Chapter 58 : Chapter 58
Chapter 58
"Be safe."
Should I stop him, even now?
Regret flickered across the count's face as he saw him off.
It seemed he was very anxious about him going on a mission that dozens of scouting parties had already failed, even with a knight present.
"Don't worry."
I grinned at the count and said.
"Even if I die, I'll make sure to send your son back alive."
The count's eyes, which had flinched, trembled noticeably.
His face was the same as always, but there was no way I couldn't see the concern and worry behind his stoic facade.
No matter how much of a fortress master he was, protecting Moner, there was no way he wouldn't worry about his son.
"Then I'll be on my way."
As I bowed to the count, he stepped forward and lightly embraced me.
'Why this man again, leaving his own son aside!'
After the uncomfortable hug ended, the count turned and went back to the castle without another word.
I watched the count's retreating back.
Was the hug because he had nothing to say, or because he couldn't say what he wanted to?
In any case, he was a surprisingly soft-hearted man for a fortress master who lived with death as his companion.
* * *
The party walked in silence.
The resolve of the soldier who had sworn to avenge his comrades, and the determination of the knight who had left the Demonic Beast forest, were all swallowed by the darkness of the forest.
"How bizarre."
Five days since entering the Demonic Beast forest.
The forest was, literally, bizarre.
The mana density was so absurdly high that the air was sticky, and the mana-infused trees did not allow a single ray of light to reach the ground.
As if all the beings living in the darkness of the forest were wary of the intruder, an ominous scream never ceased in the forest.
"A little further and we'll reach the first clearing.
It's the land the first duke obtained after driving out the Kobolds."
"Then why didn't they move the fortress to the clearing?"
"Because you can't cut down the trees in the forest unless you're a knight.
They gave up on the clearing because they couldn't create a passage through the forest."
The mana-infused trees were like castle walls themselves.
"Is it impossible to go through the forest?"
"The forest we crossed has no owner, but to the left and right are goblins and gnolls.
It's the end of their territory, but it's dangerous to use as a passage."
"So we have to either subjugate them or clear the forest."
Now I understood why the first duke had given up on the clearing.
"To subjugate them, we have to deal with both sides at the same time."
It was a matter of driving out two races that had established their territories, not just a mere group.
The potential gains were infinitesimally small, and the risks were absurdly high.
The Moner family, which had more land than any other family, would not have needed to take a risk for a single clearing.
The first duke's goal must have been to block the Demonic Beast forest, not to conquer it.
"I don't care what happens, I just wish I could see the sky."
A soldier holding a torch lamented and looked up at the sky.
Five days of walking without even knowing day from night in a forest where not a single ray of light entered.
The soldiers' faces were filled with fatigue from the march where they could not let down their guard.
"Prepare for camp."
"Yes?
We can leave the forest if we go a little further."
A clearing open on all sides would be much better for camping and for keeping watch, but…….
"Since this is a mission that other scouting parties have already failed, we will move assuming the worst-case scenario."
We could not believe that the clearing would remain ownerless forever.
A monster that had lost a territory battle might have taken up residence, or an environment where we could not rest might have been created.
"If there's an ambush, it would be safer here."
At those words, I heard the knights following in the rear click their tongues, but I deliberately ignored them.
Assuming the worst was a basic principle of Lost Chronicle.
In a game where even a 99% strike could fail, there was no room for complacency.
"The soldiers will set up camp, and the knights will begin to keep watch from now on."
"Yes!"
As I watched the soldiers who had begun to move busily, I sat down out of habit and spread my mana around.
Having gotten used to it over the past five days, I could feel a much wider forest than on the first day.
'If this were a game, the enemy would appear right about now…….'
Just before leaving the forest, a moment when we would be inevitably off guard, preparing to camp and even setting up sentries in case of a surprise attack.
Lost Chronicle would aim for the moment the player was most at ease.
The experience of hundreds of games rang a loud alarm in my head.
* * *
"Commander, isn't this really too much?"
At Tein's words, Vergil smiled bitterly and said.
"Just bear with it a little longer.
I promised to follow his orders until we return."
"For only the commander to stand guard every day, it's ridiculous!
Why on earth are the soldiers not standing guard?!"
At his words, he glanced at the soldiers.
They had already finished preparing for camp, and the soldiers, having put down their luggage except for their bows and arrows, were resting.
"The squad leader must have a plan."
"A plan, my foot!
He's clearly being unreasonable!
We're the ones who have to protect those guys if a battle breaks out, yet only we are standing guard!"
Vergil kept his mouth shut at Tein's complaint.
No matter how much he tried to endure, he couldn't understand this journey from beginning to end.
'Father has made a huge mistake.'
He had never once doubted his father in his entire life.
But entrusting this mission to that guy was the worst choice.
'To think he doesn't even know the basics of military strategy.'
It was common sense of common sense not to waste the stamina of a knight in preparation for an emergency, but the young lord did not allow the knights a single moment of rest.
The four knights took turns standing guard and could not take off their armor even during camp.
They had endured for five days, taking naps in their sleeping bags while wearing their armor.
'And to think we're camping in a place where we can't see an inch in front of us without a torch, even though the clearing is just a little further.'
Was there anyone who didn't know that camping should be done in a bright, open area?
"To think that's the young lord of the Moner family……."
"Hmph!"
At Tein's words, Vergil glared at him with his eyes wide open.
"I told you not to say it out loud!"
I should never have told that loose-lipped bastard.
"If anyone else hears it before the mission is over, I'll really rip out your tongue."
"Hehe, why are you being so harsh."
He clicked his tongue at the bastard who laughed awkwardly and scratched the back of his head at the threat.
A bastard who didn't have a shred of a knight's dignity, no matter how hard he looked.
"Stop with the nonsense and stand guard properly."
"What on earth can you see in a forest where you can't see an inch in front of you without a torch."
Even as he said that, Tein corrected his posture and watched the front.
"Damn Demonic Beast forest."
The heavy, sticky air.
The sound of the wind, howling like a scream.
The darkness that had swallowed everything beyond the torches stuck in the ground.
It was truly a place where there was nothing to like.
He gripped the hilt of his sword and endlessly guarded against the darkness that felt like it would swallow him whole.
The moment he looked at the commander, thinking the flickering darkness was about to swallow him.
"Prepare for battle!"
The shout of the young lord, who had come out with his sword and arrows, pushing him aside, and the sound of an arrow leaving its string, echoed at the same time.
* * *
As long as I had the trait 『Dark Emperor』, darkness was not a problem.
The moment the presence of a monster was read in my mana, I shouted with all my might and rushed out.
The hand that gripped the sword trembled like crazy.
My heart was pounding so violently that I couldn't hear the footsteps of the knights who were moving urgently, or the sound of the soldiers' bows.
I had been so sure that I would remain calm no matter what happened.
It was a struggle to even suppress the smile that was trying to escape my lips.
Just ten steps from the knights who were standing guard.
"Grrr?"
The goblins who were preparing for an ambush were waiting in an awkward posture in the darkness.
Thwack!
The sensation of the sword piercing the goblin's oily neck was vivid.
Ah…….
My lips kept curling up like a madman.
Just one down.
Forty-six to go.
Dodging the falling goblin, I ran towards the next one without stopping.
The one who had been clutching a thin blowgun, probably intending to use poison, fell before he could even put the blowgun to his mouth.
I glanced at the goblin next to him and then moved forward again.
My party, who had already finished their preparations, must have started the battle.
All I had to do was cause as much chaos as possible so that the panicked goblins could not form a formation.
I ran towards a hobgoblin that was at least twice the size of the other goblins.
The one who was holding a sword as large as its body snorted and swung its sword.
Whoosh!
I rolled on the ground, dodging the sword that came at me with a fierce wind.
An attractive opponent, but not now.
I kicked the ground, sending sand flying, and then broke through the goblin group and moved forward again.
Thwack!
A goblin's neck fell with a straight thrust of my sword.
Whoosh!
I left the ones that seemed difficult to kill easily to my party.
'Hehehe…….'
My body grew hot from the dirty blood that had soaked me.
[A battle has begun in the darkness.
The trait 『Dark Emperor』 will lead you with a favorable step.]
[The trait 『Desire for Blood』 reacts to the monster's blood.
Attack power and attack speed increase.
Madness encroaches.]
[The 『Struggle Desire of the Giant King』 reacts to the battle with the monster.]
As the dormant traits writhed in response to the fitting enemy and battlefield, a sense of overwhelming euphoria washed over me.
"Hyaaaah!"
Every time I moved the mana in my body and thrust my sword, a corpse rolled on the ground.
I pushed the one who was clutching his neck and gurgling, as if in disbelief, towards the hobgoblin that was blocking the way.
"Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle!"
The goblin, clutching its neck, desperately shook its head and shouted, but.
Thwack!
The hobgoblin's giant sword mercilessly crushed the goblin's skull.
Taking advantage of that brief opening, I passed him and ran towards a deeper place.
I had no worries about the party behind me, nor about the goblins that were blocking all sides and letting out ominous cries.
I just moved forward, crushing the goblin formation as my feet led me.
"Haaaaaat!"
Finally, I saw a goblin that was a head shorter than the other goblins in the distance.
A hunched goblin, covered in a robe, unlike the others who were at best wearing patched-up animal skins.
The tattoos that filled the body under the robe would be glowing in response to its mana.
'A goblin shaman!'
As long as I wasn't caught in a surprise attack.
As long as the knights weren't lost to poison and the hobgoblins didn't charge in before the soldiers could even draw their bows.
As long as I could stop the goblin shaman who was ravaging the soldiers in the darkness.
How many times had I prayed whenever I encountered those damn goblins.
The surprise attack was blocked, and the goblins' blowguns couldn't penetrate the armor of the fully armed knights.
The arrows of the soldiers, who had rested enough and were fully prepared, had already begun to slaughter the goblins.
'Now, the only variable is you.'
Unlike the other goblins, who only had physical abilities, the shaman who used mana to cast spells and curses was like a nightmare.
But what could a shaman who hadn't even finished a spell do in this exposed place?
"Eat this and piss off!"
Thwack!
The sword I threw with all my might flew towards him like a dagger.