Chapter 84
Chapter 84
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 84
Chapter Title: The War Gau Charge
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The tax collector usually switched horses at post stations every 5 to 10 kilometers and returned in half a day, but Sion and the Sparrowhawk Unit couldn't move that quickly.
For one thing, all the unit members participating in this expedition were riding gau, which were slower than horses.
Why make them ride slow gau?
Gau were slower and less agile than horses, but they had greater strength and stamina.
On top of that, horses were actually quite timid and extremely sensitive animals when you got right down to it.
But gau weren't cowardly—they just had docile temperaments.
In fact, gau would charge headlong at wild boars, not to mention large beasts like bears or lions, without flinching.
That made them far more useful than horses when facing monsters.
Small bipedal monsters like goblins or kobolds?
Even they avoided wild gau herds. They rarely even considered fighting them.
There were far easier prey like deer or goats, which were much tastier, everywhere. There was no reason to hunt gau, with their thick fat layers, tough muscles, and the fact that a single charge would leave you with at least a serious injury.
It was easier and more convenient to raid a small village and steal livestock raised by humans.
Medium-sized monsters?
They were in a similar boat.
They might take on one or two stray gau from a herd, but even family units of 3 or 4 trolls would weigh their options carefully before attacking a full herd.
Sion had personally seen a juvenile troll, freshly into adulthood and clueless, charge a gau herd alone, only to get gored by horns and trampled into paste by hooves.
Of course, trolls had such ridiculous regenerative and recovery abilities that, ten minutes after the gau herd left, it staggered to its feet and limped off into the forest.
In any case, that was wild gau raised in the wilderness. What about gau raised by elves with care and training, as war mounts—no, war gau?
These things were straight-up living weapons.
Well-fed, they were 1.2 to 1.5 times larger than wild gau, and their horns were meticulously shaped and sharpened, so a single charge meant game over.
An elf-raised war gau weighed between 1,000 and 1,300 kilograms on average.
Think of it like a mid-sized car with three or four 50-to-80-centimeter blades mounted on the bumper, barreling toward you at 50 kilometers per hour.
An adult male troll weighed around 700 to 800 kilograms, and ogres were a bit bulkier.
In other words, whether troll or ogre, if they took a full-speed charge from a war gau head-on, their bodies would shatter and they'd go flying.
Of course, this required meeting them in open plains and the monsters having rock-bottom intelligence.
The Sparrowhawk Unit, organized specifically for monster hunting, had no reason not to ride gau.
But even these powerful living weapons had a drawback.
They ate a ton.
Not just a lot—an insane amount.
At least they ate anything, weeds or whatever, which was a blessing. Otherwise, no one would even dream of raising them as war gau.
Even now, during a rest break after two hours of travel, the gau had scattered across the field, heads buried in the grass, tearing it up like mad.
And naturally, they shat while they ate.
"These guys are great and all, but man, they eat way too much and shit way too much. Look at that, look at that—shitting like it's a feast."
Miska stuck out his tongue as he gazed at the brown gau that had carried him so comfortably, treating it like a large dog he'd raised for ten years despite only meeting it today.
"Yes. That's why they can't survive in the wild unless they're near our people's lands, and no one but our kind can raise them."
At Stella's words, Miska unconsciously twitched his nose toward her.
Not just Stella—all the elf warrior women smelled like flowers or fruit, which was overwhelmingly stimulating to a 20-year-old mercenary who'd rolled around among sweaty sellswords.
But neither Miska nor any of the Sparrowhawk Unit's mercenaries or soldiers dared act rudely toward the elf warrior women.
*-Touch a fellow unit member, and we'll rip your dick off.*
It was because of Sion's words, delivered with a smile.
Considering the superhuman feat show he'd put on the first day, it wasn't just a warning—it was a "and then it actually happened" kind of deal.
"So, is the gau that Sister Stella rides one you raised yourself?"
"Yes. I brought it from the ranch as a calf and raised it myself. Whee! Emergency!"
Stella whistled, and the gau grazing grass snapped its head up and trotted over to her with a grunt.
Grrrooo.
Miska muttered some nonsense like "Maybe being born a gau wouldn't be so bad?" as he watched it lick Stella's face with a tongue the size of a human palm.
"But cool name. Emergency. Means 'soar into the sky,' right?"
"No. It's short for emergency rations."
"...Pardon?"
"Emergency rations, shortened to emergency. Of course, to strangers, I say what you just thought, like I did."
"Uh... so you really see this guy as emergency rations?"
"Yes. Gau meat is too tough and tasteless, but as you know, Miska, in a true emergency when you're pushed to the limit, you don't get picky."
"R-Right...."
As Miska's face twisted in horror and he edged away, another elf warrior woman stepped in to prevent hasty generalizations about elves.
"Not all elves are like Stella. She's a bit unusual."
"Agreed."
"See? Even she knows it. We elves don't avoid meat entirely, but we don't eat the gau we ride."
"Right? Heh heh, so what's a pretty and kind sister's name? I'm Miska."
"I'm Camilla Gosan. As you can see, same High Mountain origin as Stella. Nice to meet you, Miska."
"No, just Miska."
"Ah! That 'imda' ending is a regional thing. Yes, Miska."
She was a bit odd, but for an elf, Camilla had surprisingly rich emotions.
Miska melted at her beaming smile.
Not just him—the other resting unit members around them grinned goofily at her too.
"Name's Barger. From the northern Cheton region...."
"I'm Kapel, Miss Camilla."
"Dubra here. Specialty's axework. Let's get along."
Introductions flew in from all sides.
"Yes. Nice to meet you, Sir Barger. Suddenly craving a hamburger. Hello, Sir Kapel? Same 'Ka' makes you feel friendly. Ah, Sir Dubra, axes look a bit brutish, so I mainly use daggers. Yes, yes, hello everyone."
Her speech was a little off, but Camilla beamingly accepted greetings from the bandit-looking unit members.
This finally got the other members, who'd been watching warily, to start exchanging names with the few elf warrior women.
Not all were as friendly as Camilla, but they responded to the unit members' greetings with soft, gentle tones (due to the elven accent, but no one cared) and polite manners (just businesslike, but again, no one cared).
By the time the break ended and they mounted up to depart again, most of the unit members shared similar thoughts.
*'They're all so nice, cute, and pitiable?'*
*'We can't let sweet, pretty girls like that fight monsters like Captain Stel!'*
*'Splash monster flesh and blood on those pretty faces? No way!'*
*'I'll protect them.'*
*'I'll guard Ayla!'*
Whether Janstrick mercenaries or Black Eagle Legion veterans, the unit members burned with resolve.
Of course, they knew full well the elf warrior women weren't pushovers.
But now they knew they were not only stunningly beautiful on the outside but had great personalities too.
So, all the more reason for us to protect them.
If we fight harder and lead by example, they'll be safer in battle!
*-You monster bastards, come on!*
The males' protective instincts toward the pretty females ignited into blazing combat fervor.
That fervor only grew over the next three days as they entered the southern Dukedom in earnest.
It was fueled by the elf warrior women's courtesy (businesslike demeanor) and initiative (doing exactly their assigned tasks).
And finally, the Sparrowhawk Unit encountered a monster herd just 10 kilometers from Rozin City.
Groooo-!
The males' battle lust quietly blazed.
But that battle lust vanished without a trace moments later.
A pack of around a hundred kobolds and gnolls mixed together was crossing the fields toward the Brandin Mountains.
The first to spot them were the South Mountain elf rangers Sion had sent as scouts.
"Everyone, quick march."
As befitting trained war gau, they moved in perfect unison at quick march pace (about 10 kilometers per hour), matching the lead rider's speed with their riders aboard.
"You'll see them once we crest that hill."
At the scout's words, Sion spurred his black mount ahead and climbed the hill.
Far off, about 700 to 800 meters away, dozens of kobolds and gnolls were shambling along in a disorderly mob.
Sion's eyes turned icy as he saw the livestock and "humans" they were dragging along tied to trees or poles.
The wind was blowing from the mountains. The monsters wouldn't catch their scent.
Sion returned to the main group, issuing orders to the company commanders with hand signals.
"1st Company to the right flank! 2nd Company to the left! Rangers take the center!"
Warriors from the three elf tribes with ranger experience shot forward at Sion's gesture, following him.
In an instant, the Sparrowhawk Unit crested the hill and looked down.
The monsters, a good distance away, hadn't spotted them and kept moving.
"Quick march—charge!"
Fiott, beside Sion, raised the unit banner on his spear, and the 70-odd gau thundered down the hill as one.
Thud thud thud thud thud thud thud!
The earth-shaking roar made the monsters halt and look around in confusion.
Spotting the Sparrowhawk Unit, they started howling.
The creatures, with intelligence around 5 or 6 years old, had their own language.
But kobolds and gnolls were nocturnal, with poor eyesight.
They saw nearby things fine, but at 100 meters, they couldn't tell cow from horse from deer.
So they didn't register the unit members, assuming it was just wild gau charging and fleeing to one side in a panic.
Wild gau didn't attack first unless provoked.
"1st Company, block their retreat to the mountains! 2nd Company, opposite their direction of movement!"
Fiott swiftly maneuvered the banner.
1st Company Captain Stel and 2nd Company Captain Priel turned at the head of their right and left flanks.
The war-trained gau followed the leaders' turns naturally, even without rider guidance.
Thud thud thud thud thud thud!
Only then did the monsters realize something was off, bellowing as they grabbed crude weapons or scattered.
But it was too late.
Slower runners than humans, how could they escape gau shifting from quick march to trot (about 20 kph) to now full gallop (about 50 kph, gau top speed)?
Leading a dozen elf rangers (coincidentally including all the elf warrior women), Sion slammed straight into them.
"Kyahahahaha!"
"Kieeek!"
The 1st and 2nd Company members all saw and heard it.
The elf warrior women—so elegant, polite, and demure (everything but the beauty was a misunderstanding)—had turned into total berserkers, smashing, slashing, and pounding the monsters.
(To be continued)
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