Chapter 70
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: Warning Bell (2)
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#70
Return Stone!
A genuine ancient relic that supported instantaneous teleportation.
It was an item beloved by many for its ability to transport multiple people at once without regard for specs, but aside from its high price, it had one glaring drawback.
"Ueegh! Uwaaack!"
It induced nausea so severe it felt like death!
Even in the game, it was outright treated as a status ailment, so it was no laughing matter.
That was why Bran had asked about prior experience using it.
Kael, clutching a tree as he vomited his guts out, whimpered.
"Hic... Sniff... Please, spare me..."
When he lifted his head, his tear-streaked face came into view.
This was on another level from ordinary motion sickness.
It felt like riding a fishing boat across a stormy sea while blackout drunk.
The characteristic dizziness hadn't faded even ten minutes after arrival.
"Fucking hell... Urp."
"So... this is the flavor of the Return Stone...! Haha! Heh heh heh!"
The others were no different.
Ilrak, who had been cursing up a storm, clamped her mouth shut.
Even with her ironclad physique, there was nothing she could do about the turmoil inside.
Benden had flat-out collapsed, giggling like a madman, making it hard to even approach him.
"Kiiing. Kiiing."
"......"
Arjan quietly stroked Baihir with her eyes closed.
She looked serene on the surface, but she was desperately holding back waves of vomit.
One wrong word, and the star shadows from two days ago would come spewing out.
Ilrak spoke up.
"H-Hey, Kael... Doesn't Sanctuary fix this?"
"Ah...!"
Kael's eyes widened.
His stomach was churning so badly he'd forgotten what he could even do himself.
The moment his trembling hand gripped his staff.
Fwaaaah!
A wave of light spread from Kael, enveloping the group.
"Haaa... Finally, I can breathe."
"...Phew."
Thankfully, it worked.
Sighs of relief echoed from all around.
The motion sickness wasn't fully gone, but they could at least talk now.
"S-Sorry... I should've used it sooner."
"Sorry my ass. Without you, we'd have been retching for ages. Right after we landed, I couldn't even think straight."
"Agreed."
Arjan nodded.
Their lost senses were returning.
The landscape, perceived only in colors before, was gradually sharpening.
Sturdy trees grew at decent intervals.
The sky peeking through the canopy was a deep blue, like paint.
It was just a pleasantly beautiful forest, nothing unusual.
Ilrak tilted her head.
"...By the way, did we actually arrive safely?"
"It's a forest, at least. Not sure if it's the target, Polan Forest."
"Heh heh... Can't say for sure myself. Never been near Retunir."
Benden scratched the back of his head.
No matter how seasoned an explorer, not every spot on the map had been visited.
Now only one person could provide answers.
Kael looked around in bewilderment.
"Uh, where's Bran?"
"...Huh?"
Silence fell.
They frantically scanned the surroundings, but Bran was nowhere.
Ilrak gasped.
"Damn it. Something felt off."
"...Doesn't seem like the type to leave without a word."
Arjan muttered.
They'd been so addled by motion sickness they'd overlooked the absence of their most important member.
They shouted Bran's name at the top of their lungs, but no reply came.
Benden ventured cautiously.
"W-Well, hate to imagine it, but there might've been an accident during the transfer. Maybe he ended up somewhere else entirely..."
"N-No, that can't be. I was holding onto him from behind."
Kael shook his head.
Right up until they hit the forest, he'd been clinging to Bran like a koala.
So it couldn't be a teleport mishap.
Though the emergency remained unchanged.
As the frantic group prepared for a full search.
"Grrr."
Baihir, sniffing the air, rose to its feet.
"What? What'd you find!?"
Its mane bristled like flames.
Staring intently and growling—it had definitely sensed something.
Suddenly, Arjan, looking the same way, narrowed her eyes.
"Smells like blood."
"What?"
"Pretty thick. Amazing we didn't notice till now."
"What do you mean... Gasp."
Ilrak sniffed curiously, and her eyes bulged.
The wind from the west truly carried the stench of blood.
A comrade vanishing abruptly.
An unnaturally potent bloody scent.
Bam!
Ilrak yanked out her axe and charged.
"Damn it, Bran!"
"I'll follow! Go on ahead!"
Once again, the Return Stone's side effects were to blame.
Their sense of smell had dulled, delaying detection.
The forest's density couldn't stop Ilrak's advance.
Kwaaaang! Bam!
Each swing of her double-headed axe severed three or four massive trees.
Baihir carried the other three in pursuit.
Arjan and Benden cupped their hands and shouted.
"Bran! Answer us!"
"If you hear this, say something—anything!"
Only echoes replied emptily.
The blood scent grew thicker.
Unable to bear the anxiety, Kael clutched his chest.
"B-Bran..."
His breathing grew ragged, making it hard to catch his breath.
This was the first time since leaving Black Stone Fortress they'd been separated without warning.
Fortunately, it didn't take long to reach their destination.
Kwaaang!
As Ilrak felled another tree, a wide clearing appeared.
Her face twisted in horror upon stopping.
"Shit. What the hell is all this?"
"What."
The others reacted similarly.
It was far from what they'd expected.
No pools of floating entrails or mangled corpses.
A campsite sprawled in the spacious clearing.
A very tidy one, with a strangely familiar layout.
Benden's eyes widened.
"This is... the Retunir expedition's camp."
The tents and facilities matched what they'd seen at Cargai Plateau.
Down to the massive scale for hundreds.
But they weren't shocked because it was Retunir's camp.
"......No blood?"
They couldn't pinpoint the blood scent's source.
Despite the dizzying stench still hanging in the air, not a drop of blood was visible.
And no living people either.
"N-No people in sight."
Not even a beast's shadow.
Normally, such a large camp would have sentries even when unused.
But this one was deserted.
Abandoned to the wind's whispers alone.
"Look. The stew's still simmering."
"You're right. Feels like less than an hour ago."
Even stranger: signs that people had been here moments ago.
The fire under the serving pot still crackled.
A situation too baffling to guess what happened.
As worry for Bran deepened.
"Ov-Over there!"
Kael suddenly pointed.
All four humans and one beast whipped their heads around.
A familiar boy emerged from a tent.
Finally freed from separation anxiety, he shouted in his usual voice.
"Bran, holy shit!"
"Hm?"
Bran turned.
He didn't seem hurt.
Blinking at his wrecked friends, he waved.
"Oh, you made it."
With his usual cheerful expression.
"Why do you all look like death? Step in dog shit on the way?"
It was inevitable that his sight brought relief—and rage—to the group.
"How long have you been here?"
"Not long. About 15 minutes."
Bran said.
Right after teleporting, he'd smelled blood and rushed to the camp.
Unlike the others, he'd barely suffered the Return Stone's side effects.
"We couldn't even open our eyes yet... How'd you move through that nausea?"
"Hm. Worked fine for me."
No other explanation.
Couldn't blame high mental stats either.
Ilrak nodded.
"Makes sense. You'd pull it off."
That resolved how Bran arrived first.
Ilrak, grumbling, continued.
"......So, Bran. Can I just smack you once?"
"Spare me. I'll announce next time."
Bran said.
His body was bound tight with Ilrak's tail.
With the big mystery solved, it was time for the inquiry on why he vanished wordlessly.
"No, just once. Imagine your buddy vanishes in the woods, then blood scent hits hard. What'd you think?"
"We're fucked."
"Exactly."
Ilrak flicked up her middle finger.
Thwack!
Her signature knuckle rap against a tree boomed like thunder.
"Ilrak. Humans die from that normally."
"You're tough. Drop our hearts to our stomachs, pay the toll."
A heavy toll.
He wouldn't die, but a head deformation was likely.
Reverse unicorn, maybe?
Then Kael wedged between them.
"N-No... I'm fine."
"Kael?"
"He's safe... Sniff, that's enough for me."
He was plastered to Bran's side again.
Separation anxiety eased, his face relaxed.
Heart still pounding, but Bran was healthy—good enough.
"No need to go that far, I think."
Arjan chimed in.
"Instead. Recognize your importance more from now on."
Staring at Bran with narrowed eyes.
Sounded cool on the surface, but restrained emotion seeped through.
No desire to test what happened if it burst.
Bran raised both hands.
"Sorry. Didn't know you'd worry that much."
Honestly, he felt pretty good.
Over the top, sure, but all from affection.
Sorry for the needless worry.
"Wasn't on purpose, though. Thought you'd be out longer. Return Stone effects worsen with distance and numbers."
All four recovered way faster than expected.
Even accounting for Kael's blessing.
Figured our party's level meant bedridden all day—nicely wrong.
'Everyone's grown.'
Visiting Cargai Plateau first was right.
Ilrak settled for a tight hug instead of murderous knuckle rap.
Suffocating, but better than a caved skull.
"So, Bran. What the hell happened here?"
Time for the main topic.
Arjan asked.
"Everything's inexplicable. Tons of proof people were here minutes ago, but no one's around. Like the whole lot vanished."
"Yeah."
"Not just that. The forest itself is unnaturally eerie. No animal sounds, no matter how I listen."
"Whoa, now that you mention..."
Benden flinched.
As she said, the forest was eerily silent.
No bird chirps, not even insect songs.
Despite peak summer life.
"......But the biggest mystery is this blood scent. No bodies, no blood—where's it coming from?"
Not just her; everyone wondered.
Good thing he arrived first.
Now he could clear it up.
Pondering where to start, Bran spoke.
"The Cleaners did it."
"...Cleaners?"
"Yeah. Nickname... Hold on."
Bran crouched.
Staring at the ground, he picked up a tiny bead.
"Here. Wanna smell?"
He held it to Arjan.
The ladybug-sized orb gleamed crimson.
As she brought her nose close.
Pfshht!
Transparent gas burst from the bead.
Familiar stench spread.
Arjan's face contorted.
"Urk!"
"Vile, right?"
Bran chuckled.
Arjan couldn't reply, fighting dry heaves.
The pervasive blood reek came from these beads.
"Condensed blood from people, they say."
"Blood... condensed?"
"Yep. The camp's littered with these exact orbs."
Bran jerked his chin toward the camp.
The group's eyes widened.
Now that he mentioned it, beads dotted the ground everywhere.
"No way. These are blood? Some magic?"
"Not magic—Cleaners' habit. They swallow prey whole, harden the blood like this, and expel it. Even that evaporates into gas soon after."
"N-Never heard of such a creature."
"Of course, Benden. Not from this world."
Bran nodded.
Cleaners were otherworldly, like star shadows.
If he hadn't fought them in-game, he wouldn't have guessed.
No sign of them—probably off hunting next meal.
"Someone killed the whole expedition and tried covering tracks. Using Cleaners."
"Wh-Who'd do that?"
"Probably the ones who trashed the capital."
"...Capital?"
"You didn't see. Wait."
Bran headed to the camp's edge.
A horizontal sword slash toppled trees.
Rumble!
Forest edge—wholly different view unfolded.
A vast plain stretched beyond the fallen trees.
"Th-That's?!"
"So close...!"
Comrades gasped.
A gloomy city like a vampire castle loomed in the plain's center, walled by towering fortifications.
"Retunir."
Benden murmured.
The Retunir Kingdom.
Small and poor, yet propped by powerful relics—a rotten dictatorship.
Urdin's homeland, still passed out wolf-bound.
Meant as a mere stopover to Morken, no intent to visit...
"B-But why's it like that?"
"Under attack?"
"Th-Those clouds... never seen..."
Something had gone terribly wrong.
Black smoke rose beyond the high walls.
Three of the five spires housing royalty—called finger towers—had collapsed.
Rumble...!
Heavy blood-red clouds swirled over the capital.
'Disconcerting. Knew it'd happen someday, but...'
Bran bit his lower lip.
This event shouldn't have occurred yet.
The Abyss touching Retunir came way later, after deep Outer God corruption.
Only one suspected cause.
"Maybe."
Outer God forces altering plans due to Bran's group's actions.
The crisis feared since journey's start had finally hit.
Bran said.
"Retunir might have already fallen."
They needed to scout the capital.
Right now.