Chapter 156 - Chapter 155: I Don't Want That Kind of Nickname
Mika saw the enemy knights running toward the hill.
Ten of them in total.
On our side, it was Mika and Noslantos, plus two other knights.
"What are we going to do about this...?"
Mika looked at Noslantos.
But Noslantos was silent with a panicked expression.
He couldn't seem to gather his thoughts.
The other two knights were much the same.
(Hmm... I guess I have to ask for Noslantos's orders here.)
Mika was panicked for a moment, but in a way, this was the situation he had wished for.
(If I think of it as finally being able to join a Saba-game, it's not a bad situation, yeah.)
Whether winning or losing, it was ultimately just a drill (asobi).
He had become sleepy from basking in the sun, but it was time to get serious.
Mika slapped both cheeks hard to wake himself up.
At that sound, Noslantos jumped.
"I-I will protect Mika-kun. I'll take the direct cover position, so you two block in front."
At Noslantos's order, the two nodded.
(No, no, no. We can't protect him no matter what, not with this number difference.)
In simple addition and subtraction, ten enemies minus three allies leaves seven remaining.
It would mean Mika has to somehow handle those seven.
But combat is not that simple.
For every one of us, they can fight with three or four people.
So what happens then?
Our three could be wiped out one-sidedly, leaving all ten enemies intact, forcing Mika to face them all alone.
That kind of thing happens often enough.
(Well, I don't mind that either.)
He had faced one-versus-many situations against magic beasts many times.
Sorry, Noslantos, but Mika was starting to get a bit excited.
As Mika began waving his arms around to loosen his body, doing the radio calisthenics, Noslantos and the others made strange faces.
"Um... what is that?"
"I'm just loosening my body, so please don't worry about it."
Mika looked toward the enemy knights.
They were just about to reach the top of the hill.
It seemed the ally knight who had run over as a messenger had been dealt with in an instant.
In terms of distance, it must be under a hundred meters now.
"Well then, shall I throw one shot?"
When Mika said it brightly, Noslantos looked at him with a surprised face.
"Great God of Fire, source of the spark of creation. All-encompassing, your great power."
"Mika-kun! If you use it here!"
Even if they could break through this situation, they might not be able to destroy the crystal due to insufficient uses.
He was probably worried about that.
(That has nothing to do with me. Noslantos-san.)
Mika estimated the distance, timing for the enemy knights to enter the range of the [Explosive Flame] fifty meters away.
He slowed down the speed of his incantation to match the timing.
As expected, the enemy knights were not fools, so they scattered while wary of the [God's Miracle].
It wouldn't be a total wipeout in one shot.
"————Gather, Extreme, Violent, Explosion. Flame (en)!"
Once the incantation was complete, a red circular light suddenly appeared in the middle of the hill.
And then, it flashed brightly for just a moment.
"Guh!?"
Noslantos groaned from the brightness.
Unfortunately, it seemed only three enemy knights had been caught in the range.
If he had aimed better, he could have caught one more.
Failure, failure.
"They're coming!"
Someone shouted.
Mika deployed a ten-meter magic range.
"Uoooooooonnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn......"
Shouting angry roars, the ally and enemy knights clashed violently.
Three allies on our side, seven enemies. Excluding Mika, of course.
The numbers were still heavily unfavorable.
The ally knights had to face two opponents each, so they were pushed back immediately.
But in that gap, Mika circled around to the side and rear of the opponent Noslantos was fighting, and slashed with a [Short Sword].
Kan! Kan!
"What!?"
"Eh!?"
"Mika-kun!?"
It seemed the enemy knights were surprised, thinking a mage like Mika wouldn't participate in combat.
By the way, the rule for sword attacks was that hitting the armor counted as a hit.
It wasn't about being protected by armor, but rather about receiving or dodging.
It seems that in drills, getting lucky because of the armor doesn't count.
By the time Mika took down two, one of the ally knights had also been taken down.
Now it was two allies against five enemies.
"Next up!"
"Mika-kun, it's dangerous! Fall back!"
Noslantos told Mika to fall back as he was brimming with energy.
Well, mages don't wear armor anyway.
But even Noslantos was soon approached by an enemy.
And this time, one came for Mika as well.
At first, the enemies focused only on the three knights, not thinking Mika would join the fight, but since defeating Mika would end the drill in a draw, they had come to take him out quickly.
"Will you surrender?"
The enemy knight who came to Mika pointed his sword while speaking.
Normally, one would declare surrender in this situation.
"Eh, I'm not done playing yet?"
"...I'm saying this because I don't want to hurt you. Will you surrender?"
"No."
He turned his head away with a pout.
Seeing Mika's demeanor, the enemy knight let out a sigh.
"Well then, I guess I have no choice. It's going to hurt a bit."
Saying that, he lightly swung his sword.
He probably intended to strike from the side.
But at that moment, Mika quickly slipped past the knight's side and pressed a [Short Sword] against his back.
Since he was deploying a magic range, even with his back turned, his movements were completely visible.
Kan!
With a dry sound, the knight's bracelet flashed brightly.
It was a bracelet that judged when a knight had been "taken down".
It seemed to be a magical tool that reacted to sword attacks.
"What!?"
"Ahaha, sorry. Please play properly next time."
Saying that, Mika headed to aid his allies.
However, Mika's aid came too late.
Noslantos had taken down one, but was taken down by another.
The other ally knight had held out for a bit but seemed to have been taken down as well.
Now, only Mika and three enemy knights remained.
(It's become the usual one-versus-many formation.)
Even though it was a Saba-game, he was left alone.
(I didn't have much experience with group-versus-group combat, did I?)
It seemed he needed to learn how to keep his allies alive and make better use of them.
As expected, when doing something new, there are new things to realize.
(If I used [Physical Enhancement], this situation would be a breeze.)
But that would make no difference from his usual battles against magic beasts.
He would use perception via magic range, but his physical abilities could remain raw.
The corner of Mika's mouth rose.
Even though it was just a game, he felt his blood boiling.
"Alright, that's enough."
"We can't afford to lose. Getting zero points hurts too much."
Three knights surrounded Mika, pointing their swords.
At the Knight Academy, it seemed they held a league match where team members were rotated every certain period, and points were earned based on the win or loss of the drills.
At the Magic Academy, the focus was simply on how many [God's Miracle] techniques could be mastered, but at the Knight Academy, the results of this league match greatly influenced evaluations.
The most important evaluation point was whether one could manifest [Physical Enhancement], but only a very small number of people could manifest it in the first place.
For most knights, this drill seemed very important.
Individual strength was necessary, but the most important thing was to win no matter what members you were paired with, and survive on top of that.
By the way, Noslantos had taught him all of this while basking in the sun.
"I gave you a warning to surrender, didn't I? You won't do it?"
The knight standing in front of Mika asked.
"I won't."
"I see."
At the same time the front knight nodded, the knight at the rear diagonal slashed at him.
Mika dodged it with a side step without even looking back.
The knights' faces showed surprise for a moment, but quickly turned serious.
"It seems he's not just some kid... There must be a reason for throwing him directly into the Upper Division drills."
The knight who seemed to be the leader quickly glanced at the other two knights.
The tension was getting quite good.
(...But, I really hate being surrounded.)
No matter how much the magic range reveals their movements, being surrounded wears down the nerves.
The mental exhaustion is severe.
(But they won't let me break through easily either.)
Maintaining the encirclement is important.
Just that can exhaust the opponent.
The one in front constantly harasses, while the one at the rear diagonal delivers the main attack.
Even if they don't deal a fatal blow in one hit, they can chip away at him little by little.
For the one being surrounded, the outcome is understood without even thinking, so it's not a pleasant situation.
So, matching the harassment from the front, he retreated warily.
Moving slightly toward the knight at the rear left diagonal.
The knight Mika approached launched an attack in sync with the front's harassment.
Dodging the sword (sword) that was swung down, Mika spun around in a circle.
At that moment, he slashed his side with a [Short Sword].
Kan!
"Ah!?"
With a dry sound, the knight's bracelet reacted.
Two remained.
The two knights widened their eyes in shock.
"He dodged that...?"
"He slashed while dodging!? Is this guy really a mage?"
It was an advantageous situation for Mika if they were dazzled by the title of Mage.
Unfortunately, Mika's true nature was that of an adventurer.
(If you get careless thinking I can't do much in close combat, you're the one who will get eaten, right?)
When Mika grinned with a fearless smile, the knight who seemed to be the leader looked startled.
Then, he stretched his body once before firmly readjusting his grip on his sword (sword).
The leader sent a brief glance to the other knight.
"Don't try to force a move. I'll do it."
He said it as if whispering while staring at Mika.
Finally, the leader seemed to be getting serious.
The other knight moved to take Mika's rear, but Mika moved to prevent it.
It seemed he wouldn't make a move directly, but intended to disrupt Mika's concentration with positioning.
(Ugh, don't play such nasty tricks.)
It was a boringly nasty tactic.
He was told not to force a move, but if there was an obvious opening, he would probably attack anyway.
(...Well then, let's try to lure him.)
So, he pretended to trip.
"Ah!?"
At the exact moment when a knight had come to Mika's direct rear, he intentionally lost his balance.
Pretending to have twisted his ankle, he put his knees and hands on the ground.
"Haaaaaaahhhhhhhh......"
"Idiot!"
The leader in front probably realized Mika had tripped on purpose.
But the knight behind had already stepped forward.
Mika was already small, and now he was falling further.
The knight launched a low, sweeping slash as if brushing the ground.
Mika suddenly released the tension in his knees and jumped over the sword, slipping past the knight's side while brushing his body.
Kaan!
A strong sound of armor rang out, and the lamp on the knight's bracelet lit up.
One remained.
The knight who had been taken down turned to look at Mika, standing frozen with an expression of disbelief.
"Oshi! One down! One down!"
Mika spun his shoulders around.
The leader knight twisted his face in frustration.
"............Are you really a mage?"
He asked while remaining wary and pointing his sword.
"It's troubling if you doubt that."
Mika gave a bitter smile.
"...This is your first time in a drill, isn't it?"
"Yes."
"But it's not your first time facing a sword, is it?"
It seemed he finally realized that.
"Yes. I do it quite often. Specifically, about once a week."
"Once a week...?"
Mika's answer left him with an expression of dissatisfaction.
"...I feel like you're more used to it?"
"Even if you say that, I only practice once a week."
Well, I do have about four years of actual combat experience against magic beasts.
The once-a-week practice is against professional knights or swordsmanship students? Chicks?
The leader seemed to sense something from Mika, who remained calm even with a sword pointed at him.
He did not carelessly close the distance.
He just stared at Mika as if glaring.
"Well then, let's settle this soon."
When Mika smiled brightly, the leader became fully wary and raised his sword.
Mika lightly pointed his [Short Sword] while slowly changing position.
A suffocatingly tense atmosphere flowed.
The knights who had already been taken down moved slightly apart so as not to interfere with the two, watching the outcome of the battle.
Mika slowly, slowly, showed movements as if circling around.
The leader remained wary, seemingly waiting for Mika to attack.
And then, the positional relationship between the two switched.
Mika was on the lower side of the hill, and the leader was on the upper side.
Everyone present held their breath at Mika, who deliberately gave up the advantage of height.
What is he planning to do?
That was the question everyone present held.
And then, that moment came.
Mika turned his back to the leader and started running down the hill at full speed with a pyuuuu sound.
"......Hah?"
For a moment, everyone present couldn't understand what had happened.
'Shall we settle this?'
The moment they understood the meaning of those words, the leader began chasing Mika fiercely.
"You damn brat!"
Settlement.
It wasn't a settlement between Mika and the leader.
It was the settlement of this drill.
Mika had gone to destroy the crystal at the enemy base, which was now unmanned.
"Wait! You bastard, don't mess with me!"
The leader chased Mika while shouting, but there was no sign of him stopping.
And thus, he eventually ran into the forest.
Due to the difference in physique, the leader's stride (stride) was far larger.
In terms of pure running speed, Mika wouldn't lose.
But the knights were wearing armor.
And they were holding swords (sword).
Because of that, it was a difficult situation to close the gap.
"Damn it! I lost sight of him!"
The leader ran into the forest at full speed, cursing while desperately chasing Mika.
He ran desperately while dodging trees, reaching a place where he would soon exit the forest.
The leader ran while praying they would make it in time.
At that moment, the surroundings glowed red.
"Eh!?"
Startled by the brightness, he stumbled and stopped.
Slowly raising his arm, the "Bracelet of Conversion Light Detection" was reacting.
From the bushes where he was hiding, Mika watched the leader standing frozen, staring blankly at his "Bracelet of Conversion Light Detection".
Mika waved his hand lightly in an "Adieu" and headed for the enemy base.
"Well, I could have taken you seriously."
Honestly, there didn't seem to be much to gain from fighting a knight one-on-one.
Compared to Basal or the knights of the Fifth Knights Order, it was quite unsatisfying.
"If I don't set some kind of challenge for myself, it seems meaningless."
For Mika, simply winning the drill wasn't enough.
Of course, he had no intention of slacking off, and if he was going to do it, he would go for a win, but he wanted "something" else.
Like having a mage other than himself destroy the enemy base.
To achieve this condition, it was an absolute requirement that mages other than Mika survive.
So, he needed to act in a way that would make that happen.
He had to think of rules to enjoy this as a Saba-game.
"Well, I'll think about it later. I had a decent time today."
He was surprised to be thrown directly into the Upper Division in his first drill, but as a result, it was good.
He couldn't help but think, "Just tell me beforehand."
"Alright, is this a good spot?"
Stopping fifty meters before the enemy base, Mika chanted the incantation for [Explosive Flame].
And when he manifested the "Conversion Light" three times,
Piririririiiiiii!
A whistle sounded.
Then, several whistle sounds could be heard from the distance.
This was probably notifying all members who were conducting drills in this forest area that the settlement had been reached.
"Well, a win is a win. Not bad for a first time, right?"
Such were Mika's thoughts.
■■■■■■
It was later revealed that the victory condition of "one mage remaining, with all others on both sides defeated" was a rare occurrence that hadn't happened in thirty-odd years.
The details of the previous occasion were not clear.
Mika, left alone, had defeated three knights simultaneously.
And, he had defeated five knights with his short sword, and four with [God's Miracle].
The fact that Mika, still in the intermediate division, had defeated nine from the advanced division in his first drill spread rapidly through the Mage Academy and the Knight Academy.
Everyone else wiped out... that's a classic trait of characters with the nickname 'Grim Reaper.'
He already had the grandiose epithet "Dispeller."
Mika wished that no further unnecessary nicknames would be attached to him.