CHAPTER 36: This place is insane (4)

If not for Ghislain, everyone would have died without ever understanding what had happened to them.

Watching the mercenaries cheer, Kaor turned to Gillian and asked, "Who is he, really? They called him a loser, but he seems more like Perdium's secret weapon."

Kaor was thoroughly shocked, realizing that what he had seen of Ghislain's skill so far was not the whole of it.

"I don't know either. But one thing's certain—there's no one his age more capable than our young lord," Gillian replied, his voice filled with pride. 

This was the first time he had seen Ghislain unleash such power. Even in previous monster fights, Ghislain had held back, confirming there was much more to him than just natural talent.

Yet, while most were joyous and excited, not everyone felt the same.

"Out of the way! Move!" Belinda kicked and shoved her way through the mercenaries, rushing toward Ghislain.

"Young master! Are you alright? Your skills improved again! Are you really the same young master I know?"

Belinda was the one who had watched Ghislain's abilities the longest and knew them best. To her, Ghislain's skills should not have been enough to deal with the Palors alone. That's why she had jumped in to help. But she hadn't expected him to display such incredible strength.

"I'm fine. The formation collapsed early, but thanks to you, we gained time. Everyone worked hard; let's tend to the injured first."

However, Belinda paid no attention to his praise. She anxiously examined his wounds.

"You should be the first to receive treatment."

"It's nothing serious," Ghislain replied.

But he was, in fact, wounded from having pushed himself to the limit. Not only Ghislain, but also Gillian and Kaor bore cuts and bruises all over their bodies.

It had been an intense battle. The Palors were both powerful and fast, and their numbers had been overwhelming.

Seeing Belinda fuss over Ghislain, the mercenaries exchanged glances and murmured.

"See? I knew she was skilled when she threw those daggers and used mana."

"Oh, come on. You still asked her to make you soup. You nearly lost your head for that."

As the intensity of the battle settled, the mercenaries began to joke with one another. Ghislain clicked his tongue at their casual attitude.

"Take care of the wounded and gather the bodies in one place. The light spell's effects will wear off soon, so take out and hang new lamps."

Without hesitation, the surviving mercenaries moved as Ghislain instructed, among them "Gordon the Muscle."

"Phew, disgusting bastards," he muttered, wrinkling his nose as he piled up the Palors corpses around the clearing.

After days of dealing with these creatures, he felt he might have even lost some muscle mass from all the stress. 

"When I get back, I'll have to train harder."

As he gathered up the scattered bodies, Gordon wandered unconsciously toward the edge of the clearing, where darkness thickened between the trees.

He instinctively turned his head toward the dimming light.

The light spell was fading, and the light it cast was already growing weak. Feeling uneasy, Gordon quickly grabbed the leg of a corpse on the ground.

His plan was to throw it behind him and hurry back to the others.

In that moment, what he had thought was a dead Palors opened its eyes.

"Huh?"

Gordon let out a stunned gasp at the unexpected sight.

Kaaaak!

The tentacles on the Palors' arms suddenly extended, wrapping around Gordon's neck, arms, body, and legs.

"Ahhh!"

Everyone turned at the sound of his scream.

They saw Gordon being dragged into the shadows.

"Gordon!"

"Damn it! There was a survivor!"

"What an idiot!"

The mercenaries rushed after him, but they hesitated at the edge of the clearing.

They didn't dare enter the dark forest.

"What should we do?"

"It's too late. Once he's gone into the darkness, we can't save him."

"It's a shame we won, only to lose someone…"

The forest was thick with trees, so dense it was hard to see even a few steps ahead. The Palors were monsters that became far more dangerous in darkness.

Those who were dragged into the shadows by them had no chance of survival.

While the mercenaries wore grim expressions, Ghislain drew his sword again.

Seeing his intent, Belinda and Gillian grabbed his arms and shouted.

"Young master! Are you insane?"

"Young lord, no! It's too dangerous!"

Ghislain looked silently at the two holding him back, then surveyed the other mercenaries.

The mercenaries all shook their heads with sorrowful expressions.

This wasn't the employer's fault. Accidents could happen at any time.

Even an employer who fought on the front lines couldn't be expected to prevent every incident. This was just a stroke of bad luck that came with a life spent selling one's life for pay.

Kaor stepped in front of Ghislain and said, "Let it go. It's too late. Losing one's life from their own mistakes is part of being a mercenary."

While mercenaries did everything they could to survive, they accepted that certain deaths were unavoidable.

Ghislain closed his eyes briefly, then raised his head.

Dying in battle was something he, too, could accept. It was a risk every mercenary faced.

But watching a comrade who was still alive being dragged away in front of him was something he could not accept as one of the continent's Seven Strongest and a Mercenary King.

Especially if there was still a chance of saving them.

With his eyes closed, Ghislain muttered quietly, "I have… never once abandoned those who follow me."

The powerful words sent a wave of unease through Belinda and Gillian.

Opening his eyes slowly, Ghislain looked at them and said, "Take care of the mercenaries. I'll go alone."

Belinda's face twisted with frustration.

'I knew it! He's never listened to anyone since he was a child!'

She quickly drew a dagger she had prepared with a paralyzing poison.

She didn't want to hurt him, but if she didn't knock him out, he would charge ahead without a second thought.

"Young master, enough. You know what I'm like when I'm truly angry, right?"

Her tone changed, a clear sign that she was truly angry—something rare for Belinda.

Ghislain shrugged at her, fully aware, and smiled.

Whoosh!

Before Belinda could react, he had already darted into the dark forest.

"Young… master? Hey! Where are you going?"

Belinda stamped her feet in frustration and then looked at Gillian.

"You stay here and guard them!"

With that, she immediately took off after Ghislain.

"You guard them," Gillian said, expressionless, to Kaor before following her.

Kaor watched them vanish into the darkness, scratching his head.

"Hah, unbelievable. Now they're all ordering me around? What a joke."

Since meeting Ghislain, he had lost his sense of authority time and again.

"Damn it! This is infuriating. Maybe I should just… just…"

Kicking at a nearby rock in irritation, Kaor glared around at the mercenaries.

"What are you staring at? Get back to work! Hurry up and wait. Anyone slacking off loses their head!"

To the mercenaries, Kaor was still a terrifying mad dog. They gulped and nodded, quickly resuming their tasks.

Kaor sat down, chewing on jerky with a resigned sigh.

"Damn, it's kind of disappointing."

He thought it might be fun to follow after them, but if he left, there would be no one to lead the mercenaries.

Meanwhile, Ghislain was chasing after Gordon at an incredible speed.

Tracking a Palor, especially one moving in complete harmony with the darkness, wasn't easy. They disappeared from sight entirely.

At close range, he could sense movement, but if the distance grew, even that became difficult.

That was why even Count Balzac, who held the title of Swordmaster in his previous life, had struggled against the Palors.

But the situation is slightly different now.

Since Gordon was captured, he couldn't blend into the darkness like the Palors.

—Euaaaah!

From far away, Gordon's faint screams echoed through the forest.

Following the sound, Ghislain shouted with a mana-enhanced voice, "Gordon! Keep screaming! I'll follow your voice!"

His voice boomed through the forest, loud enough to reach Gordon.

In the Forest of Demonic Beasts, shouting this loudly was generally forbidden.

It risked alerting other monsters, who might awaken or start following the noise.

But this was still the Palors' territory, and it was night.

The other monsters were unlikely to notice yet, unaware that most of the Palors had been killed.

― Help! Save me!

Hearing Ghislain's voice, Gordon screamed for his life.

Using the direction of the sound as a guide, Ghislain chased after him, but soon realized he could no longer hear Gordon's voice.

'His mouth must be covered.'

Ghislain gritted his teeth, releasing more mana.

'Or he's already dead.'

But until he saw Gordon's body, he wouldn't give up.

Rip!

He tore a Light spell scroll, brightening the area around him.

Quickly scanning the ground for tracks, he determined a direction and sprinted forward.

'Hold on, Gordon!'

As Ghislain predicted, Gordon's mouth was indeed covered by tentacles.

The Palors realized someone was pursuing them, assumed Gordon's screaming was the cause, and silenced him immediately.

"Mm! Mmm!"

Gordon heard Ghislain's voice.

He desperately tried to make noise to alert him to his location, but the clever creature had already sealed his mouth.

'If I can't breathe right, I'll lose muscle mass,' Gordon thought, struggling in vain.

'Is this how I die?'

In a forest this dark, it would be impossible to find his trail.

Despairing, Gordon began to lose hope.

'He said he'd teach me to read and write when we got back.'

If they returned safely, maybe he could have learned. Though he probably would've declined since he needed to train.

'This is the end, huh? It all ends here.'

Everyone would think he was dead or would give up the search when they couldn't find him.

Just as he resigned himself to his fate, Ghislain was still hot on his trail.

But as he continued, his pace began to slow.

With Gordon unable to make any noise, Ghislain couldn't find a clear direction.

Even Ghislain, experienced as he was, found it difficult to track something in pitch darkness with no visible trace.

"Young master!"

"Young lord!"

As Ghislain slowed, Belinda and Gillian finally caught up to him.

"Look for tracks! Check the ground and everything around!"

At his urgent command, Belinda and Gillian began scouring for any sign of Gordon.

Both were skilled trackers, but as they continued, the trail grew fainter and harder to follow.

Eventually, they reached a point where they couldn't even determine the direction.

"Young master, we should go back. It's too dangerous to wander in the forest."

"Belinda's right. He's probably already dead."

Though they tried to persuade him, Ghislain didn't move.

He kept scanning the surroundings, straining his senses in case he heard a sound.

If only he could catch the faintest noise.

Just as he stood there, torn by despair, a muffled shout echoed through the darkness.

"―!"

All three of them shot toward the sound like lightning.

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