145
My Villains Chapter 145
38. Golden Mire (2)
A thin crescent moon peeked out among the stars. A white sailboat flowed along the silvery winding waterway.
Even that beautiful light couldn't lift the dark clouds hanging over Longville. While torches flickered precariously in the night wind, dog-like creatures lay on their bellies in the vast wheat field.
I was hiding in the bushes on the hillside, observing the Anupads.
"Ugh..."
Beldin fidgeted unnecessarily, breaking the quiet silence. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and spoke.
"...It's impossible for their numbers to have increased this much in just one day."
"Forget about the numbers. Were they originally like this?"
The Anupads were in groups of twenty to sixty or seventy. About a dozen of these clusters were tightly surrounding Longville's palisade.
The young scribe quickly waved his hands.
"No, no, my lord. If they had been in this state, we wouldn't have been able to escape."
"Then?"
"Until last night, most of them were gathered near the gate. Thanks to that, we were able to escape using the secret passage."
I scratched my eyebrow and confirmed again.
"That secret passage, you said it leads to the inner castle, right?"
"Yes, that's correct."
Longville's residential area was situated on a long, rocky hill.
Climbing the western slope led to the gate, passing through the residents' area, and reaching the eastern end where the lord's mansion and inner castle stood.
Beldin pointed towards the inner castle and added,
"To be precise, it leads to beneath the earthen wall. They converted a place where a small stream once flowed into a secret passage."
"The Anupads don't know about it?"
"Of course not, my lord."
As the scribe nodded firmly, Utequais, who was sitting on a tree stump, spoke up.
"Anupad, stupid beast."
The large barbarian spat out something he was chewing and continued.
"Even with large numbers, can't stop us."
"You think I'm worried about the numbers?"
I frowned and continued.
"This is an army. It's not just a bunch of weaklings, there will be queens, generals, shamans, and lieutenants mixed in here and there. We shouldn't take this lightly."
"Shouldn't take lightly. But no need to think too hard."
Utequais grinned and handed me something.
"What's this?"
"Fruit."
I stared down at the fruit that looked like an acorn or chestnut.
"What about the fruit? Are we going to use this to lure them?"
"Dogs like meat. Can't lure with fruit."
"Then why did you give me this?"
"Try eating. Well-ripened and sweet."
What the hell, this guy.
I couldn't help but laugh.
"Hey, you, can you even swallow food looking at that pack of dogs?"
"Goes down well. Strength and wisdom appear when full. Great warrior must know how to fill stomach in front of enemy."
"Well, if you couldn't even speak..."
Shaking my head, I bit into the fruit with a crunch. After spitting out the skin, I chewed the white flesh.
It is sweet. The aroma is nutty too.
Savoring the sweetness left on my tongue, I turned to Utequais.
"...Got any more?"
He chuckled and handed me three or four more fruits.
By the time I finished eating all the fruits, a pretty good plan came to mind, as if Utequais's words weren't entirely wrong.
The Anupad 'Ownshida' was both a princess and a general. Befitting the queen's successor, she was twice the size of her kin and about ten times stronger.
Ownshida had four mates, but she particularly favored the youngest, 'Pshaki'. Though small in stature, he was an attractive male with rare blue fur.
The young male diligently licked the back of the general's hand. Ownshida's scars gradually faded due to Pshaki's strange magic.
Grrrr.
Ownshida made a pleased sound while resting her chin on her hand. As the general's eyelids began to droop, the soldiers also rested quietly.
That's when it happened.
Ownshida's nose twitched at the smell of something burning. Soon her ears perked up, and her eyes opened wide.
Krung!
As Ownshida raised her head, her subordinates quickly got up. Then they started barking fiercely.
The alert posture of the general's unit soon spread to the entire army. Hundreds of Anupads perked up their ears and barked.
Then, fire arrows began to rain down from Longville's gate.
Bark! Bark!
At Ownshida's howl, the Anupads at the gate quickly retreated.
Despite the general's caution, most of the fire arrows missed pathetically. The distance between the gate and the Anupads was too great to overcome with poor archery.
Instead, fire began to catch on the wheat and corn trampled by the monsters. As some Anupads whimpered and tucked their tails, the gate opened.
"Uwaaa-!"
"Charge-!"
About 50 soldiers shouted. They even banged their spears against small square shields.
Ownshida bared her teeth and glared at the gate. She wanted to rush in and tear those humans to pieces right away, but she couldn't disobey her mother's orders.
Her howling continued. At the howl signaling battle preparation, about half of the army began to gather near the gate.
"...Alright. Let's begin now."
At Swordsman Simos's words, the boy Mage Ethan frowned.
"Why do I have to take this risk?"
"Stop talking nonsense and just cast the spell."
"I can't understand. A Mage of the Lao family having to follow the orders of a mere wandering knight."
Annoyed, Simos scratched under her eye patch.
"If you're so unhappy, why didn't you say so earlier, why make a fuss now?"
"That's because my sister agreed before I could even speak up."
"Then, is your sister stupid for listening to Lord Phoenix?"
"...'Lord Phoenix'?"
As Ethan narrowed his eyes, Simos drew her longsword and snapped:
"Hurry up and cast the spell. For Siren and Zhanabas's sake too."
"Ugh, damn it."
The two began to chant spells.
Grrrr.
A golem rose from beneath their feet. It was something Siren had prepared.
Ethan hadn't learned how to create golems yet, but he could do simple control.
"Go. Sweep them all away."
At the magic-infused words, the figure made of earth and sand ran down the mountain. The heavy footsteps of the golem soon reached the ears of the Anupads.
Then, electric current began to flow through Simos's longsword. A blue light, difficult even for her to control, shot up through the bushes.
Arrr-!
Bark! Bark bark!
The noisy dog sounds gradually drew closer.
Ignoring this, Simos swung her longsword over her head as if signaling.
"Ugh, it's blinding. Move away a bit!"
Grumbling like that, Ethan took out several rune fragments from his chest and threw them towards the hillside as if scattering them.
Simos, who had extinguished the blue light by withdrawing her magic, brought over a horse tied nearby. It was Spotty, Phoenix's favorite horse.
She mounted the horse with practiced movements and pulled Ethan up while glancing down the slope.
"Start setting them off soon."
"Already?"
"We might get caught if we get too greedy."
"Even so, they're just Anupads, you're being too cautious..."
Ethan frowned mid-sentence. It was because his connection with the golem had been cut off.
'I gave the order roughly, but it's already destroyed?'
"Ethan, quickly!"
"Ah, alright, I got it."
Ethan quickly chanted the spell.
As the twelve-word mumbling ended, the rune fragments he had scattered all flashed at once.
Boom!
Earth, sand, and rocks exploded, causing a small landslide.
Suddenly, Ethan felt a chill down his spine. The whimpering cries mixed with the roar were much closer than expected.
"Si, Simos- ugh."
Before Ethan could open his mouth, Simos pulled the reins.
As Spotty started galloping against the trail, Simos and Ethan quickly lowered their posture.
As the commotion reached its peak, I crawled through the bushes and slightly raised my head to look.
There was only one pack of Anupads visible nearby. The rest seemed to have all run to the west, that is, towards the gate.
"...Looks like they received the letter."
It was the druid Zhanabas who deserved credit for delivering the letter to Longville. He had tied letters to several mountain birds and sent them flying.
As I quietly cheered, Ellen, who was following behind, made a crying sound.
"Are we, *sniff* there yet?"
"Just a bit further. Is it very hard?"
"I feel like *gasp* I'm dying."
Right now, we had smeared dirt and sand all over our bodies. It was a necessary measure considering the Anupads' keen sense of smell.
"If only I could use magic..."
Ellen was the same. She had dirt caked all over her hair and looked like she was about to burst into tears at any moment.
"Ugh, what a situation. I want to *cough* wash up quickly."
"Woman, you're exaggerating."
"Eek,"
Ellen barely swallowed a scream at the sudden voice from the side. The one who appeared with a blackened face and only his eyes gleaming was none other than Utequais.
"You scared me, you barbarian!"
At Ellen's whisper, Utequais, who had smeared animal dung on his arms and legs, grinned.
"Should have disguised you properly. What a shame."
"...Ugh, you're crazy."
Ellen muttered like that and shuddered. Perhaps she recalled how Utequais had tried to smear dung on her hair before they set out?
Regardless, Utequais turned to me and whispered.
"Phoenix. We must run now."
"Now? Wouldn't it be better to get closer?"
"Wrong."
He shook his head with a firm expression.
"Everyone's poor at hiding. If we go further, we'll be discovered. Better to run."
"...Hmm, I guess we have no choice."
I pulled out a javelin from my waist. The group following behind also quietly drew their weapons and prepared for battle.
Meeting their tense eyes, I whispered quietly.
"From the moment I shout, break through with all your might. We have enough time, so there's no need to rush that much. We need to move calmly."
I glanced at the Anupads. The ones guarding the area below the inner castle were a normal pack of about 30 to 40.
"Utequais and I will be at the front. Beldin and the soldiers will be second, and Amias, you'll be next. Protect Ellen and Siren thoroughly. Understood?"
"Yes."
"Zhanabas will be last. Your task is to take care of anyone who falls behind."
I tightened the straps of my backpack after glancing at Zhanabas, who nodded with a stern expression. As the inside of the backpack wriggled, I couldn't help but smile bitterly.
"Lump, it's going to get a bit bumpy now."
As I said that and patted the backpack, Lump made a small ‘gak’ sound and then fell silent again.
When I tried to leave it with Moses and Ethan, it made such a fuss that I was worried it'd be discovered, but since getting into my backpack, it hadn't made a sound. This guy is really something else.
"...stein."
After a long mumbling, Siren's spell was complete. The dirt and sand on everyone's bodies hardened like stone armor.
"It should block at least one decent attack."
"Thank you, Siren."
I slowly stood up, gripping the square shield I had been carrying on my shoulder. The shield was bought at the mountain lodge, made of wooden boards with iron rims. I wonder how long this shield will hold up.
"Let's go."
I walked steadily out of the bushes, shoulder to shoulder with Utequais.
After about five or six steps, I made eye contact with an Anupad.
Gu, gulp-!
Just before it could howl, my javelin pierced its chest.
As the Anupads turned their heads in surprise, I drew Hrunting and shouted.
"Run-!"
There was no need to look back. We just ran with all our might. The distance of about 50 meters was halved in just two breaths.
Bark, bark bark-!
The dog barking was noisy.
Swish-
I blocked a few arrows with my shield while observing them. Anupads with spears were forming ranks.
...Their reaction is quick? What's going on?
Grrrr!
One Anupad was wielding a whip at its subordinates. Seeing how the formation was completed in an instant with just a couple of lashes, I could recognize its identity.
'Lieutenant Shitug'. In the game, he appears as the second pick-name in Chapter 3.
Quickly scanning, I noticed two more notable ones. They were random named ones.
The one with a short snout and patchy fur was 'Halfblood Juama', and the slightly brighter colored one was 'Red Pshaka'.
"Damn it all."
I thought it was an ordinary pack, but up close, they were an elite unit with three named ones mixed in.
Feeling the rising sense of crisis, I quickly raised my blood energy.
My vision turned red.