CH 171

Chapter 171 – Enemy Line

“It’s simple.”

Hearing the merchant’s words, Myrril-san laughed.

“Those who attack you are enemies; those who fight with you are allies. Those who do nothing are small fry.”

I love her simple way of life. I can’t bring myself to imitate it, though.

It’s not so easy to divide the two. And if you are a merchant, friend, or foe depending on the situation, you may have to fight with your enemies or rescue useless small fry for the sake of profit.

I don’t want to do it, but maybe even betrayal of allies.

“I envy you, adventurers.”

The middle-aged merchant laughs to himself.

“Once you’ve experienced combat, you’ll change your mind.”

“I did experience it a few times when I was young. But that was a blunder. For that, I apologize.”

He bowed his head in a respectful attitude. He is now running a medium-sized trading company in the northern territory of the Republic. When he was young, he tried to imitate an adventurer, but it didn’t turn out well.

“So you are a former adventurer. Then use this.”

I cut the rope that bound the merchant O’Connor’s hands and feet with a machete and handed it to him. I also took a dagger, spear, and club out of my storage and tossed them out. They were trashy weapons taken from the bandits anyway.

“Envying others won’t improve your situation. You have to protect yourself. If you survive, I’ll help you get out.”

My words frightened half of the hostages and motivated the other half. The dividing line between survival and escape may lie somewhere along that line.

“Takifu.”

I support Myrril by the waist and teleport back to Louis and Tig. Quickly, there are only a few enemies left.

“You don’t look like you need any help. What’s wrong?”

“They’re the ones on the freighter, aren’t they? They don’t look like pirates to me. Can we kill them?”

“I don’t know. In any case, there will be no evidence, so it doesn’t really matter anyway.”

“I see. Then, let’s kill the one who comes toward us.”

Louis nodded at Tig’s words. After all, these people are the same type as Myrril.

“What about over there?”

“There are ten merchants and guards at what looks like an altar. If we’re going to kill all the people on the ship along with the pirates, we’re going to need to keep them quiet or at least keep them at bay.”

“Hmm….. I don’t know if it’s worth the extra trouble. Mir, do you think they’ll be any use?”

“They’re useful.”

The two ladies exchanged glances and grinned at each other. No, I think you girls are more suited to be pirates.

“I-I can hear you! We’ll be useful! Don’t talk nonsense!”

I heard O’Connor yell in hushed tones. It was probably intended to be heard before that, though the voices of Myrril and Louis were louder.

“Ooooh…!”

A man in dirty, pirate-like clothes rushed into the room in the middle of the conversation. Wielding a rusty sword, he looks ready to kill. I shot him dead with a MAC10, thinking this would be no problem.

Beyond that, a man hiding behind a rock, I shot him in the exposed shoulder, sent him rolling, and shot him in the head when he fell.

Naturally, I had to fire single shots at each of the two enemies, but I had to be strangely careful with the MAC10 because it was difficult to aim and inaccurate. It is more unusual for Myrril-san to shoot the eyeballs and testicles with the UZI with such accuracy.

I saw a sign that Tig and the others must have knocked them down, so I stowed away the whole pile of corpses and approached the middle-aged man who was left completely naked and kicked him in the side.

“Gofuhh!”

“Get up. If you resist, I will break your right knee. It’s the same if you say anything else.”

“Don’t screw with…”

I shot him in the knee with a .45 caliber round, just as I had warned him.

I grab him by the leg and teleport back to the hostages, tossing the screaming, rolling man away.

“Get some information from this guy. If he doesn’t cooperate, you can kill him.”

“Okay.”

Now not only O’Connor but his guards and the other merchants have been released from their bonds and are armed and ready for revenge. Surrounded by ten such men, the middle-aged man shivered so hard he forgot the pain in his knees.

“Good to see you again, Cailey?”

“Hyiii!”

“Next time we see each other again, we’ll meet in hell, was it?”

“That means… this is the place, you traitor!”

“Hyiii…!”

Not wanting to ruin the emotional reunion, I walk back to the muscle-brain group, collecting the scattered equipment and corpses.

There were no more survivors among the fallen. If Louis and Tig seriously beat them up, I doubt any of them would survive.

Really, this is no joke.

“Hey, Mir, do you think the leader of this place is that skeleton?”

“I don’t think so. They were going to perform some kind of strange ritual. It is like an idol, like a goddess in a church. There must be a priest somewhere who painted it.

Nojaloli-san snorted and looked toward the far left side of the altar. Tig and Louise also looked in the direction of the left side of the altar.

What’s that? I’m the only one who wasn’t muscle-brain feeling alienated?

“There is a current of wind. That is the deepest part where the leader is and probably where the treasure trove is.”

“”Alright.””

I wave to Merchant O’Connor and tell him to stay where he is.

“I’ll be back when I’m sure it’s safe.”

“Okay!”

I won’t tell him what we’re going to do in the process. If the treasure we acquired belonged to them, it might cause trouble later on. That’s exactly what I’m talking about, like destroying the evidence or keeping their mouths shut.

Since the pirates brought the hostages, there must be a passageway leading somewhere on either side of the altar. Myrril kicked at what looked like a wall and opened a hidden door.

“This way.”

“The presence in the back is like…10 people.”

The muscle-brained group was moving forward into the darkness as if they were on a picnic. I followed them with dismay, but I was still on the lookout for anything.

Since there was no longer any point or need for covert action, I stowed away my MAC10, which was not very useful to me, and switched to my AKM. The area was stacked with barrels, crates, pots, and jars and was so well shielded that pistol rounds would be inadequate.

Behind the hidden door was a space about a hundred meters long and wide, as if the interior walls of the cave had been left as they were with minimal additional living space.

Torches burning on the walls illuminated the piles of supplies and gold, silver, and treasure. It was a pirate’s treasure, which was surprisingly small, but it was exactly as I had imagined it to be.

“Behold, the treasure trove!”

“”Ooohhh!””

At that moment, a magical light burst from behind the treasure. As soon as possible, a rain of arrows scattered from behind the treasure, and I fired a shot from my AKM into the barrel where they were hiding. Fortunately or unfortunately, the barrel was not filled with coins but with grain or something else, and the man shot by the 7.62 mm bullet died without uttering a sound. The contents of the dismembered barrel poured out and covered the corpse.

“Kill him!”

“Don’t kill me!”

My voice overlaps with that of a man who appears to be the enemy leader. Louis and the others were about to rush toward the leader, but Myrril stopped them with a gesture.

“Shouldn’t we let some of the men alive who might be able to give us some information?”

“I’m counting on you.”

My reply was almost simultaneous with Myrril’s calm shot that shattered the enemy’s knees.

In no time at all, six of them rolled over, holding their knees, and began writhing in pain on the ground.

“Gyaaaahhhh…”

“M-my leg!”

That’s a scream I’ve heard somewhere.

Yeah, Myrril-san, as instructed, did not have to kill them. Although they were not killed instantly, they were already as good as dead as a criminal. However, they will have to deal with the pain of death and the aftereffects that will not heal.

Just like that traitor Cailey or whatever he’s called, the one that was I shot in the knee earlier.

“You’re the only one left. You can hide in the shadows all you want, but you’ll never get away from this, you know?”

“…I’ll kill you.”

A huge man, nearly two meters tall, appeared from the back of the room.

Although he holds a large shield and a large sword in his hands and wears heavy armor covering his entire body, he does not look like he belongs to any army at all, as he walks like a thug with his back rounded and wears miscellaneous armor in a random and unconnected manner.

“Hmm?”

The .45-caliber rounds fired from Myrril’s UZI were casually bounced off, and the 7.62-millimeter rounds I fired into him with my AKM were also blocked by his shield. Also, the only opening in the eye, which was Myrril’s specialty, was only a slit to secure visibility, and the shape of the cheek, like a bird’s beak, seemed to be blocking the shot.

“This is heavy armor made by a master Dwarf craftsman, and this shield is also a national treasure class. In addition, there is a magic barrier with this magic sword that prevents physical attacks. No matter what kind of attacks some adventurers might make…”

“Hey, Mir, is it okay if I kill this guy?”

Louis put her hand on Myrril’s shoulder and told her to change players. Tig was also motivated to step forward. However, as far as I can tell from the arrangement of the players, it seems he will be in the support role.

“How about you, Takifu?”

“Yeah, I’ve got a guy who can give us some information, and he’s going to be a pain in the ass if we let him live. You can do what you want with him.”

“Alright, then, I’ll take down this big guy.”

Louis relaxed her shoulders and lightly jumped up and down to get herself ready. From her back, a bluish-white glow emanates from the magic light that she has used to strengthen her body. It is obvious that she is excited.

“You challenge me with your bare body? You don’t know your own place.”

“Don’t make me laugh, you bastard!”

With a laugh, Louis stepped out and instantly entered the enemy’s bosom, and the leader was unable to even react before he was hit with a powerful fist.

There was a metallic sound like a bell ringing from the armor that collided with Louis’ gauntlet, and to the chieftain’s surprise, he staggered back a few steps. The difference in weight seemed to be more than twice as great, but isn’t there some law of conservation of mass in this world?

“I-it won’t work! Your fists can’t even scratch this heavy armor!”

“Just repelling it won’t do you any good.”

“…Ridi…”

I guess he was going to spit out, “That’s ridiculous,” or something like that. He stood on his feet and choked, spewing blood through his cheeks.

Louis, you’re a monster. No way, you’re going to decide it with one hit.

“Coughm cough. …W-what did you!”

I don’t know how she did it, but Louis seems to have inflicted serious damage to the enemy’s internal organs. I think there is a Chinese martial arts technique that uses physical contact, but I have no martial arts experience, so it’s beyond my comprehension.

The man on his knees, using his last ounce of strength, prepared himself to lunge forward.

Just before he was about to charge, hands reached out from behind him and firmly grabbed his helmet.

“Die, gaahh!”

“Shut up; you are the one who is going to die!”

The man’s head twisted 180 degrees. The leader fell to his death with Tig standing behind him.