Freyja watched the wave surging toward them.
"So...... it has come at last."
She had known for some time that a Monster Wave would soon strike.
After all, the few scouting parties they had left had already reported warning signs several times.
The problem was that even knowing full well a crisis was coming, there were no countermeasures they could take.
"Well, well, this may turn out to be my grave."
A man muttered, as if grumbling.
His name was Germain Ulandur.
He was one of the few elite knights left in the North at present.
"Tsk tsk, if only the previous Grand Duke had not made that reckless advance, the situation would be somewhat better."
At the same time, he was also a man who harbored a vicious grudge against the previous Grand Duke.
For an instant, strength entered Freyja's grip.
The reality that she had no choice but to employ a man who openly disparaged her father to her face.
It was because of her bitterness over that.
"......Had the previous Grand Duke not led the elite knight order in that advance, the front line would have collapsed long ago."
"Ah, of course, I had no intention of dismissing the previous Grand Duke's merit. After all, had he not thrown his own life and his entire knight order into the grinder, Monster Waves would have been crashing in every single day."
Germain surveyed the front with an obnoxious air.
The Monster Wave consisted solely of goblins.
"For the first wave in a year, it is nothing but feeble goblins. And seeing as there is no sign of the demons who command the creatures...... the previous Grand Duke's merit truly shines today. ......Oops."
Seeing Freyja stiffen murderously, Germain took a step back.
Then he let a slimy smile slip.
Freyja thought.
That he was a man who might stab her in the back at any moment.
'Does he covet the Grand Duke's name that badly?'
Even supposing he somehow succeeded in dragging House Berg down, it wasn't as though the Ulandurs could inherit the ducal title.
Was this the end result of a childish obstinacy from his youth carried over intact into middle age?
"Phew......."
Freyja let out a sigh and drew her sword.
Letting her heart waver before a battle was not a good thing.
She cooled her head.
Whoooom......!
Freyja's Aura Heart began to run.
Dazzling silver aura gave off a frigid energy and wrapped tightly around the blade.
Hummm—!
A flawless Aura Sword without the slightest gap, befitting her reputation as the youngest Sword Master in history.
"Gulp......."
Its splendor was enough to make even Germain, who had been running his mouth so freely, shudder despite himself.
A freezing breath flowed out from between Freyja's lips.
It was the influence of her Aura Heart, which held the attribute of 'ice.'
Step, step.
Freyja walked across the snowfield.
The blizzard that had been raging all around began to settle calmly.
It would be no exaggeration to say that the North's bitter cold was a battlefield made for Freyja.
Yet Freyja herself didn't much like her own power.
'Surely I will not die.'
Even if a Monster Wave made up of creatures far above goblins came rushing in.
Even if the demons burst in right before her eyes, she would survive.
'But others will surely die.'
Freyja had the martial might to be a match for a hundred.
But she didn't have the power to keep others safe in the midst of a crisis.
That was why she had admired her father.
A man whose limit had been Sword Expert, no matter how hard he strove his whole life.
But a man who had been better than anyone at protecting people and working together with the people he had protected.
In a way, it could be seen as an ability he had gained precisely because his own strength was lacking.
'If Father heard that, he would have smiled bitterly.'
Even so, Freyja envied her father's ability.
All the more so in a situation like now, when the Black Tiger Wall had completely collapsed.
'If only the wall could at least be repaired...... goblins would not even dare to set their sights on this place.'
It was a futile supposition.
The Black Tiger Wall was an impregnable fortress built by the Dwarves, who had possessed the finest technology on the continent.
Now that they had vanished into the back alleys of history, the chances of the wall being rebuilt converged on zero.
'I have neither Father's ability nor a wall to protect the North.'
Then there was only one option.
She would do what she could do.
'From here on, the Monster Waves will surely only keep growing stronger.'
Someday, the demons themselves might truly appear once again.
But at the very least.
"Today, I will not let a single one through."
To protect the people, one by one, from the demons' invasion.
I will never let the enemy set foot on this Northern land.
Even if it means whittling away my own body!
WHOOOOOSH—!!!
As if answering Freyja's razor-sharp will, the Aura Sword swelled in size in an instant.
Soon, she swung her sword.
BOOOOM—!!!
A silver slash cleaved the white snowfield as it shot forward.
Clean, yet overwhelming violence.
With that single strike, the wave that had been about to swallow the North split apart.
It was the moment 50 percent of the Monster Wave evaporated.
***
A tremendous crisis had struck the Northern front.
Yet there were no casualties.
It was thanks to Freyja Berg's dazzling performance.
If you had a Sword Master, you had no need for strategy.
As if to prove that saying was no mere bluster, Freyja blew away half of the Monster Wave in one go, then charged into the enemy ranks alone.
And she went on a one-woman rampage.
Now and then a few goblins fled to escape her wondrous swordsmanship, but the knights deployed widely behind her succeeded in easily subduing the bastards...... or so I was told.
"That is the situation that just unfolded on the front line, Your Highness."
The village chief explained it to me.
His haggard appearance had improved, if only a little.
"There's a lot I want to say, but let me ask just one thing first."
"You may speak comfortably with me. After all, I have seen with my own eyes that your betrothal to Her Grace the Grand Duke is real."
"......All right. Just one question, then. Why are you here?"
As for me, I was going to be Freyja's husband, so let's say I'd followed her here.
But that didn't apply to this old fellow, did it?
"It is Her Grace the Grand Duke's order."
"Freyja's?"
"Yes, the Grand Duke wishes to gather the Northerners in one place. As Your Highness experienced firsthand, monsters are appearing all across the North right now, are they not? After all, the ones that slipped past the front line are running rampant everywhere."
"Rather than shedding blood scattered all over, she'd sooner gather everyone in one place? The idea is good, but why here of all places, right on the doorstep of the front line?"
"Because this is the safest place in the North. It is true that it is where a crisis strikes first, but it is also where the strongest person in the North stands guard."
"That's extreme."
"The Grand Duke knows that unless she goes that far, more blood will only be spilled."
"Is she planning to build a fortress city or something......?"
The 'Black Tiger Wall,' which was supposed to serve as the city walls, had been smashed to hell, though.
'Well, if someone with no power at all had suggested it, people would've thrown stones.'
But the one saying it was Freyja.
A Sword Master who had single-handedly crushed a Monster Wave.
Even if I had been a Northerner, I would have followed her first, without asking any questions.
Overwhelming power naturally came with strong persuasive force.
"But...... I worry about how long Her Grace's body will hold out."
The village chief said bitterly.
"The Monster Waves starting up again probably means those monsters will keep pouring out periodically from now on."
He spoke as if talking about past experience.
It seemed he had lived through Monster Waves himself.
'Even from a distance, it did look like she was pushing herself.'
The sight of Freyja sweeping through the goblins had felt almost like an obsession at a glance.
Considering her skill, it would have been enough for her to fight while pacing herself reasonably.
But she had been fixated on speed to an almost excessive degree.
'Thanks to that, not a single person died, though.'
When Freyja kept pushing herself and could no longer recover from her fatigue.
If a crisis like today's struck again, would she be able to overcome it then, too?
'No way.'
Even a Sword Master was still human.
She was bound to hit her limit.
"You seem to have a lot on your mind."
......Mother, and now Harben and the village chief too.
They all caught on so easily.
Am I the type whose worries show on my face?
"As for the Monster Waves, I do not think you need to worry much for the time being."
"You say that like it's a given."
"After a wave, there are no raids for at least a week. After all, even monsters cannot pour out endlessly."
"Is that so......."
If that were true, it would be a situation where I could catch my breath.
Unfortunately, I had a time bomb that no one else could see.
'The quest's time limit.'
Why had the quest given '2 days,' of all things?
Not one day, nor three, but a deadline as ambiguous as could be.
'And...... even if that's how it went in the past, there's no guarantee they'll move the same way now.'
The monsters might be ferocious, but they weren't stupid.
At least when it came to killing people, they were a breed whose noggins turned remarkably quick.
'It might be a pointless worry.'
But preparing for the worst-case scenario was what insurance was for in the first place.
If my concern became reality, the Monster Wave would strike in the near future....... No, tomorrow.
When such a crisis came crashing down, what ways were there to survive safely?
A way that went beyond my own life, to save the Northerners and even earn their recognition.
The best option was already decided.
The Black Tiger Wall.
Rebuilding that impregnable fortress, surely.
If the wall had been intact in the first place, Freyja wouldn't have needed to push herself, grinding her own body down.
'The problem is, there's neither the technology nor the manpower to rebuild it.'
Unless some special miracle happened, rebuilding the wall was impossible.
They would have no choice but to rely on Freyja alone once again.
Right, if there was no miracle, that is.
"Recommended items."
I murmured quietly so the village chief couldn't hear.
[Analyzing story. Synchronizing to current situation.]
[Displaying recommended item 'Frontline Wall (E).']
Perhaps because the situation was fairly relaxed compared to when I bought the Starter Set.
The [Shop] pulled up the 'Territory' category as if touting its wares.
At the same time, my suspicion became certainty.
'It analyzed my situation and brought up a wall as a recommended item, huh.'
It was practically a notice that a shitty situation requiring a wall was about to blow up soon.
I examined the item that had appeared before my eyes.
===[Frontline Wall (E)]===
- Constructs an E-Grade wall that guards the front line. Upon purchase, wall-related items are added to the category.
======
An extremely simple description.
'Expecting this to have defensive power on par with the Black Tiger Wall would be daylight robbery, right?'
Let's be reasonable about it.
If it was even enough to lighten Freyja's burden, I'd be grateful.
And if I added my fire magic on top of that, couldn't we defend the North more easily than today?
'And I'd clear the quest while I'm at it.'
The moment I lowered my gaze toward the bottom, my optimism running at full speed.
"......?"
I froze on the spot.
Why, you ask?
[1,000G]
This was because I'd seen the price.
Wait, I only have 200G on me.
"There's nothing...... money can't solve, it said."
Which also meant that without money, you couldn't solve anything.
"......."
Today, I hated the four syllables of 'capitalism' to the marrow of my bones.
It was while I was looking up at the sky for no reason.
"......My lord husband?"
I heard a clear, pure voice.
When I turned my head, Freyja was standing there, a hint of fatigue about her.
"Why are you out on the front line? This place is not safe, so please return to the manor—"
"Freyja."
I had doubts.
Was this really sane?
Throwing a question like this at my missus, who had just come back from rolling around on the battlefield.
"By any chance......."
But my mouth had already betrayed my reason and was moving on its own.
My light balance (200G) made even the weight of my tongue as light as a feather.
"Do you have any money?"
Blink, blink.
Freyja's eyes kept moving.
"—Pardon?"
An expression of utter bewilderment surfaced on her beautiful face.
With this, I carved my name into history.
As the first person ever to fluster the youngest Sword Master in history.