Blood Revenge
Was it thanks to the capitalist slave contract I presented this time? A fierce spark of hope blazed in the halflings' eyes. And those halflings were ultimately my slaves—my property. As fellow tribesmen of the Bearclaw Tribe, no one had the guts to touch my assets.
"Oh, the women of the tribe are treating us too well..."
"Can't be helped."
It seemed the halflings' pitiful appearance had properly stirred our tribe women's maternal instincts. Anyway, the halflings, skilled with their hands, gradually adapted to the Bearclaw Tribe and began their labors. And we finally got what we'd been craving.
"Is this our standard uniform?!"
"To think Drengr would bestow such welfare upon us!!"
"Jeenjaang!! We'll follow you to the brink of death, no matter what!!"
In this era, clothes were practically a luxury. Yet I'd handed out outfits and accessories made from expensive red cloth to the warriors, no different from scattering them around.
"From now on, every warrior in our tribe will keep receiving these blood-red garments!!!"
""""WAAAAAAAAAH!!!""""
The warriors went even wilder over this so-called welfare. Seeing them in red shorts and short-sleeves, it finally felt like we were a real Marine Corps!
But then, an unexpected situation arose. The male halflings making our clothes took more than just interest in our training—they got obsessed.
"Ulfrik Drengr!!!"
"Drengr's a title, so put it at the front, halfling."
"S-sorryyy!!"
"So, what is it."
"I wanna try that 'gym' thing toooo!!"
At that moment, the tribe's atmosphere turned ice-cold, like a gym newbie had just walked in. Everyone's eyes sharpened like predators eyeing prey. These were male halflings who whimpered at a needle prick to the finger. Fixing them had seemed impossible, but our ancestors and spirits tossed us this lifeline! No warrior here would kick away such a chance.
"This is the path you've chosen."
"Y-yes...?"
And shortly after...
"Guhk?!"
"Hnggh?!"
"Yes!! That's it—you can do it!!"
"One more!! One more!!! One more!!"
"That's the spirit! Halfling!!"
"Hahaha! You made it!!!"
The halflings paid the price for flirting with the gym bros.
A few days after starting the male halflings' mental reformation, I left their training to the other warriors and was reading the book Grandma Helga had given me under a tree.
Was I reading it too strangely?
"Ulfrik, sir—what's in that book that's got you scowling like that?"
"Oh, it's you, Harcon?"
SSS-grade sharp junior. Harcon approached me. No point hiding it, so I revealed the book's nature.
"It's about our people's first king. Helga gave it to me—wanna take a look?"
"There must be a reason your master gave it to you, so I'll pass. But how boring and pretentious must it be to make that face?"
"Feels like reading the world's dullest poetry collection."
"Dodged a bullet there."
This book was painfully unreadable. Still, Harcon was a capable shaman, Helga's disciple. He might know something, so I shared a passage.
"That's really dull and pretentious."
"Imagine the whole book plastered with stuff like that."
"Ugh..."
As we bantered over the first king's lame legend, news arrived that could shatter my stress in one blow.
"Drengr!! We've finally located the Red Skull Tribe's forward outpost!!"
I shot up!!!
"Harcon!! Let's move!!!"
"Yes, sir."
Time to crush the bastards who raided our village last time. I immediately led the warriors, following the hunters for days.
"Roughly around here."
"See that mountain? It's below there."
"Perfectly hidden in that spot where you can't see it from here."
"Is that so...?"
The Red Skull Tribe's forward outpost was at the base of a steep mountain path. As I pondered how to exploit it, a flash of inspiration hit.
"Everyone, gather here!"
"What's Drengr planning this time—some hype tactic?"
"Heh heh heh, can't wait."
The warriors enthusiastically agreed to my proposal. Even Harcon, tagging along, laughed his ass off at the sheer stupidity—but fun.
The Red Skull Tribe rejected ancestors and spirits in the frozen far north, following some vile demon instead. But their raid had failed spectacularly.
BOOM!!!
"Damn it!! Didn't expect that many shamans!"
"Blew our golden chance..."
"What now? They might counterattack."
"So we tuck tail and run?!"
As Ulfrik had been mentioned at the Jarls' Viking council, his fame as the great Drengr spread across the North Sea. Dishonorable cowards, spotting this young powerhouse in the spotlight, let dark envy coil in their hearts. They yearned to drag him down.
As these cowards plotted another assault on the Bearclaw Tribe, something unbelievable moved at breakneck speed behind their outpost's mountain.
SHWOOOOOOSH!!!
What the hell was that? Avalanche?
"Doesn't look like it—something's in the middle?"
"Yeah?"
"Wait... no way?!"
One Red Skull warrior traded an eye to identify them.
"E-ENEMY ATTACKKKK!!!"
Crazy bastards in red clothes were sledding down using people.
The cowards spotted us and scrambled into defense. But building a line now was too late!!!
"Drengr as expected!!!"
"Closing in this fast!!"
"Gazuaaaaa!!"
This was the ultra-high-speed mobility tech for snow-covered terrain!!! Viking Skate!!!
SHWOOOOOOSH!
"How ya gonna stop us at top speed 140 km/h!!"
"YEEEEEEEEE!"
"Hooaaaaah!!"
Two-man teams: one Viking as the base, shields on upper and lower body to become a human skate!! The rider wields weapons freely with both hands—done!
"This combo move only true brothers-in-arms can pull off!"
Even the bases seemed to love it? My true-form skate, Harcon, was cracking up.
"Hahaha! Thought it was dumb, but this is hilarious—!!"
"That's the hype, Harcon!!! Everyone ready?!"
"""Yes!"""
We were already at their noses! Speed like this enabled natural follow-ups!
"Listen up!!!"
"""Got it!"""
The base Vikings bent like bows at the waist. Shields forward—!!
KABOOOOOM!!BOOM!!CRASH!!
"GYAAAAAH!!"
"GRAAAAAH!!"
"This is hype, you cowards!!!"
The outpost guards shredded by ultra-low-altitude Viking Missiles. Some crashed into palisades and got hurt, but hype overcomes that!! Now pay for your breached line!!
"Blood revenge—execute!!!"
"""Got it!"""
Our fully elite berserkrs from the city raid showed combat power leagues beyond demon-worshipping cowards. Harcon, too, true-formed and carved through foes swiftly.
Then, a tattoo-covered brute appeared from afar.
"Uuuuulfrik! I'll drag you to ruin!!"
"Ha! Bring it!!!"
"My maaaaster!!!"
The outpost boss? Black smoke gathered around him, deer antlers sprouting from his head.
"Who the hell transforms mid-battle, you moron!!"
I charged, ignoring everything, and buried my axe in him. But heavy demon power halted it at his side. Seizing the moment, he bellowed.
"I'll trade my side for your neck!!"
"Then I'll shove it deeper!!!"
"GRRAAAAAH!!"
As the axe inched forward, like facing the holy knight in the city, power boiled through me. I stomped hard to harness it.
BOOM!!!
True enough, all power comes from the legs—my whole body's energy amplified. Twisting waist and axe with greater force—
SLASH!!!!
The outpost chief failed to finish transforming, split like any mortal into two.
We finished our blood revenge raiding the Red Skull Tribe's forward outpost. But bad news lingered.
"Running it cell-style, as expected."
"Like actual pests."
While clearing corpses and geunbbaeing the outpost, we found orders. Looked like plenty more outposts.
"Tsk tsk tsk... With cowards infesting the land, these are end times."
"Drengr, sir, geunbbae nearly done."
"What about the outpost?"
"Torch it all—make it unusable."
To celebrate successful vengeance, we grinned around a massive campfire. Sorting spoils, Harcon brought documents.
"Ulfrik, sir—care to see these?"
"What's this?"
"Intriguing read."
Why the suspense? He doesn't bullshit, so I checked.
"What the—?"
"Red Skulls don't settle—they roam, so they log mysterious sites like this."
Makes sense; Jarls would smash them the moment they rooted. I got why Harcon gave it.
"Don't tell me—compare this to Helga's book?"
"Exactly."
"That dull, pretentious poetryfest—"
"Read it closely."
"Ah..."
Getting legendary weapons would be one hell of a trial.