Chapter 38

The next day, Lauro and I stood on the wall of the southern fortress.

This time, we are preparing before the monsters surge, so we will have to defeat more of them than during my first battle.

But back then, we went to help the eastern fortress, so even though we killed quite a number, it was still a lot.

"Asaria, Lauro, it's about time. Are you ready?"

Ivan, who was standing next to me, asked us.

"Yes, I'm ready whenever."

"I'm also ready, no problem."

"Good, then let's go."

The moment Ivan nodded, a rumbling could be heard from a distance.

The ground was also trembling slightly.

"They seem to be coming, a large group of monsters."

Looking into the distance from the fortress wall, the monsters were still hidden in the forest, but the sand swirling high in the sky due to their movement was visible.

There were also many bird monsters in the sky, so it seemed the battle was about to begin.

"Lauro, you should go down to the front again. Don't let a single one pass you."

"…Do I have to be away from Lady Asaria again?"

"Yes. In the future, when you are used in the fortress, Asaria will rarely be by your side. Your roles are too different."

Indeed, I use magic to defeat monsters from a distance, but Lauro can't defeat them unless he gets close.

Well, maybe Lauro could use a greatsword to defeat them with shockwaves, but it wouldn't be efficient.

To make the most of Lauro's strength, he has to go to the front alone.

"…Understood."

Lauro, though clearly dissatisfied, followed Ivan's instructions.

It's surprising, for Lauro to show his feelings so openly.

Why does he dislike being in the front?

It's not because he doesn't want to be away from me, right? It's Lauro, after all.

But if he stays by my side, he won't get to fight much, so maybe he wants to slack off?

That's not acceptable; Lauro needs to fight properly.

"Lauro, I trust your strength. I'm counting on you today."

"Yes, Lady Asaria. I'll give it my all."

Lauro seemed to be in high spirits after my words and immediately jumped down from the fortress wall.

People who see Lauro for the first time are surprised when they see him jump down, saying "What!?" but there's no problem.

"Asaria, you handle Lauro well."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"…Never mind."

Ivan said that, but I didn't really understand.

Below, Lauro was at the front, and behind him, hundreds of knights were preparing.

The monsters were already in sight, and the battle would start in a few dozen seconds.

"Asaria, take care of the annoying flying monsters."

"Yes, understood."

However, I cast a spell and launched an attack before the knights below.

I created a large flame in the air.

I made the largest flame I could and then compressed it to make it smaller. The shape is almost spherical, but the important thing is the power and range.

"Wait, they're still hundreds of meters away…!?"

I heard a nearby mage say that.

The distance to the flying monsters was indeed hundreds of meters, but for me and Ivan, it was within range.

When I pointed a finger forward, the small sphere flew toward the direction of the bird monsters.

Slowly, straight ahead.

There were over a hundred bird monsters, and the flame sphere hit the leading monster.

"―'Duke of Flames'"

Instantly, the sky was dyed red with flames.

The large flame and shockwave engulfed over a hundred bird monsters in a wide area.

When the flames disappeared, not a single monster remained.

"W-What…!?"

"O-One hit…!?"

The new mage, who had never seen this spell before, was very surprised.

Ivan can also use this spell, so most people who have been fighting here for a long time have seen it.

Ivan and I calmly observed and analyzed the spell.

"Not bad, no misses."

"Thank you."

The spell 'Duke of Flames,' as the name suggests, is the strongest spell among those used by the Spencer Duke family.

But it's not difficult to cast; it's just compressing the maximum flame I can produce and turning it into ashes upon impact.

Any mage could do it, but the power and range are different.

My current spell is powerful enough to be called 'Duke of Flames.'

"You can make it stronger. This time there were fewer flying monsters, but if there were over two hundred, you wouldn't be able to defeat them in one hit."

"Yes, I'll work on it."

"Do you still have enough mana?"

"That's not a problem."

"Hmm, your mana seems to be sufficient."

I had the same amount of mana as Ivan before I returned.

But in terms of spell power, I still can't match him, so he is indeed very impressive.

"Well, now we just need to take out the monsters without interfering with the knights below. I don't think we need to support much this time since Lauro is here."

"Yes, I think Lauro will be fine."

With the flying monsters gone, I looked at the knights fighting below.

The mages on the wall were also casting spells to support, but they were casting fewer than usual.

"Cast a spell to support at ten o'clock…"

"Wait, the monsters there are already dead!?"

"What!? When did that happen!?"

I heard such confused voices, but it couldn't be helped.

Lauro was moving much faster than usual, running around the battlefield and continuously defeating monsters.

Even I, who have trained my dynamic vision, could only see a black shadow, so ordinary people might not even see a shadow.

Lauro is really amazing.

In about thirty minutes after the large group of monsters arrived, over a thousand monsters were eliminated.

Sometimes it takes about two hours, so today's battle ended much earlier.

I think it's natural that it ended quickly with Lauro and me here.

But even if it ended this quickly, it's not the fastest on record.

The fastest time was when Ivan and Father cooperated and finished in a few minutes.

Lauro and I need to become strong enough to finish in that time as well.

But if we always did that, the knights wouldn't get stronger, so we only go all out when something unusual happens.

We won't go all out unless something as unusual as what happened at the eastern fortress occurs.

"Well, that's it for today's surge. Good work, Asaria."

"Thank you."

"Lauro, good work too."

"No problem."

"Huh, Lauro was here?"

Lauro was suddenly behind me.

I thought he was fighting below the wall just a moment ago.

"I'm your dedicated knight, so I intend to stay by your side as much as possible."

"O-Okay, that's a good attitude."

There are only knights in the fortress, and the monsters have been defeated, so there's no danger.

Anyway, today's work is done.

Lauro and I will stay at the fortress for about a week and hunt the large groups of monsters every day.

We won't go all out every day, but it's important to help the knights when they start to falter, so we need to practice.

"We'll stay at the fortress for a week to deal with the monsters. You both have the skills, so it's just a matter of getting used to it. Do your best."

"Yes, Brother."

"Understood."

Lauro and I's week-long life at the fortress begins.

"Huh!? A-Are we staying in such a dangerous place for a week!?"

"Oh, I didn't tell Maimi?"

"I didn't hear about it! The roar of the monsters earlier was terrifying, and now you're saying we'll be here every day for a week…!"

Maimi, the maid who came with me, looked desperate.

I forgot to tell her we'd be staying for a week, so I apologize.

"I'm sorry. I'll give you three pieces of jewelry as a special bonus this time."

"…I'll do my best."

Maimi, still a bit dissatisfied, seemed to regain her spirit.

I need to do my best too.

I think that woman, Oriane Ter Dian, will come to this fortress during this week.

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