Chapter 825: 825: More Reinforcements

Atop a small hill about 100 meters away from our current location, an army of 1,000 dwarves suddenly appeared.

At the front was Queen Orfalve, carrying a ridiculously huge halberd on her shoulder.

She took one glance at us and shouted loudly.

「Dwarven warriors, perform as usual! March as you always do, show our prowess as you always do, and crush our enemies as you always do!」

「「「Understood!」」」

All the dwarves stepped forward at once, but all we could hear was a single loud thud.

That meant the movements of so many dwarves were in perfect unison.

And they were holding their weapons with the exact same stance. Without looking back at her fellow dwarves, Orfalve activated her skill.

The Extra Skill that made the dwarven warriors the strongest army in the world.

「Brave March! Follow me!」

「「「Understood!」」」

Led by Orfalve, the dwarves began to march in unison.

At their front was the queen. She was followed by two horizontal lines of 500 men, the same simple formation we had seen before.

I guess those that horizontal formation makes full use of the dwarves' insane power.

Perhaps the antidemons considered the sudden appearance of the dwarves as a threat, or perhaps they viewed the mana of the dwarves as a feast, after seeing it boosted by the power of Brave March.

Either way, we saw about half of the antidemons around us change their target to the dwarves instead.

We couldn't ask for better reinforcements.

「We're joining up with the dwarves! Everyone, gather around me!」

Hilt shouted, and the hundred man army all moved together. She must have been fully recognized as the leader after we left to save Nadia.

「Fran, you okay?」

「Nn.」

There's no way we could save Nadia on our own, even if we've somewhat recovered. Our best option would be to get help from the dwarves.

Although the pressure from the antidemons lessened somewhat, there were still many enemies surrounding us. Hilt placed everyone that could still fight on our perimeter, intending to forcibly break through the horde.

「Sophie, are you okay?」

「Kinda......」

The song that had healed us earlier must have worn her out more than I had imagined. She couldn't even run.

Well, she could still move better than Fran.

「Black Lightning Princess-san, would you like me to carry you?」

「I'm fine. You must be tired too, Diggins.」

「Hahaha. This is nothing to worry about!」

The main members of the team were severely worn out from fighting on the front lines. It was not only Diggins and Yagilale.

「Colbert!」

「Tch!」

After Hilt screamed, we turned around to see Colbert having just been slashed by a swordsman-type and splattering blood everywhere.

Hilt went to his rescue and saved the day, but everyone was getting too exhausted to stay focused. Similar scenes were happening to other members of the army.

After seeing this, Hilt's expression changed. She had resolved herself.

「I'll make our path.」

Even Hilt was exhausted too, with the mana in her body visibly weakening. Still, she was willing to step forward for the sake of her comrades.

「Haaah! Garuda!」

Hilt's body accelerated at once, and her outstretched fist blasted all the antidemons away.

However, her movements were clearly lackluster, showing in her lack of control over the Garuda art. She could only output about half the power she would normally be able to use.

But Hilt did not stop. She continued moving forward, crushing all the antidemons in front of her.

Her fist was already completely covered in her own blood.

With the magic power covering her fists diminishing, she could no longer fully ignore the toughness of the antidemon's armor. Still, Hilt just kept on throwing out her fists.

Why was she fighting so hard? She shouldn't have a big stake in this fight compared to Fran.

She of course didn't know Nadia, nor had any feelings about Castel.

And yet, Hilt still squeezed out every last drop of her being, completely determined to save everyone.

「I won't let... anyone die here!」

Hilt muttered faintly.

I doubt Fran heard that. It was a very faint murmur, so quiet that I was the only one able to pick it up.

「If anyone dies here... Fran would be upset! I won't allow a little girl like that――to cry any more!」

So it was for Fran's sake...... I can kinda see why then. Fran would have risked her life for Hilt too.

The relationship between the two was a little more complicated than just "friendship". They first battled each other to the death, and now they're fighting together... Maybe "comrades-in-arms" would be the best way to describe them?

These two were the kind of people who would risk their lives with a smile for their comrades-in-arms. The only thing I could say for sure, was that they were connected by a mysterious bond that I could never fully understand.

But as if to mock Hilt's resolve, the wave of antidemons showed no sign of relenting.

I could feel the speed of our advance slowing.

『Things are gonna end badly at this rate. I could use all my remaining mana to......』

Huh, why? What do you mean, 3%?

I was about to ask back, when a white light suddenly enveloped us.

The light felt comfortable, as if we were being bathed in warm water. I knew that feeling, the light of restoration magic.

『Wide range healing? Who could have done this...?』

I took another look around. Just then, I noticed a new army had appeared nearby, like the dwarves did previously.

I didn't notice them this time either!

『They healed us, so they must be our allies, right?』

Unlike the dwarves, I did not recognize this new army. At the front was a sorceress with morbidly pale skin and goat-like horns.

She's probably a demonkin.

「Fire!」

At her order, the newly appeared army unleashed a wave of spells. They must have casted at least 300 of them.

The spells landed in the antidemon hordes, blowing them to smithereens. Okay, they were definitely our allies.

『Announcer-san, you were able to notice them, right?』

『But how? I couldn't sense them at all.』

『Their skill? You mean the one that allowed the dwarves to get here undetected?』

『Perfect Presence Blocking? You mean......?』