Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: The Desert Rose
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Monsters, bandits, quicksand, sandstorms, mirages, and more.
The great southern desert is rife with all sorts of dangers.
-Kuoooooo!
One of those dangers was right before their eyes. A giant monster, the sandworm.
It was a powerful beast in its own right, but the massive sinkholes it left in its wake made it the grim reaper for any caravan crossing the desert.
"Eeek! Do something, mage!"
The caravan leader Skelt, who had been bragging boastfully just minutes ago, shook Damian's arm wildly.
Damian was the only mercenary from Skelt's adventurer guild. There were other armed men, but they were originally part of the caravan.
"Uwaaaah!"
"We've got the worst luck. I thought we'd just deal with bandits!"
They too had turned pale like Skelt, screaming or flattening themselves to the ground.
They might have faced simple monsters or bandits before, but this was clearly their first time seeing a sandworm.
Seeing the people's reactions, even the camels carrying the luggage drooled and thrashed about wildly.
The great desert had another name: the demon realm. Even the most experienced guides could slip up if they got overconfident, and one mistake meant certain death.
-Shaaaah.
The sandworm didn't attack right away. Instead, it circled the caravan.
The path of the massive sand worm caved in deeply, gradually narrowing the ground they could stand on.
This was the sandworm's hunting method. Bury the prey in the sand to suffocate it, then enjoy a slow meal.
Damian shoved the obstructive Skelt to one corner and headed to the edge, still untouched by the sinkhole.
'This should be enough.'
As Damian stepped forward, jagged stone scales erupted from the spot. At the same time, a considerable weight pressed down on his entire body, sinking his feet into the sand. The backlash from black magic—Stone Scales.
-Thudoom!
The stone scale boulder pierced the sandworm's body. Not only its hardness, but its speed and accuracy had improved dramatically.
This was thanks to the proficiency increase in black magic—Stone Scales from his duel with Imur.
"Kweeeeeek!"
The sandworm writhed, impaled on the boulder. Damian focused his mind again, forming new boulders from the existing one.
Sharp stone scales tore the sandworm apart from the inside, blue blood pouring out like a waterfall.
The sticky blood hit the scorching sand and bubbled up with smoke.
Thud! The sandworm's body slipped off the stone scale boulder and fell. After one final shudder, it lay still.
"Impressive, mage. I've never seen rock magic like this in my life."
Skelt beamed and clung to Damian. Of course, he didn't forget to praise his own foresight in hiring him.
Damian's expression, however, was lukewarm.
'It's weaker than I thought.'
Looking at the half-buried corpse in the sand, he noticed wounds that weren't his doing. Had it been hunted by someone else?
As he pondered this.
"Uwaaaak! Another one! There's another one!!"
Skelt turned and bellowed. Another sandworm burst from the sand where it had been lurking.
By its shape, it looked female. Perhaps mates with the dead one.
The new sandworm was in far worse condition than the one just killed.
Arrows stuck in spots all over its body, flesh dangling and bleeding—likely the male had been hunting food for its injured mate.
Of course, Damian didn't care about a monster's circumstances. Just as he prepared to attack again with Stone Scales.
Kwaaang!
A massive explosion erupted from the sandworm's maw. Someone had attached a bomb to an arrow and fired it.
Turning toward the arrow's origin, he saw a figure cloaked head to toe in hood and mantle racing across the desert.
Its movements were like flying over a sea of sand, employing an aura operation different from both the Hashashin and the empire's knights.
The still-living sandworm twisted toward the foe. A massive wave of sand surged forth, but the hunter leaped nimbly, twisting in midair.
This time, two arrows were nocked. Bombs attached to both ends flew toward the sandworm's body.
Boom! Boom!
The sandworm collapsed amid successive explosions. The hunter rode the giant beast's corpse straight to Damian's group and landed.
"Male, who are you?"
The low, husky voice had a youthful edge. The hood hid all but her eyes, which had unusually long lashes.
Whoosh! A dagger flew straight at Damian. Calmly forming stone scale gauntlets, he caught it and shattered it to pieces.
"What!?"
The young hunter's eyes widened. She'd thrown it off-target as a mere warning, never expecting Damian to block it outright.
'So it was this one.'
Now he understood why the sandworms were here. It had fled from this hunter's pursuit.
Soon, more hunters appeared atop a dune. They descended lightly over the sand as if flying.
"Monsters first, now bandits...."
Skelt grimaced. But they could handle bandits.
Plus, with Damian—mage Eric Hilton—there, his expression was confident, unlike with the sandworm.
But the situation unfolded differently. Once close enough, the bandit-hunters—or whatever they were—showed open palms, signaling no hostility.
A man who seemed their leader stepped behind the young hunter. Then.
"You rotten thing!!"
A massive fist slammed into the back of her head. The young hunter collapsed without resistance.
The man bowed to Damian's group.
"I'm sorry. You suffered needless harm because of us."
The middle-aged man's name was Dodek. Chieftain of nomads who made the desert their home.
Most desert nomads turned to banditry, preying on caravans and travelers, but Dodek's tribe hunted monsters for a living.
"Ahem. Well, these things happen in the desert, so I won't make an issue of it, but one of your tribesmen just attacked Eric Hilton, the mage we hired, out of nowhere."
Skelt cleared his throat and explained. As caravan leader, he figured leaders should talk.
"What? Faruzan, you wench!!"
Dodek grabbed the ear of the fallen hunter, Faruzan, yanking the hood off to reveal her face.
A girl with ash-gray hair cascading like a lion's mane. Her sharp features might not fit balls or salons any better than Agnes's.
"What right do you have to glare like that?"
Even scolded by the chieftain who held her life in his hands, the venom in her eyes didn't fade.
Agnes was somewhat refined, but this one was pure untamed wildness.
"That male stole one of my hunts. It's because you and the others are so slow."
"You disobeyed orders. I told you not to pursue!"
"...You're all too slow."
Dodek shoved Faruzan away, as if too annoyed to continue. Clearly not a one-time thing.
"Take this one and tie her to a camel."
At Dodek's command, tribesmen dragged Faruzan off. Fortunately, she didn't resist.
Dodek shook his head watching her go. Anger mixed with proportionate worry on his face.
"My deepest apologies. A tribesman's fault is the tribe's fault. I apologize on behalf of all."
Dodek bowed again. Damian simply said it was no big deal.
'So this is how it happens....'
Damian's mind was tangled with other issues now. Trivial matters took a backseat.
"Judging by your direction, you're headed to Kerjit City. Mind if we join?"
"Ahaha. You're going for the Sahvar Festival too, huh."
"Yes. It's our big annual event—we need to sell our hunting spoils."
With Skelt and Dodek holding authority, talks progressed quickly.
Some monster hunters stayed to dismantle the sandworms for trophies, while Dodek and the rest headed with Damian's group to their oasis camp.
"We'll ensure you get your full share."
"Hoho. I trust you."
Dodek addressed Damian, but Skelt replied.
Trophies from escort duties went to the employer, per contract.
After crossing a few dunes, wide tents around the oasis came into view.
Sheep and goats grazed nearby, camels dunking heads in the water to quench their thirst.
Soon, the sun vanished beyond the horizon. Bonfires flared up, carpets laid with all sorts of food.
Nomads treated guests lavishly regardless of status—that was their culture.
Some in the caravan stayed tense, but relaxed fully after eating the tribesmen's food.
Even bandit tribes wouldn't harm guests they'd fed. It was a rule they valued above life.
Damian sat at the head table per Dodek's guidance. Skelt beside him was slightly miffed but held back, having seen Damian's prowess.
"Faruzan isn't really one of our tribesmen, actually."
They'd found her in a sandstorm, they said. Definitely nomad blood, but she only gave the name Faruzan—no other personal details.
Amnesia? Or hiding it? Either way, Dodek had accepted her into the tribe.
"But after receiving such grace, to treat the chieftain like that."
Skelt slammed the carpet like it was his affair. Dodek just gave a wry smile.
"We've received grace from her too. She's an exceptional hunter. Does the work of five adults. Without her, our tribe would've scattered long ago."
That explained Faruzan's attitude and Dodek's reaction. Survival day-to-day was paramount for nomads.
After the meal, Damian headed to a secluded tent. He'd roughly sorted his future plans.
"Eric Hilton. Damn male."
Inside, Faruzan was bound with rope. Punishment for the incident: just water and salt today, no other food.
Damian chewed dried fruit, meeting Faruzan's gaze.
Hearing her name, two thoughts crossed Damian's mind.
One: less work. If not here, he'd have sought her in Kerjit City.
The other.
'Younger than I thought.'
Like Anya, younger than Damian expected.
Pre-regression, he'd thought her six or seven years older, but this Faruzan looked his age at most.
"Wanna hunt something with me?"
"What?"
Faruzan glared at Damian, hostility plain. Still sore about the sandworm he'd killed.
"The real hunt you want isn't some puny monster anyway."
Hashashin.
At the killer group's name, Faruzan—now somehow free—pounced, baring teeth.
Anger mixed with greater curiosity on her face.
"Male. What the hell are you?"
The desert rose, Faruzan. Damian's acquaintance and, alongside black magic—Gaze, the key to his plan.