LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 107
After being reincarnated, Karem thought he had adapted well to the things he had only seen and heard in his past life.
Naturally.
Starting with the two Grand Wizards closest to him.
Every Day, they would shoot magic at each other while somehow leaving their surroundings unscathed. They were the wise ones revered by all mages in Europa.
Not to mention one elf Necromancer overflowing with nerdiness even without them.
And many wizards now stationed in the Wizard’s Tower.
On top of that, there were the goblins, slimes, ice worms, Hunter Drake, talking crow-like monster, and various monster remains and byproducts he had seen in bits and pieces.
There was even a real mammoth that made those aforementioned monsters seem insignificant.
It was hard to believe that a mammoth, which should have been long extinct in his past life, was now wandering on four legs in this place, making it even harder not to adapt.
Of course, there were dwarves, elves, and dark elves.
The presence of these very familiar races wandering around also contributed to this.
However, Karem finally realized.
He still had a long way to go before fully adapting.
Creeek—!!
“Watch out for their fangs and tails!”
“Damn it! It’s been quiet for a few years, so I thought we were in the clear!”
A massive monster the size of a bear wielding a crude stone weapon was engaged in battle with the Rescue Team against the Grizzly Beaver’s invasion.
Karem was stunned.
Grizzly Bear, a giant beaver slightly bigger than that.
The term Grizzly Beaver was quite fitting, to say the least.
These things were swinging stone tools, biting with their teeth, whipping with their tails, and shoving with their bodies in a way that was completely at odds with their appearance.
Separated from everything else, it was truly pathetic.
Of course, the result was chunks of flesh, blood, bones, and innards flying all around.
It was obvious whose it was.
It reminded him of some nonsensical, brutal flash animation he had watched in his childhood, filled with an unreal sense of reality.
Mixed in with the smell of blood was a strangely sweet aroma that made it even more out of place.
In such a situation, the two people who stood out more than the wizards were Gordon and Elder Iona.
“Damn it! Lady Iona! With your age, you should fall back!”
Literally shining from the east and west.
Ignoring the retreating forces, Gordon immediately counterattacked the mob of monsters as soon as the Rescue Team’s reinforcements arrived.
Every time the Swordmaster swung his sword, evidence of life like the Grizzly Beaver’s head and flesh were ruthlessly scattered.
Gordon swung his longsword at a speed unseen by ordinary eyes, not only slaughtering the surrounding Grizzly Beavers but also aiding those in danger.
There was nothing particularly special about it.
Gordon was just moving quickly.
Even Karem, with his limited cooking skills, could tell that.
After all, it seemed to him that Gordon’s previous prowess was little more than a facade.
Surely, humans had a right to show some pretense.
What Karem really couldn’t understand was the scenery right next to him.
“Uwah! No way! That’s ridiculous!”
Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump!
Elder Iona was savagely hammering the Grizzly Beaver with her hands and feet, clad in an icy armor on her plump body.
A wave of pure chill spread through the surroundings.
In a large-scale battle, morale was indeed crucial.
With her dominant presence, the Rescue Team erupted in fiery spirit to confront the Grizzly Beavers.
But, there were just way too many.
For every Grizzly Beaver they killed, two more rushed out from the forest.
From Karem’s perspective, someone who only understood siege warfare, it was clear that things would spiral out of control if they continued like this.
Karem glanced at Catherine.
“Uh, it looks like things are getting a bit dangerous—”
“If a kid is saying it’s dangerous, then it’s definitely getting serious.”
“Isn’t it about time for you to step in?”
“Indeed, there’s no sign of their numbers decreasing. In that case—”
Catherine clutched her staff and sharply struck the barricade.
A rush of winter air swept past Karem’s nostrils, which had been paralyzed by the smell of blood mixed with the sweet aroma.
“Brr, it’s cold!”
“You’re quite impatient for your age.”
“Impatient young ones should stay back.”
“Right. It will all end soon.”
“No, don’t step in.”
Just then, someone placed their chin on the solid barricade in front of Catherine.
It was the giant who had fled out the window.
“What the—”
“Isn’t it better to conserve your magic power?”
“Hey, isn’t it also reasonable to conserve the Swordmaster’s forces?”
“Rimus!”
“Hey!”
“Where are you? Rimus!”
“Hey. Ignoring me? Hey! Ugh!”
Catherine, ignored, unintentionally kicked the giant’s calf.
Bang!
But it was Catherine who ended up really hurt.
Perhaps due to the awkward position, the sound was incredibly clear.
“Ugh!”
“Oh my, Sir Atanitas.”
“That one!”
“Hahaha!” The giant merely laughed.
Meanwhile, Rimus, who had hastily scrambled up to the barricade, saluted.
“Squyire Rimus! Reporting in!”
“Where’s the Cavalry?”
“Except for those who went out for reconnaissance, everyone is prepping for departure!”
“Hmm, then we need to stall for time. Good! Shout the battle cry of victory!”
“Yes!”
The giant, nimbly like a weasel, leapt up the barricade and precariously balanced himself.
“Swordmaster, fire!”
Boom—! Crunch!
The giant leapt forward.
Part of the barricade crumbled from the recoil as it was launched towards the Grizzly Beaver.
Somewhere along the way, a massive two-bladed axe that a giant might swing had appeared in the giant’s hands.
“Khaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!”
It was only natural that all eyes were on the Grizzly Beaver attacking the Rescue Team.
But it was too late.
KWAAM—!
Without losing momentum, he bisected the Grizzly Beaver in two.
The ground trembled with the impact.
In essence, a living bomb shaped like a human.
Karem finally understood why the Rescue Team was functioning smoothly without their leader, the giant.
*
*
*
The two Swordmasters and the ranks of the Rescue Team.
And the dispatch of the Cavalry.
Before long, the Grizzly Beaver horde withdrew in a dreadful retreat.
It took less than half a day for the battle to come to an end.
The victorious Rescue Team confirmed what they had suspected from Gordon and the mercenaries who were tasked with escorting Elder Iona:
The massive outbreak of the Grizzly Beavers.
However, contrary to Karem’s thoughts, the locals of Iceland had a mixed reaction of annoyance and cheerfulness, as if to say “Finally, the inevitable has come.”
And in the noisy atmosphere, Karem could finally understand why.
Grizzly Beavers, true to their name, were monsters that lived by building dams in rivers and lakes.
Naturally, building dams required wood.
And, it goes without saying, many of the locals in Iceland made a living from logging.
In other words, their necessary resources and activity ranges overlapped.
If they were humans, there would perhaps be room for compromise.
But Grizzly Beavers, despite their beaver-like appearance, were nevertheless monsters.
There was no room for negotiation with monsters.
If the damage occurred, adventurers would simply subjugate them, and that would be that.
If that had been the end, everyone would have ended happily, but in Iceland, every few years, there would be an explosion in the Grizzly Beaver population, leading to large-scale subjugation requests.
The Rescue Team that arrived at Blackwood Village achieved their goal of rescuing Elder Iona.
After confirming the large-scale outbreak of Grizzly Beavers, they contacted Alfred.
The Rescue Team soon coordinated with the Adventurer Guild to transition into a Subjugation Team.
Thanks to that, Blackwood Village became even noisier than before.
“Wow, damn. The more I see this, the less I can adapt.”
“Still, these guys’ furs are quite welcome in the warmer south.”
“But it feels so stiff to the touch?”
“Well, that’s something that can be fixed with tanning.”
As they conversed with the adventurers peeling off the byproduct—meaning stripping the leather and cleaning the bones—Karem studied the Grizzly Beaver closely.
“Seems like they’re just cleaning the bones. Don’t they eat the meat?”
“If it’s autumn with all the fat and flesh, that’s another story. But in spring and summer, Grizzly Beaver meat is utterly awful. Even beasts and monsters wouldn’t consider it unless they were starving.”
“Hoo…”
Grizzly Beaver meat wasn’t tasty unless it was autumn.
Check. And the appreciation was.
‘Hmm, looking at it this way, it doesn’t seem that cute anymore.’
As he looked at it from afar it was one thing, but up close, in this massive version, it looked more grotesque than adorable.
The cute aspects of a beaver were its fluffy body and round little eyes.
And its infinitely short legs and paddle-like tail compared to its body.
But observing this large version, all those cute elements lost their appeal. They didn’t invoke any feelings of cuteness at all.
By the way, it was mentioned they would occasionally have massive outbreaks.
“It feels like a swarm of locusts, doesn’t it?”
“Swarm of locusts? That’s not wrong, to be honest.”
At that familiar voice, Karem turned his head.
Gordon, the benefactor of this Rescue Team and the Felwinter Family’s savior, was now surrounded by people, looking quite worn out as he raised his hand.
“Little genius cook Karem! To see such a precious figure in a place like this! You’ve grown taller since the last time I saw you!”
“Geez, you’re putting me in an awkward position.”
“I’ve always known about your outstanding cooking skills. Ha! I’ve heard from all over that you’ve been quite the celebrity even in Coldon.”
Karem thought he had grown accustomed to this blatant praise, but he found himself stammering in embarrassment and quickly changed the subject.
“By the way, is this sweet aroma coming from the Grizzly Beavers?”
“Well, that’s part of it. Thanks to that, it’s quite easy to sense their ambushes.”
“Ambush.”
A word that was really incompatible with the term beaver.
But on further reflection, it made sense.
As a monster that traveled in packs, they would naturally know how to use strategy.
Moreover, they had the ability, albeit rudimentary, to create and wield weapons.
Considering that very few monsters used tools…
Could it be? Maybe these things were far more threatening than he thought?
“Why? Are you curious where this sweet aroma is coming from?”
“Isn’t it from that Grizzly Beaver?”
“Come with me and find out.”
And where Karem followed Gordon to was a mound of dead Grizzly Beavers waiting for their turn to be processed.
Gordon kicked one with his foot, flipping it over.
A single dead Grizzly Beaver fell onto its back.
And with it came a stronger, rich, sweet aroma.
“Ah please! Oh God! Gordon’s unusual tastes—”
“Hey! It’s not what you think it is!”
“If it’s not about the eggs, then what—”
“No, that’s the cause! The cause! You wanted to know, right?”
Karem felt a blend of doubt and confusion.
As he hesitated, he glimpsed a revolting scene.
Regardless of Karem’s whims,
Gordon kept kicking at the Grizzly Beaver as if to show him.
As he did, the rich aroma wafted up.
“What are you so disgusted about? It’s just—”
“I know it’s the eggs! Stop it already!”
“Let’s see, what was it? The scent of a male enticing a female? Or was it the other way around? Regardless, it’s something musk-like.”
Various reports of polygamous breeding and massive dams reached his ears.
But it was the scent that modern humans would never forget.
Wait a second.
Lifting his hands that had been blocking his sight, he looked with sharp eyes at the exposed entrails of the monster.
‘…This has a vanilla smell.’
Damn, that changes things.
He recalled the time when vanilla was almost as precious as gold.
He also remembered the dubious rumor that beavers had become endangered due to the relentless search for cheaper alternatives and high-quality fur.
Wasn’t it said that the dried organs of beavers had a fragrance exactly like vanilla?
To be precise, he wasn’t sure, but Grizzly Beavers were indeed quite large.
Thinking back, they also ate the innards without any issues while cooking seafood soup.
As he pondered, the sense of revulsion began to dissipate.
And above all, that weirdly familiar scent.
Karem’s gaze turned intimidating enough that even Swordmaster Gordon took a step back.
“Whoa, what are you thinking? Aren’t you only interested in money and cooking?”
“I have enough money now.”
“That’s a rather odd thing to say. But anyway, why? Are you actually considering eating that?”
“……..”
“Huh, I said it jokingly. You can’t possibly be serious, right?”
Karem shot Gordon a significant look.