Episode 86
Everything took place outside the city walls, not within the village.
That was what Noah’s party always believed.
No matter how remote it was, this was still the capital of the Empire.
Security within the capital was tight, and if anything happened within the village, someone would immediately report it to the guards.
But on the other hand, most things that happened outside the city walls could be concealed.
No matter how despicable Noah’s party was, they didn’t kill people.
Taking money and valuables from people under the pretense of protecting them could be considered self-defense.
In fact, many people had angrily reported them to the guards in the past, but the guards would turn a blind eye if they claimed they were paid for protection.
A D-rank party that committed petty crimes but completed countless quests without any major issues…
The guards had no choice but to side with such a party over useless F-rank adventurers.
“She’s a strange woman.”
“Yeah, I didn’t expect her to ask for money right from the start.”
“But it actually made her trust us more.”
“That’s right. The rest will be much easier now.”
People tend to justify the actions of someone they like.
Of course, it would be different if a crime was committed, but then they just had to make sure their actions weren’t perceived as criminal.
“It wouldn’t be bad to take her on a few more quests, build trust, and seduce her.”
“Yeah, she seems like an easy target.”
“Who knows? Maybe she’ll beg us to take her in and offer herself.”
The three men chuckled lewdly.
“Well, I don’t think we need to go that far.”
“You idiot. Of course we do.”
This was a woman who could satisfy their pent-up desires all at once.
Unless she was a high-ranking adventurer, above A-rank…
There was no chance for them, stuck at D-rank, to be with such a beautiful woman unless they visited illegal brothels.
“Anyway, let’s do this right. Don’t screw things up.”
Noah, who always maintained a gentlemanly and kind facade, was actually the one with the strongest desires.
As they exchanged vulgar jokes and stepped outside, they saw the beautiful woman waiting for them.
“Ellie-nim, you’re early.”
“Ah, I woke up early.”
“You must be nervous about going outside the city walls for the first time.”
Going outside the city walls wasn’t a nerve-wracking experience for her, who had spent five years in the mountains, but they didn’t know that and kept spouting their fake concern.
“Well, it’s my first quest.”
“Today’s quest is to hunt Hawk Pigs. They’re easy enough for even an F-rank adventurer to handle if you fight them one-on-one…”
“But they travel in herds. So even C-rank adventurers can be in danger if they’re not careful.”
They shared the details of the quest and walked out of the village. Unlike the bustling village, a vast, empty field stretched before them.
“You don’t have to be nervous. Monsters rarely appear near the entrance.”
An empty field.
They were looking at the same thing, but their thoughts were completely different.
‘Such a vast land left abandoned because of monsters. What a waste. If only I could farm here…’
Yuri, still fixated on farming, thought about cultivating the land.
‘Hehe, she’s quiet. She must be scared. If I show her my cool side now, she’ll fall head over heels for me.’
Noah and his party were only thinking about how to take advantage of Yuri.
“You must have some experience dealing with monsters since you attended the academy, right?”
“Ah, yes. But I didn’t do much. I just hunted a few weak monsters in the back.”
Yuri, who had once defeated an Ogre Lord with a pebble, still believed she had only dealt with weak monsters.
Of course, they didn’t know what kind of monsters Yuri had actually faced, so they assumed she had only hunted a few goblins.
“Noah, look…!”
As they were chatting and walking peacefully through the field…
They saw a cloud of dust rising in the distance.
A herd of monsters strong enough to create a dust cloud… It was highly likely that they were the Hawk Pigs they were tasked with hunting.
This area was close to the city walls.
It was far from the Hawk Pigs’ habitat, and countless merchants traveled this road to other countries.
Now they understood why the reward was so high.
“Everyone, prepare for battle!”
I started to feel nervous as I watched Noah and the others hurriedly preparing for battle.
It’s been five years since I last encountered a monster, back when I was at the academy.
They’re D-rank, so… they must be strong, right?
Nothing bad will happen, right?
And as I was feeling nervous… what appeared before me was…
“Huh? What, they’re just pigs?”
Pink, chubby animals.
A herd of pigs was charging towards us.
“Ellie-ssi, get back…”
“Wait a minute. I’ll take care of the pigs.”
“What? Pigs? What are you talking about…? Those are Hawk Pi…”
“I’ve hunted wild boars with my bare hands before.”
Yes, even though we’re outside the city walls, there’s no rule that only monsters can appear.
There were only animals in the mountain I lived in.
To me, who has hunted wild boars with my bare hands, these pigs are nothing but pork.
I draw my sword and charge towards the pigs.
Swish!
Blood splatters everywhere.
About ten pigs collapse and bleed out with a single swing of my sword.
Which means these guys are definitely weaker than wild boars.
“What the…”
I see Noah and his party staring at me, muttering something, but I ignore them.
They’re splitting the reward equally, so I have to do my part!
Swish! Swish!
How much time has passed since I drew my sword?
All the pigs in front of me have collapsed, and the ground is covered in blood.
I wish they had appeared when I was in the mountains.
Then I could have eaten delicious pork instead of tough wild boar meat!
“Hmm, I guess I got them all.”
I pick up a pig to check if it’s really dead, and its head separates from its body with a crack.
Ugh, what weaklings.
I suddenly feel a gaze and turn around to look at Noah and his group.
“……!”
…?
I think they just flinched and stepped back.
Is it because of the pig head…?
Hawk Pigs are pig-like monsters.
They look almost identical to regular pigs, but they travel in herds and have a slightly darker pink skin.
“N-N-Noah… wh-what just happened…?”
Liam, who was frozen in place with his sword half-drawn, approaches me with a trembling voice.
I don’t understand the situation either.
Were those… just regular pigs?
No, wait.
Regular livestock wouldn’t be roaming outside the city walls in a herd like that.
And their skin…
The dark pink color proves that they’re not ordinary pigs.
“Even a C-rank adventurer party wouldn’t be able to take down that many Hawk Pigs so quickly!”
Oliver also shouts, his face pale.
“D-Damn it…! I know that…!”
I know!
I know that…!
Even the three of us combined would have struggled against that many.
But… but… that woman took them all down in an instant without even breaking a sweat.
Who is she?!
She’s at least C-rank, no, even a B-rank adventurer would be impressed by her strength.
As we’re struggling to comprehend the situation, Ellie, the F-rank adventurer who just wiped out the entire herd of Hawk Pigs, turns towards us.
Holding a Hawk Pig’s head in her hand with a terrifying expression.
“D-D-Do you think she… figured out our plan…?”
“If she did, she wouldn’t have followed us…”
“But that…”
Yeah, it doesn’t matter if she knows or not.
Her expression clearly says that she’ll snap our necks like that Hawk Pig if we try anything funny.
“B-Be careful… if you don’t want to die.”
We chose the wrong target.
We thought she was weak and harmless after hearing that she was insignificant at the academy.
No, maybe we were blinded by our desires from the start.
Her claim of being insignificant was just her word.
We were like fish who took the bait without a second thought.
“What’s wrong?”
She throws the Hawk Pig’s head aside and slowly approaches us, her entire body covered in blood like a berserker.
It feels like she’s holding a sharp sword to our necks, sending shivers down our spines.
“W-Wow! She’s so strong! Amazing!”
I blurt out, trying to appease her, feeling like my head will roll if I don’t do something.
If she’s stronger than us, we need to change our plan.
No, forget changing the plan, we need to run away.
We have no choice but to appease her if we want to survive.
Judging by her attitude, it doesn’t seem like she’s figured out our plan yet.
She wouldn’t kill a comrade she was just having a normal conversation with, unless she’s a bloodthirsty killer who turns into a monster the moment she draws her sword.
I nudge my companions.
Appease her if you don’t want to die.
“A-Amazing! W-Wow!”
“T-To think she was this strong… So cool!”
“Haha, it’s nothing. I just did my best.”
She speaks humbly, but her eyes are still fierce.
A suffocating aura of mana, which I didn’t sense before, seems to be surrounding her.
We need to run away…
If we don’t and she discovers our plan…
We’ll be the ones lying dead on the field instead of the Hawk Pigs.