Shit-Slinger (3)
A full day had passed since they set out for Saksen Village.
The mud-caked wagon crawled up the hill, driven by weary horses.
As the horse-drawn cart finally crested the final hill, the village came into view.
"My God…."
Veronica instinctively clutched her skirt upon realizing the village's dire state.
The houses were little more than scattered low earthen walls and a few wooden structures, with paths so poorly packed it barely qualified as a village. Barricades of stakes and ropes blocked off sections here and there.
The well entrance was especially sealed with thick planks, a yellow warning flag thrust into the ground fluttering in the wind like a stern prohibition.
Above all, the surrounding soil was so barren that not even grass could grow properly.
The saintess quickly grasped the situation and stated matter-of-factly,
"…It looks like they've cordoned off the poisoned areas."
The group's faces darkened at the evident scale of the Venom Serpent's devastation, far worse than anticipated.
"Ugh, how do people even live in a dump like this? I'd bail on the village for real."
"Don't say that. Do you think the villagers have the means to just up and leave?"
"I never imagined it was this bad… If we don't act fast, the whole village won't hold out…."
As the party members each grappled anew with the crisis's severity, the wagon halted at the village edge. Several villagers hurried over, surrounding them.
Mingled hope and fear flickered across their gaunt faces.
Eventually, an elderly man with snow-white hair stepped forward from the group at the wooden stockade gate, bowing deeply.
"Heroes… We are truly grateful you've accepted our request from this remote village. Outlying hamlets like ours rarely get attention from the guild… As the village representative, I don't even know how to express our thanks."
Relief, like a long-held breath finally released, colored the chief's voice.
Yet the villagers behind him looked grim, mirroring their plight.
Veronica, quick to notice, looked up at the chief.
"How many patients are there in the village right now?"
The chief blinked.
"Pardon…?"
"People poisoned by the Venom Serpent's venom. Please tell me first if anyone's life is in immediate danger."
A brief silence fell. Then Edelic cut in lowly from the side.
"Veronica, we don't have time for that now. Subjugation comes first."
"No. We can't do that."
Veronica turned to him firmly, defying the objection.
The air chilled instantly, villagers' and chief's gazes shifting between the two.
"Isn't a hero someone who wields the sword for king and country? If you chase only the reward, you can't claim to fulfill that duty."
Edelic swallowed a sigh.
He knew all too well, after years in the same party, that he couldn't bend the saintess's stubborn righteousness.
"…Do what you want."
He spat it out curtly and turned away.
"Giovanni, let's go."
"Ah, yes sir."
Giovanni hurried after him.
Soon, the pair ventured deeper into the village and paused.
Edelic glanced back coldly at the two still standing there.
"Rosemary, Kate… What are you doing? Come on."
Kate shrugged at his urging.
"Uh… Can't I stick here too?"
Rosemary, beside her, chimed in slyly.
"Poison's bad for the skin, you know…."
Edelic scanned them once and snorted.
"If you wanna ride with Chris, suit yourselves."
Kate clicked her tongue.
"Tch, fine, we're going~ That snake brat's toast anyway."
Rosemary glanced reluctantly toward the village and grumbled.
"Ugh, fine… Maybe I should slather on some honey slime cream first…."
The subjugation quest, off to a half-hearted start, was now entering its main phase.
Meanwhile, Luin—left behind in the capital—had planted himself at a tavern from midday, whiling away the time with special grape juice and skewers of roasted Greenmeadow Sheep mutton.
Luin tore into the meat on his skewer with voracious gusto.
Crunch crunch.
Savoring the smoky burst from the golden-brown lamb, he gulped grape juice just before the fattiness lingered.
The tart juice slid down his throat, washing away the grease cleanly.
Deeply satisfied, Luin patted his belly.
"Burp. This is the life—booze and broads."
Dorothy, seated across, was momentarily speechless.
Seeing him mid-afternoon with skewers and drinks, beaming in satisfaction, left her dumbfounded.
"Luin, that's not booze. People might misunderstand…."
"Grape juice from a tavern counts as booze."
Luin nonchalantly ripped into another skewer.
Dorothy eyed him, tilting her head.
"…I still can't believe it. You, temp baggage handler for the Hero Party."
"Eh, it just kinda happened."
"…."
Dorothy scanned him anew, astonished.
"By the way, do you know the quest the Hero Party took this time?"
Luin twirled the spent skewer stick between his fingers.
"Yeah, sure. I'm out sick, though."
Dorothy gave him a skeptical squint.
"Sick, huh."
Her look screamed utter disbelief, so Luin feigned a wince.
"Gotta pop some painkillers. Gulp gulp."
He drained the oak mug's remaining juice in one go and raised a hand for a refill.
Dorothy dropped further questions, steering the topic elsewhere.
"That subjugation quest you mentioned earlier? No one but the Hero Party could touch it. Even the guild avoided it. We're lucky they took it…."
Luin nodded a few times, chomping his mutton vigorously.
"Makes sense. Without mass Holy Purified Water or saintly power, it's a nightmare to cover."
Just then, a newbie waitress approached with fresh grape juice, set it down, then hovered awkwardly by the table.
Clearly hooked on their chat, her small beast ears twitched nonstop amid her short brown hair.
Dorothy watched briefly, then glanced at the name tag on her chest.
"Nila."
The waitress's ears flicked at her name.
Dorothy set down her glass calmly.
"Something on your mind?"
"Ah… well."
Nila ventured cautiously.
"I was just curious why…."
"Oh, the thing we were talking about?"
Luin waved his skewer.
"Simple. It's a shitty monster that causes trouble even in death."
He set the skewer down and flicked grease from his fingers.
"Venom Serpents carry potent acidic poison in their guts. If it spreads into the air, normal humans just drop dead."
He mimed slitting his throat with his thumb; Nila flinched hard.
He skipped details, but purifying airborne toxin took days—cleanup was no joke.
Unaware, Nila lingered like she'd missed her exit cue and tossed another question.
"So how do you beat it?"
"Usually, tie the limbs… have the saintess squeeze out holy power to soak it in sacred energy for half a day, then brew it into snake liquor or whatever."
Nila's eyes widened.
"Then hacking a Venom Serpent would be a total disaster!?"
Luin barked a hearty laugh.
"Haha! As if some moron would do that."
He waved it off.
"No one with a brain does."
Tilting his glass for a sip of juice, he added,
"Ahh, anyone who pulls that shit is just a dung-slinging shithead!"
Soon after hearing of the subjugation, Luin drew his sword.
"That goddamn shit-slinging hero…."