Chapter 211: Mayhem Again

Link: https://ncode.syosetu.com/n7583de/

Author: Hirukuma

Translated by Zzonkedd

Edited by Gumihou

 

One morning, all key members of the party were summoned by Director Bear to the Hunter Association’s meeting room.

While strategies and plans for the Everlasting Floor were being sketched out and details discussed, a panicked staff member burst into the room.

“Director! Apologies for the interruption, but I have urgent news!”

“What is it? What happened?”

Director Bear’s reply was calm under the circumstances as he urged the person to continue. The staff member placed a hand on his chest and breathed in deeply before saying, “The prisoner General Kayorings has escaped!”

Oi, oi, one of the Five Generals escaped?

We managed to easily defeat this one fellow thanks to our overpowered team, but what if we had been a few members short? Things don’t look good for the one who allowed such a dangerous individual to escape.

“What?! What happened to the guards on duty?”

“They had been put under a sleep spell and are unharmed.”

“Is that so… well, give us the details.”

To think that Director Bear’s first concern was about the well-being of the guards rather than the escaped enemy. Some may argue that, as the person in charge of an entire floor, he should be more concerned about information leaks and enemies on the loose, but I believe that it was this side of Director Bear that earned him the trust and affection of the residents.

“This morning, we found the guards on duty asleep during a shift change. Naturally, we hurried towards the prison cell, but General Kayorings was already gone. The special alloy bars looked like they had been cut with a sharp blade.”

“Cutting through specially designed cell bars would require quite the skill… Is that possible, Yumite?”

All eyes turned to Granny Yumite. This old lady used to be known as a peerless sword user.

“Indeed, it is possible. I can do the same.”

“As expected of this old lady, how scary,” [1] the old man snickered.

The old lady revealed the blade hidden in her staff for a moment, and the old man quickly fell silent.

“How skilled do you think this [2] Kayorings is?” [1] asked Director Bear.

“We can get an idea by looking at the cut.”

“I see, bring the cut-off pieces,” Director Bear ordered.

“Right away!”

[2] While Director Bear tried to deal with this new problem, someone else burst into the room. It was Karios.

“Bad news, Director!”

[2] Director Bear looked annoyed, “I’ve already been informed that the General had escaped.”

“Eh? What?! Uh, but- no, this is a completely different matter!!”

Oi, oi, don’t tell me they are adding a completely different problem into the mix? It’s unusual to see Karios so agitated like this… I’m not sure I want to know what happens next…

[2] “I have a feeling I won’t like this, but I also don’t think I can avoid it,” said Director Bear with a sigh. “Report.”

“A hunter who was away on a mission returned before the expected time was up to report that a horde of monsters are heading towards the village!”

That caught everyone’s attention. It was not the first time they had faced this kind of situation. When the Ruler of the Netherworld started causing trouble, Clearflow Lake had been attacked by a horde of monsters and fell into a state of devastation.

We manage to drive out the monsters and resolve the crisis, eventually restoring this floor to some extent. To think that it would happen again?

“How close is the monster horde? How many monsters?”

“We cannot properly discern their presence with the naked eye yet. However, reports say that there are over five hundred strong.”

Five hundred, you say? Well, with the influx of people from Rocky Dog Mountain, we certainly have more people. However, just how many of them are combat-able?

“We must evacuate the non-combatants. Have the residents take refuge at the Association, women and children first. Tell the guards and hunters to assemble at the gate.”

“Yes!”

The staff member who had been taking notes rushed out with Karios.

“This meeting is adjourned. Everyone, I ask that you assist as needed.

No one said anything as they nodded in ascent. I was carried out by Ramis and saw that the residents were already hurrying over to the association.

“Where should we go?” asked Ramis.

“Ga-te”

“Got it!”

First, let’s check on the enemy. While General Kayoring’s escape was problematic, we cannot afford to divert resources into pursuing him. [2] While I was busy with my thoughts, Ramis had already reached the border of the village.

I asked her to set me down on top of the wall [2] where I transformed into the binocular form. Then, I scanned the horizon with the highest magnification at my disposal. In the distance, I saw a squirming swarm.

Monsters filled my line of sight. There had to be more than five hundred. In fact, I suspect the number to be in the four digits. What’s more… are those the shape of King Frogman and Twin Snake Demon and… wait, isn’t the Eight-Legged Crocodile a floor boss?

There was no doubt that this was a scheme by the King of the Netherworld. The fact that these three monsters, who would not get along normally, would be cooperating to attack us made it a certainty.

Other troublesome monsters included Winged Fish soaring through the skies. I recalled them being quite the nasty enemy during an attack against a Hunter Association.

Having read battle manga and novels where a modern person defeated hordes of monsters using strategies from the Warring States, the thought of trying some of these strategies did cross my mind, but honestly? I don’t think regular battle strategies would work against such overwhelming odds.

In the first place, I am in a different world where magic and various Gifts exist. Not to mention, our enemies are monsters, so strategies against humans may not work on them.

The [3] Phoenix Wing Formation or the Fishing Field formation may be able to compensate for the difference in strength to a certain extent. However, even if we could get the people mobilised for such complicated formations, it would still be difficult to go against an opponent where the magnitude of the difference in numbers is so great.

It would be better to throw away the idea of dealing with the situation as though I were on Earth and think of a method that could work in this fantasy world.

Still, thinking up strategies was not the job of a vending machine, so let’s leave that to the Directors and actual residents of this world.

“Woah, there are way more enemies than were reported,” Ramis exclaimed.

“It definitely doesn’t look good, but at least the enemies are all coming from one side,” Hyurumi observed.

That’s right, the enemies seemed to be marching forward towards the gate rather than surrounding the whole of Clearflow Lake. In short, if we could defend the gate, we might somehow overcome the odds.

For now, it looked like the monsters were existing creatures from Clearflow Lake. For all his strength, the Ruler of the Netherworld still could not actually summon monsters from other Floors.

[1] Now that we have some intel, we rushed towards the gate where Gors stood guard. Hyurumi reported what we have seen, and he closed the gate, leaving only a small gap enough for one person to pass through, just in case there were any hunters still outside.

More and more hunters gathered at the square in front of the gate. We had plenty of people originally from Clearflow Lake and more from other Floors.

“Long-range attackers, to the top of the wall! Those with Gifts for clairvoyance or other information-gathering talents, come this way!” Gors shouted.

This was quite different from his usual strong, silent type character.

The wall had been repaired, reinforced and built taller since the last time it was destroyed by monsters. Now, people could easily balance on top of the walls with minimal effort.

Shui was stationed on the wall, of course. Hm? Was that the Principal with her? Well, I did hear that the Principal was said to be the best archer in the entire dungeon, so having her there made sense.

“Shui! Principal! Do your best!”

The children from the orphanage cheered and waved their hands in support of the people who took care of them.

The Principal waved back, “We’ll definitely do our best! Listen to the adults and don’t cause trouble, okay?”

“If you all behave, Hakkon will give you snacks later-su!” Shui added.

“Welcome”

It was my first time hearing such an arrangement, but I still replied when Shui winked at me.

After that, [1] some of the non-combatant adults escorted the children towards the Hunter’s Association. No matter what, we must defend this place to the death, for the sake of the children if nothing else.

Still, there was a little time before the actual battle broke out, so let’s do what we can in the meantime.

“Ra-mis”

“What is it, Hakkon?”

“E-at”

With that, I levitated food and drinks out until I was surrounded by colourful packages.

“You want to hand out food to everyone, right?”

As usual, Ramis understood what I was aiming for, and together, we handed out food and drinks to the hunters perched on top of the wall. Most had their weapons out and were fine-tuning them for the coming battle.

They say that one can’t fight on an empty stomach, so let’s fill these bellies first.

After that, we set up several emergency toilet booths before returning to the Hunter’s Association, where I provided large amounts of food and water for the residents. Considering the number of people here, this amount of food should be enough to last at least two days.

“Apologies, Hakkon. You being here made things that much easier,” Director Bear bowed so deeply that his upper body was parallel to the ground.

“Thank you, Hakkon!”

“I’ll buy lots from you next time!”

“Thanks for the towels, too!”

The residents all thanked me.

“Wh-en trou-ble”

“He-lp is”

“Mu-st”

I received a lot of care from these people back when I first arrived in this place, so it is only right that I return the favour at a time like this.

“That’s good. Do not worry, I shall pay you back later once the expenses are tallied,” said Director Bear.

I knew there was no point in refusing this payment, so I just replied with a ‘Welcome’.

When we returned to the area near the gate, Suori was there with her horde of men and women in black suits. They were rushing about busily, distributing weapons and armour.

“Replenish projectile weapons such as arrows and throwing knives with us!”

“Armour and weapon repairs here!”

“Everything’s free under the emergency situation! Please use our services freely!”

Whoa, that’s pretty generous of them.

As we approached, Suori came running towards us.

“Thank you for the hard work,” she said.

“Suori-chan worked hard too,” said Ramis.

“Still, isn’t it a bit generous to give everything out for free?” said Hyurumi.

“Indeed. As Honourable Father always say, ‘One must spend money to make money’. This is a wonderful opportunity to promote our company’s name. After the previous incident, our family had placed a massive order for weapons and hired many armour craftsmen in preparation for war.”

Whoa, Suori sure has a head for business.

If nothing else, everyone at least knows Suori’s name and reputation by now. After this incident, it is only natural for people to remember her family name and use their merchandise in the future.

It was certainly a good logical promotional move, but whether that’s the real intention behind her actions was another thing.

“You say that, but you’re really helping because you’re worried about the people, aren’t you?” [1] said Hyurumi a little shrewdly.

“You think so too, Hyurumi?” [1] said Ramis excitedly.

“Welcome” [1] was my humble opinion.

That’s right, Suori may have plenty of legitimate reasons, but it all ultimately came down to her kindness. Her inability to be honest with her feelings is both endearing and charming.

Unlike the last time, we were not caught off guard. No matter what the Ruler of the Netherworld throws at us, we will overcome it together with the help of our fellow villagers.

 

[Gumihou: A nice and feel-good chapter.] [1] Added details

[2] Edited details for clarification

[3] War strategy relating to army placements

 

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