“So, should we head out to the front?”
“No, if we lose, they’ll take a lot of points. For now, let’s wait and see.”
“Roger.”
To our left and right, there were two other horses protecting our general horse.
The other horses were scrambling to take headbands from the Red and White teams.
It was a free-for-all everywhere.
Some were going two-on-one, some were aiming for a third-party win during a one-on-one, and some were just running away.
The time limit for the cavalry battle seemed to be three minutes. It felt surprisingly short, but since there were so many horses, they were being eliminated at a high speed.
“Hey, it’s the Blue Team’s general!”
“Kuonji-san’s fated partner!”
“Crush Sanada! If we take him down, it’s 30 points!”
O-oh? Are we being targeted?
One horse attached itself to each of our escort horses, and one horse from the White Team headed straight for us.
Naturally, in terms of height, we were superior.
Perhaps intimidated by the difference in physical stature, the enemy horse came to a halt.
“Akito-paisen, lookin’ forward to it!”
“Yeah, yeah. ——All units, advance.”
At my word, the horse began to move.
We marched forward steadily, and the horse in front of us came within range.
“Ugh...!”
“H-He’s huge...!”
“It’s a giant... a titan has advanced...!”
Who are you calling a giant?
However, perhaps because they didn't have the option to flee, the rider made up his mind and stretched his arm toward my headband.
“Too slow.”
*Pash!*
I deflected the reaching arm with my hand.
The momentum couldn't be fully killed, and the rider lost his balance, leaning forward.
Taking advantage of that opening, I snatched the rider’s headband.
“Eh, wha... eh?”
He didn't seem to understand what had happened.
Well, you don’t often get the chance to see boxing techniques like this.
...No, it wasn't even grand enough to be called a technique.
“O-Ohhh! Akky, that was awesome!”
“A *Pash*! Sana-tan, it was a *Pash*!”
“Hey Rio, was that a boxing move?”
“That’s right. I don’t know the details, but I believe it’s called parrying. You deflect the opponent's punch to match their attack and break their balance... though it’s not something to be praised too much.”
Sorry for not being praiseworthy. Also, thanks for the explanation.
“Ryūya, let’s help those two.”
“You got it!”
The horse advanced, heading toward one horse first.
“Whoa, they’re coming!”
“R-Run away!”
“Hey, hey, hey! I’m not letting you get away, oi!”
We circled around them as they tried to flee, and I reached for the headband.
The rider crossed his arms to block me. But.
“I got it—!”
“Eh, ah!?”
The Blue Team rider who had been struggling with them until now took the headband.
“Nice.”
“Yeah, thanks! I’ll go help that guy too!”
“Right, leave it to you.”
“Leave it to me—!”
Then, this time, the two escort horses snatched another one.
“Things are looking good.”
“Hell yeah, as expected of our Blue Team!”
“Don’t get cocky. ...But the number of horses is definitely thinning out. Let's move to the front too.”
“Alright. Escort horses, let's go!”
The three-horse unit moved forward.
We assisted horses nearby that were in danger of being taken and snatched up headbands ourselves.
However, during that time, one of our escort horses was taken out.
“Sorry, they got me.”
“Don't worry about it. Leave the rest to us.”
The Red, White, and Blue teams had roughly the same numbers left, but I felt like we were being pushed back.
How should we aim for a turnaround...?
『Beeeeeep! One minute remaining!』
There was no time to think. I just had to take as many headbands as possible.
“Everyone, advance!”
At my signal, we headed toward the Red Team's general.
The Red Team’s general no longer had any escort horses. Now was the time!
“T-They’re coming!”
“Meet them head-on!”
The Red Team’s general horse stretched its arm toward us.
I dodged it with ducking, weaving, and swaying.
“I-I can’t reach...!”
“Nuhahahaha! This is the strongest strategy, ‘Operation Take Without Being Taken Using Akito’s Physical Prowess and Boxing Skills’!”
“Hey, idiot, doing this makes us unstable, so keep your feet steady—”
*Wobble.*
Tch! Dammit, my balance...!
To make matters worse, the Red Team's general stretched his arm with all his might, leaning over from above.
I lost my balance. The Red Team's general lost his balance even further.
Because both of us lost our balance, the horses lost their footing as well.
From above, person after person came falling down in a heap.
Ah... this is bad.
*Crash.*