After we finished cleaning up, we returned home for a bit.
The ladies had already begun building the house, and by noon the outer walls were done.
「They work fast as always」
「Indeed. I never knew women could be this skilled」
Even Kainzel-san, who was a local, seemed impressed by their speed.
Lunch was curry. Since Marg was with us, I made it mild. Ladarion could eat mild just fine, and Kainzel-san liked it too, so mild curry it was.
「This is great! Teacher, this is really good」
「Don’t eat too much. I have sweet snacks ready for after the meal」
Marg did not eat as much as Ladarion, but he still ate a lot. I was glad I had cooked a full stockpot.
「What’s this!? It looks amazing!!」
When I brought out a Costc○ cake, he lit up in excitement. Even after three bowls of curry, he could only finish a third of one slice. That was his limit.
「Take the rest home for your little sister」
「…Y-yeah…」
He had eaten too much and could barely answer.
「Shall we head in the opposite direction this afternoon?」
「Yeah. I’ll exterminate plenty in the afternoon too」
He liked the MINIMI Mk3 so much that he was wiping it down with a cloth even though it was not dirty. It was already his trusted partner.
It took some time for Marg’s stomach to settle, but in the afternoon we managed to exterminate another hundred fifty.
「Three hundred in total. We took down about five hundred around fifteen days ago…」
It felt like they were respawning.
「I have heard that goblins fight fiercely over territory. Those that lose may be the ones drifting this way」
「If that’s true, it feels like we’re drawing them in」
If people started yelling ‘It’s your fault!’ at us, I would be tempted to curse the world.
「Well, at least it saves us the trouble of searching for them」
True enough.
The next day, we planned to head toward the town of Misrim.
From the way people talked, Misrim was not far from Lasagna Village, probably less than five kilometers.
However, between Lasagna Village and Misrim lay a river called the Arut River. Crossing the stone bridge built over it cost two copper coins.
Since it had been built by giants, it was sturdy, large, and looked like it could hold ten adult giants without issue.
「The river is larger than I expected」
The river was about fifty or sixty meters wide, big enough to qualify as a first-class river in my original world.
「Yeah. They say this river flows all the way to the sea」
The sea, huh. Every year I used to go there with my coworkers. Thinking that I will never be able to do that again almost makes me cry.
「Takato, goblins are crossing the river」
I looked in the direction Marg pointed and saw several goblins swimming across.
「Goblins can swim」
I took out my binoculars and looked through them. The goblins were paddling with something like a dog-paddle stroke. I always thought goblins were small fry, but they were surprisingly capable.
「I have seen goblins cross the river from time to time, though it seems they do it fairly often」
Looking more closely, I could see several goblins swimming across. This was despite the fairly strong current.
「Is there something worth crossing the river for?」
They were swimming from the direction of Misrim toward the village of Lasagna. Even though there were wheat fields over there as well.
「They probably realized we wiped out a large number of them」
That might actually be true. Goblins release a smell when they gather. Once that smell disappears, they probably think a new feeding ground has opened up.
「Should we take care of them here today?」
If we aimed from the top of the embankment while they were swimming, we would not have to clean up afterward.
It would trouble the people living downstream, but goblins cause trouble even when alive, so it should be fine.
We had Ladarion return to normal size and clear the thick underbrush as we moved downstream.
After advancing about a hundred meters, we all cleared the area together.
「Kainzel-san. I am going to switch equipment for a moment, so please stay alert」
If I wanted to pick them off, the SCAR would be better than the Benelli M4 or the MINIMI. I also wanted to break in my newly purchased assault rifle.
I returned to Ladarion and the Sefuti Home and switched my gear.
I bought three kilos of processed meat and told Ladarion to scatter it around the area. The smell would lure goblins and make them gather.
I brought the H-Sniper, two twenty-round magazines, and a bucket of 7.62mm rounds. I stepped outside and had Kainzel-san load the magazines.
「That looks cool」
He looked delighted, like a kid with a new toy. It seemed Kainzel-san also liked guns.
「Let me borrow the glasses」
I got the glasses back from Kainzel-san, had Ladarion resize them, and had Marg put them on. He would watch the field side and shoot any goblin that approached.
Once I brought out everything we needed, I switched my own equipment.
The new assault rifle I bought was a bullpup-style rifle called the VHS-2.
Its name sounded like a videotape, but it was an assault rifle made by a company in Croatia, and it had a pretty cool design.
I had considered the Tavor made by an Israeli company, but the VHS-2 was built so it could be used with either hand and had an adjustable stock, so I chose the VHS-2. Switching the ejection port was a bit of a hassle though.
There were several types of VHS-2, and the one I bought was stamped VHS-2K. I equipped it with a dot sight and a suppressor.
I did not know which optic was best, and I did not need one for fighting goblins, but I might use it against other targets, so I attached it to get used to it.
……Seriously, suppressors and optics are so expensive it makes me want to cry……
Once I finished gearing up, I went outside and taught Kainzel-san how to handle the H-Sniper. After he understood, we held a brief meeting.
「Ladarion will take downstream. Kainzel-san will take the front. I will take upstream. Marg, you watch our rear. Even if you only suspect something, report it right away」
Once the three of them nodded, we began exterminating goblins.
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