Chapter 37: Encounter ~ Benimaru & Ranga

Translator's Corner (Cast: an English Clown and the Landlord)

Landlord: Fool!

Clown: I'm a clown...

Landlord: You didn't pay your rent on time again!

Clown: Huh? I was sure that I did...

Landlord: Well you didn't. Miss the payment again, and it's eviction time. It's about time you stopped fooling around. Go find a proper job!

Clown: The circus is the only place for me! I tried working at a day care, but the kids were always crying. I tried working at a hospital, but they fired me after I made some balloon animals. I tried working in a post office, but they told me to wipe the smirk off my face. And McD*nalds employs my uncle. Can you imagine how hard it is for that clown to appear in every place at once? There's a limit to our magic!

Landlord: ... have you tried counseling?

Clown: The job?

Landlord: The help.

Clown: Isn't it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do "practice"?

.

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Forest Disturbance Arc

Gabil continued the hopeless struggle.

The odds were clearly against them.

Without ever tiring, without ever resting, the orcs constantly attacked.

The goblins and the lizardmen, on the other hand, were slowly being killed off on by one.

They only needed to regain their formation and break through the encirclement, but doing so would mean abandoning the goblins who lack the necessary mobility.

Moreover, many exhausted and wounded lizardmen would be lost in the charge...

Though he had refused to order a retreat, perhaps now he had no choice but to try to save even a few lives.

Normally, the war would end when a decisive blow had been dealt to the enemy. However, the orcs sought the complete eradication of the lizardmen.

No chance of surrender either. Simply being killed and devoured.

That fact evoked fear. The weak willed monsters lost their will to fight and abandoned their post. The goblins, in fact, could no longer be considered a force at all.

Some goblins gave up and tried to escape, but such was not permitted by the orcs. Hunting down the escaping goblins, they killed and ate them.

No more than a thousand goblins had now remained. Soon they will be completely annihilated...

The lizardmen fared not much better. The original eight thousand troops were now reduced to less than six thousand.

They kept losing ground, making organized movements difficult to perform.

Yet Gabil kept encouraging his troops. While slowly trying to break through the orc encirclement...

Suddenly, a squad of orcs clad in black armor began to move.

Different from common orcs, these took command of the battle. Each wore full plate armor.

Perhaps their base strength was no higher than that of an average orc. However, their equipment made all the difference.

They, in turn, were commanded by a single orc. Carrying an aura of strength around him, he was clearly world above the common orcs.

The Orc General.

Possessing the strength of an entire army, the Orc Army General. And following him are 2,500 orc knights.

There are five such individuals. Their power may be ranked as B+.

A fourth of the Orc Lord's true army had moved.

It's over.

That power could decide the battle right there.

Escape is impossible. Their only choice is to fall in battle...

"At least, I want to be cut down by a warrior." So he thought.

「Guwahahahaha! Cowardly general of swine! Do you have the courage to meet me alone in battle!!!」

He cried loudly.

He could not win. His armor was in pieces.

Moreover, seems like his opponent's armor was strengthened with magic.

If he accepts this request, Gabil could die like a warrior. If it went well, perhaps he could take out a single general. Such were his thoughts.

「Gugugu. Very well. I'll be your opponent!」

Responding thus, the orc general jumps down from his horse.

The surrounding clashes froze, swallowed by his aura. Further away, fighting continued, but it didn't reach Gabil's ears.

Gabil could feel his concentration rising like it never had before.

「I am grateful!」

The rest was a silent duel.

Gabil readied the Magic Weapon: Water Vortex Spear.

「Come!」

The Orc General bellowed, and at the same time

「Die!!! Water Vortex Style, Tornado Crush!!!」

Gabil released an attack filled with all his might. Combining spear technique and magical energy, a certain kill technique.

It was filled with all the strength Gabil had. However,

「Kanrangue!!!」(Chaos Eater)

(TL Note: do you want me to translate skill names? Some of these may get strange...

Pointing his spear at Gabil, the Orc Lord devoured the vortex itself.

But that's not all; the spear also began emitting an aura. An ominous yellow aura that attacked Gabil's very flesh.

"It seeks to eat me!" Stumbling, falling Gabil realized. However, the aura would not let him escape...

「Guguguga! Pitiful lizard. Rolling in dirt suits you!」

Gabil was laughed at by the Orc General.

But he wouldn't give up. If only... if only he could land a single hit...

Picking up some dirt, he flung it at the orc. Call it cowardice, but Gabil desired the chance to cut him down!

However, that attack, too, was in vain, as the yellow aura quickly devoured it.

Gabil felt the attack directed at him.

He was desperate to evade that aura, but knew not how.

This far, huh...

Gabil thought, and closed his eyes.

Suddenly, a deafening roar.

The previously silent scenery came alive again.

That roar assaulted the orc general, preventing him from landing a finishing blow on Gabil.

What was that?

Even amidst the battle, Gabil was confused. By now, the tide began to change.

Without any concern for Gabil's thoughts, events developed rapidly before him.

.

Shion's strike mowed down many orcs.

That became the signal to start the battle.

Benimaru was not surprised by the sudden slash that came from behind him.

Rather, he only muttered

「What the hell she doing... that idiot...」

Benimaru did not tremble, for better or worse, and the goblin wolf riders were also stoic.

Rather, he was merely bitter that he could not draw first blood. However, he finally could go wild. He could bear the earlier grief.

Advancing at full speed, they crashed into the orc troops.

The orcs were ready to sudden attacks by unidentified individuals, but they simply could not react in time to the speed at which the wolf riders attacked.

Brittle.

That is how Benimaru had described them.

There was no need even for us to go out, the goblins could have managed this alone.

This wasn't fun, so he thought.

「All troops stop!」

He ordered.

To give up the momentum they had built up would normally be unthinkable. Moreover, for a unit specializing a speed such would be unnecessary...

But the goblin riders, without a question, immediately stopped.

「Ranga, could you shadow step to the Lizardman named Gabil?」

Benimaru asked. Souei's skill, and Ranga's as well. Since it's the same, it should be possible, right? He didn't know, so inquired.

「It is possible.」

A simple response.

「Alright! You go on ahead and protect them. I'll stroll over there!」

What a strange thing he had said! To stroll forward in the middle of a battlefield replete with orcs.

Gabil's group should have been encircled by many warriors, such that a small number of troops could never break through.

And rather than advancing quickly, he decides to walk there? What a bizarre thing to say... one would expect.

「Understood. And please, take your time getting there. I'm off ahead!」

With those words, Ranga leaps into a shadow.

Benimaru stands firmly on the ground, and slowly prepares himself.

Seeing his actions, the orcs were at a loss. Should they attack or not?

The goblins thought his appearance magnificent.

Well, among them

Gobuta: 「Hmm? Why'd we stop~su? Is running ahead bad~su?

No way, must we walk ahead~su? I hate walking~su!」

There was one goblin who had said that, but let's ignore him.

「Okaaay. Yo, bastards. Yeah, you pigs over there, move. If you do, I'll let you go!」

Finishing his stretches, Benimaru calls out to an orc in front of him.

But not a single orc moved.

「Don't screw with us! How could you...」

「Then, die!」

Since they had no intention to retreat, Benimaru decided to step in himself.

On his right palm, a black spherical flame appeared.

Increasing the diameter of this ball to a meter, he shot it at the orcs.

Sensing danger, they tried to run away. But it was far too late.

The ever accelerating round chased them. It's speed was around 600 kph-clearly beyond the orcs' abilities.

Those struck were immediately engulfed and burned without leaving ashes.

However, the terror of the flame was not in this.

The ball also absorbed the magical energy of the orcs it struck and used it to fuel its growth.

Rather than a ball, it was now a dome with a radius of 100 meters.

And in a second, another roar resounded across the battlefield.

Well, it wasn't actually that loud, but those that heard it could feel their blood freezing in their veins.

Wide-area destruction skill... [Hell Flare].

A skill that Benimaru had acquired. The black dome had disappeared, and left scorched earth behind it.

They were supposed to be fighting in the marshes, but the ground was burned into glass.

Who could even imagine that terrible heat!

It should go without saying, but it is easy to guess what happened to the orcs who got caught in the 2,000 ~ 5,000 degree fireball. Even their ashes were burned.

Only a minute had passed since Benimaru shot the flare.

And flashing a wicked smile,

「Clear the way, swine!」

He declared again.

The orcs were panicked out of fear.

Though they were under the effect of the [Starving Ones], they should not have even recognized the emotion called fear.

However, that one attack awakened that terrible feeling.

For no matter how much they struggled, they could not escape.

An overpowering strength that they could not even imagine. Only forbidden spells could match such awesome might.

They had no way to counter the skill, and even if they attempted to grow stronger by feeding, the corpses were burned to a crisp.

He was truly a high demon far beyond their reach. And thus they feared.

The panicking orcs began to disperse.

Soon, they could barely maintain order.

Seeing them act like this, Benimaru quietly walked ahead.

To him, the orcs ahead were naught but a hindrance.

.

Gabil was ready for death, but, strangely, he didn't feel the blow other than the one that hit him in the side.

Feeling that something was amiss, he fearfully opened his eyes.

What he saw before him was a black wolf.

One that he had seen before... Right! The body double of the leader of the fang wolves!

「O, ooo! Body double-dono, have you come to offer assistance?」

He asked without thinking.

What had happened, Gabil did not know, nor did he have the strength to look around.

Flustered, he finally looked around.

Somewhere in the distance, some commotion was occurring.

And to Gabil,

「I am not a fang wolf, nor a body double.」

Reverberating from the depth of his stomach, Ranga said in a low voice.

And having zero interest in Gabil, he stared at the Orc General.

They stared at each other.

Orc General himself was confused. Suddenly a monster of great power had appeared.

He felt power oozing from the beast's body.

And moreover, from the direction the beast had come, he could feel terrifying magical energy.

Some great misfortune happened there. So the Orc General felt.

But being clueless to this all,

「What a revelation! Then, if you are not a fang wolf... would you be the leader of the black wolves?」

Gabil asked surprised.

Surprised that Gabil had not recognized him for who he is. Ranga declared with a sigh,

「Would you shut up for a minute. I am Ranga! The one who serves Rimuru-sama!!!」

And to the orc,

「Swine, if you retreat, I shall not chase; if you attack, I shall not forgive!」

Ranga barked.

The orc soldiers trembled, but not of fear.

Their general by their side, the effect of [Starving Ones] was strengthened.

「Guguguga! How insolent! A mere beast dares bare his fangs at me!!!」

The Orc General retorted.

And thus a battle began between them.

The general commanded the orc soldiers to surround Ranga.

For a beast, he saw no need for a fair fight.

But Ranga only laughed.

How joyous he was! He could finally show his true abilities.

*Uoooooooooooooooooooon!!!*

Howling with all his strength, Ranga released his aura.

How long had he lurked within his beloved Rimuru-sama's shadow, absorbing the aura, while constantly re-imagining his body.

"Aim for this form!" Since he was told so, Ranga worked daily.

And now came the time for Ranga's true power to awaken.

Power gushed forth from his body.

His muscles bulged, his claws hardened, his fangs sharpened.

And, two horns appeared atop his head...

That appearance, was just like that of his lord. Thus Ranga evolved into Tempest Storm Wolf.

Ranga glanced at the Orc General.

And he knew, he was no threat. To get a feel for his power, and to prove his intuition, he moved.

Ranga felt the flow of power, and directed magical energy into his horns.

After observing Ranga's transformation, Orc General sensed danger.

Go! He wanted to scream the order...

Flash, and a roar.

Many lightning pillars appeared, connecting the heavens and the earth.

And a winding waterspout.

It was a skill that Ranga acquired, [Death Storm]. A wider area skill than the [Black Lightning].

In a second, the Orc General was vaporized, and the surrounding orcs fell to the ongoing storm.

After the storm had passed, no orcs remained in the vicinity.

Wide area skill [Death Storm] held truly terrifying power.

Ranga observed this situation.

There were no casualties among the lizardmen, and he had used it with the largest possible range.

As expected, a lot of energy was used to fuel this skill, but Ranga could still continue fighting.

Having confirmed mastery over this skill,

*Uooooooooooooooon!!!*

A roar of victory.

Looking down at his feet, he saw a fainted Gabil.

However, that was none of his concern. He was ordered to protect the lizardmen, and having them faint posed no problem.

Perhaps now that stupid lizard would fix his misconceptions.

Thinking that, Ranga sat down.

Far away, he could see Benimaru slowly walking towards them.