I Became a Druid in Another World

– Swooooosh!!!!

The arrow landed right at the feet of the lead soldier. I swear that arrow absolutely did not "miss". The soldier who witnessed it lodge itself with such force just inches away knew that best.

Perhaps it was because they felt reassured, thinking they had only one enemy to face. As they charged forward with confidence, the soldiers suddenly looked startled when they realized the presence of a new enemy. They scanned the area and tried to figure out where the arrow had come from, and in response, I kindly shot another arrow. This time I aimed at the black tassel hanging from the helmet of the soldier in front of me.

– Swooooosh!!

– Thwack!!!

The arrow sliced through the air and pierced the black tassel, scattering its loose threads in all directions. The owner of the helmet threw open his visor and looked back with a shocked expression. Ha, look at that stunned face. Those eyes, completely unprepared! Ah, the thrill… perhaps only archers can truly appreciate it. I chuckled to myself and then jumped down from the top of the tree like a diver.

– Thud!

Perhaps thanks to the spirit of the sequoia forest, I landed lightly on the grass. Then, I spoke to the soldiers who were staring at me with dumbstruck faces.

"So…"

"..."

"Let me guess what you're going to say next."

"...!"

"Kill him!"

"...!"

"Am I right?"

The face inside the helmet flushed red as if it were about to burst. He pointed his sword at Callisto and shouted,

"Damn it, hey! Elf! Hurry up and take care of that bastard…!"

"That bastard?"

I could hear Callisto muttering under his breath, though the soldier who was swinging his sword wildly and shouting probably hadn't heard the icy remark.

"We'll handle the knight, so you take care of that!"

Just as the man gave his orders and turned back to charge at Lloyd,

– Thwack!!

Callisto leaped up with blinding speed, faster than the average eye could follow, and drove his knee into the back of the man's head.

As the soldier collapsed face-first to the ground, no longer able to resist, Callisto stepped on his back and spoke in a voice as cold as ice.

"Know your place."

"..."

"That person is not someone a worm like you should even dare mention."

…Ah, how embarrassing. I would have liked to crawl into a hole at that moment, but Callisto's expression was dead serious, more so than I'd ever seen. It was impossible to stop him now.

Whether from seeing the man fall so effortlessly or from Callisto's confusing words, the soldiers began to mill about in confusion with bewildered faces. They were probably muttering things like, "What's going on? Isn't he supposed to be on our side?" I began to move slowly toward them. From the opposite side, Lloyd did the same and closed in on them as well. We had effectively surrounded the soldiers.

"W-What is this…?"

"Don't panic! Even if that elf has betrayed us, we still greatly outnumber them!"

Well, look at that. Did they think this was math class or something? Not to mention, their calculations were completely off. Even if they had two hundred rabbits, they couldn't win against two wolves.

But I didn't exactly have the time to correct each mistake one by one. Standing a comfortable distance away, I smiled and pointed my arrow straight at them.

"Now, to ease some of your confusion, let me offer you two choices."

".…..!"

"One: you surrender peacefully. If you do, no one will get hurt."

"D-Don't listen! Don't listen to him!"

"Two: you prepare to fight us with all you've got. In that case, there are bound to be some injuries. After all, you'll be fighting as if you're ready to die. I trust you'll understand?"

Most of the soldiers were already sweating and gasping for breath. Of course, it wasn't because of me; it was the pressure of having to face an "elf" that weighed on their hearts. Not that it mattered. Callisto was still standing over the man and pressing him down.

"A-A-Aaaah!"

At that moment, someone screamed and ran towards the forest. Oh dear, this was against the rules. I snapped my fingers, and with a crisp snap, the grass and vines in his path sprang up and wrapped around his feet, stopping him in his tracks.

– Thud!

"Agh!"

The soldier got caught by his ankles and fell face-first into the ground. Situations like this made [Plant Binding] incredibly useful. I secured him to the ground by wrapping his body tightly with vines, then turned to address the others.

"Well, looks like we've got our first surrender."

"….…"

"….…"

"….…"

"Anyone else?"

Now, signs of division were beginning to show. Some soldiers grouped together, while others looked around as if ready to scatter. It looked like they were about evenly split: those willing to surrender rather than face an elf, and those unwilling, thinking that surrendering would just mean being killed by Dawood anyway.

"Don't fall back!!!"

Someone gripped his sword tighter and shouted. At the same time, Callisto looked over at me. Meeting his gaze, I mouthed the words, "Don't kill them".

He nodded his head with a faint smile on his face, or so it seemed. In a flash, Callisto sprang forward and started weaving through the soldiers. The battle had begun. In the chaos, more than a few tried to escape; they started running toward the forest or back toward the city. They were running in a chaotic manner.

"Lloyd! Cover that side!"

I called out to Lloyd while restraining the soldiers running toward the forest with [Plant Binding]. After so long fighting alongside him, we didn't need much explanation; he subdued the soldiers effectively without killing them. The clash of swords rang out, mixed with the groans of those knocked to the ground. Despite having never coordinated before, Callisto and Lloyd moved fluidly and subdued the soldiers without getting in each other's way.

I continued to trip those fleeing into the forest while binding their bodies in vines as they fell. Thanks to the Phews' modifications, the vines were now as strong as any rope, and no one could escape. With all the runners captured, I turned to help Callisto and Lloyd on the other side.

I need to tie the rest down quickly and head toward the main area…

I was grateful that it hadn't taken too long to subdue the soldiers. I reached into my pouch to replenish my vine seeds, then I let my gaze naturally drift downward.

…Wait, what's with these vine roots?

The vine roots were exposed, stirring up the ground as they emerged, almost as if someone had tried to pull them out by force. But no ordinary force could have done that. Who on earth could it have been? None of the soldiers looked particularly out of the ordinary… Just as I was about to turn around to check again.

"Gah! Aaaaagh!!!"

"Kyaaah!!!"

"Noooo!!!"

Good grief. Grown men, shrieking like that? How tightly could those vines be holding them, really? I frowned and then turned toward the source of the screams. And then…

"Aaaargh!!!!!"

– Crunch, snap!

"Please, spare me! Spare me!! Spare me!!! Please!!!"

– Crack… rip!

"No! Noooooo!!!"

– Thud!!!!

Before I could even make sense of the situation, my body was yanked backward.

"Sir Theodore!"

It was Callisto who pulled me back. His grip was so strong and the motion so swift that the air rushing past chilled my skin.

– Boom!!!!!

At the exact spot where I had been standing, a massive iron ball studded with jagged spikes crashed down with a terrifying sound. The ground caved in deeply, so it must be incredibly heavy.

What… what on earth is this…?

I couldn't believe the sight in front of me.

Orc warriors…!

That's right.

They weren't just ordinary orcs; they were orc warriors, and they were slaughtering the soldiers I had bound, crushing them like ants. Whether the soldiers screamed or not, the orcs stomped their heads to pieces, tore off limbs, and ripped out spines. The sight chilled my blood.

So the reports about the successful orc subjugation were lies after all.

Just as I suspected, they had a different objective in mind. And clearly, they joined forces with the orcs to achieve it.

Perhaps… they never trusted Callisto from the beginning.

Otherwise, the orcs wouldn't have shown up at this exact moment.

…Looks like I underestimated Fabio.

Damn it. I cursed under my breath and drew my bow and arrows. Thoughts could wait right now, I had to save the soldiers from this one-sided slaughter. I nocked a smooth silverwood arrow, aimed at the orc warriors, and fired.

– Whooosh!!

– Thunk!!!

– Whooosh!!

– Thunk!!!

The arrows all struck their hearts, but the creatures did not fall easily. Had they been ordinary Orcs, they would have fallen instantly, but these were "Orc Warriors". They were considered the most elite of their kind and were said to have crossed the threshold of death only to return once more. Their thick, supposedly steel-hardened hides couldn't be pierced by ordinary silverwood arrows. With a defiant glare, the orc warriors looked straight at me, pulled the arrows from their hearts, and snapped them in half.

"Tsk…"

"Leave it to me, Sir Theodore."

Before I could respond, Callisto charged at the orcs. After freeing the bound soldiers, Lloyd followed closely behind him. I took advantage of the gap and pulled out the silverwood arrows with moonstone arrowheads that I had made before.

If it's moonstone, it should pierce their hide.

I couldn't be certain it would kill them instantly, but if I could penetrate their armor, I would be able to inflict critical damage. I took out the Hydra's Fang, coated the moonstone arrowhead with its poison, and drew back the bowstring.

…All I need to do is pierce the hide.

No orc warrior, no matter how tough, could withstand the poison of a Hydra. With all my strength, I pulled back the bowstring and took aim at the heart of an orc who was about to crush a fallen soldier's head underfoot.

– Swoooooooosh!!!