Buff, Buff
“There’s no point trying to hide it, so I’ll speak plainly. This cow and horse are actually minocentaurs.”
“M-minocentaurs?! Then you mean you’re controlling the minocentaurs that supposedly appeared in the Kihara Barony? And with that concentrated mana I can feel, you must have polymorphed them.”
“Yes. As the rumors say, I’ve gained the ability to edify and command monsters. Rest assured—they won’t harm people.”
The mages of the marquis’s household went pale. Demis Ezef, however, did not seem especially moved.
Huh? I thought he’d definitely go on about knightly pride or say he was disappointed or something. Not a word?
Ho-yeong was the one who ended up a little surprised by Demis’s cool indifference.
“Are you disappointed that I have nothing to say?”
“Pardon? Yes. Not disappointed, exactly—just a little surprised.”
“I’ve seen His Grace command mandragoras and gremlins with my own eyes. What’s so surprising about this? Besides, in the far, distant past, warriors of the unmapped wastes supposedly kept hellhounds as pets, and among the ancient kings, there were even some who rode dragons. Compared to that, a carriage pulled by minocentaurs is hardly remarkable.”
He’d seemed stiff and rigid, but beneath that armor of piety was a surprisingly flexible mind.
“That said, I did expect you to be traveling with stronger monsters by now. Only two minocentaurs, after all. If I were to be honest, that is the part I find disappointing.”
- Minoho?! (What did he say?)
- Minoohm! (You want to go a round?)
The minocentaurs bristled at the remark, their mood turning sour in an instant.
“Would you like to try? It’d make perfect warm-up exercise before exterminating the trolls.”
Ho-yeong considered stopping them, then decided to let them settle it on their own.
“It’d be troublesome if anyone got hurt before the battle, so let’s not make this a fight. How about a tug-of-war instead?”
Minocentaurs obeyed those they recognized as strong, but ignored the words of those they did not. So it seemed best to establish the hierarchy properly from the start.
“We’ll need to dig the ground anyway to make the mana-soil magic circle, so this works out nicely. Mino, you go first. Ready—set—pull! Huh?”
The result was Demis’s comfortable victory. Watching Mino get dragged along like a plow being hauled through the earth, Ho-yeong couldn’t help admiring him.
He knew Demis Ezef was a monster, but to beat a minocentaur in a pure strength contest?
- Minooohm! (I’ll go.)
“Eollugi, you want a turn too? Fine, go over there and give it a try.”
This one took a little longer than the previous match, but it too ended in Demis’s clean victory.
- Minoho…. (We lost.)
- Minooohm…. (We’ll not defy you.)
“Hmm. Your strength is quite considerable. From this day forward, use it for the right cause.”
The station guards watching nearby swallowed hard. The minocentaurs were terrifying enough—creatures said to come only from the deepest dungeons of the Dark Red Land—but the sight of Demis grabbing them like foals on a lead was somehow even more frightening.
- Minohoo. (My lord, apologies.)
- Minooohm. (We’ve brought shame upon ourselves.)
“No. Holding out against Demis that long is impressive in itself. But even that holy knight can’t take on dozens of trolls alone. You two are the only force capable of helping him meet them head-on! Come on, let’s get ready!”
Ho-yeong pumped life back into the dejected minocentaurs. Before long, they had recovered their spirit and gone to work moving the barricades.
Watching them, Demis nodded once and spoke to Ho-yeong.
“Minocentaurs do not readily obey those weaker than themselves. But the strength they revere is not merely physical strength—it is the strength of the heart. For them to follow you as they do, when in terms of mere force you may be of similar standing, means your spirit is upright and firm indeed.”
“You flatter me more than I deserve.”
Demis’s edification meter rose slightly. His four subordinates, the holy knights under his command, also seemed to look at Ho-yeong differently now.
Not just the minocentaurs—now even the holy knights are listening better.
The tug-of-war had made command much easier.
“Then I’ll explain the plan.”
* * *
In a hurry, they finished their defensive preparations.
Ho-yeong stood staring at the station’s beacon tower, lost in thought.
Like when I lifted the watchtower in Rainpa... is there no way to pick up that mana stone and run?
The trolls attacking the station were after the beacon tower. More precisely, their target was the mana stone used as the beacon itself, the beacon stone. Because the beacon stone also served as the power source for the streetlamps in the surrounding area, if it were damaged or destroyed, the entire district would be swallowed by darkness at night.
Looks like I really do need to ask Master Smarty-pants about mana stones.
He had asked the Marquis Iorid, clinging to a faint hope, but...
“Move the beacon stone? Hmm, your idea is admirable, but... this beacon stone is tangled up with all manner of spells and coordinates. If we meddle with it carelessly, who knows what might happen? If we had plenty of time, we might try something, but there simply isn’t enough of it now.”
The marquis shook his head.
“I see. Then there’s no helping it. We’ll have to defend it the honest way.”
Ho-yeong let the matter go without lingering regret.
“From the start, I intend to make sure the trolls don’t set even one foot on this beacon tower. So, paradoxically, being here is the safest place for you.”
Now that a holy knight was present, there was no need to fight while stubbornly clinging to the tower. They only had to cut down the trolls as they came.
“Still, that mutated troll of theirs is an unknown variable, so we should set up additional defenses here as well.”
He couldn’t leave the beacon stone completely unprotected, so he created a mana-soil magic circle around the tower.
“Don’t worry. But Tamer, this mana-soil material is truly extraordinary, no matter how I look at it. Would you perhaps be willing to supply it to the mage tower? If you do, our tower could provide your territory with substantial support...”—
As expected of the lord of a mage tower, the marquis showed intense curiosity and greed for the new material.
“I’ll think about it. But right now, the trolls are the priority.”
“Ahem. Quite right, quite right.”
“This beacon tower is our final defensive line. Of course, we’ll risk our lives to protect the mana stone and Your Grace, but if the worst should happen, you’ll need to defend this place yourself.”
“Understood. Leave it to me.”
After making sure the marquis understood his role, Ho-yeong stepped out onto the grassland.
Across the vast plain, the mountains looked no more than jagged stones protruding from the earth.
They’ll be somewhere out there. Vulcher, the scouting party, the kids... and those enemies too.
Veins stood out on his clenched fist.
* * *
Sub-quest Stage 3, Station Defense, has begun.
On the map in the status window, red dots were moving.
“The number of targets... forty in all? That’s a lot.”
More than the combined number that had attacked Bojedo and Darckovo.
“F-forty trolls are coming?!”
Captain Rio had gone completely white.
“Do not worry. I and the holy knights will go out to meet them. You and the guards must hold your positions and stop only those trolls that slip through. Prioritize preventing infiltration of the beacon tower above all else. Do you understand?”
“Yes, sir!”
The Station 013 guards took position around the barricades near the beacon tower.
If the marquis defending the tower was the goalkeeper, the guards were the defenders—blocking or clearing the ball before it could reach the goal.
“Eollugi, Mino. Are you ready?”
- Minooohm! (We’re ready!)
- Minoho! (Just give the command!)
The minocentaurs did not carry weapons. Their upper bodies were covered by a light-distortion spell, which made the trajectory of their weapons invisible, but that also risked their allies being unable to see and getting caught in it.
“Good. Just do as I taught you earlier. Let’s go!”
The horse Ho-yeong rode charged forward bravely without fear of the troll pack. That was because he had already cast Edification and Blooming in advance.
“Deputy Commander, the blessings I mentioned earlier, please!”
He called on Demis Ezef for buffs. Ho-yeong knew the holy knight’s abilities well—he was a character he had used often in the game.
“Do not spare your life! Haliad watches over us!”
Special Buff Wings of Courage acquired! Courage surges forth.
- Effect: Attack speed +25%, movement speed +25%, strength +20%
- Duration: 5 minutes / may vary depending on the recipient’s mental fortitude.
Ho-yeong felt heat rise from deep within his chest.
The horses, which had first been moving at a slow trot, suddenly surged into a full gallop after receiving the buff. The holy knights gripped their lances tightly beneath their arms and leveled them at the trolls.
- Troo?!
The lances pierced the trolls, who had not been prepared for the sudden acceleration.
- Troak!
Even those who were not hit directly were thrown back by the charge and could not even think of counterattacking.
“Holy knights, Pillar of Blessed Light!”
Just as the charge began to lose speed and momentum, Ho-yeong called out the second buff.
“Yes, sir!”
The holy knights hurled their lances with all their strength. The lances drove into the ground with trolls skewered on them.
“The spear of faith upholds the earth!”
The sun shining down upon the lance shafts, straight as pillars, turned into beams of light linking earth and sky.
Special Buff Pillar of Blessed Light acquired! The defense of allies within range increases.
- Effect: An additional 20% of aura maximum is poured outward to envelop the entire body, reducing damage taken. This additional amount slowly recovers in proportion to each person’s aura recovery rate.
- Duration: 5 minutes / may vary depending on the buff giver’s mental fortitude.
The points where the lances were planted connected into a star shape, activating the buff field.
“Draw your blades!”
- Troawk!
As the holy knights simultaneously drew their silver swords, the light pouring from them seared the trolls’ eyes.
The trolls, blinded and covering their faces, had their necks cut down like stalks of straw.
- Troo troo! (Surround them! Surround and take them on!)
Realizing they could never match the holy knights one-on-one, the trolls tried to regroup and attack en masse, but—
- Thunk!
- Ting!
Stone axes and stone spears only bounced off the shield. The shield was not invincible, of course, and cracked bit by bit under the force of the impacts, but the aura wrapped around by Pillar of Blessed Light took over after that. And even if that aura were exhausted, both horse and knight wore full armor.
- Trooaaaargh! (Why are they so sturdy!)
So it was only natural that the trolls screamed in despair.
“This isn’t even a trade. No matter how much damage the trolls try to dish out, nothing sticks, while each strike from the holy knights is fatal.”
In the end, the trolls gave up on fighting the holy knights and sprinted toward the station instead.
- Troooo! Trotro! (Ignore the knights! Target the real objective!)
The holy knights were incredible individual combatants, but there were only five of them. By themselves, they could not possibly stop all thirty trolls.
“So that’s the plan, huh? Since they can’t win, they’ll target the station guards, who look easier to deal with? I can’t let that happen.”
Ho-yeong stepped in front of the trolls. Since he still wasn’t fully comfortable with mounted combat, he dismounted rather than charging on horseback.
“Come on!”
In the early days of his possession, even one troll had been a struggle. But now, both his swordsmanship and aura were nothing like they had been then. It was thanks to his keeping up with Lillian’s training and his own practice no matter how busy work got.
- Troo!
For a human much shorter than a troll to aim a sword at its neck, he had only a few options: upward cuts, upward slashes, or high thrusts. These attacks consumed a great deal of stamina because of their wide arcs, and trolls could dodge them easily.
“Hah!”
So rather than foolishly aiming for a one-hit kill, Ho-yeong slashed mercilessly at the trolls’ waists and lower bodies.
- Troak!
Once they staggered or collapsed, he went for the head to finish them off.
- Troo! (One there! Swarm him!)
When the trolls realized Ho-yeong was no easy target either, they rushed at him—only for the minocentaurs to charge in and join him.
He had used Communion and Blooming on the minocentaurs to teach them hand-to-hand combat. And the result was tremendous.
- Crunch.
A troll whose neck was snapped by the minocentaur Mino’s forearm died instantly.
It was a technique known in pro wrestling as a clothesline. Performed with the minocentaur’s charge and monstrous strength, its power was terrifying. The drawback was that it had a wide, obvious motion, but with their arms turned invisible, there was no problem at all.
- Tro...?
Eollugi landed a beautiful right straight on the head of a troll that had frozen in shock. Its skull and brain were destroyed in a single blow.
- T-troo?!
The minocentaurs’ upper bodies were invisible. If they had been carrying giant weapons, at least some part of them would have been visible and easier to dodge—but fists and arms were completely unseen by the trolls.
- Trooo! (Don’t be frightened!)
One brave troll even swung down its stone axe with all its might, only for—
- Crunch.
—the stone axe and its own wrist to shatter.
- Tro?!
And yet the bull’s head didn’t so much as twitch. The troll hero could only blink, unable even to think of regenerating its wrist.
- Minooooh! (My lord was right!)
Eollugi roared with satisfaction.
The trolls focus on downward strikes. Since they can’t see your upper bodies and your belly will look like your head to them, they’ll aim there. So don’t dodge—just take the hits. Cheap stone axes like that will shatter right away.
Ho-yeong had strengthened the minocentaurs’ defenses by tightly tying dandanum shields to their abdomens.