Around the bus, everyone was getting very busy. Yesterday, after it had warmed up again, they had all taken a bath again, and washed all their clothes as well. They also potted as much drinking water as they could, to make sure they had plenty.

Even though they got extra food and supplies from Kobayashi's supply run, that did not change the fact that Junta kept hunting to make sure they had as much as possible, especially since they decided to eat more the past two days since they had some leeway. He had also been saving anything that might be sold, or anything they could use, making sure that every animal he hunted was utilized as effectively as possible so that as little as possible was wasted. if he had to hunt, he would at least make sure it was as worth it as possible.

And now today, they were making their final preparations. They had not had any word from that god, Riya, but they knew it was way too dangerous and that they needed to get going. Any more delays could be too late, with the Orcs heading their way. If they encountered a large Orc force, they would lose, and if lucky, they would be slaughtered, and the boys wouldn't be taken prisoner and brought to female orcs to forcibly increase their numbers until they died.

Not only that, but there was that dragon circling around. Somehow it had not spotted them yet, despite the bus being in a clearing, or perhaps it had yet to show interest in them. But there was too much risk for them to think it wouldn't attack eventually. So it was time to go.

As such, they were making final preparations. Kobayashi had everyone pack everything in their bags, especially anything that was brought from another world. That was their most valuable resources after all. Somehow, it seemed like their bags could hold more then they looked on the outside, but not by much. But they didn't have time to discuss that at the moment.

There was really only one thing they had yet to decide on, amidst the preparattions to leave.

"I think I should drive!"

"Riku, your not tall enough to reach the peddles. I will drive".

"...Emiyo, do you even have a calm enough mind to drive? I think you panic way to easily".

"Guh...I am the oldest, and the tallest. You should respect my position!"

"Well, leaving that aside, I think either me, Ayumi, Endo, or Junta should drive".

Endo stepped forward.

"I am the most familiar with vehicles here, so I think it should be me".

"But...but...if we got stilts or blocks or something, I could drive!"

"As the oldest, I should drive since I am the closest to the legal age at least".

"I dont think Japanese standards or laws apply in this world, Prez".

"Well maybe they should!"

Emiyo was being unreasonable again, but it seemed like Endo had the most support, so it was probably going to be him in the end. Still, Riku clearly wanted to do it.

At the same time, Kobayashi had a bad feeling.

As if on cue, Junta returned in a hurry, with only a few rabbits as prey.

"Guys, its the Orcs. I saw six Orcs, including one that was bigger and wearing armor. They are heading this way, and they will be on us soon".

"Tsk. Everyone, get everything packed now! Orcs are coming! We are leaving now!"

Kobayashi declared that, but Junta pulled him out of the way as an arrow wizzed by where his head used to be. He looked back around, and saw Orcs storming right towards them.

"Damnit, they are here already!"

"Tsk, did they spot me?!"

Ayumi and Yuika quickly came out, with the latter using her magic item kendo sword. Junta quickly jumped up onto the top of the bus, drew an arrow, and fired back at the Orc Archer. Six Orcs in total. Four with crappy looking weapons, from clubs to a broken sword, one archer, and one that had a much nicer sword and some makeshift armor.

The last one was bigger then the rest, and looked far more dangerous.

Riku quickly cast a fireball right at them from his fist, but an Orc parried it with the club, and then charged forward. Shiki used the camera to blind and atttack the charging one, while Junta fired an arrow to pierce his throat and kill him that way. The arrow made it in, but the neck fat was so thick it wasn't lethal.

"Damnit, I need to pour more mana in for every shot. I wont be able to attack as frequently".

Two of the others immediately engaged Yuika and Ayumi, who engaged them in one on one combat. Kobayashi shot lightning at another, but it used the broken sword to block it. Its skin was so thick, apparently it wasn't very conductive either.

Right as it did that though, Riku got his own magic attack in, and burned its legs, making the Orc scream in pain. The archer tried to shoot Riku, but Mitsuki blocked it with an ice shield. The arrow pierced the shield, but Riku was able to dodge it better when he saw the shield appear in the first place.

Junta did a twin arrow power launch this time, but the larger orc let out some sort of magic from his sword and cut down both arrows in mid air, with the slash then going down and trying to strike him. A water spike shot out from the ground, intercepting the slash and saving him right as Junta was about to die.

Reika stepped forward, and proceeded to unleash her own magic. Reika was usually helping in the background, but didn't speak much normally. But right then and there, she seemed to have made some sort of determination within her mind.

However, while that was going on, the big Orc went towards Emiyo and Shiki. The moment it raised its sword again, Tamayo appeared from the shadows to try and stab it from behind. But suddenly an arrow pierced her leg, causing her to fall to the ground.

The large orc then brought his sword right down on her, but Shiki appeared there. He unleashed a series of camera attacks as he quickly snapped the arrow out of her leg. She pulled the other side out, and then Shiki placed a bandaid he had been carrying on it, healing her to full. As the big orc finally got his senses back and attacked again, tthe two dodged out of the way and made it back towards the group, as another orc tried to surround them and attack from behind. Ayumi and Yuika were stalling out two orcs, but at the same time that meant they had no leeway themselves. And anyone who tried to help them had to deal with the four others, including the leader.

A large horn was heard in the background, followed by an even louder roar.

"Tsk...that might be an Orc Warhorn" Kobayashi said, as he decided to push himself to the limit. He summoned a lot of mana around him, to the point that he was coated in an aura of mana, and the mana in the surrounding area became visible. He was drinking a mana recovery potion as this occured, but he seemed to be using it faster then he got it back. With that, they would only have four mana potions left too.

He thrust his palm forward, and several wind blades flew out at the orcs. Many blocked them, as several of them were weak. But when one blocked one with his weapon, suddenly that club got cut in half, and it was completely and utterly unusable from that point on.

However, Kobayashi staggered backwards, coughing.

Alright, I cant do that again...but still.

The Orc was still alive, its thick skin having protected it from the magic. But it was rather cut up and wounded, and it made it stop if only for a moment.

But that was when the Orc leader managed to get right next to him. Kobayashi tried to dodge, but all that happened was that he got hit with the flat side of the weapon rather then the sharp side. His small body went flying through the air, hitting the bus behind him and he cried out in pain. Riku quickly went back and slapped a bandaid on him, but the Orc Leader was now upon Riku as he did that. Mitsuki ran to help, but the archer fired arrows at him. Junta shot most of them down, but the shock from being targetted made Mitsuki freeze for a moment. A few arrows also came after Junta, but Reika prottected him.

The Orc Leader brought his blade down on Riku, with every intention to behead him. Tamayo raced to help, but the orc that was still on that side attacked her and Shiki. It knocked Shiki aside into a bus, and then brought its club down on her as well. Emiyo was just barely able to put up a rock wall, but it smashed right through it and knocked Tamayo across the ground.

Riku meanwhile found himself protected by Endo, who had just gotten there in time. But against the strength of the largest orc, all he did was deflect the sword away from Riku and Kobayashi, he too went flying in the process as well, getting a number of injuries.

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And the Orc Leader was already attacking again too. Kobayashi quickly created a wall of hardened space, but it was chipped away at and cracked like it was nothing.

Yuika at that point managed to cut off the arm of the Orc she was fighting, but she got cut up a bit in the process and had some clear injuries. Even if it was a broken sword, it still could do some damage.

Ayumi meanwhile was deadlocked with hers. His fat made it difficult for her techniques to do damage, but her skill and technique kept staggering it and it was clear that this deadlock was in her favor. An Orc, with its thick skin, was not a great opponent for her, but it seemed that she would eventually come out on top with one on one combat.

Yuika quickly went to cut off the head, but she had to dodge two arrows so she missed the opportunity. Junta fired an arrow right into the hand of the Orc leader, where its skin was not as thick, and seemed to hit a nerve as his attack stopped and faultered.

Emiyo, Tamayo, and Shiki still had their orc. They were keeping it busy, but it was a one sided beating and Tamayo now had a broken arm. She didn't have the wiggle room to get a bandaid to heal it even.

Even if Yuika and Ayumi were winning, it was obvious the rest of them were losing.

Kobayashi quickly formed a lightning blade, and blocked the sword as best he could, but he lost his grip on the blade and it dissipated as the Orc Leader tried to cut him down.

If they could just get everyone on the bus, then they could try to drive out of here, but the Orcs would cut them down and kill several of them if they broke their defensive lines now.

Riku unleashed a flame atttack right at the leader, but it dodged magnifiscently. And yet, the attack didn't miss, as the flames suddenly went towards the orc behind it, flying into the wounds made by the wind blade and proceeding to incinerate it from the inside out. It was the one attack they had that had ever shown any effectiveness against the Orcs, and it once again demonstrated that as it incinerated the Orc from the inside. But the Orc Leader didn't miss this chance, and attacked Riku with its large sword, while an energy slash emerged from it and targeted Mitsuki at the same time. The archer also fired arrows at Reika and Junta, and the Orc by Emiyo, Shiki, and Tamayo was about to crush Tamayo's skull.

Kobayashi was still getting back on his fear, and Endo had recovered from the attack he got earlier as well. Kobayashi tried to use another high level magic attack, but he felt strain upon his body.

"Gah!"

What made matters worse is that they didn't have unlimited magical energy. Even with those potions, it was limited. They didn't have that many, and they lacked the experience and training yet to deal with them.

The Orc Leader charged right into combat and attacked three people at once, Kobayashi, Riku, and Mitsuki. But its attacks were stopped by Yuika, who blocked them all. Where she used to be, a beheaded orc existed, and a one armed Orc was now fighting and losing against Ayumi. However, Yuika also looked very tired. Her palms and hands were rough, and she was not totally steady.

Yuika could win against a single orc, but...it used a lot of her stamina and strength to do so. We are going to lose!

But before the Orc Leader could attack again, a loud roar echoed across the forest.

it did not however come from inside the forest, but instead, from well beyond the cliff, from the sky.

The Dragon was now approaching them. And in that moment, everyone froze. Even the Orcs froze with fear, as the Dragon began to fly towards them.

"Now, everyone inside now!"

Kobayashi quickly signaled everyone, in the opening where the orcs got petrified in fear, everyone rushed and got inside of the bus before their focus went back onto the kids. By that time though, they had already all gotten into the bus, and Endo got behind the wheel and started it up.

"We are leaving now!"

"Go go go!"

Endo floored it and turned around, turning away from the cliff and heading into the forest. The orcs tried to attack them, but their attacks couldn't damage the bus at all. Everyone had to hold on tight though due to how bumpy it was, but during this Mitsuki still tried to treat everyone's wounds, especially Kobayashi.

"Koba! You hit your head, lie down!"

"You think I can in this situation?!"

"...fair enough".

The bus raced through the woods, as the Dragon roared some sort of black energy. It didn't set fire to the trees, but it seemed to scorch and kill off the Orcs as well. Junta looked from the rear window, and grimanced.

"The dragon is heading our way!"

"What the hell! We have a dragon chasing us now?!"

"We cant fight a damn dragon! Just keep going!"

"I would, but there are trees in the way!"

Mitsuki raised a hand, and created several wind blades outside of the bus. He proceeded to launch them all at the trees in their way, making sure to cut as low as possible so that the bus would be able to go over them properly. Tamayo used shadows to pull the trunks out of the way. But both were already exausted and low on magical energy, so in the end Endo had to just keep avoiding trees.

And then, they ended up driving into a large, empty field, with the dragon in tow. They tried to go at full speed, but as they tried the dragon picked up their bus, and began to fly into the sky.

"Oh no...no no no, everyone! There is elevated ground coming up! Gather up everything you have, pack anything not packed already, and prepare yourself! We are jumping out of the bus!"

"What?!"

"We cant abandon the bus!"

"We have to! Unless you want us to die when the dragon drops us from several stories high!"

Kobayashi couldn't relent though.

"Listen, even if we got abducted by whoever brought us here, it would be better then letting us die here at least! So yes, simply abandoning the bus is definently worth it! Its not like it could run on gas forever, we would need to anyways! So we are doing it now!"

Hearing those words, everyone seemed to accept that logic. Everyone got their stuff together, and as the dragon began to pass that higher elevated part, they all started to jump out, some together, some alone, onto the edge. Most of them made it, but Kobayashi fell a bit short. He fell off the ledge, but Mitsuki and Riku grabbed his hands before he fell and pulled him back up.

"This is a lot easier when its not icy and slippery".

"...wait, what was that?" Yuika said, sounding concerned about that comment.

Junta however, interrupted them.

"It looks like we made quite the distance. Look, I think I see a village over there. And well beyond that...I think thats a road with a carriage and a horse on it"

Mitsuki checked his binoculars. "Yeah, it is. We might be able to reach there before nightfall".

They then looked back over at the Dragon, flying away with their bus.

"Well, I guess we better get moving now. We dont want to be outside at night I think".

And so, the entire group was finally leaving the forest they had managed to survive in for so long.

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The Dragon clicked his tongue as he saw the kids get away, but he had other matters to worry about right now.

He dropped the bus and then proceeded to attack it, only for the bus to raise a magical barrier against it. Not only that, but suddenly the bus broke free of the grasp as it transformed into a large robot, with various parts clearly from the bus it used to be. It landed on its feet, and its arms were surrounded by red energy suddenly as the dragon landed and took a humanoid form.

"I see, so you were projecting a camoflauge barrier. No wonder I couldn't find them or you...no matter, keeping them away from you was what I wanted to do anyways, Golem of The Dusk Witch".

The transforming golem didn't reply, but instead just attacked the humanoid dragon. The dragon meanwhile brought out a dragontooth sword, and clashed with the giant robot. The robot's first gauntlet was deflected by the sword, but as its second arm came to punch, it was caught by the tail, and the dragon flipped it onto its back. It quickly rolled back into a standing position, as the dragon fired a laser from its mouth at it. It projected an energy shield to block it.

"So you truly knew then, what I was and what I was doing" the golem answered.

"Of course I did. I can even guess the three commands, or suggestions, that you were beaming into their heads as you were strengthening them mentally. That was why they didn't panic and flee, and why they were so compliant even with things they might not normally be good with. First of all, the most obvious was their attachment to the bus. My guess is that you kept beaming into their heads, with the mental strengthening, not to ever abandon or leave the bus. To stay with the bus, stay safe inside the bus. To keep them in one place. The second was compliance. You wanted to make sure they were as compliant with each other, get along as well as possible so they dont break up and divide the group, but also so that when your master arrived to take them, they would comply with her easily. This was also why they all were so compliant with taking mixed baths, despite the reservations I heard of from that god".

"So the Dragon has a brain after all, and to think so many consider you mindless beasts".

"It is because of your master, and her dark magic, that such things occur. And of course, lets not forget the final command. To not harm themselves or each other, physically or mentally, to not let fear, embarassment, or despair consume you, even when you feel it. Its why they were able to take such actions for survival, even when clearly driven by despair and fear, they did not submit to it".

That was why they had been easily able to go with mixed bathing, why they went along with Tamayo so easily, why they didn't panic and run away, why no one got violent or fought with each other. Not to mention the source of the mental strengthening. Magic was still in a way, a physical element of this world, so it was only natural their bodies would adapt to it upon entering this world. Same with the physical boosts, its because of how physics works in thsi world and a side effect from that. Both of those were essentially physical aspects.

But as the god hinted, as Riya had said, there was one element that was artificial. The mental boosts. That couldn't be accounted for simply by entering another world. Several people, including Kobayashi, picked up that it was wierder then the others too.

Its because this bus was in fact a magic golem. It was why they never wanted to abandon it, why Endo and Mitsuki didn't recognize its inner workings, why the bus never seemed to sustain any damage from any attack. All of these questions were now answered.

The bus was in fact an enemy.

And the Dragon had actually been there to save them.

The dragon and the robot proceeded to keep fighting each other. The dragon used its powerful breath, but the robot dodged it, heading right up to it and firing a laser out of its headlights. The dragon wings became shields to protect against the attack, and then proceeded to use claw swords to strike at the robot. Using energy shields it tried to protect itself, but one attack got through and scratched the armor. Still, at this time it was able to use its power gauntlet to strike back at the dragon, giving it a good strong punch.

Perhaps one might find it bizzare, and somewhat genre confusing, if they saw a Dragon in humanoid form and a bus robot duking it out in a magical forest, but that was just what was going on here, so one was better off just shrugging and accepting it...or running away at full speed in a panic, since this was a high level fight.

And so, with that all in mind, the two proceeded to fight it out within the forest, isolated from everywhere else.

----------------------------------------

All the while, Kobayashi's group finally began approaching the village, and their journey in this world would finally begin. But all the while, a black winged eye watched them from afar.

"What a shame" the woman who was watching them said. "Had it been just a bit longer, my forces would have gotten there first. But now that Dragon is there, I will need to fight him off before I can get to those kids with my main bulk. For now, I suppose I will just have to watch and observe. Perhaps I will find what I seek, but I reckon at least, I will get some entertainment in. After all, if they really think going to that city will be safe...well, they still have a lot to learn about this world".

She said that with a villainous smile, as she continued to watch the group.

End of Arc 1: Arrival Arc