NOVEL NEXT Chapter 210
TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 210
A secluded mountaintop in the North.
“Oh…”
Today marked the fifth day for the Young Lady and me in the North, and we had climbed the snowy field to conduct what could be called research.
-Grrr…
Digging a pit and covering it with tree branches as camouflage, we were observing a moving wolf pack.
Judging by the wolves sniffing around with their noses buried in the ground, they seemed to be searching for prey.
The Young Lady, who had been observing the wolves through binoculars, spoke to me in a sullen voice.
“Ricardo.”
“Yes.”
“When do they mate?”
“I don’t know.”
Just moments ago, the Young Lady had been marveling at the mysteries of nature with a “Hooo…” but now she wore a dejected expression.
“This is boring.”
The Young Lady and I had climbed the snowy mountain to explore the wonders of nature.
This journey had begun with the Young Lady’s wish to experience something unique in the North, but her expression hardened at the wolves’ inappropriate behavior of searching for food instead of mating as expected.
“Didn’t Mister say they were in mating season?”
“Yes.”
“And that they’re bad-tempered and would bite if we met them?”
“That’s correct.”
“Then why aren’t they doing it?”
“…”
I clamped my mouth shut at the Young Lady’s question. How would I know when even I couldn’t do it? For the first time, I found myself annoyed at the Young Lady for asking only unanswerable questions.
“I don’t know.”
Like cameramen filming a documentary, the Young Lady and I sat there quietly, observing the wolves’ movements.
We passed the time leisurely, chatting and placing bets on how long the wolves would continue their behavior, or taking naps when we got sleepy.
Still, it was a somewhat enjoyable time.
While we napped, a bear searching for food sniffed its way past the pit where we were hiding.
-Sniff sniff.
-Hooo…! Gomtangi’s Mom!
-Be quiet. You’ll get eaten.
-Eek… But wouldn’t it taste good if roasted?
-You’ll be punished, Young Lady.
A giant troll chased away the wolves and relieved itself right there.
-Ugly.
-Indeed.
-It looks like Ricardo. Ugh…
-…Young Lady, are you good at fighting?
-…Sorry.
Observing the lives of various demonic beasts kept us entertained and made the time meaningful, leaving no room for boredom. Though we didn’t get to see what we came for.
Time continued to pass.
The effect of the Potion to Erase Scent and Presence, which I had developed using the privileges of possession, was gradually wearing off.
A potion that erases scent and presence.
No matter how much I disliked inconvenience, I wasn’t crazy enough to venture into a demonic beast’s habitat unprepared. Especially since the Young Lady was with me, I had been even more thorough in my preparations.
“Yaaawn.”
The Young Lady yawned and began to show signs of wanting to return to the lodging, gazing at the sunset sky.
“Ricardo.”
“Yes.”
“What’s for dinner tonight?”
Tossing the binoculars to the ground, the Young Lady asked about dinner with a tired face. I set down the binoculars in my hand and answered her question.
“Is there anything you’d like to eat?”
The Young Lady replied with a serious expression.
“Anything but gukbap.”
Thanks to the innkeeper, who had been serving nothing but gukbap lately, the Young Lady stuck out her tongue in disgust.
“I even see pigs in my dreams now. They torment me, telling me to stop eating it.”
“Then why don’t you just say you don’t want it?”
“How could I say that…”
The Young Lady lowered her head with a sullen expression.
-How is it! Isn’t the gukbap I made tastier? I used expensive ingredients generously to serve someone as esteemed as you.
-Ugh…
-Not good? Then I’ll make it again.
-Ughhh…
The Young Lady, unable to trample on the passionate determination of the middle-aged man, had a warm heart that respected the elderly.
At first, she said it didn’t taste good, but the more she said so, the more often she ended up eating gukbap, leaving her unable to say anything anymore.
With a gloomy heart, the Young Lady confided in me that she didn’t want to eat gukbap.
“Anyway, I don’t want gukbap.”
“I’m fine with it, though…”
“I’m not fine with it.”
I chuckled softly as I looked at the Young Lady.
“Just for today, and we can eat something else tomorrow…”
“Eeeek…”
“Why?”
“Ricardo, you look particularly handsome today.”
“Oh… Are you flattering me?”
“No, it’s just… um… I wanted to see you cooking.”
The Young Lady awkwardly smiled and struck a “Nyaa!” cat pose. Seeing someone as unaccustomed to cuteness as the Young Lady abandon her pride and act cute made me laugh involuntarily.
“Pfft… What is that ridiculous pose?”
“…Eeeek.”
At the Young Lady’s earnest request, I nodded and began to think about the dinner menu.
I started by suggesting dishes the Young Lady liked.
“Pizza.”
“Too greasy.”
“Soybean paste soup.”
“Not in the mood for it today.”
“Steak.”
“I feel bad for the cow.”
“Jerky.”
“…”
“Plain rice.”
“Eeeek…”
Frustrated by the poor options, the Young Lady began to form a snowball with an annoyed look in her eyes.
“Something else.”
Seeing the Young Lady load the snowball into her hand as if she were about to throw it, I chuckled softly and cautiously suggested a dish I had thought of earlier in the morning. Truthfully, I was also tired of eating only gukbap and wanted something different.
A dish that suited the cold North.
Something warm and different from gukbap.
And a dish that could be loaded with the meat the Young Lady loved.
Confident that the Young Lady wouldn’t reject this idea, I spoke.
“How about hot pot? With the spices in my backpack, I can make it spicy and delicious.”
Satisfied with the menu, the Young Lady nodded and began to bring the snowball she had prepared to her mouth.
-Crunch…!
“Why are you eating that!”
“…Because I thought it might taste good.”
Watching the Young Lady happily crunching on the snowball, I tilted my head in confusion and started packing snow myself.
Seeing her eat it so delightfully made me think it might actually taste good.
If the Young Lady had lived where I came from, she might have become a mukbang YouTuber, judging by how deliciously she ate. I also took a bite of the packed snow and nodded.
“It’s not tasty.”
“Mmm…”
“Then why are you eating it?”
“Because I don’t want to be the only one eating it.”
Truly a villainess-like response.
As we continued our meaningless chatter, an unusual sound reached my ears—a sharp ‘seogeok’ sound.
“Ricardo…”
“Shh. Just a moment.”
The sound of footsteps was too heavy to belong to an animal and too cold to be that of a demonic beast. I quickly covered the Young Lady’s mouth and held my breath.
At my sudden gesture, the Young Lady licked my palm and mumbled.
“Mmm…?”
“Shh.”
“Are they mating?”
“No. It’s something a bit…”
-Plod… Plod…
The sound of footsteps was getting closer.
The steady rhythm of what seemed like human footsteps echoed against the ground. It was a sound that shouldn’t be heard here—a place where ordinary humans had no reason to be. I began to extend my sense perception.
‘Thirty people…?’
‘Who could they be…’
‘There shouldn’t be humans in a place where high-rank monster beasts live…’
With each approaching footstep, the growls of the demonic beasts grew more intense. One of the wolves in front of me bristled its fur and fixed its gaze on the direction of the sound.
-Growl…
Just as the wolf’s growl turned into a howl to summon its pack, a small hand axe embedded itself in the wolf’s head with a ‘thud.’
It was fast.
So fast that even a seasoned adventurer would struggle to follow it with their eyes. I placed my hand on Tirbing and began to inhale slowly.
‘Something feels off.’
The screams of the demonic beasts echoed.
Warning howls.
Cries to gather their pack.
They continued to howl relentlessly in the direction of the approaching footsteps.
The more the screams echoed, the stronger the scent of blood became, and their steps drew nearer.
I focused all my senses and began to watch their approaching figures intently.
To decide whether to kill them.
Or to spare them.
I held back the words telling the Young Lady to close her eyes and quietly observed them.
-Plod…
-Plod…
“Holy Apostle, excessive slaughter is best avoided. We are all clerics, after all. Should we really stain our hands with so much blood?”
“”…””
“Even if they are crude lives, cherishing each one of them is what allows us to hold a beautiful faith.”
With the benevolent voice of an old man, the figures of many people began to appear.
It was a sight akin to a procession.
-Thud… Thud…
I smirked bitterly.
‘This is bad.’
At the forefront, the old man was staring down at the blood-dripping corpse of the wolf with a grotesque expression.
A face devoid of emotion. At the same time, it was so chilling that it seemed as if shadows had fallen over his eyes.
Looking at the old man dressed in a pure white cleric’s robe, I lowered my head.
‘F*ck.’
An Apostle had come to the North.
The Apostle who would kill Yuria’s Father.
The Apostle who would serve as the catalyst for Yuria’s awakening as the Saintess.
They had come to the North a little earlier than expected.
[Olaf. Lv. 95]
Job: Apostle of Mercy
*
Olivia simply stared blankly at them.
At the weapons in their hands, once.
At the old man standing with a cold expression, twice.
At Ricardo, who wore a flustered expression, three times.
Olivia gazed at them absentmindedly.
Without malice.
Without killing intent.
She simply looked at them with vacant eyes.
-Blink…