23 The Middle Brother Annihilates and Solicits, for the Sake of the Girl who Would Lead Humanity

Destroy the monsters, as one would clear a virus or curse.

How can you claim to love God if you cannot do that?

-Origis I-

Seven hundred cavalry head toward the desert. We are clearly moving at a fast, strict pace, but there is little exhaustion. Are these the results of that foolish training? The dancing, the spinning... why did every single exercise have to be so bizarre? Wasn’t there something more normal we could do? I understand it was how we gained divine blessings, but it still eats at my soul. Even our horses’ coats and kicks have improved, but I refuse to accept it.

“The Hell Expanse is beyond that hill. Battle will be upon us soon after.” There is a springiness to Agias’ command. He’s full of energy. My brother has always had an eccentric side, but it seems that’s been polished to an overwhelming degree. How can I describe it? When you remove vanity from a man, this is what you’re left with.

“Are you listening, Origis?”

“I am. We moved quickly, but I didn’t expect us to get here in only two days.”

“We lost two days, you mean. There’s no telling if we’ll be too late.”

“Yeah, I guess...” Just the fact that we might arrive in time is amazing in my book. It was when we split up to save the lesser villages from monster attacks that I learned just how perilous the Hell Expanse was. My blood ran cold, I tell you. That place is home to the largest population of people in the northern frontier. When I’d heard that a giant horde of monsters had moved in, my mind was boggled. We had to rush out to their aid. And yet, we couldn’t afford to split our men. As a compromise, our only choice was to head that way while gradually reassembling our forces. We were fated to take a roundabout path, and in the end we couldn’t avoid it.

Even so, the Hell Expanse hasn’t fallen yet. We managed to arrive before it could. The fact that he doesn’t find this astounding speaks to how astounding Agias himself is.

How horrible. The buildings, nestled between rivers and greenery, are in a terrible state. Even from this distance, I can tell they’ve been raided and ransacked. Cursed goblins, spewing miasma of stench about as if they own the place. A number of hobgoblins accompany them, too.

But, just as our scouts reported, some citizens seem to have been evacuated. From atop a cliff overlooking the town, yellow walls have been erected to create a sort of fort. Smoke rises from the center. And from the wasteland at the foot of the cliff, looking for a chance to invade, are goblins. Hobgoblins dot the massive, evil horde. A quick count shows over 2,000. This isn’t normal; the numbers are unnatural. But for a battlefield, maybe not so much.

It’s a vampire vanguard—not naturally occurring, but cultivated.

Goblins as a race are purely male. However, reproduction is apparently easy for them. Many species can serve as suitable hosts for their spawn, but the cursed vampires say humans are “the best.”

The path up the cliff is narrow. Defensive walls must have been constructed as well. But the enemies’ numbers are too great. They’ll eventually break through. No, it would seem they’ve already halfway broken through.

“We’ll split our army into two forces.” That’s my brother Agias. Such quick decision-making.

“I’ll lead 200 men towards the town. From the look of things, a large amount of citizens weren’t able to evacuate. They must be prioritized.” Very true. Goblins only care about eating and raping, and with such a large amount of them nearby... In other words, by searching for survivors, we can learn something of their numbers.

“Origis, you will take 500 men and destroy that.” He points at the horde of goblins on the wasteland that number over 2,000.

“You can do it, I trust.”

“Of course. Just go all out, right?”

“Indeed. Bring honor to the banner of House Willow.”

“I like those orders. I take it we have free rein to use magic as well?” I call to my soldiers and ride down the hill. Behold, all of you fighting for your lives up there. The banner we raise is a burning cross on a field of black. Let your spirits rise, people. The army of House Willow is here to save you. You are already saved. We shall destroy the goblins.

“Men, ready your fire bombs!” We ride forward as a group, and I grip a charred brown ball in my hand. I channel my mana into the insect growth, plucked from a witch hazel tree and stuffed with charcoal.

More. Fill it more. Is this all I have? No, I can do more... There!

“Form a vertical line! Surround the enemy group! Release on my orders!” I shout and rush ahead.

The wind pressure is perfect. I can already see the goblins’ ugly faces; that’s how close I am.

I’m fast. Galloping in makes you feel more confident. In every battle I’ve been in, I’ve charged just like this. Even so, I’ve won them all. That’s why our house’s name echoes with military might.

But things are about to change. I turn my horse’s head to the left; neither my sword nor my lance are drawn. Only the wind from our horses rushes toward the enemy, the thundering of their hooves freezing them in their tracks.

“Light!” Good, goblins. Crowd together more.

“Prepare to throw!” The goblins freak at the sight of the cavalry and clump together nicely.

“Release!” Eat this.

I hurl the fire bomb. Before me, 500 fire bombs arc through the air. They bounce off the goblins’ heads and shoulders, dropping at their feet. Some goblins in the middle catch them or even pick them up. The balls are combustion magic, brought to life by Inferno. They’ve been packed full with the spell.

“Retreat!” As we move back, I hear a loud boom. Whoa, they keep going off. Boom! Boom! Ba-ba-ba-boom! The sounds rumble in my belly, and heat washes over my cheeks. It’s even more amazing than usual. The mana mixed in nicely. And the spell name Inferno is no exaggeration, either.

The wind catches the huge black plumes of smoke and carries them, revealing a huge pile of corpses. But it’s not enough. Not every goblin was caught in the blast. Some can still move. Some are still recognizable as goblins. These are all extremely bad things.

Death to all monsters. Goblins can’t even be harvested for materials, so their only purpose is to die.

“Men, draw your swords! Strike at will! Annihilate them all!” My fighters scatter, and I charge forward as well. I cut through a confused goblin; I stab at a berserking hobgoblin. I show no mercy. I will not allow a single one to live, or a single one of my men to be lost.

Surprisingly, our horses are unphased. They don’t even flinch from the light and heat of the explosions, nor do they shy away from our enemies. Agias was right. You don’t use your horse to fight—you fight with your horse. We’re so in-sync that I’ve basically left my reins tied to my saddle. This makes it extremely easy to use my longsword.

And in fact, my moves are strangely sharper. Horse and rider together dodge a hobgoblin’s club and simultaneously sever its arm at the elbow. As the horse rights itself, the return swing of my longsword sends the monster’s head flying all in one breath.

Hmm. I’ve gotten really strong since coming to the Frontier. Perhaps I could even beat Agias... On second thought, of course not. In our duel, he even used his horse to attack, attaching a horn to it like a unicorn, which made me worry for the sanity of both horse and rider... but I was defeated, so I cannot complain.

There is also one more person that I’m sure I cannot defeat: Lady Kuroi. Even without crossing swords, I can tell just from her appearance. She is not normal. It’s true she’s a master of martial arts, but it’s more of a pressure... Basically, she’s a one-woman army; the literal definition. It’s no wonder Agias is so taken in by her.

But that’s also why people like us are needed. Soldiers that can fight; an army that heralds her arrival. We exist to pave the way for her to reach the final battle. Agias was right. No letter would ever be enough to express what he has seen.

That’s the last one; the monsters are all wiped out. Passionate cheers rain down upon us. Fly our banner in response! My brother’s forces have to do a thorough, time-consuming search of the town, so we had to win big here. You are saved. Be excited... and fight more. I invite you, my fellows, to join us in our revolution with Lady Kuroi at the helm.