LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 26
At the foot of a mountain range lush with dense broadleaf forests.
“Let’s go straight.”
“Ah, yes.”
Leading the mercenaries, including Jeven, we ascended the mountain.
Perhaps because it was the foothills? There were quite a few people on the mountain, but even though it was a mountain range, the lowlands didn’t seem particularly dangerous.
“By the way, what’s the name of your mercenary group?”
Since it would take time to reach the mid-level of the mountain, I casually asked Jeven to pass the time.
Come to think of it, I’ve been calling him Jeven all this time without knowing the name of his mercenary group.
“Us? Uh… the Black Wolf Mercenary Group.”
“Ah, so you’re the Black Wolves?”
“…It’s just a name from our childish days.”
“And you guys are going to capture a Werewolf?”
I heard that for monsters like Werewolves, which are of a normal size, they pull out all their teeth and claws, tie them up tightly, and stuff them into sacks for capture.
Humans are indeed the cruelest.
“Sigh.”
But the weather is nice.
It’s just cool enough, perfect for hiking.
Well…
Clank, clank.
It might be a bit much to come out fully armed.
I only have the buff coat and sword I received as gifts, and one water bottle I got earlier.
But the mercenaries behind me are fully armed, carrying backpacks filled with various supplies, so they look quite heavy.
“Aren’t you carrying anything?”
Meanwhile, Jeven looked as light as me.
This guy, it’s all about the brains, huh?
“Despite appearances, they’re all Silver-rank adventurers. They can handle this much.”
“Ah, is that so?”
If they’re Silver-rank, they should be able to handle mid-level monsters on their own.
Each of them should be seen more as an orc than a human.
Anyway, like that.
We continued walking through the foothills, and before long, we arrived at an area where the broadleaf trees gradually thinned out, replaced by small conifers and rocks.
The slope was steep and a bit damp, so it seemed like we had reached the mid-level.
“Is this the mid-level?”
“Yes, now we can set up camp here and start searching.”
Man, how are we going to search this entire mountain range?
Moreover, unlike the foothills and lowlands, which had well-made paths, this area had almost no trails.
It seems like a dangerous place, so only mercenaries usually come here, not ordinary people.
“How do we conduct the search?”
“Usually, for beast-type monsters, we look for footprints or droppings.”
“Oh… you know how to do that?”
“I learned it from a hunter I knew before.”
They search quite professionally.
In this era, that’s probably the best way.
“Search around the rocks!”
The mercenaries, having set up camp, began searching the rocky hills first.
I heard that such places are where wolf-type monsters often reside.
While Jeven’s subordinates were searching for traces.
“Jeven, come here.”
“Ah, yes.”
“While they’re searching, let’s learn a bit in advance.”
Since I had no intention of searching, I decided to teach Jeven a bit about Fleet in the meantime.
“Uh, are you really going to teach me?”
Jeven still seemed to doubt that I would teach him Fleet.
I can see how distant knights are from mercenaries.
Well, a proud knight wouldn’t have a reason to teach a mercenary their techniques.
But I’m not a knight, so I don’t mind.
“First, let me tell you what Fleet is.”
Saying that, I used Fleet to move behind Jeven.
“Yes… huh?”
As I disappeared mid-sentence, Jeven looked around, slightly panicked.
And just as he was about to look behind him.
Whack!
I hit him on the back of the head.
“Uh, when did you…”
“This is Fleet. It’s usually too fast to follow with your eyes.”
And so.
I started teaching Jeven about Fleet, a bit roughly, just like Lowell had taught me.
**
“Pant… pant…”
Late afternoon, as the sun began to set.
“Let’s stop here.”
“Understood…”
Thud.
Jeven, who had been getting hit by me throughout the training, collapsed heavily to the ground.
“Do you get the hang of it now?”
“Yes… I think I understand the basics.”
Jeven was quite an excellent student.
It seems he didn’t awaken his Aura for nothing; he absorbed everything I taught him quickly.
Moreover, he had already been trying to use something like Fleet by moving his Aura as fast as possible, so he’ll probably learn quickly.
“By the way, how’s the search going?”
“Haa… huff… I heard they found some traces earlier.”
“So we can start searching tomorrow?”
“Yes, we’ll camp here tonight and search tomorrow.”
Jeven became even more polite after I started teaching him Fleet.
His attitude was like he was treating a benefactor.
It seems he had been longing for Fleet.
“Don’t forget what I taught you, keep practicing.”
“Ah, understood.”
“I’ll check your progress during the next mission.”
“Next mission…”
“There’s more I need to find.”
The materials needed to make the sword aren’t just the Troll’s tusk.
In fact, the Troll’s tusk is just the first material; there are more.
Though some of the materials seem questionable for making a weapon…
But Garrett, who lent me the sword, didn’t seem to be playing any tricks.
Even if some unused materials are mixed in, it’s probably just a quality test.
Aren’t craftsmen usually a bit eccentric?
Anyway.
“Did you bring all the camping gear?”
“Yes, we’ll set up the tents, so you can relax.”
“That’s good.”
After that, the mercenaries set up the tents and cooked soup with dried meat they had brought.
“How’s the taste?”
“Not bad.”
Compared to what I ate at the mansion, it’s almost unfair to compare.
But thinking back to my time at the Coliseum, this is really good.
And so, we camped that night.
The next day, we began the real tracking of footprints.
“This must be their territory.”
Watching the mercenaries search, they first found footprints to locate the territory and then searched around it.
This method could provoke the monsters, so they must be quite confident in their skills.
Well, with me here, it should be safe.
A Werewolf is a mid-level monster, so even a full carriage wouldn’t be a problem.
And so.
A dozen or so burly men spent the whole day rummaging through the mountain.
And then.
Growl…
“There it is.”
Finally, we encountered a Werewolf.
“Was it driven out of its territory?”
“Yes, it seems so.”
Looking closely, there are wounds near its eyes.
It seems like it was kicked out of its pack.
“Let’s deal with it quickly and move on.”
Well, it’s not the one we’re looking for, so I drew my sword from my waist and approached.
“Are you going to handle it yourself?”
“I have something to test.”
How long has it been since I faced a monster?
The Werewolf growling at me feels almost welcoming.
Grrr…
It seems scared of me.
Maybe it’s because of the Aura user’s presence, or it instinctively sensed that I’ve killed many of its kind.
It’s not coming at me, just threatening.
Well, if it won’t come, I’ll go.
I raised my sword and pointed it at the Werewolf.
Then, I closed my eyes for a moment, focusing my Aura.
Swish-
When I opened my eyes, the forest scenery was closer.
And…
Thud.
The Werewolf, now headless, collapsed to the ground.
A clean Fleet.
Even without using Track, the accuracy is quite high now.
“Amazing…”
“It’s nothing.”
But a Werewolf is quite a strong monster, and I cut it down cleanly.
This sword is really good.
It’s solid and heavy, with great destructive power, but it’s not lacking in sharpness.
In fact, it’s the sharpest sword I’ve ever used.
Anyway, after dealing with the Werewolf.
“That one came from over there, let’s follow it up.”
“Alright.”
We followed the direction the Werewolf had come from, climbing further up the mountain.
After that, we continued searching the mountain, following the traces.
“There are a lot of fresh-looking footprints here.”
Finally, we found footprints that seemed to belong to a pack of wolves.
“There’s a lot of droppings around, so they must have been living here before moving on.”
“Yes, we can just follow them… but there are other footprints too.”
But upon closer inspection, there were also larger footprints mixed in with the Werewolf’s.
“These are…”
“Giant Wolf footprints, right?”
Listening to the mercenaries, they seemed to be Giant Wolf footprints.
Huh, are wolf monsters getting along with each other now?
Usually, Werewolves don’t even get along with their own kind, so this is definitely unusual.
“Anyway, it’s good that they’re nearby. Let’s provoke them a bit.”
“Are you sure? This seems a bit unusual.”
“It’s just one higher species, nothing to worry about.”
It’s not something to be scared of, so we started recklessly disturbing the forest and rocky hills to get their attention.
“Everyone, halt.”
At Jeven’s signal, we stopped, and the bushes ahead started shaking.
“Finally, they’re here.”
“They must have been really annoyed, taking this long.”
With that, the mercenaries drew their weapons.
And then.
Rustle- rustle, rustle.
The bushes all around shook, and the smell of beasts filled the air.
Growl!!
A pack of Giant Wolves, more like tigers in size, emerged from the bushes, showing off their massive bodies.
“Uraah!”
First, the big mercenary who had picked a fight with me earlier swung a huge hammer at a Giant Wolf.
Thud!
The Giant Wolf, with its beastly reflexes, dodged the attack and turned its head, opening its mouth wide.
But.
“Huah!”
Thunk!
As if waiting, a mercenary with a long spear from behind pierced through the open mouth. Those two must be a combo.
Besides that.
There was a mercenary fighting a Giant Wolf with a long sword, another who had already drawn a bow and taken position, and Jeven, their leader, swinging his sword at the forefront.
Even though we were ambushed in the middle of the forest, our side clearly had the upper hand.
They’re a famous mercenary group for a reason.
Well, I’ll leave this to them.
I looked ahead at the still-shaking bushes.
There.
A pack of Werewolves, having sent the Giant Wolves as vanguard, was glaring at us.
These bastards, who are they sizing up?
I immediately drew my sword and charged towards them.
Trees and bushes rushed past me.
Before I knew it, I was right in front of the pack, who were now flinching in panic.
And so.
From the start, I focused my Aura to use Fleet and aimed for the neck of the innermost one.
“Huh?”
A sharp pain in the back of my neck and a strong sense of danger hit me.
Immediately.
Whoosh!
I used Fleet to pull back.
Crash!
A wolf landed with tremendous speed where I had just been.
This wolf, about 1.5 times larger than the Giant Wolf I saw earlier.
Grrr…
It stood on two legs and glared at me.
“We meet at last.”
It seems.
This guy is the leader of these bastards.