The Story of Hero Among Heroes ~The Founding Chronicles of Arestia

Chapter 94 – Waterway Development

Aquarius cried in response to Ares’ question .

[That is… it was a long time ago… when this place was formed…]

[Sorry, we are not exactly free here so can you make it brief?]

[You are horrible despite your cute face, aren’t you…]

Aquarius sighed, then began explaining .

[In the past, this place wasn’t as gloomy as it is now . But… a demon lord settled down west from here, causing the aquatic magic beasts to increase in number and ended up living here . But… the biggest cause is probably… it…]

Aquarius continued on with a vain voice .

[A rock turtle… ate my kin . Thanks to that, it gained tremendous power… and became the lord of this swamp . But it wasn’t satisfied with that alone . It started attacking other water spirits as well, wanting to gain their strength . Especially this last decade, a lot of my kin were eaten by it . ]

At that point Aquarius began to sniffle .

[Trying to do something, the head of the water spirit of this land, Sednsama went to meet that turtle, but…]

[… . I see . So simply put, we need to get rid of this magic beast from this area…]

Ares nodded after hearing Aquarius’ story . She tried to rebuke him upon hearing his response .

[… . didn’t you hear me just now? About how it ate the head spirit of this place? About how it may have a power rivaling a dragon now?]

[I did . But… it’s not like we should do nothing about it, right?]

[If we could then we would’ve already done something ourselves! That creature is too strong…]

[So that’s why… I’ll do it in your stead . ]

Ares said with a refreshing smile .

Aquarius’ mouth was agape .

[Ah, but if we managed to do it somehow… I’d like to forge a contract with the water spirits living in this place… deal?]

Hearing that almost shameless offer… Aquarius could only sigh,

[If you can do that, I’ll gladly forge any contract with you… I don’t care already what will happen to me next anyways…]

Hearing her reply, Ares nodded in satisfaction .

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[Y-you are an Army general!? I thought you were just a mere adventurer!]

Aquarius complained upons seeing the fourth corps under Ares’ command .

[But… even with this many soldiers, you are still not the opponent of that rock turtle…]

[No, who said that my soldiers will deal with that turtle?]

[Haa?]

[I’ll deal with it myself . ]

[You…are you crazy?]

In the midst of that exchange, the swamp began to churn . Perhaps sensing the arrival of the fourth corps… the magic beasts surfaced to attack from every direction .

[That was fast… but not outside my expectations . Roland, can you execute the command that I told you earlier?]

[Yes sir! As you command!]

Roland then turned towards the thousand knights and began giving instructions .

[You heard the order! a.s.sume the Trinity formation as per usual and engage the magic beasts! Show them the might of Grants soldiers!]

Since he became the lord of Grants, Ares had pointed out to both Sigurd and Darius the weakness of the Grants soldiers .

Which were the low level of tactics and no coordination .

They are strong . However… they tend to rely on individual performance . That’s why, Ares pressed the importance of understanding tactics and good coordination for their training . This 『Trinity Formation』was an anti-magic beast tactic that was previously employed in Schwarzer territory to battle beast attacks and was applied in the Grants army training regime starting from a few weeks ago .

This time, he would see the result of the training in an actual combat situation .

[Roland will take over the command . As for me… I’ll handle the big one . ]

Having said that, Ares looked further into the swamp .
The deeper he looked, the more monsters entered his sight…
A huge figure could be seen behind the swarming monsters .

[It ate a lot of water spirits . Of course, its intelligence is quite high . ]

[Does Your Excellency require support…]

[No . No need to worry about me . ]

Having said so, Ares used wind magic to convey his command to the entire forces .

[The fourth corps, heed me . Begin the monster subjugation . Remember all the training you’ve gone through up until now and defeat the enemy before you . And then… let’s kick that big turtle’s a.s.s!]

[ [ [ [ [ [ [ Yes sir! ] ] ] ] ] ] ]

The soldiers of the fourth corps shouted in affirmation to Ares’ words for they recognized him . The figure of Ares who did not fall against the onslaught of a million beasts .

The words of such a hero would ignite any soldier’s heart .

[Fourth corps, charge!]

Thus the fourth corps charged towards the horde of magic beasts like hungry wolves .

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The monsters were slaughtered one after another . The murky water of the swamp was dyed red with their blood .

Grants soldiers had experienced fighting against larger numbers and varying kinds of monsters . These aquatic beasts were nothing much for them .
On the contrary… they’re enjoying this subjugation .

It’s because…they realized the advantages of this tactic they’ve trained in for a while .
The Trinity formation was originally devised for use in Schwarzer territory which often got attacked by magic beasts .
Organizing a group of three and fighting together back to back . While one fights, the other two guard the other directions . Then they switch positions as needed while pushing forward .
All three will work together to finish their opponent .
It’s very effective against monsters that attack from random directions .

[Okay, they’re doing well . ]

[Without having to worry about their backs, they could focus on what’s standing before them . This is a good tactic . ]

The Grants soldiers held their ground .

[Their cooperation could still use some more work… but Iexpected nothing less from Grants soldier, hm?]

[This is surprising . I would be able to fight with ease this way . This tactic is great . ]

[The Grants soldiers are already strong . Once we strengthened their tactical and collaborative skills, they will be a force to be reckoned with . They’ll realize the importance of tactics from this battle . ]

Ares had a little talk with Roland as the two watched the battle unfolded . The swarm of aquatic monsters began to thin out . And seeing this… the rock turtle finally made a move .

[Oh, the big guy has decided to move at last… well then, time to crush it once and for all . I’m sorry, but can you pull the soldiers out?]

[Yes sir! As you command!]

Roland immediately gave instructions and rang the retreat signal . In response, the soldiers also steadily retreated . Meanwhile, Ares got off from atop Saint and walked towards the Rock Turtle alone .

[This swamp…it’s really hard to walk on . I really should end this soon . ]

Having said so, Ares pulled out the Oldeus of the Seven Heavenly Swords, and launched an invisible slash at the rock turtle .

But his attack was met with a hard rebound . The rock turtle sh.e.l.l was so thick that Ares’ attack merely left a scratch on the surface .

[Hmm… . ]

Ares squinted his eyes after seeing the result of his first attack .

The rock turtle in turn opened its maw and aimed it toward Ares . A swirl of shining magic power could be seen from its open mouth .

Seeing the situation, Ares felt something odd . He turned around and realized .

[What!? This is bad!]

Behind him were the fourth corps . It’s crystal clear to Ares that the giant turtle would cause immense damage to the soldiers should it release its breath weapon .

Ares hastily began casting a spell . Several magic diagrams appeared before him, and right then .

Goooooooo!

That noise meant that the giant turtle had released the immense magic power it has been acc.u.mulating in its mouth .

Ares directed the magic circles to his front and…

[Counter Spell!]

The immense magic power was instantly reflected toward the giant turtle upon making contact with his magic diagram .

[That is it, the『Non-elemental』magic, Counter Spell… with it I can reflect magic back unto its caster, but… is it enough?]

He couldn’t see how the turtle’s faring due to the rising dust . So Ares relied on his hearing instead… and frowned .

[It doesn’t budge at all… certainly, it’s more troublesome than a regular dragon . ]

Once the dust settled, he could see that the turtle had remained intact . Seeing this, Ares decided to change his approach .
First, he retracted Oldeus and held the Seven Heavenly Sword handle tightly .

[Such an amazing defense… but then, I’ll just have to attack it with strength strong enough to overwhelm it . ]

Ares strengthened his body with both magic power and fighting spirit . The silver aura of the『Magic Sword Style』enveloped his body .

Then he called out its name .

[Magic Sword Gram!]

Responding to Ares’ voice, a black sword with swirling red aura appeared in his hand .

[Well then… let’s see if you can endure this one!]

Ares rushed towards the giant turtle with great momentum . The turtle tried to fight back with its claws and maw… but its retaliation was nothing against Ares’ greatly improved parameters .

Ares advanced toward the turtle’s head, avoiding a claw strike in the process .

[Now…let’s put an end to this once and for all!]

He jumped over the head and slashed the magic sword Gram in a flash .

Zugagagagagagagagagagagaa!!!!

Following that slash, the turtle roared, before being promptly split into two .
And at that moment…

A mysterious sight unfolded before everyone’s eyes .

The torn part of the giant turtle started to glow in a bluish light .

[This is… I can sense the magic power of my kin!]

Aquarius, who was watching from a distance, rushed to the corpse of the giant rock turtle .

[Fuu . ]

As Ares took a breather, Roland came over to him .

[That was splendid . Ares-sama . ]

[Yeah, I guess I managed to finish it somehow, didn’t I?]

[Somehow…is it? That sounds easier said than done for the likes of us… no… the fact that you fought in a duel against my elder brother is… could it be…?]

[It’s not the time to worry about little things like that, Roland . The aquatic beasts still remain . We need to sweep them off cleanly . ]

Roland snapped out from his amazed state after seeing such an incredible sight .

[Yes! Pardon me, milord . I’m heading back to the soldiers now!]

He immediately gave an order to all soldiers .

[The rock turtle has been slain . Now it’s time to eliminate the rest of them! Let’s go!]

[ [ [ [ [Haaaa!] ] ] ] ]

The soldiers were all excited after seeing Ares’ fight . Their morale was sky high .

After watching the situation with satisfaction, Ares turned around to check the turtle…and was surprised .

[A lot of water spirits came out from its corpse… what is going on?]

The reason why the corpse was shining blue… was because the water spirits overflowed from its body .

[Oi! Ares!!]

Ares noticed that Aquarius was waving at him from under the turtle’s sh.e.l.l .

[Aquarius? What is going on?]

[Thanks to you, everyone is saved! Thank you!]

Aquarius then continued on excitedly .

[Sednsama said that she wants to meet you, Ares! Come quick!]

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The fourth corps managed to annihilate the remaining aquatic beasts .
Although there were some injured… they got through without any casualties .

[This many beasts… we can turn it into materials . Let’s send them to the guild later . ]

Hearing Roland’s report, Ares nodded .

[This many magic beast materials should sell for a fairly high price, right? We can reorganize the money to help with the development . At this point, we could use all the funding we could get our hands on after all . ]

Having said that and chuckled in satisfaction, Ares turned his attention sideways .

[Well then… let’s get to the point . Aquarius and also… Sedndono]

[Please just call me Sedna, Ares-sama . ]

Sedna said as she bowed .

[Thank you for tearing that beast apart so that we could get out from its belly… what could we do to as our grat.i.tude for your help…?]

Aquarius thought that the turtle had eaten the water spirits… but in reality, they were still alive inside its belly . However, they were weakened because their magic power was continuously absorbed .

[We should regain our power back once we reach clean water… I… I was prepared for the worst while I was inside the stomach of that beast . What’s with our magic power being drained continuously… even us, might eventually meet our end . You are truly our benefactor . ]

Sedna then gave Ares a look .

[I’ve heard from Aquarius . You want to forge a contract with the water spirit… in that case, this Sedna, as the head of water spirit in this region, will be the one to forge the contract with you . ]

[What!? Sednsama will do it!?]

Ignoring Aquarius, Sedna continued on without breaking eye contact .

[If I make a contract with you…wouldn’t that be the same as having forged contracts with all of the water spirit residing in this area? Am I correct?]

Ares could only nodded in agreement .

[I can’t ask for anything better . Let’s work together from now on . ]

Saying so, Ares raised his hand to Sedna’s forehead .
At that moment, Sedna showed a puzzled look .

[Ah? Could Milord… has forged similar contract with many other spirits before?]

[You can tell?]

[Yes… it’s evident from that many marks on your arm… Oh? You are also in contract with the water spirit Quara?]

[Yes, she’s managing the water circulation on the Schwarzer territory now, you know?]

[Quara is my sister . It seems that she had found a good master…]

Sedna smiled pleasantly .
With that, Ares began the chant .

[I, Ares Schwarzer has decreed . You body will belong to me . My will shall become your will . You, the water spirit undine, Sedna . ]

A dazzling light wrapped both Ares and Sedna .

[Uhhyaa, what is that!?]

Aquarius and the other water spirit was perplexed by the scene .

Sedna smiled and informed all of them .

[Since all of you are under my ward, this will be the same as him having contracted to all of you at the same time . ]

[That kind of thingーー! No wayーー!]

Aquarius screamed, but the light only grew brighter… until it gradually died down later on .

[The contract has been forged . Come, water spirit undine Sedna . ]

[Until your life is at its end, this water spirit is at your command, Master . ]

And thus, Ares managed to forge a pact with the water spirits of Grants and secured a source of clean water for the waterway development .