Chapter 31
"A few skilled hunters should be enough. Hebron will provide the search party."
Although Viscount Zylson seemed somewhat relieved, he still looked unconvinced about Hebron’s military capability.
‘I needed a training ground anyway, so this is good. I’ll use this opportunity to hone the slave soldiers’ skills by hunting monsters.’
Access to a noble’s hunting grounds typically required a fee. Even after paying, it was customary to hunt only within the designated zones.
"This is a good chance to raise our mercenary ranking and collect rewards for the monster extermination. Of course, you’ll need to pay separately for the deployment of soldiers."
It was essentially a bold claim—not only to hunt openly on noble land but also to assert ownership of the by-products. On top of that, I was even billing him for the deployment of soldiers. And yet, it all came off as though Hebron was sacrificing for Zylson’s sake.
In every aspect, it was a favorable negotiation for Hebron.
Yet Viscount Zylson looked more concerned about me than the deal.
"Will you be alright?"
This sort of work was supposed to fall on mercenaries. Zylson’s hesitation in making the request was because he worried it might hurt my pride.
"The costs for the monster extermination and the mark research are separate."
I couldn’t care less about pride—just make sure the money’s right.
Hebron was merely a barony. Clinging to status and pride with such little power was a surefire way to starve to death.
Pursuing practicality was the wiser path.
Even with a rough estimate, this job would earn us several thousand gold.
"If that’s the case, then don’t worry."
Zylson removed a ring from his finger and handed it to me. The design was simple, but the gem embedded in it was what mattered.
‘A magic crystal!’
As expected, Viscount Zylson’s wealth set him apart.
At the same time, I could understand Zylson’s position.
He was on the verge of civil war with Slein. If his relationship with rear-guard Hebron went wrong now, it would only benefit the enemy. Worse, if a group of marked monsters emerged, Zylson could be struck from both front and rear and fall in ruin.
"We’ll begin immediately."
"Immediately?"
"Hebron’s forces have already arrived. There’s no point in delaying this."
On the way to Zylson castle, I had already contacted Hebron through the Serpens Trading Company. The slave soldiers had been stationed beyond the rope bridge in advance to prepare for a potential monster invasion.
Though I designated the troops as a search party for appearances, I didn’t bother to explain that to Zylson. Sometimes it was better to let misunderstandings pile up. If the other party might become a future ally, I had to inflate my value, even by spreading calculated rumors.
"You..."
Zylson’s eyes trembled. He was slow to catch on, so I had to emphasize the point to him.
"This is for both Zylson and Hebron."
* * *
The Sardian swordsmanship was specialized for the rugged terrain of the old House Sardia. It focused heavily on lower body training—but that didn’t mean the upper body was neglected.
Rather, it was that the lower body was ruthlessly trained.
Running swiftly through rough terrain was the bare minimum.
“Huff! Huff! Huff! Huff!”
One of the slave soldiers collapsed. Another behind him lifted him up in support.
No one whined or complained. He’d simply pushed past his limit and fallen. The moment he recovered, he’d jump right back into training.
The slave soldiers were split into two groups and swept through the Forest of Caprice. The harsh terrain was perfect for training the Sardia Maneuvering Footwork.
I trained alongside them.
Training to the brink in a monster-infested hunting ground was dangerous, no doubt. That’s why half of the soldiers kept watch, while the other half ran until they were completely out of stamina.
“We’ve spotted a group of Ratrolls over there, Baron. There must be over twenty of them.”
The hunter introduced by Viscount Zylson was excellent at tracking. Through him, I confirmed the tracking skills I had only known in theory and picked up practical techniques only learnable in the field.
“Well done. Leave the rest to us and take a break.”
“Yes, Baron.”
“Group B, follow me.”
Leading half of the slave soldiers, I circled around in the direction the hunter had indicated. Animals and monsters like the Ratrolls usually had excellent senses of smell, so we had to approach with the wind in our favor.
Ratrolls were the most commonly found monsters in the Forest of Caprice. They were difficult to hunt and reproduced quickly, so if not hunted regularly, they’d become a serious problem.
Even mercenary companies didn’t issue separate contracts for Ratrolls. Instead, they paid cash for every Ratroll ear brought in.
I could have summoned Inferno and wiped them out easily, but instead, I gave orders to the slave soldiers.
“Don’t let them get away. Hunt them all.”
The slave soldiers scattered in all directions.
After nearly ten days of training in the Forest of Caprice, they had grown proficient at hunting Ratrolls.
Surprised by the sudden influx of people, the Ratroll pack tried to scatter. But the slave soldiers were faster. With Sardia Maneuvering Footwork, they surged forward, blocked escape routes, and swung their swords.
“One!”
Shhh! Shhh! Shhh!
The slave soldiers had done their best, but the results fell short of perfection—they failed to behead the ratrolls in a single strike.
They were well aware of their own limitations. That’s why they hunted in pairs.
“Two!”
At the signal, the second soldier sprang forward. He finished off the ratroll his partner had failed to kill.
A few managed to escape, but overall, their movements weren’t bad.
Swoooosh!
Flames erupted from the heads of the fleeing creatures. Inferno burned their eyes, throwing the ratrolls into disarray. Disoriented, they scattered blindly and stumbled over themselves.
Several slave soldiers gave chase and quickly finished off the rest.
“Well done. This is good enough.”
Their combat ability had far surpassed what was expected of a barony’s soldiers. Individually, they couldn’t match a knight, but in squads of five, they could even take one down.
‘If I can raise the number of slave soldiers to two hundred, it might be possible to wipe out a Viscount’s knight order.’
Even Viscount Zylson’s order of knights only had thirty members. It had been thirty-four until recently, but they had suffered a defeat at the hands of a marked orc, and their numbers had decreased.
This was precisely why Zylson was so wary of a clash with Viscount Slein. Not only had he lost knights, but even his knight commander. Zylson’s forces were clearly at a disadvantage.
“Fall back.”
We withdrew briefly to rest.
While the slave soldiers recovered their stamina, I searched the area with one of the hunters.
We had been wandering the forest for nine days now, and trying to find a specific target where all kinds of traces were mixed together, but it was not as easy as I thought.
“Look at these marks. Judging by the depth and height of the claw prints, I think we’re looking at a bear—a massive one, maybe four meters tall.”
The hunter’s cautious assumption made me narrow my eyes.
I had reviewed the list of plants and animals, including monsters, known to inhabit this region. Nowhere on that list was a bear of such size.
The last recorded sighting was a family of three-meter-tall brown bears—fifty years ago.
“A bear, here in the Forest of Caprice?”
“No one’s seen it directly, but traces like this have started showing up over the past few years.”
Records aren’t always reliable. More often, people on the ground have the most accurate information.
Zylson had assigned me five hunters. I sent two of them back to Hebron to monitor the hunting ground and led the remaining three to search the Forest of Caprice.
The hunters had brought along a dog named Black. The dog had a keen nose and remarkable courage—good traits for tracking monsters.
Black and the blood wolf pup took turns running ahead, and where they stopped, we found more signs.
“It looks like it moved that way.”
“I thought so too, but something seems off.”
The hunter pointed to claw marks on a birch tree. I ran my hand across the bark and felt the tree’s characteristic warmth.
“What seems off, sir?”
“These marks… doesn’t it look like there’s something other than a bear involved?”
There were dents at the base of a birch tree on the other side. They looked like they’d been made by something hard slamming into the trunk.
“Maybe the bear was chasing prey?”
“This tree is petrified.”
The heat was gone from the base of the birch tree.
“Petrified…?”
“Yeah. It’s been exposed to mana and turned hard as a stone. It’s not common, but birch trees are known to petrify more easily than others. Judging by the marks, it looks like the tree was shattered after it was petrified.”
I knocked on the tree’s trunk.
Tong! Tong!
It sounded like metal. I coated my sword in aura and struck it. It made a bang! sound and sparks flew.
“Y-You’re saying someone broke this with brute force?”
“Not something a bear could do, right? And I don’t think a bear would chase a creature that can do this…? Only if it had a death wish.”
The hunter’s tracking had been accurate—it was just that predator and prey had been reversed.
A creature that could make a huge bear flee? This wasn’t something to take lightly.
“We’ll need reinforcements. Go back to Zylson and bring as many soldiers and knights as you can. I’ll contact Hebron…”
I stopped mid-sentence and crouched low.
The blood wolf pup had tugged at my sleeve.
Squeak, squeak.
I raised a hand, signaling the hunters to stay silent.
The pup understood the gesture perfectly.
We lowered our stances and crept deeper into the forest. A short distance ahead, we began to hear dull, heavy sounds.
Not far from us, a fight between beasts was taking place.
‘The trail was a success.’
After searching the forest like combing for lice, we had found the source.
But until I confirmed what exactly it was, I couldn’t relax.
I took the lead, with the hunters close behind. Soon, tracking became unnecessary—an earth-shaking roar erupted through the forest.
ROOAARRRR!
The bear’s forepaw rose high, towering five meters into the air as it struck toward the tree.
‘A mutant bear…!’
It was hideously big. Even if it wasn’t a true monster, it was every bit as dangerous as one. Such mutants occasionally appeared among wild animals—freaks of nature born with monstrous strength or size. These beings often rose to dominate their kind, becoming the undisputed rulers of their territories.
This bear seemed to have held that title in this forest.
…Until now.
A red glow flickered through the underbrush. Twin eyes burned like will-o’-the-wisp, swaying and leaving a crimson afterimage as they flared.
[TL/N: will-o’-the-wisp refers to a real atmospheric phenomenon, a flickering light often seen over marshes or bogs]
That alone wasn’t enough to identify the creature.
It was a patchy-furry beast. Gray and white fur clung together in tangled mats, smeared with dirt and leaves as if to camouflage its presence.
‘That thing was the monster that shattered the birch tree.’
It stood only about a meter tall, and its body stretched just over two meters in length. For a monster, it wasn’t especially large.
But it moved faster than a goblin assassin and hit harder than a marked orc.
BAAAAAA!
Its cry sent shivers down my spine.
Gulp.
I swallowed hard, not even realizing I had.
It wasn’t unheard of for mutant versions of other species to appear, especially when a mutant bear was already present…
‘A mutant sheep?’
Some mages believed that exposing animal fetuses to mana could trigger mutations. Based on this idea, there were even attempts to raise magical geniuses by feeding mana to human fetuses.
But all such children were born with autism. Though the experiments were banned, mages still considered them significant because those children exhibited extraordinary mana affinity.
Unlike humans, however, mutant animals gained enhanced physical traits. The problem was their survival rate.
From birth, they emitted a scent that attracted predators, which meant most never survived to adulthood.
