How to Live as a Swordmaster of the Enemy Nation

Encounter with a Troll

Except for Gregory, Ernest and his companions began to band together and wander around the area.

And under Ernest's thorough surveillance, the subjugation of monsters began.

Ernest meticulously scanned the surroundings.

"From now on, we'll divide into rear and front groups. The rear will handle monsters ambushing from behind, the front will charge ahead and deal with the monsters head-on."

"Got it!"

"Confirmed! Let's get going as well."

It was the first time Ernest had ever given direct orders to his companions during battle. Overflowing with confidence, he was eager to finally unleash the leadership he had been keeping hidden.

Alessandro also shouted, visibly excited.

"Let's definitely find the source of these monsters, defeat it, and show Gregory that we're growing into strong swordsmen too! With all our training, we can do it now!"

It was a simple declaration of ambition, but morale soared.

"Alright!"

"This is just the beginning for us!"

Even in this charged atmosphere, Brea and Elisabeth remained silent.

Elisabeth was always quiet by nature, but Brea—who usually would have thrown out a sharp retort at a time like this—remained uncharacteristically quiet.

The truth was that Brea didn't entirely dislike the heightened atmosphere, so she didn't dismiss it outright.

Moreover, she saw this as a chance to prove herself and get revenge against Gregory, who had humiliated her, through her skills.

They searched for traces of monsters, and tracked and dealt with them one by one as they found them. The deeper they ventured, the more the number of monsters increased dramatically.

Suddenly, as if witnessing something, Ernest called his companions together in a loud voice.

"Everyone, gather! Monsters have appeared up ahead!"

Even those who had been keeping an eye on the rear looked forward at Ernest's booming shout. Deep within the forest, all the trees had been knocked down and were dying due to monsters' rampage, forming a vast clearing.

There, at the origin of the thunderous noise, was a troll. Trolls were classified as even more powerful than ogres. The force with which it swung that huge club was imposing enough on its own.

"G-get ready for battle!"

Ernest was tense, and so were his companions. Yet, wanting to prove their abilities to Gregory, everyone quickly regained their composure.

Everyone drew their swords and stared intently at the troll.

It was a tall creature with a massive body, blue skin, some ragged clothes half covering it, and white patches on its body, gripping, roots and all, a tree blackened by impure mana.

Alessandro shrieked in terror.

Kyaaaaah-!

"G-grk, E-Ernest, d-do something!"

His unusually close-shaven head looked comical, but Ernest immediately dashed toward the monster to protect his companions.

At the same time, clear mana spread outward. Seeing Ernest suddenly grow serious, the others also started using their mana.

As a 4th-star knight, Ernest's aura was visible as he exuded energy in all directions, but it was hard to visually tell if his companions could use mana as well.

All of them rushed toward the monster at once.

Just as they were about to attack the troll with their swords, the troll began to move.

Whoosh—

Seeing the approaching Dawn Order knights, the troll swung its club.

"Dodge!"

Ernest's shout rang loud and clear. But it was hard to keep up with the speed of the oncoming club.

So the knights used their drawn swords to block the troll's flying club with all their might.

"U-ugh..."

"W-we have to block it!"

Then, the club, which seemed like it would hit directly, suddenly stopped and wouldn't budge.

"Did we stop it? Did we really block that huge troll's attack?"

"I-I think so! Just a bit more effort!"

Only now did all their past shortcuts in training begin to shine.

The troll, taken aback, froze when they released their swords and got ready to attack again, and everyone felt a jolt of fear.

Elisabeth was the first to mutter, a sound of resignation.

"How can we beat something like that..."

Everyone reacted in the same way. Alessandro yelled in panic.

"S-shouldn't we call for help or something?"

Who wouldn't want to call for help in this situation? But there was no way to do so. Everyone was too busy fending off the troll's attacks.

Then, one of the Dawn Order knights reacted differently. Ernest—he had started to strategize. He realized that if things continued this way, the promise they had made to Gregory would amount to nothing.

"Scatter, everyone. Did you forget we promised to show Gregory? We'll spread out and distract the troll's attention!"

Everyone nodded. Gaining confidence from Ernest's reliable demeanor, the companions snapped out of their fear. Their terrified expressions vanished, and they gripped their swords tightly, ready to fight back.

Alessandro tried to raise morale.

"Y-yeah. It's not over yet. Let's pull ourselves together. We'll knock Gregory's arrogance down a peg!"

At that, Brea jumped in.

"Who says otherwise? Don't tell me you're actually planning to lose to that pathetic freak?"

Truthfully, Brea was the most frightened of all, but for some reason, just hearing Gregory's name reignited her boldness and audacity.

Indeed. The moment Ernest's companions thought of Gregory, their source of admiration and respect, they remembered the resolve they needed to have.

Ernest suggested a plan.

"Everyone, focus on the legs. If we take out its lower body, it can't move, and even if it has a wide range, it won't be as dangerous. Besides, it seems that monster only attacks where its two eyes are facing. Watch it closely and dodge its attacks."

If Gregory relied on memories and experience from this life and previous ones to devise monster-conquering strategies, Ernest, with his insight, analyzed the monster's continuous actions and characteristics to come up with a way to counter it.

Ernest elaborated on his strategy and made sure his companions understood. Following his command, they began to spread out.

There were five of them now: Ernest, Adrian, Alessandro, Elisabeth, and Brea. They formed a pentagon shape to maximize their mobility in dodging the troll's attacks, all moving clockwise as they gradually closed in.

When circling with the troll at the center, its dull attacks could all be evaded.

The troll had an unusual trait: it didn't attack for twenty seconds after making an attack.

The assumption was that it used all its power in that one swing, making it impossible to move for a while.

After each attack, they regrouped into a pentagon and inflicted progressive damage on the monster. This was Ernest's devised method.

Ultimately, even by coordinating with just their own strength, Ernest realized they couldn't defeat the troll outright.

And so, under Ernest's repeated commands, they executed more rounds of coordinated assault. In the end, the troll collapsed with a heavy thud. Disabling its ability to walk was simple, and they similarly damaged its arms so it couldn't move those either.

At last, the troll was unable to stand or attack. Witnessing this, Alessandro exclaimed with joy.

"D-did we do it?"

Ernest calmed down the exhilarated Alessandro.

"It looks that way. Now, let's keep our distance. Our part is done here."

Just as they were preparing to take a break after completing their mission, a familiar voice called out from afar, growing steadily closer.

All of his companions turned their heads toward the source of the sound.

"Is everyone alright?"

It was Gregory. He'd heard their screams from afar and hurried over out of concern for his companions.

***

Gregory listened as Ernest explained what had happened in order to defeat the troll. As he looked at Ernest, memories from his previous life came to Gregory's mind.

If things kept going this way, Ernest would become a knight leading Arme in the future.

He was an illustrious figure, and as expected, an astute thinker as well.

'Hmm, quite a clever method.'

A little while later, as the group sat nearby resting, Gregory praised Ernest.

Those he'd expected would amount to nothing, the ones he'd thought would be useless rabble incapable of helping.

He was proud that they'd worked together to immobilize the troll. Regardless of whether it was thanks to Ernest's capabilities, what deserved praise ought to be praised.

'Hm... but still.'

On the other hand, something bothered him.

It had been about two months since he'd joined the Dawn Order, and from what he heard, this was the group's second expedition into the Forest of Annihilation.

Monsters appeared once a month. It felt odd that there hadn't been more expeditions.

If there hadn't been a previous expedition, it meant monsters had absorbed impure mana for two months—and the longer they did that, the stronger they'd become.

A troll, said to be even stronger than an ogre that only a 5-star knight could defeat, shouldn't have fallen so easily.

'Their method was unusual, that's true...'

But he wasn't implying that Ernest's strategy was wrong. Gregory just couldn't shake the sense of unease that this monster subjugation had been too easy compared with his own harsh experiences.

Just as he was about to realize the source of this discomfort, a shadow fell across his vision.

"G-Gregory, watch out behind you!"

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
They grow up so fast...
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】