Chapter 121
Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 121
Chapter Title: The Outsider and the Great Wolf Tribe (2)
'A real grimoire is here?'
While moving as the Barbarian man had instructed,
I could truly sense the magic power of a grimoire.
There were three grimoires in total that I detected.
Since I could also feel the power of an Earth Mage along with them, it seemed the Great Wolf Tribe's shaman was the one carrying them.
In other words, the shaman was still alive.
Even so, I had to go check it out.
'If I track the magic power, I should reach the Great Wolf Tribe's temporary camp, so no worries about getting lost.'
Cedric, our guide.
I periodically told him the direction of the magic power, helping him find the way.
Thanks to that,
we safely reached our destination.
"Looks like we're here."
Hearing Cedric's words, I looked ahead.
There was a ruined clearing.
All the tents where the Barbarians had lived were collapsed, leaving only debris on the ground, and grotesque humanoids and monsters wandered aimlessly, leaving footprints on top of it.
Turning my gaze, an even more horrific scene unfolded.
'Ah...'
Scattered haphazardly across the clearing were corpses stripped of flesh, clearly the Barbarians'.
It was a gruesome sight.
I had considered the possibility of something like this happening, but seeing it with my own eyes left a bad taste.
'If we hadn't set out the day before, even rushing here wouldn't have changed the outcome. Still... it doesn't sit right.'
The grotesque humanoids and monsters.
The fact that they wandered around so blankly and purposelessly meant the battle had ended quite a while ago.
So even if we'd hurried and arrived a bit earlier, the result would have been much the same.
'Let's find the shaman.'
With that thought, I looked toward where the magic power emanated.
There was a hill.
Oddly, the soil color there was distinctly different from the surroundings.
Not a single weed in sight.
It looked like the earth had been freshly turned over.
'The Barbarian man who told us the location said the Great Wolf Tribe's shaman had once moved the earth without even lifting a hand, right?'
It was something that man had said.
Recalling that explained why such a suspicious hill had appeared.
The shaman must have used Earth Magic to hide.
'Let's clear this place out first.'
If the shaman were dead, grabbing the grimoires would have been enough, but knowing she was alive changed things.
So my plan was to rescue her and take the grimoires as a reward.
And the first step toward that?
To cleanly eliminate the grotesque humanoids and monsters that had attacked the Great Wolf Tribe, ensuring a safe rescue for the shaman.
'Enemy numbers under a hundred.'
They must have started with more.
But after battling the Great Wolf Tribe's Barbarians, their ranks had thinned considerably.
I could easily spot their corpses on the ground, confirming my guess.
"Combat team, forward."
At my words, Bear and Conall stepped up.
Pergal grabbed his axe and advanced as well.
And my summoned undead took the front lines.
In total, eleven in the combat team.
We'd selected only those with knight-level skills for this dedicated fighting unit.
This way, we could minimize casualties on our side.
"I'll open with Fire Magic."
Saying that to the combat team, I stepped forward.
The Fire Magic I'd mentioned to them.
It wasn't Flame Sphere.
It was spreading flames.
'I'd love to use Flame Sphere to end this quickly, but that would draw every grotesque humanoid and monster in Savage Mountain here. No Flame Sphere.'
The explosive boom from Flame Sphere magic.
No way to suppress it.
I'd considered using Wind Barrier to block the sound, but it was impractical in real combat.
The barrier created by Wind Barrier.
To eliminate the boom, I'd have to cast Flame Sphere inside it.
But that would put me in the blast radius, risking getting caught in the explosion.
For my own safety, that option was out.
'And while Wind Barrier can block sound, it can't stop the ground from shaking. Gotta account for them being drawn by vibrations too.'
In short, no high-powered spells.
That's why I was deploying the combat team.
They could clean up while keeping noise and vibrations to a minimum.
'Spreading flames.'
Hoping no one got hurt, I cast the spell.
Little Flame Grimoire (Lv. ?)
Spreading Flames
A small flame bloomed before me.
Roar!
It quickly grew, soon becoming a fireball the size of my torso.
The first time I'd used spreading flames, it was only head-sized; this was a clear improvement.
Whoosh!
I launched the completed fireball forward, and it struck a monster's torso.
A giant covered in eyes all over its body.
Its unique form had made it stand out.
Boom!
After a blast that felt cute compared to Flame Sphere,
the monster's upper body erupted in fierce flames.
Small embers from there flew to the surrounding grotesque humanoids and monsters.
Roar!
Soon, their heads ignited simultaneously.
Was that the signal?
The combat team, waiting quietly, charged into the fray.
'With this much firepower, we should handle most enemies easily.'
Thinking that, I watched the combat team.
'Oh!'
Every time Gilbert swung his sword, the grotesque humanoids and monsters in its path were sliced apart cleanly.
His innate strength, boosted by magic tools, allowed such overwhelming performance.
Bear and Conall showed similar prowess.
They cleaved through blocking foes in single strokes.
'Giant's fighting well too.'
Turning my gaze, I watched the Giant.
Trusting its defense, it ignored guarding entirely.
Grotesque humanoids and monsters swarmed and pummeled it excitedly, but their attacks only left marks on rock—nothing more.
Focus on hitting the Giant?
Of course, dodging its strikes became impossible.
Crush!
Each time the Giant swung its solid fist, bodies burst, blood spraying everywhere.
A flashy fighting style.
While enjoying the thrilling battle, I shifted my gaze to the undead knights.
'Undead knights are fine too.'
Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Zeta.
These six were performing admirably on the battlefield, like the burly trio I'd scouted earlier or the Giant.
Might be my imagination, but they felt stronger than when they'd attacked me under the Silent Compliance Society.
Probably true.
Or at least equivalent now.
One clear thing: they could easily beat average knights.
'Pergal?'
Finally, I checked Pergal.
The eldest among us, he fought impressively despite his aged body.
But it looked precarious.
Unlike the Giant, he wasn't holding back.
Probably to die in battle and reach paradise.
Why was Pergal so obsessed with paradise?
As I pondered that unanswered question,
Conall suddenly called out to me.
"Heros!"
Conall rushed toward me at high speed.
Pointing at the hill where we suspected the shaman was buried, he said,
"There are people inside there."
"Yeah, I know."
"Did you figure out how many?"
"Isn't it just one?"
I'd only detected one survivor: the shaman.
But Conall's reaction suggested more inside.
"No, at least forty."
"That many?"
Dozens of survivors?
Totally unexpected.
But we couldn't just leave them.
'If we can save them, we should.'
I hurried to the hill with the group.
In the pitch-black cave,
people were packed tightly inside.
Members of the Great Wolf Tribe.
When the grotesque humanoids and monsters attacked the tribe, the warriors had evacuated the elderly, women, and children here.
The shaman had sealed the entrance with magic.
That's how they'd survived.
But that was it.
No word from the warriors, and the people realized they were buried alive here.
The mood was inevitably grim.
"Mom, I'm scared..."
"How long do we have to stay here?"
"Can't breathe."
One person's negative words led to two more,
then three.
Negative energy spread quickly.
But there was one with a firm spirit.
"Calm down. We won't die here. Lord Acovar will surely save us."
A young woman spoke calmly.
She couldn't fully shift the mood, but she reduced the frequency of negative outbursts.
'Lord Acovar...'
Sismays, the Great Wolf Tribe's shaman.
She prayed fervently.
For the god to save everyone here.
Then.
Rumble rumble.
The soil blocking the cave entrance stirred.
Someone outside was digging through the dirt pile.
"Eek!"
"Did the monsters notice we're hiding here?"
"What do we do?!"
The people in the cave stared terrified at the entrance.
No place left to run.
But Sismays reacted differently.
'Could it be?'
Maybe the god had answered her prayers.
Sismays harbored that hope.
Meanwhile, the noise from outside grew louder.
The outsider was almost at the entrance.
"We're done for soon."
"Damn it! If we're dying, let's fight!"
"Yeah, that's how we reach paradise."
In the extreme situation,
some began to steel their resolve.
That moment.
Thud!
Something pierced the dirt pile at the entrance.
A crude hand, like it was molded from earth.
"Kyaa!"
"It's a monster!"
"Everyone, grab your weapons!"
Chaos gripped the people.
Regardless, the crude hand diligently scraped away the blocking soil.
Finally, the entrance was revealed.
But what they saw wasn't a monster—it was a person.
'Who is that?'
Sismays narrowed her eyes.
The light pouring in from outside was too bright to make out the figure clearly.
But one thing was certain.
He had golden hair.
Glinting beautifully in the sunlight.
Humm.
Then, light particles gathered at the entrance.
They formed a ring, floated high, and illuminated the surroundings.
The orbs of light rising.
The sight was so beautiful that most looked up in awe.
But not Sismays.
Now she could clearly see their savior's face.
'Beautiful.'
The savior was a boy with a youthful face.
But his appearance was extraordinary.
Beautiful enough to seem god-crafted.
Yet Sismays wasn't swayed by looks.
Something more striking caught her eye.
His inner power.
The moment she witnessed the vast magic power within him,
she was convinced the boy was Acovar's incarnation.
No mere human could possess such immense magic.
"Ah! Lord Acovar...!"
Acovar had answered her prayers.
Realizing this, Sismays unwittingly let out a cry of joy.
Overwhelmed with emotion, she closed her eyes.
So she didn't see it.
The boy standing awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.