The Immortal Genius Spear Knight (27)
“Captain, what happened?”
“What nonsense are the guards spouting now?”
The Neo-Calitz unit had a deep-seated distrust of the Erkal guards.
They were the type to offload all actual responsibilities onto others.
Taron had brought parts of the black bear’s carcass back from the forest to meet with the Erkal guard’s captain.
The goal was to raise suspicions about the magical presence Damian had mentioned.
However, regardless of whether it was magi or not, the priority was to understand the abnormal phenomena occurring under the current circumstances.
Taron spoke.
“First, we will seal off the Bronzerian Forest. For the time being, neither the herbalists nor ourselves will enter the forest; we will observe the situation from outside.”
“Pardon? So, does that mean there will be no operations for the time being?”
A peculiar joy appeared on the face of the unit leader, Aaron.
The Neo-Calitz unit’s main mission was to subdue the monsters in the Bronzerian Forest.
If the forest was sealed off, it meant there was nothing for them to do.
Taron nodded.
“If any monsters come out of the forest, we will deal with them. But for now, we can consider the operations to be on hold.”
“Hooray!”
“A rest day!”
Seeing his delighted subordinates, Taron simply turned away.
As they said, it was indeed a rest day.
‘But if it really is magi…’
He had no idea if they could handle it with their current strength.
It felt like walking on ice-covered water.
Taron let out a small sigh.
This information quickly spread throughout the unit.
“The forest is sealed off?”
“So, no operations for the time being?”
“That’s right. If monsters come out of the forest, we will handle them, but other than that, we will only conduct training within the unit.”
“Ahahaha! Even days like this exist!”
“Phew… It’s a relief. So many people have been injured recently; it was becoming too much.”
“No idea how long the rest will last, but treating the injuries is important.”
The unit members each discussed their situations.
But the common sentiment was joy at the fact that the forest was sealed.
Except for one person.
“…How could this be?”
Damian sat with a face as if the sky had fallen.
Kyle approached and asked.
“Why the long face?”
“…It’s nothing.”
He couldn’t say he was sad about the lack of operations due to the forest being sealed off.
As the others mentioned, there were many injured.
They needed time to heal their wounds.
‘It’s good, but… Why now…’
The sealing of the forest was likely done to understand the abnormal situation occurring within.
If they had gone so far as to seal it off.
‘It implies there was mention of magi.’
There was also a possibility that priests or mages might get involved.
But aside from that, the situation would inevitably worsen over time.
Even if the search teams moved, it would be impossible to get inside without an extermination squad.
‘In the end, clear evidence of the cursed monstrosity is needed…’
For now, all he could do was wait.
Damian observed the situation in silence.
He needed to see what happened after the initial search team entered the forest.
‘Moving rashly could lead to nothing but strange looks.’
At times like this, staying put was the best strategy.
Although it left him feeling regretful.
“…Sigh.”
Damian simply sighed.
But then.
“Eh? What’s that?”
“Why? Huh? Why are the Erkal guards here?”
The Erkal guards were seen outside the barracks.
A dozen or so guards entered the base and headed to Taron’s office.
The unit members in the barracks watched them with puzzled expressions.
What could those heavy-waisted guys be doing here?
“What’s the matter?”
“Based on your report, the temple has agreed to cooperate. They said they felt an evil aura from the carcass.”
“…”
Taron’s expression hardened at the guard captain’s words.
Did it really mean there was something related to magi as Damian had said?
But the guard captain shook his head.
“It’s not confirmed yet. It’s just a suspicion. So, we decided to send priests from the temple to enter the forest with us for a search operation…”
“Are you asking us to perform a search operation?”
Taron jumped in with a question.
Something seemed off about the situation.
But fortunately, that wasn’t the case.
The guard captain said.
“Not exactly. It’s just that, given how unfamiliar this situation is, we would like to bring along a soldier who knows about magi.”
“Hmm…”
A slight frown appeared on Taron’s forehead.
The guard captain’s request wasn’t unreasonable.
In such special circumstances, it made sense to request the help of a soldier who was familiar with the situation.
Typically, it would be expected to accept such a request.
“But the soldier is a new recruit this time. It’s a bit troublesome to send a recruit with no field experience.”
“But he is a soldier, isn’t he? And wasn’t this information discovered because he also went to the forest?”
“That’s…”
The guard captain had the justification.
It would be possible to refuse, but the consequences of doing so were unpredictable.
Taron watched the Erkal guard captain in silence.
And…
“Call Damian.”
Taron said softly.
He intended to ask for Damian’s opinion before making a decision.
‘If he judges it as too dangerous and refuses…’
He had no intention of sending Damian without a good reason.
The search and scouting of the forest were tasks the guards should handle.
“Glory to the kingdom!”
Damian entered the office, saluting.
Taron informed Damian of the conversation he had with the guard captain.
“If you don’t want to go, it’s fine to refuse.”
With this short statement,
He gave Damian the choice.
But.
“I will go!”
“…What?”
Damian answered without a hint of hesitation.
Taron’s eyes widened in surprise.
“If it helps, I definitely want to go.”
Damian emphatically stated.
* * *
Not long after the Erkal guards had entered the captain’s office,
A clerk suddenly ran into the barracks and said,
“Damian, the captain is calling for you.”
“…What?”
“Why are they calling you?”
“How would I know?”
Damian shrugged in response to Kyle’s question and followed the clerk to the office.
“Glory to the kingdom!”
Normally, there was no particular saluting.
Because of the unit’s relaxed atmosphere.
But with a foreigner present, they couldn’t show lax discipline.
As Damian saluted, Taron smiled and lightly touched his left chest with his right fist.
“Damian, the Erkal guards have requested your assistance for the upcoming search operation.”
Taron summarized the conversation he had with the guard captain to Damian.
“They said they need your help to understand this abnormal situation. Since priests will accompany them, it’s fine if you don’t want to go.”
‘Going into the forest?’
At that moment, Damian’s eyes brightened.
He had just been lamenting the sealing of the forest.
Damian thought.
‘It’s an opportunity…!’
Missing this chance would surely lead to regret.
“I will go!”
“…What?”
Damian was aware that Taron likely didn’t want to send him.
He was a new recruit, and the forest was probably deemed dangerous. But…
‘If I don’t go now, it might be too late.’
There were numerous precious herbs in the forest.
‘If I go, there’s a high chance I’ll find the cursed monstrosity.’
Then he could quickly form an extermination team to deal with the Bronzerian Forest.
‘Once safety is secured, I can contact Hamel’s trading company and secure a stake there.’
If they’re the kind of people who can read into future situations, then they’ll catch on well even if they’re only given a hint.
Damian grinned and said.
“If it helps, I definitely want to go.”
This concluded the matter.
Unlike the smiling guard captain, Taron’s eyes were troubled.
If Damian said this, it completely removed any reason to refuse.
“…I see.”
Taron sighed softly and nodded.
“Then it’s decided. You may return now. I will inform you of the schedule once it is decided.”
“Yes, understood.”
Damian calmed his pounding heart and returned to the barracks.
‘…This is enough.’
This was sufficient.
However, after the Erkal guards left, Damian was called back to Taron.
* * *
A monster’s front limb, with long, sharp claws.
Though it had already started to rot and emit a foul smell.
“…It carries an evil aura.”
“How could this happen…!”
“Could it be that a dark sorcerer has appeared?”
The dark sorcerers, whose existence had faded in the kingdom.
Everyone knew about them.
The few surviving dark sorcerers who still persisted.
But that was all there was to it.
They no longer posed any significant threat.
“…Could they be trying to make a comeback?”
“That is unknown. But if they are indeed trying to make a comeback… we must root them out completely this time.”
The priest’s robe, embroidered with golden threads on white cloth.
Wrinkles from the passage of time and a short-cut white hat on his head.
A priest with a cross necklace spoke firmly.
He then looked at the priest in front of him.
“Priest Claire.”
“Yes, High Priest.”
With platinum-blonde hair neatly tied up.
Brown eyes and fair skin.
The High Priest spoke to Claire in a low voice.
“Please go and find out the source of this evil power yourself. May the grace of the gods be with you always.”
A staff with a cross-shaped symbol engraved on it.
Claire, holding the staff with both hands and praying to the gods with it on her forehead, eventually raised her head.
“I will definitely find it.”
She vowed to defeat the evil power.
Claire’s gaze was filled with determination.
* * *
The preparations for the search of the Bronzerian Forest proceeded rapidly.
Taron, who had come to the forest entrance with Damian, asked.
“…Are you sure you’ll be okay alone?”
“Yes, it’s actually better alone.”
Damian responded.
The day Damian joined the Erkal search team, the unit was thrown into complete disarray.
Taron had said he couldn’t send the new recruit alone and planned to send ten senior members.
But.
―It’s better to go alone.
Damian persuaded Taron.
The reason was that if senior members were with him, they would have to fight if a dangerous situation arose.
—If necessary, I will escape by myself.
Damian’s abilities had already been somewhat proven through training.
It was judged that escaping alone was something he could manage.
“Remember, absolutely no combat is allowed.”
“Don’t worry. As a favor, I will also gather many herbs.”
Damian persuaded Taron with the pretext of collecting herbs for the injured members.
Due to Damian’s persistent persuasion, Taron eventually permitted Damian to join the search team alone.
However,
“…Sigh.”
Seeing Damian going into the search team alone made Taron uneasy.
He sighed softly and repeatedly urged Damian to ensure his safety unconditionally.
Damian saluted and said.
“I will return safely.”
Then the search team departed for the forest.
As Taron remained behind.
“…It seems we have a very unusual new recruit.”
The unit leader, Aaron, said from the side.
Taron nodded silently, agreeing. He then gazed intently in the direction the search team had departed.
