Is My Common Sense Wrong?
Is my common sense broken or something? Halphas's contractor was leading a legion that advanced slowly from the front: shield bearers wielding massive rectangular shields nearly 2 meters tall (aka tower shields), backed by rear ranks armed with halberds and long spears over 2 meters in length. It looked just like the Roman phalanx formation marching forward.
Since they were all clad head to toe in black armor, I mentally dubbed them the Black Knight Legion. I issued orders to my family, commanding them to load the cannons and shells we'd looted from the pirate alliance before. I'm not dumb enough to go head-on against idiots who only know frontal charges. As Big Daddy said, if this backwater west side was straight out of the early Middle Ages, then yeah, advancing in a tight shield wall formation would dominate melee—but are we insane enough to charge straight at fully armored enemies? If the enemy uses medieval tactics, we counter with modern warfare!
"Cannons ready!"
"Good! Aim carefully at those morons marching in a dense pack. Everyone—fire!!"
BOOM!!—Whiiiish!—CLANG!—CLAAANG!
"Huh?"
...
"B-Boss... they're bouncing off the shields?"
"Is this stuff really stronger than magic?"
"You idiots. You think Halphas's contractor would build a legion out of weaklings who crumple to a single cannonball?!"
...
No, what kind of shield bounces cannonballs?!
Even for a fantasy world, shield bearers repelling cannon fire was just too much.
"Fire Ball"
WHOOSH!
"Lightning Bolt"
CRACKLE!
Confirming they'd deflected the cannonballs, the enemy advanced toward us. We responded with a barrage of assorted magic attacks. To halt their approach, we threw everything at them—even reloading the cannons for another volley and firing the guns we'd seized from the pirates. But those shield bearers were insanely tough. Direct magic hits only made them pause for a moment. As expected, attacks from run-of-the-mill mages weren't enough against a legion commanded by Halphas's contractor. Of course, only up to ordinary mage-level power!
"I'll turn you to ash without a speck of dust left! Flame Strike"
ROOOAR!!
The flames rippling from Jean's hand swirled into a massive fiery pillar vortex, engulfing the Black Knights. They couldn't block this one—their shields and armor turned to complete ash, vanishing without a trace.
On the opposite flank...
"I'll freeze you solid and shatter you to pieces! Blizzard"
WHIIIRRR!CRACK-CRACK!
A ferocious blizzard storm erupted around Pablo, instantly turning the area into an ice age. Frost pillars surged up around him, spreading out to skewer the approaching Black Knights like kebabs or freeze them into ice statues in seconds.
Jean and Pablo positioned themselves at the left and right edges of the enemy lines to avoid overlapping their flames and ice, unleashing maximum firepower. Trapped in their hell of blaze and freeze, the Black Knights fell like dominoes. For pure AoE annihilation, these two were probably our family's strongest. Taking down over a thousand with just the pair of them? Easily top-tier.
While the others tied up their feet and slowed their advance, Jean and Pablo's spectacular fire-and-ice show had the momentum flowing our way.
"Kid, those boys are better than I thought."
"Of course! They're our family's pride-and-joy action captains."
"Hmph~ At least Archmage level. Not bad."
Seeing Big Daddy genuinely praise them for once felt surprisingly good. Truth is, I'd never seen those two go all-out, so I still didn't know their true limits. They'd mentioned they could alter the local climate if they really pushed it, but we'd never hit a situation needing that. Or more accurately, we couldn't because it'd drag the family down with it.
Is this what it feels like for parents watching their kids get praised?
"Kid. Get ready. He's about to move."
"...Finally coming, huh?"
"Don't even think about blocking an Aura Blade. Comparing it to some regular knight's sword beam is suicide."
...
From afar, watching his Black Knights drop one by one, Halphas's contractor finally slung his halberd over his shoulder and strode toward us.
**
...
SHIIIING!!
"Everyone, dodge!—"
SLAAASH!CRACK-CRACK-CRACK!RUMBLE!
"Gahhh! The ground's splitting?!"
"This is a Sword Master?!"
"That's a total monster!"
"You lot fall back! We abandon the first defense line!"
The moment Halphas's contractor entered the fray, the tide flipped. He swung his 3-meter halberd from high to low in a sweeping arc, unleashing a massive crescent Aura Blade that cleaved the earth toward us. We scattered at the hair-raising, ominous vibe. The blade flew over 500 meters, slicing through barricades and ground alike. Everyone panicked at that terrifying power.
This is the legendary Sword Master? Forget blocking—you just have to dodge no matter what!
"Snap out of it, kid! Now you get it? That's an Aura Blade—the absolute sword that cleaves anything in this world! Nothing blocks it except another Aura Blade!"
"Damn! Fall back to the second line for now! We still have..."
SHIIIING!!
BOOM!!
"It's coming again!!—"
"Boss! Watch out!—"
!!!
Halphas's contractor unleashed another massive Aura Blade, hurtling straight at me and Big Daddy with earth-shaking impact, poised to bisect me. Over 5,000 Black Knights still remained.
Shit! No choice but to use Ostis's hide...
"Boss, move!—"
WHOOOOSH!
"Rina sis! It's dangerous! Even for you—!"
"Hraaaah!!"
BOOOOM!!RUMBLE!!
...
"Whew~♪ My hands are pretty numb."
"""Huh?"""
...
We all gawked at Rina sis in stunned silence at the impossible sight. Even Big Daddy, who'd just said only another Aura Blade could block it, stood there with his jaw on the floor.
An ogre-chimera hybrid or not, Rina sis had blocked an Aura Blade barehanded! Sure, her clothes were shredded, and she had light scratches everywhere—not unscathed—but still. No one could speak after seeing her tank an Aura Blade with her body.
Even the attacker, Halphas's contractor, stared blankly at her without moving.
Every eye—ally and enemy alike—locked on her massive, muscular frame as she rolled her head side to side, loosening up. Mechanical grinding sounds like gears meshing echoed from her body, not flesh. Her heated skin pumped with even more grotesque, hypertrophied muscles. Thick veins and tendons like pumpkin vines bulged and throbbed across her surface.
"Whew~♪ Been feeling like I haven't worked out enough lately—perfect timing! Boss~♪ Mind if I handle that guy?"
"Uh... huh? Y-Yeah... sure? Halphas didn't specifically tell me to take him out."
"Sweet!~♪ Time to really stretch my legs? Rina! Shera! Workout time—get out here!"
"""Yesss~♪"""
THUD! THUD! THUD!
CRACK! GROAN!
Our family's most vicious weapons—the ogre trio—tore off their outer clothes, lined up, and advanced slowly on the Black Knights ahead, casually stretching necks and shoulders. Each step shook the earth like quakes. We'd prepped traps including Estelle sis's, per the plan, but the three ignored it all. They just wanted to smash the enemies in front of them.
"K-Kids? You don't have to go out right now..."
"Our boss worries too much~♪ Teehee~♥ Just leave it to big sis. I'll wrap it up quick for you~♥"
"Actor oppa! Be right back~♥"
"Boss oppa! Gonna exercise with Rina unnie~♥"
THUD! THUD! THUD!
...
Soon, all three charged the enemy without waiting. The Black Knights hastily formed a shield wall, but the trio's full-speed rush sent them flying 5 meters into the air. Then the one-sided slaughter began.
These were burly Black Knights in full plate armor, yet they flew like paper airplanes, crashing down with bones shattering, dying pathetically. My meticulously(?) planned operation felt like a total wash.
BOOM! CRUNCH! SNAP!
"Krrahahaha!!—Pretty sturdy, huh?!"
"Kyahat!~♥ Sturdy means more fun to play with!—"
"Hold out longer! Kyahaha!!—"
CRACK! SQUISH! SQUISH!
...
Kids... since when did this become exercise? Playtime? Huh? Is my common sense broken?
This was a battlefield, no doubt... but to those three, it was just a playground. I still hadn't grasped my kids' true power.