Chapter 40
The Red Spear Knights, who were taking turns on guard duty, also noticed the flickering light from within the darkened forest.
They called each other in hushed voices, shared their opinions, and then drew their swords and raised their shields as they moved forward.
Those who had been noisily enjoying their al gradually fell silent and reached for their discarded helts, watching attentively.
Ian hoped it wasn’t going to be a troubleso matter, so he put down what he was eating and moved to a different spot.
As the light drew nearer, figures began to erge from the darkness.
There were a total of eighteen people.
“rcenaries,” Ian noted.
From their attire, their identity was clear, and seeing the leather and other supplies packed on their backs confird it.
The rcenaries were startled to see the knights gathered but did not retreat.
Soon, a representative from the group approached with a torch, looking anxious under the scrutinizing gazes.
‘…Hmm.’
Ian sensed sothing was off.
It was not unusual to encounter rcenaries in this area; there were many monsters near the defense lines, making such encounters quite common.
To earn money, one must take risks.
However, these rcenaries seed too relaxed for having co through the darkness. It was unusual for them to appear so nonchalant.
“Ah, good evening, gentlen.”
The man, with a scarred and rugged face, forced a friendly smile.
“I apologize for disturbing you at night. You may have heard of us. I am Rupron, leader of the Level 3 rcenary group called ‘Morning Sun.’”
He briefly showed a rcenary badge that seed to have been prepared in advance, but the inscription on it was barely visible in the dim light.
“So, what brings you here?”
Taken aback by the curt response, he flinched but continued in as smooth a voice as he could muster.
“Before that, let explain our situation. Our rcenary group has been using the ‘Thunderstruck Village’ nearby as our base for hunting. You might not know, but there are quite a few beasts and monsters in this area that are worth a decent amount of money without much effort.”
“……”
“But lately, the hunting has been unusually good. As a result, we got greedy. We ventured deep into the forest chasing our prey, and unfortunately, we lost our way. We tried to return the way we ca, but it got dark. After wandering for two days, we finally saw a light in the distance.”
“So you ca here?”
“Yes, that’s right. We didn’t an to disturb you. We promise not to interfere and to leave quietly. If it’s alright with you, could we stay nearby for the night?”
“…Alright, do that.”
Ian readily agreed.
“Thank you! Then, I’ll take my leave!”
Rupron hurried back to his group.
The Red Spear Knights resud their al, and Ian sat back down. Just as he was about to pick up the at he had set aside,
“Master, I have a bad feeling about this.”
Mael spoke up imdiately, and Mari followed up without hesitation.
“Right. Thunderstruck Village isn’t around here. It’s quite a distance to the north, isn’t it? It would have taken several days to get here from there. And considering they’ve been wandering the forest, their gear is too pristine. Their faces are clean as if they had just washed with hot water this morning. More importantly, did you see the rcenaries just now? They showed no signs of relief.”
“So, you accepted them?”
Mari looked puzzled.
“I also thought it was suspicious, just as you both did. But if I were to turn them away, I’d be worried about what they might do from behind.”
“Then it’s better to keep an eye on them rather than just sending them away?”
“Yes. If we’ve made a mistake, it’s good to be cautious. It might be a bit tiring, but we’re leaving at dawn anyway, so it should be fine.”
Mari nodded with a reluctant expression.
Ian let out a small smile.
‘Quite cautious for soone their age.’
After all, they must have had their share of experiences during their ti as recruits. They’ve learned from their seniors.
It’s unlikely they spent all their ti in the training camp just building physical strength, honing martial skills, and learning etiquette.
But unlike the other knights, who have decent skills but might not have experienced much of the harshness of life, these two seem to have a keener sense of caution.
Ian glanced at the knights. The sharpness they had when observing the approaching light was now gone.
They continued eating, laughing, and chatting. The two Red Spear Knights on guard duty occasionally glanced at the rcenaries but seed indifferent.
‘Or is this normal?’
One needs to experience a few betrayals to beco this cautious.
Mael and Mari are just exceptions. As the saying goes, a promising tree differs from the seedling; they clearly stand out from others.
‘Speaking of which, what was Verdant thinking?’
Assigning a monster eradication mission to such young recruits. Honestly, it would have been reasonable to include at least one experienced person. It’s surprising that only this team was sent.
‘Did he trust that much?’
Or did he not worry at all?
Ian observed the rcenaries, who were keeping their distance and setting up their camp.
They roughly arranged their area, built a small campfire, and sat down. Yet, they were neither chatting loudly nor preparing for sleep or als.
They only quietly exchanged words with the person next to them.
After wandering for two days, they should have shown signs of relief and disarray. Yet, none of them did. It was truly an odd sight.
As Ian continued to watch with suspicion, one of them stood up—it was Rupron, the leader he had introduced.
He rummaged through his backpack and pulled out sothing wrapped in cloth, though it was still a bit distant, revealing it to be a glass bottle. He approached with it.
“Excuse .”
“What’s the matter?”
A Red Spear Knight on guard duty blocked his way and asked. Rupron bowed and showed the bottle.
“I wanted to thank you for allowing us to rest here. This is so alcohol I had saved for myself, and I’d like you to accept it. It’s not much, but I’m sure everyone can have a sip.”
He handed over the bottle and then went back to his group. The Red Spear Knight took the bottle, looked uncomfortable, and eventually brought it to Ian.
“…Hmm.”
Removing the cloth wrapping from the bottle, Ian checked the label and found it wasn’t very expensive.
However, it was a cheap but potent drink favored by rcenaries and the poor for its quantity and strength.
Ian had mories of drinking it himself when he was short on money.
‘But why does it look like it’s been opened?’
Although it looked natural, Ian’s keen eyes could not be deceived.
When he opened the cap, there was a distinctive feeling indicating it had been opened before. He sniffed it but only detected the usual aroma.
Ian took a cautious sip.
The intense flavor that burst in his mouth made him instinctively close his eyes, but there was a faint, stinging sensation on his tongue.
‘…It’s poisoned.’
This type of alcohol doesn’t normally taste like this. He wasn’t sure what kind of poison it was, but it was unlikely to be a lethal one.
‘Did he say to share it in small sips?’
The implication was that even a single sip of the drink would have a potent effect, but it wasn’t an imdiate poison.
As Ian swished the liquid in his mouth, a heat began to rise in his body, not from the alcohol but from the reaction of the poison. In other words, this was a side effect of the antidote.
‘It’s not a particularly strong poison.’
Looking at the rcenaries, Ian noticed Rupron glancing anxiously in their direction. The other rcenaries were also preparing sothing suddenly.
A al? Unlikely. They wouldn’t be preparing it now if they hadn’t already. At that mont, Ian saw one of the rcenaries sprinkling a powder into the campfire.
‘What’s that?’
The color of the flas changed to purple briefly and emitted a faint wave.
“……!”
The mont Ian saw that, he spat out the sip of the drink he hadn’t swallowed.
“Sir?”
Mael called out in a puzzled voice. There was no ti to explain. Ian threw the bottle away and shouted.
“Everyone, get into battle formation!”
He activated his magical energy to enhance his physical abilities and drew the white dagger, Baekokru.
Ian’s actions were as fluid and quick as flowing water.
Whoosh!
The dagger, imbued with significant power, flew through the air with lightning speed and struck the rcenary who had been sprinkling the powder in the campfire.
By the ti the sound of the impact was heard, the rcenary was already staggering and collapsing.
He didn’t even have ti to utter a dying cry. It all happened in an instant.
The startled rcenary leader, Rupron, sprang to his feet and shouted.
“Wait, what’s the aning of this!”
The Red Spear Knights were also bewildered. Nonetheless, they were donning their helts and arming themselves, readying their formation.
Ian advanced and reached out. The Baekokru embedded in the rcenary’s head returned to his hand as if by magic.
Well, it could be considered magic. That’s why it’s an artifact. He threw it again.
This ti, he targeted the woman reaching for the dead rcenary. A nearby bald rcenary swung an axe to deflect the dagger. He was quite skilled.
Rupron also drew his weapon and, with a stern face, yelled.
“Do you not understand the gravity of what you’re doing?! Are you, the so-called Guardians of the East, repaying our kindness with such malevolence?!”
Ian scowled and growled in response.
“Why are you getting angry? Don’t mistake this. It’s not you who should be angry, it’s . Don’t you think I know what that burning stuff was? It’s called ‘Fruit of Destruction.’”
Though it’s called a fruit, it’s actually finely ground powder. When burned, it attracts nearby monsters.
Rupron was horrified.
“You should learn to manage your expressions better. How can you be so obvious? If you’re caught, you should deny it.”
“…….”
“Good. I was already contemplating what to do since the poison was in the drink. I thought you’d start moving around bedti at the latest, but you’ve moved much quicker than I expected.”
Ian raised his left hand, signaling a simple command.
Mael, seeing this from the left, readied his spear.
The six Red Spear Knights at the front conjured flas in their left hands and prepared their stances.
Whoosh!
Hot air surged on either side.
“Just to be cautious, they are not ordinary rcenaries but turncoats who have allied with foreign forces! I swear on my na and family honor, so do not hesitate. Prepare to throw the spears!”
Ian had worried briefly about whether any knight might hesitate to kill, but that was indeed an unnecessary concern.
The knights hesitated for a mont but, following orders, threw their spears at their respective targets.
Imdiately, a purple magical energy surged up from the ground in front of the rcenaries, resembling a sewer’s backflow.
This demonstrated that they were indeed associated with the outer seas.
The purple energy ford a barrier, blocking the spears thrown by the Red Spear Knights.
Though the flas emitted by the spears spread along the barrier, they did not harm the rcenaries.
Ian dashed forward.
‘There’s no ti.’
He drew the sword at his waist, enveloped it in magical energy, and swung it down with all his might.
Clang!
With a chilling crack, the barrier split open.
Ian leaped through without hesitation. The flas spreading along the barrier obscured the rcenaries’ vision, leaving them unable to react in ti.
Most looked on with startled expressions, and only a few managed to respond.
Among them, the bald rcenary who had previously deflected the dagger swung his axe desperately from the front, but Ian moved more swiftly.
‘One!’
The bald rcenary’s head flew off. Ian quickly drew another dagger and threw it.
‘Two!’
Seeing the dagger pierce the rcenary’s forehead, Ian moved imdiately to the side and slashed another rcenary.
‘Three!’
In the blink of an eye, three rcenaries were down. Marai then entered the fray, killing two more.
Adding the initial rcenary killed by the thrown dagger, a total of six rcenaries had been eliminated. Twelve remained.
‘I won’t let them escape.’
To be more precise, they must not escape.
———
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