Chapter 29
Chapter 29
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Twin Canyon (2)
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The inn was a scene of blood and corpses everywhere.
"Ugh... h-heuk... h-heuk..."
The mercenary sobbed, trembling uncontrollably. His comrades had all been dead for quite some time now. His eyes, filled with terror, were locked onto the majestic silhouette slowly approaching.
He was a monster. Or rather, a monster wearing human skin. To take down nearly ten mercenaries single-handedly in less than half an hour—no way. Sure, he'd heard tales of superhuman freaks who defied common sense somewhere in the world, but he'd never dreamed of running into one in this backwater dump.
At this rate, he was done for, no doubt about it.
Facing the barbarian head-on, the club in his hand looked pathetically like a toothpick. The mercenary frantically scanned his surroundings. His gaze landed on an axe embedded in a comrade's skull, having split the helmet clean open.
He wasn't some expert, but even to an amateur's eye, that axe was no ordinary weapon.
'Th-that thing... it packed a serious punch... It tore through an iron helmet like it was paper... If I can just throw it right, maybe I can turn the tables and kill that monster...'
The mercenary swallowed hard. Gripping the handle, he yanked it free with a sickening schluck, bloodied axe blade and all. He steadied his trembling arms, summoning every ounce of strength from his nursing days, and hurled the axe.
Pathetically, it traced a parabola weaker than an old man's piss stream.
Whoosh... thunk, thunk-thud...
The axe blade rolled feebly across the floor, a far cry from its earlier ferocious flight like a bird of prey. The barbarian picked it up from his feet and shook his head.
"That's not how you throw an axe."
"H-heuk... h-heuk..."
"Grip it tight in your hand, gather your strength in your muscles, snap your wrist fluidly, and push off with your fingers to give it full spin—like this."
Whirr-whirr-whack!
The mercenary got one last clear look at the proper way to throw an axe.
Splat-crunch!
The price of the lesson was his life. His terror-stricken face split neatly in two, and his hand thudded onto the wooden floor.
"That's how you throw it."
Kadim murmured quietly as he approached and retrieved the axe. He wiped off the blood and gore, then slung it over a chair and sat down.
"How's that booze coming, innkeeper? The snacks are all ready."
The innkeeper, who'd been hiding behind the low platform, peeked out. He responded in a voice half-fainted with fear.
"Y-yes...?! P-please wait! I'll bring it right away!"
On special occasions, the innkeeper broke out the mead he'd stashed away tight—and today, it flowed as a chaser.
*
He filled his mug to the brim and chugged it down.
The mead had barely any sweetness and a solid kick to it. Still, its thick, clinging texture, infused with rich honey and fruit notes, made it dangerously easy to keep drinking.
Not quite as refreshing as cool beer, but satisfying enough. Kadim drained three mugs in a row and said,
"This stuff's damn good. What'd you mix in with the honey?"
After receiving a 1,000-Luden gold coin, the shadow over the innkeeper's face had lifted somewhat. Serving this barbarian still made him tense, though.
"R-rowan berries, wild apples, and mountain strawberries, sir. Glad you like it."
"Got any more stashed? I could down one more bottle before I head out."
"P-pardon?"
"Why? Wouldn't you all breathe easier once I'm gone?"
The innkeeper looked flustered, unsure how to reply. He mumbled something about fetching more booze and slipped away.
Clearing the mercenaries' corpses fell to Duncan and the villagers. For some reason, Duncan was hauling them out one by one when the onlookers outside started drifting in hesitantly to lend a hand.
The young men teamed up to drag the bodies outside. The women brought buckets and rags to scrub the bloodstains. Someone even fetched a cart, and soon the whole cleanup was underway like clockwork.
Thanks to them, the inn was back to normal in no time. Duncan approached Kadim with a dazed look.
"Everyone's pretty shaken up, but they don't seem too torn up about the mercenaries dying. Did those bastards cause a lot of trouble around here...?"
"Have a drink, Duncan. Good work on the cleanup."
"Th-thank you, sir!"
"One more bottle's coming soon. We'll finish it and hit the road."
"Pardon?"
He reflexively questioned it, but soon had no choice but to nod along.
Whether the mercenaries had been thugs or not, killing ten men wasn't something that'd blow over quietly. Word gets to the local lord, and trouble brews for sure.
Disappointing, but unavoidable. He'd hoped for a comfy night under a roof for once, but nope—back to camping. Still beats rotting in a dungeon as a criminal.
He let out a small sigh and took a swig. The booze—first in ages—hit hard and fast. Urp. He turned his head to belch. Duncan glanced around warily, then whispered,
"By the way, sir... Did you drink that monster's—no, demon's blood again this time?"
"Nah. That blood's still in your bag, right?"
"R-right. I was a bit shocked, honestly. I knew you were strong to begin with, but now you're fighting like you drank it even without touching the stuff..."
"..."
Come to think of it, yeah.
This body had been pretty tough from the start, but only by normal human standards. A casual kick shattering a shinbone? No way before.
'Is this body getting stronger too...?'
Same deal in the first playthrough.
A body that started out as just a burly guy got honed to superhuman levels after slaying countless monsters and demons. Even then, facing demon realm heavies meant relying on demon blood—but against regular monsters, he'd have been fine barehanded.
Unlike real-world flesh with hard growth limits. Maybe the game's stat system auto-applied here. Less need for demon blood? Hell yeah, he'd welcome the body's growth.
He polished off the extra bottle of mead the innkeeper brought too. Duncan wobbled tipsily, but Kadim remained stone-cold sober. A barbarian's iron constitution shrugged off even stiff liquor without a buzz.
Just as he was about to leave, though, some old geezer shuffled up to the table.
"Pardon the intrusion, sir mercenary. Might this humble village elder have a moment of your time?"
Kadim twitched his cheek in annoyance. Still, he didn't blow him off and leave right away.
"You're the village head, huh."
"Yes, I wear that hat, unworthy as I am."
"Sorry for the hassle. Burying ten bodies ain't easy."
"No, no—it wasn't your fault, sir. Those thugs just got bit by snakes, that's all."
Kadim arched a brow.
The elder flashed a knowing smile. That was the cover story.
"They claimed they were guarding the village—what really happened?"
"Bold-faced lies not worth a word. They posed as mercenaries, but they were thieves through and through. Extorting 'protection' here at the inn, terrorizing everyone."
"So why'd they head into those woods?"
"Not to protect us—they went to catch snakes for snake liquor. Probably heard it boosts virility somewhere."
"..."
"We were all dreading another drunken rampage on the womenfolk... Thanks to you, that's off the table. As village head, father, grandfather—speaking for everyone—thank you, sir."
"Save your thanks for the snakes, elder."
The elder smiled faintly and nodded. Mercenaries off to catch snakes get bitten and wiped out. Neat, tidy—everyone happy but the dead guys.
One question lingered, though. Kadim crossed his arms and leaned back.
"How's the Free City Alliance divided administratively? Who's ruling each district? Not like the empire with emperors and lords, I bet."
The elder stroked his chin beard thoughtfully. Not your average barbarian merc question.
"Major cities' councils rule the core districts directly. Outlying areas like ours fall under council envoys and their aides from places like the Dellutana Council."
"Then why not call in that envoy sooner to boot the mercs? No military pull or mages among the aides?"
"No, sir—they have council guards and even high mages among the aides, but..."
The elder hesitated. He glanced at Kadim before continuing.
"Truth is, that's partly why I'm here. Feels cheeky asking more after you already helped, but... we're out of options."
Aha, figures.
No free cover-up from the villagers. They buttered him up for a favor. Kadim figured the elder was sharp for a frontier headman.
Still, if it sounded like a pain, he'd pass. He jerked his chin: spill it. The elder bowed politely and got to the point.
"As I said, Eckl falls under the Dellutana council envoy. We've lived worry-free paying tribute and taxes on time—he handled issues for us.
Couldn't fix something huge like the 'Forest You Can't Return From,' but that wasn't a big deal. Not all sides bordered it, and just stay out.
But now things have changed.
"The envoy's in nearby Remtana, a small city. To get here, you must cross the Twin Canyon to the northeast. But lately, a horrific monster's blocking the path."
For some reason, the envoy had ignored it for months. Villagers risking the canyon nearly died. East was impassable mountains, west the forest—no detour.
Eckl was fully cut off.
That's how the mercs ran rampant. No law meant it could happen again anytime. They grew their own food, but salt and basics? No way without trade.
To survive, they needed that monster dead ASAP.
"Heard you slew a massive beast in that forest. Thought it village gossip, but seeing your skills... Mind helping us desperate folk one more time, sir?"
Kadim silently crossed his arms, furrowing his brow.
The barbarian's interest wasn't the villagers' survival. He seemed deep in thought, then called the merchant to unroll a map.
"Elder, this the 'Twin Canyon' you're talking about?"
"Y-yes, exactly."
"Then the thing blocking the road's gotta be that bastard."
"...Which one?"
"..."
The elder's eyes widened in shock at Kadim's words.
"How'd you know? Been through there before?"
"Yeah. Long time ago."
Before your granddad's granddad was born, probably.
Kadim skipped the rest and stretched lazily. He got the gist—time to haggle.
No freebies for non-demons. He propped his chin and eyed the elder. Quick on the uptake, the man leaned in and whispered,
"We're not flush—can't pay much. But lives are at stake, so the village pooled what we had..."
"How much you got?"
"...10,000 Luden."
"Make it double."
The elder's eyes bugged out.
20,000 Luden? For a monster too tough for most mercs, sure—but that was steep.
Kadim wasn't just gouging. There was reason for doubling. If 10,000 was their offer, 20,000 was fair.
He lowered his voice and explained.
"About that canyon monster."
"..."
"It's not one. It's two."
Hence the 'Twin' in Twin Canyon.
The elder blinked vacantly at Kadim.