Red, the color of fire, the color of blood. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

The quiet town of oak was drowned out in the roars of monsters and the screams of the townsfolk before the morning of the second day.

"Help, help!" Enoch staggered through the gap between the two houses, the sound echoing through the dark alley, barely audible outside.

The hunter's robe, which already looked very old, had a long cut in his right arm, and blood continued to drip from the narrow wound.

The exit of the alley was only two steps away, and Enoch had a glimmer of hope in his heart, and he rushed out despite the pain.

The sound of sharp arrows breaking through the wind sounded behind him, and the hope that had just emerged turned into despair in an instant. Enoch didn't have to look back to know that that terrible monster had already approached, and he was just an ordinary person, and there was no room for evasion in the face of this kind of monster that was far beyond ordinary people in terms of strength and speed, not to mention that this was a narrow passage.

But the expected severe pain did not appear.

A large hand of steel dragged him out of the alley, and a steel shield painted with a griffon pattern lay across the path of the deadwood thorns, and with a crisp sound, the monster's attack was futile.

Enoch looked up cautiously, and the knight of steel stood in the midst of the burning town, quietly waiting for his opponent.

A few dead branches clasped the walls on either side of the alley, and a pale shadow flew out and slammed into the Sword and Shield Knight like bullets.

The knight tilted his shield in silence, and the withered sapling ejected spear-like branches as soon as it hit the shield, bypassing the shield and striking at the gap between the knight's plates.

The shield wielder of the Sword and Shield Knight slammed into the withered sapling, and the clever angle and timing of the shield caused the withered sapling's attack to be inaccurate and unbalanced.

The shield was retracted, revealing the simple cross sword in his right hand, a simple and efficient cross sword slash, and the withered young tree fell to the ground screaming.

The Sword and Shield Knight walked over to the wounded withered young tree and crushed the monster's head with a single kick.

"Thank you, thank you!" Enoch thanked repeatedly.

"I'm just an ordinary soldier. The voice buzzed under the steel helmet, "Find a safe place to hide, I'm going to support the others." ”

After speaking, the cross-swordsman held the heavy cross-sword in both hands and walked towards the next target location.

The town priest's cottage is located at the head of Oak Town, and is rarely visited except by the townsfolk who heal their wounds or pray to the gods.

The door was violently pushed open, and the dwarven warrior sitting on the wooden bench by the door subconsciously clenched the handle of the axe, and relaxed at the sight of the visitor, and his bearded face was visibly delighted.

"It's good that you're alive, boy. Todak shouted loudly.

"Whew, whew—it's a shame you're still alive. Besco replied maliciously after taking a breath.

"Shirley, Urchi, it's great that you're okay too. Besco then noticed the other two.

Shirley appeared to be wounded, her left arm dangling in a bandage, her longbow leaning against the corner, and her right hand holding a cup of warm milk tea, and Archie huddled in the corner for her daily prayer ritual.

"Becky!" Shirley was very happy to see Besco, and wanted to pounce, but noticed that she had no hands now, and shrugged helplessly.

"I see a bit of damage outside, the canon owner of the tavern said you ......"

"Be quiet!" The owner of the hut, the dwarf priest, Nex, interrupted the reunion conversation by glaring at the three of them with a stern glare.

Besco shrunk his head, it was unlucky to upset a god's priest.

The wanderer noticed that Necole was treating a man who was a circle taller than himself, who appeared to be suffering minor injuries, and his medical bandage was stained red with oozing blood. A complete set of knightly heavy armor and a pair of swords and shields were stacked on the side of the operating table, and Besco stole a glimpse of a line of small rhoads at the base of the blade of the cross sword, which was presumably the name of the man.

"Thanks to the help of this knight. Todak whispered to Besco, "If it weren't for Mr. Rhodes' efforts to rescue the townspeople and provide support, we would have suffered heavy casualties last night, and he helped us share most of the pressure. ”

After a night of fighting side by side, the heroic Knight of the Cross Sword had earned the respect of the three adventurers.

Besco, who was still listening, was pushed out of the way, and Kirito came in through the door and closed the door.

With the astonished eyes of the three adventurers and Nex, Kirito walked straight to the operating table, where the dwarf priest's treatment was almost complete.

"Please don't disturb the patient. Nerkel warned.

Kirito smiled and nodded at her.

"Rhodes. Kirito propped his hands on the operating table.

The man lying on the hospital bed tried to struggle to sit up, but the laceration on his lower back and abdomen prevented him from completing this simple movement, and he could only clasp his right hand in front of his chest.

"Crusader Swordsman Rhodes, report to you, sir. ”

"Well done. Kirito gave Rhodes a thumbs up, "You're a good soldier, and Karl will be proud of you." ”

"I am the Lord's Blade. Rhodes shouted.

Nex was furious at Rhodes' behavior, "Don't move, don't make a loud noise, if you weren't hurt protecting the town, I'd have thrown you out by now!"

"Heal well, Rhodes. Kirito coughed lightly and said, "Come back to Tahamat with me when you can move around freely." ”

"Yes, sir. Rhodes the Crusader replied.

Kirito walked back to Besco and them under the hostile gaze of the dwarf priest.

"Pastor Naixel doesn't mean anything, she just hates people interfering with her medical work. Shirley gestured to Kirito with her hanging left hand, and said in a voice that she wouldn't let Nex hear, "She's a good person." ”

Another dwarf priest who was rescued during the journey, Urchi, had already made his daily prayer at this time, and came to Kirito's side with a bright eye: "Are you a retainer of a lord?" ”

"That's right...... Kirito said after a moment's consideration.

Carl has his own Void Realm, and he is the hero unit he summons, so it's not wrong to call it a retainer - but there seem to be only two people in the family, and one of them doesn't know where he left it yet.

The black swordsman thought with a wicked amusement.

Todak and Shirley did not hand over the Talragon Ring to the Heclair family first, but waited for Besco and Kirito to return, but fortunately there was no danger on either side.

Todak gave the rings of the brothers and sisters Tarragon and Sarayn to Lady Kellowen of the Herclairy family, and when she received the status symbols of her children and confirmed their deaths, Miss Kelloven was very sad and told the butler to give the honorarium to the adventurers.

Unfortunately, Tarragon's body has long since disappeared, and Salvin has been turned into weathered pieces of wood due to the curse of dead wood, and the adventurers have only succeeded in bringing back some relics.

Besco approached the mayor of Oak Town, Vino Lang, and told him about the relationship between the Guthias tree and the withered young trees, as well as the red apple saplings that the villagers had been hoping to cultivate.

Besco cut off the branch of a sapling in the town's tree garden, and the latter let out a piercing scream and attacked Besco, but the withered young tree that had not grown up was no threat and was easily eliminated by him.

Everyone saw the scene, and the damage caused by the tree monsters the night before was still vivid, and these half-human saplings immediately turned into devouring demons in the eyes of the townspeople, and they took out their axes and cut down the saplings - many of them may have suffered innocent ordinary saplings, but it had nothing to do with Besco.

Flames purify evil, and the seedlings of withered young trees are cut down and stacked in a small square in Oaktown, where they are to be burned.

Vino Lang invited Besco and his companions to the incineration ceremony.

The townsfolk threw their torches in fear and hatred, and the withered young trees were not like ordinary freshly cut trees, which were difficult because of the dampness, but like oil poured on them, and soon burned into a raging fire, and the darkening sky was dyed red with it.

As the townsfolk set fire to the evil plants, Mayor Mare turned his face to the adventurers, the light of the fire shining on his frank and earnest face, "You know, some of the plants we planted earlier have already spread to the outside world. Who knows where they are now and what they're doing?"

"They can take root and multiply like poplars, and they can also attack other creatures like terrible carnivorous beasts. A black-clad swordsman sat on the stone steps in front of the house, looking at the crackling flames and muttering.

This is not Kirito's speculation, but the exact words I saw while looking through the research materials of Belik the Vault Dweller. Wilted young trees have both plant and animal characteristics and are aggressive.

"I, Pastor Urgie, will escalate these situations to the church. The gnome priest bowed his head and said in a solemn tone characteristic of a clergyman. (To be continued.) )