I Became a Druid in Another World

"Hey!"

A rough voice came from behind the table, echoing like the roar of a tiger. The sound made me instinctively tense and I turned in the direction it came from.

There stood a hulking man with a hood pulled over his head. Though his body was mostly concealed by a cloak, I could tell he was meticulously trained. What the hell? I slowly reached for my waist…

"Stop!"

…I was reaching for it, but before I could even extend my elbow, the man drew his sword with lightning speed and aimed it at me. The sharp tip of the well-honed blade was pointed directly at my throat. At the same time, I felt Legion stir within my chest, but when I clicked my tongue, it quickly settled down. Slowly, I raised both hands as a sign of surrender.

He's not ordinary.

I silently studied the man. I could feel his sharp gaze assessing me from beneath his hood.

"Do you have business with us?"

"Business?"

The man let out a small laugh.

"I have plenty of business."

At the same time, I noticed his gaze shift toward Lloyd. Unlike El and me, Lloyd wasn't surprised by the man's sudden appearance. He casually finished his meal and downed the rest of his beer. Then…

"Stop it, Lou."

Lou?

From Lloyd's demeanor, it seemed like the two knew each other. I had never imagined Lloyd responding to anyone in such a relaxed tone, so they had to be family, relatives, or at the very least, close friends.

Come to think of it… there's no way Lloyd wouldn't have noticed the approach of someone with hostile intent.

The sword aimed at me slowly retreated. Phew. I exhaled and lowered my hands. The man glanced at me briefly before pulling back his hood, and the face that emerged was unexpected.

Louis Corin…!

I involuntarily swallowed hard.

Louis Corin.

When the would one day appear in the Cursed Lands, the King of the Barak Empire would send Louis Corin to stop her. Louis Corin would serve as a mentor to players in the Cursed Lands before meeting his end at Reinhardt's sword. He then would entrust the players with a final request for vengeance.

Of course, that was standing right next to me now.

The reason I could recognize Louis Corin was simple. He had an unforgettable feature. That was…

Half of his ear was cut off.

People who looked down on Louis Corin used to call him 'Half-Ear" or 'Goblin Knight.' Of course, only when he couldn't hear them.

Louis Corin played a pretty significant role as an NPC in the game. And to think Lloyd was acquainted with someone like that.

Come to think of it, Lloyd did come to save El.

Even though he was connected to both El and Louis Corin who were two characters with a considerable share in the game's storyline…

But I've never heard the name Lloyd in the game before.

The thought struck me belatedly. When I first met him, I assumed he was just a knight related to El's family, but if Louis Corin was involved… the story was definitely more complicated.

"Lloyd, if you've come to Corin, you should've sought me out first."

"Was that necessary? You seem to have found me just fine without it."

"That's true, but still, it stings a bit."

Louis dragged over an empty chair, sat at our table, and ordered a beer from the innkeeper.

"Would you like one too?"

"I've had enough."

"Hmm."

When Lloyd declined, Louis turned to me and El.

"How about you two?"

"…I've had enough as well. And this kid isn't old enough to drink beer yet."

"Is there really a set age for drinking beer?"

In civilized society, yes, you fool!

I refused the beer and sat back down. I looked at Lloyd and silently demanded an explanation, but he remained quiet as if it wasn't the right time yet.

"How did you know I was here?"

Lloyd asked Louis.

"I heard from the mercenaries who caught the carriage thieves that there was a one-eyed man."

"There must be more than a few one-eyed mercenaries."

"But a one-eyed, left-handed swordsman? That's only you."

"The guards have sharp eyes."

Lloyd gave a rare, faint smile. After gulping down the beer the innkeeper had brought, Louis glanced around at us again and asked,

"And these people?"

Finally curious about that, huh?

"This one here is Theodore, a druid. And that one is El."

"El?"

Louis squinted at El and examined her for a long moment as if she seemed familiar. He eventually turned his gaze away with a puzzled expression. Phew, it seemed he didn't recognize who El was. Naturally, he wouldn't. El had grown quite a bit and still kept her hair short, so there was no way she'd be mistaken for a noble young lady.

"Why did you attack us, knowing we were with Lloyd?"

In response to my question, Louis chuckled as if he found it amusing. He then grabbed the knife from the table and pointed it at my chest. I could feel Legion stirring.

"You were giving off a strange aura."

"..."

"Lloyd doesn't usually form groups. So I thought, maybe you were using some kind of mind control magic…"

"Louis."

"Yeah, yeah. I get it. That's a painful memory. I'll shut up."

Mind control magic?

Could someone as strong as Lloyd ever have been subject to mind control? I looked at Lloyd, but he avoided my gaze and offered no explanation. Well, it made sense. Someone like him getting caught by such magic would be a disgrace, so it wasn't surprising that he wanted to hide it.

Still, the fact that he had sensed Legion and approached us… To be more precise, he seemed to mistake me for a mage rather than sensing Legion, but either way, this guy had monstrous skills.

"You didn't come just to say hello, did you?"

As Louis emptied his beer glass, Lloyd got straight to the point.

"This isn't the place to talk about it."

Lloyd looked at me. When I nodded my head, Lloyd turned back to Louis and said,

"In that case, let's head upstairs."

***

"El, go feed Ayla dinner. Also, check on Storm's condition to make sure he's alright."

"And after that?"

"Keep an eye on the people coming and going from the inn once we head upstairs. See if there's anyone suspicious."

"Yes, Master."

I handed El a bone with some meat on it and a fresh, thick cut of meat that was still bloody which I had gotten from the innkeeper, and then sent her off.

Once we went upstairs, we quietly began our conversation. Well, more like it was just a conversation between Lloyd and Louis.

"You've come at the perfect time, Lloyd. I was so thankful when I heard you arrived; I even offered a prayer to Arzan."

"Corin seems peaceful."

"For now, yes."

Louis glanced at me briefly before turning his head away again. I could tell he was still wary of me. Well, who could blame him? It was more of a compliment, really. Trusting a stranger in this pseudo-medieval land was practically a death wish.

"There's going to be a subjugation soon. A huge one, led by my father and brother, along with a joint force of soldiers and mercenaries."

So that's why Corin was overflowing with mercenaries. I had heard from the guard that a major subjugation was coming soon and that I should look into it if I was interested. Apparently, the lord himself was recruiting.

"The forest of Corin is usually well managed."

"Exactly, which is what makes this even stranger."

Louis lowered his voice even further, almost to a whisper.

"The orcs coming from the Corin forest are something our army can handle on its own. Even if their numbers have increased, it's not enough to justify recruiting mercenaries on such a large scale."

"As far as I know, that's true."

"But my father and brother are recklessly recruiting mercenaries. Whenever I ask about it, the answer I get is…"

"An unsatisfactory reason?"

"That's right."

"What do you suspect?"

Before speaking, Louis glanced at me again. He looked to be clearly hesitant as if he wasn't sure whether to share this in front of me.

"Go ahead, Louis. The decision is Theodore's to make."

"But you…"

"I follow his will."

"..."

Louis clenched his mouth in frustration, then adjusted his posture and looked at me as he spoke.

"My father and brother…"

"..."

"They're clearly planning to use the mercenaries as meat shields."

Meat shields?

I don't understand.

Corin was a wealthy city even within the empire. They solidified their position with a strong military yet showed no greed for power. On top of that, their excellent political instincts allowed them to maintain a delicate balance among the lords.

But using mercenaries as meat shields under the pretense of a subjugation?

Something was off.

However…

"….. This alone isn't enough."

"What?"

"You have no proof, no solid information, and the only basis for your claim is speculation."

"..."

"Or is there something you haven't told us yet?"

Louis gave me a cold stare. But I wasn't the kind of person to be intimidated by a mere glare. It might work on most people, but I was someone who could stand unfazed even against dragons and demons.

"If you need help."

"...…."

"It would be better to tell us everything without hiding anything."

***

Late at night as the stars emerged, Louis left the inn.

"There were no suspicious people coming and going from the inn."

"That's a relief."

I stood by the window and set down the packed meal I had asked the innkeeper to prepare. Beepy flew over and started pecking at the ripe figs inside. Next to him, Legion opened his mouth wide.

[Theo, delicious.]

"Is it good?"

[Theo, yes. But. Theo. Food. Better.]

"You think what I make tastes better?"

[Theo, yes.]

Counting the stars that began to appear, I gently placed the tender meat in the little lizard's mouth.

The Hunter Moon will rise soon.

The Hunter Moon. When the blood-red moon rose, the hunting season would begin. There was no better time to hunt than when the leaves had fallen and the desolate winds began to blow.

However, it was crucial to know whether you would be the hunter or the hunted.

"Louis Corin…"

The second son of Lord Corin. Was his coming to seek Lloyd's help truly a good thing, or…

Could it be the start of another incident?