NOVEL NEXT Chapter 10 - Episode 010: Headhunter, Saving the Fluffies
Episode 010: Headhunter, Saving the Fluffies
“Where are you going?”
“To the northern forest.”
“I see. Be careful.”
The northern forest is rich in resources and inhabited by monsters, serving as one of the earning spots for adventurers in this town.
However, adventurers were avoiding entering the forest now because the Elder Treant, which should not normally be present, had appeared and caused casualties.
Such an abnormal situation hadn’t occurred in decades and was becoming a significant event even in the peaceful Kingdom of Karm.
The gatekeeper, aware of this, mistook the man in front of him for a skilled adventurer who had taken on that extermination request.
“Oh.”
Unaware of this, Ack replied and left the town.
Snow was with Tina, and although Ack had emphasized it to the innkeeper, he was worried about Tina. Ack decided to return with the Elder Treant’s corpse as soon as possible.
He ran with all his might.
—Boom.
After a deep, resonating low sound, Ack’s figure shrank to the size of a bean in an instant.
“Whoa…”
The gatekeeper was dumbfounded by Ack’s unexpected power. However, once he regained his senses, he was convinced that Ack would definitely defeat the Elder Treant.
“Is that the northern forest?”
After running for five minutes, the northern forest, their destination, came into view.
Normally, it would take several hours for an ordinary adult to walk to the northern forest, and even running would take at least an hour.
However, common sense didn’t apply to Ack.
The northern forest, usually lush and beautiful, was dark and filled with an unsettling atmosphere.
However, Ack didn’t seem to mind and stepped into the forest.
Running toward a strong presence, countless vines tried to pierce Ack.
“Hah!!”
With a swing of his greatsword, Ack swept them all away in one stroke.
Even as several tree roots emerged from the ground, none could harm Ack’s robust physique.
“A Treant nest…?”
Ack had encountered this situation many times before.
When all the trees around became Treants, they would collectively attack anything that entered.
And invariably, at the heart of the nest would be the Elder Treant. The Elder Treant had the ability to transform a certain range of trees into Treants.
That’s why all the trees in this area had become Treants.
Once a tree became a Treant, even defeating the Elder Treant wouldn’t restore it to its original state. There was no solution other than cutting it down.
“Haaahhh!!”
Ignoring the attacking roots and vines, Ack swung his sword with all his might in a rotating motion.
In an instant, all the trees around Ack were cut to pieces and floated in the air.
With the wood from Treants being more valuable than regular wood, Ack stored hundreds of them in his magic bag to avoid waste.
“Is the Elder Treant over there?”
Ack ran towards the direction where he felt a particularly strong presence.
“Kuuu…”
At that moment, Ack’s ears caught the distressed cries of an animal, and simultaneously, his fluff sensor reacted.
With that, Ack increased his speed and ran towards the source of the sound.
After running for a few seconds, he saw the figure of a monster entangled in vines.
The monster had a tail almost as big as its body, and its short legs resembled a deformed, adorable fox-type monster.
Its name was Bigtail.
It was the fluffy monster Ack had been searching for.
“I won’t allow anyone to harm fluffies!! Haaaah!!”
With anger, Ack swung his sword.
Just with that swing, all the vines that had captured Bigtail were torn to shreds, freeing it.
In an instant, Ack moved to where Bigtail was about to fall and caught it.
The sensation of the fluffy tail in Ack’s arms spread throughout him.
Feeling that indescribable sensation, Ack felt like he was ascending to heaven.
“Kukuku…!”
However, seeing Bigtail’s panicked expression, Ack returned to his senses.
“What’s wrong?”
“Kukuu…!”
Bigtail jumped out of Ack’s arms and started running.
Ack followed suit.
And then, in front of him, Ack’s eyes caught the sight of several Bigtails suspended in the air.
“Haaah!!”
Just like before, Ack slashed the vines that were holding the Bigtails, and then,
“Gagagagagaga!!”
An enormous tree, at least ten times bigger than a regular Treant, began to move, emitting sounds akin to cries.
This tree is the Elder Treant.
“Kuu, kuu.”
And still, young Bigtails were captured by the vines extending from the Elder Treant.
“Die.”
To lay hands on the fluffies, especially the young ones.
That struck a nerve with Ack.
Ack swung his sword downward.
“Gagagagagaaahh!!”
Despite being far away from Ack, the Elder Treant was split in half, collapsing to the left and right, motionless.
Ack caught the young Bigtails freed from the slackened vines and returned them to their herd.
“Kuu!!”
“Kukuu!!”
“Kuu!!”
The Bigtails rejoiced in each other’s safety, happily licking each other.
Ack watched the scene and thought it was good that he could protect them.