Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Chapter 5 - Lilia #2
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The bald man's thoughts went something like this.
There were five of them here, but only three over there.
Excluding the girl, it was effectively five against two.
"Then it's only natural to jump them!"
If they won, they could take the woman they'd caught along with the girl and her companions, multiplying their haul for the day several times over.
"Maybe five times... no, even ten times."
The black-haired girl's looks were truly exceptional.
With a face like that, they could sell her anywhere and make a fortune.
The bald man smugly considered his calculations reasonable, and his companions thought the same.
Thanks to that, the moment Luther's group passed them by, the bald man and his crew executed a perfect ambush reversal without so much as exchanging glances—an impressive display of teamwork.
But Luther's reaction was even faster.
"It's not like this is the first time!"
He was a bit startled by the sleazy turn of events right in front of him, but backstabbing mercenaries was practically a hallmark of the Dragon Hunter series.
*Pop!*
"Argh!"
The bald man toppled backward, struck squarely in the forehead by the stun round.
The sudden turn of events halted the men's charge for a split second, and Max and Karen slipped into the gap.
*Slash!*
Max was fast again this time.
Before anyone could see him swing, his sword flashed, and two men clutched their throats as they collapsed.
"Gurk?"
"Gah!"
The men's hands were instantly drenched in blood.
From their panicked faces, it seemed they didn't even know what hit them.
"Urk!"
Right then, another man went down.
It was Karen.
The moment Max slit two men's throats and drew everyone's eyes, she sliced the waist of the man in front of her, then chained into her next attack seamlessly.
She kicked his legs out from under him and plunged the reverse-gripped sword into his chest.
It was so swift and precise that the man, like those hit by Max, wore a dazed expression as death claimed him.
"Oho."
Luther had seen them fight the Lycas before, but their combat prowess still impressed him anew.
Karen in particular stood out—her delicate, fragile-girl appearance made it all the more jarring compared to Max.
[Master, one remains.]
Just as Integra said.
The man who had been carrying the unconscious woman hadn't joined the fight, and now he blinked in shock.
His four companions were down before he could even act.
"D-Don't come any closer!"
The panicked man stumbled back and drew his sword, but it was pointless.
*Pop!*
"Guh!"
An energy round slammed into his chest, sending him sprawling.
'I've thought it before, but this really feels like cheating.'
Magic existed in this world, but it wasn't commonplace.
Most people couldn't even imagine someone firing projectile weapons barehanded, making them ridiculously easy to exploit.
'Maybe the next upgrade should be the energy gun.'
He wanted to level up the drone and nanosuit too.
He'd get to them eventually, but there was an order to these things.
[Master, this isn't the time for mulling it over.]
[Focus on the situation at hand.]
Nodding at Integra's gentle voice, Luther first tended to the woman the last man had been carrying.
She appeared to be a late teen, and unlike the blonde woman, her looks and clothes screamed ordinary village girl.
[Master, I sense some discriminatory thinking there.]
"No way."
Brushing off Integra's comment naturally, Luther laid the girl next to the blonde woman and turned to Karen and Max.
The two were already binding the first man they'd downed—the bald one.
He'd been stunned for interrogation purposes, after all. Smart call.
"Security in the borderlands is poor, but not to the point of human traffickers roaming in packs like this. And... since they kidnapped a village girl, something might have happened in the village. We should look into it before moving on."
She might have just been an ordinary girl out foraging, but it was wise to consider the possibilities.
Karen nodded at Max's opinion, then turned to Luther.
"Lord Luther, let's interrogate him first, then decide."
"Sure."
At Luther's immediate agreement, Karen signaled Max with her eyes. He promptly backhanded the bald man's cheek.
"Ugh! Ack!"
The blow split his lip, blood streaming, but Max didn't care—he slapped him again, then pressed his scabbard against the man's throat.
"Your companions are all dead."
It was a low, heavy voice unlike Max's usual tone.
Even in his daze, the bald man trembled in fear. He frantically looked left and right, then froze.
His companions lay dead, faces planted in pools of blood.
"Talk. Where are you from? Who's the girl?"
At Max's murderous question, the bald man didn't resist—he spilled everything.
"Th-The village! The pioneer village ahead!"
Terrified, he babbled incoherently, but it boiled down to this:
The atmosphere in the western borderlands had soured lately.
A rising bandit gang was to blame, raiding and burning between undeveloped and pioneer lands.
The village chief had hired some adventurers staying in the village as guards for emergencies—the bald man's crew included.
Hired or not, they had no intention of risking their lives against bandits. They looted the chief's house and fled at the first chance.
The girl was the chief's daughter, snatched along the way for extra pocket money.
[So, what happened to the blonde woman has escalated on a larger scale.]
[The natives of this planet seem to lack any sense of loyalty.]
Harsh words, but unavoidable.
Of the first human groups Luther and Integra encountered after awakening, two out of three had been betrayers.
[Be careful, Master.]
[Don't trust anyone but me. Got it?]
"Yeah."
Luther's casual reply was almost dismissive, but Integra chuckled contentedly, "Fufu."
Separately from Luther and Integra, Max turned to Karen.
"I've heard security in the western borderlands has worsened lately... but this is beyond imagination. We should hurry and get out."
Having come from the north, they knew little of the area.
But encountering criminals one after another left no room to call it secure.
"Lord Luther, let's make haste to the village."
"Sure."
At Luther's agreement, Karen signaled Max again. He nodded, hoisting their new loot effortlessly.
[Max's strength is more impressive than expected.]
Their original haul—Jogres byproducts alone—was substantial, and now they'd added the bald crew's stolen goods from the village. It was a mountain of stuff.
Karen helped carry some, but Max's load was still enormous.
So Luther shouldered both the blonde woman and the girl himself, skipping the transport question.
"Hmm."
A muscled man walking with a woman and girl slung over each shoulder.
It reminded Luther of carrying Karen and Max through the Primitive Beast Forest. He gave a wry smile; the two tilted their heads, puzzled.
"It's nothing."
Shaking it off with a grin, Luther stepped toward the village.
* * *
The pioneer village was as grim as expected.
Some hired guards had betrayed them and kidnapped the chief's daughter, after all.
[A muscled man entering such a village with two women slung over his shoulders like luggage.]
[He's bound to raise alarms.]
As Integra said, the moment they entered, the vigilante group's sharp glares greeted them.
But when Karen stepped forward, explained, and showed the rescued village girl—Roxanna—the mood flipped instantly.
"Oh! Roxanna!"
"Father!"
At the chief's house.
Roxanna, now conscious, sobbed and clung to her father. The burly chief, who looked like he'd been a brawler in his youth, held her tight, exhaling in relief over and over.
"Thank you so much. Saving my daughter was enough, but returning the village's property too..."
[Master, demand proper compensation.]
[He's just paying lip service to brush it off.]
Integra's gentle observation was spot on.
But Luther hung back and watched.
Karen had it covered.
"Watching your reunion warms my heart. And to save you trouble, we've already deducted our reward from the returned items."
Her smiling face was both lovely and reassuring.
The chief reflexively opened the money chest at her words but closed it quickly. Awkwardly smiling, he said,
"I see. Thank you again, regardless."
He'd glimpsed enough to know Karen's cut was reasonable.
Other reasons factored in too: no desire to argue with his daughter's savior, or make enemies of adventurers strong enough to take down the bald crew without casualties.
All very human motivations.
[Karen seems seasoned at this sort of thing.]
Luther agreed.
He also revisited the "Karen as Key Character" theory in a corner of his mind.
No ordinary extra moved like her.
Once the chief and Roxanna thanked them again, a man who'd been silently standing by the chief stepped forward.
"I'm Balian. Silver-rank adventurer, currently representing the adventurers staying in the village."
Tall and broad-shouldered, he looked plenty strong.
Mid-to-late twenties, maybe early thirties. His handsome, manly face carried a veteran's air.
[Still, Master is far more handsome.]
'Yeah.'
Luther was handsome, sure.
As Luther and Integra bantered idly, Balian glanced between Luther and Max, then back to Karen.
At the introduction-seeking look, Karen smiled and extended a hand lightly.
"I'm Karen. The ones behind me are my brothers."
Polite yet drawing a line. Balian smiled wryly and shook her hand.
"Pleasure. So, Karen, staying in the village?"
"Just passing through—we'll leave tomorrow morning."
"Got it. You seem skilled; it'd be great to team up sometime."
"Indeed."
Karen's reply drew another line, but Balian grinned as if he liked it, then turned to the chief.
"I'll head out, then."
"Yeah, thanks for your work."
"Right."
With a final nod to the group, Balian left the chief's house.
[He seems a bit wary, but grateful overall for helping them dodge a mess.]
Luther nodded at Integra.
The bald crew weren't Balian's men, but they were adventurers.
Had Luther's group not rescued Roxanna, Balian—as adventurers' rep—would've been in hot water.
'Looked like he was organizing a search party earlier.'
Recalling the adventurers at the entrance, Luther turned back to the chief.
Karen was discussing lodging.
"The inn's taken by adventurers, so we'll provide an empty house. Follow me."
As the chief led the way out, Karen and Max followed. Luther re-slung the blonde woman from the sofa over his shoulder.
'When's this one gonna wake up?'
Shouldn't she be stirring by now?
Regardless, Luther followed the chief to their overnight lodging with the blonde woman in tow.
For an empty house, it showed signs of recent living—likely the bald crew's guard quarters.
The group unpacked in their rooms, then gathered in the living room.
Karen spoke first.
"As I told that Balian fellow, we leave tomorrow morning... that alright?"
"I'm fine with it."
Karen glanced at Max at Luther's agreement; he nodded matter-of-factly.
"Understood. Then Max and I will go sell the Jogres byproducts. Coming along, Lord Luther?"
Big cities might pay better than a border pioneer village, but their massive load made it impractical.
Better to offload here, even at a loss.
[A chance to learn this world's currency and markets.]
[Let's go.]
[Also a chance to buy Master some clothes.]
"Oh."
True enough.
The nanosuit worked, but it was too conspicuous.
Without comment, the traffickers and even the chief had eyed Luther's outfit oddly.
"I'll come."
Karen tilted her head curiously at Luther's sudden enthusiasm but smiled and stood soon after.
And then—
"Ungh... Uh...."
With a frail groan, the blonde woman opened her eyes.