Chapter 64

Wendigo always kept away from the absurdity and harm of violence, but sometimes there were problems where violence was effective.

Although their legs were broken, eyes bruised, and lips torn, it certainly made the prisoners’ rotten spirits clean.

“H-Here it is.”

“Hmm…”

As a prisoner with a broken leg dragged himself over and held out a parchment, Wendigo read it carefully.

Wendigo looked at the prisoner to ask a question.

When the prisoner’s eyes met Wendigo’s, he cried out in fear:

“I swear on my life. There are no lies in anything written on the parchment!”

“… Alright, go back and wait.”

Wendigo couldn’t tell if the prisoner before him was afraid of him or afraid of the warriors.

Perhaps it was both…

As the prisoner returned while bowing, the warriors watched with satisfaction.

“Indeed, beating is the medicine for such fellows.”

“How about beating any outsiders who want to see the spirit-nim from now on?”

“That sounds quite fun- I mean, quite a good idea.”

It was quite an appealing suggestion, but Wendigo rejected it in his mind.

These guys may be hostile to the forest and rotten to the core, but not all outsiders would be like them.

‘… Come to think of it, most of them seem to be like that.’

The village that persecuted Skadi, the shamans and nomads who planned human sacrifices for their ambitions, and even those who took the human-faced trees…

Just as Wendigo was starting to seriously consider the warriors’ chatter, Geron approached him and spoke:

“Spirit-nim. How about resting while I extract the missives from these fellows?”

“The battlefield cleanup isn’t even finished yet. For me alone to rest at a time like this…”

“Where in the world is there a leader who considers such things? Rather, if someone in a high position takes on such tasks, it makes us uncomfortable.”

At Geron’s words, the warriors bowed their heads with respect. They felt guilty that Wendigo was even concerned about such matters.

Couldn’t they just break fingers and bones until they got the answers they wanted?

Faced with Geron and the warriors’ reactions, Wendigo pondered for a moment.

Could he entrust this to the warriors when they lacked the ability to discern truth?

Wendigo thought carefully and looked at the prisoners.

Their bodies were bruised all over, some bones slightly shattered, and their lips and eyelids torn – they were in a miserable state.

‘… If they try to play tricks after being beaten like that, they’re truly mad. I can let it slide once at that level.’

After all, this was to choose the best one among those with inheritance rights.

There was no need to be unforgiving if they risked their lives to play tricks when they were barely breathing.

If such a person existed, they would surely die an unnatural death someday even without his intervention.

Having made his decision, Wendigo stood up from the throne and nodded at Geron.

“Alright. If you insist so much, I have no choice.”

“I will make sure not to disappoint you, spirit-nim.”

“It’s not such an important task, so do it moderately.”

When Geron made a firm promise, Wendigo left with a smile and light encouragement.

After confirming Wendigo’s departure, Geron looked at the prisoners with a serious expression.

… More precisely, he looked at the warriors who were stretching as soon as Wendigo left.

“Everyone, put down your clubs.”

“Huh, weren’t we going to beat them?”

“Their eyes look sinister like beasts, so maybe we should drain a bit more blood… Ah, no. I’ll put it down.”

When Geron’s eyes started to look fierce, the warriors hesitantly lowered their clubs.

“I think we could beat them a bit more…”

As one warrior muttered, the prisoners trembled in fear.

In their eyes, the forest warriors looked like something more evil than the spirit.

---

Although he had stopped extracting, no, receiving missives from the prisoners, Wendigo didn’t rest, contrary to what he had told Geron.

Even if he wanted to rest, the surrounding area was quite chaotic.

War demanded considerable time not only in preparation and execution but even in wrapping up.

From gathering and burning the enemies’ corpses and collecting allies’ bodies in a clean state, to gathering the enemies’ spoils, it was quite laborious…

“Woof! Woof woof!”

“Yes, eat, eat. Thanks to the wolves, the enemies’ corpses will be greatly reduced.”

“The nomads’ skill at collecting spoils was quite impressive, wasn’t it? They checked everything from fingers to toes.”

“Hahaha! What about you guys? I was amazed to see you tearing the skin to find hidden rings.”

… It was laborious but rewarding work. The warriors cleared away the corpses while laughing.

How could they not laugh when stripping the corpses yielded not only steel armor and weapons hard to obtain in the forest, but also luxuries like rings and necklaces?

‘It’s good that they find some satisfaction like that.’

Wendigo didn’t mind the warriors thoroughly stripping the spoils. Shouldn’t there be a reward for risking their lives in battle?

Wendigo looked at them with fondness and then headed towards where the surrendered prisoners were gathered.

There, wolf riders were watching the prisoners with fierce expressions. Some wolves even prowled among the prisoners, growling.

A warrior spotted Wendigo and saluted.

“Spirit-nim! What brings you to a place like this?”

“Geron chased me out telling me to stop working, so I’m wandering around here and there.”

Wendigo spoke honestly without a single lie, but the warriors burst into laughter. The idea that Geron, Wendigo’s loyal subject, had chased Wendigo away sounded like a joke to them.

The prisoners thought the same. However, they didn’t laugh but were shocked.

To think a spirit that joked with humans existed in this world!

They whispered while watching the warriors’ reactions.

“Am I dreaming? But my knee hit by an arrow is aching…”

“Damn. I wish it were a dream. Then I’d run away from the forest as soon as I woke up.”

“Is he really not a shaman? Like a shaman transformed into a monster.”

“Have you ever seen a shaman with a good personality? The shamans I’ve seen were all madmen or madwomen.”

The prisoners put their heads together to try to understand this situation, but there was no clear answer.

In their common sense, it was natural for spirits or shamans to have broken personalities.

As the prisoners continued to whisper, trying to uncover Wendigo’s true identity, the warriors roared:

“You bastards! You don’t even know who you owe your lives to and dare to insult the spirit-nim!”

“We-We’re sorry!”

“We apologize. The spirit-nim is indeed a spirit!”

“Th-That’s right. The spirit-nim is the most spirit-like spirit!”

‘If he’s a spirit, he’s a spirit, but what’s the most spirit-like spirit?’

Perhaps because none of the spirits he had encountered so far were normal.

Wendigo briefly wondered if the prisoners were indirectly insulting him.

However, his pondering didn’t last long. As soon as he looked at them, the prisoners trembled in fear, gasping for breath.

“Aren’t you too cowardly for those who claim to be warriors?”

“Spirit-nim. I think it’s because of the blood on your face…”

When Wendigo expressed puzzlement, he recalled the bloodstains he had forgotten about.

‘Hmm, that would certainly be scary.’

Wendigo swallowed his bitterness at the sufficiently valid reason.

It was natural to be scared when faced with a spirit with a bloodied mouth, even for warriors who didn’t fear swords and spears.

“I might end up killing someone with my face if I’m not careful. Bring some water to wash off the blood. And if possible, bring some water for the prisoners to drink as well.”

“Water for the prisoners to drink, you say?”

The warriors asked in puzzlement. They would follow Wendigo’s orders, of course, but honestly, they couldn’t understand.

Why give water to the prisoners?

“Yes. Some might have come willingly, but most were probably dragged here by incompetent chieftains and shamans. Once negotiations are over, we’ll send them back, so there’s no need to treat them harshly.”

“Is, is that true?”

Seeing hope that they could return, one prisoner reflexively blurted out a question.

At this rudeness, the warriors emitted killing intent and grabbed their weapons, but Wendigo stopped them and nodded.

“There will be no enslaving or sacrificing. As long as you don’t cause trouble, I’ll let you return alive to your families.”

“!”

At such merciful grace, the prisoners lowered their heads with tears in their eyes. In their eyes, a halo of light shone behind Wendigo.

To think they had doubted such a person and accused him of being an evil shaman or spirit!

“We were foolish! We didn’t realize the spirit-nim’s mercy and uttered such terrible words!”

“Now we understand! The spirit-nim is the most benevolent and good in the world…”

“That’s enough. I’m too embarrassed to show my face.”

As the prisoners shed tears like chicken droppings and apologized, and even the warriors started to gush, Wendigo stopped them, feeling pricked by his conscience.

Even this behavior seemed humble to them, as the warriors and prisoners looked up at Wendigo with awe.

How humble and benevolent he was!

‘Well, I absolutely can’t tell them that I’m sending them back because there’s no benefit in taking them.’

The real reason Wendigo was releasing the prisoners was that they were truly useless.

Using slaves with warrior backgrounds had low utility compared to the risk. What use were hundreds of slaves when they weren’t going to establish large plantations in the forest?

Considering that they would have to provide for all their food, clothing, and shelter, it was rarely this useless.

‘It’s not like I’m going to receive human sacrifices either. It’s better to speak nicely and send them back.’

Even if not all of them, if even one out of three spoke favorably about the forest, it would help in interacting with the outside world.

“We will pass down the story of the spirit-nim’s mercy for generations to come!”

“If anyone insults the spirit-nim, I will personally cut off their head!”

“… That’s enough, just wet your throats.”

Wendigo turned his eyes away, unable to bear the prisoners’ shining gazes.

… While deceiving bad people was rewarding, deceiving innocent people made him feel uneasy.

---

One week later.

Although it was still somewhat chaotic, the forest had succeeded in regaining peace.

This was partly because the prisoners didn’t cause trouble, grateful for Wendigo’s grace, but also because Geron had successfully obtained the missives.

‘A few of them did end up with some more injuries, but if Geron wanted it, that much…’

“Spirit-nim. Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Ahem. I was just grateful for your hard work for me all the time.”

Geron noticed that Wendigo was hiding something, but he didn’t pay much attention to it.

There were more important matters waiting for Wendigo than that.

“Envoys have arrived from outside the forest. Judging by the minimal forces they brought for escort, it seems your intentions were properly conveyed.”

“That’s good. Have you sent warriors to guide them here?”

“Well, I have swift wolf riders on standby. However, some unexpected individuals have joined the envoys…”

“Hmm. It’s not an unforeseen event.”

It wasn’t strange that others would be interested when hundreds of warriors had gone and disbanded without any results.

When Wendigo nodded and gestured for him to continue, Geron went on:

“A shaman named Sira from the Freyr tribe has joined the envoy group.”

“I don’t know much just from hearing the name…”

“Shall I call the shamans?”

“There’s no need to call all the busy people. Just bring Skadi and Osa.”

‘Osa probably won’t like it… but an order is an order.’

Perhaps it also meant that she had gained the spirit’s trust, so Osa might like it too.

Thinking that she would be horrified if she knew, Geron conveyed the orders to the warriors.