Chapter 101
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 101
Chapter Title: Golem and Earth Mage (1)
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‘Still, we should stop by the village first, right?’
A week of camping had left the group exhausted.
So they planned to rest at the village they were passing through.
First, they needed a place to unpack their gear.
They also had to get permission from the locals.
The mercenary band wasn’t small by any means, so barging in without a word would only arouse suspicion.
‘The group has grown a lot.’
Me, the burly trio, their squires, the able-bodied men from Rabbit Farm, the young men from Evergreen, Cedric and his four idiot mercenaries, the barbarian Pergal, and six undead knights.
Twenty-two in total.
Everyone except me was armed.
On top of that, mercenaries had a poor reputation, always one step away from turning bandit.
So it wasn’t strange if the locals eyed us warily.
‘But with so many people, it definitely feels more secure.’
Having a crowd protecting me put my mind at ease.
How anxious had I been after losing Master, wandering alone?
Thinking back made me grateful for the present.
“Hmm... something feels off.”
We’d just entered the village when Cedric sidled up to me and spoke.
“Yeah.”
I agreed with him.
The village was far too quiet.
And with twenty-two outsiders arriving, not a soul had come out to look.
Definitely strange.
Well, in cases like this, a knight’s instincts would come in handy.
With that thought, I turned to Bear and Connal.
“Sir Bear, Sir Connal. Are there people in the village?”
The two men stared intently toward the village upon hearing me.
Soon enough, they answered.
“There are people, no doubt. But the signs of life feel sparse for a village this size.”
“I hear voices, but they’re speaking a different language from ours. Not Imperials—barbarians, it seems.”
Few people left in the village, and even those were barbarians, not Imperials.
That summed it up.
Not a normal situation by any stretch.
“Let’s head in for now.”
I led the group into the village.
Silence greeted us.
The houses stood intact, but utterly empty of people.
The eerie scene made us scan our surroundings warily when Connal pointed toward the village interior.
“The voices are coming from that direction.”
We followed his lead inward.
Soon, voices in conversation reached us.
We arrived at the central square.
Rough-looking barbarians sat around a roaring bonfire they’d built in the middle.
Clank.
Had they noticed our approach?
The barbarians grabbed weapons from beside them and rose one by one.
Their numbers matched ours.
The air grew tense and hostile.
Then Pergal stepped forward.
“Why are you the only ones here? Where are the villagers?”
Pergal addressed the barbarians in their tongue, so I had no clue what he said.
Luckily, Connal translated beside me.
“They’re dead.”
One of the barbarians replied.
Pergal shot back immediately.
“Who killed them?”
No answer this time.
Confirming their silence, Pergal asked another question.
“Why are you here?”
The barbarians stayed quiet again.
‘This feels bad.’
I studied them as I thought that.
No mana from any of them.
Not monsters, then.
They just seemed to hate us, plain and simple.
“Pergal, could you ask if we can stay in the village?”
I asked him.
He promptly turned to the barbarians.
“Can we stay here?”
“Do as you like. This village isn’t ours to begin with—how could we chase you off?”
Surprisingly, the barbarians accepted.
And with that, the conversation ended.
They watched us warily, whispering among themselves.
“Let’s find some empty houses.”
I turned away as I said it.
Pergal grumbled.
“It’s obvious they killed the villagers. They’ll probably attack us at night.”
I cast a wind barrier spell the moment I heard him.
A translucent hemispherical shield formed around us, centered on me.
Our words wouldn’t leak out now.
“Why do you think that?”
“They dodged both questions: who killed the villagers, and why they’re here.”
“Hmm...”
I did find the barbarians suspicious too.
But Pergal’s conclusion felt too extreme.
Hard to buy it.
Sensing my doubt, he fixed me with his fierce glare and spoke.
“Kid, barbarians hate Imperials. And vice versa. We were enemies from the start. Killing each other isn’t odd.”
Was that so?
Thinking about it, he had a point.
‘I’ve only seen barbarians in a good light.’
Most barbarians I’d met were friendly toward Imperials.
Pergal was rough around the edges but reasonable.
And every story I’d heard about barbarians was positive.
‘Nina praised them.’
Nina, the wind mage I met at Chester Castle.
She’d called barbarians people with souls.
But after this, it seemed not all barbarians fit that bill.
“For today, let’s all stick together.”
The barbarians’ watchful stares unnerved me.
I heightened my vigilance to the max.
As night deepened and the bonfire dwindled, the barbarians lying around it began to stir one by one.
Weapons gleamed in their hands: swords, hammers, hand axes, and more.
Varied types, but all shared one trait.
Plundered from Imperials.
“There seemed to be knights among them.”
One barbarian voiced his concern, and Katarasakh snorted dismissively.
“Knights are human too. And humans die when an axe splits their skull. No exceptions.”
Katarasakh, the tribe’s greatest warrior.
His confidence eased the tension gripping the warriors on the cusp of the raid.
“True, I can’t even imagine Katarasakh losing. We’ll win this time too.”
One barbarian grinned as he said it.
No one contradicted him.
Katarasakh was a champion among champions, claiming the title of top warrior before even reaching adulthood.
They firmly believed he’d lead them to victory, as always.
The mood warmed.
No one paid it any mind.
Not one among them had ever crossed blades with a knight.
“Let’s go.”
The other warriors hefted massive, unwieldy axes in one hand.
Katarasakh lightly gripped his in his right and led the way.
Toward the outsiders’ camp.
“Chief, someone’s guarding the house entrance.”
The empty house the outsiders had chosen as lodging.
One barbarian pointed it out while scouting.
Seven men stood boldly before it, watching the surroundings.
Probably guarding the horses and wagons.
“Doesn’t matter. Kill the ones out front quick, then handle whoever comes out after.”
Katarasakh stated firmly, eyeing his prey.
“And that big one’s mine.”
Among the seven guards, he singled out the burliest.
Staring at the giant fueled his battle lust.
First time facing someone bigger than him.
Thud, thud.
Led by Katarasakh, the group advanced on the house.
Once close enough, they broke into a sprint toward the guards.
But soon they realized something was wrong.
The targets’ reactions were unnatural.
“What the—?”
Over twenty barbarians charging them.
By all common sense, the enemy should be fleeing in panic by now.
Or waking their sleeping comrades.
But the seven men held their ground, faces utterly emotionless.
The bizarre turn sowed unease among most barbarians, but they didn’t slow.
They trusted Katarasakh.
“Hah!”
To reward that faith?
Katarasakh lunged at the giant.
He swung his two-handed axe down with both hands.
The blade fell too fast for any normal man to react.
The head would split any second.
He was certain.
And then—
Splat!
Katarasakh’s head soared through the air.
His face still bore a confident smile of victory.
Thud, roll, roll.
The flying head hit the ground, tumbled a few times, and stopped.
“Wha—?”
Katarasakh slain in one blow.
The barbarians, stunned and uncomprehending, stumbled into battle anyway.
And paid the price for their ignorance.
“Aaaagh!”
“S-Spare me!”
“Kragh!”
Screams erupted everywhere.
The barbarians barely swung before the seven guards’ swords claimed their lives.
An overwhelming gap in skill.
Stab!
Amid the chaos, the group’s second-in-command used his comrades’ sacrifices as a springboard to land a hit.
He buried his axe in the enemy’s crown.
A hard-won success.
He grinned brightly.
But it faded fast.
The wounded foe moved as if unscathed.
“Didn’t you say an axe to the head kills anyone...”
The second murmured.
It became his last words.
Stab.
The man with the axe in his skull thrust his sword.
His blade pierced the barbarian’s heart.
The man slumped lifelessly.
Creeeak.
At that moment, the house door opened.
A boy with a youthful face stepped out slowly, flanked by two hulking men.
His features were heavy with sleep, as if just roused from bed.
“Leave about five alive. We need to interrogate them.”
The boy’s order rang out.
His loyal knights, heeding only him, redoubled their efforts.
In moments, they thinned the barbarians’ ranks.
The five lucky survivors stood frozen, staring blankly around.
Their chief dead at the battle’s start, comrades already cold corpses.
Unmistakable defeat.
Clang.
In the end, the barbarians dropped their weapons.
Their first loss since crossing into the Empire.