Ch. 106
[Not sure if they’re people, but there are several.]
“Three… no, five?”
[Should we keep going?]
“Maybe monsters,”
[There’s also a way around over there.]
Just judging by the presence I felt from afar, it was hard to be sure if they were people or monsters moving in a group.
But I could tell they weren’t that far away.
Maybe about 300 meters at most. If there weren’t trees, it would be a distance you could see.
I tried to hone my senses, but detecting presences was usually a specialty of physically inclined people.
People like me, with more intellectual professions, tended to be dull in that area.
“Let me down for now.”
I got off Rai’s hand and stood on the ground, stretched, and leisurely checked the compass again.
It was definitely pointing straight to the source of the presence.
I wasn’t going to change direction, so I might as well check it out.
“Let’s go. It might be people, so transform into a wolf.”
[Got it!]
“If I go around with a dangerous monster with the highest threat level, nobody will hang out with me.”
Ogres were classic man-eating monsters.
They were a terrifying presence, perfect for making people faint.
The reason I picked an ogre as a mount was simply because there was nothing else like it near Magi’s lair.
I didn’t have a choice. If there had been a horse, I would’ve used a horse.
The ogre I’d just been riding, over three meters tall, instantly melted like molten iron and shrank in the blink of an eye into the form of a wolf.
[Ready!]
Used to the transformation by now, I immediately started moving in the direction of the compass.
—
[Master.]
Rai, who’d been walking a few steps ahead, suddenly stopped.
I realized the reason a bit too late.
[Arrows incoming.]
“Eh!”
You should say that in a more urgent tone!
Not like ‘Your hamburger is ready’!
The moment I spotted the glint of an arrowhead flying at me, I ducked my head at superhuman speed.
And at the same time, I grabbed the back of Rai’s head and used it to shield myself.
Teteng.
Ting.
[Ma, Mas… ter! Agh!]
Arrows flew one after another, hitting Rai’s face and, just barely, his ear, then bounced off.
“Ador!”
[It’s Ador!]
“Whatever, Lightning Dance!”
I called for Ador, who had fast attacks, but the moment he came out, he complained about me not saying his name properly.
As long as you get the idea, who cares about details at a time like this!
[Tsk, tsk!]
No tongue, but still clicking.
His attitude was rude, but Ador was definitely skilled.
As the ball of electricity flashed and zipped around at lightning speed, people began dropping from the trees one by one.
Lightning Dance.
A skill that shocks all nearby enemies in succession. It’s not very strong, but it’s optimized to quickly hit multiple targets.
[Got one here!]
“Aagh!”
[Here too!]
It didn’t take long to find and zap all the hidden people.
Ador was the fastest attacker among my spirits.
Maybe he was even faster than any other spirit.
[Any more? More!]
He was also the most impatient.
Maybe he had the blood of a battle-hardened race or something—Ador always craved more prey. Even now, he was flying around, looking for the next target.
He had to know everyone was already down.
“Ador! That’s enough, keep an eye out around me instead.”
[Still not enough!]
“Anyone would think the Black Flame Dragon was rampaging.”
I put Rai in front of me and took a closer look at the people who had ambushed us.
Lightning Dance wasn’t that strong, so nobody seemed seriously hurt.
If anything, they were more injured from falling out of the trees.
Rai sniffed the air and spoke.
[They must be local natives.]
“Looks like it.”
But that didn’t mean I’d forgive them for shooting arrows at me out of nowhere.
I couldn’t be friendly toward them, and with one hand on Rai, I approached a woman with a broken leg who glared at me, unable to move.
She was the closest to me.
“…You, outsider! This is our land!”
The injured woman bared her teeth at me with eyes like a wary beast.
It was clumsy continental common language. I could understand, but her command of it was poor.
As I approached the injured woman, the rest of the tribe gathered nearby.
Soon, they surrounded me, radiating murderous intent.
They were all women, each with slight differences, but all shared the same brown skin and gray hair.
If anything happened, it looked like they’d tear me apart.
“Oh my.”
Before I knew it, all of them had drawn weapons and were pointing them at me.
I mean, I was just passing by—if you’re going to kill me, it’s not just a little irritating, it’s a lot!
[They’re in the way, should I kill them, Master?]
“Well.”
It was tempting, but if they tried to kill me, I’d have to kill them first.
That was the law of the jungle.
“Wolf… big. Threat, cannot pass!”
“Ah.”
[Hehe, I guess I’m a little big for a wolf, huh?]
“That’s not a compliment. You’re the reason they shot at me!”
[Yikes!]
When I grabbed him by the hair, Rai pretended to be in exaggerated pain.
He didn’t actually feel pain, but if I looked angry, he’d act hurt out of courtesy.
Of course, that made it even more annoying.
Should I just make this guy bald?
“Geenie?”
It was then, as I was torturing Rai, that I heard a familiar word in my ear.
I almost thought I’d misheard. Maybe it was just a similar-sounding native word…
“Huh?”
I instinctively turned my head toward the voice, because it sounded so gentle.
There, a native woman looked at me with a remarkably clear expression—one I recognized.
Very much so.
Old memories buried deep inside suddenly surfaced in a flash.
I finally realized who the compass had been pointing at.
Tall, sun-faded silver hair like an old silver bowl, healthy brown skin with smooth muscles.
A woman in her thirties, looking at me with a face beyond delighted—moved.
“Anel… sister?”
[Oh, it’s the woman we saw a while back.]
Nine years ago isn’t a while back.
If that’s a while, then seeing Magi just now counts too?
The urge to scold Rai faded. I twisted my body toward Anel.
We walked fast, and without waiting for anyone to go first, we reached out and hugged each other tightly.
“Geenie, is it really you?”
“Sister!”
The joy at seeing her was so overwhelming that I completely forgot I’d been angry.
Well, if a stranger trespassed, I guess they’d shoot and try to kill too.
“My goodness. I almost didn’t recognize you! You’re all grown up now.”
She had barely changed.
Still as kind as ever, she took my hand and spoke in fluent common language.
With a face that looked like she might cry, she touched my cheek and forehead as if she couldn’t believe it.
How could I forget Anel? Even though it was nine years ago, she’d saved my life, was my role model, and showed me a new way to live.
And she seemed to be part of the same tribe as the people who had just tried to kill me.
So they were the Silver Wolf Tribe? The tribe famed for their twin swords? Was this the tribal nation Koran? That was a long way from Dmitri.
So many questions came to mind, but first was the joy.
“Of course. It’s been nine years. I’m already nineteen… I thought I’d never see you again!”
“I thought the same. Sorry. Geenie, I never imagined the intruder was you… I apologize for the attack.”
“It’s fine! I’m alive, so it’s all good!”
And it was lucky I didn’t kill anyone—someone nearly died just now.
“But how are you here?”
“Ah, I got a little lost.”
“You call this getting a little lost…? Isn’t this a bit too deep in?”
“Oh, don’t worry about little details! By the way, are you still a mercenary? Did you quit?”
I got kidnapped by a dragon and ended up here after I got out. Ehehe.
…Not something I could actually say, so I changed the subject.
She still looked flustered by our sudden reunion.
“I quit a long time ago. Not long after we parted.”
“I thought you’d be a mercenary forever! It suited you so well!”
“I thought so too. But…”
“But?”
“I had a child. A cute little girl who looks just like you. That’s why I had to come home.”
For a moment, all I could do was open my eyes wide.