So I'm a Snake, Who Cares?

A few days after Gunter and his knights and soldiers left for the expedition.

The Iron Lion Knights remaining in Greyrim completely sealed off the territory.

Although it was a great forest with one of the largest plains on the continent, excluding the 'prairie', the western border had very treacherous rocky areas and mountain ranges.

That treacherous area narrowed like a funnel, and above it lay fertile farmland - that was Greyrim.

In other words, if a horde of monsters were to pour out en masse, they would inevitably have to pass through the Greyrim territory.

There was no other reason why a domain was built in such a dangerous place.

It was planned as a fortress city from the very beginning when it was first pioneered.

Like the first tower that must fall if a monster wave starts from the great forest.

Therefore, the Greyrim domain 'was' a strategically very important place.

That's how it started, but monster waves never actually occurred.

There were only walls, and Greyrim gradually remained an ordinary domain.

Where slightly poor and somewhat pure people lived.

But not now.

This place, which had become like a ghost town with only a few elderly people, knights, and soldiers left.

It was always eerie, but today was a bit different.

Before dawn broke, a carriage opened the castle gate and went out.

The problem was that Rania Greyrim, the lord's daughter, was in that carriage.

The one guarding the dawn castle gate was not Gunter's knight or soldier.

It was a domain resident who originally lived in Greyrim, and moreover, a decrepit old man.

After his family left the domain, he volunteered to serve as a domain soldier.

The old man who sometimes roasted potatoes and shared them with the knights quietly opened the castle gate and let Rania out.

Knight Zain was grabbing the old man by the collar.

"I assume you're prepared to die."

Zain drew his sword.

He looked as if he would execute him on the spot, but there was no trace of fear in the old man's eyes.

"What glory would there be in prolonging this old life for a few more days..."

"Let's see if you can still say that while the sword is going in."

Zain pointed the sword at the old man's neck.

As the blade slightly penetrated the skin, droplets of blood flowed out.

The old man was about to say something but then firmly closed his mouth.

The experienced old man saw that Zain's eyes were trembling.

Zain's lips moved ever so slightly.

'Quickly kneel down and beg.'

It was advice conveyed through lip movements.

Behind Zain were his senior knights.

If Zain hadn't stepped forward, they would have beheaded the old man who abandoned his duty without hesitation.

The old man did not beg for forgiveness, and Zain also couldn't bring himself to swing his sword and remained still.

"Zain, put it down for a moment. Hey, old man."

A senior knight intervened nonchalantly.

"The carriage went northwest, right?"

"..."

"I'm just asking to confirm. We've already secured all the statements."

Then the knight whispered with another fellow knight.

"Then is it the Akinzurou Gorge?"

"Yeah, seems like she's going to Viscount Gerard."

"Well, this is quite troublesome..."

Zain looked at his seniors.

The seniors seemed a bit surprised but weren't angry or flustered.

"...Unlucky fellows. I wonder if the captain anticipated this too."

Though the meaning was unclear, that's what they muttered.

Zain chimed in at the right moment.

"I'll throw this old man in jail and interrogate him further."

"Huh? Yeah, do that."

The old man's death would be postponed for the time being.

I'm not sure if it was a meaningful action.

"We should pursue, right?"

'Is he asking me?' Zain thought for a moment.

"...Should we form a pursuit team? To Akinzurou Gorge."

"Yeah, we should. We can't just leave it be."

"Will you go too, senior?"

"No, you go. We need to guard this place."

In Zain's judgment, Rania's escape was a big deal.

Especially considering that she headed southwest, and that area was territory controlled by Viscount Gerard, Rania's maternal family.

But for some reason, the seniors were calm.

They even seemed indifferent, as if they already knew.

"Take a few soldiers with you. You should be able to catch up to a carriage quickly. They won't be able to drive fast in the gorge anyway."

However, the order given was clear.

"If capturing her is not feasible, you may kill her."

The senior patted Zain's shoulder.

"If it seems dangerous, save yourself at least. Run away quickly. You'll understand what I mean when you get there."

"...Yes, I understand."

Zain saluted.

While trying hard to hide his uneasy feelings.

==

Whoosh!

A huge flame spread in the middle of the great forest.

Fortunately, it hadn't rained for the past few days.

Thanks to oil and the mage's help, the fire was appropriately controlled.

It was as if the heavens were helping the kingdom.

"It's burning well."

The soldiers watched the flames with axes in hand.

They thought they would use swords or bows, but the most used tool was the axe.

The purpose was to control the fire by cutting and piling up trees.

As a result, instead of spreading in all directions, the flames drew a straight line.

A wall of flames was completed.

The shortest flame wall exceeded 1km.

"The mage is amazing... How can flames be this good."

"Shh."

One soldier made a gesture of covering his mouth with his finger.

There was an old man standing so close to the flames that his beard was almost singed.

He was a pyromancer named Ishen. A master of pyromancy even among the magic towers.

He controlled the flames, created wind, and made the largest fire in history.

Moreover, the flames did not spread sideways but only stretched out like a wall.

"Fall back! If you're done, fall back, unless you want to die!"

The decurions pulled the soldiers back.

They should follow that order.

No matter how brave the soldiers here are, once they're swept up in the monster wave, it's over.

All they could do was pray that the wall of flames would change the direction of the wave.

All of this was being commanded by one person.

The hero, Gunter Frihansen.

Two mages standing next to him at the center.

And knights were defending areas without flames.

"Master Alcandura, do you observe anything?"

The toothless mage was still looking through a cylinder he made with his hands.

"They're coming, they're coming. Hehe, to think I'd get the chance to control a monster wave right before my eyes in my lifetime."

"The distance?"

"About 2km. Extremely fast. The formation has become narrow and long. Ishen did well."

Gunter's first goal was to shape the monster wave.

It must not be a round shape that spreads out in all directions.

If so, no matter what barrier is made, they will push and break through each other.

This is because the madness spread by the monster wave attracts even nearby monsters, gradually increasing its size.

Therefore, to control its direction, it must be made into a long, narrow formation.

Like a snake crawling.

"Master Dezaka. Is the great magic being prepared?"

"I may not know much about politics, but,"

The handsome old mage asked Gunter.

"I know we can't leave the monster wave alone. It might ruin the country if it goes straight to the capital."

It was the magic tower that detected signs of the monster wave.

The king who heard the report was naturally shocked and.

He gave a secret order to the hero Gunter, who was on the royal faction because of his commoner origins, not the noble faction.

An order that must never be revealed to the outside world.

Even the soldiers thought it was an operation to subjugate monsters.

But the mages from the magic tower who were deeply involved in this plan couldn't help but know the inside story.

"If we twist the wave and send it to the empire, won't a war break out? The domains on that path will be destroyed too."

Gunter showed no change in expression.

"You don't need to worry about the aftermath."

"How cold. Kekeke."

In any case, it's impossible to stop a monster wave with this level of troops.

Especially since the scale of this wave is expected to be enormous.

"I'll tell you some good news."

Master Alcandura said.

"The leader doesn't seem that strong. Compared to the scale of the wave, it looks unbelievably ordinary. I'm not sure if it's a snake or a treant."

"Then..."

"It seems we have one more option. Hihi."

The mage laughed.

"Shall we try to kill the leader here?"

Of course, the wave that has already started won't stop, but it will definitely weaken.

It was worth trying.

Rumble rumble-

The ground shook.

According to plan, the monster wave should pass in front of Gunter and the mages.

"I can see the monsters, captain!"

"I know without you telling me. Shoot the signal."

The knight next to Gunter shot an arrow into the sky.

Wheeeeee!

A sharp sound rang out from the hole pierced in the arrowhead.

Moreover, it must have been magically treated, as a bright red trajectory was drawn in the early evening sky.

And that signal sound rang out in succession.

Wheee-

Whee-

Like lighting beacon fires, red lines were shot into the sky sequentially.

"Dezaka! Let's begin!"

Alcandura ran to his fellow mage.

Although their behavior was extremely clumsy, the magic they were about to cast now was not funny at all.

"Ishen came here too!"

The pyromancer also ran over.