CHAPTER 275

Esther saw Encrid's gaze sweep over Kaisela's entire body.

Having observed Encrid for quite some time, she didn't miss that glance.

Kaisela was wearing clothes that clearly revealed her figure.

Her face wasn't ugly, but that was all there was to it. Maybe it would catch Frog's eye, but not hers. It was below standard.

'No, it's just that Frog named Maelrun had particularly low standards.'

Encrid had casually mentioned it on their way here, so she also knew what that Frog named Maelrun had said.

And what kind of place this town was.

That's why she had anticipated the prepared spell and had already made her own preparations internally.

Esther's eyes stared indifferently at her opponent.

Not only was her appearance lacking, but what was with that ominous spell?

She really thought she could burn off that man's hair or something with that?

In reality, a lightning spell couldn't kill Encrid.

Though it was a prepared spell, Encrid's body could now withstand it.

Moreover, Esther herself had made several precautions in the new armor he had acquired.

But does that mean she should forgive someone who would do such a thing?

Esther was originally far from the concept of 'forgiveness'.

Whatever her opponent tried, she interfered with and dismantled it one by one, as the world of spells unfolded. Mana gathered and then scattered.

The opponent, who had already had her insides twisted by the spell 'Vanna's Mirror', had her complexion pale.

As the repeated spells failed, her face grew more ashen.

When Esther approached right in front of her, Kaisela pulled out a dagger hidden at her waist and stabbed.

As she did, she shouted, "Fire!"

The crossbowman who had been hesitating reacted.

Without any concern, Esther struck Kaisela's wrist, which held the dagger.

She revealed the most useful thing she had gained from the curse—a hand strike using the strength of a panther.

As the sharply raised hand struck the opponent's wrist, a clear and solid sound of bones breaking was heard.

Kaisela's wrist, unable to withstand the strength from such a slender hand, snapped. It dangled loosely.

"Kyah!"

The one who had ruled and terrorized the village screamed.

The bolt fired by the startled crossbowman was blocked by Encrid, who had moved swiftly.

He deflected two bolts with his sword and caught the third one in mid-air.

The moment the onlookers saw him catch a flying arrow, the faces of the bandits turned pale.

Wasn't this a level they couldn't possibly overcome?

"You should stay still while you're still being spared."

Encrid spoke quietly. All the bandits trembled and dropped their weapons. Some, quick on the uptake, started to retreat.

There were too many to chase after individually, so they were left alone.

Esther snatched the dagger from Kaisela's hand and turned it into a brooch on her heart.

As the dagger plunged deep, piercing and twisting her heart, Kaisela gurgled and muttered.

"Why, why?"

Why is a wizard as powerful as you here? That was the question.

"It's none of your concern."

Esther muttered with a smile.

She felt a slight satisfaction. Encrid, who had been watching, approached.

"You fight well."

"Fairly well."

In response to her quiet answer, Encrid nodded and looked around.

When a wizard appeared, clenched their teeth, and fought at the right timing, Esther had taken care of everything on her own.

He didn't mind that.

If she wanted to take the lead, that wasn't a problem.

Encrid also considered Esther a member of his subordinates.

Whatever she did, it would probably be better than Rem.

Those who lost their will to fight, those who were startled by the lightning, those who stared blankly.

And from behind them.

"Drop all your weapons!"

The Fairy Company Commander's unit was seen entering the village, surrounding the area and beginning their advance.

'How did they know to come at this exact timing?' 

Esther wondered as she observed the scene.

A man who appeared to be the Platoon Leader hurriedly approached.

He quickly glanced around, his expression clearly showing confusion.

"All of you, um, all of you, huh? Did you already drop your weapons?" 

He muttered in surprise as he passed by.

He was flustered. But would asking the enemy really yield any answers?

"... They told us to drop them." 

One of the men, with his right arm completely burned black, mumbled.

You could see in his eyes that he was desperate to survive.

"Drop them just because you were told to?" 

The Platoon Leader asked again.

Encrid wondered what kind of exchange this was, merely staring blankly at the short-haired side of the Platoon leader's head where his scalp was showing.

From the Platoon leader's perspective, the situation was absurd.

They had been observing the village from afar and noticed an unusual increase in torches, sensing that something was amiss. He had decided to advance the unit on his own judgment, and as they approached the village, several lightning strikes, seemingly from spells, hastened their entry.

But upon entering, everything was already over.

The village had been turned into chaos by just a few people, and there seemed to have been a bandit who could use spells, but that wizard was now dead with a dagger in their heart. The survivors had lost the will to fight, and the rest were dead.

That was all he could see.

The Platoon leader couldn't grasp the full context of what had happened, but one thing was certain.

'This is terrifying.'

Even more so than his usual impression of his Company Commander, he felt a deep fear.

And here, there were people even more frightening.

"Do you want me to pluck out your eyes?" 

A voice said as the Platoon leader's gaze was naturally drawn to the faintly visible skin through a robe.

The words made him freeze.

Black hair, red lips, blue eyes. A mysterious aura, the moonlight falling on her, and a curvaceous figure.

Everything about her captured his attention in an instant. It was natural for a man.

But despite only a brief glance, the words that came out of her mouth were chilling.

"We're allies. You can't pluck them out."

"What about burning them?"

"That's not allowed either."

"Then, should I just blind one eye?"

"You could just look away."

"Disappointing. So the problem isn't his eyes, then?"

In truth, Esther was awkward with human affairs and most things.

Encrid thought as he spoke. Training her would be a challenge.

Anyway,

"I saw it too. Are you going to pluck out my eyes?"

"You're an exception."

"What?"

"Never mind."

Esther said, pretending to think for a moment, then shook her head.

She then nodded, agreeing to leave the eyes alone.

Encrid sighed lightly and gave the Platoon leader a look before saying, 

"Round them up and tie them all up."

"... Huh? Yes. But where are you going?"

"Inside."

Neither Finn, Jaxon, nor Sinar had returned.

They must have gone inside. The village chief's house in the center of the village was quite large.

It looked like a good place to hide something.

"There's a smell of magic." 

Esther remarked.

Encrid also sensed that something was there.

Esther confidently moved first.

Encrid stood by her side.

"Do you know where you're going?" 

He asked, just in case she might be like Ragna.

"Do you take me for some idiot who can't even find their way?" 

She retorted.

So, she thought of Ragna like that all along, Encrid mused silently as he responded.

"No, you're not an idiot like that."

Then the two entered the village, and the Platoon leader, who had been surveying the remaining enemies, shouted.

"If you act recklessly, I'll start by plucking out your eyes!"

With that, he and his men began tying up the remaining bandits, taking control of the area.

At that point, Sinar, Jaxon, and Finn were already inside the tunnel that had been dug beneath the village center.

Inside, there were still a few things left that the wizard had prepared.

For example, ghouls and lycanthropes.

But naturally, they were no match for the group and were all cut down, slashed, and killed.

When the three reached the inside, what they saw was a scene too horrific to put into words.

"Grrrrr. Medicine, give me medicine."

One of the people who had become part of the carnage muttered.

A person was scratching the wall so hard that all their fingernails had peeled off, causing blood to drip down.

A small child had collapsed between them, drooling.

There were no words to describe it other than 'a massacre'.

* * *

There were ghoul corpses, lycanthropes with severed heads and arms, and even a couple of dog-like creatures with human faces.

Judging by the collars around their necks, it seemed they were used as guard dogs by those here.

Those creatures had also been split in half.

A path paved with the blood of monsters led to the chief's house, which had an unusual structure.

Inside, there was a slope.

It led downward into a tunnel.

It felt like a large cave. Though there was no wind, the interior seemed quite spacious.

'A wide, enclosed cave.'

It was the perfect place to do something sinister.

Encrid and Esther stepped inside.

Torches placed along the walls provided visibility.

As Encrid looked at the corpses of the monsters, he noticed signs of Sinar and Jaxon.

'Looks like they did a good job cutting them down.'

They arrived at a rather large chamber.

Inside, Sinar, Finn, and Jaxon were already there.

"You're here early." 

Jaxon remarked. Encrid detected a slight awkwardness in his tone.

There were a few more tunnels branching off within the chamber, and he noticed some areas barred with iron grates.

Inside those barred areas were people.

They looked like they were halfway out of their minds.

Encrid approached them.

Among them, he noticed an older man he hadn't seen before, muttering to himself.

He had a stubborn-looking face, with a hooked nose, sunken cheeks, prominent cheekbones, and small eyes.

He didn't seem like an ordinary character.

"Could you shut up?" 

Finn said menacingly, holding a dagger that reflected the torchlight, but the old man just pouted his lips stubbornly.

Light didn't penetrate well into the interior.

Encrid grabbed one of the torches hanging on the wall.

He illuminated the inside.

"Medicine, medicine, do you have it? Hmm? Give me medicine. I'll treat you well, hmm?" 

The old man muttered.

She was a woman, so emaciated that her chest seemed to cave inward.

Just by looking into her eyes, it was clear—she wasn't just drugged, there wasn't a shred of sanity left in her.

If left like this, she would spend the rest of her life wandering, searching for more drugs, until she eventually died.

"Hmm? Do you have any drugs?" 

She asked.

This was one of the better cases.

There was a man nearby, scratching the wall, even though his fingernails were broken and bleeding. His eyes had been gouged out by someone.

Next to him, a small child lay drooling on the ground, and Encrid knew that the child was already dead.

There wasn't the slightest sign of life that indicated the child was alive.

The chest wasn't rising and falling. No breath could be heard.

"He was alive until just a moment ago." 

Finn muttered from behind.

Sinar was busy surveying the surroundings.

She was a Fairy, and regardless of the horror or anything else, she diligently did her job.

She searched for hidden items in various places.

"Hey, do you even know what that is before you touch it?" 

The hooked-nosed older man shouted.

In the meantime, Encrid quietly inspected the tunnel.

One by one, silently and diligently.

"Leave it alone!" 

Sinar ignored the man's protests, and when he saw Finn's eyes darkening, he didn't dare push further.

No matter how confident he was, he couldn't risk provoking someone who might throw a knife at him. With a small huff, he snorted and turned away, folding his arms.

Sinar continued to handle various objects.

In the next tunnel, Encrid saw something strange.

It was a person, but half of their eyes were an odd color—dull, colorless, pupil-less eyes.

Black eyes, with clearly visible split muscle fibers in his thighs.

"What is this?" 

Encrid asked without looking away.

"Oh, that's a failed experiment." 

The older man replied indifferently.

"A failed experiment?"

"It didn't turn out right."

"Was it originally human?"

"What's the point in asking?"

Encrid silently looked at the creature, then swung his sword.

The blade passed through the bars, killing the half-ghoul, half-human creature that had been wheezing.

There were several such creatures in the tunnels.

"The lycanthropes we saw on the way here were similar." 

Jaxon's voice came, indifferent and colder than usual.

Encrid turned his head back. He also moved his feet.

He didn't express anger, nor did he show sorrow.

Finn watched Encrid.

Was he not angry because it was a path already walked, something that couldn't be undone?

Or was it more like the reaction of the Fairy?

Was he distancing himself from the events, not accepting the horror as something connected to him?

Finn noticed a particular difference between humans and Sinar in this situation.

She showed no emotion in response to the carnage.

"A wretch who deserves to be torn apart." 

Finn murmured.

After that single remark, they set about their tasks. The primary reason they had come here—to verify whether the drugs and other matters were linked to any nobles—was investigated one by one.

It would be helpful if they found any clues here.

That way, they could identify those who deserved punishment.

Although, it was uncertain whether finding them would justify killing them on the spot.

Encrid walked over, his steps heavy.

Finn, still holding her sword, watched him.

Jaxon was behind him, but he didn't seem to have any intention of killing their opponent.

As soon as they arrived, Jaxon had asked a few questions, received answers, and then stepped back.

He seemed to consider it none of his business.

Finn felt a deep sadness.

She felt it when she saw the dead child, when she saw the woman drugged out of her mind, and as she imagined the screams and horrors that must have filled this place.

Emotionally, she wanted to cut down this alchemist right then and there, but that wasn't something Finn could decide on her own.

This man was quite famous. His name was well-known throughout the Kingdom.

The alchemist Laban.

He couldn't create gold from nothing, but when it came to making potions, there was no one who could rival him.

"Hey, I was forced into this. The Black Blade made me do it." 

Laban muttered, perhaps sensing something.

He said this as Encrid came right up to him.

Esther, who had transformed from a panther back into a human, silently observed Encrid.

But it wasn't just Esther.

Everyone's gaze shifted to Encrid—Jaxon, Sinar who had stopped what she was doing, everyone.

What would he do?

Even just capturing and sending him to the Kingdom would be a significant accomplishment.

Laban's value wasn't just in his body, but in the knowledge in his head.

What if they erased his debt with this incident? He was an alchemist, after all.

He might even give them healing potions, which could be as good as an extra life.

He experimented on humans, but was that really wrong?

How many of the top alchemists on the continent hadn't used human bodies for their experiments?

And wasn't this all because the Black Blade had ordered it?

If a blade kills someone, who is the target of revenge—the blade itself or the person wielding it?

Encrid looked into Laban's eyes.

There was no hint of guilt in those rotten, decayed eyes.

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