Chapter 114.2 – Village Girl Court Musician
Oracle is also exasperated. There’s no one using ‘Hyaha’ these days, is there?
Or perhaps, precisely because it’s the present era, that’s why there’s a ‘Hyaha’.」 Not just in the sense of mere villains, but rather, primitive foot soldiers. These grunts, organized as medieval ‘bad guys’, might be exactly the sort.
TN: This word comes from ‘Fist of the North Star’. This is a cheer often used by small fries.
Witnessing these rowdy small fries bravely battling the former Imperial Army with sheer force, one can’t help but think so.
Trained knights and soldiers, part of the regular army, are gradually being overwhelmed by sheer numbers.
The enemy’s fighting style was already absurd.
Those who didn’t have spears were throwing sickles and other bladed weapons. And if they had no blades, they would pick up rocks and throw them.
The Resistance forces were using the village buildings for cover, but now those structures were being set ablaze with torches, pushing them back.
Given their mismatched weaponry and the audacity of setting fire to a village, they might seem like wild bandits. However, deploying well over a hundred troops in such a small village, with evident coordination, suggests that these are the enemy’s regular soldiers.
Perhaps the Coup d’État forces were originally a group of fallen bandits. Their soldiers’ quality, to put it bluntly, was abysmal. As Herman joined the knights in battle, I calmly observed the ongoing combat in the village. While there were situational considerations, I wanted to closely observe these Fist Slave Emperor Army soldiers we were about to face.
Wearing a black robe with some degree of stealth effect, the enemy didn’t approach our position. Since I refrained from taking action, neither Oracle nor Kaara intervened.
「Hero-sama!」
「Hey! Shut up!」
This time, it’s a covert operation. Herman, who failed to read the room, called out to us, so I reluctantly instructed Oracle and Kaara to provide some assistance.
I didn’t want to waste precious ammunition on these bandits, but I carefully selected my target, a relatively well-armored young man with a headband wrapped around his head, his hair sticking up in tufts. Judging him to be the commander, I aimed for his head and fired.
The magic rifle made a dry sound, and bashu!—a headshot! The young man, who had been swinging a large hatchet and berating his subordinates, tumbled from his horse.
Instantly, three guards, presumably the commander’s elite, charged toward us, shouting, 「You’ve done it now, Captain Massive!」. They drew their swords. They must have recognized that I used a gun, or perhaps they thought it was some form of magic.
Calmly, I aimed for their heads, chests, and, in one instance, accidentally hit a shoulder. Well, a shoulder wound wouldn’t be fatal, but the guy was writhing and groaning, making further combat impossible.
「Phew, with the commander down, the battle should be over…」
…Except it wasn’t.
The rebel forces, already chaotic in their attacks, didn’t stop just because their leader was gone.
「Indeed, unruly mobs are troublesome. Kaara, go ahead and use your full strength!」
「Yes, Nation’s Father! Kaara Demonica Demonicus commands the earth: ‘Roar, split, and return our enemies to the ground!’」
Kaara spread her arms wide, unleashing advanced earth magic: Earthquake. The ground trembled violently, cracks forming. With a resounding thud, the fissures swallowed the enemies. Those who had been rampaging were instantly buried alive, their panic evident.
Now that their command was lost, the enemy would flee in disarray. I didn’t care about the ones escaping, but thanks to Kaara’s stone projectiles and Oracle-chan’s shockwaves, a significant number had been dispatched. In a way, advanced magicians were a natural threat—these mere foot soldiers were no match, even if there were a hundred of them.
We refrained from using large-scale magic that could wipe out everything in an instant. Thankfully, they seemed to be able to distinguish between friend and foe.
Moreover, without my command, Kaara took it upon herself to use raincloud magic, extinguishing the fires that had reached the village.
She’d become adept at gauging her strength, adjusting it as needed. Quite impressive.
「Kaara, I commend you. Keep it up with this kind of approach.」
「Yes, Nation’s Father! It’s an honor to meet your expectations.」
As I commended Kaara, Oracle-chan also nudged me for praise, so I ruffled her head.
Just then, a village girl with honey-colored, flowing curls approached, expressing her gratitude.
「Thank you for your assistance. May I know your name?」
「That person is Silesie’s…」
「Herman!」
Herman’s straightforward introduction of me as the hero surprised me. Come on, Herman, I’ve emphasized the need for stealth in this mission multiple times.
Revealing my involvement here could lead to delicate diplomatic issues.
「Ehto, I am… Drift Gunner the black marksman, a wanderer. I came to lend a hand for certain reasons.」
I tried to make my black hood look cool, but wait, why did my awesome name seem off-putting?
The girl, who wore a complex, enigmatic smile and had hazel eyes framed by long, honey-colored hair, still repeated, 「Thank you, Gunner-sama.」 even though she averted her gaze.
Why did she look away?
Maybe I made a mistake. I thought my name was pretty cool, but perhaps black marksman sounded peculiar by this country’s standards. Maybe I should have chosen a more conventional alias.
Even so, these things tend to stick once you say them enough. Even if it sounds odd at first, it’ll gradually become impressive—or so I thought.
With determination, I pulled my sun-weathered, charcoal-gray hood low and aimed my gun toward the setting sun.
Kukuku, maybe I should strike a pose and come up with a catchphrase. What did the Thief King Wake say?
Since we’re both marksmen, I’ll borrow from Wake. Like this: I’ll sweep my robe dramatically, raise my gun, and say something like 「Unyielding Magic Bullet of Rebellion! 」.
「Marksman-sama, so cool!」
「Drift Gunner, super cool!」
You guys, stop. It’s getting embarrassing. My bad—I guess reaching Wake’s level is tougher than I thought.
As we engaged in this foolish banter, the villagers watched us from a distance. Their gazes felt uncomfortably sharp.
Well, they probably weren’t true villagers. The approximately thirty residents in this village were all knights and soldiers, masquerading as ordinary villagers.
They were part of the daring resistance operation to rescue the deposed Emperor and his granddaughter. Their glances toward us, who had arrived with a lighthearted demeanor, were icy.
In fact, it seemed like we were under suspicion.
I’d love to have Herman smooth things over, but he’s the quintessential knight—no talent for subtlety. Revealing my identity again would be problematic. Representing the disguised resistance soldiers—or rather, the villagers—was the honey-haired girl who had approached earlier.
「My apologies for the delay, Gunner-sama. I am Court Musician Zither.」
She chuckled, acknowledging the similarity in our names.
The girl I initially thought was a charming village maiden turned out to be a court musician.
By the way, when I asked her age, she said she was twenty-four. She wore a green tunic with a white blouse and a pink apron—an ensemble reminiscent of a village maiden-style apron dress. I assumed she was a sweet young girl, but perhaps she was older than me.
Upon closer observation, her well-maintained, silky curls were more sophisticated than what one would expect from a village girl. Despite looking like a teenager from certain angles, she was clearly an older individual—a court musician, no less. My judgment of girls wasn’t exactly reliable. Maybe her cute voice was due to her profession as a musician.
However, when I delved into her story, it turned out that her involvement in the resistance had unique circumstances. Apparently, this rescue unit was formed after Zither pinpointed the location of the imprisoned former Emperor and his granddaughter within the imperial capital.
「Well, Zither, rest assured now that I’m here to assist. Right, Herman?」
I sent Herman a silent plea through my gaze: 「Help me out here.」.
「Indeed, this… no, this esteemed individual is the invincible Black Marksman, capable of commanding even demons, is the reason we won.」
「Such a great man came to assist us?」
Zither’s voice remained cheerful. As expected of a court musician, she had a pleasant tone.
Well, rescuing the imprisoned royal family with just thirty people was no small feat. Even suspicious reinforcements like me were likely appreciated.
Now that I’ve joined their cause, we’re practically victorious. Despite the talk of coups and Fist Slave Emperors, our enemies are mere riffraff. Herman and I alone should be sufficient for the rescue mission.
Of course, having more allies wouldn’t hurt, but smaller teams often fare better in rescue operations.
As for this village, we’ll have to abandon it since the enemy is aware of our presence. But that’s not a problem.
Having joined forces with the Imperial Resistance, we immediately set our sights on infiltrating the capital city of Northmark for the rescue mission.