The rescue operation in the Cadur Count’s territory entered its third day. It was just past midday, and the search through the city had finally been completed.
“Everyone, thank you for your hard work over the past three days! Thanks to all of you, we were able to save many residents. But it’s not over yet. Next, we will clear out the monsters within the city, then investigate the monsters scattered outside the city, as well as the forest where they originated.”
At Escoffier’s words, the knights and Martina tightened their expressions once more.
“From here on, I propose we split into four teams. The first team will focus on clearing out the monsters inside the city. The second team will hunt down the monsters scattered around the outskirts. The third team will be in charge of investigating the forest, and the fourth team will coordinate the other teams and manage the evacuated residents.”
The members for each team were announced, and Martina was assigned to the third team, the forest investigation group. Roland and Sylvan were assigned to the fourth team, and Lambert was placed in the same team as Martina, the forest investigation team.
Considering the possibility of miasma accumulation in the forest, the light magic users were all assigned to the third team as well.
“Now, let’s begin our operations,” Escoffier ordered.
The leader of the third team was quickly decided to be Lambert, and after scanning the gathered faces, he pulled out a piece of paper.
“As for the forest investigation team, Martina has provided us with information on the terrain and river locations in the forest that she remembers. We will start by investigating the areas where there might be miasma accumulation. Let’s begin with this location.”
The paper had a simple map of the forest, with several places marked by slashes. It seemed that areas along the river were prioritized for investigation.
“How were these locations chosen?” a knight asked.
Martina, who had drawn the map, opened her mouth to explain.
“I judged this based on several pieces of information. Firstly, regarding the large outbreak of monsters, there are several towns near the forest, but only the town where we conducted the rescue operation has been affected. Additionally, there haven’t been many monsters appearing in the nearby grasslands. Therefore, I deduced there must be a reason why the monsters reached this particular town.”
After explaining, Martina pointed to a river on the map held by Lambert.
“This river, as far as I remember, is quite wide, and ant-type monsters cannot cross it. It runs right near the town that was attacked. Therefore, I hypothesized that the monsters may have followed the river towards the town. The river might have served as a natural guide for them.”
“Indeed… that’s very possible,” a knight nodded in understanding. “If the monsters haven’t appeared in the surrounding grasslands, the starting point for the monsters could very well be close to the river.”
Seeing the knights nodding in agreement, Lambert gave a firm nod and spoke.
“Exactly. Therefore, today we will thoroughly investigate along the river. If we find nothing, we’ll investigate other areas. There’s definitely a reason for the large outbreak of ant-type monsters, and we won’t stop until we uncover it. Stay prepared for this.”
“Understood,” the knights responded.
The discussion within the third team concluded, and they immediately entered the forest. The light magic users and Martina were placed in the center of the formation, surrounded by knights.
Since monsters were still periodically emerging from the forest, they first entered the woods at a location some distance from the river. This was a precaution, given the assumption that monsters would be densely clustered along the river.
“We’ll proceed parallel to the river through the forest. Once we’ve moved deeper into the woods, we’ll slowly approach a point where we can visually observe the riverbank. There are definitely more monsters than usual in this forest, so remain alert and do not let your guard down.”
“Understood.”
“Let’s go.”
The lead knight carefully checked the surroundings as the group quietly advanced into the forest. The atmosphere in the forest was more chaotic than usual, and the knights were tense, their hands on their swords.
A few minutes into the forest, they encountered a monster. Nearby bushes rustled violently, and out jumped a brown ant-type monster. It appeared to be slightly smaller than the big ants.
“…Captain, this monster…! It wasn’t in the city!”
A knight stopped the monster with his sword, and Lambert immediately turned his gaze to Martina. Martina observed the monster coolly and quickly gave an answer.
“It’s a Sand Ant! A desert-dwelling monster that’s weak to water. It has paralyzing poison in its teeth, so be cautious. Its back is tough, but its underside is soft—aim for that.”
Upon hearing this, the knight quickly flipped the Sand Ant over and thrust his sword into its abdomen. The Sand Ant was swiftly dispatched.
“Thank you, Martina.”
After confirming the Sand Ant was no longer moving, the knight turned back and gave a slight bow to Martina. Her evaluation among the knights had risen considerably during this expedition.
“No, thank you for the kill. Sand Ants aren’t built for walking in forests, so they should be slow. I don’t think they pose a major threat.”
Her explanation impressed the members of the third team, and at Lambert’s signal, they began to walk deeper into the forest again.
From that point, they encountered more monsters, but thanks to Martina’s knowledge and the knights’ solid skills, they proceeded without issue.
After advancing for several minutes, they changed direction and moved closer to the river… After walking for another ten minutes, the lead knight suddenly stopped.
