, it'll be a simultaneous killing.

I cut the goblin's thigh that I can see from the gap on the small shield with the keepsake sword which has broken tip. Usually, it only gives a small wound, then I finish the opponent after they've been weakened, but it's a bit different this time.

Slash.

While seemingly hearing such sound, my sword easily cut to the middle of the goblin's thigh. What?　With this sharpness.

"Kon! Don't stop moving!"

The goblin that's fallen from Gadi's kick jumps from the ground toward me. Moreover, it's attacking from the side where I've just swung my sword. The correct answer should be to push the goblin in front of me and use the recoil to escape behind, but it's impossible.

This powerless me is barely able to retain my physical strength.

If I had power like Kena and the others, I could kick well, but if I raise my foot now, the shield will be pushed and the goblin will pin me down.

In the end, the goblin fangs pierced my side while I was thinking round and round. I screamed by reflex. I remembered the acute pain when I was bitten before.

The pain doesn't come no matter how long I wait. The goblin that has bitten my side opens its mouth big trying to chew my body.

"Kon, elbow it with your arm with the sword!"

I strike the goblin's head in accordance to Kena's advice before I can think. The goblin that's surprisingly easy to shake off is then killed by Pomi who has rushed over with her short sword.

"Thanks, Pomi."

"It's fine already, just concentrate."

"Okay!"

I slash the goblin that's clawing my shield, and finish it off. I usually need to slash for more than 10 times before I can defeat one, but now I've defeated it in just three slashes.

"Alright, Gadi, watch for other goblins coming out of the cave. Bahana and me will hunt the goblins that are coming to the entrance of the cave. Pomi and Kon are to cut the smoking green wood--oops, Kon, you've been bitten by the goblin right, heal it first."

Huh? Come to think of it, it doesn't hurt.

The mantle I've got from noble-sama has been dirtied by the white drool of the goblin, but there's no hole on it. There also isn't even trace of goblin's fangs on the white armor which has protected my side.

"I'm gonna bandage you, take off your armor."

"About that, I'm not hurt, Pomi."

"Huuh? That can't be right? That goblin bit with all its might didn't it!"

Pomi rolls up the mantle violently. She consented after she checked that there was no blood flowing from my side. The line of sights from the other tree gather from that exchange.

"Hey, Kena. This kon boy really isn't hurt."

"I thought that it was just a normal wolf leather mantle, but there's something smoothly stitched between the leather. Seems that this protected him from the goblin's fangs."

"Hey, stop stretching the mantle."

It'll be expensive to ask someone to fix this.

◇

I'm gathering the branches that Pomi has cut with a hatchet into a bundle the size of my arm. There's a lot of fallen insects due to Pomi recklessly cutting the branches. I'd welcome it if they're the round caterpillars, but rhinoceros beetles have shell that's hard to remove, and not really delicious, I don't like it.

When we've finished gathering the green woods, we go back to where Kena and the others are.

Kena cuts the thin smoking stick that she's bough from the alchemist in just the right length, and stab it on the gathered green woods. Finally, she soaks it with a little bit of oil, and ignite it with a tinderbox.

Yellow smoke begins to appear together with the fire.

Ueeh, it stinks.

Additionally, my eyes are drizzling.

Pomi who has received the bundle from Kena, throws it into the cave.

Five goblins appear one after another from the cave, chased by the smoke.

I desperately swing my sword to the goblins that have come out.

"Kena, the smoke is coming out over there."

"Tsk, there's another exit huh. Gadi, go with Bahana to the other exit."

"Eeh~, my share will decrease."

"We're going to equally share this batch, so stop complaining and go."

"Aye yo~"

Gadi quickly rushed to the place where the smoke comes out, and Bahana went after her after a long delay.

◇

We hunted total 21 goblins from that cave. I only defeated three goblins. I don't have any injury unlike before, but my sword didn't quite reach the target, so it took time to beat them. I want to become skillful like Kena and the others fast.

Huh?

"What's wrong, Kon."

"Un, something is glittering on the mountain over there."

"Where?"

Gadi sharply noticed me who had stopped moving involuntarily from the light on the mountain. There's no more light from the place I point my finger at.

"It really glittered."

"Ah, you did well to find it. That's probably a reflection of the sunlight from a speartip."

"Is it other magic hunters?　We had told the boss that we were going to attack on this mountain, and there shouldn't have been anyone that came here for 2-3 days."

"Maybe some people are chasing goblins from the opposite side of the mountain?"

It'll be bad if we scramble for monsters from other magic hunter group. If it's Gouts group, they will surround us and take the magic cores that we have gotten just now.

"The one beyond that mountain is the twin mountain. There is no magic hunter who will recklessly go the mountain where the Hydra appears. If there were people with such backbones, they would have gone to the labyrinth city to become explorers long ago.

If I'm not mistaken, hydra is a legendary monster that appears in old tale, or against heroes and the knights.

However, that means, who was there?

◇

"Who is it?"

Kena points her spear tip to a bushes.

"It's me, me. Don't shoot the arrow."

A big rabbitkin man with one eye, along with five beastmen from various races.

"What, it's just Orudo huh. Aren't you guys going to the mountain on the north?"

"Yeah, that was the objective, but...."

Kena presses Orudo who's hesitating to say it. Kena is arrogant like always.

"Katabane said that there was a strange group on the twin mountain, so he surveyed it, but apparently, that strange group is heading to Puta town. These guys have families there, so we decide to go back at once."

Hee, beastmen think of their families after all.

"Oy, you sure 'bout it?"

"Yeah, there's no mistake."

"Oy oy, stop them."

Katabane, who is a flightless birdkin with feathers only on one of his side, points at the glittering place from earlier, and utters something to his companions.

"You guys, I'm talking with Kena here. Save the racket for later."

"Boss. It's not about that. Katabane said that there was a hydra among that group."

"Haa? Is that group running from a hydra or something?"

"Kena, that's not it. No one can get away from a hydra in the mountain."

Err, please talk more clearly.

I look around for someone that can teach me about it. My eyes meet Pomi's. Unfortunately, Pomi doesn't seem to know about it too.

"In other words, that huh. Some people who keep a hydra like some pet are heading toward Puta town."

"Seems to be it."

"Eeh! That's terrible."

I finally understand Orudo's talk. Even though I'm just surprised for a bit, Gadi hits my head. Fufuhn, it doesn't hurt thanks to the helmet from noble-sama. As if she's heard that words in my mind, Gadi pinch my mouth on both side from behind and pull it.

Iuaires.

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