Chapter 222

Chapter 222: Naria and Adol (3)

Naria widened the distance between herself and Jing and Ria by as much as the discomfort she felt.

“Why are you so on edge?”

Ria asked quietly, glancing back at her as she gradually moved farther away.

“It is nothing much. This is my first time seeing a case like this too, so I am simply a little flustered.”

“This village? This is my first time seeing an entire village completely destroyed like this too.”

Ria, misunderstanding Jing’s vague answer, looked around and replied.

“No, small villages being devastated by monsters is more common than you might think. The more remote a village is, the fewer devices it has to protect people from monsters.”

“Then what are you flustered about?”

At Ria’s puzzlement, Jing’s gaze turned clearly toward Naria this time, not empty air.

“The woman who was holding the child. This is only my instinct, but she probably is not human.”

“What?”

Ria raised her voice without realizing it, then hurriedly covered her mouth and turned her head toward where Naria stood.

But looking again did not change anything.

The woman with an appearance no different from a human’s was merely walking around the village while watching the two’s reactions.

“Are you sure you didn’t see wrong? She is just a person. Though she does look a little healthier than the others.”

Other than looking full of strength compared to the fugitives trembling in anxiety inside the wagon, Naria truly looked like nothing more than an ordinary person.

But Jing did not withdraw his claim.

“Her eyes are different. They are not human eyes, but the eyes of a predator.”

“Are there separate eyes that can be called predator’s eyes?”

“You must have felt it too, Ria. Think back to when you fought the orc. Remember what that bastard’s eyes were like. The hostility, the killing intent held by a living creature that sees humans as targets that must be killed. That is on a different axis from a murderer.”

Ria recalled the terrible memory from the island.

The persistence with which, the moment it noticed her existence, it stopped what it was doing and prioritized killing her.

“......It felt almost like a sense of duty, as if it absolutely had to kill me.”

Ria muttered in frustration as she recalled desperately swinging her sword in order to live.

Watching Ria grow resentful as she recalled a battle where she had barely preserved her life, the corners of Jing’s mouth curved.

“There is no need to feel discouraged. What you need is experience. If you encounter new things every day, and they pile up, one day you will find yourself stronger before you know it.”

Experience.

For some reason, Ria felt as if strength was rising inside her, and she murmured the word repeatedly.

Even if she tried to think of it as something said out of courtesy, when she heard someone so strong say it as if guaranteeing it, she could not help feeling excited.

Thinking, ‘Maybe one day I really can become as strong as that person.’

“Is that why you recognized it right away, Jing? That that woman is not human?”

“Well, something like that.”

Though he lightly nodded, Jing’s expression was not relieved, as if something still bothered him.

At Ria’s gaze staring intently at him, Jing smiled awkwardly.

“In truth, there are parts that feel far too unclear to simply dismiss her as a monster. I am certain she is not human, but something is different.”

He looked at Naria, who was timidly following behind them, then sighed as if there was nothing to be done.

“It seems there is no end to learning. I am now learning again how not to blindly believe the things I have seen and learned. Because there may be another case where a human suddenly becomes a monster, like a certain person we know.”

Ria thought that was probably an experience Jing would have a hard time experiencing again even if he lived twice as long as he had until now, but instead of saying it aloud, she nodded.

“Come to think of it, a monster can protect a human too.”

Just as a certain young monster on a small orc island had chosen to save two knights cornered in death.

***

The two had no way of finding Mona, who had already returned to his stronghold and was planning to strike Archie.

After searching the village thoroughly and failing to find Mona, Jing and Ria gave up the search and began tidying up the village so people could stay, as they had originally intended.

As a result of Jing, Ria, and Naria working hard to raise collapsing houses and patch together walls, by the time the moons rose high, they had secured a space that would block the wind for the people.

Unfortunately for Adol, at the center of it was Amy’s house, which had remained in the most intact shape.

Adol barely managed to avoid going back into Amy’s house.

Though the problem was that he had only fled to the building next to it, where Amy’s house was directly visible, so if he turned his head even a little, the house in question could be seen through the window or through the walls riddled with holes.

After squeezing his eyes shut and turning his gaze inward, the scene he took in was not paradise either.

Because the sight of humans sitting helplessly with faces that looked like they would die soon made his mood sink in a different way.

Looking at faces as deathly as those of the humans living captured by Werewolves made Adol’s chest feel tight, so in the end, he had no choice but to come outside.

Though he immediately regretted it because of the presence Amy’s house had as soon as it entered his sight.

Adol pressed hard on his chest to calm his heart, which was beating as if he had just finished running with all his strength.

“What? Are you sick somewhere?”

At the sudden voice speaking to him, Adol was startled and turned around.

“What? Why are you so surprised? Are you really sick somewhere?”

Naria slowly looked around and approached Adol.

“It’s not that.”

Adol answered bluntly, then hurriedly changed the subject at the suspicious gaze staring at him.

“By the way, I guess you can wander around as you like now? Earlier, you were walking around with your head lowered like a sick chicken.”

“That’s because that human kept watching me.”

“That human?”

When Adol asked back blankly, Naria seemed to get angry just from recalling him and ground her teeth.

“Yeah, that old man. His eyes are vicious, and he keeps glaring at me while only his mouth is smiling, so I can’t do anything.”

Adol briefly wondered whether the old man who had kindly smiled and taken care of him and the sharp-eyed old man Naria spoke of were truly the same person.

“What are you talking about? Where is there an old man like that here?”

“Ah, what are you talking about! I mean the old man who went to carry food with that woman earlier!”

Adol checked again just in case, but the old man Naria spoke of was indeed Jing.

“He was only kind, so what are you talking about? He was kind to you too.”

“No, he wasn’t! If I got close to the people, his eyes would go all round and sharp...... Did he notice that I’m a Werewolf?”

Naria muttered while glaring in the direction where the wagon was parked, but Adol could not agree.

“Didn’t you see him go to catch Mona when I said Mona was here earlier? If he noticed you were a monster, he would have attacked long ago.”

“That is...... true. Then why is he glaring at me like that? That’s even stranger!”

“Why do you care so much just because he looks at you?”

At the relaxed question, Naria flared up.

“Ah, he’s not giving me any chance to run away! I need to return to the pack as quickly as possible!”

Though after shouting loudly, she startled herself and covered her mouth with both hands.

But the one more surprised than Naria was Adol.

“Return? To the pack?”

“Of course I need to return. Did you think I’d just quietly watch those two humans invade the pack from here?”

“That’s...... true.”

He said that, but Adol was surprised.

Not because Naria was saying something obvious, but because he had been surprised after hearing something obvious.

Thinking about it, it was strange that Naria had no thought of running away.

Naria was a monster.

The reason she had helped him was because of her promise with Ran, and returning to the pack to warn them of danger was something she, as a member of the Werewolves, naturally had to do.

Only then did Adol realize that he had unconsciously felt Naria too close to him.

At first, he had said he would kill her or whatever, but after receiving help a few times, he had opened his heart this easily.

Blaming himself for his own complacency, Adol glared at Naria.

“I’m telling you in advance, if you’re going to tell them humans are here, I’ll stop you. I won’t watch you bastards eat humans.”

“What are you talking about? I don’t plan to tell them that humans are gathered here either.”

Naria answered with a puzzled face.

At that, once again, the confusion became Adol’s share.

“Why? The humans here are weak, so if you attack, they’ll have no choice but to be taken down.”

“Even so, because of Archie’s order, we can’t capture them all anyway. And I don’t really like eating humans either.”

What kind of wolf becoming vegetarian nonsense is this?

“You normally live by eating humans. So why are you saying you don’t really like it? Is that something you can just not like? Can’t you eat humans? Is it because they taste bad?”

Naria clamped her hand over Adol’s mouth as his voice began to rise.

“If you’re not planning to spread rumors that I’m a Werewolf, shut your mouth. Taste or whatever, I’ve never eaten a human.”

“So why?!”

Adol asked, knocking away Naria’s hand.

Naria looked down at Adol with a face that said she did not understand why he was getting so excited, but still opened her mouth obediently.

“Because Alec is scared.”

“What kind of......”

Adol’s questioning, asking what kind of dog-bone nonsense that was, did not continue.

“Aaaaaah!!”

“Let go of me!! I can’t endure this anymore!!”

Because the sharp scream and shout from inside the shabby plank house drowned out Adol’s voice.

Adol and Naria turned their heads toward the place where the commotion had happened at the same time, but the one who moved faster was Naria.

She rushed into the plank house without hesitation.

Adol followed Naria inside one step late, and what entered his eyes was a human collapsed on the floor, and Naria on top of him, twisting his neck and hand.

Adol looked back and forth between the two without knowing what was going on, but it did not take him long to grasp the situation.

The man bleeding from the neck, the crude wooden carving that had fallen from his hand, and the dark red blood staining it.

The combination of these three could not have indicated anything more clearly.

Unlike Adol, who had stiffened in shock, Naria strongly pressed down on the man’s neck without much emotion.

“Kgh, kgh......!”

Naria, who examined the man letting out painful groans, made a pfft sound like air leaking and raised her head to look at the people surrounding her.

“Don’t just stand there. Go get something to wrap the wound. If there’s really nothing, call the old man or the woman. Earlier, those two seemed to be moving food from the wagon, so they probably have something to treat him with.”

Adol blankly looked at Naria as she familiarly pressed down on the man’s wound and gave instructions to the people around them.

Naria, who was turning her gaze back to the man, met Adol’s eyes for a moment.

Naria shrugged once, then lifted her hand and smacked the back of the struggling man’s head.

The man fainted without even making a sound, and peace came to the plank house, but Adol could only stand still, unable to do anything about his heart instead growing unsettled.

***

A white horse ran down the forest road with its master on its back.

The white horse moved its legs with all its strength, to the point that the expression flying suited it better, but perhaps even that was not enough to satisfy its master, because the speed at which he swung the reins grew faster and faster.

Far behind him, two horses struggled to follow the white horse.

The more the distance between them widened, the more foam rose at the white horse’s mouth, and rough breaths and steam burst from its nose.

However, Renin Abalan’s hand handling the horse only grew rougher.

“Damn it, I said run faster! If it is discovered that it was stolen, there is no telling what will happen!!”

Unable to contain his anger with only striking down the reins, Renin finally exploded in rage.

“Hey, are you certain those bastards ran this way?!”

Renin flew into a rage at his subordinates, who were already quite far away.

They were having trouble simply keeping up with Renin’s gallop, but they could not ignore Renin’s words.

“Y-yes......! There was testimony that one of the missing wagons was seen heading toward this road. We are also chasing the other two.”

At the answer that sounded as if the speaker’s breath would give out, a sneer burst from Renin’s mouth.

“Fools. There is no need to chase the others. That is the wagon the thieves rode!”

As if there was no need to wait any longer, Renin mercilessly struck down the reins.

Because the shabby, simple number of people stirred Renin’s temper.

This showed how cornered Renin Abalan, who usually dragged along as many subordinates as possible even when going hunting, had become.

That was how impatient Renin was.

He had to prevent the Emperor from finding out that the holy object had been stolen, and in order to ensure no one found out, he had to retrieve the holy object as quickly as possible.

Before the bastards went any farther, before they left his territory.

Fortunately for Renin, in Renin Abalan’s eyes as he moved the reins like mad, a white wagon standing at the edge of the forest came into view far away.

At the familiar exterior, which had clearly come from his castle, relief and violent rage filled Renin Abalan’s face.

Having narrowed the distance to the wagon, Renin kicked off from the horse and leaped, as if there was nothing more to think about.

The horse that suddenly lost its rider could not overcome its own speed and rolled across the ground, but there was no way such a thing would enter Renin’s eyes.

Moreover, because of his one defeat already, Renin had already recognized the enemy’s strength.

In order to not give the opponent time to counterattack, he thrust his right hand, loaded with all his power, toward the wagon.

With a bursting sound, the wagon lost its shape in an instant.

Covered in dust and the remains of the wagon, Renin maniacally trampled the surroundings and poured out his power.

After rampaging with enough force to destroy everything within reach, Renin stopped his madness only after he slowly became aware of his surroundings, where there was no smell of blood or anything else.

It was also the moment he realized that he had been walking like a clown on top of an empty wagon where there had been nothing.

And it was the moment Renin’s enraged shout, standing tall atop the shabby broken debris, echoed through the forest.