Aiming for a Cozy Life in a Dangerous Forest in Another World! - Chapter 44

Chapter 44: Let’s Head Towards Town 3

……Oops.

I was supposed to be testing our coordination, but I just went ahead and defeated it.

Well, when I thought Kaito might be attacked, I reacted instinctively, shouting and moving without thinking.

And then there was that unpleasant sensation I had felt right before it attacked. That same cold, uncomfortable feeling I had experienced during the battle with the Blackera.

What was that? Was I somehow sensing an impending attack?

Hmm, something else to investigate…

I pulled myself together and checked on the Grilobus.

It was, of course, dead.

The spear had pierced its entire body, starting from its mouth.

“Sorry, you two. We were supposed to be testing our coordination, but I went and defeated it on my own…”

“It’s okay. You were just trying to protect me…”

“You were so cool, Kotoha-nee-chan!”

“…Thanks, you two.”

Well, we had won without anyone getting injured, so I guess it was fine.

As I was thinking that,

“Indeed. Kaito-sama, you rushed ahead alone when the Grilobus fell into the river, attempting to find it. As a result, you were separated from the others and became vulnerable to a surprise attack. Even with 『Physical Enhancement』 activated, it could have been dangerous if Kotoha-sama hadn’t warned you. As for Pola-sama, it was good that you attacked the Grilobus while it was in the air, and the blinding light you used at the end was also effective. However, a rear guard’s role is not simply to attack. You need to observe the vanguard’s actions, offer advice, and provide support other than offensive magic. In this case, you should have stopped Kaito-sama from rushing ahead, or moved forward to protect him. ”

“……Okay.”

“Right, I should have protected Onii-chan…”

So we had been criticized.

Hmm, this was difficult.

Kaito had rushed ahead a little too eagerly.

Label was right, it could have been dangerous.

Pola’s magic had been accurate, and her blinding light had been very effective.

I guess it was also important for the rear guard to caution the vanguard from behind.

“What about me?”

“Kotoha-sama, you need to be a bit more… cautious. It’s true that Kaito-sama was in a dangerous situation, but launching an attack of that magnitude while he was still within the line of fire was equally dangerous. And both of them are now capable of defeating a magical beast of that level. You don’t need to defeat everything yourself. You also need to consider taking on a support role, like distracting the enemy or restricting their movements. In this case, to avoid accidentally hitting Kaito-sama, you could have launched that spear from above, aiming for its front legs and pinning it to the ground. This would have allowed Kaito-sama to finish it off from behind. However, this was your first time practicing coordination, so I believe you will improve with more experience.”

…Hmm. He was right. I need to be more careful, especially since I almost hit Kaito.

And restricting their movements, huh? Until now, I had only focused on defeating them.

It was true, I had defeated the Grilobus this time, but if we encountered something we couldn’t defeat in one shot, it might be better to restrict its movements and attack it together instead of me just launching magic.

…Combat was complicated.

I had never really thought about strategy, because of my strong body and powerful magic.

But I was just an ordinary third-year high school girl. I had zero combat experience.

I guess I should think about strategy as we practiced coordination…

We could eat Grilobus meat, but it wasn’t very tasty.

While it felt a bit extravagant, we had plenty of delicious meat stockpiled, so we decided to leave it.

On the other hand, Grilobus hide could be processed into armor and other equipment. Crocodile leather?

This time, I had skewered it with a spear through its mouth, so the hide was mostly undamaged.

Of course, none of us knew how to process it, but we would keep it as a material.

And the magic stone had been shattered by the stone spear…

Come to think of it, the magic stones were piling up back at the base.

I wonder if I could use them for something…

We collected the Grilobus hide and left the rest.

Normally, we should probably dispose of it properly, but I didn’t want to waste any more time. I had spotted a Forest Tiger nearby, so I figured it would eat it.

I would dispose of it properly on our way back if it was still there.

We didn’t encounter anything other than Fangrabbits after that, but I made a conscious effort to focus on supporting Kaito and Pola, especially Kaito, instead of just using offensive magic.

As a result, we were able to achieve a certain level of coordination, and I discovered new ways to use magic in combat besides just attacking.

We had covered quite a bit of distance, and the sun was beginning to set.

We found a spot for the night, created a temporary base, and went to sleep after taking turns keeping watch.

♢　♢　♢

The next day, we had breakfast and continued on our journey.

We spotted a Grilobus swimming in the river. It was incredibly fast, as the 『Appraisal』 description had stated.

So it had tried to ambush us by circling us underwater, waiting for an opening.

Which meant that if I hadn’t felt that unpleasant sensation, Kaito might have been attacked…

But I had no idea what that sensation was, or how I had known it was about to attack.

It was like some kind of wild instinct?

Well, I would think about it later. For now, it seemed to activate whenever we were in real danger. I couldn’t rely on it too much, but I would make sure to obey it when I felt it.

As I was thinking about this, we saw the edge of the forest.

♢　♢　♢

After walking for two and a half days, we finally reached the edge of the forest.

I was about to excitedly step out of the forest for the first time when Kaito stopped me.

“If they see a young, beautiful woman like you emerge from this forest, they’ll be suspicious! We have to make sure no one is around!”

“Ah, you’re right. This forest is considered to be a dangerous place…”

“I’ll check the area.”

Label said, then effortlessly climbed a nearby tree, moving from branch to branch until he reached the tree closest to the edge of the forest. He started observing the area outside.

He returned a few minutes later, his expression grim.

“……What’s wrong? Was there someone?”

“No, it’s just… there are… people. A lot of them. I estimate about 500. ……An army.”