Monster Stampede 1
Monster Stampede is one of the threats that this country, which is facing the monster forest, can’t avoid. It seems that the ruler of the monster forest appears periodically, leading the monsters of the forest to invade the country, and the only real way to prevent this is to defeat the monsters on a regular basis, but in reality, it is impossible to prevent. The ecology of the monsters is unknown to men, and no matter how many monsters we hunt, stampedes will occur as the new ruler will definitely appear.
This country was originally a part of the monster forest that the Founding King claimed with his friends. But why did he establish the country here? The answer goes back to the time when the country was founded, that is, 500 years ago.
500 years ago, the world was in turmoil. A Demon King had been born, several countries had fallen and the continent was in turmoil because of the countries that took advantage of it. In the midst of this, the Empire and the Holy Kingdom gained power. The Demon King was defeated by the heroes, but the population of the continent was reduced by more than 40%, and the countries that were called the major powers had all collapsed, and even the civilization itself receded as many kingdoms advocated slavery. Since then, the other races have fled their lands in search of a safe haven, but no matter where they went they couldn’t escape and that’s when the people who disliked the flow of the world joined with the other races… These people were the predecessors of adventurers, who eventually settled on this place.
At first, it was just a village, but there was no discrimination there, and the people survived by working together despite the harsh environment. Then, a lone traveler of unknown gender and race, who people thought was a suspicious-acting human, wearing a profound armor appeared in the village and said, “Let’s build a country here, our own country where no one is going to persecute us.” Naturally, there was a lot of opposition. The environment was not conducive to people’s life, and in the first year of the village’s existence, more than 20% of the population died, so those who were too busy defending the village did not listen to anyone.
“Then, let’s build a foundation for the country with my own power… in short, let me get rid of this obstructive forest.”
With that, the traveler unleashed his magic. The trees in the surroundings were blown away, creating an empty space. The traveler continued,
“I shall continue to cultivate this land for the rest of my life, and with our combined efforts, we can create a habitable environment.”
The traveler became a King, showing the way to the people who could only think of living by taking the first step.
The new King spoke up.
“I will join forces with the other races. I will enlist your help, and the land that we are about to create will be a paradise which no one will be allowed to interfere with for all of us who were forced to flee.”
The Founding King used his extraordinary magic to cultivate the land and expand the territory while pushing the monsters deep into the forest, but the damage caused by the monsters did not disappear, so as a means of defense other than the Knights, he created the Adventurer’s Guild, which worked as an independent organization under a pact with the first Guildmaster to help the citizens and prevent damage from monsters.
Well, it means that the Guild originated in our country. The Guild is an independent organization, and the adventurers are not under the jurisdiction of any country, so it’s easier to enter other countries if you are a member of the Guild, and the rest is the common template with ranks and so on.
I have gotten off track. It seems that all of this country’s territory was originally the monster forest that they forcibly carved out to create our country, and the monsters are simply trying to get it back, and that’s why they’re invading us periodically. Well, since we can grasp the timing of the attacks to some extent, there is not that much damage done. Each village has a basement where food and water are stored, and the entrances are equipped with a monster repellent as a countermeasure to the stampede, so people can hide there as the monsters get defeated in the meantime.
“Are you certain it’s more than 10,000? That’s an unprecedented situation.”
As Father said, 10,000 is unheard of. Fundamentally, a horde of monsters consists of a few hundred, a thousand at the most, and no more than that as the monsters won’t be able to control themselves.
“The situation is so severe that if the Guild and Knights Order don’t take action together, it will only be a matter of time before they reach the Capital.”
Their destination is our home. Most likely, a stronger monster than ever before had become the ruler of the monsters. It’s often the case in the stories, but it’s extremely troublesome when it actually happens in reality, but monsters are the enemies of humans and other races alike, so will probably have to strike too… there are insect types too, after all.
“Gilbert… is at the academy at the moment, but I’m sure he will come back as soon as he hears about it, but Sylvia and I will have to go because he most likely won’t make it in time.”
When my father issued the orders, the people around began to move in a hurry. Well, the King is departing to the frontlines, so there are many things to prepare. I should be going too then.
“I’m going, too. Even if I can’t go to the frontlines, I can support you with magic from the rear.”
“……”
Father became silent for a while. Well, I’m only five years old, and normally, I wouldn’t be allowed to participate in a battle. But my powers should be of use, and while I might be useless in a normal war, I don’t have to hold back against monsters as we would lose a lot of soldiers that are needed at the national borders.
“Never leave the rear and don’t overdo it. You can come if you can keep the word.”
“Got it.”
It has been three days since we left the castle. A week passed since the training with Mr. Albert, so the day is the same, and although we call the days of the week differently, a week is seven days.
This time, 600 knights led by my father, 80 magicians led by my mother, and 400 adventurers were standing on the plains. What plains? I don’t know! Is it really acceptable that they don’t have a name for it? Is what I think, let’s leave that for later.
The plan is simple: the knights will charge in, confuse the enemy, and then the adventurers will attack from both sides and take them down. The Magic Division will be apparently using high power magic first, but me and my mother can move freely as long as we don’t shoot our own people. Since that’s the case, I will use this opportunity as my wand practice. I can’t do much more than provide support and use high-powered spells, because casting advanced spells in such a crowded situation would harm my allies.
“Alice, don’t you ever leave my side, you understand?”
“I understand.”
It’s an actual battle. I am naturally nervous, but my mother is a bit scarier than that. Mother also surely doesn’t have the time to look after me, so I have no intentions of separating from her.
The kind of monsters that can be seen from here are of the animal type and sub-humans (not other races but beings like goblins and orcs). Oh good, there don’t seem to be any insects… but there seem to be creatures like the lower-class wyvern too, so things might get a bit troublesome. Should I shoot it down? Wyverns are fairly strong (from Father’s perspective), so others might be harmed by it. I can bring it down with my new magic that has proven itself successful in a small scale experiment, and I can just use something else if it doesn’t work out.
“Can I shoot magic until the Knights charge in?”
“It’s our job to use the strongest magic possible we can to ease the burden on others, so don’t hold back.”
“Got it, I will wipe off the wyvern and its surroundings then.”
“Then your mother is going to kick the crap out of the frontlines. I’ve always hated orcs and goblins.”
Well, they are the real enemy races of women, so there are no women who like them… probably.
Well then, this is my first campaign.