1058: Current State of Dars
The day after we annihilated the Raydoss fleet at Bulbora, we started heading north along the coast toward Dars.
We visited several fis.h.i.+ng villages along the way, but none knew much about the situation. Only the fis.h.i.+ng village closest to Bulbora seemed a little weary since the usual merchants buying fish never arrived.
Even further north, the villagers were simply living their lives as usual, unaware that Raydoss’s invasion had already begun.
The Raydoss fleet must have taken a route undetected by the villagers, preventing them from noticing the anomaly.
When we arrived at a port town a little larger than the villages, they were literally just notified of the invasion and beginning to prepare their defenses. It’ll probably take a little more time until the news propagates to the surrounding villages.
Well, we already informed the villages that Bulbora got attacked, so they’re probably sending people to check things out.
From there, we followed the coastline to the port town of Dars. As expected, the fis.h.i.+ng village adjacent to Dars noticed the unusual situation, so we heard a lot of information from them.
Dars seems to have been well-prepared, since it was closer to the border with Raydoss. Immediately after the defeat of the defending fleet, they sent messengers to the surrounding villages instructing them to evacuate.
Most people have probably already evacuated to the inland towns.
The only ones still remaining in the village were the elderly men who refused to leave. They said it was unthinkable to abandon the village and run away, and didn’t listen to Fran’s advice to evacuate.
Rather, one of them even expressed concern when Fran said she was headed to Dars, and gave her a potion.
『Fran. What’s wrong?』
「…Will those guys be alright?」
『Those old guys seem to be fine with food and other stuff, but they’ll be in trouble if Raydoss soldiers come.』
If Fran was that worried, maybe we should have just forcibly carried them to a safe town? Well, not much else we can do if they don’t want to leave….
Who knows if they’ll really be happy after getting forcibly rescued? Losing the village they were so attached to might be like losing their purpose in life. I guess it’s better than dying?
A difficult question. But in the end, Fran decided to respect their wishes.
「They said Dars is already occupied.」
『Well, they can’t really fight back with their fleet destroyed. The city didn’t have many adventurers to begin with.』
「Are Charlotte and the others are okay?」
『Quite a few people apparently made it out, so we just have to hope they’re among the refugees.』
「Nn.」
In this case, however, Charlotte and the others were sent to Dars as representatives of Bulbora. If they were asked to cooperate in the defense, they wouldn’t be able to refuse.
It’s more likely they took part in the battle against Raydoss.
「First we check out the town.」
『Yeah. Even if we just head back to report, we should at least check the size of the enemy fleet and the number of soldiers.』
It’s normally safer to wait until night for this kind of thing, but that would make it difficult to confirm the enemy’s numbers. Despite the risk, we decided to first scout Dars from a high alt.i.tude.
We flew up into the sky as we drew closer to Dars. Urus.h.i.+’s black fur would be conspicuous in the sunny sky, so of course I covered it up.
Illusion magic to project an image of the sky on ourselves, as well the light spell Camouflage to blend in with the surrounding scenery.
Although we weren’t completely transparent, it’s a pretty decent optical camouflage. No one should be able to detect us unless they stare at the sky very carefully.
Or at least, that’s how it was supposed to go…
「Kywiiii!」
「Kyu-kywii!」
「A bunch of giant birds!」
『These are Lesser Rocs!』
Three giant birds were flying around us, each about two meters long, with a wingspan of about 10 meters.
Lesser Roc, a Threat Level D monster. Not a very strong opponent, but they seemed to have enough skill in detection to see through our disguise.
They must be tamed by someone from Raydoss. Either way, it’s difficult to remain hidden once they’ve discovered us. Their ground forces probably already found us since the birds kept circling us.
「Sorry, Master.」
『That wasn’t your fault, so don’t worry about it! Let’s take these guys down first!』
「Nn!」
To tell the truth, we saw some of our acquaintances being taken away while scouting from the skies. A line of about 30 adventurers was being walked through the town of Dars. The scars of battle were still visible, and the dead bodies of soldiers and adventurers were strewn everywhere.
Apparently, they were in the process of being loaded onto a s.h.i.+p in the port. The head of the line had already taken a step into the port area.
Among them were the Scarlet Maidens, Judith, Maia, Lydia, as well as the half insectkin Eugene. All of them were covered with wounds and shackled. One of them got smacked from behind for walking a little too slowly.
Fran accidentally let her killing intent slip out when she saw this. That’s how the Lesser Rocs patrolling the skies managed to notice us.
It was only for a moment though. I guess they use these monsters for security purposes because of their ability to detect such things.
『Urus.h.i.+! Take out the one in the back!』
「Woof!」
「I’ll get the right one!」
『Then the left is mine!』
We broke our cover and pounced on the Lesser Rocs. Their size, speed, and perceptiveness makes them rather annoying opponents, but they’re no match for us at our current level.
Our victory was decided in an instant. Urus.h.i.+’s fangs gouged out one’s head as Fran’s slash and my thunder magic killed their respective targets.
But the real problem is what comes next. While storing the Lesser Rocs’ carca.s.ses, I took another look at the scene below us. If we wanted to save everyone, we’d have to bust our way through the port crowded with Raydoss soldiers.
『What now? Retreat and try again at night? We’re already in their sights.』
（Then they might take them away! I’ll rescue them now!）
『Wait, Fran! Are you really gonna charge directly into the port?!』
（Nn!）
The one in front of us packed with tons of Raydoss soldiers! Seriously?!
『Gamudo told you not to be rash, and you said no problem!』
「Nn! I’ll blow up all the enemies so there’s no problem!」
『That’s what you meant?!』
I underestimated Fran’s hostility toward Raydoss!
『…Sigh. Fine, but you can’t just charge in and blast away without any thought. We need a plan first.』
She’s right that the situation won’t necessarily get much better if we hide ourselves until night. In fact, rescuing a crowd of people after they are put onboard a s.h.i.+p might be even more difficult. In that case, rescuing them before they can be hidden from sight is preferable.
Each choice has some advantages and disadvantages. Since Fran’s already motivated, launching an a.s.sault now might even be the better option.
「Thanks Master.」
『Sure, but keep on your toes.』
「Nn!」