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Chapter 37 – part 2

「…However, Cordelia-sama? It’s fine if it’s the knights and guild members, but… the students in the Scholarship class for high-ranking nobles’s children… are they included?」

「If they can defend this fortress without me, the knights, and the veteran adventurers… then they can stay, don’t you think? I’ll leave the decision to each of them. I don’t really expect them to be of any use as a fighting force anyway.」

By the way, that was a lie.
If everyone were to charge into a horde of ogres together, we would definitely be in trouble.
However, if it’s within the chaotic battlefield… I do have some expectations for the exceptional students in the scholarship class, who have a high basic potential, to demonstrate their true abilities.

「Tell our classmates to bet their lives on the possibility of surviving」

As I conveyed that to the head instructor, a commotion erupted near the gate of the fortress.
The 51st reconnaissance group huh… I stood up and started walking towards the gate.

ーーI was speechless.

The road extending from the gate was filled with demons.
And the interior of the forest surrounding the road was also covered in countless demons.

Demons.

Demons.

Demons.

Demons.

And more demons.

「…I was too naive.」

I thought there would be at most around 100 Ogre Generals remaining… but there seem to be around 200.
And there are about 2,000 ogres.

Even if we were to launch an all-out assault, it would undoubtedly lead to complete annihilation.

I looked at the head instructor.
The head instructor also fell into silence for a moment… and then shrugged his shoulders.

「Cordelia-sama… please escape. If it’s just you, you can do it. You are the sword of humanity… no, you must become an adult and grow into the sword of humanity.」

「I said it earlier, didn’t I? I don’t need the ‘sama’… right?」

Retreating is not an option. If this fortress falls, the city behind us will be wiped out.
After a brief moment of contemplation, I drew my holy sword from its sheath.

And with all my might, I shouted.

「Hero of the North: Cordelia Allston takes the lead! Everyone… Follow meeeee!」

The head instructor also said something unreasonable.
A Hero can’t just retreat alone.

「Well then… I’ll do as much as I can!」

I dashed forward, and just as I left the gate… it came flying from the sky.
3 cm in diameter, a 30 cm long iron stake.

No… it’s a divine spear.

There were a total of over 20 of them.
All of them accurately pierced the hearts or heads of the scattered Ogre Generalsーand exploded.

But when I say ‘explode’, it’s not like gunpowder or any kind of magical energy.
If an object exceeds the speed of sound after undergoing a magical acceleration boost from a height of 1,000 meters above ground, when they finally fall to the ground… a small crater will be formed. That’s all there is to it.

「I’ve seen this spell before. In fact, that woman or I… which one is stronger at this point?」

I let out a deep sigh on the spot.

「Really… Why does it always happen like this? Why, why, why, why, why does it always happen to me when I’m truly in trouble?」

Looking up at the sky, I shrugged my shoulders as if surrendering.

「…It’s impossible that I won’t fall in love like this.」

Putting that aside.

I opened my mouth and spoke to the old man next to me, who had a dumbfounded expression.

「Instructor?」

「What is it? Hero… Cordelia-sama?」

「Make sure everyone guards the gate… I’ll go out alone.」

「Being surrounded by these many ogres, alone…? Isn’t that just suicide?」

「No, this is a promised victory.」

「…?」

「I’ve been working hard alone for 48 hours. It’s frustrating to have that woman and that man take everything at the very end, right?」

「That man…? That woman…? And… even if we’re told to guard the gate, without Cordelia-sama… we can’t possibly defend it…」

「Just close the gate tightly! That’s all I ask!」

I sprinted out of the gate at full speed.
There’s no need to worry about anything. Just go all out and rampage.

Not to mention, even if I exhaust myself, Lute will definitely support what comes after.

Now, let’s begin the extermination of demons!

The timeline goes back two weeks.

It was a night of a full moon, where everything was filled with black and indigo.
I snuck out of the dormitory with Lilith and strolled through the Lost Forest.

「…Lute? What do you think?」

Lilith asked while using advanced magic to blow off the head of an Ogre General.

「…We have too little information to know.」

I muttered while pulverizing the heads of an Ogre General with a back fist.
I was concerned about it during the 100-kilometer hike with Saegusa, since… Normally, Ogre Generals don’t form a group with other Ogre Generals.

According to Saegusa, being an Ogre General means, of course, that he is the commander.
But what appeared at that time was a swarm of Ogre Generals. And the reason Ogre General is a commander is precisely because the number of Ogre Generals is small.

But within just two hours of our walk—well, it was more like a reconnaissance mission—we killed 40 ogres and 10 Ogre Generals.

No matter how you look at it, this is abnormal.

「…What do we do, Lute?」

「What?」

「…The scholarship class Cordelia Allston belongs to.」

「It’s also the scholarship class you belong to.」

At my words, Lilith chuckled slightly.
I don’t quite understand, but it seems she found it humorous in her own way.

「…The possibility of it being a Great Calamity? It makes sense if we consider these as signs.」

A Great Calamity that raises the entire race’s rank by one level.
Ogres become Ogre Generals, and Ogre Generals become Ogre Kings.
Ogre Kings become Ogre Emperors… and if you go further, Ogre Emperors become a Demon God.

When it comes to Ogre Emperors, their extermination level is over A… in other words, they’re at an S-rank level. And a Demon God is over S-rank… boasting a double S-rank level of difficulty for extermination.

It’s a ludicrous level of force that requires the combined battle power of a major country to even compare.

At that moment, I looked up at the sky and said:

「We can’t keep playing around with these kids for much longer.」

「…?」

「It may be earlier than the prediction of loli baba, the forbidden arts user, but let’s act under the assumption of the worst-case scenario. Besides, I think that the abnormal evolution of the ogres is happening artificially.」

「…Yeah.」

「What are Cordelia’s marching plans for the scholarship class?」

「The joint training… no, the ceremony?」

「Yeah, exactly.」

「…It should be in two weeks. In the future, the children of high-ranking nobles from the Magic Academy will become the knights or court magicians of various countries. This event is like a training exercise to prepare for that time… But even if they did march through the Lost Forest, they will never step foot into the dangerous territory, just walking along the main road.」

「Hey, Lilith?」

「Yeah?」

「I said to prepare for the worst, right?」

「…?」

「Probably… The enemy’s target is Cordelia. If the ogres are artificially undergoing abnormal evolution, there’s no target other than Cordelia. That’s why… we’ll join their march as well.」