Chapter 345: Alert Level 3
Two weeks had passed, and finally, Alert Level 3 was declared. A small horde had emerged from the Forest of Enchantment and attacked the town. Although they were swiftly defeated, this incident served as the catalyst for the level increase.
All requests related to the Forest of Enchantment at the Adventurer’s Guild had been withdrawn, and entry into the forest was now strictly prohibited. It was said that the main body of monsters would likely appear within a few days.
The localized laptop had also arrived from Jushiro-san, and El was rapidly mastering how to use it. The keyboard was printed with Brinks Language, and to my surprise, typing the keys actually inputted Brinks Language. It was truly astonishing. Additionally, the script for the commercial had been completed, and I was told we would rehearse it when we had some free time.
“I can’t believe we’re prepared for a Stampede like this,” Rikyou remarked, his hair a mottled pattern of black, red, and orange, as he kept watch over the Forest of Enchantment from atop the wall built to the north of the town.
With Alert Level 3 in effect, everyone except Ivan and El had gathered on the wall. El was still on lookout duty, while Ivan was incorporated into the operation as a D Rank Adventurer. However, since D Rank was the minimum required to enter the Forest of Enchantment, he was primarily providing rear support.
At Alert Level 3, it was only a matter of time before the horde of monsters appeared in the shallow areas of the forest. Adventurers and soldiers stood atop the wall, constantly monitoring the forest. This wall was closer to the town, and since the Forest of Enchantment lay just beyond a gentle slope, we could see it clearly without needing to climb all the way up.
“Oh, so you’ve experienced a Stampede before?” I asked.
“I was just a rookie back then,” Rikyou shrugged, reminiscing.
It seemed that the duration of Alert Level 2 had lasted less than a week, and he had been stationed on the wall, monitoring the monster horde in front of a makeshift barrier. Before they knew it, the wall had been breached, and the monsters had invaded the town.
“But look at this! We have two solid walls now. Plus, we know the types of monsters we’re dealing with. The chances of them breaching the town are almost nonexistent,” he continued, his excitement infectious and boosting the morale of the other adventurers.
“That’s good to hear,” I replied, shrugging in response, only to elicit a dry chuckle from Rikyou.
“I really understand the power of S Rank now,” he said, and I decided to graciously accept the praise from the seasoned adventurer. I had learned from the Councilor’s various lessons that being underestimated was never a good thing.
Just then, the sound of a bell rang out from the lookout tower atop the wall. It seemed that monsters had emerged from the forest.
“A horde of Red Ants from Sector Three! Their numbers exceed ten!”
The Forest of Enchantment had been divided into ten sectors, making it easy to identify where the monsters were emerging just by calling out the number. The scale was measured in units of ten, so “exceeding ten” likely meant over a hundred monsters. Sectors one to four were assigned to adventurers, while five and beyond were under military jurisdiction. Interestingly, it seemed that the adventurers and the military operated under separate command structures.
“Who’s going?”
The atmosphere remained relaxed, perhaps because it wasn’t a full-scale assault yet.
“Woof! Woof!”
As soon as the call for volunteers went out, Nil eagerly raised his voice. He had been cooped up lately, and perhaps he was itching to unleash some pent-up energy.
“Alright, Nil, are you going?”
“Woof woof!”
“Huh? Is Nil really going?”
Startled by the bell, Rio and Phonia, who had been watching the forest from the edge of the rooftop, returned. Perhaps they felt lonely since Nil had been spending a lot of time with Ivan lately.
“Phonia, do you want to go too?”
“Eh? Is that okay?”
Phonia turned back, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
“Hey, I wasn’t sure about bringing such a little one here, but what are you thinking?”
“Ah, it’s fine, don’t worry.”
“Rikyou-san!?”
A stranger adventurer interjected, and Rikyou quickly defended Phonia. The adventurer looked utterly incredulous.
“You’ll see once you watch,” Rikyou replied, likely aware that the stranger had never witnessed Phonia in battle. He seemed to have noticed the shining Mithril tag around her neck.
“Just be careful, alright?”
“Woof!”
“Yeah!”
With a bark, Nil transformed from his smallest size to a large dog size, suitable for Phonia to ride. She hopped onto his back, and with a powerful leap, Nil bounded off the wall and took to the air.
“Whoa, seriously!?”
Gasps of surprise erupted from the crowd as Nil quickly shrank into the distance. Phonia’s magic erupted against the horde of monsters, followed by a resounding explosion.
It seemed Phonia had made considerable progress with her Fire Magic, which was a relief.
Within fifteen minutes, the battle appeared to have concluded, but they had yet to return. While I could see they were safe, the delay began to stir concern among the onlookers.
“Hehe, Phonia-chan is working hard to collect materials,” I remarked.
“Yeah, Ivan was also desperate to gather materials to level up,” Rikyou chuckled.
Phonia, having been conditioned to understand the importance of material collection, was likely following suit.
“Welcome back!”
“Woof!”
After about thirty minutes, Phonia and Nil returned, both in high spirits, having successfully gathered materials.