216 – Host (13)
I’m not that close to that guy Hubert, but I wanted to avoid a situation where I couldn’t use my power when I needed it because I was trying to hide my identity since everyone now knows.
Now is not the time to play with words.
And I must set an example to those who touch my people.
It was the same for the person who touched Luna, and it was the same for the person who touched Cecil.
I took a sip of the griffon potion and tossed the bottle to the side.
Wow!
A man standing guard in front of a cave heard a loud noise and immediately drew his sword.
“Stand there. “Who are you?”
I skipped all the cumbersome procedures and headed straight to the entrance.
“Hey, bastard, stand!”
When he got close to the tip of the sword, he swung his sword.
Louis, Knight of Sion, Ruscus, and Duchy. The trajectory is somewhat different from that of the opponent with whom I have crossed swords several times. Is it a swordsmanship that originated in the north?
But it doesn’t matter. It was neither as fast nor as unpredictable as the Sword of Zion. Most swordsmanship feels like it has large unnecessary movements and is slow to me.
He blocked a diagonal sword strike with a wooden sword and approached the opponent’s body with the blade as if riding a slide.
And then he hit me in the face with my fist.
While he was staggering, he struck the opponent with his sword, sending him flying, and immediately grabbed him by the collar and began a one-sided beating.
***
About ten men were sitting with their bodies perched on a rock or pillar that they could lean on.
When we saw one person performing a trick in excitement, we burst into laughter and gulped down our glasses.
Gale is the deepest cave among them. Just looking at the composition, he was sitting quietly in a place that could be said to be the leader’s seat.
In the meantime, the noisy banquet gradually becomes quiet.
This was because a loud sound echoed inside the cave from right at the entrance.
The person who was showing off tricks, the person who was drinking politely, and the person who was completely excited kept their mouths shut and looked at the entrance.
When they sensed something was wrong, they stood up one by one and grabbed their military flags.
Gail didn’t pay any attention and just ate the meat he had hunted in the deepest part of the cave.
Sreuk- Sreuk- Sreuk-
The sound of thick leather being dragged spread throughout the cave.
Damian, wearing a mask, was covered in blood, holding a wooden sword in one hand and the nape of the guard’s neck in the other.
The largest man in the group bent his neck from side to side, loosening his joints and said.
“What are you doing, bastard?”
Soon after, several members of the lower-ranking group started swearing in northern language.
However, I did not attack Damian carelessly because of the unknown sense of intimidation emanating from him. Like a dog barking hard only at beings on the other side of a fence, he only threatened with his mouth.
Damian threw the sentry he had dragged aside and said.
“This is an example.”
Then Gail, who was in the corner, spoke first.
“You are fearless.”
“….”
He continued eating leisurely without even looking at Damian, as if he had no intention of attacking him.
Hair shaved short. Comfort that comes from hundreds of practical experiences. Gail’s enormous physical prowess. The sense of intimidation emanating from him was not far behind.
“It’s just as I heard.”
Gail spoke as if he had already known of the existence of the mask.
Damian omitted all formal greetings.
“What information did you leak to Cecil?”
“We were the ones who threw the bait, but it was her choice to bite despite knowing it.”
“Tell me where you are headed.”
When he spoke in a command tone, the eyes of his subordinates around him turned grim like those of butchers.
Gail gave a hand signal to stay still and then continued speaking.
“The magic hunter performed a ritual by sacrificing villagers at the Rufola altar. And they say that he possesses a magic sword that I have never seen before.”
“….”
Gail smiled bitterly after seeing Damien’s reaction. Damian’s eyes were half-open and it looked like he was going to kill someone and go back.
“I must return the magic tool that was taken from Cecil.”
One of the subordinates who couldn’t bear it any longer grumbled and shouted.
“What are you doing?”
However, despite the resistance of his subordinates, Gale accepted Damian’s request in a dry tone.
“Give it to me.”
Then the subordinate spoke in a questioning tone.
“Gale, there is no need to listen to this bastard’s demands.”
Gail spoke firmly.
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“Rox, don’t make me say it twice. “Give it to me.”
“No, I will personally show you an example the way the North does. OMG!”
He looked at Damian with an ax and began to prepare for battle. Then Gail stood up and punched Rox in the face.
A dull hitting sound filled the cave.
“Give it to me! “You bastard.”
Gail’s shout was so loud that the entire cave shook.
Rox accepted Gale’s command only after being thrown into a puddle of dew-filled water.
These were a pack of wolves that were subservient to and dominated by power. And Gale was their absolute leader.
The subordinate carried a heavy-looking backpack from inside the cave and placed it in front of Damian.
After checking the contents, Damian silently packed the bag and left.
One of the subordinates who was quietly watching said to Gale.
“Is it okay to send it like this?”
Gail emptied her glass and continued speaking.
“The day will surely come when we will face each other. But not now.”
***
Hubert saw me and clapped his fingers silently.
“… “Did you come here to kill them all?”
I shook my head.
“Oh, no?”
Ignoring Hubert’s nonsense, I didn’t know if it was a joke or not, and organized the situation in my head.
He had no intention of fighting me. Is it really because they are afraid of fighting with me? The one who also fights against Zion?
There was no move to withdraw in response to the official document. My guess is that they are simply saving their energy for something to come in the future.
Moreover, Gale was already aware of the existence of the magic sword hunter. He is far ahead of me in terms of information.
What is Gale doing on this mission? Plural? Demon sword? Artifact?
Anyway, it doesn’t matter. The priority is to find Cecil before she becomes more dangerous.
“Did Gale obediently let you go? Even taking care of the loot yourself?”
“Yes.”
“Huh, I feel so betrayed by Gail.”
“Time is running out. I am going to the altar of Rufola.”
“Woah, wait, do you know where it is?”
“I need to find out.”
Hubert snapped his hand.
“Okay. Let’s go to camp first. Because there is a map I found while searching Marvas’ house. There’s no need to rush. “Cecil is a clever woman, so no matter what happens, she will survive.”
***
Not many people left the camp yet. Those who had finished organizing their luggage were now accelerating preparations for their return by checking the horses’ reins and feeding them fodder.
Everyone is busy organizing their luggage and having a lot to check. It seemed like there was no time to worry about whether Hubert and I would come or not.
The first thing I did was check to see if the theater department remained. It’s nowhere to be seen. It looks like the theater club left with Luna.
“Did you say it’s the Rufola Altar? I’ll get the directions first.”
Hubert tapped my shoulder and hurried to where his luggage was.
The dance club members were gathered in one place and arguing with serious faces.
The faces of Cecile and her close friends are still not visible.
I checked Cecil’s backpack again in a corner.
There were various metal spheres of unknown purpose mixed in randomly, starting with the most familiar Frostwind Bomb.
Detailed decorations and engravings were different, but the overall shape was similar to the Frostwind Bomb, so only the function was different and the operating method seemed to be the same.
I sorted by type and packed as many as possible into my bag.
Just as Hubert was about to run towards me holding an old parchment.
Someone shouted into the camp in a voice that was close to yelling.
“Help!”
Everyone’s eyes were focused on that place.
A girl was walking unsteadily toward the camp, looking like she had fallen down a mountain.
“Black, dark, help, help, please.”
Hubert looked at the girl’s face and sighed.
“Naias. The kid who accompanied Cecil. Oh my.”
As soon as he saw Naias’s face, he felt that things were amiss with her, so he covered his forehead.
Other students, including the dance department, gathered together to support her.
Cried Naias, her eyes covered with tears.
“Cecil… Cecil has been kidnapped!”
***
A heated argument broke out among the remaining students.
Their opinions were divided between those who should stay and fight to save Cecil and those who should return quickly according to Eternia’s orders.
“You’ve seen the situation in Masbas and other villages. What happened to those who were kidnapped. There is only one opponent. If we join forces, we have a good chance of winning.”
“We must return unconditionally. This is a problem we cannot handle on our own. If we step forward for no reason, the damage will spread further. Wait until the higher-ups take action.”
“How long will it take to get here from Eternia? It will be quite late by then.”
The opinion of those who wanted to fight was that there was a good chance of victory if they pushed ahead with their numbers.
On the other hand, those who wanted to return said that there must be a clear reason why the ’emergency return order’ was issued and that the damage could be minimized if even the remaining people returned.
The argument did not take long.
In the end, it was decided to split into two depending on opinions.
I don’t know how helpful it will be, but more than half of the people came forward to save Cecil.
“That’s right, Gale! If Gale joins, we have a chance to win!”
In the meantime, a member of the dance club hurried away on horseback to ask Gail for help.
Naias gathered himself and led about twenty people to the spot where Cecil was kidnapped.
Looking at the map that Hubert brought with him, it was exactly the same as the road leading to the Rufola Altar.
Walking through the forest path, Naias recalled the moment when she met the magic sword hunter.
“It was a small altar made crudely out of stone. The area around the altar was filled with human bones… And suddenly the monster appeared.”
“Monster? Are you saying it’s a demonic beast?”
“No, no, it was a human. But its face was half melted and its eyes were strange. It came out of nowhere and took Cecil away. I tried to fight, but nothing worked. It was so urgent… I’m so stupid, I don’t remember. “Cecil shouted at me to run, and only then did I come to my senses and run away. I don’t even know how I came out unharmed.”
Naias shed tears as he walked. She still hasn’t fully recovered from her shock.
As she was climbing a hill in the forest, everyone suddenly noticed a change in air currents and looked around her.
Soon after, the group’s steps began to gradually slow down.
“What is this? Why is my body like this…?”
“Magic power?”
“Huh?”
The inexperienced first-year students suffered from the strong pressure pressing down on their bodies, but did not understand the phenomenon.
In the end, some of them could no longer hold on and fell to the floor, clutching their chests.
Victor, a member of the first-year combat club who was walking next to Naias, said.
“It’s Maab. This place, or this whole hill? I have no idea where this came from.”
Rediger, the dance club leader, shouted.
“Maap? There’s nothing in front of here! You’re just pretending to know what it is.”
For magic pressure to be formed, there had to be something that concentrated magic power at high density. Whether it was a human, a demonic beast, a blue-shaped magical entity, or anything else, there had to be an entity nearby.
But before my eyes, there was just a peaceful forest spreading out.
“It must be coming from far away.”
“Even though magic power is sprayed from an invisible place, it still has this much magic pressure?”
The march was halted.
When one student who tried to force his way forward vomited due to pressure, other students pulled him back.
The combat troops had no concept of magical pressure, so they were distressed and unable to estimate the size of the force. I had no idea how big this was.
But those belonging to the Ministry of Magic were different.
Their faces were pale, weighed down by the overwhelming force they were experiencing for the first time in their lives.
“Sir, this is my first time experiencing something like this in my life.”
“Wow, that’s ridiculous. How is this possible? Woo!”
The dreamy plan of saving a girl in danger was shattered from then on.
Because I couldn’t even face the enemy and had to fall face down on the floor.
The eyes of those who were full of fighting spirit when they left the camp now began to show regret. As some second graders had warned, they learned firsthand that this was something they could not handle.
Then, Victor’s eyes met mine. Of the twenty or so people, Victor and I were the only ones standing still.
Victor nodded his head faintly, as if giving me a signal.
“Are you okay?”
I nodded.
For me, this level of horse pressure did not mean much. Because it was an extremely low pressure compared to when holding a magic sword.
Soon after, a group of fifteen men on horseback came rushing from the rear.
It was Gale and the others who confronted me a while ago. The dance club member who guided them said.
“Yes, it was here.”
Gale, who was in the lead, got off his horse, clenched his fists as if he sensed the pressure, and repeated his dodge. After realizing that there was nothing wrong, he walked up and naturally stood on the same level as Victor.
Are they joining so obediently? It seemed like he had other intentions than saving Cecil.
The students who had collapsed under the pressure looked up with blank faces at the three of us, Victor, and Gail, who were standing on our own two legs.
They look like they don’t understand how they can survive.
Victor spoke with a tired look on his face, twitching the corners of his mouth.
“The person to go was decided separately.”
And so, these three went at the same time to the place where the magic power was unfolding, without any thought of who went first.
If I had continued like this and met the magic sword hunter, I would have come out with a pretty interesting picture, but unfortunately, I had to fall behind for a while.
Because.
“Damian, Damian…!”
Luna, who I thought had left with the theater club, suddenly chased after me and grabbed me with a delicate voice.