The Great Forest
Beyond the northern ducal lands, scattered across a vast and desolate frontier untouched by imperial rule, countless nomadic tribes had long lived by the creed of every man for himself.
...Or rather, they used to.
That was until recent years, before those fractured clans—once sprawling across the plains like a torn spiderweb—were ruthlessly swallowed and united under a single banner.
By the tribe known as the Claw of Kubel.
"Catch them! Do not let them escape! Relic thieves!"
"Kill them! Tear them apart! Slaughter them where they stand!"
"How dare you defile our sacred ground! We shall butcher you in the name of the warrior!"
"You dare taint our sacred blood?! You dare strip away our honor and pride?! We'll tear out your guts!"
The barbarians of the northern imperial border were terrifyingly tough.
Bordering the Demon Realm, their homeland was a barren wasteland where crops refused to grow, monsters roamed in hordes, and demons occasionally slipped past the boundary. Surviving such a hell on pure brawn and primal shamanism had molded every last one of them into a natural-born slayer and mystic.
Yet for all their martial might, their differing temperaments, conflicting folk religions, and clashing values had historically kept them hopelessly fractured, locked in a brutal free-for-all reminiscent of the Spring and Autumn period.
That entire balance of power had been flipped on its head by a single person who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
"Gaaah! The carriage—!"
"Heavens! Did that brute just rip a boulder out of the dirt and hurl it without even using mana?!"
"The barbarians are born with absurd strength! Besides, that bastard had ritual tattoos! He's channeling the power of his prey!"
Ironically enough, the person who had upended the northern steppes was an outsider.
And not a man, either—a woman.
Even though women frequently occupied lofty stations in this uncivilized medieval fantasy land, a woman rising to become chieftain of a barbarian tribe and conquering every neighboring clan into a unified host was an entirely different beast.
It was an unprecedented feat, to say the very least.
"Well, at least we're in luck!" I called out.
"Lord Alzen! What on earth about this is lucky?! Can't you see what's happening right outside?!"
"At least we're able to run away! I honestly thought we'd be forced into a bloody brawl! If things had gone according to the original plan, we would've had to wipe out an entire barbarian tribe by now!"
"What?! Why must you always think in such violent extremes?!"
"The point is, nobody died, and it worked out!"
"You call this 'working out'?!"
"Yes, you little brat!"
Ignoring Cecilia's dumbfounded glare, I fought to steady myself against the violent rocking of the cabin.
To pick up where I left off: the outsider pulling off such historical madness was none other than Stanasila Lindel.
The proud eldest daughter of House Stanasila, Alzen's older sister... and now a traitor to the ducal house and chieftain of the Claw of Kubel. An utterly baffling, unpredictable woman.
Naturally, she had also been one of the heroine candidates in the game.
Her identity as the eldest daughter of House Stanasila, however, was a secret buried deep in the supplementary lore book. Unless a player was a hardcore veteran, they had no clue she was Lindel Stanasila. To most, she was simply 'Tsarkhella,' just another heroine candidate to pursue.
"Arpe! Can't you drive this thing any faster?!"
Clinging desperately to the window curtain as the cabin shook violently enough to make me forget gravity existed, I barked toward the driver's seat. Arpe shrieked right back.
"It's physically impossible to go any faster than this!"
"Tsk...!"
Clicking my tongue, I cracked the curtain open and stole a glance backward.
"Catch theeeem! Catch them at all cooosts!"
"Reclaim it! Reclaim our soul! Our sacred pride! Our warrior's honooor!"
Hundreds of barbarians sprinted after us, their eyes rolled back, white foam frothing around their lips. In its own twisted way, the sight was magnificent.
The companions who had leaped outside earlier were doing everything they could to hold the line, swinging swords, cleaving with axes, and hurling spells. But the sheer volume of pursuers paired with their frightening martial prowess made for an uphill battle.
Well, to be fair, part of their struggle stemmed from my explicit order not to kill unless absolutely necessary.
We had been fortunate enough to snatch our target artifact while Lindel was away; there was no reason to stoke their hatred higher than required.
"At this rate, they're going to chase us all the way into the Great Forest..."
"What are we going to do?! We can't keep running forever!"
"...Can't I just slaughter the lot of them? It'd be so much cleaner."
"Absolutely not!"
I shrugged at Cecilia's shrill, glare-laden protest.
Ever since the incident with Delarang, she had been thoroughly pissed at me, pouting incessantly and nitpicking every single word that left my mouth. Well, my previous remark probably deserved the reaction, but still.
"Fine, fine. I get it, so stop glaring at me like that. You're terrifying... Anyway, a way to resolve this without killing anyone, huh? Do I have anything useful?"
I rummaged through my Subspace Pouch, searching for a suitable trinket, but came up empty and clicked my tongue.
"Ah, we have to use this same road on our way back, so I really didn't want to make a mess... Guess there's no helping it."
"Listen to the man who already stirred up a hornet's nest talk..."
"Cecilia. Protecting people is your sacred duty, right?"
"...Lord Alzen?"
Catching the wicked smirk spreading across my lips, her expression instantly clouded with unease.
"So, you go ahead and protect those barbarians."
"Huh? What are you suddenly talking about?"
"Well, you see. These things are fantastic, but they have zero output control."
I ostentatiously wiggled the fingers of both hands, brandishing the Absolute Ring Set. Cecilia's face drained of color as the realization hit her.
"...Don't tell me?"
"I'm leaving it to you, alright?"
I kicked the carriage door wide open and threw myself out.
"Ah—?! Wait! Lord Alzen! It's dangerous!"
"Focus on your holy arts!"
Swatting away her reaching hand, I plunged into the howling wind.
The sensation of flight carried by momentum lasted only a heartbeat. Just as gravity threatened to slam me violently into the earth, something caught me from below, sweeping me skyward.
"...That was dangerous. What are you doing?"
"Oh, Muriel. Working hard, I see?"
When I offered a nonchalant smile, she let out a quiet sigh. Despite having just engaged in fierce skirmishes, she looked as pristine as ever—not a single scratch on her. Truly dependable.
"Have I not told you countless times to treat your body with more care?"
"Come on, it's fine. I ate the Permanent Flesh, remember? Even if I took a tumble, I wouldn't have died."
"I am asking you not to put yourself in harm's way to begin with."
"I had faith in you."
"...Saying things like that is unfair."
She flushed slightly beneath her deadpan mask. Chuckling at the rare sight, I pointed toward the rabid horde of barbarians charging behind us.
"Anyway, I'm going to use the rings. Drop me over there."
"...Are you planning to slaughter them? If so, there is no need for you to step forward personally—"
"Ah, it's fine. Cecilia will handle cleanup."
"Lady Cecilia will?"
Muriel glanced back toward the open carriage door. Through the gap, Cecilia leaned out, her face flushed with fury as she shrieked at the top of her lungs.
"You are being completely irresponsible! What do you think a human life even is?!"
Even as she shouted her lungs out, radiant streams of divine power were already billowing around her small frame like blooming white flames.
"See? The Saintess has it covered."
"...Understood."
Muriel clearly had a mountain of complaints, but given the urgency of the moment, she refrained from arguing and shifted our trajectory.
"I shall provide cover!"
"Lord Alzen's thoughts truly remain impossible to predict."
Reassured by Rebecca and Nemeth flanking me on either side, I focused my consciousness entirely into the Absolute Ring Set.
"Kill them all!"
"Aaaaargh!"
Their bloodshot, wild-eyed frenzy was truly a sight to behold. The sheer physical pressure of hundreds of burly warriors tearing up the dirt on foot was suffocating.
"The numbers are a bit excessive... Well, whatever."
Once they closed the distance, I immediately triggered the Absolute Ring of Taunt.
Perhaps because of the sheer scale of targets, an ominous crimson flash flickered across the space several times, like a graphic glitch tearing through reality.
"Kh-Khaaaagh!"
"Dieeee!"
"Krrrraaaagh!"
Already brimming with fury, the barbarians snapped entirely, surrendering to blind, psychotic bloodlust as they threw themselves forward.
"Muriel. Put me down."
"Yes."
The moment Muriel set my feet on the earth and melted back, I spread both arms wide. The violet glow of the Absolute Evasion Ring had already enveloped my flesh.
"Dieeeeeee!"
Arrows, broadswords, battleaxes, throwing daggers, hand axes, shamanic curses... A devastating barrage of violence descended upon me all at once. My body twisted, stretched, and bent at impossible, grotesque angles, slipping effortlessly through every lethal strike like water through a sieve.
Next in line was the pitch-black authority of the Absolute Counter Ring.
A burst of dark energy surged from my core like a porcupine's quills, violently detonating in every direction.
"Guh-kagh?!"
"Aaaaargh!"
"Kuh...!"
"Urgh... Ah?!"
Flesh ruptured and blood sprayed into the air, painting the barren earth crimson. Forced to endure the exact destructive force of their own combined onslaught magnified twofold, the barbarians collapsed in droves like scythed wheat.
"Ah, honestly!"
Left unattended, more than half of them would have drawn their final breaths on the spot. But Cecilia, refusing to let that happen, unleashed a tidal wave of brilliant divine radiance that swept across the carnage.
"Guhhh...!"
"Hah, hah...!"
Watching the critically wounded bastards miraculously stitch back together and cling to life, I turned on my heel and strolled back toward the carriage.
"H-Hold it right there...! You son of a bitch...!"
"...Oh, Ferger?"
"Wh-What? How do you know my name...?!"
"Go run and tell Tsarkhella. Tell her I promise to return Kubel's Soul Totem once I'm done with it, so she'd better sit tight and wait."
"Y-You think I'd ever believe such bullshit...?!"
"And what are you going to do if you don't?"
Flashing a mocking sneer at the trembling warrior struggling on the ground, I climbed back into the cabin and popped open a bottle of alcohol.
"Lord Alzen! How can you casually sit there drinking right now?! Sit down, we have plenty to talk about!"
"...Give me a break, Lady Saintess. At the end of the day, not a single one died."
"Do you think that excuses what you just did?! It seems you desperately need the Goddess's holy teachings engraved into the deepest corners of your thick skull! Sit still and listen!"
"Urgh..."
Letting her shrill scolding wash over me, I glanced around to inspect the rest of the retinue.
"Everyone unscathed?"
"Yes. No problems here."
"Whew, they were far stronger than I anticipated."
"I am concerned about our return journey. They will certainly set up an ambush and lie in wait..."
"We'll cross that bridge when we get there."
Waving my hand dismissively, I caught sight of the sprawling sea of emerald emerging on the distant horizon and lit up a cigarette.
"Lord Alzeeeen! Are you even listening to me?!"
"I'm listening, I'm listening."
"Don't lie to my face!"
I sighed, fending off the tiny fists battering my ribs.
A few hours later, our carriage finally crossed into the borders of the Great Forest—only to be instantly surrounded by dozens of armed elves.
"First barbarians, now pointy-ears. Honestly, different packaging, same annoying bastards."
"Lord Alzen! Please, for the love of the Goddess, shut your mouth!"
A startled Cecilia hissed at me in an urgent whisper, terrified that the elves might hear.
Way too late for that, kiddo.
Those long ears aren't just for decoration.