The Horns of Mandragorani
“Buff it first!”
Ho-yeong called for Mandragorani #008, the converted monster, because the horse he had been riding was still trying to pull itself together.
“I know this is embarrassing, but carry me for a bit.”
“M-Mandragorani?”
“No, no. That’s Japanese. Come on, lie down.”
The creature looked like a Korean roe deer, only bigger than a stag. Mounting it was no problem at all.
“…My lord?”
“Good heavens... he’s riding a monster.”
Leaving the stunned stares behind him, Ho-yeong charged forward.
“When you don’t have a horse, you take the deer. Well, if there’s no horse, there’s Mandragorani.”
#8 ran at a respectable speed, but it seemed hopeless to catch up with the ones that had already pulled ahead.
But the supply convoy had been prepared for this.
“Spearmen! To positions!”
The first squad, held in reserve, overturned the wagons after unloading them and used them as barricades, then leveled their spears from behind cover.
“M-Mandragorani!”
The beasts slammed on the brakes, apparently unwilling to become kebab skewers.
“You picked the wrong people to mess with!”
Mau-nal hurled fist-sized rocks from a sling, and somehow every single one struck a target squarely on the head.
The archers stationed behind the spearmen loosed their arrows as well, driving the monsters back.
“Kyaaaaaagh!”
The Mandragorani that couldn’t hold out any longer circled around and charged toward the unarmed people.
There were the pack carriers, Peach, the wounded horses, and...
“My lord is more timid than he looks. Wasn’t I left here for exactly this kind of situation?!”
Rubia was there.
“Hariad, who watches over us from the lowest place, protect the weak!”
The instant she finished her prayer, a barrier spread out.
The charging Mandragorani were all thrown back.
“Kyaaaah!”
The force of the impact cracked the barrier badly. The ones behind them saw that and lunged too, but Rubia had already begun another prayer.
“Lend us your light!”
The beads of light forming inside the barrier
“And shine it forth.”
burst outward like an explosion, punching through the barrier and rushing out.
The shattered fragments of the barrier became arrows of light, raining down on the Mandragorani.
“Kyiaaaaaagh!”
The monsters howled as their fur singed and their eyes went blind with pain. They lost all sense of direction, ran wild, and crashed into one another.
“Good! Form up in front of the barricade! Block their retreat!”
By then, Ho-yeong had arrived. He even helped by pushing the supply carts himself.
“M-Mandragorani?!”
The beasts that lifted their heads all recoiled in terror.
What was this? Every direction was blocked by wagons.
“Welcome. First time seeing a fence? This is basically a deer ranch.”
And those wagons began to close in, spears leveled ahead of them.
“So there are battle wagons after all. This is a spear cart.”
The Mandragorani were trapped, stripped of their mobility.
“All right, let’s go!”
At Ho-yeong’s call, the spearmen advanced with renewed force.
“Kyaaaagh!”
The creatures tried to cry out in a final struggle, but Rubia’s prayers blocked every attempt, and none of it had any effect.
“M-Mandragorani!”
“Mandragorani!”
The ones that found a narrow opening rushed toward it, but...
“Welcome.”
There, Ho-yeong stood waiting with a sword in his hand.
“Conversion at minus five? You want to be my livestock?”
“M-Mandragorani! Don’t talk nonsense like you’re stealing the kobolds’ dog food!”
“Too bad. Take care.”
He cut down the ones with no hope of conversion without hesitation.
“Conversion at twelve? This one’s got a future. You were dragged here against your will, weren’t you? If you listen well, I’ll go easy on you.”
“Mandragorani! Mandragorani!”
“If you spare me, I’ll do my best!”
“The Tamer Territory welcomes you.”
For the ones with the will to be converted, the Byeonbangbaek grabbed them by the neck and hurled them aside without mercy.
This feels exactly like gacha pulls when I’m rolling for equipment. Honestly, I could kill them all, but that’d be a waste. I’ll work them to the bone instead!
He figured that if they were going to die, they should at least die from exhaustion.
“Don’t kill the monsters we’ve kept alive! We’re going to make them our own.”
By the time the trapped Mandragorani had been nearly wiped out, Lilian arrived with the second and third squads.
“My lord, are you all right?”
She had come running with a heavy longspear in hand, yet her breathing hadn’t even quickened.
“Yes, I’m fine.”
“I was asking whether your head is fine.”
But even as she spoke, her eyes were shaking with shock.
“Has the aftereffect of resurrection driven you mad? To think you would try to turn dozens of monsters into allies. Short of boiling your brain, how could you possibly say such a thing?”
“That’s a bit harsh.”
“You’re the one who told me to speak frankly at any time.”
“I didn’t say to hit me like machine-gun fire with a barrage of bullets.”
Lilian’s rough tone was hardly unreasonable. For a thousand years since the kingdom’s founding, the Kain Kingdom had known only one relationship with monsters: kill or be killed.
“What exactly do you intend to do after capturing Mandragorani?”
“Now that you mention it, they were fighting among themselves just a moment ago.”
“Even so, taming monsters is still a little...”
The soldiers reacted the same way, all of them skeptical.
The vassals and soldiers are greatly agitated. If you fail to convince them, Conversion will decrease.
You didn’t need to tell me that! I know that already. Damn it.
Ho-yeong scratched the back of his head hard. There was so much Mandragorani fur stuck to his hand that he had to brush it off again.
Huh...? The fur’s pretty soft. The deer fur from the army was stiff as a broom. This might actually be useful.
He was unexpectedly impressed by the texture.
Anyway, this might be the best time to persuade them. These low-level monster stragglers are easy to accept. If I suddenly convert a stronger monster like an ogre later, that might confuse them even more.
He decided it was better than expected and called the people over.
“I know this lord’s words must sound ridiculous. Still, I ask that you listen carefully.”
The Byeonbangbaek chose to confront them head-on.
“As you all know, I am a man who has died once and returned. In the aftermath, I awakened a certain ability. Monster conversion. It turns monsters to the side of humanity.”
At his unexpected words, murmurs began to rise, but...
“#8! #9! Come forward!”
Ho-yeong quickly focused everyone’s attention. The Mandragorani came forward in stiff, awkward steps.
What’s wrong with them? Why are they like this?
To the flustered Ho-yeong, the status window explained:
“Come now, good boys. From here on, do exactly what this big brother tells you. Nothing bad will happen. If you do well, I’ll give you plenty of delicious hay.”
“Mandragorani! Mandragorani!”
“Yes, I understand!”
“I don’t like wet grass. I like hay.”
After he stroked their necks and whispered to them, the creatures calmed down.
“#8, lie down and stick out your tongue! #9, stand on one leg with your left foreleg and hind leg lifted for five seconds!”
The converted Mandragorani obeyed Ho-yeong’s commands at once.
“What? The monsters are listening to him?”
“So the ability the lord mentioned is real?”
Words were slower than actions. Everyone stood there with their mouths hanging open, watching the Mandragorani’s little tricks.
“Good work. Go rest over there for now.”
#8 and #9 trotted off and crouched beside the bushes.
“Good grief... They aren’t even running away.”
“I never thought I’d live to see something like this...”
For the moment, everyone seemed to accept the effect of Conversion.
But Lilian and the other noncommissioned officers above the squad leader rank still looked unconvinced.
“You all saw it a moment ago. Thanks to these Mandragorani helping us, we were able to conduct the battle far more smoothly. And these Mandragorani are useful in many ways. They can carry a great deal of cargo, and they can even help weaken the monsters we’ll face in the territory from now on. And these horns!”
Ho-yeong broke a horn off a dead Mandragorani and held it up. It looked like a tree branch.
“Do any of you know the uses of this horn?!”
It was a horn he had received as a reward for defeating Mandragorani in the game. It was used as a main ingredient in stamina potions. Knowing that, Ho-yeong decided to demonstrate.
“If you consume this horn and its leaves, it has a powerful effect on restoring energy!”
The soldiers looked at him with doubtful eyes. That was understandable. Mandragorani were naturally inclined to avoid humans, so this was the first time most of them had fought one directly. Naturally, they would know nothing about its horn.
“Peach, bring me some hot water.”
“Yes, my lord!”
Like the seasoned maid she was, Peach brought out a teapot and a cup.
While the horn leaves steeped, Ho-yeong scanned the soldiers’ stats.
Anyone low on energy? Oh, there is. Sleep-deprived and lacking vitality. Perfect.
He found the ideal subject for the demonstration.
“Mid-tier Soldier Yak, step forward.”
“M-M-M-Me, sir?”
A timid-looking soldier came out hesitantly. He seemed to be in poor shape.
“Lately, you’ve been waking often in the night, sweating in your sleep, haven’t you? And your bowels haven’t been moving properly either.”
“Huh? How did you know...”
Instead of saying, How do I know? The status window told me, idiot, Ho-yeong patted his shoulder.
“Looking after the territory’s people is the lord’s duty. In any case, why don’t you try this tea?”
“…Pardon?”
“Drink it, if only to see. If anything goes wrong, I’ll take responsibility.”
Yak, tearful-faced and unable to refuse, gulped it down while thinking that if this went badly, he would file a complaint of abuse with the king.
“Eh... huh?”
Soon, his complexion improved and fresh energy surged through him.