Chapter 271: Defense (1)

Translator: RaidenTL

Chapter 271: Defense (1)

After treating her injured eye with a potion, Winix Carmilla looked at her stepbrother in irritation. He had also healed his severed arm with a potion. "Ugh, none of this would have happened if you didn't mess things up!"

"You don't think you were being hasty?"

"...Hasty? Did you think we'd get another moment alone with that woman? I did nothing wrong! It's your fault for not stabbing her properly!"

The man simply sighed at Carmilla's accusations. What was fighting here going to do? "But this is the right item, right?"

"You and your worrying. Can't you feel it? This gem is overflowing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠with mana."

"...If I had that level of mana aptitude, I would have become a wizard."

"You wish. Don't you know you're too stupid to be a wizard?" Carmilla grumbled at her stepbrother as usual, but the corners of her lips were twitching up. "I wonder how much this will sell for."

This was the reason she could smile even after getting stabbed in the eye not that long ago. After all, Noark was virtually gone now. Even if it meant putting her life on the line, she'd judged it was wiser to take a piece of the pie here, and that judgment had proven correct.

"Come on, let's go. Once we stop to rest at any island here, it'll be over. We'll be able to live like nobles for the rest of our lives." Carmilla steered the Drake, which was gliding away from the island.

The man stopped her. "Wait."

"What is it?"

"We have to make sure Rainwales is dead."

"What? We already have the item, so why?" Carmilla tilted her head, but the man remained firm.

Having now fought her himself, he was surer than ever. The word "monster" was not strong enough to describe Amelia Rainwales. If his surprise attack hadn't been successful, they wouldn't have been able to escape alive like this. "If that woman survives, even if we get back to the city, we'll have to live in fear for the rest of our lives."

"If she survives? Can you stop jinxing it? How can she survive in that condition? After you stabbed her in the stomach like that with a poisoned knife!" Carmilla shrieked at the man's warning. But even as she did, she also had her doubts. "...If you're so anxious, then you go check whether she's alive or dead. Of course, I'm certain she's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠dead, but since we were in too much of a rush to even take her equipment..."

After coming to an agreement, the two rode the Drake back to the island. Thankfully, their other two comrades who had left to chase down the others had not yet returned.

"...Looks like she managed to get out of here even in that state."

Amelia was nowhere to be seen, but she couldn't have gotten far.

"There's more bloodstains over here. This way."

The two of them followed the trail of blood she left behind, but the trail continued for much longer than they expected before suddenly ending.

"...She intentionally erased her tracks. To think she would have the mind to do that in her state."

"W-What do we do, then?" Only then did Carmilla begin to pale. Now that she'd seen for herself that Amelia had had the awareness to erase her tracks, she was starting to think the woman really might have survived. But there was nothing they could do.

"The chase ends here."

"E-Ends here?"

"Yeah, it's not like we have an expert scout among us. Staying here would only be a waste of time. Let's go back."

Afterward, Carmilla and the man moved to the area where they'd just done battle.

Crack!

The man destroyed the stone situated on the altar at the center of the island.

"W-Why did you break that thing all of a sudden? A-Are you mad at me...?"

"I'm not mad. It's for a reason. I'll explain it later, so let's focus on leaving now."

"Wait, what do you—" Carmilla could not finish her sentence.

Rumble!

Dark clouds were gathering and thunder roared overhead. The wind seemed to be getting stronger too.

[The offering of Farune Island has been destroyed. The Fury of the Sea engulfs the island.]

This man seemed almost like a stranger to her today.

***

The moment Ainar and Erwen showed up, I wanted to run and greet them right away, but I held myself back to preserve my dignity as clan chief. "Ah, you're here."

Mm-hmm, the leader of a clan should have some gravitas.

"You're late."

"I'm sorry. But where are the others...?"

"Not here yet."

"Excuse me? What do you mean not here yet? I thought we were going to be the last ones. Are they—"

"Stop." I cut Erwen off. "Everyone should be fine, so don't worry. They must be late for a reason." After all, Erwen and Ainar had arrived late but were completely fine.

Oh, on that note...

"So, why were you guys late?"

"Well, actually..."

I listened to the reason for their tardiness, thinking it might help me figure out what was going on with the others who weren't here yet. Their explanation was nothing special. Apparently, Erwen managed to swim to shore without losing consciousness but lost her bow on the way.

"I spent some time looking around the beach in case the waves carried it to shore. That's when I ran into Miss Ainar by chance."

Hmm, no wonder she doesn't have her bow on her shoulder. But thankfully she was able to find Ainar so I guess it worked out?

"So that's what happened. Don't worry too much about the lost bow. You can use this for now." With that, I pulled a longbow out from the sub-space and handed it to Erwen.

"Huh? A bow made of bortal wood? Where did you get something so valuable?"

Wow, this thing is grade-four bortal wood? No wonder the color's so nice.

"I picked it up by chance." Erwen tilted her head at my succinct explanation, but she pieced things together before long.

"But who is this person...?" she asked, glancing at the man on the ground, who was dressed in casual clothes after being stripped of all his equipment by me.

"He's from Noark."

"Wow, I see! I'll use this gratefully...!" Erwen excitedly replied, obvious glee on her features. She was definitely a sweet kid.

Anyway, as we were chatting, the priestess joined the conversation. "I'm glad you were reunited with your comrades. I'm happy to see your faith was not in vain."

I introduced her while I was at it. "This is the priestess from the team Patzran belonged to. Her name is Ersina. I ran into her by chance as I was coming this way and we traveled here together."

Afterward, Carmilla and the man moved to the area where they'd just done battle.

Crack!

The man destroyed the stone situated on the altar at the center of the island.

"W-Why did you break that thing all of a sudden? A-Are you mad at me...?"

"I'm not mad. It's for a reason. I'll explain it later, so let's focus on leaving now."

"Wait, what do you—" Carmilla could not finish her sentence.

Rumble!

Dark clouds were gathering and thunder roared overhead. The wind seemed to be getting stronger too.

[The offering of Farune Island has been destroyed. The Fury of the Sea engulfs the island.]

This man seemed almost like a stranger to her today.

***

The moment Ainar and Erwen showed up, I wanted to run and greet them right away, but I held myself back to preserve my dignity as clan chief. "Ah, you're here."

Mm-hmm, the leader of a clan should have some gravitas.

"You're late."

"I'm sorry. But where are the others...?"

"Not here yet."

"Excuse me? What do you mean not here yet? I thought we were going to be the last ones. Are they—"

"Stop." I cut Erwen off. "Everyone should be fine, so don't worry. They must be late for a reason." After all, Erwen and Ainar had arrived late but were completely fine.

Oh, on that note...

"So, why were you guys late?"

"Well, actually..."

I listened to the reason for their tardiness, thinking it might help me figure out what was going on with the others who weren't here yet. Their explanation was nothing special. Apparently, Erwen managed to swim to shore without losing consciousness but lost her bow on the way.

"I spent some time looking around the beach in case the waves carried it to shore. That's when I ran into Miss Ainar by chance."

Hmm, no wonder she doesn't have her bow on her shoulder. But thankfully she was able to find Ainar so I guess it worked out?

"So that's what happened. Don't worry too much about the lost bow. You can use this for now." With that, I pulled a longbow out from the sub-space and handed it to Erwen.

"Huh? A bow made of bortal wood? Where did you get something so valuable?"

Wow, this thing is grade-four bortal wood? No wonder the color's so nice.

"I picked it up by chance." Erwen tilted her head at my succinct explanation, but she pieced things together before long.

"But who is this person...?" she asked, glancing at the man on the ground, who was dressed in casual clothes after being stripped of all his equipment by me.

"He's from Noark."

"Wow, I see! I'll use this gratefully...!" Erwen excitedly replied, obvious glee on her features. She was definitely a sweet kid.

Anyway, as we were chatting, the priestess joined the conversation. "I'm glad you were reunited with your comrades. I'm happy to see your faith was not in vain."

I introduced her while I was at it. "This is the priestess from the team Patzran belonged to. Her name is Ersina. I ran into her by chance as I was coming this way and we traveled here together."

"I am Lairin Ersina."

"Ah, right..." Erwen awkwardly acknowledged the priestess' greeting and asked me, "Mister, did anything else happen?"

"Anything else?"

"...Never mind." Erwen shook her head, then looked at Nebarce. "But why did you break this man's wrists instead of killing him?" It must have seemed strange to her that I had left someone from Noark alive.

"He might be useful."

"Hmm, really? He doesn't look it... Well, if you say so, Mister!"

I laughed woodenly and that particular topic thankfully ended there. To be honest, I had another reason for keeping him alive. I had a feeling that if I killed this guy, it might do something irreversible to my relationship with Amelia Rainwales.

Looks like their target was just Drous too.

Based on ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠what Nebarce said, it sounded like Amelia's team had run into some kind of issue too. It might even be possible to form a temporary alliance with them since the waves of monsters would start picking up soon. Considering how the last wave was bound to go, the more people on our side, the better.

"Then let's move."

Anyway, we got ready to leave since we couldn't stay here forever. Our destination was the east coast, where the first boss would appear. However, I never would have thought the team would still be scattered even after the first wave had started. Just what the hell was everyone else up to?

It's making me worried...

"I'll clear the way, so Ainar, you keep an eye on this guy to make sure he doesn't try anything funny."

Just in case, I kept Ainar out of the battle and ordered her to watch Nebarce. Then I picked up the pace as much as possible.

[You have defeated a Ranemut Warrior. EXP +3]

[You have defeated a Conch Horn. EXP +3]

[You defeated a Garbel...]

Because monsters from the sea were covering the entire island, it was hard to make headway. Well, the monsters were still only around rank seven, so travel was still possible, but the urgency continued to mount.

We'll have to find them all before the next wave.

Starting from the next wave, the difficulty of the monsters would go up dramatically, to the point that even I wouldn't be able to handle them alone.

"...Everyone will be okay, right?" Erwen muttered, obviously concerned by the large amount of monsters we were encountering.

I quickly answered, fearing she would jinx things. "Don't think anything weird. It'll be fine."

"But there are so many monsters..."

It'll be hard to survive alone—is that what you're thinking?

"Didn't I come all the way here with Ersina?"

Missha and Raven might have joined forces with Ersina's teammates somewhere else on the island. Well, that wasn't without its issues, either.

God damn it.

I recalled the conversation I had with Nebarce earlier. Even if my clanmates ran into Patzran's teammates by luck, that wouldn't necessarily be a good thing. I had asked how Amelia's team had known they would come to this island.

Nebarce had replied, "There's a traitor among them who passed their plans for this expedition on to us. Although only Lady Rainwales knows who it is."

There was a traitor among them too.

***

Arua Raven turned to the bushes and her eyes went wide.

"You're not the one I was looking for... But this isn't too bad, either."

Thankfully, the face she found was a familiar one.

"Miss Raven, we meet again."

"Mr. Patzran!" Raven, who had just been on pins and needles, breathed a sigh of relief before hurrying forward. "What on earth happened? Why are you so injured? Who's that on your back? Are they dead?"

Patzran flashed her a pained smile and set down the wizard he was carrying. Then he began to answer her questions. "He's just unconscious, don't worry."

"T-That's a relief. So, what happened?"

"...Plunderers ambushed us."

There had been an ambush, and they'd managed to escape, but the group ended up separated after being pursued. Now they were searching the island for ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠their teammates. After providing a summary of the situation, Patzran cautiously continued. "Although you're not the teammates I was looking for, I'm so glad I ran into you, Miss Raven. If you don't mind, could you help us out?"

"What do you mean?"

"One of our teammates is in the middle of the island. She stayed there all alone to give us a chance to escape. We have to save—oh, come to think of it, I don't see that barbarian." Patzran then noticed that Raven wasn't in top shape either and tilted his head. "Miss Raven, did something happen to you too? What happened to that beastman archer? He looks like he fell in the water."

"Well, we were about to leave the island when a storm suddenly brewed... It capsized our boat so everyone got separated."

After that, when Raven told him about their agreement to meet up in the middle of the island, Patzran's eyes lit up. "In the middle of the island? That's good, then. Why don't we head over there together? Since those awful bastards are still roaming the island, that will be much safer for all of us."

Put simply, he was proposing a temporary team-up. Raven thought it over for a moment before giving her answer. "Okay, let's do that." After all, there was no reason for her to refuse.

"I am Lairin Ersina."

"Ah, right..." Erwen awkwardly acknowledged the priestess' greeting and asked me, "Mister, did anything else happen?"

"Anything else?"

"...Never mind." Erwen shook her head, then looked at Nebarce. "But why did you break this man's wrists instead of killing him?" It must have seemed strange to her that I had left someone from Noark alive.

"He might be useful."

"Hmm, really? He doesn't look it... Well, if you say so, Mister!"

I laughed woodenly and that particular topic thankfully ended there. To be honest, I had another reason for keeping him alive. I had a feeling that if I killed this guy, it might do something irreversible to my relationship with Amelia Rainwales.

Looks like their target was just Drous too.

Based on what Nebarce said, it sounded like Amelia's team had run into some kind of issue too. It might even be possible to form a temporary alliance with them since the waves of monsters would start picking up soon. Considering how the last wave was bound to go, the more people on our side, the better.

"Then let's move."

Anyway, we got ready to leave since we couldn't stay here forever. Our destination was the east coast, where the first boss would appear. However, I never would have thought the team would still be scattered even after the first wave had started. Just what the hell was everyone else up to?

It's making me worried...

"I'll clear the way, so Ainar, you keep an eye on this guy to make sure he doesn't try anything funny."

Just in case, I kept Ainar out of the battle and ordered her to watch Nebarce. Then I picked up the pace as much as possible.

[You have defeated a Ranemut Warrior. EXP +3]

[You have defeated a Conch Horn. EXP +3]

[You defeated a Garbel...]

Because monsters from the sea were covering the entire island, it was hard to make headway. Well, the monsters were still only around rank seven, so travel was still possible, but the urgency continued to mount.

We'll have to find them all before the next wave.

Starting from the next wave, the difficulty of the monsters would go up dramatically, to the point that even I wouldn't be able to handle them alone.

"...Everyone will be okay, right?" Erwen muttered, obviously concerned by the large amount of monsters we were encountering.

I quickly answered, fearing she would jinx things. "Don't think anything weird. It'll be fine."

"But there are so many monsters..."

It'll be hard to survive alone—is that what you're thinking?

"Didn't I come all the way here with Ersina?"

Missha and Raven might have joined forces with Ersina's teammates somewhere else on the island. Well, that wasn't without its issues, either.

God damn it.

I recalled the conversation I had with Nebarce earlier. Even if my clanmates ran into Patzran's teammates by luck, that wouldn't necessarily be a good thing. I had asked how Amelia's team had known they would come to this island.

Nebarce had replied, "There's a traitor among them who passed their plans for this expedition on to us. Although only Lady Rainwales knows who it is."

There was a traitor among them too.

***

Arua Raven turned to the bushes and her eyes went wide.

"You're not the one I was looking for... But this isn't too bad, either."

Thankfully, the face she found was a familiar one.

"Miss Raven, we meet again."

"Mr. Patzran!" Raven, who had just been on pins and needles, breathed a sigh of relief before hurrying forward. "What on earth happened? Why are you so injured? Who's that on your back? Are they dead?"

Patzran flashed her a pained smile and set down the wizard he was carrying. Then he began to answer her questions. "He's just unconscious, don't worry."

"T-That's a relief. So, what happened?"

"...Plunderers ambushed us."

There had been an ambush, and they'd managed to escape, but the group ended up separated after being pursued. Now they were searching the island for their teammates. After providing a summary of the situation, Patzran cautiously continued. "Although you're not the teammates I was looking for, I'm so glad I ran into you, Miss Raven. If you don't mind, could you help us out?"

"What do you mean?"

"One of our teammates is in the middle of the island. She stayed there all alone to give us a chance to escape. We have to save—oh, come to think of it, I don't see that barbarian." Patzran then noticed that Raven wasn't in top shape either and tilted his head. "Miss Raven, did something happen to you too? What happened to that beastman archer? He looks like he fell in the water."

"Well, we were about to leave the island when a storm suddenly brewed... It capsized our boat so everyone got separated."

After that, when Raven told him about their agreement to meet up in the middle of the island, Patzran's eyes lit up. "In the middle of the island? That's good, then. Why don't we head over there together? Since those awful bastards are still roaming the island, that will be much safer for all of us."

Put simply, he was proposing a temporary team-up. Raven thought it over for a moment before giving her answer. "Okay, let's do that." After all, there was no reason for her to refuse.