Chapter 53
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: Northern Expedition - 2
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Right now, we were following Vivian's guidance over the snow-capped mountains toward the territory where the northern tribespeople lived.
But trolls had attacked the northern tribespeople before we even arrived? It wasn't part of the plan, and we hadn't prepared for it at all.
Fighting fiercely in this freezing cold? Even I, an experienced hunter, was struggling. In fact, the Holy Kingdom's knights weren't even performing at half their true potential.
"Sian!"
"Clara, protect Sylvia!"
Sylvia was the only non-combatant among our group.
And she held a crucial position in this expedition. She was the only one who could communicate with the northern tribespeople. The knights seemed to know this too, as they began guarding Sylvia alongside Helen.
"Hero!"
Camilla was the only one who stepped forward to deal with the trolls. I grabbed Vivian and chased after her.
Was the saying that a 3rd-rank knight captain's power was ten times that of a 4th-rank knight really true? Camilla sliced through the trolls with single strokes.
"Want to borrow my Robera?"
"My sword is a famed blade as well."
In contrast, even with Robera, I couldn't cut through the trolls' tough hides in one strike. The presence or absence of aura made all the difference here.
'Damn it, if only I could use aura too.'
Because of my cursed priestly talent, I couldn't wield aura, and it left a bitter grudge in my heart.
Kwachik!
Still, in place of aura, I crushed the trolls' neck bones with raw strength, killing them one by one.
"That's brute force."
"A compliment, right?"
I brushed off Camilla's praise and checked on Vivian's condition. Among those who had charged with me, she was the weakest.
Even though she was a 5th-rank expert on the verge of 4th-rank, she moved more smoothly than the 4th-rank knights. It seemed her mana affinity allowed her to perform at full strength even in this extreme cold.
But even with the advantage of her element, slicing through a troll's tough hide was another matter entirely.
However, contrary to my worries, Vivian hunted the trolls competently with her axe.
'Troll hides must be weaker at the joints.'
I quickly learned from where Vivian targeted on the trolls and applied it in combat. Indeed, the skin at the joints was noticeably thinner than elsewhere.
"The joints! Trolls' joints are their weak points!"
"Got it. Thank you!"
The holy knights responded to my instructions in an instant. Gradually, the nearly thirty trolls were cleaned up.
And we approached the northern tribespeople who had been under attack by the snow mountain trolls.
"Are you alright?"
We could communicate with the northern tribespeople through Sylvia.
"Who are you people? Judging by your clothes, you seem to be from the plunderers' kingdom. Why did you save us?"
"We are the Holy Knights Order of the Holy Kingdom."
The eldest-looking man among the northern tribespeople stepped forward as their representative to question us, and Helen naturally showed them the golden watch proving our Holy Kingdom affiliation.
'Is this why the Holy Kingdom was founded?'
The hegemonic Astyren Empire had waged countless conquest wars throughout history. Naturally, people from other countries harbored resentment toward the empire, and the northern tribespeople were no exception.
But the Holy Kingdom was different. Even though it was a vassal state of Astyren, the tribespeople lowered their guards upon seeing the Holy Kingdom's emblem, the golden watch. This is why image is everything.
"We've heard a lot about you. We are the Snow-White Sole Tribe."
"The tribe that rides snowflower reindeer sleds, racing across the vast snowfields."
Vivian added an explanation about the tribe even though no one had asked.
"So why were you heading over the snow mountains?"
When I asked, the old man stammered in fear at my large frame.
"W-We were trying to flee from the northern lands over the snow mountains."
"Why? You could get eaten by snow mountain trolls again, like before."
"That was just because our snowflower reindeer panicked from the trolls' ambush. It won't happen again."
"Hmm... Think one trick works twice? Why leave the north in the first place? No matter how harsh the cold, it doesn't seem worth risking your lives crossing the snow mountains."
"It's not the cold—it's a threat to our lives forcing us to flee the north."
When the old man's words were hard to understand, Vivian provided more explanation.
"My lord, it seems the Sole Tribe is fleeing the Frost Claw invasion, just like me."
"Hmm... Looks that way. But why 'my lord'?"
"Doesn't 'my lord' have a better ring than 'master'?"
"Sylvia..."
There were occasional translation quirks from Sylvia, but they weren't a big deal, so I let it slide.
"Looks like we'll need to sort out the north first if we want help from the northern tribespeople."
"I think the same."
The entire tribe was abandoning the north, so the region must be in a state of serious war.
"The tribe starting the war is the Frost Claw Tribe, right?"
"Yes, my lord. They use sorcery to infuse frost into their weapons."
"Annoying bastards."
The situation wasn't good.
If they were the strongest tribe in the north, their forces would be immense. It was uncertain if our group of just over ten could stop them.
"Should we guerrilla warfare them?"
"I don't think that's necessary."
Camilla had a different view from me and voiced her opinion as knight captain.
"Our current forces could conquer a castle."
"That strong?"
"Yes. Me at 3rd rank, the hero comparable to 3rd rank, our four 4th-rank knights, two who vaguely wield aura though not full 4th rank, and Helen's miracles. Even in open battle, we'd win decisively."
"Isn't that too optimistic? This is their home turf, and we're impaired by the cold."
"Didn't the hero move just fine earlier?"
"That's because it's me."
"Then we're the ones at a disadvantage, not the hero, right? The hero could take on the entire northern tribespeople alone."
"You're kidding."
According to Vivian, Dave, the top warrior of the Frost Claw Tribe, was a 4th-rank powerhouse who used aura. He might not be on Wolf's level, but with terrain advantage, he could be trickier, and if he brought minions, our odds dropped even more.
But unlike me, Camilla rated our chances highly.
"I'm serious. A 3rd-rank powerhouse usually dominates a region."
"What? Why am I 3rd-rank level?"
"Didn't you beat a near-3rd-rank Black Wolf?"
"He was 4th rank."
"Yes, 4th rank. But top-tier at that, wielding the famed sword Robera. So naturally, you who beat him are 3rd-rank level."
"Haa... I got lucky against him. Can't keep banking on luck."
"With Robera, you can counter aura. It's not for nothing that mithril is called Knight Slayer."
Robera had that function? I hadn't fought any 4th-rank knights since Wolf, so I didn't know.
"Then it might be doable... Still feels a bit burdensome."
"The hero lacks confidence."
"Me?"
I was dumbfounded by Camilla's words. Me, lacking confidence? I'm overflowing with it more than anyone.
"Don't you undervalue yourself? You need a more objective view of your abilities."
"Objectively, I'm a cripple who can't use mana."
"A cripple?! Hero, many priests train decades to perform miracles like you."
Helen urgently objected to my harsh words, emphasizing their importance as a priestess, but it meant nothing to me.
"Anyway, full-frontal assault is absolutely out."
"Sian's right. No need to force a fight where they're advantaged."
"I agree. I trust Camilla's judgment, but for now, we'll follow the oracle and go with Sian's lead."
"Understood. If everyone says so, we'll follow the hero's will."
Camilla's frontal assault idea was shot down; even Clara and Helen opposed it. Clara made sense as my woman, but Helen was unexpected. I thought she wanted a quick resolution.
"Hey, Sian."
"Yes, Sylvia. What's up?"
"The Sole Tribe is asking if they can go now."
"Ah..."
I'd forgotten about the northern tribespeople amid arguing with Camilla.
"They got our help, so they pay up. From now on, they're our personal taxis."
The Sole Tribe used their snowflower reindeer to pull magnificent sleds. If used well, we could traverse the entire north quickly.