Magic Warrior Chapter 76

Ant Extermination

There was a path leading into the forest just south of the village.

You can enter from anywhere along the main road.

We entered the forest, with Rilfana leading the way.

Unlike the forest in Feld Village, there were many big boulders lying around, but the trees were spaced far apart and sunlight easily shone through, so it was bright and easy to walk through.

"There are many signs."

"Could it be a Huge Ant?"

"From what I heard in the village, it's probably that."

Huge Ant is also low level.

From Clare's point of view as well as Rilfana and me, they wouldn't be an enemy if they didn't attack us unexpectedly. However, if they surround us by sheer numbers, they could be troublesome.

I can't see where the Fire Ants are, so I guess it would be best to start eliminating them from the edges.

"Let's take them out starting with the ones that look like they're in the least danger."

"Understood."

From here on, everyone draws their weapons and advances in a state of readiness for battle.

Compared to the forest in Feld Village, it has the disadvantage of being easier for the enemy to spot, but it seems like it would be easier to fight in because the weapons are easy to wield, and the visibility is good.

"There are a few wandering around by themselves. Are they scouts or something?"

With Rilfana's guidance, we found a Huge Ant wandering around on its own.

You can tell the difference between Huge Ants and Fire Ants by their body color. Huge Ants are a rusty black-iron color, while Fire Ants are a reddish-bronze color.

Like spiders, they have a slightly deformed appearance. Perhaps all insect monsters are like that.

"Oh, that's right. I wanted to try the Water Blade."

"Hey, it's really subtle, isn't it?"

"If I can't finish it off, please do it for me. Water Blade!"

A water-shaped one-handed sickle was created and flew towards the Huge Ant that it had targeted.

There was no rotation as I had expected, and the blade tip shot out straight. Because the blade was curved, it flew in an arc slightly upwards, like an arrow that had been shot.

The sickle didn't pierce the ant, and it ended up splashing water everywhere. It probably didn't do any damage.

"Eh?"

Clare is surprised. I'm surprised too.

Rilfana, who knew the result, threw the dagger, which easily penetrated the ant.

"I told you so."

"It was too unexpected..."

◇

The three of them continue on through the forest in a southeastern direction, taking down Huge Ants along the way.

We could use it as material, so we roughly dismantled it while collecting the shell and antennae.

Clare's pole fighting skills were also well-honed, and she was able to take down the Huge Ant with a single blow. Considering the poor quality of her equipment, I think she's probably at around level 30, the same as SeveChro.

If we see a river, we'll head north to return to the town, so the chances of finding Fire Ants are not very high.

I saw a clearing with boulders scattered among the trees.

"It looks like there's a nest over there. There are quite a lot of them."

I peeped out from behind a tree and saw many ants.

There must be more than 30 of them just from a quick glance. The ants that don't leave the area around the nest must be the guards.

From what I had looked up in the picture book, the nests of the Huge Ants are made on the ground by compacting the soil they have dug up. They also use the part they have dug up, so you could say it is underground.

In addition, it appears that they usually live around the nest and, unless it rains, only the Queen Ant, her children, and the ants that look after them go inside.

The body of the Queen Ant becomes silvery and lays eggs, but otherwise it remains the same. In SeveChro, even if you become a silvery ant, your experience points remain the same.

"There might be a Queen?"

"Yes, but other than the fact that the surrounding ants become more aggressive, it shouldn't be any different."

"Look, Sis, Rilfana-chan over there!"

Clare pointed at a Fire Ant.

There was no reason not to hunt them.

"Let's be careful not to get surrounded and wipe them out."

"I'll do my best!"

"Yeah, I'll do it."

It would be easy to just rush in and hunt them, but that wouldn't help Clare grow, and it wouldn't be good practice for party coordination. Eventually, there will be monsters that even I and Rilfana won't be able to defeat easily, so I try not to do it too often.

However, this time Clare is not a difficult opponent, and considering the time it takes to dismantle her, it should be a quick job.

"Clay Mall!"

"Explosion!"

Just as I had timed the ants to be frozen solid, I had erected a wall of earth on three sides - left, right and back - and Clare's Explosion burst forth.

The plan was to reflect the impact with the wall and multiply the power of the explosion several times. This alone blew up nearly 10 nearby ants to smithereens.

...this is too powerful, so you shouldn't do this just for the materials.

"Be careful, reinforcements might be coming from all sides!"

"Yeah."

We decided to go to the open space so that we could better deal with the ants. I would fight near Clare, and Rilfana would go on the offensive.

As we were taking down the Huge Ant without a problem, the Fire Ant, which had been watching our progress, came closer. It seems to have the wisdom to avoid getting its allies caught in its fire attacks.

It clicked its head and shot out a thin line of fire. I wonder if it has some kind of ignition device.

I moved to the side with plenty of room to spare, but if I hear a sound, it's easy to tell.

On the one hand, it's easy to see, but on the other hand, the fire is surprisingly strong, and it looks dangerous if you're in front of it.

"Ice needle!"

Fire Ant was shot through by the icicle Clare had fired and came to a standstill.

◇

It took a while because there were so many of them, but it appears that we managed to destroy one of their nests.

When I took it apart, the carapace of the body came off easily. The antennae are jointed, and it appears that the oil from this part is used in carpentry and leather work.

"There were Fire Ants over there, too."

After we had exterminated the ants in the area, Clare and I started dismantling them.

Rilfana, who had been doing a patrol of the area, also seemed to have returned. It appears that she had only dismantled the Fire Ants.

"I think we've done enough thinning and extermination requests, so let's go back to town."

"Demolition is hard work."

While we were busily dismantling things, the scout ants would occasionally return, but Rilfana would take them out with a single blow.

When I thought about the time, it would take to dismantle it, I thought it might have been better to blow it up with an Explosion.

◇

In the end, by the time the post-battle clean-up was finished, and we left the forest, it was evening.

The stone bridge is just over there, but it will probably be around 3 o'clock in the afternoon before we reach the town.

I'm not Clare, but I'm starting to get hungry.

"Come to think of it, there was a restaurant by the bridge."

"If it looks like they're open, let's stop by."

"Yeah, I'm hungry."

The restaurant seemed to be open, with lights on.

It's not a big restaurant, but it seems to be frequented by adventurers. It may be a restaurant used by adventurers like us who take quests in the area.

On closer inspection, the three people who were at the training session were also eating.

It seems they noticed us too, so we looked back at them.

The menu is rather limited, so I guess they can't offer many different dishes between the town and the village.

We ordered the daily set meal, which consisted of two grilled fish and rice with a side dish. The fish were apparently caught in the river there.

Judging from the voices I could hear, it appears that the three of them had received a request to go fishing at this restaurant.

I guess the general impression of the restaurant is that the portions are large, but the taste is average. I feel the urge to pour soy sauce over the fish.

It was starting to get dark when I left the restaurant.

I decided to use the lighting trick I learned during my camping training to get home.

It's a simple magic trick that can be used as a substitute for a torch, and it's convenient because it doesn't burn your hands, and it lights up the designated area.

The downside is that once you've cast it, you can't turn it off until some time has passed. However, you can put it on pumice stone or a small piece of wood, and if you want to turn it off, just cover it with a thick handkerchief or something.

I didn't need to put it out on the highway, so I put it on the sheath of the sword I was carrying at my waist.

◇

By the time I returned to the town, the sun had completely set.

It was already 3 o'clock when I saw the gate, and it was getting pretty late.

Clare and Rilfana have been on the move for three days straight, and they are starting to show signs of fatigue. Clare, in particular, looks very sleepy.

I'm fine, but I'm probably a little tired.

The inn was closer to the guild from the west gate. There was still plenty of time to meet the deadline for the Fire Ant extermination request.

"Shall we go back to the inn and report tomorrow?"

"Yeah."

"That's right, I'm a little tired."

I'll get up slowly tomorrow morning, report on the request, and then take a rest.