Chapter 33

Clatter!

The carriage advancing along the road came to an abrupt stop.

Mikhail immediately grabbed the edge of the carriage to avoid disaster, but most of the workers weren't so lucky.

They slammed into angular objects and let out pained sounds.

"Ow, ow my head! At this rate I'll get a bump!"

"Grr. My foot! My foot feels like it's burning!"

"What's with the sudden stop? What if someone gets seriously hurt...!"

But the complaints soon stopped.

"Grrrrr—!"

A beast's roar echoed from outside the carriage. The workers' expressions hardened in an instant.

"Wh-what? What's that sound?"

The workers panicked, not knowing what to do.

Someone sprang up to check outside, but someone else clung to the moving person's pant leg.

Those screaming and those covering their mouths got mixed together.

Mikhail scanned the surroundings and spoke in a subdued voice.

"Everyone... don't move."

The workers' movements stopped dead. All eyes rolled toward Mikhail and fixed on him.

The workers exchanged glances while deliberating, then hesitantly sat down while speaking up one by one.

"R-right! This student's the expert, isn't he? He'd know best how to handle this situation. Right?"

"W-we'll do what you say! Then nothing will happen, right?"

Mikhail nodded toward the workers who stared at him desperately, as if his face were a lifeline.

"Yes. Nothing will happen."

The workers closed their mouths and hunched down. They kept rolling their eyes anxiously but added no further words.

Mikhail listened to the sounds outside.

Listening to the noise and deducing from it was enough to grasp how the situation was unfolding.

"Squeeeal!"

The sound of a magical beast crying out.

Clang!

The sound of sharp things clashing against each other.

"Hey! What are the escorts doing just charging in without thinking!"

"Shut your mouth! What do snot-nosed kids know to be barking orders?"

The sound of complaints crossing from those who couldn't coordinate.

...And.

Flash!

The surroundings flashed. The workers whipped their heads toward Mikhail and widened their eyes.

A glowing mana sphere was above the boy's hand.

"Hey there. Wh-what are you doing right now..."

"Shh, stay still."

One worker asked haltingly, but Mikhail cut off the conversation sharply and stared at the corner of the carriage.

"......"

The shouts and metallic sounds directed at each other gradually became more frequent. Dissonant noises mixed together chaotically.

Then suddenly, in one moment...

"Grrrrrowl!"

A chilling cry came rushing in.

The wooden board reinforcing the back of the carriage broke in one blow, and a tusk the size of a small child thrust inside.

The workers, pale with terror, let out shocked cries.

"Waaaah...!"

But before the scream could properly rise, Mikhail's mana sphere was fired straight ahead.

Boom!

The boar that had been thrusting its tusks let out a squeal and was sent flying far away.

The workers forgot to even cry out and froze like statues with their mouths hanging open.

"U...uh?"

The workers blinked while making dazed sounds.

As they creakily moved their heads to look at Mikhail, amazement and bewilderment filled their gazes.

Mikhail exhaled a quiet breath and lowered the hand he'd extended forward.

Flutter.

That's when it happened.

The curtain covering the carriage was pulled back.

"Is everyone okay?"

Ethan's voice rushed into the carriage.

"I'm sorry. I couldn't stop one magical beast from charging in during the melee."

Ethan panted with a face that clearly showed he'd rushed over in surprise.

At this, the workers spoke up loudly with noticeably relaxed expressions, as if trying to reassure Ethan.

"Ah, yeah! We're fine! You guys are okay too, right?"

"Phew, took ten years off my life... More importantly, did you take down all the magical beasts? It's safe now, right?"

"Yes, no one's hurt and we dealt with all the magical beasts that appeared. Sorry for the worry."

Ethan answered in a tone that sounded more relieved and swept his gaze around inside the carriage.

Then suddenly, he fixed his eyes on the corner in the back.

The spot that was deeply broken and shattered to pieces. It was the location where traces of Mikhail's mana sphere having swept through remained.

"Over there..."

When Ethan narrowed his eyes and asked, one worker waved his hands and spoke.

"Ah, don't worry! No one got hurt!"

"Right, exactly. A magical beast suddenly charged in and we went blank. That guy took it out in one shot!"

"He looked so sickly before that we forgot for a moment. But sure enough, a student from a famous school is still a student!"

The workers without exception added words one by one, exchanging noisy conversation.

But Ethan didn't seem to be paying attention to the boisterous talk.

He stared silently at the corner, then slowly moved his head to look at Mikhail.

"......"

The two people's gazes locked, but only briefly.

When Mikhail lowered his eyes as if dismissing the situation, Ethan covered the curtain again and disappeared.

Voices and footsteps moved busily behind the curtain.

"—Everyone gather up! We need to discuss something."

"Contact the front convoy! We need to ask them to send additional escort personnel as soon as they can spare them...!"

The convoy didn't move for a while.

It was because the leaders had urgently started a countermeasure meeting.

---

Several hours passed from then.

The sky's palette was preparing its most varied colors, marking the boundary between day and night.

Clatter. Clatter.

At a time when voices would normally have called to prepare camp, the carriage kept moving.

It was because a decision had been made that since they couldn't turn back now anyway, it was better to get through the mountain range as quickly as possible.

Clatter. Clatter.

The escort formation also changed to match the revised plan.

Second-years inexperienced in actual combat were repositioned to relatively safe areas like the inside or rear of the formation.

Mikhail took advantage of the confusion to change his position to the remote end of the convoy.

The combat event would start soon.

He needed to stay where the aftermath of the fighting would be minimal.

"......"

The motion sickness that had continuously troubled his stomach had disappeared.

Mikhail, sitting on his saddle, glanced to the side.

While the bushes passing through his vision were quite tranquil, suddenly a fishy water breeze reached his nose.

It seemed a lake was located not far away.

'This means we've entered the event area.'

The anomaly that would shake the continent and plunge the world into chaos.

It was the first main storyline that led them to directly face and respond to the foundation of upheaval—the carriage attack incident.

Mikhail shifted his gaze toward the front.

Lloyd and Joan at the very front. Ethan and Ann in the middle section...

According to how the game progressed, the core combatants positioned from the front to the middle would handle the biggest threats.

So he just needed to appropriately deal with small magical beasts charging at him and hold out until things wrapped up.

Pop!

【Quest: [Main] Participate in the Main Storyline's Progression】

• Quest Reward: Shop Currency +6

The quest message appeared as if reminding him of the progression.

Mikhail watched the sky foxes scurry up onto his shoulders and sit, then stared to the side.

Over the lushly towering bushes, scenes he'd seen over and over in the game overlapped like a mirage.

Grrrrr...

Gazes filled with killing intent flickered from all directions, and growls targeting prey lurked in the darkness.

Sharpened tusks and claws charged in aiming for weak points.

Flash.

...Anyway, they'd put a lot of effort into setting the atmosphere for the very first episode.

Recalling the products of the previous world, Mikhail slowly condensed mana in his hands.

---

Meanwhile, at that same time.

"!"

At the chilling sensation that prickled sharply up his spine, Ethan whipped his head around to look at his surroundings.

The dense forest was only silent, quiet as a grave.

"......"

Ethan narrowed his brow and turned his eyes forward. He quietly turned the reins and approached Ann, who was positioned on the outside.

"Senior, the surroundings are too quiet."

"Hm?"

At the quiet voice, Ann glanced at Ethan.

She'd already learned from the afternoon's events that the junior standing beside her had considerable senses and skill.

He'd been the first to notice faint presences, and struck from blind spots as if he had eyes on the back of his head.

"...Something bothering you?"

"Yes."

When Ethan answered without a moment's hesitation, Ann moved without further questioning.

Sharp instincts that detect threats are sometimes as valuable as a compass on the open sea.

Because she fully understood that with so many people to protect, being overly cautious wasn't a waste.

Ann pulled the reins to speed up.

She approached Jackle, the escort captain positioned ahead.

"...Jackle, let's tighten our formation. It'd be better to slow down and watch the surroundings more carefully."

"Huh?"

Jackle grimaced while raising his voice at the end, then snapped at Ann with twitching eyebrows as if displeased.

"Don't talk nonsense! We don't have time to spare even if we rush through."

"The atmosphere isn't good. It'd be better to prepare for contingencies..."

Jackle cut her off with a loud hollow laugh.

"Hey, greenhorn. If you want a good score, shut your mouth. I left you alone 'cause you were annoying, and now you're getting cocky? We've been doing this job for ten years. Who are you to give orders...!"

Rustle.

Before Jackle's scolding could even finish.

The nearby bushes shook violently and killing intent that made their hair stand on end came rushing in.

Grrrrrrr...

A chilling cry.

Along with it, red glows rose from all around.

"...Wh-what? What's suddenly."

Escort captain Jackle was hesitating, unable to accept the situation.

Ann drew her sword and shouted loudly.

"Everyone prepare for combat! It's a magical beast attack!"