Episode 38 Now It’s Becoming Somewhat Useful. (1)
As soon as we left Palor’s territory, another hellish battle ensued.
The mercenaries became increasingly exhausted by the relentless onslaught of monsters.
Even Jiselle was tempted to just give up and go back to rest.
‘It’s the forest of demons, after all. But I can’t give up.’
The reason why no one touches this place is simple.
Because there’s no need to take risks and risk your life when you don’t even know what’s out there.
If he hadn’t had a clear purpose, he wouldn’t have come to such a dangerous forest.
But he knew for sure what was in the Forest of Demons, and that was why he was willing to take the risk.
What was surprising was that the mercenaries were quieter than expected.
Although he looked as if he would collapse from exhaustion, his eyes were still alive.
‘I guess I was making fun of them too much.’
It is true that the march was arduous, so originally, I had planned to start talking about additional compensation at this point to appease them.
But looking into the mercenaries’ eyes, Giselle realized that there was no need for that.
They were truly doing their duty.
Only Manus was left stamping his feet in the air, looking like he was going to die among the mercenaries.
Every day was painful, but everyone gritted their teeth and persevered.
Surprisingly, as the battle continued, the damage gradually decreased.
Although it had only been about ten days, most of them had overcome their limits by engaging in extreme battles every day.
After about two weeks, Giselle gave everyone some hopeful news.
“We’re almost at our destination. There’s not much left.”
At those words, the mercenaries gathered their strength and advanced again.
As they progressed, the group began to feel something strange.
“what?”
“It’s about time they came again.”
“It’s so quiet, doesn’t it seem a bit strange?”
The monsters that used to come out of nowhere were gradually decreasing.
It was hard and tiring when the monsters came, but when they suddenly stopped appearing, I felt anxious.
Jiselle also felt something strange, just like the mercenaries.
The fighting has been too fierce for me to think I was lucky.
It was strange that monsters suddenly appeared like this.
‘It’s too quiet.’
It is a forest so quiet that it is difficult to even hear the sound of an insect chirping.
But now, it felt suffocatingly heavy, as if I couldn’t even hear the sound of the wind blowing, except for the sounds of the group.
I sent Gillian and Kaor to scout the area, but they found nothing.
‘Is it just luck? Or is there another reason? There’s no record of any particular danger here… … .’
After much thought, Giselle decided to take advantage of this opportunity.
“Everyone, stop working and rest. Recover your strength, and then we’ll make our way to our destination tomorrow and finish the job.”
The mercenaries sat down on their seats to rest, their faces beaming.
I was so tired that I couldn’t even get a proper rest since I came into the forest.
Surprisingly, not a single monster came until the next day.
“Oh my, my back. My body hurts even more when I wake up.”
“Still, I feel like I can live now.”
“You can reach your destination today!”
My physical strength had recovered, and with the end in sight, work progressed much faster than usual.
Everyone was a little anxious because it was an unfamiliar situation, but no matter how loudly they made their way, nothing much happened.
After a while, Jiselle checked the map she had drawn and her current location several times, then spoke to everyone with an excited expression.
“There really isn’t much left now. Just a little more and we’ll reach our destination.”
At those words, the mercenaries devoted themselves to clearing the road without rest.
A slightly relieved expression began to appear on everyone’s faces.
We have come a long way with great difficulty.
It was only natural that I felt relieved when I thought that this suffering was finally over.
But the person who was the happiest and most excited of all was Giselle.
‘We’re almost there now.’
Everyone opposed him, saying he was crazy, but he pushed ahead with conviction and confidence.
He couldn’t help but feel a little excited, thinking that the results would be revealed before his eyes in no time.
That was when.
Kugu Palace.
A vibration that made the forest tremble could be heard from afar.
In an instant, everyone stopped moving. The mercenaries looked around cautiously, tense with tension.
The good feeling quickly subsided, and an ominous feeling of foreboding slowly began to spread.
“Gillian, scout ahead. Everyone prepare for battle.”
Gillian nodded and went out to scout.
The mercenaries stopped their work and took up their weapons.
A situation where we have been accustomed to fighting in the forest for several days already.
The problem was who the opponent was, not the battle itself.
While everyone was waiting tensely, Gillian ran through the heavy air with all her might and shouted.
“Avoid immediately!”
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“what?”
As soon as Giselle questioned, trees began to fall from afar.
Kookung! Kookung!
Something was approaching quickly, crashing through the trees.
It appeared through the forest and let out a loud howl as soon as it saw the group.
Kaaaah!
Jiselle’s face hardened at what appeared before her eyes.
That monster was supposed to be in the deeper areas of the forest.
This isn’t the kind of monster that would be wandering around the outskirts like this.
The mercenaries also began to tense up and hold their breath at the sight of the monster.
“Huh, hmm. Does that, does that make sense?”
“It’s not that there were no monsters. Everyone avoided them because of that guy.”
Everyone looked at the monster that appeared before their eyes with a bewildered expression.
It was a snake.
A snake so large that it can swallow a person in one bite.
The giant snake’s red scales were shining brightly in the sunlight.
The gaping mouth was filled with terrifying teeth that looked like they could easily tear apart steel.
“Blood Python… … .”
A mercenary muttered the name.
The giant snake monster called Python is named according to the color of its scales.
Blood Pythons, whose bodies are covered in blood-red scales, are known as the most ferocious and terrifying of the Pythons.
Its teeth spew out powerful poison, and its scales are like steel, making weapons impenetrable.
“It’s usually much bigger than a Python.”
The mercenaries were terrified by its overwhelming size.
The species called Python was originally classified as a dangerous monster due to its large size.
However, the Blood Python that appeared now was much larger than the normal Python.
This was something even Giselle had not expected.
Because in the information I got from my previous life, it was written that the Blood Phyton lived much further inland than here.
‘Why here, now… … The timing was bad.’
Clearly, the destination is not far from the entrance to the forest.
It just took a long time because we had to make a path and deal with the monsters that claimed that area.
Since first planning to clear the forest, Jiselle has repeatedly confirmed that all the monsters that are now considered unhuntable live deep in the forest.
However, a monster of a level far beyond expectations appeared.
Saaaaah.
Blood Phyton looked around at the group with arrogant eyes and a flicker of his tongue.
A feeling of leisure as if a delicious meal is right before your eyes.
The mercenaries were so overwhelmed by the momentum that they couldn’t even move properly.
Seeing the sight of a frog facing a snake, Giselle screamed loudly.
“Wake up! If you stay still, you’ll all die!”
At those words, the mercenaries came to their senses and quickly formed a battle formation.
I couldn’t just sit there and die, so I had to try to attack something.
“Shoot!”
As Giselle shouted, mercenaries with shields blocked her path and mercenaries with bows began shooting arrows.
Bang! Ta-tang! Ta-ang!
Countless arrows flew, but they could not penetrate the Blood Python’s red scales.
The snake, which had lightly deflected the arrows, wriggled its body and approached them.
“Move back!”
As the mercenaries formed a line and moved back, this time Blood Phyton moved quickly.
It was a fast speed that did not match its huge body.
Kaaaaah!
Blood Python, who had been dragging his body towards me in an instant, opened his mouth and swallowed one of the mercenaries standing right in front of him.
“Eww!”
The mercenary was swallowed up without even being able to put up a proper fight.
Gulp, gulp.
Something slowly moved inside Blood Python’s body, then stopped moving in the middle of the body.
It was the first time anyone had seen a person being eaten alive by a monster, so the shock was indescribable.
Saaaaah!
Blood Python narrowed his eyes and looked around with satisfaction.
It was as if he was choosing his next prey.
Despair filled the eyes of the mercenaries who saw that sight.
The monsters that have appeared so far, except for Palor, have been able to attack no matter how strong or fast they are.
In any case, if they fought each other, they could inflict wounds and win depending on their strategy and tactics.
Even Palor, who seemed invincible in the dark, was able to attack with light.
But the Blood Python’s scales were strong enough to deflect all arrows.
How on earth do you catch a monster that can’t be attacked?
“Back! Back off even further!”
The group hastily retreated, putting some distance between themselves.
Saaaaa… … .
Blood Phyton did not attack right away even when the distance increased.
It seemed as if the prey was waiting for a reaction, whether to run away or pounce.
It seemed as if it was satisfied with just eating a mercenary, and showed no signs of attacking right away… … .
Judging by the way he didn’t take his eyes off the group, it seemed like he had no intention of letting the rest escape safely.
“Your Majesty! What should we do now?”
“Is there any way to deal with him?”
The mercenaries all looked at Giselle without anyone asking them to.
but.
Jiselle just looked at Blood Python with a stiff expression, without saying a word.
‘Why aren’t you saying anything?’
‘Isn’t there a way for employers to do this…?’
Whenever a monster appears, the employer who gives orders faster than anyone else and is the first to jump into battle is not saying anything.
Despair began to consume everyone.
The mercenaries sensed that their inevitable death was approaching.
Belinda approached Giselle and whispered softly.
“Your Highness, run away immediately. With our current strength, we can never defeat that monster.”
“What will happen to the mercenaries if I run away now?”
“Even if tens or hundreds of those mercenary scoundrels die, saving the young master is more important to me.”
Gillian also blocked Giselle’s path and spoke quietly.
“Your Majesty, go back with Belinda. I and the mercenaries will guard this place. The contract includes the safety of the employer, so stop worrying about them.”
“Gillian.”
“Please take care of my daughter.”
Although the voice was small, Kaor, who was next to her, could hear the conversation clearly.
He crossed his arms and thought for a moment, then said to Giselle.
“Let’s just run away. If I give the order for everyone to retreat, they’ll all run away on their own. Some people will die, but that can’t be helped. Isn’t that the fate of all mercenaries who risk their lives for money?”
As soon as Kaor arrived, Giselle lowered her eyes and became lost in thought.
Even if they run away like this, most of them will be caught by that snake and die.
A few might survive, but if they strayed from the path, they would eventually wander into the forest and die.
‘Success was right in front of us. Is this how we end up failing?’
Jiselle closed her eyes tightly.
