Hostage (2)
Two gorillas had dared to infiltrate Grylls's home once again.
One had been brought down and subdued by an arrow, but the other had fled in sheer desperation, scrambling through lush underbrush, scaling trunks, and bounding wildly from bough to bough. It moved with an agility wholly unfitting its massive, hulking frame—a testament to its frantic panic.
“Ooh-ooh-ooh! Ooh-ooh!”
Before long, the runaway reached the troop's gathering grounds.
The gorillas were in the middle of an unseasonal feast, gorging themselves on stolen Inedia Pills. But seeing their comrade return with such a frantic, terrified expression brought the festivities to an abrupt halt.
“Ooh-ooh?”
“Ooh-ooh! Ooh-ooh-ooh!”
Sensing something was terribly amiss, the Leader Gorilla stepped forward. The panting scout beat its chest, frantically barking and gesturing to explain everything that had transpired. The leader's expression darkened into a grim scowl as he processed the report, and after a moment of heavy silence, he issued his command.
“Ooh-ooh-ooh. Ooh!”
“Ooh-ooh!”
Scout first and assess the situation. We were the ones who trespassed on their territory. If the master of that land has already killed our kin, then we retaliate.
Roughly conveying his intent, the leader watched the surrounding apes nod in grim agreement.
“Ooh-ooh-hoo.”
“Hoo……”
The Leader Gorilla handed over an Inedia Pill to calm the trembling scout. A brutal clash seemed inevitable.
After thoroughly subduing the intruder, my first instinct wasn't slaughter—it was binding him tight. In my head, I felt like lopping off his head and displaying it on a pike for daring to rob me twice, but that just wasn't my style. More importantly, these apes possessed considerable intelligence, meaning there were far too many variables to weigh.
If they have any sense of camaraderie, they'll definitely come back for him. It's much smarter to keep him breathing until then.
Seeing their comrade's mutilated corpse might drive them into a murderous frenzy. One gorilla was manageable, but if an entire troop ambushed me at once, the fight would turn ugly fast. Even with Fast Tree Sloth and Wonmo by my side, I had no clear read on the troop's overall combat strength. What I needed was intel—and keeping this captured ape as a hostage was my best ticket to getting it.
Let's see. Arms behind his back, legs trussed up together…… He's bound to possess absurd strength, so I'd better tie him up like a mummy.
Gorillas boasted the highest muscular strength of any primate on Earth. And this place was the Forest of the Four Seasons, a death trap where even ordinary-sized animals were terrifying monstrosities. So I bound the unconscious ape from head to toe with heavy rope, tying knot over reinforced knot so he could never break free through brute force alone.
As for the arrows lodged in his flesh? I treated them with the absolute minimum effort required. Since the shafts had pierced cleanly through, I simply snapped off both ends flush against his hide. An Elixir? As if I'd waste a drop of divine medicine on a filthy thief. I bought the cheapest low-grade potion off the auction board, splashed it over the wounds, and wrapped them tightly in coarse bandages. Done.
[Photo: A massive gorilla bound tightly in ropes from neck to foot]
Some fluid nick once said the culprit always returns to the scene of the crime.
Turns out these gorilla bastards weren't satisfied with just my Inedia Pills; they came back to steal my dried fish too. There were two of them, but I sniped one with my crossbow and took him down while the other managed to slip away.
For now, I'm keeping this guy hostage to squeeze some intel out of him.
Seeing comments like that really hammered home just how fiery their historical eras were. Brutal and barbaric on the surface, yet strangely pragmatic given the harsh realities of their worlds.
The Gallery never ran short of unhinged weirdos. I snickered and didn't bother replying, leaving them to argue among themselves. If things crossed the line, the mods would step in anyway; there was no need for me to butt in.
That said, when is this guy going to wake up?
I stared down at the still-unconscious ape. The moment he laid eyes on Fast Tree Sloth, he had foamed at the mouth and fainted clean away. That reaction made me intensely curious about Ppareumbo's backstory, but now wasn't the time to dwell on it. Getting actionable intel came first. For now, waiting was the only move.
Man, how great would it be if I could talk to animals?
The ability to communicate with beasts—a druid, basically. Since this was a fantasy world, I had browsed around looking for such a skill, but came up empty. Occasionally people claimed they could understand animal speech, but most of them turned out to be frauds. If humans couldn't even understand one another across different languages, how could anyone expect to hold a conversation with an animal?
Pushing the useless daydream aside, I inspected the captive more closely. Aside from being substantially larger than me, he looked remarkably ordinary. Nothing overtly magical stood out.
“Sniff. Sniff.”
“Wonmo, leave him alone. He's not food.”
“Kyuu?”
I gently shooed Wonmo away before the little cub decided to take a bite out of our sleeping guest. My job was simply to wait for his friends to arrive. And if they never showed…… well, then I'd have no choice. I'd have to put him down. Disposing of the body wouldn't be hard—either bury it in the dirt or toss it into the river.
Should I dig a hole in advance just in case?
Just as I picked up a shovel to start digging, a low groan broke the silence.
“Ooh-urgh……”
The gorilla was finally beginning to stir. Seeing his eyelids flutter, I slowly lowered the shovel back to the ground.
“Hey. You awake?”
“Ooh-ooh-urgh……?”
Still groggy, the ape stared blankly up at me with dazed eyes. It seemed he hadn't fully recognized my face yet.
“Ooh…… Ooh-ooh? Ooh-ooh?!”
Suddenly, his eyes snapped wide and he began thrashing violently. The look of sheer panic on his features showed he had finally realized his entire body was bound tight. It was a good thing I had used multiple coils of thick rope; otherwise, his raw strength might have snapped the bindings instantly.
“Awoo-ooh……”
Struggling violently against the bindings had aggravated his puncture wounds. Unable to endure the searing agony, the ape quickly slumped back down and fell quiet. Now that he was docile, the time for conversation—or whatever passed for it—had arrived.
“Hey. Look at me.”
“……”
At my call, the gorilla slowly raised his head. His face, distorted in pain just seconds ago, had hardened into a stern, defiant glare. His expression radiated a fierce resolve not to utter a sound no matter what I did to him. He was behaving shockingly like a human soldier under interrogation.
Not that I could understand your words anyway.
Calling him wasn't about extracting verbal answers; I just wanted to gauge his reactions. I had hoped his demeanor would help me decide how to handle him, but he turned out to be stubborn to a fault. In that case, what would happen if he saw a familiar face?
I walked over to Fast Tree Sloth, who was standing motionless and staring out into the woods, and scooped him up in my arms. Ppareumbo didn't offer a shred of resistance as I carried him over. I set him down directly in front of the bound ape's face.
“Do you know thi—?”
“OOK-KEEEEK!!”
The instant the gorilla saw Fast Tree Sloth, he erupted into near-convulsive shrieks. Even through the tight ropes, the sheer terror rippling through his massive frame was palpable. It was pure, unadulterated dread. Stunned by the explosive freak-out, I blinked and turned my gaze toward Ppareumbo.
Fast Tree Sloth watched the thrashing ape for a moment, then slowly raised a clawed hand. Fearing he might slaughter the hostage on the spot, I opened my mouth to stop him—
SMACK!
Ppareumbo delivered a clean, resounding backhand across the gorilla's cheek. The ape shut up instantly. A deeply despondent look washed over his features—or rather, it looked like he had completely lost the will to live.
What the hell did this sloth do to them in the past?
I was well aware of Ppareumbo's lethal prowess: blinding speed undetectable to the naked eye and razor-sharp claws. Whether he had built a terrifying reputation among the local gorillas or this particular ape had a personal vendetta with him, I couldn't say for sure. But since he was pacified, that was all that mattered. I reached into my pouch and produced an Inedia Pill.
It was one of the spare pills I kept as an emergency ration and a potential peace offering. I held it out where the ape could see it clearly.
“Hey. Look at this.”
“……?”
“You know what this is, don't you?”
The moment the pill entered his line of sight, the gorilla's pupils trembled violently. That single reaction was as good as a full confession. He recognized it, which meant his troop was indisputably guilty. There was no need for further investigation. Snorting in amusement, I slowly acted out a message.
“Inedia Pill.”
First, I pointed to the pill.
“Fast Tree Sloth.”
Next, I pointed to Ppareumbo.
“Staple food. Okay?”
Finally, I mimed chewing and swallowing. The gorilla's face went visibly pale. You might wonder how a creature covered in black skin and thick dark fur could turn pale, but that was genuinely how it felt. Let's just roll with it.
Guess all we can do now is wait for his friends to show up.
I asked Ppareumbo to keep watch over the prisoner while I checked my gear. Since I had no idea when the troop might descend on my shelter, I needed every weapon in fighting trim. First up was my trusty crossbow. I pulled back the string and loaded a fresh bolt.
Rustle— rustle—
“Kyuu?”
“……”
Talk of the devil. Or rather, talk of the gorillas. Crossbow raised, I snapped my head toward the sound.
Crash!
Showing zero intention of stealth, a pack of gorillas burst through the dense brush. Not just one or two, but five of them. And at the center stood an exceptionally massive beast. Leading the pack from the front, he was unmistakably the chieftain. More importantly, there was a stark contrast in their equipment.
Allfather was right.
While the leader stood barehanded, the other gorillas gripped crude implements. One even hefted a polished stone axe—a sight that gave me genuine pause. Fashioning a stone axe meant these creatures understood the concept of toolmaking. Their intelligence was far higher than I had anticipated. I couldn't afford to let my guard down for a second.
“Ooh-ooh-ooh! Ooh-urgh……!”
Spotting his brethren, the bound hostage cried out desperately. But as mentioned, he was nursing fresh arrow wounds; the sudden exertion made him wince and grimace in agony. The Leader Gorilla shot a fleeting glance at the captive, then locked his piercing gaze directly onto me. Bracing for an immediate fight, I drew my sword and raised my shield.
“Ooh-ooh! Ooh-ooh!”
“Ooh-arrgh! Ooh-arr!”
Suddenly, the gorillas flanking the leader broke into frantic commotion. It wasn't a war cry—they were recoiling in sheer horror at something behind me.
“……”
It was Fast Tree Sloth. At some point, Ppareumbo had ambled up to stand quietly by my side. The mere sight of him sent tremors of dread through nearly the entire troop. Even the Leader Gorilla, who managed to maintain outward composure, had stiffened completely, his jaw clenched tight.
Ppareumbo's reputation among these apes was clearly monstrous. Thanks to that, negotiations suddenly looked a lot simpler. I wasted no time opening the floor.
Slowly, deliberately, I held up the Inedia Pill for all of them to see. You took a whole sack of these. That was you, wasn't it? That was the unspoken question.
Reading the gesture, the Leader Gorilla gave a solemn nod.
“Ooh.”
With a short, guttural grunt, the leader barked an order to his subordinates. One of the apes scurried back and retrieved an object, handing it over. The leader took it in his massive hand and tossed it toward me.
Flump.
Lacking any weight inside, the object fluttered through the air and dropped harmlessly onto the grass halfway between us. It was a burlap sack—the very sack that had held my Inedia Pills. But it was entirely empty.
They devoured the whole damn stash already.
I had held out a faint hope, but seeing that they had polished off every single pill in such a short span drew a heavy sigh from my chest. How would these bastards respond now? Would they offer an apology, or double down on their shameless greed? Considering Ppareumbo's terrifying reputation, an apology seemed likely, but you never knew with wild beasts. I decided to gauge Fast Tree Sloth's reaction first.
“What do you want to do?”
“……”
At my question, Ppareumbo stared blankly at the empty sack for a quiet moment, then began to slowly plod forward. The gorillas froze, watching his sluggish steps in suffocating tension. None of them dared make a move.
Ppareumbo eventually reached the bound hostage. For a fleeting second, I thought he was going to cut the captive loose in an act of magnanimous pity……
SHING!
It was nothing of the sort. Fast Tree Sloth's action blew past every expectation I had.
With a single blinding flick of his razor claws, he cleaved the bound gorilla's neck clean off. These were the very claws that had sliced through solid iron containers—claws I had meticulously oiled and sharpened myself. Severing the soft flesh and bone of a living creature was child's play.
Thwack!
Paying no mind to the blood fountaining from the severed stump, Ppareumbo drove his claw into the rolling head like a fork spearing a melon. Slowly raising his arm, he casually tossed the impaled head toward the troop.
Thud! Bounce! Roll……
The severed head tumbled across the grass, coming to a dead stop right at the Leader Gorilla's feet. The leader looked down at the gruesome visage of his fallen kin. This had blasted past a mere provocation; it was an absolute, unequivocal declaration of war. And in that chilling moment, the unyielding law of the wild struck home: out here, stealing food was an unforgivable capital offense.
……The absolute madman.
Ppareumbo was a pure alpha male through and through. It felt like he was stirring up an unnecessary bloodbath, yet by the territorial logic of the wild, his retribution was entirely justified.
Amidst the suffocating, ice-cold silence, the Leader Gorilla reached down and scooped up the head. His expression remained stoic, but an undercurrent of volcanic fury vibrated through his massive frame.
Whoosh—
The leader tossed the severed head straight up into the air. I blinked, utterly perplexed by the bizarre gesture. He wasn't hurling it at me—he was tossing it skyward. What in the world was he trying to do? Just in case, I slid my left foot forward and braced my shield.
Fwooooosh—
As the head reached the peak of its arc and plummeted back down, the Leader Gorilla pulled his right fist deep behind his shoulder. The instant the falling skull aligned perfectly with his eye line, his coiled arm snapped forward like a siege ballista.
BOOOOOOOM!!!
An explosive shockwave detonated across the clearing.
WHIIIIIIISH—!!
And like an artillery shell blasted from a cannon, the severed head came screaming straight toward me.