Chapter 26
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Dwarves in the Tunnel
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Hungry Slayer 26
Illein stood in a demure posture, gazing steadily at Tebier.
He wandered around the office, meticulously wiping down the leaves sprouting from the branches.
Ever since he'd summoned her to report on the current situation, this was how things had been.
*If he's going to do this, he might as well check it himself...*
Even though he could grasp everything himself through the Tienun embedded in the thick branch inside the office, he'd deliberately called Illein to hear the report from her own mouth.
"Ah, sorry, Chief Supervisor. I've kept you waiting."
"It's fine."
Only then did Tebier sink deep into his chair and continue with his questions.
"Foldtown feels awfully quiet these days, doesn't it?"
"Ever since the Lucas Hunting Party left, the secret butcher shop has returned to its previous state. The residents don't seem to have realized it was monster meat. Thanks to that, the elves and elders have stopped getting agitated."
"Ah, the Lucas Hunting Party. How are they doing?"
He asked casually, as if he'd just remembered.
"They completed their first commission in Horhe Village. They hunted a Krekator."
"Oho, just three of them took down a mid-to-large monster? My eye for talent was spot on, after all."
"...It was two of them."
"Two? They took down two Krekators?"
"Yes. And Dane did almost all of it by himself."
Tebier clapped his hands in admiration. He looked delighted, like a child.
"I can't believe it. It's such a shame I didn't get to see that spectacle myself. So, what's their next destination?"
"They've taken a commission from Leighton Village."
"The gateway city in the northwest?"
"Yes."
Tebier tilted his head and tapped the armrest of his chair with his fingers.
"Why so far away all of a sudden... Any particular reason?"
"I haven't been able to confirm that far."
Leighton Village was an isolated place, standing alone.
If there was a reason they'd chosen it specifically...
"They must be heading to Harac Bar..."
Tebier muttered to himself, his expression inscrutable.
* * *
The massive rock walls towering high on either side of the road gradually took on a strange shape as time passed.
The angles that had stretched straight upward began converging toward the center, eventually forming a shape that completely blocked out the sky like a ceiling.
It was a tunnel. It felt just like entering a cave.
There was no sunlight, yet it wasn't dark. The stone walls seemed infused with phosphorescent minerals, casting a soft glow over the surroundings.
Fortunately, the cold wind had stopped blowing. Feeling much warmer, Bankers silently pulled the cart along.
"If you're tired, take a break."
River, who had been cooking, opened the window and said so. Since her presence or absence in the cart made little difference, Bankers insisted she get in.
"I'm fine. Dane's working so hard up ahead; I need to keep at it."
Dane had taken off his cloak and was running and walking far ahead of the cart by himself.
No monsters were in sight.
They needed time to rest too, and Dane had killed so many of them.
But some were hiding. He could sense meat bells.
Dane slipped into crevices between the rock walls and into caves, emerging each time soaked in fresh blood.
Watching him, Bankers found renewed strength.
He was deeply moved by Dane, who was taking the lead to eliminate dangers for his sake.
Of course, it was a misunderstanding on Bankers's part.
*The tongue's already gone limp. Won't even come back when I throw it.*
The tongue from the Bekelzstor, which had been so useful for hunting monsters, was still wrapped around his arm, but unlike before, it hung slack.
Torn from a living creature, it was natural for it to spoil over time. It had lost all its original elasticity, and the surface was already rotting away.
River had expressed deep regret when she saw Dane tying his cleaver to the tongue and using it.
"Dane, I'm serious. A tongue isn't the way to go."
"Huh?"
"I get stripping down, sort of... well, that's hard to understand too, but wrapping a tongue around your arm is just..."
River couldn't bring herself to say it was too grotesque. A party member walking around with a tongue coiled around his arm...
But Dane had gotten good mileage out of it, so he couldn't give it up easily despite River's objections.
That's why he was scouting ahead in advance for a usable replacement tongue.
*If only there were a monster with a more elastic and sturdy tongue than the Bekelzstor.*
He'd pinned his hopes on the frog-like monster he'd just caught, but its tongue was long yet lacked spring, refusing to return.
He'd only stripped off its glowing tongue and the fur-like skin.
*No good ones around...*
While Dane stood regretfully in the middle of the road, the cart approached.
"River, cook this however you want."
He handed the tongue through the window, and River glared at it for a long while. Bankers chuckled and patted Dane's back.
"Hahaha, thanks. You've made driving the cart a breeze for me."
"Huh?"
Bankers's eyes brimmed with deep camaraderie, overly misty.
Dane made a puzzled face at Bankers's behavior as he walked alongside, then suddenly twitched his nose at a familiar stench carried on a faint breeze.
*This smell... Bekelzstor?*
Dane broke into a sprint. Watching his retreating figure, Bankers laughed heartily again.
"Hahaha! That guy's feeling shy, I bet."
With that, he tensed his thighs and picked up speed.
* * *
He raced through the tunnel, tracking the source of the smell. The incoming odor was thicker than when he'd first encountered one.
*This doesn't seem like a normal situation.*
He considered cutting off a finger to plug his nose but gave up on that.
*To think that's my first instinct... tsk.*
Instead, he boldly sliced off a piece of his underwear, balled it up, and stuffed it in his nostrils.
*If it's emitting this much gas, it's not in a normal state—must be in the middle of a fight.*
With that, he rounded a sharply curving section of the tunnel path.
"Grrraaah! Spluuurch!!"
Sure enough, that was the case.
A Bekelzstor reared its tail high, spewing gas and lashing its tongue. Five figures stood before it, and beyond them were at least twice as many.
And they were all short.
*Dwarves!*
Easier to spot than elves. The small, sturdy race. Their armor and weapons matched the image perfectly.
*That dwarf's pretty tall.*
The female dwarf in the center, pointing her sword at the Bekelzstor, looked at least 150 cm. She was about 20 cm taller than the others. Among dwarves, she almost looked human-sized.
Both the dwarves and the Bekelzstor were so focused on each other that they didn't notice Dane.
*But this standoff...*
He'd assumed one group was fighting the Bekelzstor, but that wasn't it. It looked more like the monster and black-masked dwarves were surrounding the central group of five dwarves.
*The masked ones seem shady. They're not controlling the monster to attack, are they?*
The five central dwarves had braided their beards and hair to plug their noses, efficiently holding off both sides.
How long they could last was anyone's guess.
They were hopelessly outnumbered, and the gaps on both sides were narrowing bit by bit.
Dane had no particular desire to help the dwarves in their pinch, but for his personal errand, he had to intervene.
*The tongue's at risk.*
Dane exploded forward. He leaped over the low-lying gas and landed directly atop the Bekelzstor's neck.
"Wha—?!!"
"The hell?!!"
The sudden appearance of a naked human froze both sides of dwarves, who had been waiting for an opening.
"Grrraaah! Spluuurch!!"
The Bekelzstor's tongue, whipping toward the dwarves like a lash, was severed clean, and the screaming monster's head came off in one stroke. Reactions turned to shock.
In the silence, Dane swiftly scooped up the tongue and tested its springiness.
He tied both ends to his wrist and cleaver hilt as usual, then threw and caught it repeatedly.
*Shwick! Thwack!!*
*Nothing beats this one.*
The dwarves watched Dane's satisfied expression, trembling as if beholding a demon.
This wasn't a place for a human to show up. Especially naked.
And slaying a mid-sized monster in one blow was a reality hard to accept.
Feeling their stares, Dane finally waved a hand dismissively.
"Sorry, I was in a hurry. Carry on with what you were doing."
With that, he leisurely sliced off the Bekelzstor's barding. The meat itself was nothing special, but those fat slabs had their uses.
He wrapped the barding in its hide, stowed it away, and settled casually atop a nearby rock.
He had no intention of backtracking the way he'd come. He was headed to Harac Bar anyway, and the cart would catch up if he waited.
In the meantime, spectating the dwarves' fight seemed like a fine way to pass the time. And there was another reason to watch them.
*Judging by the direction, they must've fled from Harac Bar and are being pursued... Wonder which side will help me get Yadus Ore.*
When the moment came, he'd lend a hand to one side. Having decided that, he waved his hand again.
"Don't mind me. Keep going, keep going."
He urged the still-staring onlookers, not forgetting to smile.
An unexpected response came back.
"Did you clear the monsters on the way here? Good thing you weren't too late."
The tall female dwarf removed the hair plugging her nose and spoke.
Dane blinked rapidly, pointing at himself with a finger.
"If you take out these guys too, we'll reward you even more handsomely."
At the woman's words, Dane smirked.
*Sharp one. Well, since I took out the Bekelzstor, it looks like I helped them anyway—no helping it if they see me as an ally.*
Dane briefly considered denying it or playing coy. Then his gaze fell on the woman's wrist as she adjusted her stance toward the masked dwarves.
*That's...*
A small ornament dangled from a cord on her longsword's hilt. It swayed faintly with her breathing—a rabbit's foot.
Just like the one Pohen had given him.
*Could she be the Tuparak that Pohen mentioned?*
Dane stood up. All eyes converged on him, darting uncertainly.
He walked slowly into the group and stopped before the woman.
"Eek!"
"What the—!"
"You! Your eye level is filthy."
"Cover up, cover it up!!"
The dwarves beside her clamored noisily, and Dane casually bent one knee.
Not to cover himself as they wanted, but to get a closer look at the rabbit's foot.
The woman smiled warmly, as if she were a queen or princess addressing a knight.
"Even in a situation like this, you don't forget your manners. If you've rested enough, shall we begin?"
Dane met her gaze and smirked.
*Guess the side to back is this one, after all.*
It might be a common dwarf ornament. But he decided to follow his instincts.
If he had to throw in with one side, better the perceptive one. Plus, she'd offered a reward herself.
"If that's Tuparak's will."
The woman's eyes went wide at Dane's words. The dwarves beside her did the same. Low groans rose from the masked dwarves.
Seeing their reactions gave Dane solid confirmation. He rose fluidly and stepped forward slowly, unleashing the predator's killing intent.
The dwarves shivered involuntarily.
A naked giant with burning eyes drew his butcher's knife and advanced upon them.