The North Welcomes Labor (1)
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The heavy sound of drums echoed at the foot of the mountain. Hundreds of Northerners gathered on the meadow felt their blood slowly begin to boil as they listened to the rhythmic thumping, which felt like the beating of a giant heart.
"Whew. This is nerve-wracking."
"What do you have to be nervous about? Our village is going to win anyway!"
"Now, that’s a bit too much confidence, don't you think?"
Every village registered in the Lord's Castle's census had decided to participate in the 1st Annual Hunting Competition. With ten athletes per village and the crowds of spectators who had followed them, the atmosphere was quite festive.
Aiden, who had finished his final check of the application forms inside the organizer's tent, stepped outside and looked toward the adjacent tent.
"Are the merchants ready?"
"Yes. All three parties have finished their preparations."
Kalisa answered confidently, flanked by the administrators of the Commercial Development Department.
"We’ve agreed to purchase the monster carcasses immediately after the hunt concludes."
"What about the bidding process?"
"Since there are three groups, it will be an auction, of course."
"I hope there’s some real competition."
"There will be. Monster carcasses with minimal damage are always materials that mages go crazy for."
"Let’s make sure the participants don't overreach."
"The knights and soldiers of the Lord's Castle are fully prepared. You don't need to worry too much. They are all seasoned hunters, so they won't be approaching the habitats of anything truly dangerous."
Jamie chimed in as well.
"Since this is an official event, safety comes first, and safety comes second. Let's keep that in mind."
"Yes!"
It was a massive event hosted by the Lord's Castle. While the results of the hunt were important, the most crucial thing was that the competition ended without incident.
'We can't have any accidents. Not on my watch.'
Even though this world lacked mass media or the internet, word-of-mouth was even more terrifying. It was a structure where every time a story passed through someone's lips, it was bound to be distorted, whether intentionally or not.
"By the way, Administrative Officer. Are you really not going to give a congratulatory speech? Everyone will be waiting."
"Forget it. There’s nothing worse than some stranger taking up time at an event like this, blathering on about 'distinguished guests' and the like."
"Who in the world doesn't know who you are, Administrative Officer..."
"Regardless, I’m not doing it. And do you have the luxury to waste time here? Aren't you a representative?"
"Hehe. Then I'll be off."
"Don't get hurt."
Jamie had managed to secure a spot as one of the ten representative athletes for 'Team Lord's Castle.' Although he had returned to the castle immediately after discovering the unnatural occurrences around the mines, the beasts and monsters he had caught prior to that were more than enough to qualify him as a representative—both in quantity and quality.
"I will definitely bring home the victory as a gift for you, Administrative Officer."
"I don't need a gift like that, so cut it out."
"Ayy, you’re clearly happy about it, stop acting like that! Hahahaha!"
Watching Jamie’s back as he left the tent with that boisterous laughter, Aiden couldn't help but sigh.
"Haa... He didn't hear a word of my warning to be careful, did he?"
Kalisa simply shrugged. She didn't offer an answer.
Which village holds the greatest hunters? Two days! In just two days, the best village will be decided! Hunters, prepare yourselves! Ignite your passion!
BOOM!
As a hammer heavier than the bronze plate it struck landed, a thunderous roar erupted. At the same time, participants and spectators alike erupted into shouts.
"Wooooooah!"
"Victory is ours!"
"Don't let them take it!"
"Go prove that we're the best!"
The hunters from each village, standing at the starting line, bolted toward the mountain range as if the roar of the crowd were the starting signal. Some villages moved as if the ten hunters were a single person, while others split into three teams of three or four to move strategically.
Clack, clack.
"We will be departing as well, Administrative Officer."
"I leave it to you."
It seemed the knights and soldiers of the Lord's Castle were also ready to depart. They were not participating in the hunt directly. Their goal was to detect cheating and ensure safety.
"I hope it goes well."
"Don't worry. These are Northerners who have lived their whole lives alongside the hunt."
And so, the first day was passing by.
The ten warriors—no, servants—belonging to Team Lord's Castle were divided into two groups. Since it was the first day, the group with strong tracking skills decided to work together to find high-point targets, while the other group planned to sweep away everything in sight with overwhelming firepower.
The scout at the very front of the tracking team was the stable hand. With his unique sensitivity, he could detect the presence of prey almost instantly; to an outsider, it might have seemed like he was a fraud, as he seemed to hear sounds that were inaudible to the average person.
Sssssss!
"Shh, over there!"
Regardless, the stable hand had once again caught the presence of something slithering on the ground.
"A snake?"
"It's a bit different. There's a metallic sound mixed in."
"Must be a monster."
"Probably..."
"An Iron Viper."
"If it's venomous, should we retreat for now?"
"I will go ahead."
The gardener stepped forward. He held a strange-looking pole, the tip of which was finished with sharp metal.
"It’s a waste, but it's safer to just lop the head off a venomous snake."
The reason there was a gardener in the desolate Lord's Castle, which lacked a proper garden, was precisely to prevent dangerous things from entering the front yard and backyard of the castle. And the Northern gardener was a specialist in catching pests and vermin. Snakes and insects, in particular, were no match for him.
Sssssss!
"It's coming."
Shortly after the stable hand’s quiet warning, a two-meter-long snake with rusty, red-colored skin shot out from the bushes like a slingshot. Unlike a normal snake, its scales were as sharp as blades, scraping against everything it touched as it moved.
"You!"
The gardener’s pole struck out as if he had predicted the movement, aiming to smash the snake's head, but it missed slightly.
Clang!
When the iron pole collided with the snake's body, it vibrated with the sound of blades clashing.
"Damn, this one has already undergone metallization!"
At the gardener's shout, a look of dismay appeared on everyone's faces. An Iron Viper that hadn't fully metallized its entire body was an easy hunt as long as you were careful of the direction of its venom-spitting head, but...
"Should we give up?"
"The battle has already started, do you think that thing will give up?"
The creature, agitated and full of venom, wouldn't abandon the fight.
"Snakes can't move backward! We have to block both sides!"
"Block the sides!"
Clang, clang! Clang!
The hunters leaped like springs, struggling to find the weak point of the venom-spewing creature. That was when it happened.
"The belly! The belly hasn't metallized yet!"
The youngest member, who had tripped and fallen, discovered that the belly of the creature, which had just leaped high into the air, was glowing with a white light.
"There, that's the weak point!"
"Swords! Spears!"
The momentum of the hunters changed in an instant. They were ready to launch an all-out attack now that the target was identified. But the monster's instincts were not so simple.
Sssssss!
The creature, which had been leaping into the air and spraying venom in all directions by coiling and uncoiling its body, seemed to sense the shift in atmosphere and stopped leaping. Instead, it decided to press its belly firmly against the ground and slither incessantly, aiming for the hunters' ankles.
"Watch out!"
"Eek!"
The standoff was dragging on. Just as both the snake and the humans were growing exhausted from the fierce confrontation...
BOOM!
Crack.
Thud.
"Hahahaha! I guess things don't work without me, huh?"
An axe half the size of a human torso flew from afar and sliced the Iron Viper in half. It was Jamie, without a doubt.
"I came over because I thought you were taking too long, and you were getting tied up by a single snake? Do you know what we caught on our side—"
"No, sir! Why would you slice the Viper in two! This precious thing...!"
"Extract the venom fangs first! And the venom sac! Quickly! You have to take them out before they rot, oh my goodness!"
However, instead of thanking Jamie, the members of the tracking team were busy glaring at him and scolding him.
"Wait, I helped you, why—?"
"Sigh, Adjutant sir. Do you think we were struggling because we didn't know how to catch this thing?"
The youngest member of the tracking team approached and provided the answer.
"Venomous monsters like the Iron Viper fetch their full value only if there are no scratches on their bodies. But this one is split in two, sigh... And the same goes for the venom fangs and the venom sac. Once the breath leaves the body, decomposition starts immediately. That’s why you have to subdue it alive, extract the fangs and the sac, and then finish it off."
As the youngest sighed as if he were heartbroken over the split Viper, Jamie could do nothing but scratch his head.
"...I didn't know..."
"Our Adjutant, he’s still a bit inexperienced..."
"Still, he’s definitely strong."
"He’s strong, alright, he’s strong..."
The team members began to tease him, half-jokingly and half-seriously. The tension from the battle had dissipated. Brikal, the chef and leader of 'Team Lord's Castle' who had followed behind, thought that they were finally starting to click.
Meanwhile, at that same time. Deep in the mountain range, in a grassy area without tall trees to block the sunlight, a ball of fur was rolling around on a flat rock that protruded from the center of the clearing, stretching lazily.
There was no sign of it getting up, but its two ears and whiskers were twitching incessantly.
- *Yawn.*
As it yawned wide enough to tear its mouth, sharp fangs reflected the sunlight.
Chirp.
A blue bird flew down next to the ball of fur and sang a song.
- Humans are hunting intruders below the mountain?
Chirp, chirp.
- That snake got caught too? Ugh! I was going to catch that one and use it as a toy!
There was some disappointing news, and...
- Those stinking cow-headed fools! Good for them, good for them! Meow!
There was some happy news as well.
- I wish the humans would run wild a little more.
Purr, purr.
The ball of fur kept its eyes closed and enjoyed the pouring sunlight for a long time even after the blue bird had left. Although sudden news had arrived, it couldn't give up this time of lazing about in the sun.
- This is no time to be doing this!
However, the yellow cat's happy time didn't last very long. It was because a tabby cat had appeared and growled.
- Now is our chance, while the humans are tearing the place apart! We have to settle things with the spiders!
- Now? But it's nap time right now?
- Don't talk nonsense!
- What could be more important than a nap? You’re not acting like a cat.
- Hiss!
- Fine, fine! I'll get up, okay!
Long tails and perked-up ears were increasing one by one in the bushes.