Episode 14
Episode 14
A height that required looking up for quite a while.
His towering stature, more than twice that of an average adult male, was complemented by a rugged, muscular build.
I gave him a short answer while craning my neck painfully to look up at him.
"I'm not interested in men. Besides, isn't being a 13th wife a bit much? You call me the best marriage prospect, yet I'd be number thirteen."
"But I'll treat you well for sure. I promise."
"What good is a male lion's promise? Once you go home, your wives are the ones in charge anyway."
While there were some differences from real-world lions, male lions being henpecked was the same.
It was easier to think of his daily life as being dominated by his wives.
For beastkin, leaving strong seed was practically an obligation.
Leo crossed his arms and asked.
"Hmm, then what would make you consider marrying me?"
I answered without a moment's hesitation to his question.
"Come as a woman to confess, and I might consider it. I don't really like men that much."
"Then there's no point if you can't bear strong offspring. Ha, humans are really difficult. I do have three human wives at home though."
"Then be satisfied with those women. I prefer sexy, beautiful women."
"Then..."
Leo pondered for a moment before clapping his hands.
"Right! Then I'll let you have your way with my wives. They all have good looks as a baseline, and their bodies are specialized for pregnancy and childbirth."
"I'll pass. I'm not really into people who are already taken."
After clearly stating my refusal, I turned to walk away but added one more thing.
"And if you treat your wives like tools... you could do the same to me anytime. So absolutely not."
I gave a slight smile to Nero, who was waving at me from beside Leo.
As I left that area, a waiting guild member approached me.
"Another marriage proposal? That beastkin is really persistent. I heard he's already made his 14th wife."
"Really? But he told me I'd be the 13th? Typical male lions."
"Well, being honest with their instincts is characteristic of beastkin."
"That's true. So what's that you're holding?"
"This is information from the knight order."
The member immediately handed me the paper.
I took the offered paper and unfolded it right there.
"This is the area we need to investigate, right?"
"Yes, they said they'll send any additional information or updates by this evening."
"Really? Then it would be better to review it with the guild leader this evening."
The paper contained brief information about the area we were entering, along with additional details from the knight order's previous investigations.
"Let's go rest for now. I'm tired."
"Yes, let's hurry and get some rest."
*
As we were completing the temporary base and preparing dinner, the remaining members arrived.
With the other half here, the place began to feel lively.
While members gathered in small groups to catch up, I reported what had happened to Guild Leader Karen.
"So that means we got a relatively comfortable position?"
"Yes, but in exchange, there probably won't be any new resources or wealth to gain. There aren't any special magical beasts either, so it likely won't be very profitable."
"Good job. Everyone was tired anyway and needed to take it easy."
"Then I'll tell everyone to rest since we move tomorrow evening."
"Oh, and... is the Hero Party okay?"
I paused at the sudden question.
Knowing she was aware of my relationship with Ivy, I thought for a moment before answering.
"They'll be fine. The Hero Party is made up of the most outstanding personnel available right now."
"But you've been worried a lot lately since communication was cut off."
I had been frequently concerned since communications were severed.
Especially when drinking a bit too much, those feelings often came out honestly.
"...They'll be fine."
I muttered it as if making a promise to myself.
Before the atmosphere could get more awkward, I quickly changed the subject.
"Let's just eat dinner instead. There's no point in negative thinking that only makes us feel bad."
As I quickly changed the conversation topic, Guild Leader Karen nodded as if understanding my intention.
Only then did her tone become playful.
"By the way, did Leo propose to you again today?"
"Can you call that a proposal? He's just a beast trying to make another baby factory."
"He's quite popular among beastkin though."
"That's because they're beastkin. Their ideal type is a strong man. But I'm human."
"But you're a quarter, so doesn't that count as beastkin too?"
I narrowed my eyes and glared at her trying to pair me with a man again.
"Having good dynamic vision and a good nose doesn't make me beastkin. I don't have enhanced growth, nor do I have an estrus cycle like beastkin."
"That's true. What a shame... I'm a bit curious about Mia's estrus cycle though."
"Why would you be curious about that?"
"I'm just curious to see a more feminine side of Mia, who's always an iron wall against men."
"Not curious at all. And that's sexual harassment."
Karen made a disgusted face as she followed behind.
"Are you going to start with that weird sexual harassment and feminism talk again? My head throbs every time I hear that."
"I'll let it slide today since I'm hungry. Let's just go to the dining area."
"Really? Then let's hurry!"
*
The next morning, after waking up and finishing the investigation plans with Karen, we entered the forest as soon as preparations were complete in the afternoon.
The atmosphere was good since we had plenty of combat power to spare at the entrance.
With so much supporting force around, everyone was lively.
'It's hard to imagine leading this much combat power.'
Even if just our guild had come, we would have been overflowing with confidence.
But with each nation sending their elite forces, it would have been strange not to be confident.
"It's been a while since I've been here."
I murmured while leisurely looking around after entering the forest.
A safe path with clearly marked trails and, according to reports, minimal changes.
It was a place I'd visited about three times before.
All three times were for commissions to gather materials from magical beasts.
I marveled at the trees that seemed to block out the entire sky. Even seeing them again after so long, the overwhelming atmosphere made me want to take pictures to share.
"It's quieter than usual though. Not a single magical beast in sight."
"Right. It's really quiet. At this rate, we should be able to travel safely until the midway point."
"Then let's move quickly. Everyone must be tired, so it's better to get there fast and rest."
Guild Leader Karen nodded lightly and looked around.
The surroundings were literally packed with nothing but trees. You'd expect to see at least one magical beast, but it was so unusually quiet that it felt suspicious.
After looking around for a while, she furrowed her brow and looked behind us.
"What's wrong? Something strange?"
Instead of answering, she spoke to the guide who was walking ahead of us.
"Guide. The path has gotten strange. Right?"
At the sudden question, the members who heard her voice turned their attention to the guild leader.
Normally they would have told her to stop joking, but her voice was different.
A cold, low-pitched voice.
It was the voice she only used when serious, so everyone had to pay attention.
The guide turned around like a broken machine, creaking.
"...Th-that's right. We're walking the same as always, but the path seems a bit strange. I was going to walk a bit further before making a judgment. My apologies!"
Looking at the guide answering with a trembling voice, Guild Leader Karen let out a deep sigh.
"No wonder the same paths seemed to repeat."
"You could see that?"
"Not so much see as feel. The atmosphere wasn't changing at all."
Certainly, warriors of the guild leader's caliber sensed things differently.
Since she was overwhelmingly stronger than me, it was natural she could sense things I couldn't.
"So is getting out possible?"
"I'll try walking in reverse from now. The path is indeed a bit strange, but since we're at the entrance, we should be able to get out."
"Then guide us out. We can't proceed like this."
"Yes! I'll guide us out immediately."
The guide turned the path around.
The members following behind looked momentarily confused but understood after the explanation.
We moved for half a day after that but failed to escape. Eventually, we decided to camp for the night instead of moving further.
As we set up all the tents and explained the plan to the members, one person asked a question.
"Vice Guild Leader, we will be able to get out, right?"
"I don't know. We only came in about two hours, but we couldn't get out for half a day. We need to think of a way to get out slowly. So just rest well for now."
"Should we ration food a bit then?"
"No. That would just increase anxiety. We brought a month's worth of rations, so tell everyone to eat sufficiently."
After explaining to the member, I headed toward the tent.
"I'm coming in, Guild Leader."
Entering the tent, I saw Guild Leader Karen sitting with her brow deeply furrowed, checking something.
"What are you doing? By the way, did you try contacting other places? We should check if they're in the same situation."
"I tried, but the magic communication orbs are all dead."
Karen said this while holding out a communication orb.
The malfunctioning magic communication orb was emitting noise from its glass sphere.
"Isn't that what happens when mana connection fails?"
"Right. There were no problems until the entrance... It seems either the knight order lied or something has changed."
"Probably. But in this state... wouldn't even the mana used in the Magic Tower be useless?"
"That's highly likely. So we're going to stop going any deeper."
After staring at me for a moment, the guild leader added.
Her voice was slightly cautious.
"But you're okay with that, right? Rescuing your childhood friend... it might be delayed quite a bit."
Though it bothered me that I couldn't go see Ivy quickly, I had responsibilities as vice guild leader to uphold.
A bitter sensation lingered in my mouth, but I answered with a smile.
"Of course. That was my personal matter from the start. Right now, my duties as Vice Guild Leader of Harmony's Flame take priority."
"Hmm~ That's a relief. I thought our members would be lower priority."
I shrugged at her playful tone.
"Oh, of course I'm just saying this? Who knows when I might run away? If I see a chance to escape, I'll immediately join the Hero Party."
"That would be troublesome... then I'll have to hold you tight tonight so you can't run away."
"No! That has nothing to do with... eep!"
In the end, I was caught by Karen and had to serve as her stuffed animal in the same bed.
Guild Leader Karen, who was holding me, was trembling slightly.