Chapter 7: Quest(2)

The gentle breeze made the grass sway and rustled the hem of my robe.
The fabric felt much softer against my skin than the previous one. It was a worthwhile item.

“I didn’t think you’d actually buy it for me.”

It was a playful remark, but Naelun truly bought me a new robe.
It had no special functions, but it was much better than my old, dirty one.
It was probably a gesture of goodwill for my contributions.
The wind ruffled my silver hair. I swept back my still-unfamiliar long hair and looked down at the Gapsan Monsters.

The two creatures were almost indistinguishable by appearance alone. However, there was a clear difference.
That was the core of this experiment.

“You came out quickly today, didn’t you? Alright, go fight to your heart’s content.”

A pack of wandering monsters spotted us and bared their fangs.
As if finding their attitude amusing, the Gapsangoe flaunted their sharper teeth and charged.

-Screech! Squeal!
-Kieeeek!

The sight of non-human creatures clashing and tangling was quite a spectacle.
Gapsangoe might be at the bottom of the hierarchy, but they were still Tiamat’s fiendish summons. Crude monsters found everywhere were no match for them.
Before the bows and fire, the dog- and wolf-like creatures fell one by one.

“……Certainly.”

At first glance, the movements of the two Gapsan Monsters seemed similar.
However, upon closer observation, I noticed subtle but distinct differences. One was superior in agility, situational awareness, and accuracy with the bow.
That was the one who had experienced combat against the Forest Ruler.
The other was summoned after that and had not undergone serious combat.

The presence or absence of experience.
A key point that divided the ranks of the same species.
It seemed to apply in reality as well.

“It will be helpful to know. I should remember it.”

Even if I wanted to constantly maintain summoned beings, it was often difficult. They could die in battle, or their summon could be canceled due to issues with magic or demonic power.
Other difficulties also existed.
It wasn’t immediately useful, but it was helpful information. After all, it showed the potential to improve my overall power.

“Alright, that’s enough. Let’s go back.”

I watched the hunt a bit longer, but there were no further changes.
Satisfied, I descended the mountain. I had the Gapsangoe wait at the entrance, out of sight, ready to respond to a signal and rush over at any time.
They whimpered, seemingly reluctant to leave me, but quieted down after I glared at them once.

Having left the grass and walked on the dirt path for a while, a shrill scream echoed from nearby.

“…Again?”

There was no bewilderment.
Just a feeling of annoyance as I pushed off the ground.
I quickly arrived at the source. A man sat on his backside, trembling.
Before him, a dog-like monster from before was baring its jaws. The situation was clear without needing any explanation.

“Get out of here.”

A kick, propelled by my momentum, struck the monster directly in the cheek. It let out a weak cry and flew far away, then slumped down.
I had grown quite accustomed to Tiamat’s body, so such minor monsters were no threat at all.
The continuous screams had stopped by now.

I turned back to the man, who flinched and lowered his head.

“Th-thank you…”
“It’s nothing special. Take care of that yourself.”

His body was still trembling faintly, but the fear of death seemed to have receded.
The fact that this had happened several times probably influenced him. I had never seen him before, but I had resolved similar crises a few times.
Normally, monsters wouldn’t descend into human settlements this often, which I suspected was due to events related to the quest.

Since I held even a tiny bit of responsibility, I tended to help when I noticed such dangers.
When I pointed to the dog’s corpse and spoke, his eyes widened, and he repeatedly lowered his head.

“R-really? Understood!”

I was offloading it because I didn’t want to clean it up myself, but it wasn’t just simply getting rid of it. Monster corpses could be sold for money.
I could tell just by looking at the man’s expression, which seemed as if he had received a gift after barely surviving.
It was completely useless to me, though.

“The rumors were true…”

I glanced at the man, who mumbled something and stood up, then headed to the familiar inn.
As I opened the door, glances poured in as they had before.
Unlike before, there was no hostility. Instead, I saw a good number of favorable gazes.
This was also a change that had occurred over time.
After saving a few people and freely giving away useless monster hides, the prejudice against strangers seemed to have vanished.

“Welcome. Would you like your usual?”
“Yes. Here.”
“The money is fine. I’ll get it ready right away.”

The attendant, who had been scared of me before, took my order.
Now much friendlier, she could even utter strange words to me.

“…?”

Why wasn’t she taking money? Was this a new kind of service?
If so, the inn would go bankrupt.
Since I had no intention of refusing, I sat down without complaint. I think she might have been among the faces I helped, but what did it matter anyway?
Bread, sausage, and boiled eggs.
I forced down those extremely unappetizing foods by my standards, along with some cheap beer.

I ate a meal here once every day.
To be precise, I only ate that one meal. It was a form of deception.

I couldn’t let it be known that I didn’t need to eat.
Once people formed an impression, it was not easily changed.
I also needed to make it a habit so I wouldn’t forget myself.

‘I don’t know when I might arouse suspicion and be branded a witch.’

In that sense, it was a welcome development that I didn’t have to spend my own money. Since I wouldn’t eat much anyway, I had established an image of being a small eater from the beginning.
The gazes directed at me were burdensome. Just as I quickly finished and was about to stand up.

“Tiamat-nim!”

A man who had loudly called my name entered, his white cassock fluttering.
He had previously asked my name cautiously, so I had told him. I realized then that we hadn’t properly introduced ourselves at first.

“The man and woman have regained consciousness!”

His subsequent words were the signal for the quest to resume.

“You saved us, didn’t you? Thank you so much.”

The man introduced himself as Robin, and the woman as Vandine. They had apparently already been informed of the situation, as they didn’t question my presence.
Even though my hood covered nearly half my face, making suspicion reasonable, it was meaningless since a priest was vouching for me.

“Are you feeling alright?”
“Yes, thanks to you. It was simple mana exhaustion. That b*stard didn’t injure us more than necessary. Probably to extract mana efficiently.”
“I’d like to hear more about that.”

The moment I interjected, everyone’s attention turned to me.

“I request the same. What exactly happened?”

As Naelun also joined in, Robin and Vandine looked at each other and nodded.

“We have no intention of hiding anything. If we had remained captured, we would have been squeezed dry until the moment of our death.”
“Yes. Our benefactor deserves to hear it. I’ll start from the beginning.”

The two people’s story went back to the beginning. Summarizing the course of events, with them filling in missing parts for each other, it was as follows:
There was a mercenary group.
They embarked on a request and visited the forest, and after obtaining the target material, they were attacked by monsters just as they were about to return.

While easily fending them off, the monsters suddenly fled.
Since monster corpses were also valuable, they pursued them to finish the job.
But…

“We should have just gone back then.”

At the entrance of the cave they arrived at, a large number of monsters launched a surprise attack as if they had been waiting.
There were casualties, but they were experienced mercenaries. It wasn’t a major crisis.
Despair arrived when the miscellaneous monsters had been dealt with.

“We only heard rumors of such monsters. They say there are very strong, territorial rulers among monsters, and the Forest Ruler must have been one of them.”

The mercenary group faced an enraged Forest Ruler.
I calmly recalled the pile of corpses I had seen then. The Forest Ruler was clearly a boss monster.
It was not something a small mercenary group could contend with.
The priest seemed to think so too, as I saw him nod slightly.

However, the two people’s story continued.

“Even if it was just that, we might have avoided total annihilation… if that person hadn’t appeared.”
“That person?”
“He was a powerful mage. We couldn’t discern his features, perhaps due to a perception-altering spell, but he wielded magic on a completely different level than us.”

Robin and Vandine were mages.
Magicians were rare among mercenaries. They were hired by mercenary groups as high-value assets for a lump sum.
It was a contract to travel together for a set period and contribute to their combat strength. It wasn’t an uncommon arrangement, so they often took such jobs.

The two met there for the first time and together found themselves facing an unforeseen battle.

“It was ominous black magic. We resisted, but we were utterly defeated and dragged into his lair.”
“…A black magician.”
“Yes. Those who worship stars and darkness, an unhinged lot. We thought if we were dragged away like that, we would either die or suffer pain worse than death, so we resisted as much as we could, but it was futile. We were forcibly shackled and had our mana extracted.”
“That’s how Lady Tiamat found you.”
“It seems so.”

That was also the reason why only the two of them survived, while the other mercenaries were annihilated.
Because they were magicians. They were probably useful mana sources.
The important part was what came next.

“So, what happened after that?”

I, who had been listening intently all along, asked a question for the first time.
However, their answer betrayed my expectations.

“After that, we have no memory.”
“No memory?”
“Yes. We lost consciousness after a significant amount of mana was drained. As soon as our mana recovered, it was drained again, so we couldn’t escape mana exhaustion.”

They said that if even a little more time had passed like that, they wouldn’t have survived. At that point, Robin and Vandine bowed to us again.
Naelun offered an awkward smile.

“Direct your gratitude to this person. I truly did nothing.”
“You really don’t remember anything? Like something vaguely familiar?”

Disregarding the warm atmosphere, I repeated my questions. The quest was far more important than mere thanks.
The two, who had blinked at Nylun’s words, furrowed their brows in thought.
Suddenly, Vandine looked up.

“Now that you mention it.”
“Did something come to mind?”
“Yes. There were times when I briefly regained consciousness in a hazy state. Since it was a short and unstable state, I usually didn’t gain much, but the last time, I think I heard something significant.”

She then clarified that it might be a mistaken memory.

“I don’t know if it was self-talk or a conversation with someone, but he said he would return when the essence was complete.”
“Essence?”

However, to us, it sounded quite credible.
Naelun’s gaze and mine met.

“Yes, that’s what he said. What could it mean?”

After Tiamat and Naelun left, the two simultaneously let out deep breaths.
It was due to the release of tension.
Mages were certainly valuable assets, but their independent nature and personality often led to a poor public perception.
Priests, on the other hand, were the exact opposite.
They were elites among the clergy of the highly authoritative church.

Before such a person, the two ordinary mages couldn’t help but feel intimidated.
It would have been fine if it had just been one priest, but…

“Who exactly is that woman?”
“I wonder. She didn’t seem to be associated with the church. But the priest acted as if she was his superior.”

Nylun had mistaken Tiamat’s identity. Even so, in a situation where her identity was unclear, there was no reason for her to humble herself in front of others, but the results she achieved were effective.
Her skill and overbearing aura made them consider her someone who could not be disregarded.

Unaware of this fact, Robin and Vandine judged solely by what they saw.
She was their savior, and someone the priest deferred to. Naturally, she must not be an easy person to deal with.

“Judging by the way she pulls her hood down, is she a magician?”
“Probably. Knights and warriors find such attire uncomfortable. Though she had a different aura than other mages.”

Robin swallowed dryly, recalling Tiamat’s red eyes.
He hadn’t seen much of her face, but he remembered those captivating eyes. They were clearly beautiful and intricate, like jewels.
Yet, for some reason, an unknown chill ran down his spine.
It wasn’t incomprehensible if she was a mage. Powerful mages often possessed a unique aura.

Just like that black mage who inflicted bitter pain upon them. As his thoughts turned to that, a dark shadow fell across his face.

“That bastard.”
“I wanted to see his fcking face, but it’s infuriating not even knowing that.”
“Those b*stards are always insidious. Black magicians are the worst among them. The mercenaries were wiped out, and we lost a lot of money and time. We must definitely repay this loss.”

Robin’s anger flared.
It wasn’t for the mercenaries they had shared hardships with. It was the unforeseeable damage caused by a sudden enemy, far exceeding expectations.
That was what he lamented.
Magicians, by nature, were people who strictly calculated gains and losses. They easily forgot favors but never forgot grudges.

He, an ordinary mage, was no different.
His rage towards the black mage coiled within him.

However, having witnessed the enemy’s level, he knew that personal revenge would be suicidal.
Revenge, too, should be efficient—that was the way of a mage.
Fortunately, among those who helped them, there was a priest. He didn’t know about the woman Tiamat, but the priest would definitely want to eradicate the mastermind.

The church and black magician were completely opposite. They only needed to assist him.

“Is that true?”

Vandine suddenly spoke.
Her tone suggested she knew the truth but found it hard to believe. Robin immediately understood what she meant.
The woman and the priest had discussed this before leaving.

–Even without that memory, there’s a high chance that b*stard will return. It seems he conducted several experiments here. And he has a proper result.
–A result?

Vandine hugged her own shoulders.

–The Forest Ruler. It listened to his commands. He seemed to have ordered it to guard the lair with other low-level monsters. If he hadn’t intended to return, he would have taken it with him.
–That makes sense.
–But if he does return, it will be a difficult fight. The black mage alone is tough enough, and there’s a powerful monster too. We should have eliminated at least one of them…

She bit her lip, seemingly frustrated.
Vandine, with her head bowed, didn’t see it, but Robin watched the expressions of the others.
Though Tiamat’s face couldn’t be properly seen, Nylun’s expression was peculiar.
He seemed to be pondering whether to say something he wanted to, or more precisely, seemed to be seeking someone’s cue.

As his gaze fell upon Tiamat, she opened her mouth.

–Then that’s fortunate. I already dealt with one of them.

At the time, the expressions on their faces were quite something to behold.
Though she didn’t show it, Tiamat had to suppress a chuckle. They couldn’t help but be surprised.
They were the two who had directly faced the Forest Ruler.
If she had received help from the priest beside her, they might have understood, but to have defeated it alone?

Even if the black mage had been absent, it was a hard claim to believe.

Forgetting that she was their benefactor, they demanded a detailed explanation, but Tiamat didn’t explain how she fought. Naturally, the mystery surrounding her deepened.
Perhaps she could even subdue that black mage.

“She’s clearly not an ordinary person. But she won’t help us anymore.”
“That’s right. Someone of that caliber has no reason to get involved in something like this. It’s safe to assume it was a momentary whim.”

High-ranking mages tended to be more capricious anyway.
They rationally concluded that Tiamat would withdraw from this matter.