Chapter 122

122

“Daniela. I’m gonna go cut some trees!”

“What?”

Daniela looked like she was looking at an idiot. She was looking at me, of course. Well, it was almost sundown and I had Schwarz Tempest on my shoulder and was ready to fly out of the fort. So it was hardly a surprise. However, I had a reason for doing this.

I had made a round of the camp and saw that there were trees beyond the walls of dirt. And I knew now that these orcs attacked with bows from the trees and ambushed people. But the people here had not witnessed that. I had told them, of course. But it was hard to fathom. It wasn’t typical of orcs to fight like that. In any case, cutting down the trees in the area would prevent them from shooting from the treetops. And I could use the fallen trees to block the entrance. I had thought this through quite a bit.

I cut down the first large tree that caught my eye. Allowing some blue magic to flow into Schwarz Tempest caused the blade of the great sword to be covered in a watery layer. I had tried simulating this in my head with Jack of all Trades, Master of None once, and knew that it would work. In short, it cut through the tree very easily. Like a water jet cutter… It cut through almost anything, which in a way, could be a problem. Besides, getting used to over-powered weapons was a good way to halt my personal growth. It’s why I try not to use the ancient elven sword when possible. I wanted to be able to make the most of methods and means that were immediately available. That was my style.

Well, this occasion was an emergency. And so I had no objections! With that settled, I think I’ll cut more trees now. I went around and cut down any trees that were close to the walls. Of course, I make sure that they fall in the opposite direction of the wall. If I accidentally broke the walls by knocking the trees on them…they would probably strip me naked and roll me out of the gate for the orcs.

Now that I think of it, the orcs could also cut down the trees like that… Oh, well. I guess I’ll have to cut down the trees over there as well. Ultimately, I could make a wagon out of this tree and carry the logs with it. With the right tools, Mister Jack of all Trades, Master of None can be a carpenter.

I try and pick up one of the fallen trees. But, it wouldn’t be lifted. As I stood there and considered what to do, a few people who had heard me working came to see what I was doing.

“Ahhh, what the…Silvergreen. What are you doing?”

“Oh, just in time! Help me carry this!”

“Huh….?”

The Adventurers looked puzzled, but I made them help me carry the logs. If we placed them at the entrance, they would be a second defensive wall. Of course, they would be destroyed eventually, but there would be a lot that we could do until then. The Adventurers breathed heavily as I picked them up and jumped over the wall and back into the camp one by one. Then I generated some water in the cups that were on a table. I added a little ice to them and not a single person complained about it. Too easy.

Next up, Virgil. I had to find our leader. I was moving about quite freely and only making reports after the fact, but this was an emergency, so he would likely understand. It might be cause for frustration for him, but this was so we could survive the fight. I try to justify it, but it’s not so easy. Adventurers of the guild were like employees of a company. You were supposed to report, contact and discuss. It was an important trick to living in a society. I reminded myself of this as I entered the tent.

“Virgil?”

“Ah, Asagi. I heard that you were doing something outside of the walls. I’m not fond of freewheeling…”

“Sorry-sorry. Well, listen. The reason for it is…”

And so I gave a detailed account of everything that had happened and that what I had done was a countermeasure.

“…So that’s why. To be honest, I thought it would be faster to do it alone, rather than have everyone go out with axes. The logs were then used to block the entrance.”

“If that’s the case, I have no objections. But you should have still told me in advance…that made me nervous.”

“Sorry about that. Also, I thought of a plan…”

“There’s more…”

Virgil did not seem enthusiastic about the rest of the report…well, suggestion. I kind of felt bad for him now. Well, it was my fault.

“…So, what do you think?”

“Hmmm… I think we better call Daniela and talk about it.

Virgil said with a nod after considering it. If everything went well, the fight could become a lot easier.

“The orcs will likely attack us at night. That’s what I would do if I were them.”

“I agree. They ambush from the top of trees after all. Attacking us while we’re sleeping isn’t much of a stretch.”

“Aye. And we do not have much time. They might even surprise us and come right now. We cannot let our guard down.”

“We’re counting on you, leader.”

“If you mean that, don’t give me cause to worry again…”

He said somewhat morosely. But this was just a one-time thing. I left the tent and went towards Daniela and her team of magicians.

The magician team was drinking a herb tea that helped to minimize magic depletion while also slowly recovering what was used. Now that I looked closely, they were all women. It would be like a girls day out if there was a little cake.

“Daniela.”

“Ah, Asagi. What is it?”

Daniela put her cup of herb tea down and turned to face me.

“A war council. Virgil wants you to come over to the tent.”

“Hmm…very well. You go on ahead.”

“Got it.”

Daniela drained the rest of what was in her cup and walked over to the others who were inspecting the walls. She probably had something to tell them. I might as well move along… As I started to walk away, I sensed that there were eyes on me, and so I turned around. The members of the tea party were staring at me. Somehow, I felt a sense of animosity in their looks… What was it? Did I do something to them…

As I scratched my cheek in puzzlement, one of the girls, who I happened to lock eyes with, started to come forward. I had a bad feeling about this.

“You. You are Silvergreen.”

“Yes. Uh, I’m called Asagi.”

“I do not care about your name! But it seems that you are together with Miss Daniela?”

What?

“Do not play stupid! You should separate immediately!”

“Exactly! She is better off staying with us!”

“It is most alarming to see the likes of you by her side!”

Ah, I get it. It was some form of jealousy.

“Say something!”

“Say that you will separate, instead of being silent!”

“I do not like his face!”

The girls were closing in on me in a less than friendly manner. In fact, their bullying was hardly persuading me to break up with Daniela, but they didn’t seem like they would listen… Well, then. There was only one thing to do.

“Ah, Daniela.”

“Huh, Miss Daniela? Where!?”

I pointed in the opposite direction of the wall that Daniela was standing nearby, but all three of them turned to look anyway. Everything had gone according to plan. Now it was time to step on the gas. I dashed out towards Virgil’s tent. Curses flew in my direction, but I was too busy to acknowledge them. I would talk it out with them later if I remembered.

“…That is the plan we are considering now. Do you think you can do it?”

“I have no problem with it. It will be easy with the help of the other magicians who can use earth magic. However, it will impact the defense of the walls. I think I should do it alone.”

“That seems like too much of a burden for you alone?”

“Nonsense. The other girls can be on the offensive.”

“Hmm…that might work then. Alright, you can tell the magicians that we will be going with this strategy.”

“Understood.”

Inside the tent, Virgil laid out the plan to Daniela. It was something that Daniela and I were no strangers to. And so I had expected her to alright with it, and I was right. This should make the battle with the orcs go smoothly. I watched Daniela as she left the tent. Then Virgil and I sat down and sighed.

“Now, we just wait for them to attack.”

“Indeed… Asagi, we must make it out alive. We must return.”

“You’re saying the most obvious thing. Of course, we will.”

He was clearly anxious about fighting orcs that seemed to have a different level of intelligence than what he was accustomed to. I had fought two abnormally evolved beings before and fought orcs as well. Including the orcs here. And so I was quite confident in our prospects. If they would come at us with thoughtful strategies, then we just had to come at them with superior plans and strength. We were humans…Adventurers with intelligence and bravery, after all.

“Indeed… Very well. We will do this, Asagi!”

“Yes!”