Chapter 384 : Delica VS Kobolds
Now that Delica has decided to join us to go to the spring Diadora mentioned, we proceeded deeper into the forest and passed the goblins’ territory.
I only remember the route vaguely, but thankfully, we found the river, which separated the goblin’s territory from the kobolds’ territory.
「Hm? There’s something in the river.」(Delica)
Delica, who was walking in front, pointed her sword at the stepping stones in the river.
「Stepping stones? They look kind of unnatural.」(Delica)
「Well, they’re man-made after all. And I was the one who made them.」(Mark)
It brings back memories. I don’t remember the route really well, but I remember this place.
I made those stepping stones with earth magic when Luck, Nicola, and I were searching for Jack, who was lost in the kobolds’ territory.
Judging from the scratches and dirt covering the stones, they seemed to have been used by adventurers so many times to cross this river.
I’m happy that the thing I made could be useful for other people.
「So you made these stepping stones. We can safely cross this river thanks to you, then. Thank you, Mark.」(Delica)
「You’re welcome.」(Mark)
Delica swiftly jumped from stone to stone, crossing the river. Nicola and I immediately followed after her.
However, Diadora chose a different way. Instead of using the stepping stones, she entered the river and crossed by walking through the water.
「Umm, Diadora, what are you doing?」(Mark)
「I prefer this way… The water is good for my roots and leaves…」(Diadora)
「I see.」(Mark)
Her dress was all wet, but since she seems to like it, I won’t say anything to her. I don’t think a dryad can catch a cold anyway.
「Alright. We’re now in the kobolds’ territory. Be careful, Delica, and keep in mind that I can always help you anytime.」(Mark)
「Un. But I’ll try to handle them myself first.」(Delica)
「Okay. Good luck.」(Mark)
Delica nodded at me with eyes full of determination and started walking slowly.
Meanwhile, the three of us held hands again to hide our presence with my Stealth Gift.
After walking for a few minutes, Nicola sent me a telepathic message.
『There’s a group of three kobolds fifty meters ahead.』(Nicola)
『Three, huh?』(Mark)
We haven’t entered the kobold’s territory for long, but we encountered a group of kobolds already.
『Aa, they split. They seemed to have noticed Delica.』(Nicola)
『Let’s see if she can handle them.』(Mark)
I want to let Delica fight them by herself, but I feel worried at the same time. She has never fought kobolds, and now she has to fight three of them at once.
Thinking that might be a bit too much for her, I secretly created three earth bullets that I could shoot anytime on my free hand just in case.
ーRustle
「ー!!」(Delica)
The first kobold appeared from the bush next to Delica. It stuck its dagger forward, trying to stab her, but she nimbly parried it with her sword and beheaded the kobold right away when it lost its balance.
However, it wasn’t over. The first kobold was just a decoy for the second and the third kobold.
The second kobold came out of the bush behind Delica, trying to attack her from behind, while the third one jumped off a tree, trying to attack her from above.
They were trying to attack her from two different directions, which were her blind spots, at once.
This is bad! Should I shoot them?
I was wondering if I should help her since she didn’t seem to notice them.
However, I was wrong…
She did notice them. She just didn’t look at them.
Without turning around, Delica quickly spun her sword 180 degrees, turning the tip of her sword to point toward herself, and with a firm reverse grip, she pulled her sword and stabbed the kobold behind her in the stomach right before its blade reached the back of her neck.
Right after, she pulled back her sword and held it above her head, blocking the blade of the kobold descending from the tree.
Failing to hit Delica from above, the third kobold fell to the ground, and realizing its two friends had been killed, it then crawled away, trying to escape.
「You think I’ll let you run away!?」(Delica)
But of course, Delica didn’t let the kobold go.
She quickly stabbed its back as it was crawling on the ground, killing it instantly.
「Phew… Trying to attack me from my blind spots, huh? These kobolds are smarter than goblins.」(Delica)
「Delica-chan, you’re awesome~!」(Nicola)
「Delica… So strong…」(Diadora)
「Well done! You’re like a samurai in a Japanese movie!」(Mark)
「Jaba sneeze… mobee…?」(Delica)
「Don’t mind what I said. By the way, how did you know the other two enemies’ locations?」(Mark)
「I had never fought kobolds, but I learned their attack patterns at the dojo. First of all, they rarely attack their enemies alone. They always move in groups of at least two or three. After I killed the first kobold, I didn’t see the others, so I thought they would attack me from other directions, and attacking enemies from behind is like their basic combat knowledge, so I was certain that at least one kobold was trying to attack me from behind.」(Delica)
「That’s why you could stab the kobold behind you without even having to look back.」(Mark)
「That’s right. As for the third kobold, I knew it was trying to attack me from above because I saw the shadow of the tree leaves on the ground move unnaturally. That’s why I could block its blade right after I killed the second one.」(Delica)
「I see. I gotta say I’m really impressed!」(Mark)
「Th, thank you…」(Delica)
Delica smiled shyly and scratched her cheek with her index finger as I complimented her.
She doesn’t have the ability to detect enemies’ presence like me and Nicola, but she seems to have polished her senses.
I remember Ester had a similar ability. She can’t use magic to detect her enemies, but when she fought a large group of bandits, she somehow knew their movements and the direction in which they would attack as if she had another pair of eyes behind her head.
This is probably what people call the sense of a warrior, and Delica seems to have developed it.
With the knowledge she learned from the dojo and her sense as a warrior, Delica was able to defeat her first three kobolds without a problem.
If she keeps practicing like this, I’m sure she will become a strong fighter in the future. I’ll say she will be on par or even stronger than Maya.
By the way, Delica’s way of fighting the kobolds was completely different from mine.
In the past, when I fought the kobolds in this forest after we found Jack, I depended on Nicola’s abilities to spot their exact locations and then shot them with stone bullets before they even noticed us.
That was the best way to fight kobolds in their territoryー eliminating them before they noticed you.
However, after watching Delica, I felt like that method was kind of boring. It’s much safer than confronting them directly, but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t interested in fighting like a samurai in Japanese movies.
I’m a magician, but… I wonder if I should start practicing swordsmanship…
While wondering, I kept following Delica while holding Diadora’s hand.
Delica was unstoppable.
She kept killing the kobolds who dared to attack her. Sometimes, she also attacked them first with sneak attacks when she had the chance.
I was keeping my stone bullets ready just in case, but in the end, I never had a chance to shoot them because Delica took care of the kobolds by herself.
Thanks to her, we were able to reach the spring safely.
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