Chapter 324
Chapter 324
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 324
Chapter Title: Chapter 8-1. The Country of the Dragonkin, Reillysa.
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Judah flinched at the blue dot on the as he carefully walked the still-dark forest path.
"Ah."
He nearly whipped around in surprise. Instead, he awkwardly halted his movement before continuing forward. Someone was following him. And he didn't need to turn to confirm who it was.
Esther Sellion.
A small smile tugged at his lips. Like a real puppy. He'd thought she was fine sleeping, but she must have woken up from his conversation with Lime.
'What should I do...?'
Now that he was aware of the follower behind him, his nape itched, urging him to look back. He wondered what reaction she'd have if their eyes met. But if he did, she'd probably act all hesitant like yesterday, and even if she stuck close, she'd just watch quietly. So he decided to let her tail him like this.
'She's a hassle anyway.'
He strolled casually to the spot he'd marked on the yesterday. What he'd seen then wasn't a hallucination after all. As the saying goes, "You see more when you know what to look for." The knowledge Tia had taught him at Serenia Castle wasn't useless.
He dug up herbs, plucked leaves, stored them in his <Bag>, and wandered around. In the process, he nearly passed by a mushroom camouflaged in the dirt. Startled, he immediately harvested it.
"Damn, this place is a goldmine?"
He'd thought it was just herbs, but mushrooms too. Judah, who especially loved mushrooms, couldn't help but be thrilled. Whether it was the effect of Luck or not, once he started noticing them, they popped into view every time he scanned the area alongside the herbs. He'd only been foraging for a bit over an hour, but he'd gathered a substantial amount.
Thinking of his <Bag> stuffed full of herbs and mushrooms, Judah couldn't hide his joy. Perhaps because human feet rarely reached here, or maybe this place was special, he even spotted herbs hard to find at Serenia Castle. He pocketed some fragrant herbs too.
'If I catch a deer or boar later... I could store it in the <Bag>, butcher it on a good day, and make sukiyaki?'
Lately, all his meals had been grilled or fried; he rarely boiled anything unless it was soup or stew.
'Wild vegetable hotpot sounds good too... Spicy marinated mushrooms wouldn't be bad either?'
Imagining the food energized him. He worried if he was venturing too deep into the forest alone, but he had the skill to handle any danger. His companions would wake around eight, so he had plenty of time to return.
With the thought of gathering just a bit more, Judah pushed deeper. At some point, he sensed unfamiliar gazes. Too focused on hunting herbs and mushrooms, he'd noticed late. The direction was opposite from Sellion.
He checked the , but since he hadn't recognized the enemies and wasn't using Shadow Deployment, nothing showed. Still, he could roughly gauge their position. Not too many.
Pausing as he dug up an herb root with his hoe, Judah turned toward the sensed gazes. Arrows flew at him immediately. No warning—they sliced silently through the air. Judah easily channeled mana into his hoe to deflect them. But he had to stop midway.
Clang!
A slender hand covered in red scales with black edges shot out, blocking the arrow aimed at him.
'Sellion?'
She snatched the arrow mid-flight. Her scaled hand crushed it with a snap, discarding the pieces. The blue dot on the holographic in his peripheral vision had been far behind, yet now she was right at his back.
As he rose from his crouch, Sellion shot ahead. Was it a shrinking step technique? Each stride covered 2-3 meters.
"...Huh?"
No time for thanks. Her face, flashing by, wore a terrifying expression that sent chills down his spine. He'd seen various looks from her so far.
Sad, anguished, self-loathing with tears. Disgusted when Iris, Arhil, or Lime approached as humans, but smiling happily when he spoke first. Never this furious.
"Uh..."
Too late to call her name; she'd already passed. Standing dumbfounded, Judah watched her leap onto tree branches. This wasn't the time to freeze. He stuffed the herb leaves into his <Bag> and chased after.
"You dare!"
Meanwhile, Sellion's heart raced as she blocked the arrow and charged its shooter. Uncontrollable rage surged. She'd launched the moment the distant glint caught her eye.
Judah could've deflected it easily with his skill. She knew that, yet her body moved first. No anger until she grabbed it—just relief, no reality yet.
But grasping it ignited her fury like a volcano. She snapped the arrow and sprinted here. Leaping onto branches, she spotted elves nocking arrows at her. Not one—several. Bows drawn, aimed her way.
"You dare, at Lord Judah!"
Her golden eyes flashed sharply amid her rage, freezing the nearby elves. Like prey facing a predator, they trembled helplessly. The one directly ahead barely managed to release his grip on the arrow.
Three arrows fired from his tilted bow hurtled at her. Sellion scoffed, batting them aside, vaulted branches, seized the trembling elf's throat by its front, and shoved.
"Grk!"
Back slammed against the trunk, the elf was hoisted up. Too frail to resist, he dropped bow and arrows, clutching her arm.
Pitiful struggle. Her sharp nails dug into soft flesh. Snapping his neck would be effortless. But not so quick a death. She squeezed slowly, letting death's terror sink in. The gripped elf gasped instinctively, thrashing for life.
"Q-Queen...!"
Then, the near-suffocating elf croaked at her. "Queen" loosened her grip like magic. Gulping air, he drooled and exhaled.
"You know me?"
She reined in her oppressive mana. Other elves, crushed by her presence, finally gasped too. Ignoring them, Sellion glared at the one who'd named her, urging.
"Speak quickly. How do you know me?"
"...Long ago, when Reillysa stood where the Blazing Lands are now, I visited the capital briefly and glimpsed you from afar."
"......"
Sellion wavered. Judah had told her she'd been trapped in the <Otherworld> for over a century. Her dragonkin empire had fallen, becoming the Blazing Lands—she'd seen it herself. Yet here was one who remembered.
"My name?"
Clutching her hand, the elf rasped.
"Esther... Sellion."
Even her full name. Sellion hesitated. Spare one who remembers? But they attacked Judah. Deserved death. Her priority was Judah now, not like before. Murder in her eyes, she tensed to squeeze—then Judah arrived below, calling up.
"Sellion!"
Robed over Arhil's dress, no undergarments—her skin showed through. Glancing up, he caught sight; averting eyes failed, drawn back.
"Yes?"
Unfazed, she looked down softly at his call.
"Just come down."
"But... No. Understood."
Sighing softly, Sellion released the elf. Blood trickled from nail gouges on pale neck, handprints stark. She gazed down at the teary, gasping elf clutching his throat.
Should've killed without hesitation.
"Lucky."
Muttering, she leaped from the branch, landing beside Judah. Concerned, she scanned him—no arrow hit, no injury.
"Not startled?"
Judah smiled faintly, nodding.
"I'm fine. Thanks for blocking the arrow."
"No! It was what I should do."
Blushing at praise, avoiding his gaze, she sat there. The elves below, watching, wore twisted expressions. Sensing it, Sellion looked up. Face hardening icily.
"What're you staring at? Come down."
Elves exchanged glances, hesitating. Having witnessed dragonkin power, fleeing wasn't an option. Now her eyes promised shredding without mercy if they delayed.
"Fine, I'll bring you down myself."
Sellion flicked her hand. Air thickened like magic; branches snapped. Elves startled, tried jumping but fell a beat late—crashing butt-first or awkwardly like falling monkeys.
Groaning, they looked up at Judah and Sellion.
"Why gawk? Kneel and beg Lord Judah's forgiveness!"
Everything they did irked Sellion. She menaced, raising scaled hand at the poorly posed elves.
"Wait, calm down."
Judah blocked her advance, approaching the elves himself. He hadn't forgotten their arrows. But first, something to show: the token from the elf queen in the old forest. He pulled it from his <Bag>.
"Ah!"
An elf's eyes widened, sensing familiar aura from the token.