The Leader of the Monsters

When creatures gather, a universal rule dictates that a leader will emerge among them, regardless of the species. This rule applies even to a horde of monsters. Ente catches a glimpse of this phenomenon.

“What… is that…?”

Though she catches a glimpse, doubt creeps into her mind about the reality of what she sees. The sight stuns her, even in enemy territory.

The creature has such a peculiar appearance that it matches no known creature to Ente. Its form is so unique that it doesn’t align with any known beings.

It stands upright on two legs in a humanoid shape. Yet, it barely resembles humans, elves, or beastmen.

Most of its head is covered by huge eyeballs reminiscent of dragonflies. Its mouth, wide like that of an insect, reveals menacing fangs. Its body sports a sturdy-looking shell, but what is draped over it? It appears as clothing. Semi-transparent pieces of fabric-like material sprout from all over its body, except the chest, swaying in the wind.

“What a creepy dude…”

Ente feels a physical revulsion at its grotesque form.

“But without a doubt, that guy must be the leader of the pack.”

She quickly regains her composure and aims the rifle, taken from the village, to achieve her current goal. Ente easily concludes this monster is the pack leader.

The emergence of a leader within a group is a common biological law. And when the pack reaches a certain size and readiness for battle, it’s also common for the leader to stay back.

Having seen the ruler of the elven autonomous region up close since childhood, Ente knows this feeling well. There is no mistaking the unique aura of someone who gives orders.

“Looks like they’re heading towards the village… We’ve got the upper hand…! Taking out their leader in this situation will make defending easier… And my achievements will be even greater…!”

After just two days, she has mastered various functions, like adjusting the scope’s magnification. With the certainty of a long-time partner, she swiftly finishes adjusting the blaster rifle.

In the depths of the forest, where large monsters dwell, her successful infiltration owes much to luck but even more so to Ente’s innate talent.

Navigating through the familiar forest, avoiding the unique presence of monsters, and finding the right way in an area with no animal trails require an acute sense of direction and an instinct to sense the presence of distant monsters. These are essential skills.

But this represents only half of Ente’s talent. Her true talent lies in hitting the mark she aims for from a distance.

“Distance, five hundred… Numerous bushes and branches between the target… If it were a bow, this would never hit. It wouldn’t reach in the first place.”

She mutters, looking at the numbers on the scope and the scenes captured within.

“But with this rifle, it’s no problem…! Unaffected by the wind, never falling… I’ll shoot through any obstacles to hit their head…!”

Lying on the ground, she slowly steadies her breath. The weapon offers excellent stability simply by resting on her shoulder, but being supported by the unwavering ground further enhances its precision.

She observes the leader, surrounded by other monsters, as it slowly walks forward. The forest obscures the leader’s figure with trees, allowing only glimpses to be seen.

But that’s enough. If she can grasp their size and future position, she can hit them!

“—Ha!”

With no more hesitation, she stops breathing and pulls the trigger.

In an instant, she feels the sensation of the fired beam piercing through the obstacles and hitting the target directly. Or so she thinks, but then…

“—Huh?! It didn’t work!?”

Indeed, the beam from the blaster rifle hits its mark, the target’s head, akin to striking the temple of a human. It hits, but…

The ray, which previously pierced through any monster, leaving a charred hole, now only slightly scorches the surface of the leader monster. The enemy still stands.

“Is… is that fluttering thing doing something!?”

She observes the situation through the scope and voices her speculation. Just as Ente said, the heat emitted from the peculiar organs, like cloth pieces growing all over the monster’s body, causes the surrounding space to shimmer.

“Dammit!”

She pulls the trigger again and again. The released beams hit different parts of the monster accurately but only scorched the surface, causing no signs of pain or irritation.

By repeating this tactic, she hopes the enemy won’t detect her. Yet, the leader monster’s eyes, as giant as a dragonfly’s, slowly turn towards her.

Despite the five hundred meters distance, its gaze unmistakably locks onto Ente’s. Its hand, with five fingers like a human’s, swings down towards her.

“—No way!”

The forest erupts with a deafening commotion. It’s the monsters, acting on the leader’s order, rushing towards her. For the girl, it feels like a death sentence.

“Dammit!”

She quickly stands and dashes away from the spot.

This isn’t how it was supposed to go. If the leader had fallen, the surrounding monsters would have descended into chaos, giving her a perfect opportunity to escape smoothly.

However, her naive plan completely falls apart. The genius hunter of the elves now finds herself becoming the hunted.

“What should I do next…?” She runs desperately through the forest, occasionally using her rifle to counterattack the pursuing monsters. Admittedly, the other monsters fall with a single blow from the beam of light. But their numbers are overwhelming.

And their numbers only increase over time. At this point, her rifle’s power to shoot light beams is running out. She has exhausted even the spare beam pack she brought, just in case.

Surrounded by monsters, Ente decides to toss aside the now useless rifle and use her final weapons, a dagger and magic, to fight back.

“Is this… the end?!”

Holding back tears, she glares at the monsters who eye her with murderous intent. What are they really thinking? One look at their drooling, vicious fangs makes it easy to imagine.

But she isn’t about to go down without a fight. Trying to take down as many as possible with her, she attempts to unleash her magic.

*Pew!*

Just as the sound rings out, the monster with wolf-like characteristics, who had been closest to her, has a charred hole in its head and falls lifeless to the ground, turning into a grim corpse.