After seeing off the party of three that had rescued the two captive women, Rei stored the corpses of the Orc General he had slain and the Orc whose head Set had crushed into the Misty Ring. As for the two Orcs defeated by the other three adventurers, he left them where they lay, as he had no intention of claiming another party’s kills. He only took his own. Since the three adventurers would return shortly, he judged that leaving the carcasses would pose no problem.

「Guru~」

Watching flames rise across multiple parts of the settlement, Set let out a low, watchful cry.

Rei patted his back gently, turning his gaze toward the darkness while casually readying the Death Scythe.

「Bumo~!?」

An arrow flew from the shadows, only to be casually sliced out of the air. The Orc Archer let out a cry of confusion……and in the next instant, before it even realised what had happened, Rei appeared before it. With a downward sweep of the Death Scythe, the creature’s skull was cleaved in two, ending its life on the spot.

「Did it get separated from the rest of the Orcs?」

Pondering the question, Rei stored the Orc Archer’s corpse into the Misty Ring.

At present, Rei and Set were positioned north of the settlement. Aside from the shack where the human women had been held for breeding, there was only a small guard hut. Even with the hut nearby, the area was deserted, as the guards appeared to have been dispatched east where Axe of the Thunder God had stirred up an uproar. As for the shack where the women had been confined, Rei doubted any Orc would indulge its desires in the middle of a night attack……

「Did I underestimate the sexual desire of the Orcs? Or……」

On one hand, it might simply have been an isolated action by a single Orc Archer. That would be typical for an ordinary Orc, but since an Orc Archer was a high-ranking species, he considered that another possibility might be at play.

(At any rate, I’ve secured magic stones from a high-ranking Orc Archer and an Orc General. Even so, considering Set and the Death Scythe, I’d like to get another Orc General magic stone so they both have one……and it would be ideal to find an Orc Mage’s magic stone as well. On top of that, there’s the magic stone of the leader commanding the Orcs.)

Listening intently to the surrounding din, Rei stayed on his guard. Clashing steel, enraged shouts, curses, and magical blasts echoed from across the settlement. Fortunately, that Orc Archer had been the only one to act on its own. The rest of the Orcs had rushed towards the main battlefield in the east, and none approached the north where Rei stood.

About ten minutes later, the party of three finally returned.

「We’re sorry, did we keep you waiting?」

The swordsman, acting as party leader, asked with concern, but Rei shook his head.

「No, you were faster than I expected. How are the women?」

「They’ve been escorted to Hobbes. ……At times like this, an adventurer ought to offer some comfort, but it’s a grim situation……」

Even as a retired adventurer, Hobbes still possessed considerable martial skill. For that reason, he remained at the field encampment during the night raid without any bodyguards. Although several adventurers had initially offered to protect him, Hobbes insisted that they maximise their front-line fighting strength given the unexpectedly large number of Orcs, and the others had relented.

「In any case, I’ll leave the northern sector in your hands. Set and I will head back to the sky to continue our guerrilla strikes.」

「Yeah, thanks again for helping us out.」

While hearing their thanks, Rei climbed onto Set’s back……then paused, turning back to the leader.

「Before I forget, the corpses of the two Orcs you brought down are over there. I’ve collected the regular Orc and the Orc General that Set and I defeated. Is that acceptable?」

The swordsman glanced at the fallen Orcs and gave a firm nod.

「Yeah, no problem at all. Did you put them into your item box?」

「That’s right. Well then, I’m off. Set!」

「Gururururu~!」

Answering Rei’s call with a spirited cry, Set took a few running strides, beat his wings, and soared into the sky. Watching the one person and one animal take to the air, the three adventurers headed towards the fallen Orc carcasses. Meanwhile, Rei and Set flew towards the centre of the settlement where the bulk of the Orcs had congregated, hunting for their next prey.

「The battle looks fairly evenly matched……I suppose.」

Astride Set, Rei peered down at the ground as they circled through the sky. Even with large swathes of the settlement engulfed in flames, a vast number of Orcs continued to pour towards the east. Since that was where the assault had first broken out, the Orcs’ attention remained entirely focused there.

Down below, Rei saw Elk swinging his massive battle axe, cleaving through multiple Orcs with every sweep. At the same time, shards of ice showered continuously from Min’s staff, steadily wearing down the swarm of Orcs beneath the magical bombardment.

Rhodes stood guard over Min. Whenever Orcs surged forward in an attempt to eliminate the back-line mage, Rhodes intercepted them with his sword, deftly dodging and deflecting their strikes. Taking advantage of every opening, he drove home rapid counterattacks that dropped the Orcs into expanding pools of blood.

「I see. So that’s how a C-rank adventurer fights.」

Watching the display, Rei murmured in quiet admiration. Yet his attention was immediately drawn to a spot slightly removed from the settlement. Intending to strike Axe of the Thunder God from behind, several Orcs had circled around the edge of the settlement to mount a flanking assault.

Conveniently, they were being led by an Orc carrying a staff.

「I’ve finally found an Orc Mage. As expected of a spellcaster, it’s taking command of the troops around it.」

Even for an A-rank party like Axe of the Thunder God, being pincered between front and rear would be dangerous, and a surprise magical bombardment would inflict severe damage. Given that Min was positioned at the very rear, her fragile physical defence made her particularly vulnerable.

「Set!」

「Gururu~!」

Letting out a brief cry at Rei’s command, Set went into his third dive. However, as expected of a high-ranking Orc Mage, it caught the sound of Set’s wingbeats that the Orc Archer and Orc General had overlooked. Raising its staff towards the sky, it began chanting a spell.

「Ignore it, keep charging!」

「Gururu~!」

Paying no heed to the Orc Mage’s actions, Rei ordered Set to press the assault. Set gave a fierce screech and plunged straight towards the detachment led by the Orc Mage.

『Bumorua~!』

The Orc Mage concluded its chant and cast its spell. Although Rei could not understand the incantation spoken in the Orc tongue, a smirk rose to his lips when a head-sized fireball formed in front of the creature.

「Gurururururururu~!」

Set charged, letting loose a spirited roar. The ordinary Orcs began to panic, but their disarray subsided once the Orc Mage barked a sharp command and hurled the fireball towards Set.

The launched fireball streaked directly towards Set as he dived at terrifying speed……yet the instant it was about to strike him, an invisible barrier intercepted it, detonating the sphere in mid-air.

「Bumo~!?」

The Orc Mage gaped in utter shock at the outcome. Fastened around Set’s foreleg was the Bracelet of Wind Manipulation, which possessed the enchantment to deflect a single projectile or spell. Its defensive ward had activated flawlessly, striking the Orc Mage like a bolt from the blue.

The Orc Mage had been certain the attack would connect, as dodging at such diving speed should have been impossible……

「Bumooo~!」

With a body exceeding 2m in length, Set slammed into the Orc Mage with the full momentum of his dive, striking it with his massive wings. The impact hurled the creature 10m away, skipping across the dirt several times like a flat stone over water. Its neck and limbs were twisted in unnatural directions, leaving no doubt that it was already dead.

And then……

『Dancing flames, dance. Light up the surroundings with your magnificent dance, burn as you dance and captivate the people.』

As Rei recited the incantation, roughly fifty human-sized flames manifested around him. While fewer in number than the display in the Forest of Monsters, this was simply because there were fewer enemies to incinerate.

『Dancing Fire Snakes!』

The moment the spell name was spoken, the magic activated. The fifty serpents of flame moved as though guided by a will of their own, surging towards the Orcs.

Terrified by the sudden disaster, the surviving Orcs scattered in all directions upon seeing several of their kin engulfed in flames. Yet the fire serpents Rei created relentlessly pursued the fleeing monsters, wrapping around them in a scorching embrace to incinerate them where they stood.

「Bumoo~!?」

「Bumomo~!?」

Though shrieks of agony tore from their throats, none could escape the blazing coils. Within moments, every Orc in the detachment lay dead.

The stench of charred flesh hung thick in the air, and Set eyed the scorched carcasses with sparkling eyes. An hour had passed since the night assault began, and his stomach was undoubtedly empty……

「Set, there’s no time to eat now. You’ll have to wait until the night attack ends.」

「Guru~……」

Looking dejected, Set nodded quietly.

「I’ll store the Orcs in the Misty Ring for now. I’ll prepare some for you once the battle is over, so bear with it for a little while……okay?」

Just then, Rei heard approaching footsteps. It sounded like a single person sprinting in their direction.

「……Are they scouts from another flanking group, or stragglers from this one?」

The thought of the lone Orc Archer he had encountered in the northern sector flashed through his mind, and considering the possibility of stragglers, he levelled the Death Scythe.

Yet the silhouette cast by the distant flames belonged to a human, not an Orc. Rei lowered the Death Scythe slightly while maintaining his vigilance, and Set relaxed his posture as well. Even so, neither let their guard down completely, mindful of the lingering threat posed by Dark Night’s Star.

When the figure drew close enough for his features to be seen, Rei recognised him.

「Rhodes, isn’t it?」

「You’re……Rei?」

「Yeah. Who else would be flying around on a Griffon?」

「……Well, that’s true, but……did you kill all these Orcs?」 Rhodes asked, staring at the charred, smouldering Orc corpses strewn across the ground.

Without missing a beat, Rei stowed the fallen Orcs into the Misty Ring one after another. Approaching the Orc Mage Set had brought down, he added, 「Yeah. Set handled the Orc Mage.」

With that, he stored the Orc Mage into the Misty Ring as well.

「……You have the strength to wipe out this many Orcs on your own? ……No, wait. Why are the bodies burned to a crisp? Isn’t your weapon that ridiculously oversized scythe?」

「You’re one to talk, calling it ridiculous,」 Rei replied with a wry smile, planting the shaft of the Death Scythe into the dirt. 「It is my weapon, but it’s also a magic item……and at the same time, a casting implement.」

「A casting implement? You mean……」

「Yeah. You’ve seen Min’s staff, right? It serves a similar purpose. It just happens to be shaped like a massive scythe.」

「Then are you a mage?」

Rei shook his head slightly, stroking Set’s back.

「Since I can also handle close-quarters combat, I’m more of a Magic Warrior. So, what brings you out here?」

「A Magic Warrior…… Wait, right. While fighting alongside Mum and Dad on the eastern side of the settlement, we saw massive flames erupting behind our lines. Mum told me to come check on the situation.」

「I see. That makes sense. A mage has weak physical defence, so you’d naturally be wary of being flanked from behind. In fact, these Orcs were trying to circle around to your rear.」

「……Looks like it. So you spotted them from the air and ambushed them first.」

「……」

Hearing Rhodes’s deduction, Rei found himself staring at the young man’s face.

「What?」

「Nothing. I’m just impressed by how quickly and rationally you assessed the situation.」

「Hey, are you picking a fight with me?!」

「Not at all. I’ll tell you about what I did later. Set!」

「Guru~」

Set gave a short cry as Rei got onto his back.

「Hey!」

「We’ll catch up once this is over. You’d better head back to Elk and Min, the battle with the Orcs isn’t finished yet.」

「I know that! Just remember, you promised to tell me everything once the fight is done! Don’t you dare go dying without my permission!」

Smiling at Rhodes’s heated parting words, Rei soared back into the night sky with Set.

However, scanning the settlement from above, something caught his eye.

(This is……I see. It’s Dark Night’s Star. I was wondering what they were up to, and there they are. While hunting Orcs is fine, it’s annoying if I end up doing all their cleanup work for them.)

Peering down at the Orc settlement from the sky, he spotted an area untouched by flames, where an adventurer party and a group of Orcs were locked in a stalemate.

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