"Oh? You're asking about the scars on this shield? Well, that's a long story…"
At the rear of the group, a male sword-and-shield warrior named Jack sidled up to a Storm Domain Pastor girl, boasting with animated gestures as they marched: "You see, I took down a Xanathar's Guild warehouse all by myself once—rescued the hostages they kidnapped. Those guys never forgot it, and ever since, they've looked for a chance to get revenge…"
"One dark and stormy night, pitch-black with not a soul in sight, I'd just finished my shift and was on my way home. Suddenly! Eight burly men, each over two meters tall and swinging axes bigger than my own head, surrounded me front and back…"
He spun his tales of past glory, saliva flying as he boasted. The nun he targeted pouted, forcing a polite smile instead of chasing him away.
Marching was inevitably tedious; aside from those on active watch, everyone else found their own ways to kill time—exchanging idle gossip, joking, or chatting in pairs.
However, a Life Domain Pastor nearby could barely stand the exaggeration. She hurried forward a few steps, cupping her hands around her mouth and feigning an astonished expression: "Wow, you're amazing! I really admire you! If we run into demons later, I know you'll protect us, right?"
Jack's heart swelled with pride at once, and he reoriented his boastful energy toward her: "Naturally! Don't worry—our defense line is unbreakable!"
Not far ahead, Jenny, the female warrior who'd argued with him earlier, let out a cold snort. She clenched her jaw and gripped the weapon hanging at her hip.
Behind them, Charles struggled to suppress a grin.
He'd anticipated that, given the nuns' Charisma, they'd inevitably be harassed like this during the journey. He and Theresa had even discussed strategies to respond without breaching doctrine.
But reality proved he'd underestimated these girls—raised in the slums, used to dealing with land-gangsters and local thugs.
They'd seen every trick, every sort of petty crook and scoundrel—maybe had even pulled a few stunts themselves.
Dealing with a guy like Jack was child's play; just a few words and they had him wrapped around their little finger, eager to serve them, his ego overinflated.
They didn't need Charles's protection.
"Everyone, be careful!"
Ahead, Anno suddenly raised her head: "Form up! Battle formations! Something evil is approaching!"
The group, which had been in good spirits and chatting mere moments ago, immediately grew serious. They'd marched all morning without seeing any foes and had been growing bored.
Now, hearing the prospect of enemies, they readied themselves—with several men itching to show off in front of the nuns.
This was when training differences surfaced; the ten warriors brought by Anno formed up around her in perfect battle formation, while Charles's nuns reacted just a moment slower but quickly shifted into fighting stance behind them.
At that moment, they were marching below a newly-sheared cliff—clearly the result of a recent earthquake. The ground was strewn with jagged, sharp stones.
From around a blunt corner ahead, accompanied by a putrid stench, a horde of Dretch burst forth. A rough count put their numbers above a hundred.
Among them were a few new demons—creatures resembling gorillas but even when squatting were over two meters tall, with arms much thicker than an ordinary man's thigh.
Charles narrowed his gaze and instantly recognized them.
Barlgura, commonly known as ape demons.
These are relatively low-level demons, but their strength and speed are immense. In battle, they are savage, reckless, and ferociously destructive—fully able to match a Hezrou in raw power.
However, unlike Hezrou, these guys don't have the same tough demon hide. Beneath their thick black fur, they're much less defended. Ordinary metal weapons can cut right through!
A "glass cannon" in every sense—high attack, low defense.
"Take your antitoxins!" Anno commanded loudly. "Watch those ape demons—don't let them breach the lines!"
The Dretch stench is fatally poisonous to most, though for a strong paladin like her, it has little effect. But to ordinary people, it's deadly.
Her Aura of Protection couldn't possibly cover everyone on the battlefield at all times, so most had to rely on some medicine.
Ten warriors and fifteen nuns immediately pulled out small bottles at their hips, quickly drinking the impossibly bitter black liquid, just as the first Dretch—reek and poison thick in the air—crashed into the front lines.
The creatures screeched, pig-like snouts grunting, as they raked out with long arms and powerful claws at the warriors' shields.
Crisp clangs of impact and the screech of claws on metal rang out, but these diminutive fiends—barely a meter tall and very weak—stood no chance of breaking through heavy armor.
Their demon-hides were paper-thin against well-forged weapons and armor, so they found themselves butchered in droves.
Dretch screams rang out, with venomous ink-green blood flowing freely, rapidly littering the ground with corpses.
Though the deadly stench tormented the warriors, with their antitoxin they endured with little difficulty.
Charles and his companions weren't idle. Nidalee summoned a mass of briar thorns among the rocks, and many Dretch—halfway through the charge—had their legs pierced by the magical thorns, tumbling to the ground to be trampled by their own allies.
Theresa casually unleashed guiding bolts; the situation didn't require her full strength. The Storm Domain Pastors cast cantrips, not bothering with their shields since the Ion Beam Emitters required both hands.
The Life Domain Pastors raised shields and brandished maces, covering gaps in the warriors' defenses and occasionally counterattacking.
For the first wave, the battle went smoothly. With clear equipment advantages, they quickly seized the upper hand.
In the rear, Charles raised his wand—not bothering with these mere fodder-level Dretch—and instead targeted the nearest barlgura. He marked it with Hex, then began the incantation for Eldritch Blast—
Buzz—
Four massive, carriage-wheel-sized magic circles appeared above him, and thick beams of energy shot out, slamming into the barlgura.
"Rooaaar—!"
The ape demon let out an agonized wail as its body evaporated into black-gray mist, vanishing in an instant.
Of course, there were no Purification Points to be earned this way, but Charles didn't mind—this was just the start of the fight, and the situation was still developing. Once things stabilized, he could collect his kills.
With this in mind, he shifted Hex to the next barlgura.
But the first demon's death enraged the rest. The surviving ape demons suddenly surged forward, launching a furious charge!
"Leave it to me!"
With a shout, Anno marked the lead barlgura with Hunter's Mark, her right-hand longsword blazing with flame as she raised her magical shield to meet its charge.
The monster's massive fist smashed into her shield, but even a true hezrou's claws could not breach her defense—let alone one of these lesser barlgura.
Her body remained firm on the earth, parrying smoothly while her longsword hacked at the demon. Without even needing Divine Smite, just a few hits laid the beast low!
Charles's Eldritch Blast also felled another ape demon; in the opening moments, three of the big demons were down.
Unfortunately, many more lurked among the fiends. Four more barlgura pressed the front, pounding the shields of the warriors, forcing a ragged retreat.
"Hold the lines! Don't let them break through!" Anno shouted between blows, pivoting to hunt the next ape demon.
But simply playing defense was frustrating for these warriors—each selected as an elite in their home districts.
Especially standing before a crowd of beautiful girls—especially for certain men who'd just boasted so loudly.
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