The Road to the North (2) - Dangerous Imagination
The Road North (2) - Dangerous Imagination
As the sun slowly set in the west,
deep darkness quickly began to settle over the forest.
"This is it for today! Stop the wagons and prepare to camp!"
At Mercenary Captain Carlton's shout, the caravan halted.
The mercenaries and caravan workers moved in perfect unison with practiced skill.
They cleared the surrounding undergrowth to secure their visibility,
arranged the wagons in a circle to form a defensive barrier,
and prepared to light a bonfire in the center.
"Push that wagon over a bit more!"
"Move the head merchant-nim's tent further to the left!"
Rose, feeling self-conscious about just sitting there,
was about to get up to gather some twigs.
"Oh dear, Rose-yang. You shouldn't get your delicate hands dirty."
Barman, the caravan master, leaned in and gently, yet subtly firmly, took Rose's wrist.
"The men will take care of all the hard work, so you, young lady, just sit here and rest comfortably."
Barman wore a benevolent smile,
but his thumb, holding her wrist, was subtly stroking her bare skin.
"Ah... yes. Thank you."
As Rose awkwardly smiled and pulled her hand away,
Barman feigned hesitation before subtly getting to the point.
"By the way, when night falls, the chill of the forest will seep into your bones... It would be too harsh for a delicate young lady like you to sleep on the cold ground.
As it happens, my tent is very spacious, and there are soft animal furs laid out on the floor, so how about you rest comfortably with me in my tent tonight?"
He spoke as if it were nothing, merely feigning kindness, but his true intentions were obvious.
In exchange for safely taking her to Deluna,
it was the cunning ploy of an old merchant demanding 'service' in his bedchamber at night.
If he truly thought of Rose as a 'young lady,' he wouldn't dare bring up such a topic.
He clearly underestimated her, seeing her as just a helpless woman lost and wandering alone in the forest.
'Sigh... I figured as much, with him glancing at me all this time.'
Just as Rose was about to make an excuse to refuse.
"Elder. May I have a word with you for a moment?"
Carlton, who had approached unnoticed, placed a hand on Barman's shoulder.
With his back to Rose, he whispered in a low voice.
"It's unlikely our boys would do such a thing... but it would be troublesome if you provoked them too much."
He spoke indirectly, but his meaning was clear.
Here, there were over a dozen rough mercenaries and young, hot-blooded caravan workers.
Not all of them were as bright and rational as Carlton or Luke.
Even now, as they carried luggage, the eyes of some mercenaries, glancing at Rose's back, gleamed with undisguised, intense desire.
In such a situation, what if the caravan master monopolized that beauty and engaged in secret acts inside his tent?
Men, driven mad by the sounds of passion echoing through the night, might lose their reason and do anything.
A night isolated in the forest was enough to paralyze human reason.
"Ahem...! Do you think I had any ulterior motives! I just felt sorry for the young lady...."
Barman coughed and backed away.
But he retorted to Carlton, as if feeling wronged.
"So you're saying I should leave that delicate young lady among these men and make her sleep on the bare ground?"
Carlton, too, frowned, seemingly troubled by that point.
Having her sleep mixed in with the mercenaries was just as dangerous.
Rose, who had been listening to their conversation, stepped forward with a smile.
"Thank you both for your concern. But I'm fine. I have a safe way to sleep that I learned while wandering alone in the forest."
"A safe way? But you don't even have a tent...."
"I'm good at climbing trees, you see."
"...Huh?"
No sooner had she finished speaking.
Rose focused a subtle amount of mana into her toes,
and leaped towards the massive old tree in front of her.
[ Taat-! Tadadak! ]
A movement as if defying gravity.
Rose's body sliced through the air as lightly as a feather, using the thick branches as stepping stones,
and in an instant, she landed softly on a huge branch several meters above the ground.
"......!!"
Barman, Carlton, and the mercenaries watching the scene from below were dumbfounded, their mouths agape.
"W-what was that just now...."
"Is she some kind of forest fairy? How can a person jump so lightly?"
Looking down at the men murmuring in surprise,
Rose leaned her back comfortably against the branch and waved her hand.
"I'll sleep here, so don't worry and everyone get a good night's rest!"
Deep in the night, when everyone was asleep.
Only the crackling of the bonfire and the chirping of insects filled the silence of the forest.
Rose, lying on the branch, gazed at the stars in the night sky and tried to sleep, but sleep wouldn't come easily.
'Lucian...'
She recalled what Lucian had said.
- There's no need to hide it, but there's also no need to go around announcing that you're a Guardian. There are greedy people who will try to use your power in some way, and conversely, there are those who fear and reject the power of a Guardian.
The group sleeping below didn't seem like bad people, but you never knew what was in someone's heart.
'I shouldn't reveal my identity until I reach Deluna.'
Just then.
She felt a sticky gaze directed at her from below.
When she subtly turned her head to look down,
a large mercenary on night watch was sitting by the bonfire, staring intently up at Rose's silhouette lying on the tree.
The intense lust in his eyes, flickering with the bonfire, was fully conveyed.
And after glancing around for a moment,
he slipped one hand into his trousers and slowly began to move it up and down.
Rose blushed and turned her head away.
'...Carlton-daejang might have been right earlier.'
If just one person lost their reason and crossed the line.
Those rough, hungry men might collectively go wild and rush at her.
'What if... those more than ten men all attacked me at once...?'
Rough hands pulling her down from the tree and laying her on the ground.
Her old hood and shirt ripped apart,
men reeking of sweat, dust, and leather,
panting like beasts, climbed on top of her.
Someone would forcefully pin down her struggling arms,
someone else would roughly knead her ample breasts and bite her nipples.
How many tongues and lips would explore her body at the same time?
Her lips, earlobes, nape, collarbone, thighs, waist, navel...
And between her forcibly spread legs,
hot, massive shafts, reeking of unwashed animal scent, would ceaselessly, mercilessly thrust into her inner walls.
- Aah! No, please...! Haaah! It's too big, it's tearing me apart...!
Would she even be able to scream?
She'd be too busy biting, sucking, and licking the things thrusting into her throat.
Her imagined self would resist with tears, but
her body, cursed by Cassian, would succumb to the male heat exuded by the men and eventually crave semen like mad.
A feast of milky white fluid ceaselessly pouring into her mouth, onto her breasts, and into her most intimate place.
"Haa... Eugh...."
Just the imagination made her breath grow hot.
The space between her legs tingled and heated up, and she felt her underwear instantly become slick and wet.
Her nipples hardened, pleasantly brushing against the inside of her shirt.
'I'm crazy. Am I really going crazy?!'
Rose shook her head, startled.
To get aroused imagining herself being gang-raped by ordinary human men.
She was terrified of how far the Lust System and the curse on her body intended to corrupt her soul.
'Haa... Traveling with people isn't easy either...'
Rose tightly squeezed her wet thighs together, forcibly closed her eyes, and tried to shake off the lingering traces of pleasure.
The next morning.
After eating and tidying up the campsite, the caravan resumed its journey towards Deluna.
"Young lady, your skill at leaping onto the tree yesterday was quite extraordinary. Can you also wield the sword at your waist?"
Luke, a young mercenary walking beside the wagon, pointed at Rose's Shortsword and asked.
"Ah, this? I just carry it for self-defense. My skill is terrible. I'd tremble even if I met a single Goblin."
Rose gave an awkward laugh and waved her hand dismissively.
'It's true that my swordsmanship is rather pathetic.'
She had learned a little about swords from Lucian for a few days, but that was all.
Rose's fighting style was solely about using mana to instantly burst her physical strength and agility,
closer to an instinctive movement that cut down enemies with overwhelming speed and power.
"Haha! Well, it's hard to imagine a young lady like you wielding a sword with such delicate hands."
"But don't worry. As long as our Carlton-daejang is here, not even Magical Beasts will dare to approach!"
The mercenaries began to chatter, praising Carlton.
"As for our Daejang-nim, among swordsmen who haven't awakened aura, he's the best in Deluna! Most low-ranking knights would be knocked out in one blow!"
"Wow... really?"
Rose looked at the embarrassed Carlton with interested eyes.
With his unassuming appearance and friendly demeanor towards his subordinates, she had thought he was just an experienced veteran,
but to think he was a strong individual who had reached such a level through pure physical training alone.
"Then... could you teach me some swordsmanship? I feel like I need to be able to protect myself if I'm going to live as an adventurer even after arriving in Deluna."
"Huh? Me?"
Carlton scratched the back of his head, flustered.
Other mercenaries around them noisily offered to teach her, but Rose smiled and said,
"I want to learn from the strongest person."
At her audacious gaze and subtle allure, even Carlton, who had been through countless hardships, blushed and averted his eyes.
"Ahem... Well, if it's just how to hold it or some defensive techniques... I can show you during our break time."
"Thank you so much, Daejang-nim."
Watching her bright smile directed at Carlton, the mercenary band felt a subtle mix of jealousy and frustration.
< Illustration - Dangerous Imagination, Rose Among Men >
