DAY 61
It was the first time I had been hunting with Gobkichi in a while.
We caught sight of 12 armed human soldiers.
Gobkichi, we're changing course! After them!
Right!
We followed them, and found them hiding on the side of a road, concealed.
A little bit of eavesdropping and...
It turns out they're here to kidnap the daughter of the elvish chieftain.
They're targeting her on the way home from some sort of festival.
I also learned that someone among the elves had tipped them off.
About two hours after sunset...
There.
So, that's the chief's daughter.
Elves are generally pretty attractive all around, but she's a cut above.
Target confirmed! Attack!
Target confirmed! Attack! - Well, I'd feel kinda bad just abandoning her, so...
Well, I'd feel kinda bad just abandoning her, so...
Gobkichi, aren't they heavy?
Not even a little!
We'll have to pray the others rest in peace.
DAY 62
DAY 62 - So, regarding the 12 humans we took prisoner...
Okay, I'll talk!
Okay, I'll talk! - It seems that the human army will make their move within 20 days.
It seems that the human army will make their move within 20 days. - I'll talk, so
don't kill me!
I took the abilities from all 12 of them, and didn't leave any leftovers.
I took the abilities from all 12 of them, and didn't leave any leftovers. -
Secret Force, Vorpal Punisher, Hermit...
I took the abilities from all 12 of them, and didn't leave any leftovers. -
Sense Trap, Sense Enemy, Humanbane,
Vorpal Strike, Aura Slash, Back Attack, Needleshot, Throw, Severe Pain Resistance,
Charm Resistance, Assassination Resistance.
Finally awake, huh?
Those wings... The other elves don't have anything like those.
Wh-Where in the world am I?
What happened to my guards? Did they—
Settle down.
Are you going to rob me of my chastity?!
I don't even wanna dignify that with a response.
Forgive me for losing my composure.
When the timing was right, I told her how things had gone down.
I'VE PREPARED [SPECIAL MEDICINAL TEA] - When the timing was right, I told her how
things had gone down.
That's terrible! Couldn't you have saved the others?
Keeping quiet and just letting it play out... How could you do something so awful?!
Keeping quiet and just letting it play out... How could you do something so
awful?! - That's a fair response, I guess.
Keeping quiet and just letting it play out... How could you do something so awful?!
You are so, so mean!
Listen, this beef between you and the humans is none of our business.
Besides, there's a traitor among your people.
If you've got time to freak out,
maybe you should worry about dealing with that instead.
Rest up for today. I'll send you home tomorrow.
Now, what's this I hear about a fine piece of elf?
Can I get a taste?
Hell no, you can't!
You're no fun at all!
DAY 63
DAY 63 - Today, we left the village to see her home.
So, what's up with those wings that were coming out of your back?
Those... are something only high elves have.
We normally hide them inside of our bodies.
High elves are what happen when elves rank up, and the wings allow them to fly.
They're usually not meant to be shown to others,
but because I'm still so inexperienced, they pop out sometimes...
And so, after three hours of walking,
we arrived at the elf village, but...
Over 25 of them, with mythril arrowheads.
Ogres like us should be able to survive a couple dozen shots.
Please wait! They saved my life!
It was touch-and-go for a while, but we were allowed to enter the village.
Father!
Forgive me for worrying you.
You needn't apologize. I'm glad to see you've returned safely.
You have my deepest gratitude for saving my daughter.
I am the chief of this village.
So, getting right to business...
I didn't rescue your girl purely out of good will.
A reward, then?
Hey. Bring it here.
Very good, sir.
I'm letting him display what his kid means to him.
It'll be a good chance to get a grasp on his judgment.
This is the Failnot.
BOW OF ABSOLUTE ACCURACY [RELIC OF LOST GODS] [ANCIENT] CLASS - This is the Failnot.
BOW OF ABSOLUTE ACCURACY [RELIC OF LOST GODS] [ANCIENT] CLASS - A family treasure
of ours, and a magical item.
BOW OF ABSOLUTE ACCURACY [RELIC OF LOST GODS] [ANCIENT] CLASS
BOW OF ABSOLUTE ACCURACY [RELIC OF LOST GODS] [ANCIENT] CLASS - Father?!
You've returned to me in one piece. That is worth nothing less.
I apologize for testing you.
To make up for it, I have some information that you'll likely find useful.
And what is that?
The movements of the human army, for instance.
I believe we will be fast friends.
The elven father gave us a ton of mythril equipment.
In return, I provided him with spirit stone knives and magical item shovels,
sealing our deal.
I hope you don't mind me asking,
but a group of our elite fighters has been missing for nearly 20 days...
Have you heard anything?
Nah, sure haven't!
On the way back, they even had going-away presents for us.
These are medicines and fine liquor made in our village.
I hope you'll enjoy them.
If you need help, give us a call! You get the friend discount!
Damn, that's good!
How is the flavor so rich but so crisp?!
That's another reason to get along with the elf chieftain.
DAY 64
Hey, Gobmi... it's morning. Rise and shine.
She had ranked up into a dhampir variant during the night.
Not just her, either. We've got eight new hobgoblins.
Don't take those glasses off unless it's around an enemy, Gobmi.
Right, I know.
According to her, a blessing from the God of Ice
[GLASSES OF EVIL EYE SEALING] - According to her, a blessing from the God of Ice
[MIST DRESS OF THE UNDEAD QUEEN] [GLASSES OF EVIL EYE SEALING] - has given her the
ability to create
[MIST DRESS OF THE UNDEAD QUEEN] [GLASSES OF EVIL EYE SEALING] - and manipulate
large amounts of ice.
[MIST DRESS OF THE UNDEAD QUEEN] [GLASSES OF EVIL EYE SEALING]
[MIST DRESS OF THE UNDEAD QUEEN] [GLASSES OF EVIL EYE SEALING] - Her evil eyes ability
[GLASSES OF EVIL EYE SEALING] - can charm enemies into fighting amongst themselves,
can charm enemies into fighting amongst themselves,
and the usual weakness she'd have to sunlight is offset by the blessing she's received.
Although...
Her appearance... is familiar to me, for some reason.
Is something wrong?
Nah. Just amazed by how you look.
Oh, you!
Here I am!
[WAR PICK OF MOTHER EARTH] [SHOVEL OF MOTHER EARTH] - Gobe had evolved into a
half-earth lord.
Earth lords have the ability to manipulate the ground.
She can pinpoint weak points in bedrock with geological assessment...
as well as an ability to make her body stronger,
and lightning magic for detecting gems.
Get a load of me, Sei!
MAGIC SWORD: [BLOODY EMPRESS] - Get a load of me, Sei!
MAGIC SWORD: [BLOODY EMPRESS] - And Hobsato had evolved into a half-bloody lord.
Their distinguishing feature is being able to control blood and make it into weapons.
I have to wonder, though...
The locations and shapes are all different,
but they've all got tattoos similar to mine.
They say the tattoos seem to give them power, so I hope to figure that out, in time.
Have you all evolved again?!
Looks like you'll be needing new names, then!
Hobsei will be Spellsei, Gobmi will be Dhami,
Hobsato is now Bloodsato, and Gobe is now Earthe.
Hobsato is now Bloodsato, and Gobe is now Earthe. - Yeah!
Hobsato is now Bloodsato, and Gobe is now Earthe.
Gobkichi will be Ogrekichi, Gobji will be Hobji,
Gobkichi will be Ogrekichi, Gobji will be Hobji, - Well, I guess all that matters is...
Well, I guess all that matters is that we can tell each other apart... - and
Gobrou is Ogrou!
Well, I guess all that matters is that we can tell each other apart...
This is how things look in terms of how powerful the different races are.
Once their war with the humans starts, the elves will turn to us for help.
And the more assets we have, the more tactical options will be at our disposal
That being the case, I gave out a new set of communication earrings.
Except...
We can't! We just can't put them on.
It's extremely taboo for elves to decorate or let their ears be harmed.
So be it.
I took my time relieving the elves of that pretense.
With the addition of the kobolds and elves who now have earrings,
there were many more participants in our daily training today.
Later on, we had practical combat sparring.
The opponents were some skeletons I created
with the Summon Lower Undead ability I obtained the other day...
with dark bones, instead of bleached ones, and heavy-duty equipment.
The more armor a skeleton has, the higher quality it tends to be.
Even the elves, with mythril weapons that are effective against undead,
lost most of their sparring matches...
But even the losers looked like they accepted the outcome.
Building trust the natural way really works best, after all.
DAY 65
BLACK SKELETON AXE-WIELDER - If I use less mana, I'm able to create regular
skeletons, zombies, and other undead.
If I use less mana, I'm able to create regular skeletons, zombies, and other undead.
I wondered what they tasted like...
But it turns out you can't eat ghosts due to their lack of a physical form.
The various undead made good opponents for practice and earning experience,
but they're purified in just a few dozen seconds in daylight.
Not being able to use them during the day is a drag.
For now, I'm focusing on training the elves and kobolds.
After all, this village is currently bursting at the seams with over 100 members,
and the kobolds are in a pretty low position.
At this rate, things'll become hard for them... - Mind if I grab this spent zombie?
The only way to get past that is for them to work hard to get stronger.
The only way to get past that is for them to work hard to get stronger. - Isn't
eating all that rotten meat bad for you?
Rotten meat is the best meat.
DAY 66
DAY 66 - Today, I headed to the caves where the kobolds live.
After grabbing their belongings, I let Earthe take over.
Hell yeah!
That should ensure no more skeletons show up.
And there was one other thing...
I had the kobolds practice group hunting.
The idea was to increase our number of black wolf familiars,
but they proved to move far better than I expected,
letting us collect a total of 20.
There were no pack leaders in that number,
but the additional wolves should prove useful as familiars.
And along the way, we encountered a stamp boar, which are said to be as hard as stone.
How am I supposed to keep quiet after hearing that?!
Sorry about that!
Sorry about that! - It went into a pot and became stew that evening.
Awesome!
I found the upgraded form of the axe I had damaged fighting the red bear.
I found the upgraded form of the axe I had damaged fighting the red bear. - So,
in terms of improvements...
I found the upgraded form of the axe I had damaged fighting the red bear.
Nearly the entire thing had been modified
with an alloy of spirit stone, iron, and mythril.
I worked hard on it!
I'm genuinely impressed.
Since when have you been able to make something like this?
Well, you see...
By becoming experienced with the handling of spirit stone,
the smith was able to rank up into an elemental smith.
DAY 67
DAY 67 - Another day, another kobold hunt. I found myself hunting stamp boars.
So, what did you want to talk about?
Just... promise not to laugh, Ogrou.
The truth is, I've always had a crush on Earthe...
I know this might seem kinda sudden.
Nah, I kinda figured.
I mean, you're not exactly subtle, Ogrekichi.
I-I'm not?
Nah.
Since becoming a half-earth lord, Earthe's gotten even prettier...
A-And seeing her like that, I just can't hold back anymore...
But I don't know what to say to her!
C-C-Can you help me?! Please! - Right now, I've got this toasty feeling in my heart.
Ogrou!
And so, tonight is the moment of truth!
T-Tonight?!
You'll be fine!
And if not, the sooner you get it out of the way, the less damaging it'll be.
Just let me know how it goes tomorrow.
What's this all about, Kichi?
I-I...
I want us to be happy... together!
The truth is, Kichi... I...
DAY 68
He nailed me good a few times.
I'm feeling really light on my feet today!
And stronger than ever before!
It's all thanks to you, Ogrou!
Well, I'm glad I could help.
Looks like his confession last night went well.
Earthe had actually talked to Dhami about it yesterday...
So, between the two of us, we set the stage for them.
I'm just hoping Ogrekichi didn't get too excited and leave Earthe hobbled...
Ogrou!
All done training?
Looks like I had nothing to worry about.
He's been so strong and full of energy that I had a black skeleton take over.
Sorry about that!
After training, our usual quartet went out hunting.
There were a lot of insect monsters I had never seen before,
which made it great for gathering hard, armored materials.
Molt. Grow Elytron. End Edge. Silent Kill. Horn Blow. Dissonance. Parasitic.
Jump Strength Up. Resilience. Exoskeleton Shell. Wrought Iron Shell Armor.
Rising Battle Instincts. Weakness to Cold.
An exoskeleton, huh?
Let's try it out.
I look like one of those transforming superheroes...
It's as durable as you'd expect,
and it has the ability to repair itself and disperse impacts as well.
Not sure I like how conspicuous it is, though.
You think? I think it looks cool.
Besides, I like my usual outfit...
Looks like my normal clothes were used to create the exoskeleton.
Man, I really liked that outfit. It was made from the red bear's pelt...
ABILITY [EXOSKELETON SHELL] [RED BEAR BEAST KING'S PRESTIGE] HAS BEEN REGISTERED.
>YOU CAN REGISTER FOUR ADDITIONAL FORMS. WHICH WILL YOU EQUIP?
I see. I kinda wanna register forms for aerial and sea battles, too...
With Grow Elytron, I can sprout insect wings. - He can fly!
With Grow Elytron, I can sprout insect wings. - That's awesome, Ogrou!
With Grow Elytron, I can sprout insect wings.
It's not easy, though. Gonna need to practice.
He fell!
Nice one, Ogrou!
I took the stamp boar meat back, and we all ate it together.
The day turned out to be really productive.
YOU HAVE LEARNED THE ABILITY: [RAMPAGE] - Rampage. Tail Attack.
YOU HAVE LEARNED THE ABILITY: [TAIL ATTACK] - Rampage. Tail Attack.
DAY 69
DAY 69 - How long has it been since it last rained?
Oh, well. Guess I'll spend the day crafting.
Oh, Ogrou! Come on and spar with me!
The short-haired redhead has been making steady progress,
which has led her to ask for training lately.
She's gone from reminding me of a puppy or a smaller dog
to feeling more like a Doberman.
And so I started the morning sparring with her.
After working up a sweat, I headed to the blacksmith.
Lately, she's been visiting the elves and discussing new weapon ideas with them.
Hey, more mythril! That'll be a big help.
Oh, no, it's all part of our studies.
Oh, no, it's all part of our studies. - By the way, their names are Kirue and Arue.
By the way, their names are Kirue and Arue.
Mythril has to be turned into an amalgam before being processed.
The spirit stone alloy used in my halberd is also a type of amalgam.
She's working on developing a repeating crossbow,
and things are looking so good that I asked her to move on to manufacturing.
Could you use this to whip me up another weapon?
Could you use this to whip me up another weapon? - I also provided her with some
more amalgam.
I also provided her with some more amalgam. - I'm counting on you.
I'm counting on you.
I'll take care of it!
That evening, I helped out our chef sisters.
Can I get a soup plate?
Can I get a soup plate? - It turns out, they've both obtained a new job too: head cook.
It turns out, they've both obtained a new job too: head cook.
It turns out, they've both obtained a new job too: head cook. - How's that food
arrangement going?
It turns out, they've both obtained a new job too: head cook.
After dinner, I had them try to recreate dishes from my past life.
After dinner, I had them try to recreate dishes from my past life. - Wow! It's so crunchy!
Wow! It's so crunchy!
Like potato chips and such.
I've never heard of most of these dishes, but they're really interesting!
The more complex they are, the more we can learn!
After that, I had a meeting with the alchemist about manufacturing magical items.
The black skeleton bones turned out to be very handy.
This bone nail has the ability to freeze whoever's struck with it in place.
It's the first thing I've produced since becoming an item creator.
Think of it as me, and take good care of it.
Her unusually playful attitude got to me.
And then...
There you go, sneaking around again!
As for what happened next...
I won't elaborate.
DAY 70
- Ogrou! Come quick!
Th-There are some strange elves at the entrance!
We're here on behalf of your friend, our chief.
They passed by their old comrades on the way in, but...
The earrings had a disguise effect that made them appear to be dark elves.
The human army is finally advancing on the Kudel Woods,
with a large force that we'll be unable to repel on our own.
I've come here to secure your assistance.
Well, whatever happened to your elite force?
W-We've been told to consider them dead.
I-I see...
Price is of no concern. Our chief wants the enemy to be eliminated completely.
However, the contract will be considered void in the event of a retreat.
I appreciate the warning and humbly accept the job.
But we're making our own moves.
Give this to your chief.
It will let him communicate with us.
I'll see to it.
If you'll excuse me.
Yes, information is always a crucial weapon.
I've got my creations canvassing the woods already.
"If you want peace, prepare for war," huh?
Gather the others.
It's time to put everything we've been working on to use.
Starting today, we're a mercenary company!
Wh-What do you mean?
Put simply, we're a professional force of fighters.
That sounds rad!
And what'll we be called?
Parabellum.
And now, Parabellum Mercenary Company, prepare for battle!
Parabellum!
Parabellum! Parabellum!
Parabellum!
Now... it's time for our first big job.
NEXT TIME: