Chapter 348: Dryad Village (2)

“The Dryad Village isn’t a place to visit with a large force. The dragon’s recent rampage has been at a sufficient distance, so bring only your elite guard.”

Eugene heeded sub-chieftain Maya’s advice and left the Lantzheim artillery unit waiting at the druid village.

Still, with knights, crossbowmen, summoners, and Valda—unmatched in the forest—and Homi, they had enough force to thrash any reasonably dangerous monster that charged.

“You look like you’re in a good mood.”

“It feels like visiting my grandmother’s home.”

Valda wore a smile throughout.

“This dryad village was Grace’s hometown, wasn’t it?”

“Yes. Grace was saddened by being separated from her kin, living alone. She never showed it in front of me, though.”

A wistful memory surfaced, and Valda’s smile dimmed.

“When I grew old enough to notice her pitiful situation, I cried. Then Grace held me tight. She said that even if she couldn’t meet her kin, the days of raising me were more joyful than anything.”

“It seems we have more to do.”

“Hmm?”

“It’s been six years since we left the estate in Emerald Forest. With that much time…”

Eugene trailed off, but Valda understood what he intended.

-My beloved child. Someday, please return to this place. Life continues to cycle, so another life will be waiting for you here.

Where Grace had closed her eyes, new life should be growing by now. It certainly wouldn’t be a dryad, but given the base nature of the location, it would be something special.

“You can either take her back to her homeland or keep her by your side and care for her. Choose whichever you prefer.”

“Keeping her in the Moving Castle… that would be purely selfish on my part.”

Normally, the conversation would flow toward returning her home. Valda had thought so too, but Eugene held a different perspective.

“Isn’t your happiness what matters most? If so, there’s no reason to send her far away.”

“But Grace always wanted to return home. I’ve always believed it was my duty to return even her remains.”

“What remains there is just that—remains. Even if it weren’t, Grace would forgive us willingly. How could she refuse when her beloved daughter doesn’t want to part?”

Valda looked at her husband with a somewhat conflicted expression.

“Your words sound like a demon’s temptation.”

But on the elf princess’s flower-like beautiful face, desire, longing, and wistful selfishness bloomed.

“I’m not a demon, but I am tempting you.”

The mature young lady’s reason was struggling valiantly, but she looked ready to yield with just a little more push.

The face of a wife who desperately wished to be pushed. For a husband, there was no greater pleasure than witnessing that.

*

The Lantzheim warriors, who primarily used pikes and crossbows, were actually more effective against monsters than in man-to-man combat.

They were veterans with experience in numerous subjugations, but some enemies inspired fear regardless. The kind you wanted to avoid at all costs due to sheer physiological revulsion.

“There are large spider-type monsters in this area.”

“Why did it have to be spiders?”

“Ugh.”

At Maya’s warning, several warriors sighed quietly. Even small spiders gave them the creeps—ones the size of ponies? The repulsiveness was too horrible to imagine.

In contrast, Eugene and Homi were intrigued as always. These were creatures rarely seen outside the deepest, most densely overgrown parts of the forest.

Despite their fearsome appearance, their competitiveness in the ecosystem was limited, and like other insect-type monsters, they could only inhabit restricted environments.

“Are they dangerous? Do they spin webs strong enough to catch people?”

“Dangerous, yes, but they don’t spin webs. All spiders that reach the monster class are nomadic.”

“Why is that?”

“With bodies that size, web-spinning yields no efficiency. Small insects wouldn’t even register, so they need to catch animals of considerable size. But what fool would get caught in a web?”

Insects moved according to commands encoded in their genes. The classic example was “fly toward the light.”

Their visual organs were adept at detecting movement but incapable of seeing stationary objects in high resolution.

This meant bugs would mindlessly fly into webs, but animals had the opposite traits. They thought, moved, and could clearly see stationary objects.

“No matter how diligently they spin webs, they’d just come up empty. The webs would only serve to reveal their location to higher predators.”

“Exactly. So they developed speed and stealthy footsteps. Their venom is quite potent as well.”

A stone statue greeted everyone along the path. Its form was unrecognizable under thorn vines that had covered it for countless years.

‘Magic?’

The warning emanated not from the statue itself but from the thorn vines draped over it.

“Shall I clear them?”

“Don’t be hasty. If you touch them carelessly, you could regret it.”

When a sharp-sighted soldier stepped forward, Alzhar stopped him. He was curious too, but couldn’t help it. This kind of silent, subtly warning magic trap was the truly dangerous kind.

“I mean no harm. Show me what you’ve been guarding.”

As Valda approached and reached out, the thorn vines withdrew of their own accord.

The statue revealed was an elf woman. One arm extended, pointing the way into the forest. It was impossibly ancient, yet showed not a single crack or sign of corrosion.

The thorn vines served not only to block intruders but also to preserve the statue in perfect condition.

“Could this be a princess or queen from the time it was created?”

“Probably. A relic left by the ancient royal house.”

Eugene alternated his gaze between Valda and the statue. Both wore identical tiaras, brooches, and earrings.

“Ancestor whose name we do not know. Please watch over your descendant. From a distant land, she has finally arrived here.”

Eugene took Valda’s hand and bowed his head toward the statue.

“Those thorn vines were dryad magic.”

Valda spoke with certainty.

“Is that a good sign?”

“Probably. They seem to be maintaining the magic on a regular basis. Without that, it couldn’t remain this vibrant.”

White, delicate fingers touched the vines, and the thorns shrank aside shyly, careful not to leave a single mark on those fingers.

“It means they still value their friendship with the elven royal house.”

“Fortunately so.”

All of blue blood held family honor as dear as life itself. Not that she showed it, but Valda’s pride was beyond compare.

Though countless ages had passed, the dryads still kept their word. Valda’s heart pounding at their faithfulness.

After the two passed, the thorn vines slowly began wrapping around the statue once more.

“They say it’s a First Era statue.”

“Just like the princess’s accessories.”

“Not princess—queen.”

“Aren’t both correct?”

“Well, ‘princess’ sounds nicer.”

The warriors following behind gazed at the statue in wonder as they passed. The Cornwall knights, who held deep affection for the elf royal house, were in an atmosphere reminiscent of a pilgrimage to a holy site.

“I swear by my sword to protect your descendants.”

Paying respects to Valda and her unborn child, he kissed the back of the statue’s hand.

*

The good atmosphere didn’t last long. The centauresses, scouting ahead, warned of a monster group ahead.

“That explains it. We’ve come quite deep, yet not a single large spider in sight.”

Maya reported a bugbear camp settled in a good camping spot. They were roasting hunted large spiders over fire.

“Do bugbeast live around here too?”

“Not originally, but it doesn’t matter now. The dragon has torn the entire forest apart, so territorial boundaries are in chaos. Whether driven out by stronger creatures or chasing out weaker ones to claim territory…”

Bugbears preferred not to travel in groups, but these were dangerous times. For better safety and food, they had to band together.

“■■■■!”

The apparent leader lit an additional bonfire and issued some order. This individual had darker skin than the subspecies living in Samur and considerably more muscle mass.

Another bugbear dragged over a subdued large spider. Its long, thick legs practically radiated elasticity just looking at them.

‘Huntsman spider? It looks slightly different in detail, though.’

The legs were all bent in odd directions, but since they hadn’t been killed, they writhed and struggled in protest.

“They’re the most food-obsessed among monsters. They prefer to keep their prey fresh when possible.”

“You can tell just by looking.”

Their thick flesh jiggled with each step. Just as someone profits during an economic crisis, someone feasts joyfully amid forest chaos. The bugbear group before them was exactly that type.

“■■!”

Suddenly the leader issued a warning.

Shiiiiit—!

The dying spider squeezed out its last strength. With its broken legs, it latched desperately onto the bugbear’s body and bit down with everything it had.

Chomp!

Not just a bite—it even tore its head back and forth as if trying to rip flesh free. The chest meat, stretched like taffy, danced.

“■■■?”

As if to ask “Are you done?”, the bugbear looked down contemptuously, then fell forward in a body slam. The massive weight crushed the spider, which met its end with a loud crackling of segments.

The bitten bugbear dragged the dead spider away, snickering, and placed it on the bonfire.

“He’s fine?”

“A spider of that size can’t penetrate a bugbear’s hide. They’re the natural prey of monsters who rely on venomous fangs.”

“Now that’s a matchup. I’m reevaluating bugbears.”

Bugbears were considered the bottom of medium-class monsters. That was why fame-hungry novice knights often challenged them.

“…”

“…”

The knights hiding with Eugene swallowed their saliva (obviously not the spider) and watched intently.

But wild bugbears had no equal within their weight class. They fearlessly attacked prey that even trolls and minotaurs hesitated to approach due to their venom.

“Isn’t that a helmet? Looks like it’s made from woven beast bones and dried plant stems.”

“The leader must be quite clever.”

“His skin color is different too.”

Hind surveyed the various armaments scattered around the campsite.

Knowing good food meant higher intelligence. They were famous for compensating for lacking combat power with shields, but who would have expected helmets too?

This made it difficult to land effective hits with melee weapons—anything short of a ballista would struggle.

“Move quietly. Set your feet down gently. Not a sound.”

Homi led the warhorses in a gentle but firm voice. Before a surprise attack, some commanders would gag their horses’ mouths. But with Homi, such troublesome measures were unnecessary.

Knights who received their lances from their squires mounted silently.

“Ready?”

The knights nodded.

“Skip the war cry. Who knows what else it might attract.”

The knights kissed their swords and quietly stoked their fighting spirit.

The bugbears each held a roasted spider leg. The meat was packed as full as king crab legs. Just as they were about to take their first bite—

“Now!”

At Eugene’s signal, they all charged.

“■?!”

“■■!”

Caught off guard, the bugbears threw down their spider legs and screamed.

The greedier ones hurriedly sucked the cut ends before grabbing their clubs and shields, while those prioritizing survival abandoned even a single bite to don their helmets.

It seemed trivial, but that difference determined the bugbeast’s fates.

“Crossbowmen will be right behind. Aim for the helmeted ones first!”

The knights’ simultaneous lance charge was terrifying. The impact of horse and rider concentrated at a single point—lance charging. Even bugbeasts seeing heavy cavalry for the first time instinctively knew.

Being hit by that would cause severe injury.

Among the retreating bugbeasts, those wearing helmets were targeted. Spears shattered and screams of pain echoed from all sides.

“Javelins, ready!”

At Eugene’s command, the knights discarded broken shafts and drew light pilum. The combat doctrine against medium monsters was to drain their stamina first.

Hot-blooded knights were itching to engage in melee. In situations like this, knights who disobeyed orders and charged out alone were common.

-Wait! Stop right there!

-My faith and chivalry demand a charge!

When only one charged out amid a stationary force, they attracted that much more attention and claimed all the glory.

But this time they obediently followed Eugene’s orders. The king himself fought shoulder to shoulder with the knights—acting rashly here was something only an idiot would do.

Disobeying the king’s military command was spine-chilling enough, but stealing the battle’s fruits ahead of the king was an even greater offense.

‘Why are these guys so obedient?’

For Eugene, who had witnessed various knightly misbehaviors in the Britannia and Roman civil wars, this was a refreshing experience.

“Kraaak—!”

The bugbear pulled out broken spear shafts embedded throughout its body. Thanks to their thick tree-trunk shields, most vital points had been protected.

Only two were incapacitated. One had failed to pick up its shield and was pierced by lances; the other lost its arm along with the shield to Eugene’s axe strike.

“Grrr…”

The bugbeasts hurled away the blood-and-fat-smeared spearheads, roaring in fury.

“Support the knights!”

Following behind, Lantzheim warriors armed with siege crossbows swarmed forward. The bugbeasts about to charge at the knights flinched.

“Sting!”

“Stiiiiing!”

They decided to bypass the knights entirely and smash the infantry first.

These warriors had fought the orc warriors—one of the Great Forest’s dominant forces. They had tasted orc crossbows bitterly, and the helmets they now wore were countermeasures developed from that experience.

“Fire! Aim for the chest to force them to cover their heads!”

Hermann’s order fell, and countless bolts flew. That was why the knights had targeted helmeted ones first.

Thududududong!

A peculiar fleshy sound rang continuously as the bugbeasts howled again.

“This is why I can never get enough of bugbear hunts.”

Even as medium monsters charged, the Lantzheim warriors cracked jokes while holding their formation. They all bent down, stepped on crossbow heads to load, and began the reloading sequence.

At this rate, by the time the next volley was ready, they’d be crushed by the bugbeasts’ clubs. Untrained mercenaries would have gradually retreated in this situation.

But the Lantzheim warriors entrusted their lives to their allies and fulfilled their duty. The knights responded to that trust immediately.

“Charge!”

“Protect the crossbowmen!”

Thudududud!

The bugbeasts had no choice but to halt, battered by knights recharging from the flanks and rear.

Craaack!

Shields weakened from one round of charges were further battered by javelins. Pilum embedded deep made the shields heavier, lowering the bugbeast’s guard.

“Fire!”

And the bolts flying from behind couldn’t be ignored either.

Thududududung!

Bolts piercing unprotected backs produced that peculiar sound again. With less fat on the back compared to the front, the impact sounds were duller.

“Kraaaa—!”

One bugbear howled with over twenty bolts embedded.

“Haaa—! Haaaa—!”

Abandoning shields and weapons, they desperately tried to pull bolts from their backs and buttocks, but to no avail. They were too fat to reach.

“What are you looking at?”

“Groo—?”

The bugbear turned its head, and Blackout’s axe blade descended.

Slaaash!

The combined kinetic energy of Might and Eugene’s brute strength cleaved it from head to groin in a single stroke.

“Wooooah!”

“Yeeaaah!”

The crossbowmen and knights cheered at the overwhelming display of martial prowess. The previously announced silence order seemed forgotten in the battle’s heat. Only a few cautious ones looked at their companions with troubled expressions.

“Aim for the head!”

“Make them raise their arms!”

Emboldened, the crossbowmen moved closer and fired with greater precision. When the bugbeasts raised both arms to protect their faces, their torsos were fully exposed again.

The knights didn’t miss the opening. Receiving new lances from their squires, they charged for the third time.

Bugbeasts pierced in the flanks near the lungs, knees, and thighs collapsed in all directions.

“Cough!”

“Sir Abella!”

The leader was a leader for a reason. The dark-skinned bugbear managed to down one knight. A young knight who had been consumed by desire for glory and attempted a frontal charge.

A massive club struck both horse and rider simultaneously. The horse absorbed most of the impact and died instantly, but the knight avoided mortal injury.

“■■■■!”

“Aaargh!”

As knight Abella struggled to regain composure from the fall, the leader bugbear charged in for the kill.

“Don’t push it—fall back! Keep your distance until its stamina drops further!”

At that moment, Hind, who had been riding nearby, swiftly snatched Abella away.

Boom!

A split second later, the club smashed into where Abella had been. The ground would have been deeply gouged, and he would have died instantly if it had connected.

Hind released the reins and gripped the horse’s body with only his legs. In that position, he dragged the knight with one hand on the stirrup and the other on the knight himself. Remarkable reflexes and strength.

‘Well done, Hind.’

In an instant, Eugene approached from the rear and launched a sneak attack. The bugbear reflexively turned, raising its shield and club to defend.

But Eugene had witnessed its exceptional combat ability. He aimed for the lower body. No matter how skilled a warrior, they couldn’t cover their lower half in a surprise ambush.

Shlick!

Its left leg was completely severed, and the right leg split halfway along with the tendons.

“Kuaaaa—!”

The dark-skinned bugbear rolled away screaming, and a second wave of cheers erupted from all sides.

Watching one’s own leader topple the enemy leader was the finest delicacy a battlefield could offer.

“Kroohaph—! Kroohap—!”

The leader bugbear dragged itself backward with both arms. Its will to fight had vanished, replaced by a face full of fear and despair.

A shadow fell over the bugbear’s face as it looked up at Eugene and Might.

Crunch!

Crunch!

Crack!

The roaring Might ground the bugbear beneath its hooves. Despite its loyalty, its fundamental nature was nothing if not bestial. Sometimes its violent tendencies needed an outlet.

*

After the battle, a brief period of maintenance followed.

‘Incredible.’

‘The half-fairy bloodline always begins with a union with a hero, but this…’

Maya and the centauresses looked at Eugene with awe. They couldn’t stand still, constantly shifting their hooves—clearly extremely excited.

“Sub-Chieftain.”

“Has everyone cast aside their doubts now?”

“I’m sorry.”

Not every member had agreed with the chieftain’s decision. But through this single battle, the centauresses solidified their resolve as allies under Eugene.

At first glance they gave a cute, petite impression, but they were an extremely martial species. Like dark elves or Midgardians, they venerated martial strength and held the value that the strong were justice itself.

Of course, that king wasn’t merely strong—he had plenty of peculiar qualities as well.

“Can we eat this? The smell is actually quite nice. It’s almost like…”

“Butter?”

“Exactly! That’s it.”

Eugene and Homi each held a roasted spider leg, sniffing it with amusement.

“Y-y-your Majesty.”

Knights who had come to kneel before Eugene in celebration of victory hesitated.

-This looks delicious. Want to try some?

-……

They were terrified that approaching now would result in being offered a leg each.

“Haa.”

Valda sighed and shook her head.