Chapter 24: Silence

Chapter 24: Chapter 24: Silence

’A doll?’ Hesia’s heart sank. ’How could it be in a place like that?’

’The sounds in the town are being blocked... Could it be related to that strange mud doll?’

’Goblins are weak individually, but they swarm like ants and are unafraid of death! Rushing in blindly would be suicide! Besides, it seems likely there’s a Caster behind all this.’

He forced himself to calm down and stop overthinking.

The most urgent task was to find Baron Uer!

"Bruce, stay close! We’re going to the manor!" Hesia hissed, then turned and dashed through the shadows along the town’s perimeter, heading toward Eagle Claw Manor.

Thanks to the +4 Physique from [Mora’s Blessing], Hesia could clearly feel the change in his body.

His steps were light yet powerful as he ran, and his breathing was long and steady.

After sprinting for several hundred meters, he was only slightly out of breath—a far cry from before, when he would get dizzy after just a few steps.

’This feeling... is amazing!’

’I just wonder if I’ll still have this stamina after my Bloodline Power is drained.’

...

He followed the western edge of the town, heading north.

When they rounded the northernmost corner of the town, the scene before them made Hesia gasp.

The town entrance was packed with a dense crowd of pointy-eared, green-skinned goblins.

They were like a surging green tide, letting out silent roars as they brandished rusty daggers, wooden clubs, and crude stone axes!

Facing this horde of green-skinned dwarves were the guards of the Eagle Claw Clan, numbering only a little over a dozen.

Hesia recognized them as the group of guards permanently stationed at the manor.

The Eagle Claw Clan’s territory wasn’t large and was far from the main Demon Beast Mountain Range. The entire population of Print was less than two hundred households.

Their standing guard was only twenty to thirty men, most of whom lived scattered throughout the town. Only a small squad was on night duty at the manor each evening.

At that moment, Baron Uer was standing slightly ahead of his guards.

He wore half-body leather armor and held a wide-blade longsword, his face stained with blood and dirt.

A few guards were desperately brandishing their spears, stabbing the charging goblins to the ground while forming a human wall with their bodies, protecting the Baron as they fought and retreated.

But the goblins were too numerous.

They swarmed from all directions, trying to surround the small squad.

Just as Hesia was about to rush over to help, Bruce tugged sharply on his pant leg again.

’WHINE!’

Hesia stopped in his tracks.

’Just as I thought!’

The sounds were gone again!

’This zone of silence fades gradually... I didn’t even notice when I couldn’t hear anything anymore...’

’Judging by the path I just took, this zone of silence seems to be a huge circle? At least on the west and north sides, the border is curved!’

He didn’t dare risk charging into the silent zone.

The distance was too great; he couldn’t cast the [Light Technique] that far.

His only option was to continue along the perimeter and circle around to a position closer to Baron Uer.

Hesia, with Bruce in tow, carefully searched for the edge of the silent zone.

Finally, behind a patch of bushes near the manor, the sounds became clear again!

"My Lord! We can’t go any further!" a young guard shouted anxiously, his voice laced with terror. "Inside the town... you can’t hear a thing! We lose contact the moment someone goes in!"

"Damned green-skinned bastards!" Baron Uer roared as he cleaved a pouncing goblin in two, its foul-smelling blood splattering all over him. "No! That fellow Kadan is definitely in town. He’ll gather the rest of the guards."

"But, my Lord! If we charge in with so few men..."

"Shut up! This is my town! To let this mob of green-skinned bastards run rampant in my domain is a disgrace to the Eagle Claw Clan!"

He swung his sword again, cutting down two more goblins that rushed him.

But more goblins, like flies drawn to rotting meat, immediately filled the gap, brandishing their weapons and roaring as they swarmed forward.

Hesia raised his hand.

[Light Technique]!

A ball of blinding white light shot through the air and exploded in the midst of the goblin horde.

"GAAAH—!"

"GUOOH!"

The goblins caught directly in the bright light shrieked horribly, clutching their eyes and writhing in pain on the ground.

The sudden flash of light made the guards instinctively narrow their eyes as well.

Seizing the moment of chaos among the goblins, Hesia shouted, "My Lord! Retreat for now!"

Baron Uer was momentarily stunned by the sudden bright light and shout, but he reacted instantly, seizing the opportunity to roar, "Retreat!"

The guards protected the Baron, quickly disengaging from the goblins and falling back to a safe distance.

The goblins seemed shaken by the burst of bright light and didn’t immediately give chase.

Panting heavily, Baron Uer wiped the blood and filth from his face and finally got a clear look at the person who had just helped them.

"You?" A flash of surprise crossed his eyes, followed by a hint of embarrassment.

He remembered how he had wanted to drive this young man out of Print.

Cyril had insisted that it was Hesia who helped him master the ability to control mosquitoes. In fact, the Baron had even sent someone to summon Hesia to the manor just this morning.

"Hesia?" Baron Uer’s voice was a bit hoarse. "It’s dangerous here! The manor is safe for now. You should go there first..."

Then he suddenly realized something. "That magic just now... was that you?"

"Yes, my Lord," Hesia replied calmly. "I can help. These goblins seem to be afraid of bright light."

Baron Uer looked at Hesia’s young but remarkably calm face, his heart filled with a mix of emotions.

"Hesia... about before..." He opened his mouth, as if wanting to explain something.

Hesia cut him off. "My Lord, there’s no need to bring up the past. I was already planning to leave Print anyway."

"No! You can stay!" Baron Uer said quickly. "The Eagle Claw Clan welcomes you! Cyril, he..."

"None of that is important right now," Hesia interrupted him again, his gaze turning toward the town. "The priority is to rescue the people in town."

Baron Uer took a deep breath, suppressed his complicated feelings, and nodded.

"You’re right!" He pointed at the goblins stirring restlessly at the edge of the silent zone. "These green-skinned bastards are pathetically weak on their own, but there are too many of them! Like locusts! If I had my full force of guards in formation, we’d stand a chance!"

"Kadan, my Captain of the Guard, is a veteran warrior. Most of the guards live in town, too. That fellow Kadan must be trying to gather them right now. He might be waiting for us to coordinate an attack from both inside and out."

The more he spoke, the angrier he became, and he slammed his fist into a nearby tree. "Damn it all! We can’t hear a thing once we get close to the town. There’s no way to communicate, let alone coordinate!"

Hesia pondered for a moment before asking, "My Lord, you just said... Captain Kadan is waiting to coordinate an attack with you?"

"Right!" Baron Uer said with certainty. "Kadan has been with me for twenty years! He knows me! At a time like this, he’ll definitely find a way to gather his men.

He’ll create chaos inside the town to draw the goblins’ attention, then wait for me to lead an attack from the outside. We’ve drilled this before!"

"But right now... we have no idea if he’s ready! And we don’t even know where he is!"

Hesia’s gaze shifted to the highest point in town—the bell tower, which looked particularly sinister in the moonlight.