The Extra Wants To Live

Carl and Billford's men joined forces and killed another monster without any losses. They crossed the river and headed north into the forest.

Then, near the upper reaches of the river to the east, they killed a large monster and naturally joined up with Catherine's unit that was on the move.

"We have four casualties and only one spare net."

Catherine's 2nd Division suffered relatively heavy losses.

It wasn't that Catherine's power or command was weak; it was just that the monsters she was up against were strong.

Even within the same species, the gap is quite large. The lows are incredibly high, but the highs are beyond imagination.

The fact that there are large differences even within the same race is a very threatening factor. This means that their maximum growth through learning and training is that high, so their intelligence may be much higher than previously thought.

They don't seem to do group activities, but when they pair up, they live together as a couple. What if they form a group as a family unit?

"The forest is starting to narrow now, so we will advance while maintaining a distance so that we can help each other if a battle breaks out."

Carl closed the distance between each unit as planned.

As they rested, and the 4th Unit hadn't joined them for quite some time, they figured that the 4th Unit was either annihilated or had suffered heavy damage.

"I hope they are safe."

Billford looked worried about them.

However, Catherine was a commander who considered losses in battle to be inevitable, while Carl was indifferent because he had initially planned with the damage to the 4th Division in mind.

"With Milton, if he doesn't die, we can fight again."

Carl said this and ordered the army to advance again.

According to Camilla's report, there were two monsters in front of them, paired up together.

It goes without saying that the ones who can mate are the strongest ones. Carl couldn't tell the difference between male and female, but still, one of them would be the strongest monster in this forest.

Two people, Carl, Catherine, and Billford, were together, and soldiers had joined them.

One unit killed one monster relatively easily, but they could not let their guard down.

They killed the monster because they fought according to their planned tactics: binding the monster's feet with the power of a mana user, weaving a net, and finishing it off.

That was possible because there was only one monster.

In combat, 1 plus 1 can be less than 1, or it can be 3 or 4. If the two monsters were to fight together while protecting each other, they would be in for a terrible fight.

It would be a relief if even Delane could join safely…

As they moved north into the forest, the swamp gradually disappeared. This was because the land itself sloped slightly from north to south, allowing water to quickly drain into the river.

Eventually, as the forest narrowed and the three units merged into one, it became just normal forest terrain with a slightly damp floor.

"There's only a small puddle in front of here, so we just need to check that."

"Sir Billford, don't let your guard down just yet."

"Yes, Lady Catherine."

Billford did not let his guard down, but instead of refuting Catherine's cautious voice, he answered seriously.

'Did you try to avoid the river? Did you decide that the area near the river was dangerous?'

As he moved forward, Carl continued to contemplate the ecology of the monsters.

If they laid eggs or chicks, they would try to lay them in the safest place possible. Since they avoided rivers that were rich in food, they must have judged rivers to be dangerous. And there were other monsters around the river.

Perhaps they had a habit of mercilessly killing offspring, even if they were of the same species, as future competitors. So, the strongest one would get the mate.

Carl, who was thinking like that and moving forward, suddenly stopped.

"Prepare for battle!"

Not only Carl, but also Catherine and Billford, could sense it. As mana users, their senses were more sensitive than those of normal humans.

At the center of the soldiers forming a battle formation in perfect order were Carl, Billford, and Catherine, who stood with their weapons drawn.

They could hear heavy footsteps from far away. Not one, but two.

Everyone's complexion was not good. One alone was threatening, but two? Especially Catherine and Billford, who studied and learned monstrology, couldn't help but think that they were a pair.

Then, when huge shadows appeared between the trees, Carl gave a tactically wrong order.

"I'm chasing you!"

He then ran furiously through the forest at a speed that the soldiers couldn't keep up with. Catherine and Billford also ran out, with the soldiers following behind.

However, it was impossible for ordinary soldiers to catch up with a mana user. The distance increased in an instant.

Catherine and Billford ran at first without understanding Carl's orders, but soon they understood the meaning.

One monster was bigger than the one Catherine had killed, and the other was much smaller.

The bigger one seemed to be male and the smaller one seemed to be female.

And in the arms of those who moved slowly and carefully on two legs, there were many oval-shaped white eggs.

They laid their eggs in a safe pond far away from the river, but as the water receded and the pond became smaller, they took a risk and tried to move their eggs.

They were inexperienced creatures. That meant they were still immature, young, and had a lot of room to grow.

The two monsters, who were walking cautiously and unsteadily while holding eggs in their arms, suddenly stopped when they saw humans running towards them at incredible speed.

"Gurg! Gulp!"

The small female trembled in anxiety and made noise.

"Shhh! Shhh!"

The male stepped forward and opened his mouth to threaten, but he was so big that he was carrying more eggs, making him look helpless.

He had come out carrying an egg that needed to be destroyed, unable to move properly because he was trying to protect it.

"Take the big one! I'll take the little one!"

At Carl's words, Catherine and Billford ran towards the male, while Carl, spear in hand, dashed through the trees and sneaked around.

The male turned his head absentmindedly as he saw the humans running in two groups, and then made a bold decision.

Crunch!

He threw the large eggs he was holding onto the floor without hesitation.

The eggshells were not very strong and were soft, so when they fell to the ground, all the eggs were crushed and burst.

"Shaaaak! Gurrrr… … ."

The female, seeing this, let out a scream-like, gasping sound and soon burst into tears with her eyes wide open, shedding tears of sorrow.

Everyone felt threatened rather than sympathizing with the emotional display. They must all be killed. Sensitive emotions are necessary to fit in with the crowd. They must be rooted out here.

The males behaved more cruelly even as the females cried sadly.

He grabbed the crying female's arm and shook her roughly, trampling on the eggs that were falling from her arm and crushing them all.

He then dragged the screaming female to his side and stood her up. He judged those little humans to be very threatening and difficult to deal with alone, so he burst all the eggs to force the female to fight together, preventing her from fussing about guarding her eggs.

Of course, the female was not in her right mind.

But when the male grabbed the female's arm and bit her neck, her survival instinct seemed to have grown stronger than those she had faced before.

It was not only that she didn't feel fear, but also that the battlefield had changed.

They're not walking on a swamp where their feet sink in, but on firm ground that's slightly wet and soft.

Shaaa!

Billford's feet kick the ground several times for a moment, and his speed decreases significantly.

A tremendous amount of stress is placed on the knees, but they can withstand it with the power of mana.

This is a movement that could not be done in a swamp.

Wedge!

The monster's hand passes in front of Billford.

Billford kicked the ground again the moment his hand passed in front of him, then bounced forward and dug into the gap where the tip of his spear could reach.

Whoosh.

A light and refreshing sound rings out, and the outstretched spear aims for the monster's right knee.

He held the spear straight and controlled the direction of the force perfectly.

From the blade to the tip of the handle, it was in a perfectly straight line with the direction of attack.

If he swing it hard, the spear shaft will break in one blow.

So now that Catherine is watching him, aim for a powerful stabbing attack that risks losing tempo after the attack.

Swoosh —!

But the male monster did not take it lightly.

The bastard turned his body around with the same force as he swung his hand, and his knees turned, blurring the point of impact.

Billford's spear mercilessly smashed and tore at the scales near the creature's knees, then tore through its muscles, but that was all.

'This guy! He knows how to fight!'

Billford realized from this one moment that this monster was not simply fighting by instinct, but was a 'warrior' who fought with his own battle logic.