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With my hand blocking, I slash with my right hand. I block with my right hand and strike down with my left. Unfurling my wings, I deflect the enemy’s attacks, using my spread wings to fend off those targeting my back.

Spinning, stepping, and delivering graceful thrusts. Thanks to my wings behind me, I can simultaneously attack and defend in all directions, an overwhelming advantage that allows Jenis to slice through the encircling enemies in close combat.

Leaning against the blazing wagon, even though we’re surrounded, I only really need to focus on three sides. If I roll my eyes diligently, I can perceive with just my two eyes, and with her innate intuition as a wizard, it’s hardly a problem for her.

I couldn’t show the overwhelming composure and might like Margaret surrounded by enemies, but even with just her martial arts, the approaching orcs were too intimidated to even dare approach.

Already, four or five orcs lay severed at Jenis’s feet, while even more monsters were sprawled around, badly injured.

The gathered number of orcs here couldn’t be less than a battalion, over 500 to 1000 strong. If they all swarmed at once, it would be difficult to confidently say that even Walter or Rose could escape unscathed.

In Jenis’s case, if the situation allowed her to fully utilize her magic, dealing with a battalion of orcs wouldn’t be a problem. But considering that she chose close combat out of a concern for running out of mana, recklessly using combat magic could plunge her into a greater danger.

For wizards, utilizing mana is akin to dividing one’s physical energy. Mana exhaustion means collapse on the spot, and fainting among the orcs would mean being slaughtered while dismembered.

Although she was trying to smile, it was clear that failing to quickly eliminate threats before the orc battalion surrounded her put her in jeopardy.

“Do I really have to just escape with my life…”

Jenis muttered as she quietly lowered her head, glancing at the skeletal lich bound by mana ropes. It felt too wasteful to just abandon it. However, according to the mission, it wasn’t a necessary objective to secure.

On the contrary, if she allowed a congregation of orcs of legion level or more to gather like this, it could lead to an unexpected small-scale skirmish. Killing that lich right here and swiftly flying away seemed like a sensible plan.

Jenis subtly moved back, intending to immediately kill the lich if it came to that, pressing right next to the prisoner. The lich seemed to grasp Jenis’s intentions, trembling its bones while speaking.

“Killing a captured enemy in war isn’t a gentlemanly act.”

“When it’s humans fighting each other, I might think so.”

Jenis nodded in agreement, but in reality, it was the same as saying she disagreed entirely. Perhaps thinking she should just survive regardless of being tortured or interrogated, the skeletal mage shouted at the orcs.

“Stop! Don’t approach! I am officially in charge here! You pathetic orcs! I said stop!”

“Thanks for trying to help, but do you really think those orcs will acknowledge a skeleton head stuck in binding magic as their commander?”

“Damn, they won’t listen at all! Hey! If you come, I’ll die!”

“From what I can see, some of them seem to prefer that… How did you usually treat your subordinates?”

Using her elegant swordplay, Jenis sent one of the closest orcs’s head flying into the air. The elven sword had cleanly cut the monster’s head off, and there wasn’t even much blood splattering toward Jenis.

“Truly a monstrous woman! You look half demonized! Can’t you even feel the slightest compassion, pity, or sense of commonality towards beings capable of dialogue, even if they’re your enemies?”

The lich began to plead for Jenis’s humanity, making desperate last appeals. Up until just now, she hadn’t lost her relaxed smile, but her expression suddenly froze.

Ignoring the approaching orcs, she squatted in front of the great sage lich and leaned in close.

“Listen well, skeleton. I do indeed have vampire blood mixed in me. Honestly, I don’t even know where it came from, but I don’t mind it at all. Do you know why?”

The lich couldn’t respond. Despite the archers and orcs behind her clearly aiming for her, she nonchalantly crouched and faced them, her face suddenly shadowed by a darkness.

It was evident she wasn’t in her right mind. The lich seemed to realize that if it touched Jenis now, it would definitely be pulverized into bone dust.

“Thanks to my bloodline, the power I acquire is a huge help in sweeping you monsters away. And let me make this clear: though I’m a half-breed, my identity is completely human. Yes, I may be half human, half monster, but conceptually, I’m just human—a human. Forget about any third classification. Hey, skeleton. Listen carefully, Jenis Harker is human.”

“What… You’re… human?”

The lich, as if trapped in a trance, complied with Jenis’s demand. Seeing Jenis rise with a satisfied expression, spreading her knees wide, she stood.

“Maybe I seem overly obsessed with my identity? I think about it a lot… but there’s no helping it. If this were just my personal issue, it wouldn’t matter…”

At that moment, Jenis spun and severed the heads of three orcs in one fell swoop with her elven sword. The orcs trying to ambush her while she turned found themselves toppling over like bowling pins.

With no hint of shyness, Jenis turned back to the lich and spoke.

“I truly revere someone… Because vampires don’t even consider us kin. In fact, they look down on us as lesser beings. That’s why it’s very important to me. So it’s best you don’t provoke me over something trivial.”

The strange aura emanating from the great sage made the lich freeze in place, unable to utter a word. Even the surrounding orcs seemed to pick up on Jenis’s subtle rage and couldn’t dare approach.

Such a situation often, if not quite commonly, happens with great heroes like Rose, Margaret, and Walter. Unlike ogres, who had severely degenerated in the part of the brain responsible for fear, orcs were excessively sensitive to terror.

Thus, the standoff between Jenis and the orc battalion continued for a moment. As if waiting for something, the great sage suddenly slammed his staff onto the ground.

“They’re here. My reinforcements.”

Then, a grappling hook arrow tied with a rope pierced through the orcs and flew toward Jenis. A situation that would have terrified an ordinary human, believing it to be an incoming attack, was immediately recognized by Harker as a lifeline for her rescue.

Quickly, Jenis gripped the mana rope binding the lich in one hand and hooked her staff onto the end of the incoming grappling hook.

The grappling hook arrow that flew right up to Jenis instantaneously tightened as she grasped her staff and then, propelled by the elasticity, jerked her forward.

The sudden appearance of the grappling hook might have left the orcs dumbfounded, but for Jenis, it was nothing surprising. She had initially thought that such a situation might happen and had requested the rescue team.

At the destination to which she was drawn by the arrow, Bernard stood there with a portable crossbow in hand. Confirming that Jenis had been perfectly rescued by her own arrow, Bernard gestured for the Eramenia archers.

Amidst a powerful invisibility spell, a hundred elven archers began firing arrows at the orcs. Caught completely off guard, the orcs started to panic and shove each other, fleeing chaotically.

Although the number of orcs was ten times that of the elven reinforcements, the difference in skill rendered such numerical advantage meaningless.

After retrieving the staff that had hooked her arrow, Jenis handed the lich prisoner over to Bernard.

“I’ve managed to catch the one who seemed to be responsible for the machinery. That’s what delayed me a bit.”

“The great sage is quite ambitious, isn’t he? Well, as long as that ambition doesn’t ruin things, it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Let’s retreat. It’s better to break their momentum without reducing our numbers. If we wipe them out, there might be a counter force.”

“I was just thinking that. Get on the horse! Do you prefer flying?”

“Flying would be nice, but it seems hard to manage while carrying a prisoner. If you have an extra horse, could you lend it to me?”

At Jenis’s words, Bernard tilted the tip of his crossbow toward a stray horse.

“I figured you’d ask, so I prepared one.”

“Does it look like it can reach without a rider?”

Seeing the horse roaming away from the cavalry, Jenis asked coyly. Bernard nodded, as if he found it obvious.

“It’s a horse from Eramenia! If you watch elves doing things, it never ends, right?”

“Indeed, that’s true. Then let’s head back! The operation is a great success!”

With that, Jenis lightly mounted the horse, binding the lich with the binding magic without letting it ride properly. Having reached the peak of mastery in binding magic by laying over a thousand binding magic circles across her entire hometown during her school years, this was a skill she possessed.

Despite the horse from Eramenia whining as it found itself burdened unexpectedly with an unwelcome undead, Jenis wasn’t the type to care about the feelings of a single horse.

As Jenis and Bernard turned the horse around, the elven army began to withdraw in an orderly manner, as if they were passing by seamlessly.

One of the most terrifying aspects of the Eramenia people is their remarkable proficiency in executing any tactics assigned to them, far superior to a human army skilled in that same tactic.

Just as cavalry wielding lances boasted better breakthrough power than the Empire’s ironclad knights who had ridden for their whole lives, the cavalry archers’ hit-and-run tactics were as natural and swift as flowing water.

Even in emergencies, it’s possible to hand lances to the archers and bows to the cavalry, as they can perform roughly similar roles. The method of mixing distinct troop types within a single legion rendered it impossible for the monster races to respond in a coherent manner to the elven legion’s unconventional tactics.

Today, the Eramenia archers successfully completed their rescue and escort mission without a single casualty or a lost horse, smoothly returning to the military encampment.

Although Jenis had already witnessed the elves’ accomplishments at the Stream Battle, she couldn’t help but marvel at their capabilities once more.

“If there were as many elves as there are humans in existence, the Demon King’s head would have already fallen to the ground.”

On the way back to the encampment, Jenis casually murmured to one of the archers she had caught. The elven archer chuckled lightly as if intrigued by Jenis’s words, shaking his head.

“If that were the case, the forest’s resources would have been exhausted, and the fairy’s power would have waned. They’re a greedier race than you might think.”

“Are the fairies not actively protecting the forest?”

“Some elves certainly do… Well, quite a few. But it’s not entirely the case. We also cut down trees, graze, and hunt. Regulating the population of elves is something neither the King of Eramenia nor each elf can do; it’s the forest itself that governs it.”

“I think I’ve heard something like that before. I don’t quite understand the principles behind it, though.”

“Don’t try to understand. It’s unnecessary. Although it’s fortunate that the great sage views our people favorably, we may only be strong because of our current numbers. It might be great to maintain that harmony. There’s nothing certain about it, but if the forest’s leading us in this way, it might be the wisest course to believe that.”

Upon finishing that statement, the elven archer, who had been conversing with Jenis, moved forward to align with the ranks. Jenis, glancing back at Bernard, who was galloping right next to her, spoke.

“How wise. Even a single soldier. It’s not just this elf; anyone would say the same.”

“I also don’t expect them to be truly wise just because they bear the title of sage, so don’t worry too much. Everyone is aware of the circumstances. Typically, people rely more on strength than intellect when it comes to the great sage.”

“I know, I know.”

Jenis shrugged.

“To end this war forever, there must be beings possessing both strength and wisdom. Is it wrong to harbor such ambitions?”

“What’s wrong with that?”

Bernard grumbled lightly.

“Recently, my pouch has been overflowing with gold coins. Ever since the Hero started tipping me with the ‘Walter Hellhound Mental Health Grant,’ it has only increased. I’ve already saved enough to last a lifetime, so now I want to quit being a monster hunter.”

 

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