Chapter 62

#062 Chapter

"Damn it...!"

Miguel, who had turned his head to look behind, sighed.

His gaze returned to Ian.

"Brother, I'm telling you this in a hurry. When are you going to use that...? Even for you, a knife alone won't be enough..."

"At least not now."

Ian, without taking his eyes off the knights, added,

"How far is it to the river?"

"Ten minutes...? It might be a bit faster."

"Try to get to the bridge somehow."

"Then what?"

"...We'll have to kill them."

How? Even Ian hadn't thought it through clearly.

Everything had happened too suddenly, and there were too many variables.

But he was certain that using magic now wouldn't be beneficial.

If the trackers escaped, there would be no way to catch them, and next time they would surely come prepared to deal with a mage.

The fact that he was a mage would also be known to the Scales Caravan.

He didn't want to expose his identity to a major imperial caravan before even setting foot in the empire.

So, the magic would be used after crossing the river.

And those who knew he was a mage would all have to be killed.

"Got it. Then... damn."

Miguel, who was whipping the reins, frowned.

The carriage's speed was starting to slow down, and the magic stones in the horse armor were flickering.

"Of all times, now... Try to buy some time."

Miguel, who had spoken, precariously climbed onto the back of a running horse.

The magic stones had to be replaced one by one.

"It's not as easy as it sounds..."

While muttering, Ian moved to the back of the carriage.

Lucy, who had been huddled in the corner with her robe, looked at him.

What are you so sorry about?

Ian, with a faint smile, struck the top of the rear partition with the weight of his sword.

The plank, which had been jostled by many people getting on and off, fell off.

The plank from the last expansion.

Still, Miguel's back couldn't be seen from outside.

Ian leaped onto the lowered partition.

After testing its durability with his foot, he eventually turned to look at the caravan knights who had caught up with the Hyram knights.

Black armor and helmets. Horse armor.

The differences from the ones he had met before were finally clear.

They seemed to be made by connecting plate and chain mail intricately, but there were no magic stones embedded anywhere.

'Right. Even a major imperial caravan can't provide magical weapons to all their guards.'

Artificially created magical weapons were, of course, extremely expensive.

He would have to be careful of the ones with magic stones in their armor.

Thinking this, Ian gripped the Sword of Judgment confidently.

The Sword of Judgment was gleaming with blood and oil but was still sharp.

"......?"

At that moment, someone stepped forward among the knights.

A large build and a bald head.

A man with an ancient language tattoo under one eye.

His armor and horse armor were embedded with magic stones, and a large double-bladed axe was strapped to his back.

Ian, who had moved his left hand behind his back, pulled out four throwing daggers from the subspace.

He inserted three of them into the empty dagger sheaths on his chest band, and held the last one in reverse, looking at the man.

"Your eyes are quite fierce."

The bald man, smiling, added with a nod.

"I'm Oleg. I'm a colleague of Kyle and Kenneth, whom you killed."

"Do you want to follow in their footsteps?"

Ian spat out.

He didn't particularly want to talk, but he had to buy some time.

Since the carriage had slowed down, the man could catch up if he wanted to.

"I don't plan to. I don't particularly want to avenge the dead. Killing you isn't my job. But... "

He pulled out a bent piece of metal from his waist.

Patterns carved in black on its surface were briefly revealed.

...Is that a boomerang?

Ian, who frowned at that moment.

"I want to taste it a bit."

At the same time, he lightly flicked his wrist holding the boomerang.

The result was not light.

Whizz!

In the next moment, the boomerang, rotating like a silver disc, flew right in front of Ian.

"......!"

Clang!

Ian reflexively deflected the boomerang. Unfortunately, he hadn't even set up a swirling barrier.

The boomerang, which had been deflected, made a loop in the air and returned to Oleg's hand.

A magic boomerang, damn it.

"Ha! Not a bad greeting, right?"

Oleg, smiling, flicked his wrist again.

This time, his target wasn't Ian.

"......!"

Ian's eyes flared as he saw the boomerang pass by the side of the carriage in a curve.

His body moved before he could think.

Clang!

The dagger he threw collided with the boomerang. The boomerang, whose trajectory was altered, embedded itself in the ground.

'Really hit it.'

While Ian blinked, Oleg's exclamation continued.

"To hit that...? Ha! You might have just thrown away a few gold coins!"

A voice close to pure admiration.

What an annoying kid.

Ian, clicking his tongue, narrowed his eyes as he looked ahead again.

Another knight was catching up to Oleg at a fierce speed.

Black fur. A face resembling a feline. It was Charlotte.

"You were told not to interfere?"

She glared at Oleg as if she wanted to kill him, then eventually looked up at Ian.

Her amber eyes slightly curved for a moment.

"......!"

Charlotte leaped from the saddle.

In her raised hands, a pair of swords shaped like fangs were already held.

'What a crazy...?'

Ian, who crossed his sword and dagger, and Charlotte, who pounced on him, were almost simultaneous.

Clang!

Ian, who was pinned down by her, was pushed back to the back of the driver's seat.

The crossed swords barely blocked her arms.

'What kind of strength is this...?'

Ian, gritting his teeth.

Charlotte, looking down at him with eyes that shimmered calmly, licked her lips.

"Let me tell you. You're mine."

"...Ha."

Another crazy woman.

At the moment a hollow laugh spread across Ian's face.

Boom!

A small explosion, and Charlotte's face tilted to the side.

Taking advantage of the moment, Ian kicked her in the stomach.

A heavy weight. Charlotte, who didn't even wince, looked back at Lucy, who was glaring at her from the corner.

"I'm not interested in you, so just stay out of the way. Kid."

"I have to be here."

Lucy, who spoke, raised her hand holding a dagger under her robe.

The dagger wasn't aimed at Charlotte.

"If you don't get off now, I'll kill myself."

Holding the dagger to her own throat, Lucy spoke.

"What?! Are you out of your mind? You're not getting off now?"

Miguel, struggling on the horse, let out a shocked cry.

Charlotte frowned.

"That won't be easy."

"I'm confident I can do it in one go."

Lucy added calmly.

Her green eyes, calm and composed.

"...Is this why you're coveted in Larvut?"

Charlotte, muttering, looked at Ian.

"Shouldn't you stop her? Your employer is about to die."

"Charlotte! Get off now!"

As Oleg's shout continued, Ian shrugged.

"I'm the type who guarantees freedom of choice. Don't worry, Lucy. I'll make sure your revenge is exacted."

He added, looking at Lucy.

"I'll kill everyone from the Scales Caravan, and Larvut as well."

"Ha...!"

Charlotte burst into a short laugh.

Her breath, which was rasping, turned cold as she spoke.

"I won't let you do it twice. Kid. If you interfere again, I'll kill you with my own hands. I don't care what happens to you. I'm just backing off because I'm in a bad mood. So... "

Charlotte, who spat out, looked back at Ian.

"Next time, let's fight to the end. Ian."

"...If you want."

Charlotte, who leaped back and retrieved her sword, landed on the partition.

Her tail armor, with claw-like blades, swayed above her head.

Charlotte, who looked at Ian for a moment, leaped off the back of the carriage.

'She must enjoy hunting alone... Just like in the game. Beastmen are really crazy.'

Ian swallowed a hollow laugh.

Beastmen were very rare in the game.

Beastman mercenaries were even rarer.

They had very high stats and a common trait of not following orders well.

They also had a wild characteristic that gave them stat bonuses as the battle dragged on.

If they could be made to obey, they would be a great help in the game.

But making them obey wasn't easy...

"...Put the knife down."

Ian, who met Lucy's eyes, spoke.

Lucy, who had been holding the knife to her throat, finally let her arm drop.

"Good bluff. Well done."

"It wasn't a bluff."

"I know. So don't do it again. If you don't want it to be confiscated."

Ian, adding coldly, quickly cast a swirling barrier and climbed onto the partition.

Charlotte was nowhere to be seen.

The black knights, who had been stealthily approaching the carriage, quickly backed off.

Oleg, admiring, said,

"Amazing. I rarely see Charlotte fail on her first try."

Ian just shrugged.

The carriage's speed increased again at that moment.

Oleg, who had quickly caught up to the carriage, shouted,

"Hey. You're bound to fail. I'm just being relaxed because I can catch you whenever I want."

He added, shrugging.

"Of course, there will be some sacrifices in the process."

"So, what do you want to say?"

Ian, slightly turning back, asked.

Oleg smiled.

"Let's stop this pointless bloodshed. Surrender. In exchange, I'll give you double the reward you were promised. And work for the Scales Caravan. With your skills, the leader will be pleased."

You look like a mountain, but you're a weasel inside.

Ian, contrary to his thoughts, showed a contemplative expression for a moment.

"Not a bad offer. But paying double the reward won't be easy."

"Hah. No matter how much it is, it's pocket change for the caravan. I guarantee it."

"The reward I was promised wasn't money."

"......?"

"It was a life. If you double it, I need two lives. Ah, right."

Ian nodded.

"If you and Charlotte give me your lives, I'll consider it."

At that moment, Oleg's smile turned vicious.

"You're making it sound like you want to die. To repay my kindness like this."

"I needed to buy some time."

Thud, the carriage tilted, and Ian went back inside.

"We're almost at the river."

"......!"

As the carriage climbed onto a narrow stone bridge, Oleg quickly slowed down.

They had safely reached the river.

The bridge wasn't very wide, causing a temporary bottleneck among the knights.

"We need to put more distance between us... "

Ian, muttering, eventually pulled out a long spear from the subspace.

The balance spear of the Scales, which Kenneth had used.

It was an expensive item, but it was heavy and unenchanted, making it a bit of a white elephant for Ian.

He couldn't use the axe blade on the spear shaft or the embedded magic.

But now, a sharp tip at the end was enough.

The knights started to line up on the bridge.

They could ride two abreast, but for safety reasons, they were coming in a single file.

"This might not work... "

Ian, muttering, cast a wind blade and took a throwing stance.

He gauged the aiming point with his outstretched left hand and threw the spear with all his might at the knight, who was staring at him in shock.

Swoosh!

The wind on the spear shaft exploded into a spin.

Thud!

The knight, pierced by the spear, was thrown back.

He also knocked the knight following closely behind off the horse.

Both were knights of the Scales Caravan.

"...It works."

Ian, muttering, looked at Lucy.

"Please keep watch. If they get too close, call out. It looks sufficient."

"Yes...!"

Lucy quickly came over.

Ian finally moved to the driver's seat.

His whole body ached.

His head felt mushy from being on high alert all the time.

But Ian still looked down at the bridge and the river.

It was an old bridge.

Probably a legacy of an ancient civilization.

The dark blue river looked quite deep.

It didn't seem like they could swim across, either on foot or on horseback, in this weather.

"You've done well. Ha, it feels like I've been to the brink of death a few times."

As he leaned back, Miguel said.

His complexion was still not good.

He knew that they had only passed one hurdle and hadn't shaken off the pursuit.

"How does the road continue?"

"It continues diagonally beside the forest. This used to be all open land, but now it's hidden by trees, so the road can't be seen from there."

"Right..."

Ian looked at the forest across the river.

Gray trees with bare branches stretched high and sparsely.

But it seemed sufficient to block the view.

Moreover, it felt strangely familiar.

'This is too similar to the vision I saw before.'

Except for the lack of snow on the ground, it was practically the same.

Of course, such a desolate coniferous forest wasn't unique to this place.

But there was a possibility of a connection.

Even if not, something was definitely lurking in that forest.

Just looking at it gave a foreboding feeling.

"...Are you thinking the same thing as me, brother?"

Miguel suddenly added.

Ian, whose gaze met his, swallowed.

"I never thought I'd say this, but you have that contingency plan, right? ...It seems like it's time to use it again."

"Are you suggesting we enter the forest? Can we pull this along?"

"We'll have to see when we get there. It should be possible under normal circumstances. But the speed will be slower. That's actually a good thing. This is the last magic stone. Anyway."

Miguel nodded forward.

"Looking at it, it's a cursed forest, so they won't be able to follow, right?"

"Maybe... It would be nice if they didn't."

They'll probably all follow.

Ian, stroking his chin, eventually nodded.

"But it's not the worst suggestion. It might even make fighting easier."

He looked up at the cloudy sky.

He couldn't gauge the position of the sun.

"As