Chapter 47

A few days after the discovery of the group of cockatrices, we had been prohibiting entry into the Western Forest for a while, mass-producing petrification prevention and petrification reversal potions, and discussing countermeasures with Kail and the others. Based on the habits of monsters, we and the adventurers had estimated that we would have a few weeks to prepare.

That's why, while I was sweating over the alchemy cauldron, trying to increase the production of the petrification prevention potion, which was not suitable for mass production, I ended up asking the cat beastman who burst in, to repeat himself.

"What did you say?"

Mikke, the adventurer guild staff, repeated the sentence twice.

"Meow! I said, the group of cockatrices is heading for this town, meow!"

Without even replying to Mikke, I rushed out of the house. The first place I headed to was the lookout tower. This tower, which was built to overlook the other side of the river, was extremely tall, designed for height alone. Of course, it was also for situations like this.

"Ah! Mr. Craft!"

"Let's go up!"

"Yes!"

An adventurer who was already familiar with me was guarding the entrance to the tower, but I rushed in without hesitation. Running up the endless spiral staircase, I arrived at the top, where a violent wind assaulted me. Apparently, strong winds always blow at such heights.

"Hey! Where are the cockatrices!?"

"Over there!"

I glared in the direction the lookout adventurer pointed.

"Far Sight!"

I immediately cast the Far Sight spell to check the edge of the forest.

"Seriously?"

"I wish it was a joke."

"..."

I couldn't even give a proper response. Although they were still quite far away, there was no doubt that the group of cockatrices was rampaging towards the town. Monster rampages are extremely rare, but they are considered a kind of disaster.

And what happened to the towns that were caught in a monster rampage can be seen by looking at the former pioneer village. It was completely flattened, swallowing everything and everyone.

"Have you contacted Kail!?"

"Of course, a messenger has already been sent! But I also thought it was important to inform Craft!"

I didn't expect to be trusted so much by an adventurer whose name I didn't even know. For Kail's sake, for the town's sake, I would not hesitate to take any means necessary.

"What about the defense preparations!?"

"Lord Kail was still in the preparation stage for gathering his private army. The only ones who can be called regular troops are Alphard and Persia."

I knew that. Kail had just been granted permission by his father, the Margrave Orthros Valelord, to have a private army and was in the preliminary stages of recruiting soldiers. This included building barracks to accommodate them, purchasing weapons and armor, and of course, laying the groundwork.

"How many adventurers are contracted for defense purposes!?"

"About three to four parties, so probably around twenty people."

"Twenty..."

This number was more than enough for maintaining the town's security, but it was far from enough to change the current situation.

"Don't worry, Craft. All of us adventurers have sworn to protect this town if it comes to it."

"What?"

Taken aback by such an unexpected statement, I took my eyes off the group of cockatrices and stared at the adventurer. Adventurers are fundamentally creatures who value their own lives above all else, followed by money. While trust and credibility are important, they are not mercenaries and generally do not weigh their lives on the scales. Being constantly in danger, adventurers are particularly sensitive to such matters.

"We adventurers are that grateful to this village. No, it's already a town. And we want to stay with Lord Kail and you all as long as possible."

"That's honestly very reassuring, but I'm not sure if it will be profitable. Of course, I'll discuss it with Kail—"

"Don't say it all. We're not just acting as adventurers now. As individuals, we want to protect our friends. There's no need for ulterior motives when helping a friend, right?"

"Right... That's true. There's no need for a reason to help a friend."

"Exactly. Rather, how do we get out of this situation?"

"Can we assume that 200 to 300 adventurers can be mobilized?"

"Yes. But don't expect military-like coordination. They're a bunch of individualists."

"I understand."

I used to be an adventurer, so I know this well. While adventurers can coordinate within the same party, their movements become sluggish when multiple parties are involved. This is why adventurers dislike joint requests from multiple parties.

The previous dragon slaying was different. The adventurers who participated trained for nearly a month under the premise that they would surely die without coordination. It can't be compared to this situation.

"If only the walls were completed..."

"They were almost finished."

The lookout adventurer looked down at the walls with regret. I memorized the cockatrice's route and the current state of the walls in my mind.

"I'm going down to the adventurer guild. If there's any change in the cockatrices' movements, let me know immediately."

"Understood."

I rolled down the long spiral staircase at full speed. I bumped into the stone walls several times, but I didn't care!

"Brother Craft!"

"Kail!? You're here!"

"Yes!"

When I burst into the adventurer guild, Mikke led me to a large room where Kail and the other key members of the town were already gathered.

"Where's Alphard?"

"Alphard has given instructions for the townspeople to evacuate to the church or sturdy buildings."

"Good judgment, Kail. What do you mean by sturdy buildings?"

"I've designated several buildings in the center of the town made of alchemy-hardened rock."

"I see. Indeed, those are like a kind of wall."

Kail, who was giving orders briskly, was completely different from his usual laid-back impression. He was capable when he put his mind to it. The church, which used a lot of alchemy-hardened rock, should be safe. It's quite spacious, so it should be able to accommodate a considerable number of people temporarily.

"The problem is the parts of the wall that are not yet completed."

"Yes."

From what I could see from above, three sections were still unfinished. In other words, there were three holes in the wall.

"Guild Master Sainos, how many adventurers can you mobilize?"

"Almost all of them have responded positively to the emergency request. However, some adventurers are out of town and cannot be contacted."

"What about Raidock?"

"Unfortunately, he is not in town."

"Damn."

In a world where an individual can annihilate a group, the absence of a powerful adventurer like Raidock is equivalent to losing a battalion or even more. However, fortunately, the adventurers in this town are all skilled.

"Guild Master Sainos, please send about 200 skilled adventurers to the western hole. Divide the rest between the north and south."

"200 at one location? The remaining number will be quite limited, won't it?"

"From what I saw from the tower, the cockatrices are rampaging. They will likely come straight here and charge at the adventurers gathered in the west without hesitation."

The guild master gulped.

"Leifan, can you please transport the petrification prevention potions we have so far to the west? And bring as many healing potions and cure potions as possible to all three locations?"

"Got it!"

Leifan immediately rushed out. The guild master, who had shown a brief look of relief, quickly tightened his expression.

"So, are the north and south to be sacrificed?"

"No. Kail, please send Alphard and Persia to the north and south. They can handle it even with a small number."

"Understood, brother."

Kail answered immediately, knowing that his personal guards would be gone. He's a remarkable person.

"I see. If the west is the center, then the north is the right and the south is the left. The central team will be commanded by the adventurer guild, and the right and left teams will be commanded by Alphard and Persia."

"Yes. I'll leave the selection of the central team to you."

"Understood."

If Raidock were here, I could have entrusted everything to him without a second thought. But there's no point in wishing for what we don't have.

"However, what can the right and left teams do against petrification?"

"We have some stock of petrification reversal potions. We just started making them, so the quantity is limited. First, we'll divide them between the right and left teams."

"It's only a temporary solution."

"Yes. The right and left teams will have to defend while reversing petrification."

"That's asking too much."

"While they buy time, I will make more petrification prevention potions."

"Make them!? Now!?"

"Yes. The materials are ready."

It's a race against time!

...Somehow managed to update... (´Д`)