NOVEL NEXT Chapter 25
Bang, bang, bang.
Fergus hit the hammer with all his might.
“Dammit, how could they just pick the best ones…”
Yesterday afternoon.
The man and woman who visited Fergus’s blacksmith shop had such excellent judgment that they bought the best-created swords from Fergus.
They paid the price, yet Fergus inexplicably felt like he had suffered a loss.
A financial loss?
No, he wasn’t happy at all about the sale.
“Well, I guess I have to use this… It’s still the best here, anyway.”
His pride was dented.
Fergus prided himself on his work as a blacksmith to the extent that one might say he should have been born a dwarf, not an elf.
But the woman who came to buy swords looked down on him so dismissively as she bought a sword.
“Alright, among these, this is the best, isn’t it? This one, yes. Let’s go with this.”
“Is this okay, Master?”
“This is enough. There’s nothing better in this village.”
She repeated similar words a whopping three times!
As if implying she wouldn’t have bought it if something better had been available.
Naturally, since Fergus had the ability to create swords that were far better than the ones sold, he was busy hammering away in front of the flames.
“Phew, phew, just you wait… a revealing witch…!”
It didn’t matter that the other party knew Elder Ieluna or something.
All that remained for Fergus was his pride.
If he were an elf who cared about the elder, he wouldn’t have settled and lived in the human world.
Creak.
He heard the sound of the door opening outside.
At first, he thought about hammering away regardless of the guest, but the familiar scent of fruit made Fergus set down his hammer.
“Apple?”
“It’s been a while, Cherry.”
“Call me Fergus.”
Fergus—an elf who was once called Cherry—pointed to his license.
The blonde elf named Apple casually handed Fergus a piece of parchment.
“The elders have given their instructions. You know that all the elders from the forest are gathered, right?”
“Is that so?”
“Yeah. I don’t know the details, but it might be dangerous in the human world. So… please return to the forest.”
“Return to the forest… Pfft. That’s the least fitting thing for me to hear.”
Fergus continued hammering away.
“I’m just fine with the blacksmith. Don’t waste your effort and just go back.”
“Cherry!”
“It’s Fergus. I’m satisfied with my life in the human world, and I’m making a lot of money. Just yesterday, I earned a gold coin!”
“Still…”
“If you’re really worried, why not find someone else?”
“Someone else?”
“Yeah.”
As Fergus changed the subject, Apple seemed intrigued.
“I’ve often seen a little elf nearby Normans. I don’t know which forest it belongs to, but it’s quite reckless, so I have no idea where it might bounce to.”
“…Wait a minute. A little elf?”
Apple’s face changed in an instant.
“Is it an elf with silver hair and purple eyes?”
“That’s right. Why? What’s wrong?”
“For goodness’ sake…”
Apple covered her mouth with her hand.
“The princess…”
“What?”
“She’s the royal princess.”
“…….”
Fergus rubbed his face briefly with his hand.
“I didn’t hear anything like that.”
“She was born after you left.”
“…Why is the royal princess here?”
“I think it’s been said she came nearby for spirit training…”
“Oh, wait, wait a moment.”
Fergus was in shock.
“A few days ago, the Adventurer Guild had a mission to find a missing elf…”
*
I subdued the orc.
It looked completely different from the orcs I knew, and I attempted a rational conversation with it.
“Which tribe do you belong to?”
“Tribe? We have no such thing.”
“…Ugh.”
A rotten smell assaulted my nostrils.
This wasn’t just any rotten smell; it was one that made my entire body feel uncomfortable.
‘Could it be? This guy…?’
Since I couldn’t continue smelling this odor directly, I approached Lucius, who had his weapon aimed at the back of the orc’s neck, and asked from behind.
“Where are your comrades?”
“We don’t sell comrades!”
“You might die.”
“If I have to sell my comrades, I’d rather die…!!”
It seemed that the orcs were definitely different from the ones I knew.
‘First, let’s mark it.’
I discreetly sprinkled my mana on its back.
I marked it with a shape resembling [1++] so that it wouldn’t notice.
Now it was bait.
If I could find out where the other orcs were through this one, I might be able to save the elves, if not the orcs…
“I’d rather die! Gah!”
“Demon Lord! He cut his own throat with a sword!”
“…Indeed. So you won’t sell your comrades.”
That might not work either.
Even though appearances had changed, the orc’s natural characteristic of valuing comrades and risking their life for them remained.
If it’s an orc, then surely it would rather die alone or fight to the last breath.
What stood before me must be a different race masquerading as an orc.
“Then let me ask you. Have you seen any elves recently?”
“Elves…?”
“Yes. Elves. We are searching for a missing elf.”
And on top of that, eliminating the orcs.
I put my finger to my lips signaling Lucius to be quiet, and Lucius silently threatened the orc by aiming his sword at its neck.
“Answer me. Have you seen any elves?”
“I… I have…! I caught one just recently.”
As expected.
When there’s an orc hunt and missing elves, it’s certain that these two incidents are connected.
I thought without a doubt that the missing elf had been captured by the orcs, and that intuition proved correct.
“If you guide us, we’ll spare your life.”
“R-really…?”
“Of course. I swear on a warrior’s honor.”
“…….”
If it truly were an orc, it should understand honor better than anyone.
“I, the Sorceress of Crimson Lotus—”
“Creeeeek!!”
Bang.
Something exploded like gas.
I quickly pushed Lucius aside and turned my body, while the orc went sliding forward and fled.
“Kyaa!!”
“Gah, ugh…!”
Lucius grimaced and retched.
I hurriedly unleashed flames at what had erupted from the orc’s body.
Flame ignited.
The cleansing flames enveloped us.
“Lucius!”
“I-I’m sorry. What is this…?”
“Mushroom spores. Relax. It’s just a little itchy.”
The protection of the Holy Sword assuredly shielded us from external wounds, but it didn’t completely block such biological reactions.
“Can you chase it?”
“Yes, yes!”
By now, the orc had run far away.
True to its kind, it sprinted through the forest with agility and swiftness, while I gripped my staff and infused strength magic into my legs.
“Run!”
“Master, I’ll—”
“Just run, you fool!”
“…Yes!”
Lucius took his sword and moved by my side.
As I ran forward with him, I pointed towards the fleeing orc.
“I don’t know what kind of actions it will take, but I’ve already placed a tracking spell on it. Just pretend to lose track of it a bit while chasing.”
“When did you…?”
“You have to be ready for every situation.”
If one didn’t know how to deal with such a large orc, they should simply follow the habits of the existing orcs.
The orc fleeing from the pursuers.
If it thought it was in a grave situation, it would surely call for its comrades.
While orcs prefer one-on-one combat, they are not ashamed to fight alongside others against a strong enemy.
Thus, the orc would surely retreat towards its companions.
“Not one to know honor, but it values life.”
Just like right now.
“Help! Monster! Help!”
“Gurgh, hehehe….”
In front of us stood at least thirty orcs.
I was sickened to see those guys who seemed not to understand honor at all and, besides their flab, had nothing else.
‘But, perhaps I was too hopeful.’
Wasn’t the very first orc I met just strange?
Wouldn’t the other orcs be the muscular warriors I remembered in my mind?
I chased after the orcs with such hopes, but what lay before my eyes was nothing but flab and fat.
“You really are smashing my hopes to pieces…”
“What?”
“…Oh, well, I had some hope anyway.”
I pulled down my hat and aimed my staff forward.
“Those orcs are cannibals.”
“……!!”
I had sensed it since the first time I caught their smell, but upon seeing the state of the orcs’ lair, I became more certain.
Skulls embedded everywhere.
A mound of bones piled in one place.
They were undoubtedly human remains.
Of course, some might be mixed with that of others, but most appeared to be human.
And….
“What are you guys?”
Before me stood a bulky orc that looked twice the size of the others.
With a belly so exposed it looked like it had five layers, it evoked horror and dread in anyone who laid eyes upon it, making me want to incinerate it right away.
“I am Gess, Chief of the Red Blood Orcs. And who are you?”
“…….”
That thing isn’t an orc!!
But just in case…?
“Rokta?”
“Ha-ha! I can’t believe someone knows Ancient Orcish!”
“Do I know it…?”
“I don’t know! I don’t know anything else, but just that word. Isn’t it this?”
Pat, pat.
The orc named Gess clapped one fist against the palm of his other hand.
“…The world has changed a lot, Lucius. Orcs weren’t like this in my day.”
“Master….”
“Queek. By the way, how dare you threaten my comrades and even disturb the ritual.”
Chief Gess pointed to what looked like a ritual altar, a cage of iron.
“Ah, ahhhh…!!”
Inside was a silver-haired elf trapped in an iron cage, with kindling burning beneath her.
As if someone sought to roast her over an open flame.
“Lucius.”
“Yes…!”
“Free her.”
“…What?”
Lucius turned to me, panicked.
“When I say free her… If she’s seen by someone else, it could be troublesome…”
“Worried she’ll be noticed? You think that’s a concern?”
Whap.
“Stop worrying about that later, you fool!”
I struck Lucius’s thigh with my staff.
“In the face of a life-and-death situation, what are you hesitating for!”
“!!!”
Lucius stepped forward, looking stunned.
And then—
“Wind, oh—!!”