111. Unexpected Brilliance Is Unexpected, Isn’t It?

 

Zaid, the second son of the Veil Road margrave and Kyle’s brother, appeared arrogantly.

 

Not like we called for you!

 

What can you even do?!

 

As I was shouting internally, Zaid swung his arm, his cloak billowing.

 

“Listen! From now on, I will command this battle!”

 

What!?

 

Zaid, oblivious to our shock, continued.

 

“Adventurers and lizardmen, break your pairs!”

 

Wait a second!

 

Pairing adventurers and lizardmen was…

 

“There is no need to continue the formation for wide-area exploration! Adventurers, keep launching ranged attacks at that big guy! It will distract Raidoc!”

 

…Huh?

 

I had been rushing over to stop Zaid’s interference, but his command was stunning.

 

“Lizardmen are strong in the wetlands! You will move around freely and confuse the big guy! …I hate relying on demi-humans, though.”

 

Um… huh?

 

His words were annoying, and he was being condescending… but, huh?

 

“Protect our troops and the alchemist over there, centering around me!”

 

“Huh?”

 

Finally, I let out a foolish sound.

 

“Craft, right, the alchemist! Don’t dawdle! Come here quickly! And the priest too!”

 

“Yes, sir!”

 

Bepp and I snapped to attention involuntarily.

 

It wasn’t just his commanding tone and attitude; it was as if our instincts told us to obey.

 

Zaid turned to us with a slightly cold gaze, looking down.

 

He continued, exasperated, with his hand on his hip.

 

“Alchemist. I heard you can make potions in a short time. Start making healing potions here.”

 

“What!?”

 

Here!?

 

This position Zaid had taken was behind the lines, but it was still the battlefield!

 

“Wait a minute… please! Not in a place like this…”

 

“I said do it. Think about it. If the enemy reaches here with this much strength fighting, we’ve already lost by then.”

 

“Well… yes, but…”

 

Indeed, if the Hydra broke through to this position, it meant Raidoc and the adventurers were also overrun.

 

I understood the logic, but…

 

“If I don’t use my defensive magic, the front line might collapse!”

 

“Unnecessary. The Casper sisters are protecting the B-rank adventurers.”

 

“But…”

 

“Enough! This is not the time for you to join the fight with magic! Get to work!”

 

“Uh…”

 

I was overwhelmed by his strange intensity and began setting up my alchemy equipment from my spatial storage.

 

“Making the potion is fine, but there’s no time to bottle it?”

 

“Unnecessary. Put it in a barrel or something. Priest! Bepp, right? You’re now in charge of tending the wounded! Use the potions to heal them!”

 

“Y-yes.”

 

Bepp reflexively responded to Zaid’s authority.

 

Zaid continued.

 

“Take a few lizardmen away! …The female lizardman unit that was on guard duty. You will focus on bringing the wounded here! The male unit will continue to disrupt the enemy!”

 

Um… huh?

 

How to say it… incredibly… accurate instructions, right?

 

Zaid waved his hand sharply.

 

“Blue-haired B-rank adventurer! Are your wounds healed!?”

 

Raidoc, who had been receiving healing magic from Marilyn, one of the Casper sisters, stood up in surprise at Zaid.

 

“Oh… yeah.”

 

“Then continue attacking that big guy with all you’ve got!”

 

“But…”

 

Raidoc was flustered. He probably couldn’t argue with Zaid, a noble.

 

So I shouted in his place.

 

“Zaid-sama! Raidoc is the central figure among the adventurers! We need his instructions!”

 

Zaid narrowed his eyes and glared at me.

 

“Are you an idiot! The central figure must not get bogged down in command! Giving direct orders to the adventurers he’s coordinating with is enough! Overall command is the job of someone who can see the whole picture!”

 

“What!?”

 

Annoying!

 

It’s annoying, but… it’s exactly right!

 

Zaid’s commands are infuriating but optimal.

 

Though Zaid’s reprimand was directed at me, Raidoc also looked up sharply.

 

Raidoc quickly composed himself.

 

“Zaid-sama! Please take overall command! Everyone, follow Zaid-sama’s orders! I’ll take command on the front lines!”

 

Everyone showed a moment of shock but then faced forward immediately.

 

“Understood!!!”

 

It’s probably not trust in Zaid but in Raidoc, but everyone responded at once.

 

I have a lot to think about, but for now, I’ll follow Zaid.

 

I muttered under my breath.

 

“Adventurer’s code… use anything that can be used… huh.”

 

I used to be an adventurer too!

 

◆

 

“Fools! Adventurers, you’re too far ahead! You’re obstructing the blue-haired one! Those without ranged weapons, protect your allies instead of attacking!”

 

Zaid swung his arm and issued commands.

 

“Lizardmen, move around more! Scatter! If you bunch up, you’ll be taken out together! After throwing a spear coated with Sharpness Oil, retreat immediately and get a new one! Your role is to disrupt, but make sure you inflict damage on that big guy!”

 

Zaid kept giving orders.

 

“Priest! Don’t be stingy with the healing potions! And use all your recovered mana to support the blue-haired one!”

 

I was throwing ingredients into the alchemy cauldron and pouring in mana to mass-produce healing potions.

 

(Damn it! Don’t tell me not to be stingy so easily!)

 

I wanted to shout, but frustratingly, his instructions were spot on.

 

Each time I filled a barrel with healing potions, Bepp would scoop it out and pour it on the injured, getting them back into the fight.

 

Bepp would only use Cure Poison magic on those whose wounds had gotten infected or looked really bad.

 

This made the healing potions deplete quickly, but Bepp had more mana left.

 

With the accumulated mana, he could cast powerful support spells on Raidoc, allowing Raidoc, our strongest fighter, to fight effectively.

 

Indeed, I was busy making potions, but the entire unit was more stable as a result.

 

Frustratingly, Zaid’s command was flawless.

 

Damn, as expected of Kyle’s brother! He was more capable than I imagined!

 

But why the sudden change?

 

The answer became clearer with Zaid’s next words.

 

“Damn it! Why are my 300 soldiers getting in the way!? Fall back! You’re hindering the adventurers! Damn! How can professional soldiers be outperformed by hired adventurers!?”

 

Zaid was expressing his dissatisfaction to the head soldier, and it made sense.

 

I guessed that Zaid had assumed his soldiers were as strong as or stronger than the adventurers.

 

The assumption was too high, and his soldiers couldn’t keep up with Zaid’s plan.

 

But with powerful pieces like Raidoc and the Casper sisters, that assumption was fulfilled.

 

Should I call him incompetent for not understanding his allies’ capabilities, or praise him for showing such command ability when he had the subordinates he needed…?

 

“…This isn’t the time for that.”

 

I changed my focus and looked back at the battlefield.

 

We hadn’t taken down the Hydra’s heads yet, but the number of wounds it was suffering was increasing rapidly.

 

Even the eight-headed Hydra, with its rapid healing abilities, couldn’t keep up with the onslaught led by Raidoc and Solar, along with the Casper sisters.

 

Jitaro returned to replenish his arrows.

 

He smiled as he filled his empty quiver.

 

“Craft-san! We’ve got this in the bag!”

 

Stop! What a jinx!

 

My silent scream was in vain as the five-headed Hydra let out a particularly loud roar, as if in response to Jitaro’s words.

 

“What!?”

 

“What the hell is that!?”

 

“How should I know! But one thing’s for sure… it’s bad!”

 

In sync with the Hydra’s roar, the swamp water began to swirl around it.

 

The enormous amount of water started forming a vortex around the Hydra.

 

The sheer volume of water was a threat on its own, but now it was a swirling wall.

 

Raidoc clicked his tongue.

 

“Damn! Everyone, fall back!”

 

The amount of water was enough to cover the giant Hydra. It was like a whole lake was standing right in front of us. We couldn’t approach it.

 

“This is the worst!”

 

“Craft! Eva! Can you do something!?”

 

“There’s nothing we can do! We should retreat!”

 

I shouted instinctively, but I knew we couldn’t do that.

 

“If we turn our backs now, we’ll be wiped out instantly!”

 

Raidoc had reached the same conclusion.

 

But… what do we do?

 

What do we do!?

 

As I struggled to think, the water tornado wavered.

 

That could only mean one thing.

 

“No way!”

 

Eva, who had returned nearby, shouted.

 

Seeing Eva’s face, her used magic flashed in my mind.

 

“Everyone, gather here! Eva! Use the Rose Defense Magic! Big enough to cover everyone!”

 

Eva turned and widened her eyes.

 

“I can’t! I don’t have enough mana–“

 

“Activate the magic circle in the air! Magicians, priests, everyone who can use magic! Pour all your mana into Eva’s magic circle!”

 

Zaid hurriedly interrupted.

 

“Wait. What are you…?”

 

“It’s coming! That! That huge mass of water!”

 

“What!?”

 

Ignoring Zaid, I focused on Eva.

 

“Eva!”

 

“I can’t set up the ritual magic formation!?”

 

“Doesn’t matter! Just form the magic circle! Otherwise, we can’t send our mana!”

 

“Oh, fine! Whatever happens, happens!”

 

Eva created a huge magic circle in the air.

 

To amplify the power of a spell with multiple people, you usually form a ritual magic formation and synchronize everyone. But now, Eva’s circle was just to gather mana.

 

As we poured raw mana into it, the magic circle absorbed it.

 

“Alright! Everyone, pour in all your mana!”

 

“Got it!!!”

 

The magic-using adventurers raised their hands and channeled their remaining mana into the circle.

 

“Can you do it, Eva?”

 

“Everyone, get closer! I’ll manage something!”

 

Eva transformed the aerial magic circle, rewriting it into an activation circle.

 

Now, the gathered mana would fuel the next spell, but without the ritual formation, there would be a lot of loss.

 

“[Steel Thorn Rose Prison]!”

 

Steel thorns sprouted from the ground, encircling us.

 

The steel thorns formed a fierce wall around us.

 

But this defense magic had many gaps.

 

“The water’s force will be reduced, but the water itself will come in!”

 

The crucial thing was to weaken the water pressure enough so we wouldn’t be crushed or swept away.

 

There were many defensive spells, but only this rose spell, rooted in the ground, could prevent us from being swept away.

 

…We had to accept being submerged.

 

“Huh?”

 

Jitaro let out a foolish sound just as a massive amount of water hit us, like a lake pouring down.

 

“Gah!”

 

In an instant, we were underwater.