The roar of the Benelli M4 echoed through the mountains.
Two shots, then three followed in succession. Did they get it? I almost raised a death flag thinking that, but the shots continued. Four, five, and then all seven rounds were fired.
From the sound of it, they had not finished it off. A Yamaguro must be that kind of monster.
I had run about three hundred meters, but running through the mountains while carrying the Lynx was brutal. This thing alone weighed over ten kilograms. On top of that, I carried the VHS-2, four spare magazines on my plate carrier, a Glock with two magazines, and other gear. Nearly thirty kilograms of equipment. Anyone would be out of breath after running three hundred meters like that.
I hid behind a tree and drank water through the hydration tube.
「So they still have not taken it down, huh」
Maybe because I had reloaded so many times during the Goblin King fight, my loading speed had improved.
「Seriously, how tough is a Yamaguro?」
Even if they were pellets, each one was about a centimeter wide after scaling up. Taking dozens of those and still not dying meant you would need a rocket launcher to kill it. This was not something a goblin exterminator should be fighting.
「I should have bought an RPG-7 instead of the Lynx」
There were cheap ones and expensive ones, but I could not bring myself to buy a fifty-thousand-yen one because it felt unreliable. Even new ones cost over a hundred thousand yen. The rockets alone were sixty to seventy thousand each. Of course I hesitated. Anyone would choose running over fighting.
「Yeah. I will trust Gorg and head back to headquarters」
If I was useless here, then I should return and wait for Gorg and the others. Trusting and waiting was important too.
Maybe that selfish thought was the problem. When I reached a spot overlooking headquarters, I saw a massive bear-like creature approaching the Pioneer.
「──A Yamaguro!?」
It was not a bear. Its front legs were long and its hind legs short. When the boys and girls noticed it and stood up, the creature rose onto two legs.
Before thinking, I dropped my backpack and lay prone on the ground, using it as a rest.
The distance to the Yamaguro was between one hundred and one hundred fifty meters. Even I could hit that.
I adjusted the scope focus and calmed my pounding heart with slow breaths.
It is fine. If I stay calm, I can hit it. Even if I miss, I still have five rounds. It was larger than a brown bear, but even one hit should be fatal.
I aimed at the Yamaguro’s side, took a breath, and pulled the trigger. The recoil was intense.
The first shot grazed its back, tearing through the outer fur.
I did not panic. I never expected the first shot to hit. I only needed to see how the bullet traveled. This was my first time firing it, after all.
I fired the second shot immediately. By chance, the Yamaguro had turned toward me, and the round struck its abdomen. It twisted and collapsed onto the ground.
Before it could move, I fired a third shot. It hit its back… yet it stood up again. How tough was this thing!?
「What!?」
I thought it would run away, but for some reason it charged straight toward me. Head-on?! Why!?
I switched from the Lynx to the VHS-2 and fired in rapid bursts from a kneeling position.
Even after taking hits to the face, the Yamaguro did not slow down. I immediately swapped magazines and emptied it again in full-auto fire.
That finally seemed to affect it, and its momentum dropped, but its eyes stayed locked on me. Was it some kind of berserker!?
I changed magazines again. This time I aimed not for the face but for its right foreleg. The shot threw off its balance, and it stumbled forward and fell.
Distance to the Yamaguro: about thirty meters.
I slung the VHS-2 onto my back, went prone, and aimed the Lynx at it.
Two rounds left. Eat this!
Boom. Boom. The shots fired and struck the Yamaguro’s back.
I immediately pulled another magazine and reloaded, then fired five more rounds into it. Damn it! Do not underestimate an armed human!
I tossed the Lynx onto the ground, switched back to the VHS-2, reloaded, and unleashed another burst.
Sorry, but I cannot keep raising death flags over and over! Not once, die ten times already!
After emptying it, I drew the Glock and dumped every remaining round into it.
Stopping there would have been another death flag, so I reloaded the VHS-2, Glock, and Lynx before kicking the Yamaguro’s body and shouting in victory.
「…I can do it when I have to…」
I fought to keep my legs from giving out, shouldered my backpack again, and headed down the mountain toward headquarters.
「Are you all safe?」
The five of them looked completely terrified by the Yamaguro and were sitting on the ground, unable to stand.
「You did well. Good job」
I roughly patted each of their heads and praised them. If this turned into trauma, I would not be able to face Rondario-san.
「…S-sorry. We could not do anything…」
Razul apologized, blaming himself for his helplessness.
「There is nothing to apologize for. You survived. That alone is admirable. There is nothing to be ashamed of. If anything, I should be the one apologizing for leaving you behind. I am sorry」
These boys and girls were entrusted to me by Rondario-san. It was my responsibility to bring them back safely.
「N-no! Takato-san did nothing wrong! Please do not apologize!」
「Then no more apologies from either side. Now listen. The adventure is not over until we get back. Stay alert until the very end」
That is right. It is not over yet. We only relax after we make it home.
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