“Nothing to do……”
That day, a Kobold named Laral was keeping watch over the golems at the mountain quarry.
The golems could work independently for the most part, but their ability to handle accidents was limited.
So the Kobolds took turns monitoring them, making sure any problems that came up wouldn’t disrupt the work.
That said, accidents almost never happened.
Basically, it was just standing around watching golems work — an incredibly dull job.
Laral was thoroughly bored, and let out a long, jaw-cracking yawn.
“It must be noon. I should eat.”
He looked up at the sun hanging high overhead and reached into his pack for his lunch.
Opening it, he found bread, dried meat, and some fruit.
He was about to start eating when he fumbled, and the fruit slipped out of his hand.
“Oh no!”
A red piece of fruit went rolling down the slope.
Unluckily, there was a sheer drop right at the bottom.
Laral scrambled after it and just barely caught it before it went over the edge.
“Phew……!”
A close call. Almost lost his lunch.
He let out a relieved breath and slowly raised his head.
Far in the distance, at the edge of the forest, something was moving.
“What’s that……?”
A bad feeling came over him, and Laral pulled out the binoculars he’d been given beforehand.
They were for confirming any Crawler sightings, just in case.
——There’s no way they’ve come this far, though.
Still, he nervously brought the binoculars up to his eyes.
And then——
“Wh-WHOA!!”
Through the lenses, an uncountable mass of insects was seething and churning.
The sight of something that looked like it could swallow the world whole made Laral scream on instinct.
He immediately grabbed the flare from his pocket.
That too had been given to him for exactly this possibility — to signal a Crawler attack.
He struck the fuse with a flint, and red smoke began billowing up.
“Someone notice, please — hurry!!”
The village far below him.
He stared down at it and waved the flare with everything he had.
――〇●〇――
“You’re certain?”
“Yes. Red smoke went up from the mountain quarry. We confirmed it — Crawlers are heading toward us from the northwest!”
“How long until they arrive?”
“To the foot of the rocky mountain — about two hours. From there to the town, less than an hour.”
Less time than I’d hoped……
At this rate, even fleeing at full speed wouldn’t outrun them.
We’d have to make our stand in Isvall.
“First — get all the residents assembled in the central square! And round up every golem we have available! Combat types or not, it doesn’t matter!”
“Understood — right away!”
“Makina, how much longer until the replication-types are ready?”
“The numbers aren’t sufficient yet, so it will take time before they can be fully effective……but I can activate them now if needed.”
Unexpected good news.
In that case, the plan was simple — hold out until the replication-types could overwhelm the Crawlers.
“Good. Deploy them immediately!”
“Understood. Though there is a concern……”
“What?”
“With the replication-types deployed, I believe the people of Isvall can be protected. However, the village at the foot of the mountain — at this rate, there may not be enough time to save them.”
Makina said it with a grave expression.
……The village would be destroyed?
The faces of the Kobolds who lived there came to mind, and I stopped moving.
I hadn’t known them long, but they were my people — all of them.
They had been the very first residents to join my domain.
And they couldn’t be saved?
“Isn’t there anything we can do?”
“There is one option. But there’s no one available to deliver the message to the village. I’m about to go into final calibration on the replication-types, so……”
“There’s a way.”
“Yes. But as I said, there’s no way to get word to them.”
“I’ll go and tell them myself.”
At that, Makina’s eyes went wide.
Then she immediately shook her head — hard, and repeatedly.
“Absolutely not!! If the swarm reaches you, you’ll die!”
“But I can’t abandon the Kobolds in that village! As their lord, I have a duty to protect them!”
“No!!”
Makina grabbed my hand with both of hers, refusing to let me go.
I tried to pull free, but she held on like a vice — not even a twitch.
She had no intention of yielding on this.
“……What if I went instead? Better than the lord going himself.”
Ganz stepped in, unable to watch any longer.
But I shook my head.
“It has to be me — I need to use a vehicle that’s still being calibrated. If something goes wrong with it on the way, you wouldn’t be able to handle it.”
“That’s true, but……”
“And as their lord, this is something I want to do myself.”
“…………Alright.”
Ganz stepped back, slowly.
Makina, however, still hadn’t let go.
With my free hand, I gently covered hers.
“I won’t die. So don’t worry.”
With that, I pulled her body firmly toward me.
Caught off balance by the sudden movement, Makina leaned into me.
And then I pressed my lips to hers——
“Mmh——!?”
Startled and flustered, she let go of my hand.
I stepped back and gave her a small smile.
“I’ll be fine. I’ll come back — I promise.”
“Lord Viktor……!! ……Understood. I’ll tell you what I have in mind.”
She must have realized my mind was made up and wasn’t changing.
Makina told me the plan she’d devised.