Ossan Saikyō Chapter 6 Part 03
For the next two days, we focused on strengthening our party in E-class dungeons.
We considered traveling to another town outside Euron to gain new skills, but since it seemed the large-scale subjugation mission was approaching, we decided instead to earn money and upgrade our equipment.
With the idea of taking on the role of a shield-bearer, I tried switching to a larger shield.
Until now, my style had been “offense is the best defense”, but with Rani’s rapid power-up through【Critical Strike】and【Might】, I adjusted for better party balance. Of course, it would also make it easier to protect Freynil.
Freynil already had a good staff, so she upgraded her armor. Ideally, she shouldn’t be in situations where she takes hits, but preparation is still necessary.
Rani, who had rapidly gained skills since joining us, seemed to find her old longsword lacking. She acquired a new one with a blade about twice as thick and was diligently getting used to it.
On the morning of the third day, when we visited the guild, the long-awaited notice was finally posted; the large-scale subjugation mission to conquer the undead castle.
When I spoke to the receptionist Mariane, she said, “The mission has finally been issued. Please participate”.
“Come to think of it, I believe you mentioned additional questioning. Does that mean reconnaissance was carried out beforehand?”
“Yes. Another party was sent to scout. They confirmed the undead castle as reported, which led to this mission being issued.”
“I see. So it’s confirmed to be an undead castle.”
“Yes. It’s rare, but undead can form bases and operate from them. However, for it to be a castle means there’s likely a very high-ranking undead present.”
“That’s… something. Naturally, high-ranking adventurers will be participating, right?”
“Crimson Anatolia, and this guild’s top party,〈Fortuner〉, will both take part. There should be no issue with combat strength.”
Those were familiar names. Well, they must be the strongest forces in the Barius Viscount’s territory.
“Understood. I’ll check the notice and prepare.”
“Thank you.”
After leaving the counter, Rani spoke to me, her ears twitching.
“I’ve been thinking this for a while, but you seem close with Mariane. A lot of parties avoid her because they say she’s blunt.”
“If you talk to her properly, you realize she responds normally. Maybe her way of speaking gets misunderstood.”
“Is that so? What do you think, Freynil?”
“Eh? I think Mariane is kind. She was nice to me from the beginning.”
Now that I thought about it, Mariane had treated Freynil properly from the start. It also felt like she knew something about her.
“I see. Maybe I just didn’t know since I haven’t spoken to her. So, what are we doing today?”
“We’ll check the mission schedule and gather what we need. And if we have time, we’ll go to the dungeon.”
“Figures. If we’re going into an undead stronghold, we need to get as strong as possible.”
“Freynil’s magic might become crucial. Keep that in mind.”
“Yes, Soushi-sama. I’ll train so I can cast even faster.”
According to the notice, departure was early morning three days later. Same as before. Until then, we’d raise our skill levels as much as possible, for whatever irregularities were bound to happen.
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On the day of the large-scale subjugation, hunters and the territory’s soldiers gathered before Euron’s gate. The numbers were about the same as during the goblin incident: roughly 100 adventurers and 200 soldiers.
However, the soldiers’ main role was transporting supplies and collecting mana stones and materials. The fighting force would mostly be the adventurers.
“So that’s Crimson Anatolia. She doesn’t look much older than us, but she definitely feels like A-rank.”
Rani watched with interest as a red-armored elf knight gave orders in the distance. Freynil also glanced over, though for some reason she stayed partially hidden behind me.
“Any party with a member capable of using【Holy Magic】, please come forward.”
Anatolia called out in a clear voice. She likely wanted to identify those with effective magic against undead. We couldn’t not step forward, but Freynil tugged at my sleeve, looking uneasy.
“Soushi-sama, do we really have to go?”
“Sorry. She’s the leader here. We can’t ignore her orders.”
“I see… understood.”
Did she have some issue with Anatolia? Regardless, we had no choice.
I led Freynil and Rani toward Anatolia.
Only three parties gathered.【Holy Magic】really was rare. After giving instructions to the first two, Anatolia approached us last.
“Hmm, I’ve seen you before.”
Her well-shaped eyebrow twitched as she looked at me.
“We met during the goblin subjugation in Tolson.”
“Ah, yes… Soushi-dono, was it? I look forward to working with you again. I see you’ve formed a party. Who is the magic user?”
“This is Freynil. She’s E-rank, and can use two『Holy』spells.”
In fact, Freynil had just learned a second『Holy』spell recently: «Absolution».
As the name suggested, it cleansed impurities. It sounded like something that would send undead to rest, but it also seemed to have physical effects like sterilization.
As I introduced her, Anatolia turned her gaze to Freynil. She murmured “I see…”, and narrowed her eyes slightly. But when Freynil looked down uncomfortably, she quickly looked away and turned back to me.
“If she can use «Sacred Ray» and «Absolution», that’s sufficient as combat power. Astral-type undead are resistant to physical attacks. Very well, your party will accompany me. Stay with me during the march as well.”
“Understood.”
“Good. Then I look forward to working with you. Remain over there until departure.”
I gave a bow and withdrew to the designated area.
Still, I hadn’t expected to be assigned directly under the commander. Considering her reaction to Freynil, this assignment was likely due to Freynil’s background. Freynil herself looked apologetic and murmured, “I’m sorry…”, which confirmed it.
Well, Rani was saying things like “We get to watch Anatolia fight up close~ lucky us!”, so there was no need to dwell on it. Being able to act alongside former A-rank and C-rank parties was exceptional treatment for an E-rank party.
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E/N:
Anatolia must have had some kind of history with Freynil-chan…
Stay tuned!
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