After Durak and his team finished taking so at and what was valuable off the wolves, they were piled onto the river embanknt, and I set them ablaze. The bonfire soared into the sky as the last remaining bits of the monsters turned to ash.
“That’s a fascinating weapon you have. It’s a dungeon item, right?” I asked Durak.
Durak fiddled with his crossbow necklace. “Aye, it is. A rare find, and I can’t tell you how many tis she’s saved my beard,” he said proudly.
“Does it work with just a hint of mana injected into it? Surely it must, or do you simply will it to go into its full form? And I couldn’t help but notice it packs a considerably bigger punch than most crossbows,” I asked.
“Bit of both and you’d be right. Feed her a good bolt, and she hits harder and faster than most. It’s the magic that dwells within it for certain. Can’t say I’ve seen too many items like it,” he answered.
Santer called for Durak and he went to attend to him as Geoffrey ca over and gave a thumbs up.
“Thank you, you saved us a lot of ti. Fire magic really is handy, huh?” he said with a grin.
“It is indeed,” I answered. “Say, is there any particular reason you go out of your way to burn the corpses? Wouldn’t leaving them to the forest be better, as you can leave this place faster?”
Geoffrey shook his head as he wagged his finger and cleared his throat. “It is in our best interest to stop monsters from congregating in a single location. Sure, the scent of blood will attract so monsters, but the corpses will linger and bring more over a longer ti. As more monsters gather and fight over the scraps well…you can imagine how things can get out of hand rather quickly around here,” he explained.
I thought as much.
“I see, is that a common occurrence?” I asked as Durak gave the order to move out.
“Oh yeah, big ti. Not everyone is capable or willing to take the ti, so it’s not a surprise to find a whole horde of monsters fighting over territory or a free al. Just ans more trouble for us and the folks around here,” he said.
“Doesn’t help that those blundering adventurers cause more problems than they’re worth, damnit. They’ll only take a trophy to prove their kill just to let the corpses fester, bastards they are,” Thrak grumbled.
“Yeah…that can be an issue too,” Geoffrey chuckled.
Cerila walked next to as I asked, “Are adventurers a common…the for you guys?”
Thrak shrugged as Geoffrey joined him. “It’s a big forest, so you don’t run into folks too much. But if you spend enough ti here, you are bound to cross paths eventually. Most of the ti, we go our separate ways unless one of us requests help. It’s sort of an unspoken rule to give a hand around here if soone asks. As long as it's not a suicide mission, that is,” Geoffrey answered.
“We find more of their tags than the people wear’em. Wouldn’t be a shock to find a few bodies in those wolf dens,” Thrak said morbidly.
Queen Maxwell did ntion that the forest was a proving ground of sorts. Those adventurers who make it out of that place alive are bound to be skilled. Most people don’t ever ntion those who never make it back, though, so it’s not surprising to hear many perish.
Ingra let out a low groan as she muttered, “Durak, are we gonna eat any of this at for lunch?”
“We’ll make a short stop for lunch in a clearing an hour out, then get movin’ to the final spot for the night, so just wait a bit, kid,” Durak said with a dismissive wave.
—
Geoffrey’s POV.
After lunch, a few of us were dispatched as forward scouts, as the area we were passing through was relatively safe, and it was good to keep Elowen and Santer fresh. So Thrak and I moved our way through the forest, chatting about this and that.
“So…what do you think of our new guests?” I asked.
Thrak slowly turned his head toward . “And what is there to think, huh?” he asked.
“Oh, co on, don’t be like that. He’s the stuff of legends! Even we keep hearing about the Dragonslayer out here and all that he has done…” I said.
Thrak shrugged his thick shoulders and said, “Can’t say much since I haven’t seen’em do anything. Not one to judge a man by the way he stands, kid.”
“Sounds like you think they are just tall tales, huh?” I said.
“No, all’em stories can’t be nothing. Probably so folks blowing smoke through the rumor hut, but what feat doesn’t get that? Guess the man is younger than I expected, though, that’s for certain. And that girl with’em is mighty strong,” Thrak said as he stroked his beard.
I was about to say sothing back to him when sothing fell from the trees above and nearly gave a heart attack. “Santer! Wha—what are you doing, man? Are you trying to kill ?” I groaned.
“I heard you, so I ca,” he grumbled with his thick accent. “That man…he is odd.”
“What? Who? The Dragonslayer?” I asked.
Santer solemnly nodded his head. “It is difficult to say. He has the stance of a warrior? Eyes of a killer? But is kind? Does this make sense?” he said, sounding unsure.
No…I an, sort of?
“What exactly is the stance of a warrior? The eye of the killer part makes sense, and I guess you can say he seems like a nice guy so far,” I asked Thrak.
“And how’em I supposed to know what he ans? I can barely understand the guy half the ti. No offense, Santer, just hard for too, you know,” Thrak said.
“It is fine. Hard for too. But these things hard too. Hard to understand him, Dragonslayer. Mmmm,” Santer humd as he walked.
After a few monts with his eyes closed, he slowly nodded to himself as he raised a finger and said, “Like a beast, watching his prey?”
I chuckled as I waved the notion away. “There is no way he is planning on killing us. That’s just ridiculous. Isn’t he on so kind of mission out here? Even Durak doesn’t seem to know the exacts,” I said.
Thrak checked a bush with his walking stick and said, “Aye, but I get what you ant, Santer. Who said he was trying to kill us? Aint’cha think it’s got sothing to do with those green knights we run into deep into the forest? Durak ain’t willin to even talk about’em. They seem dangerous, not even the adventurers make small talk with’em, and they're just coming from who knows where. ”
“That…I didn’t really think about those guys. I guess a bunch of ard knights in the middle of nowhere in your kingdom would be a real problem,” I muttered.
Santer suddenly stopped, and I also realized it. “Santer, why are you even here? Shouldn’t you be with the main group?” I said.
“I forgot. Ti to switch out. Durak is…going to be angry,” he mumbled.
“That’s right. I am going to be angry. I told you to send’em back, but you're over here yappin about things you shouldn’t be,” Durak’s cold voice shot out from behind us.
“Ah, we were just talking about the Dragonslayer, you see? As our illustrious leader, what are your opinions on the matter?” I asked in deflection.
Durak raised an eyebrow at and looked at as if I were dumb for asking. “What kinda opinion do you think I could have about a man I’ve known for just shy of half a day, boy?”
Thrak snorted as he elbowed my leg. “Told ya,” he snickered.
I shoved Thrak away by pleading my case, “I an, we just want to know if we can trust him, you know? There’s no harm in being curious. Even Santer said he may be a little dangerous even if he seems rather nice.”
Durak gave a cold glare. “Dangerous? That’s how you see’em?”
I stiffened but nodded slowly as Durak shook his head in clear disappointnt. “Then you’re bigger fools than I gave you boys credit for. The only thing I see is a sad situation,” he said quietly.
“Wha—what do you an?” I asked.
Durak fiddled with his necklace for a bit before saying, “If even half the stories are true about’em, then ain’t it sad? He’s young enough for many of us to be his father or mother. Yet he’s been through that much already? And he’s here slogging through this damn forest with the likes of us? He should be off enjoying life, not fightin’ dragons in so place or hackin’ a beast apart in a forsaken forest.”
Ah…
Santer and Thrak both averted their gazes in thought. It was a rather simple conclusion, but I was too caught up in the stories. I never imagined what it must have felt like for the hero to have actually gone through with it all. It must have been worse than death at so points.
Or, more importantly, I never even considered that he was as young as he was. Shouldn’t soone as young as him be enjoying life, as Durak said? Why does it have to be him out here?
I even heard rumors that he was a slave at so point, only to beco a runaway adventurer. He even killed a full-grown Wyrm before becoming an adult! To go through that much in just a decade alone? I probably would have died a long ti ago, let alone kill a Dragon.
And Durak was right about not only that, but also his strength. If he could live through even half of the rumors, didn’t that an he was plenty powerful in his own right? He even cast that fire magic that could burn a large monster with ease…
“Now that you fools get it. Quit talkin’ about’em. He’s a noble now, so if you like yer heads attached to your pretty shoulders, I wouldn’t test the man who can kill a Dragon too much. Haven’t heard about’em having a temper, but I wouldn’t put it past a man to have so fire in his heart after all he’s been through. That’s if his wife doesn’t turn you into an ice sculpture before that,” Durak warned.
“Yes, Sir,” Santer said slowly.
“Ain’t gotta tell to shut it twice. Make sure you're nice and tight-lipped, Geoferry,” Thrak snickered.
“Yeah, I’ll be sure to be careful,” I said.
“Good, now go get back—” Durak trailed off for a mont as his eyes drifted into the woods.
We followed his gaze as Santer sniffed at the air. But after a few breaths of ti, I didn’t see anything, and Santer could only shrug.
Durak grabbed by the arm and forced down to his eye level. He took a finger and pointed out into the distance.
“Geoffrey, you see that tree right there, right?” he asked quietly.
“I—I do, yes?” I mumbled.
“Then take a closer look at it again,” Durak said.
I cupped my hands around my eyes and really focused on the tree that Durak was pointing at. It was way out in front of us, out in a small grove that was barely even considered a grove. More like an empty place. The tree itself seed perfectly normal.
It wasn’t marked by an animal or monster. Its bark was the sa white as every other tree around it. It didn’t seem bigger or smaller than usual, nor did it look like a nest of a beast. Even its leaves wer—
“Oh, oh…damn. The leaves are ssed up; they are absolutely the wrong shape. It’s a damn Ent, isn’t it?” I said in disbelief.
“Yeah, Santer, get back and warn the others to regroup. Geofrrey, get the oil, we’ve got a bastard to burn down.”
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