As we get closer, the devastation of the village comes into clearer view.


    The first thing you can recognize is the thick smell of blood.


    It was partly due to the strong wind, but it was still reaching us even though we were far away.


    We''re going to split up. I''m on the right and you''re on the left.


    I understand!


    I received that instruction from Mr. Liberto and ran with the left side of the village.


    There are people lying on the ground who will no longer be moving.


    As we pass there, we find a man running away from the soldiers.


    The man is running, crying, but the soldiers are closing in on him from behind, faster than that.


    ''Oh no, don''t do it!


    You''re well hidden, but you can''t get away with this!


    A soldier swings his sword from behind and brings it down--.


    ''''Whoa!


    -''Grand Lancer''!


    A spear made of dirt flew out of the ground between the two men.


    The spear protected the man as it flicked the sword that the soldier had swung at him.


    ''''Huh?　What the hell is this?


    I used the magic I had built up as I ran in and activated my magic.


    As expected, it was impossible to help a soldier from that distance before he swung his sword down.


    However, the soldier is stunned to be prevented from taking a swing of his sword by an unearned one.


    It''s easy to get behind someone like that.


    ''''Phew!''''


    What?


    Without pulling his sword out of its sheath, he slams it into the back of his neck.


    The soldier falls to the ground, unable to resist, as he takes the attack morosely to the point of surprise and urgency.


    I didn''t kill him.


    I didn''t understand the situation well yet, so I just let him pass out for now.


    But that was just a stunting because I had the luxury of time. If our lives were in danger too, we would draw our sheaths and attack without mercy.


    ''''Are you okay?''''


    He speaks to the man who is lying on the ground, almost cut down by a soldier.


    ''Oh, thank you!　Thank God!


    He was stunned, but when he realized he was saved, he quickly got up and thanked me.


    ''It looks like you''re safe; it''s not safe to be here, so you need to get away.


    Okay, okay!


    ''There''s a carriage of my people coming this way, coming from that direction, please run that way.


    Thank you!


    I point in the direction of the carriage and tell him.


    The man bows his head to me again and thanks me, and then immediately starts running towards me.


    You don''t even know who I am, but you believe me right away.


    Maybe I''m an enemy too, and maybe I''m tricking you with my current instructions. Well, I wasn''t fooling you.


    It''s better than being suspected for nothing.


    And I run around the village again.


    The inhabitants of this village still seem to be the weakest people in the demon tribe, and they are being killed with little or no resistance.


    The corpses lying on the ground are not armed, only people wearing something like ordinary clothes.


    Running through the village, we reach the place where the inhabitants are being attacked one after another.


    We go to a place where there are a lot of inhabitants, and then a lot of soldiers, and we fight.


    You toss and turn at speed to confuse them and stand in the middle of a group of enemies.


    ''Hey, what the hell are you!''


    Who the hell is this?　I never heard of this guy in this settlement!


    That''s what the soldiers say when they see me, when they see me take down their people.


    I will save everyone who is about to be killed in front of me.


    That''s what Christo said, and that''s what I believe.


    I don''t want to lose any more lives that can be saved right in front of me.


    We''ve already killed a few soldiers, but we haven''t killed a single one yet.


    They are mainly aiming at the enemy''s feet. We don''t kill them, we defeat them.


    In a battle like this, it''s better not to kill the enemy.


    Because.....


    "Wipe out!　Let''s pull out before we do any more damage!


    "Drag the fallen man away!


    When it comes to camaraderie, you can''t usually leave a living companion behind to fight.


    If a number of people are injured by an unknown opponent, the right thing to do as a commander is to retreat.


    On the battlefield, one wounded man is more important than ten dead men. You can leave the dead behind to fight, but you can''t leave the wounded behind to fight.


    The goal of this battle is not to kill all of our opponents.


    We''ll win if we can get them out of here.


    Commander!　A strong man from the other side!


    We have more injured in this area!


    "Retreat with the wounded!　Shit!　What''s the matter with you?


    A person who looks like a commander swears and gives me an order to retreat.


    Apparently, Liberto-san had the same idea as me. I don''t kill in vain, but I try to get the wounded out.


    And after a few minutes, the armed soldiers fled with the horses that would have been ridden by the armed soldiers.


    ''Phew...''


    I look around the settlement for a little while after we retreated, but the soldiers are apparently gone, so I release the tension.


    ''Good job, Eric.''


    Good job, Mr. Liberto.


    I was around the middle of the settlement when Liberto-san came over, sheathing his sword.


    ''Thank goodness it wasn''t particularly strong. If it had been a little stronger, I would have killed it.


    Yes, it''s nice to have someone to take it easy on.


    Let''s get back to the carriage. They''re probably close enough.


    We headed in the direction we came from, and the carriage was pretty close to us.


    The carriage is surrounded by the surviving inhabitants.


    There must be about a hundred of them. I''m sure there are still some people surviving in the village, though.


    ''''Oh, thank you!''''


    Thank you for your help!


    When the residents saw us, they all bowed their heads in unison.


    It was the first time I had ever been thanked by more than a hundred people at once, and I was a little surprised. This is also the first time I''ve seen such a large number of people bowing their heads.


    I''m just following some guy''s instructions. You can thank him.


    Mr. Liberto replies with a hassle-free wave of his hand, as if he''s used to it.


    ''''Thank you!　It really helped!


    Okay, okay.


    I''ll repay you for this.


    That''s not for me.


    I''m surrounded by the people I helped. Perhaps because Liberto-san answered earlier, they are gathering one by one to thank him.


    Liberto-san also seems to be in trouble, but he has a not-so-full expression on his face.


    It''s impossible to be bothered by being thanked, and even more so by being told from the bottom of your heart like that.


    ''''Eric!''''


    I was looking away from Mr. Liberto''s side in the distance when Christo came up to me.


    ''Are you hurt?''


    Yeah, no problem.


    Christo is relieved when he sees my body and confirms that I''m not injured.


    ''Good, I''ve lost my mind by worrying about you,''


    What''s to lose?


    He says the words in a sarcastic tone, but I can see that he''s embarrassed.


    ''More importantly, Christo, do you have anything to say to me after I came back safely under your orders?


    I asked that with a little grin, and Christo grinned as well.


    ''Oh--well done, Eric,''


    Thanks.


    We raised our hands and slammed them together, hard.