Chapter 98

The earth dragon snake, which had been cut in half, convulsed its entire body, but eventually stopped moving completely.

Joseph shook off the earth dragon snake's bodily fluids from his rock dragon greatsword with a few swings.

"Joseph... why the hell are you here?"

"Huh? Who the hell are you, don't get so familiar with me."

Chi-Du, despite the appearance of Joseph, a recognized strongman, did not lose his composed expression. On the other hand, Joseph's attitude of not even considering Chi-Du was, in a sense, impressive.

"I'm Chi-Du."

"You!?! -- I don't know you."

Killer intent swirled between the two.

Chi-Du, the first to become impatient, made his move. He manipulated the Blazing Tiger and released a high-temperature breath attack at Joseph. The members of the Kingetsuka, seeing the state of the app that had been hit, shouted in danger, but Joseph took the hit head-on without dodging.

"Idiot! You took it head-on!"

Chi-Du raised his voice, slightly excited, but after the high-temperature breath from the Blazing Tiger stopped, Joseph appeared almost unscathed.

Joseph's fire dragon boots were equipped with powerful fire resistance, blocking most of the high-temperature breath from the Blazing Tiger.

"Hey, did I say I was cold?"

"Heh heh... I'll test how long you can keep that cool. By the contract from the other side, appear. Heh heh, this is a Hell Gorilla that lives in the Ahhard Jungle. It's a fitting opponent for you."

A Rank 5 monster, the Hell Gorilla, appeared through Chi-Du's summoning magic. It was covered in purple fur and massive, compressed muscles, and despite its knuckle-walking posture, it was still a head taller than Joseph.

"Girls, I'll heal you now. Gather the injured."

Ansgar took the opportunity to heal the Kingetsuka members while Joseph and Chi-Du were fighting.

Joseph, looking at the Hell Gorilla summoned by Chi-Du, had a dissatisfied expression.

"Hey, you Enchanter over there."

"Y-Yes, sir, what can I do for you?"

"What did he say the name of that monster was?"

The name Chi-Du had just given had already vanished from Joseph's mind.

"Hell Gorilla, a Rank 5 monster. Even you, sir, should be careful not to underestimate it."

"Hell Gorilla... that's a gorilla!?"

Joseph's face turned red as he muttered to himself.

The Hell Gorilla, summoned by Chi-Du, performed a drumming action, pounding its chest in a threatening display, but Joseph ignored it. The Hell Gorilla, enraged at being ignored, charged at Joseph.

---

Along the road connecting Yuu's mansion to the city of Kama, a group was gathered.

At first glance, they seemed to be a merchant and his hired guards, but the dozens of guards were actually spies from the Holy Jardaluc, and the merchant was just hired.

"Captain, it's time. Chi-Du has started moving. We've also received word from those watching Yuu Sato that he has left the Marmar Forest."

"I'm concerned about the lack of communication since he left the Marmar Forest, but various forces are monitoring the situation. It's not easy to give a signal..."

"True. Is there a risk that Yuu Sato will catch on to our plan?"

"That's why we have a real merchant. Yuu Sato's Magic Eye is Status Insight, but with a real merchant, it's not strange for us to be here as guards. We've also gathered more front-line fighters than scouts."

"R-Really, I'm just here to be here, right?"

The hired merchant, who had been repeatedly asking the same question, asked again in a trembling voice.

"We've already told you. We'll pay you 50 gold coins just to be with us. It's an easy job. There's nothing to worry about."

The merchant, relieved by the captain's words, smiled at the thought of earning 50 gold coins just by being there.

While the captain and the merchant were talking, the other spies were busy preparing. Each of them was applying poison and paralyzing agents to their weapons. Given that the plan was to capture Yuu Sato and bring him back to the Holy Jardaluc, using such agents to hinder his actions was a natural choice.

"Captain, someone is coming."

"Is it Yuu Sato?"

"No, it seems to be a Lycan."

One of the spies with excellent vision reported that a Lycan was approaching from the city of Kama. In the Holy Jardaluc, Elves, Dwarves, and Lycans were referred to as sub-humans and discriminated against, which was why the Lycan was identified as such.

"Hey, what are you doing? Hurry up and pass by."

One of the spies openly showed his disgust and dismissed the Lycan.

---

"Hmm, that's strange. Why do I smell the stench of the Holy Jardaluc here? It's bothering me."

The Lycan pointed out that the group was from the Holy Jardaluc, but none of the spies were fazed.

"We are guards for a merchant from the Holy Jardaluc who is selling goods in the city of Kama. Is there something that bothers you?"

"Plenty. You guys have poison on your weapons, right? And it's not just poison. Are you about to start a fight? I'm really curious."

"You damn sub-human, are you trying to interfere with us?!"

One of the spies, who strongly despised sub-humans, could no longer hold back and attacked the Lycan. The captain, who could have stopped him, watched indifferently, thinking that the death of one sub-human was no big deal. The moment everyone thought the spy's sword would split the Lycan's head, the spy's head disappeared.

Everyone stared at the Lycan. In his right hand, a massive hammer had appeared. From the small bloodstain on the hammer, it was clear that the Lycan had swung it at an incredible speed.

The spies present were among the best combatants in the Holy Jardaluc, each capable of taking on multiple skilled adventurers.

"Ah! A-a murderer! I-I have nothing to do with this!"

The hired merchant, terrified, collapsed to the ground, wetting himself in fear.

"I just reacted instinctively. I was surprised!

I'm not good at talking, so I'll be blunt.

Nice to meet you. I'm Goliath, one of the 12 Disciples of the Immortality Sect. Nice to meet you."

Despite killing a man, Goliath's attitude remained unchanged, making the trained spies even more uneasy. If Goliath was truly one of the 12 Disciples, the dozens of spies present would be no match. The Holy Jardaluc boasted figures like the 'Twin Saints,' 'Saint Spear Dogran,' 'Saint Fist Dross,' 'Iron Wall Barash,' and the 'Three Holy Maidens,' but none of them were present in the city of Kama, far from the Holy Jardaluc.

"Haha, it's a bluff. The 12 Disciples were defeated by the Twin Saints!

Besides, the 12 Disciples are known as 'Indomitable' and are named Moesner, a Celestial."

The man laughed dryly, trying to dismiss Goliath as a fake, but he could not hide his unease at the overwhelming aura of a true strongman.

"Hehe, you know a lot. I'm the new 12th Disciple.

Your target is Yuu Sato, right? I'm also after Yuu Sato. So, we'll have to fight over him. I'm getting excited."

The tension between the spies and Goliath was rising when a voice broke the silence.

"Um, this is near my house, so if you're going to fight, please do it somewhere else."

"...Annoying."

"It's an eyesore. Please disappear before my master arrives."

Nina's smile in the presence of a decapitated corpse was out of place.

"Please help me. This sub-human suddenly attacked me."

The situation was dire. Goliath's unexpected appearance, and Nina and her group arriving as planned, but the crucial target, Yuu Sato, was not there. The captain tried to involve Nina and her group to gain a slight advantage.

"Hmm, I can't tell who's in the wrong... And you shouldn't call the Lycan a sub-human."

"Look, one of us is already dead."

The captain, desperately trying to appeal, was watched with amusement by Goliath.

"I don't care how many of you die. Please take your fight elsewhere."

Marifa's words caused some of the men to curse, thinking she was siding with the sub-humans, but as a Dark Elf, she had been discriminated against as a sub-human by humans, so her attitude was understandable.

The captain, realizing his attempt to involve Nina and her group was failing, made a crucial statement.

"This sub-human attacked us, demanding to see Yuu Sato, saying something incomprehensible."

The captain's words had the desired effect.

Lena gripped her staff and began to cast a spell. Marifa drew an arrow, with Bullet Ants clinging to it, turning it black.

And Nina—

"Sorry."