Chapter 41
Creak!
The coachman reigned in the horses, bringing them to a halt as he applied the brake to the wagon.
'Damn it. Monsters already...!'
The merchants riding inside the wagon had already bolted the doors and windows shut the moment they heard the word "monster."
However, the coachman couldn't leave his seat as he had to control the horses and the wagon.
'Just a quick glance and the numbers are...'
To make matters worse, a pack of ferocious and agile snow leopards was swarming in from both sides.
Of course, having worked as a coachman, he was somewhat accustomed to situations where monsters appeared, so he knew the escort mercenaries would quickly come out and protect his life.
'But if the horses get hurt by mistake, that would also be a big problem.'
If the horses, terrified by the approaching snow leopards, started to rampage and ended up becoming targets, getting killed or injured, it could disrupt the wagon's travel on this remote snowy path.
'And how much will those merchants, who are sensitive to schedules, complain then?'
Just thinking about it was dreadful.
'The clan's disciples have joined, but it's hard to have high expectations.'
From what he could roughly see, they were just green kids who didn't seem to have much practical experience.
Thinking he had to somehow make the horses rampage less, the coachman gripped the reins tightly.
And at that moment.
The coachman felt the surrounding air ripple.
'......?'
A bizarre sensation, as if even the sound of the snowy mountain wind constantly brushing against his cheeks and earlobes had momentarily stopped.
And through that gap, he faintly heard a chant.
"Fire Arrow."
Along with that short and concise incantation.
"Kekegen!"
"Kegen!"
"Kkeek!"
The approaching snow leopards collapsed one after another from the front, letting out final, short screams.
Thump, thump.
It didn't even take ten seconds for the entire pack of over a dozen snow leopards to fall, fiery arrows lodged in their maws.
"What..."
The coachman, momentarily speechless, craned his neck to the side of the driver's seat, looking in the direction from which the arrows had flown.
The guard compartment of the escort wagon.
Standing on top of it was the Siers clan disciple who had joined as an additional escort.
Among them, the boy with snow-white skin, silver hair, and deep, vivid crimson eyes was slowly lowering his two hands, which had been raised, with a blank expression.
'That child is...'
Suddenly, the coachman recalled how the mercenaries had treated the boy with excessive politeness during the earlier break.
-Master Kain, the thorough search is complete. No anomalies found.
-If you wish to rest longer, we will inform you.
'Those swaggering guys were bowing their heads awkwardly.'
Only now did the coachman think he understood the reason.
He blankly stared up at Kain, then realized after a moment that their eyes had met.
"......!"
A gaze that revealed no thoughts, as if it could see right through his pupils.
The boy's eyes, which showed no emotion even after annihilating a pack of snow leopards in such a short time, seemed, impossibly, like those of a battle-hardened warrior who had experienced a hundred battles.
Gulp.
The moment he instinctively tried to look away, Kain's figure disappeared.
And soon, he appeared right in front of the coachman.
"Ugh!"
Kain, who had landed lightly, stared intently at the startled coachman with a cold face.
'Wh-what is it? Is there something else he doesn't like? He definitely doesn't look happy...?'
And to the coachman, who was afraid that he too would learn the detailed reason why the mercenaries had suddenly become so polite, Kain said,
"The snow leopards have all been dealt with, so please calm the horses and prepare to depart while the bodies are collected and loaded."
"Yes? Y-yes!"
***
Kain was in a rather good mood.
'Not a single shot deviated from the assumed margin of error.'
No, all the Fire Arrows had struck even more precisely than he had anticipated.
Although he had shot over a dozen simultaneously, not a single one had gone out of control or lost power.
'This means I'm gradually getting more accustomed to Fire magic.'
Of course, it still couldn't compare to the perfection of his Ice magic, but considering the amount of time he had trained, it was a satisfactory result.
"Whoa, whoa. Calm down, calm down! Stay still!"
"Heeheeing!"
"Oh, I'm sorry. I'll calm them down quickly!"
However, even though they hadn't sustained any damage, the coachman, for some reason, kept glancing at Kain with an anxious and uneasy face as he tried to calm the horses.
"Please calm yourself first. If the person calming them is not composed, it will be difficult for the horses to calm down as well."
"Ah, y-you're right."
In the end, Kain had to calm the coachman down himself first.
'This is quite a handful.'
Kain informed the merchants that the situation was over, instead of the struggling coachman.
And immediately, he and the disciples began to process the snow leopard carcasses.
Without hesitation, he took out his dagger and started separating the flesh and hide of the carcasses. Edward and Fohn took a slight step back.
Bolio also spoke with a slightly furrowed brow.
"Ugh... Kain. Do we really have to do this now?"
Kain, without even looking back, skillfully moved his hands as he replied.
"The hide is easier to remove before the blood coagulates. Especially in this cold environment."
"...I get it. But can't we just load them whole onto the wagon and sell them? There's plenty of space in the cargo wagon."
"The better the condition, the higher the monetary value. What are you waiting for? You guys hurry up and help. You should have learned how to process them, right?"
"We did learn, but..."
"I'll pay you a share of the sales price for what you process. Double the usual rate."
"Let's do it right away. You have to use what you learn to get better!"
And so, Kain and the children began to process the carcasses as quickly as possible.
"When you cut open the belly, keep the blade tip up and be careful not to touch the internal organs. It's best to make as straight a line as possible from the lower jaw to the anus."
"Ugh. It's harder than I thought since they're so big."
"I-Is this how you do it, Kain?"
"You're doing well. Fohn, your hand skills are quite delicate."
"R-really? Hehe."
The disciples, who had learned but weren't yet skilled, learned the tricks from Kain as they skinned the hides and separated the tough claws and teeth.
"...But when did you start doing this?"
"Why? Can't I do it?"
"I was just asking. Can't I even ask?"
"I've been doing it since a while ago. These are the last two."
"What? Why are you so fast!"
Anias had also been working quietly and quickly since some point.
And then.
"Um... Master Kain? Would you like our help? We're quite good at processing..."
"I don't need your help. If you want to help without pay, you're welcome to."
"......"
The mercenaries, who had been hoping to earn some drinking money by hunting snow leopards, ultimately had to smack their lips without even swinging their weapons once.
Meanwhile, the merchants, who had been told that the situation was over, opened the windows they had locked and watched the whole scene.
"Hehe... What in the world is going on?"
"The mercenaries are actually fawning over them."
"That's what I'm saying. The atmosphere has been a bit strange since before; it seems something happened."
The merchants were quick-witted.
Seeing the experienced mercenaries treating the young disciples so politely, it was clear that the brief conflict within the clan had ended in one side's victory through some incident.
"First of all, wiping out all those snow leopards in the blink of an eye shows their skills are definitely solid."
"I thought the Clan Head had just assigned young disciples to gain experience, but to think he'd send such capable individuals."
"But was it Young Master Kain? I don't think I've seen him much when visiting the clan estate..."
"He must have been busy with his magic training. Anyway, I was a bit worried about going to the swamp, but now I feel much more secure."
"I closed the windows for no reason, praying for no harm. If I had known this would happen, I would have watched how they caught them. Hahaha!"
The merchants had been wearing unconcealable smiles since the moment they realized they had reliable allies joining them.
"Their magic skills are one thing, but look at how they're processing the carcasses now. They're not amateurs."
"You can tell just by looking at the pile next to them. Just remove a little blood, and they'll be good enough to sell as is."
The merchants also had a keen eye for goods.
At first, they were a little worried that the disciples would be doing the processing themselves, but Kain was extracting the spoils with accuracy and speed rivaling veteran mercenaries.
"And the other disciples are learning the tricks from the side and following along quite well."
"We won't have to worry about them not selling."
If Kain entrusted the spoils to the merchants for consignment sale, the merchants could also earn a small commission, so the condition of the goods was important. Kain had dispelled even those concerns in an instant.
"You crazy bastard! Why is this tearing again!"
"Bolio. You should probably step away. You should practice with small monsters first, step by step."
"Pfft. I knew it would be like this. Give it to me. I'll do it."
"Aaaah! Just give me one more chance!"
Except for one person with a disastrous talent for knife skills.
***
Under Kain's perfect escort, the wagon left the harsh snowy mountain region and traveled through areas within the Siers clan's territory and sphere of influence, selling goods.
'The atmosphere within the territory isn't bad, considering.'
It didn't look particularly wealthy, but it had the appearance of ordinary people living diligently within their means..
"It seems the Finance Minister isn't setting the tax rates too high, so the clan's image is quite good."
Fohn said in a clear voice.
As Kain had advised in advance, Fohn busily moved around with the merchants, selling goods and trying to grasp the situation of the territories and the sentiments of the local people.
'There's information you can't get unless you go directly to the field.'
However, one thing that worried him was that when Fohn made suggestions to the Finance Minister based on the information he gathered, he might become hesitant and not properly present his opinions...
"Still, considering the clan's financial situation, I think it would be better to raise taxes a little more."
...It seemed there was no need to worry.
"Of course, not now, but later, after we've improved the territory's environment a bit, we can raise them then."
"That's a good idea."
Kain nodded with satisfaction.
"Young Master Fohn, could you help us over here for a moment?"
"Yes, yes! I-I'll go!"
Fohn's reputation among the merchants had also become very good.
First of all, he showed remarkable skill with numbers, immediately catching calculation errors that even experienced merchants might have overlooked, effortlessly doing most calculations in his head, and keeping flawless records.
He was also quite good at negotiating when buying and selling goods, which was proven when he successfully sold the snow leopard hides that Bolio had ruined, albeit at a low price.
-Yahoo! The one I cut was sold!
-It wasn't because you did well, it was because Fohn sold it well.
-Anyway, it sold, so that's what matters!
He was already doing his fair share and learning quickly, so the merchants seemed to enjoy teaching Fohn, proactively telling him various things.
Even though he must have been busy learning the merchants' work and carrying out his own tasks while also doing magic training with the other disciples, Fohn seemed very happy.
Meanwhile, the mercenaries, who hadn't earned much additional income so far because of Kain, mainly resided in the village's taverns.
'They were talking about using the money they earned from catching monsters for drinks, but they're going out drinking even though they haven't caught any.'
If they caught something, they drank out of joy from the unexpected money, and if they didn't, they drank out of displeasure.
'At this point, isn't it just that they want to drink?'
If they were going to drink anyway, Kain couldn't understand why they bothered to come up with inefficient reasons.
In any case, the trading proceeded smoothly as they headed south.
"We will be entering the swamp soon. We need to go onto solid ground, so I will slow down a bit!"
Crossing the Hyperen region, the wagon entered the southern swamp.
