"Aisha! Are you alright!"
Samira's voice sounded by her ear.
"Cough... I'm fine."
Aisha covered her head and stood up, feeling like the scenery in front of her was shaking slightly.
"That dead toad!"
Recalling what happened a few seconds ago, Aisha's expression turned grim.
Seeing a good-looking man, she lost her rationality, completely failing to consider the consequences of doing so.
They were still on an expedition.
If any problems arise, the accountability from the Guild alone would be a huge hassle.
"Samira, go call the others over to help, we need to stop..."
"Help! Someone is trying to kill me!"
A loud cry for help suddenly rang out.
Aisha and Samira froze, looking in the direction where the sound came from.
In their sight, Phryne stood in front of the blond man, wearing a lewd smile on her face.
The next second, a strange noise came from the woods, and hundreds of fully armed adventurers rushed out.
At the very front of the crowd, a girl in a white top paired with a red nurse's uniform held a magic sword, pointing it at Phryne.
"That is..."
Aisha frowned.
The girl's face looked somewhat familiar to her, as if she had seen her somewhere before.
But before she could recall the girl's true identity, she saw a flame rise.
Boom—!
The magic sword in the girl's hand was activated, and a massive flame descended.
After that, hundreds of fully armed adventurers, holding weapons, charged toward Phryne and the Ishtar Familia's camp.
"Eh?"
Aisha was stunned.
What kind of development was this?
Everything happened too quickly.
By the time Aisha reacted, the members of the Freya Familia had already rushed in front of her.
Standing at the very front was the blond man who had instigated the entire dispute.
He gripped a great sword with both hands and swung it down toward Aisha without the slightest hesitation.
"Hey! Wait a minute!"
Aisha reacted and drew a large saber from her waist.
Bang—!
When the weapons met, a heavy, immense force crashed down, sending Aisha flying.
"LV4?!"
Aisha, who was about to say something, let out a cry of alarm.
What a joke!
LV4s aren't common goods. Where did this LV4 come from?!
Just then, a series of screams sounded from all around.
The adventurers who entered the camp all displayed strength not inferior to their own, possessing LV3 or LV4 capabilities.
In other words, these hundreds of adventurers were all Second-Class Adventurers possessing LV3 or LV4 strength.
Recalling the nurse-uniformed girl just now, she finally realized the enemy's identity at this moment.
"You are from the Freya Familia?!"
"So, what if we are."
Kicking Samira away, the blond man looked at Aisha expressionlessly.
"The attack on the Ishtar Familia Executive Phryne by a member of the Freya Familia is a fact that everyone saw."
"Prepare yourself psychologically. This matter will not end so easily."
"..."
She had been set up.
At this point, even if Aisha reacted slowly, she realized the truth.
If there was anything fortunate, it was that the enemy hadn't sent out any First-Class Adventurers.
With Phryne, an LV5, present, plus Haruhime's magic...
Huh? Wait a minute!
Where was Haruhime placed?!
Shing—!
A cold, gleaming blade sliced past, and Aisha clutched her arm, pulling away.
"You dare get distracted at a time like this? It seems I'm truly being underestimated."
"Damn it!"
Aisha's expression was heavy.
Facing a powerful LV4 head-on, whether she could even protect herself was questionable.
The task of finding Haruhime would have to be left to others.
...
On the other side of the battlefield.
Pann charged into the Ishtar Familia's camp first, wielding dual swords.
As an LV4 of the Freya Familia, he participated in the slaughter on the Battlefield Plain every day.
From LV1 to LV4, he had accumulated a large amount of group combat experience.
Currently, facing the siege from the Ishtar Familia, he fought like he was on a rampage, cutting down most of the enemies in front of him with every strike.
However, at this moment, he suddenly noticed that the Amazon girls on the field were intentionally or unintentionally guarding a tent not far away.
"Interesting."
Pann suddenly accelerated his movements, cutting down all the Amazons blocking his path.
After that, his figure flickered as he arrived before the tent, reaching out to pull aside the tent flap.
In the next second, a wooden chest over a meter tall, floating in mid-air, appeared before him.
Ryuu: "..."
The timing couldn't be worse.
Letting out a mental sigh, Ryuu raised her wooden sword without the slightest hesitation and smashed it over.
A *thud* sounded. Pann, who hadn't reacted yet, was hit dead center and flew out of the tent.
After that, Ryuu didn't look back. She hoisted the wooden chest onto her back and sprinted away at full speed.
"Finally shook them off."
Over ten minutes later, Ryuu glanced back, her expression relaxing slightly.
Those people from the Freya Familia were practically rabid dogs.
Upon discovering an invisible person had escaped the battlefield, they immediately sent someone to pursue her.
If she hadn't been familiar with the surrounding terrain, she might not have been able to shake them off.
Arriving at an inconspicuous corner, Ryuu removed her helmet and opened the chest. A shivering Fox Person Maiden appeared before her.
"Don't be afraid, I'm not a bad person."
"..."
Haruhime trembled even more violently.
Seeing this, Ryuu realized her choice of words was problematic and quickly changed her phrasing.
"I'm here to rescue you."
"Rescue me?"
Haruhime was stunned for a moment.
"The specific situation is complicated. Just know I was sent by God Take-mikazuchi."
Ryuu played the trump card Lynn had prepared.
According to Lynn, the other party would calm down as soon as they heard Take-Mikazuchi's name.
Sure enough, upon hearing her words, Haruhime regained her composure from her panic:
"God Take-mikazuchi... is that lord in Orario now?"
Ryuu nodded.
Although she had never met Take-Mikazuchi, she had heard of the Take-Mikazuchi Familia.
Due to their improved bait, the Take-Mikazuchi Familia was quite famous among adventurers.
Working daily at The Hostess of Fertility, Ryuu had heard some information from adventurers.
Sharing this information with Haruhime, she quickly gained the other's trust.
"Miss Ryuu, earlier, while I was in the chest, I heard fighting outside. Was that you?"
"It wasn't me. It was the Freya Familia."
"The Freya Familia?"
Even Haruhime, confined within the Familia, understood what the Freya Familia represented.
"Why would they do that?"
"I don't know either."
Ryuu shook her head: "I just received a request to meet you and happened to run into the attack."
"It's too dangerous at the camp now. Come with me back to the surface first."
"But Miss Aisha and the others..."
"Don't worry about casualties."
Seemingly guessing Haruhime's thoughts, Ryuu preemptively gave a reply.
"The Freya Familia members show restraint. As long as wounds are treated promptly after the battle, they can recover in a few weeks."
There was another point Ryuu didn't mention.
On a battlefield filled with Lv.3s and Lv.4s, one Lv.1 going back wouldn't make a difference.
After managing to persuade Haruhime, Ryuu handed the invisibility helmet to her.
"That wooden chest is too conspicuous. Wear this and come with me."
...