Chapter 54

As they progressed through the "Great Forest of the Lost," the nameless horse was officially named Nightmare.

The more Albana and Lambert talked, the more it became apparent that Lambert lacked a sense of naming, so in the end, they went with Albana's suggestion.

A significant factor was that Albana's persistent attempts to call the headless horse Nightmare eventually wore Lambert out.

The threats of the forest attacked Lambert and his companions multiple times, but for Lambert, they were not much of a problem.

He crushed the head of a giant spider blocking the path with Nightmare, and charged into a group of Forest Wights, likely the remnants of a bandit gang, on Nightmare, annihilating them in just ten seconds.

A large Forest Wight, seemingly the former leader of the bandit gang, was decapitated by a combined strike of Lambert's sword skills and Nightmare's powerful legs. The severed head collided with a high branch and did not fall even as Albana and Lambert chatted for a while.

Eventually, Lambert reached the edge of the forest near a town and decided to part ways with Nightmare.

Nightmare's appearance was too conspicuous to enter the town.

Lambert sternly ordered Nightmare to avoid people as much as possible in the forest, not to retaliate even if attacked, and to run away. He also told Nightmare that he would call again when the time came. By then, Nightmare had grown quite attached to Lambert, nodding obediently with its headless neck and disappearing into the darkness of the forest.

After passing through the forest and arriving at the city of Baraila, Lambert parted ways with Albana.

They had agreed from the start that their journey together would end when they returned to the city.

"Thank you, Sir Swordsman. Thanks to you, I had a great experience. I will never forget this journey with this Albana. Normally, I would exaggerate the stories I hear by fifty percent, but no one would believe the story of Sir Swordsman even if I told it as it is, so maybe fifty percent less would be just right."

Albana bid farewell in his usual light-hearted tone, adding, "We might meet again someday if fate allows. I look forward to our next meeting," before leaving.

The city of Baraila, as rumored, was indeed a city of adventurers, with a large number of people who looked like adventurers.

It was not uncommon to see people walking with tamed monsters called familiars or carrying large weapons on their backs.

However, among them, Lambert, who was taller than the average person and wore flashy magic armor, stood out.

In fact, it could be said that he was drawing too much attention.

People who saw Lambert from a distance would stop in their tracks, often dropping what they were holding in astonishment.

Three suspicious-looking men leaning against a wall and chatting stopped their conversation and sneered at Lambert.

"What's with that giant?"

"Who can move properly with all that gear? Marc, go tease him a bit."

Marc, the youngest and smallest of the three, grinned, showing her teeth.

"Leave it to me, Senpai."

The three were adventurers of the guild "Poison Rat."

While officially a legitimate adventurer guild, in the city of Baraila, where there were too many guilds for proper oversight, many guilds had become havens for troublemakers.

"Poison Rat" was a typical example of such a guild.

They engaged in extortion of clients, accepting requests that violated the lord's regulations, information leaks, and petty crimes like pickpocketing using magic.

Marc had been living in Baraila by stealing since her parents, who were adventurers, died in a battle with a monster when she was young.

Due to her criminal record, despite having a talent for magic, she was not accepted by legitimate adventurer guilds and had to rely on "Poison Rat" for a living.

"Darkness, hide my presence."

As Marc raised her finger and whispered, a magic circle spread around her.

This was a spell to make her presence less noticeable.

Originally used to hide from monsters during hunts or to launch a surprise attack, in "Poison Rat," it was mainly used as a preparatory step for theft.

Marc had learned this type of spell through rigorous training in "Poison Rat."

"You're good at those sneaky spells, aren't you? Hahaha."

"You're right, it suits me perfectly."

Marc inwardly sneered at the two men's words.

(I don't intend to stay in a place like this. I'll hone my magic, build a record, and make connections with other guilds to get out of here as soon as possible.)

She hid her true feelings and smiled charmingly, flexing her wrists.

"Watch me. I'll trip that giant from behind and make him fall. He'll probably thrash around and yell as he tries to get up."

She slipped into the crowd, skillfully closing the distance to Lambert.

She decided on a position to take behind Lambert and planned to use a wind spell to trip him from behind, crouching and running.

When Marc was about six hains (approximately six meters) away, Lambert suddenly stopped.

This distance was roughly three times the length of the large sword he carried on his back.

However, this was in the middle of a crowd.

It was impossible for Marc, who had made her presence less noticeable with magic, to be detected from six hains away.

Under normal circumstances, Marc would have assumed that Lambert had stopped for some other reason.

What made her stop was Lambert's killing intent.

In battle, sneaking behind an enemy to take their head was an effective technique.

Some were so skilled at this that they could reliably take the heads of enemy commanders.

As one of the Four Demon Generals, Lambert had often been attacked from blind spots during battles.

Even outside of battle, he had been targeted by assassins.

Warriors from the era of the Eight Nations Unification War naturally developed the ability to sense the movements of others around them, and those who could not do so, even if they were skilled with a sword, often died young.

For Lambert, who had dodged the best techniques of top assassins from that era and killed them on the spot, Marc's half-hearted camouflage was like announcing his presence and charging at him head-on.

However, this worked to his advantage.

If Marc had been more skilled, Lambert would have suppressed his killing intent, lured her in, and delivered a fatal blow.

Even if Marc had some talent, she had only learned magic in a minor guild during a peaceful era.

To Lambert, it was like a child's prank, and there was no need to counter it.

He had plenty of time to intimidate her and make her back off.

Lambert felt the approaching person's spirit break and walked away as if nothing had happened.

(What a lively city. First, I need to learn about the city and investigate the movements of the "Whistling Devil." I should head to the headquarters of the "Dancing Sword" guild. They will likely be cooperative.)

Lambert, who had automatically repelled Marc, did not pay her any more attention.

However, Marc was not so easily let off.

"Ugh... Ugh..."

Marc, who had been hit by Lambert's killing intent, could not bear it and fell to her knees.

She pressed her neck to suppress the rising stomach acid and collapsed.

Immediately, a commotion broke out in a corner of the city.

"Hey, what's wrong with the girl?"

"What happened? I found her collapsed when I noticed..."

(What's going on? It doesn't seem like a pervert. Maybe a seizure?)

Lambert, whose attention had already shifted from Marc, glanced back at her as if she were a stranger, thinking that it was not a matter that required his intervention. He turned back and resumed his search for the headquarters of the "Dancing Sword" guild.