Chapter 167

「What is this . 」

Looking around at the place that we arrived at, I muttered this .

There was nothing wrong with the marks made on the trunks of the trees .

Even without them, I memorized every detail of the trees that we passed by, and I believe that we went the right way .

If we followed the marks back, we should’ve returned to the meeting place .

Despite that, the place that we arrived at was not the slightly open rendezvous point .

「W, what’s going on!!」

Waki cried .

He turned around and looked at me .

「Did you trick us! Asahina!!」

Waki, who took the lead in following the marks back, should be the one who understood it best .

He was probably confused .

However, confusion in this kind of situation was deadly .

I cautiously surveyed the surroundings, and drew my white katana, “White Dragon”, that I wore on my back .

「Waki-kun, calm down . We’re surrounded . 」

Waki, who was just about to say something, stiffened when he heard Hosoyama’s quiet voice .

I was surprised that Hosoyama realized that we were surrounded .

Unexpectedly, it seems that Hosoyama’s enemy detection had a wide range .

Her body could also disintegrate poisons, she was pretty talented for a cleric .

「The two of you, don’t leave my side . 」

Left, right, I quickly and cautiously surveyed the surroundings .

There was a strong foreboding of death that was incomparable to the monsters that I’ve fought before .

This might be bad .

「They’re here!」

I drew “White Dragon” out just as Hosoyama’s voice sounded .

They were so fast that I could barely follow them with my eyes .

It might be somewhat difficult to fight while protecting the two in the back .

Furthermore, I had yet to be able to see the appearance of the enemy .

It looked to be the tree branches, but were they tree monsters .

「…I’m not good at fighting while protecting . 」

I grumbled in a voice low enough that the two people behind me couldn’t hear .

My occupation was not that of a knight, but a samurai .

My area of expertise was to hack at the opponent, not to protect others .

In other words, my defense was pretty weak .

Up until now, Tsuda had protected the three noncombatants in the back and the rear guard Nanase so that Satou and I could focus on fighting, but right now Tsuda wasn’t here, and there was only me to protect two people .

That guy was someone that you valued now that he wasn’t here .

「We should be able to see their appearance soon… . 」

Behind me, Hosoyama mumbled this .

Certainly, the enemy’s bloodlust and presence was gradually getting closer, but we had yet to see them .

No, this was… .

「Damn it!」

Turning around, I cut down the tree monsters that were approaching the two from behind .

Those branches were drawing close to them .

「It’s a tree monster! Be careful of the branches!」

Although I knew who the enemy was, there were trees everywhere .

To begin with, I wasn’t able to tell the trees and monsters apart .

Perhaps it was because we were surrounded, their presence was scattered .

「It can’t be helped . I’m cutting them all, huh . 」

I drew my other sword, that I wore on my back .

This was the katana that I was given at Retice Castle when I found out what my occupation was .

A sword in each hand, it was the『Twin-Sword Style』skill .

I practiced it every night, but that didn’t mean that I had completely learned it .

However, this certainly was much more troublesome than when swinging one sword with both hands .

Defeat everything before you get attacked, so that you don’t have to worry about defense .

「I don’t think that this is the best time to say this, but Asahina, was he this much of a muscle-head?」

「U, u–n?」

It seems that the two people behind me were saying something, but the me who was focused couldn’t hear it .

「Twin-Sword Style—-『Cherry Blossom Blizzard』」

A strong wind blew; it was a technique that cuts from various directions and angles endlessly as if cherry blossoms in full bloom were falling .

The branches that stretched towards us were cut into small pieces .

Nevertheless, the main body of the monster had yet to arrive .

The monster who had its branches cut gave a pained cry that could be heard from all directions .

That’s why, I had to do it now that there were no more branches in the way .

「Twin-Sword Style—-『Whirlwind』」

A strong gust of wind swept over .

Behind me, I could hear Hosoyama giving a small scream and Waki’s surprised voice .

After the wind stopped, there were many trees that had been cut down .

There were no signs of life there .

It seems that I had completely defeated the tree monster with that attack just now .

Fuu, I breathed out and then moved to sheath my swords .

「That was amazing, Asahina . 」

When I turned around, Waki and Hosoyama were standing there, uninjured .

This time, it was truly dangerous .

If it were the me who had just left the castle, it would be impossible for them to be without a single injury .

It seems that I was steadily growing stronger as well .

「Just now, it was my bad for doubting you . I lost my cool . 」

「No, it was because it happened so suddenly . It was natural for you to be panicked . 」

Waki seemed frivolous, but in actuality, he was someone who could honestly apologize when he did something wrong .

Nowadays, wasn’t it rare for someone to be able to honestly admit their faults .

I think that this part of him was likable .

Perhaps it was because I was hardly concerned with life before we were summoned, but now, it was fun to see my classmates’ many good points .

「What should we do now? The marks that we went out of our way to make were probably moving along with the tree monster and changed . 」

Hearing Hosoyama’s words, I looked around .

And moved towards a certain tree that fell down .

「…no, it seems that that’s not the case . 」