None of our entire expedition team took long to gather. That was thanks to having already called everyone together earlier, just in case.
Well, that didn’t an anyone was ntally prepared.
“If you an... equipnt, you’re talking about weapons?”
“Yes.”
“You don’t an... you plan to fight them...?”
“Why, is there a problem with an explorer wanting to kill monsters?”
I asked those who weren’t ready yet, and that was enough.
“...No, sir.”
“What are you all doing? Not obeying the baron’s orders!”
Reckless.
Nothing had been properly confird yet, and if we waited longer, maybe we’d return safely.
So let’s wait a bit more.
Though everyone was likely thinking that inside, no one spoke it aloud.
They only whispered among themselves while grabbing their weapons.
“Really... is this okay?”
“Or what are you going to do? Say you don’t want to go.”
“...That won’t happen.”
“How could you handle saying that now?”
“Hmph, better to fight those monsters anyway.”
No wonder there weren’t any backtalkers, it was strangely quiet.
“Bjorn... calm down. Isn’t everyone scared...?”
Only after hearing Misha, who had quietly co close beside , did I realize what kind of expression I was making.
“...!”
Auyen, glancing around, locked eyes with , then startled and quickly looked away.
Ainard was similar.
“Are you sure you’re wrong? Those guys... even if they don’t talk well, they’re good... Ah, I didn’t say anything! I swear I didn’t!”
He mumbled sothing but stopped when I stared, shaking his head to make excuses.
I stepped forward and stood before him.
“Ainard.”
“Y-Yeah! S-Speak!”
“Have ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) you grown attached to those monsters you’ve been hanging out with?”
“N-No! This is a problem with my head! That... that essence! Because of that essence—!”
Unlike usual, I couldn’t listen calmly until the end.
Cutting him off, I spoke firmly.
Honestly, I could understand it was due to his fighting spirit, but still...
“This is a situation where comrades could be in danger. Pull yourself together before I lose faith in you.”
“...Understood.”
Okay, his ntal reset was done.
The other explorers also seed ready.
So no long talk was necessary.
“Let’s go.”
As I stepped out into the street first, dozens of explorers followed at once.
I almost ran as I moved forward.
Even my dull senses detected a presence.
“Mister.”
“Is that him? The one who used to watch our house from afar every day.”
“Yes. Shall we catch him?”
I hesitated a mont before answering.
“No, leave him be. He’ll guide us. From now on, where we need to go.”
“Ah...”
“Speed up!”
With Elwen’s help, we pursued the watcher sowhere.
[Explorers... explorers!]
[Aquitity...! G-Go inside! Hurry ho!]
Monsters living ordinary lives in the village noticed us moving ard in a group and were startled, hiding quickly.
How much ti passed, I wondered.
‘Not the direction of the chief’s house...’
Where exactly was this guy heading?
That question was soon answered.
[Today I found a strange place. About 15 minutes from the chief’s house, a building looking like a normal house. But there were guards everywhere.]
The suspicious house Alia ntioned before.
“Stop.”
Reaching the destination, I halted.
[...Explorer! Lower your weapons!]
How many had gathered already?
Looking at the monsters swarming like cockroaches, I muttered shortly.
[No.]
I wasn’t here to negotiate.
I was looking for soone.
If you have nothing to hide, get out of the way.
Such words weren’t needed.
There could be no ti wasted on talking — sothing could happen to Alia.
So then...
[Step aside. If you block , I’ll kill you.]
That was the minimum courtesy I could offer at this point.
However, Nyuachichi, the village warrior and right hand to the chief, and the father of Marupichichi, ignored my final warning.
[The chief ordered no one to be let in. Stand down.]
I wasn’t particularly sorry.
Also, I didn’t repeat the sa warning or try to persuade him again. I gave the warning, he ignored it.
So there was only one thing I could do.
“Oh, is that so?”
“Yes. Then calm down first—.”
“Then die.”
As warned, I swung the hamr with murderous intent.
「Character has cast [Giant Form].」
My body swelled as vitality surged.
I gathered it all and smashed the hamr down with full force.
「Character has cast [Swing].」
Nyuachichi, an archer class, stepped back quickly and drew his bowstring.
He was fast for a bow user.
「Character has cast [Transcendence].」
「Character has cast [Eye of the Storm].」
As I swung the hamr and cast a grab at the sa ti, a gust blew and pulled Nyuachichi’s body closer.
And then...
Crack!
The hamr struck the crown of his head with perfect timing.
This wasn’t a coincidence or luck.
Fighting daily, matching this timing wasn’t difficult.
Especially with the body of a skilled warrior.
[...]
Nyuachichi’s head crushed like a dented tin can in an instant.
He looked at with dazed eyes like he was dreaming.
Blood stread down his forehead.
But being the chief’s trusted right hand, he didn’t die instantly.
So...
‘One more ti.’
I pulled back the hamr, raised it high.
Whoooosh!
Again, I struck down with all my might.
Well, this blow would leave Marupichichi an orphan, but so what?
This wasn’t new.
Hans A also had children...
‘That bright kid will live well.’
Or soon be with his father—
‘...Huh?’
Just when Marupichichi’s single-parent household was only a few centiters away, sothing interfered with the hamr’s trajectory.
‘A sword.’
From my dexterity stat, I could tell it was a weapon.
And it shone pure white.
Kraaaang!
The mont the white sword t the hamr, a powerful recoil ran along the hamr’s shaft to my hand.
Flash.
Blinded by the burst of light, I forced my eyes open and stared ahead.
Then I twisted my lips coldly.
‘When you said you’re too busy to et, was that before?’
The subordinate rushes out as if his guy’s about to die.
“......”
“......”
A tense standoff lasted a while.
[...]
The monster warriors who had endured the rainy season together all held weapons, staring at us.
Actually, it was no different for us.
“......”
Magic, holy spells, psychic powers.
The explorers following prepared to fight at any mont, watching the situation.
And in that mont.
“Chief.”
I was the first to speak.
My patience was already at its limit.
“Give my comrade.”
Cutting everything short, I demanded.
The chief didn’t ask what I ant or treat like a freak.
That was unexpected.
“So it was because of her that you ca.”
The chief admitted quite plainly.
And with that.
My heated head cooled down, and my already tense muscles tensed further.
There was room to interpret his reaction.
That despite our use of force, they were fully prepared to block us easily.
Ah, but I had no intention to back down.
“...Is she dead?”
After a mont of glaring, he barely uttered the question.
The chief lifted his index and middle fingers twice in a gesture used only by monsters calling themselves human in this tribe.
And surely that gesture ant...
“Don’t worry. She’s alive.”
Yes, it was a negative response.
The suffocating tension eased a bit, and relief blood.
Though the chief might be mocking , just hearing that allowed to breathe.
“Give her.”
Once again, I spoke with a stronger tone.
The chief glanced at and replied.
“If not, what will you do then?”
“I’ll co find her myself. Breaking through anything that blocks .”
“Surprisingly... you seem sincere.”
It goes against my principles to bluff risking a comrade’s life.
“I am stronger than you.”
I nodded.
“Could be.”
“Aren’t you afraid?”
Well.
“I’ve never not done what needed doing just because I was scared.”
“Hmm, I see. Truly aggressive. Are you a lover?”
“......”
I didn’t answer such pointless talk.
“If not, you must cherish your comrades very much.”
The chief muttered ambiguously, then ordered his n.
[Nyuachichi... Ah, now’s not the ti. Bring any female explorer inside.]
Is she really alive?
“Wait a mont. We’ll discuss this afterward.”
While waiting with anxiety and hope, the monster warriors brought Alia.
She was lying unconscious on a stretcher...
“What happened?”
“We only knocked her out briefly, did no harm.”
No external wounds were visible.
But appearances can be deceiving.
“Take her inside. Judging by your state, no discussion will be possible now.”
After receiving Alia, I ordered priests and mages to check her condition thoroughly.
And...
“As the chief said... it really looks like she’s only unconscious.”
Hearing the confirmation from an ally, I exhaled the breath I’d been holding.
“Huh...”
Alia was safe.
That alone felt like crossing a major hurdle, but more challenges remained.
Because nothing was resolved yet.
“Now, are you ready to talk?”
“Why did you kidnap Emily?”
“Kidnap? That’s absurd. Actually, we should be the ones questioning. That woman secretly broke in here.”
So that’s how it went down.
“But if that’s true, you should have called imdiately.”
“Right. But I wanted to check first if she ca out of personal curiosity...”
The chief looked at then.
With those fishy eyes that always annoyed .
“Or if it was under your orders.”
Before I could answer, he continued.
“Ah, she acted alone. She didn’t answer anything else no matter how much we asked. Don’t misunderstand—we only scared her a little, didn’t cause her any pain.”
“I appreciate that—.”
“But you must take responsibility for this.”
“...?”
“A leader’s job. Whether it was your order or not. Your comrade ignored our rules and disrupted the village. Worse, without checking, she ca in blindly and tried to kill our warriors.”
I had no words for that.
Alia’s survival.
And the fact they brought her in properly as a prisoner.
That proved my actions were excessive.
“So, how will you take responsibility?”
The chief’s final ultimatum ca like a cold blow.
His tone was void of emotion, which made the pressure even greater.
Because I had no clue what he truly thought.
‘What’s needed now... isn’t an apology.’
I judged quickly and spoke.
First, I wouldn’t avoid responsibility as leader.
“Emily Rains did enter there under my orders.”
“Oh?”
“But there was a reason.”
“I’m curious.”
I began to speak.
Originally, I didn’t plan to open up so much, but sotis directness is the answer.
“Recently, I ‘accidentally’ found a dagger marked with the Silver Claw Clan’s emblem.”
“And?”
“I wondered why their weapon was inside this village, which they supposedly abandoned. So I started investigating behind the scenes.”
“I see, so that’s how it happened...”
“Since it’s co to this, tell . What happened to that dagger? And what exactly is inside that house you were hiding?”
The chief hesitated as if thinking.
After a mont,
“First, about the dagger. I can’t be sure since I didn’t see it myself, but before they left, they traded with the villagers. It’s highly likely it got mixed in then.”
Yeah, that answer was expected.
Anyway, I couldn’t tell truth from lie.
The chief spoke again as I silently watched.
“And about that house you ntioned... It’s a bit troubling, but better you see it yourself.”
“Fine. Show .”
The warriors guarding the fence stepped aside as the chief motioned, clearing a path.
I followed the chief inside.
“Down here.”
Inside the disguised normal house was a staircase leading underground, and descending it, I finally saw with my own eyes what these monsters had been hiding.
“...Damn it.”
The stench of rot had been strong even from the stairs above, so I wasn’t surprised.
“Well, this is what you were curious about—”
The basent was filled with rotting corpses.
“Our village’s secret.”
Though the bodies were so mutilated it was hard to recognize their forms, it wasn’t too difficult to identify what they were.
“But now you know, don’t you?”
...Human corpses.
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