Ch.158Chapter 158

The Huntsman Followers.

This term refers to those who follow The Huntsmen that exist in each territory, whether out of respect, awe, or other reasons.

For instance, among the Candles we met on our way back to Rondan after rescuing the Knight Commander following our meeting with Faura, there was a Huntsman Follower—as I later discovered through investigation.

They have an excellent sense of smell like The Huntsmen, but they don’t possess the same combat abilities.

So why are the Knight Commander and Vice Commander taking this so seriously?

What do you think allows The Huntsman to hunt alone?

The aforementioned keen sense of smell.

Very quick thinking based on that sense of smell.

And superhuman physical abilities that allow them to act on those judgments.

The Huntsman possesses all these qualities alone, but Huntsman Followers do not.

If they had the same abilities as The Huntsman, they would become Huntsmen themselves, not mere followers.

What happens when such individuals join forces with bandits?

Bandits typically lack common sense, rely on overwhelming numbers, and possess brute strength in most cases.

It’s essentially like giving them a collective intelligence.

Such bandits would be far more threatening than one might imagine.

The ones we defeated with the Knight Commander weren’t many, so it wasn’t an issue, but what if their numbers doubled or increased tenfold?

“…I understand the potential danger. But how do you propose we locate them? If we get lost out there…”

“That’s why taking you along might prevent problems. You, who can communicate with Outer Gods.”

So even if we lose our way, we could return to Rondan with the help of the gods, just as Zmiya helped us return by summoning a wyvern.

“Finding our way is one thing, but we still don’t know their location.”

The bandits’ range of activity was already quite extensive.

When everything froze due to the Second Princess, their already wide territory expanded several times over.

Moreover, these are essentially nomadic creatures.

Among so many bandits, identifying which group is cooperating with Huntsman Followers would not be an easy task.

Without knowing that, randomly hunting them down could take a lifetime and still not catch them all.

“Well, since such activity was reported in this area, we should at least look. If we find nothing, that’s unfortunate.”

“That seems rather irresponsible…”

“Well, managing the Candles is now the Duke’s territory’s responsibility. They requested our help to investigate, so we don’t necessarily need to take responsibility.”

Ah, so the Duke’s territory made the request.

It seems they’ve asked for our help with the search since their territory is too vast.

“If that’s the intention, I suppose searching this area wouldn’t be a problem.”

“Right, we don’t need to be overly zealous in our search. And if things go wrong, we can always resolve it with force.”

The Knight Commander rolled up his sleeves as he spoke.

…I was somewhat frightened because I felt this person might actually be capable of defeating them all.

Still, resolving this is important.

Given the danger they pose, leaving them unchecked could lead to interference when we try to stop the Second Princess.

Hmm.

Why do I feel like there was a method I was supposed to use in situations like this?

Hmm.

Suddenly, I recalled what the Saint had mentioned about the Greater God lineage theory, and names of beings who could influence Earth came to mind, making me snap my fingers.

“Commander. What happens if we eliminate this threat?”

“Hmm. Well, we haven’t discussed that yet. But since other territories weren’t eager to handle it, it would at least improve how they view our territory.”

“That’s enough for me.”

“Oh?”

“I’ve thought of a method.”

At my words, the Vice Commander and Knight Commander looked at each other with puzzled expressions.

Yes.

There’s someone perfect for this situation.

The Watcher, Bell.

A very good child who listens to me better than any hunting dog.

#

“Woooow! A walk after so long!”

“Are you that happy?”

“Yesss!”

In a place slightly distant from Rondan, where the influence of the hearth had weakened and light snow was falling.

There, Bell was running around excitedly like a happy dog.

Watching this scene, the Vice Commander pointed at Bell with a bewildered expression.

“Is, is it really okay to let that one out like this?”

“Yes, it’s fine. He’s a good child.”

“A, a child, you say?”

The Vice Commander blinked in disbelief at my words and looked at Bell.

Now that I knew Bell’s appearance was distorted due to the Second Princess’s power, I could empathize with their reactions.

Ah, Oko.

You’ve given me a special privilege.

I’ve come this far thanks to the life you gave me.

“Bell, before we go for a walk, there’s something you need to do.”

“Hmm?”

“You know The Huntsman.”

“The human who shot me!”

Well.

That’s true.

When we were in the underground prison, The Huntsman did blast Bell with a double-barrel shotgun.

Didn’t he stop saying things like that about The Huntsman recently?

I wonder if it’s just my imagination that he wants me to view The Huntsman negatively.

“Umm. Can you find humans who can smell almost as well as that Huntsman?”

“Hmm, there are too many.”

Oh.

As expected of someone called The Watcher, can he see all humans like CCTV?

Bell frowned as if his head hurt, so I decided to provide more details.

“Focus on finding the ones who move sluggishly.”

“Slow humans?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Bell wagged his tail and jumped in place a few times, as if confirming he’d found someone similar to what I described.

“There are many! And they’re with strange ones!”

Got them.

These guys.

“Yes, that’s it! Wow, Bell, you’re amazing!”

“I am amazing, woof!”

Bell seemed to want praise, so I patted his head.

He then put his arm around my shoulder and licked my face.

Hmm.

I still can’t get used to this no matter how many times it happens.

But I was grateful for Bell’s cooperation, so I let him do as he pleased.

“Is, is this really okay? Even though you handle Outer Gods well…”

“Haha, yes. It’s really fine, so don’t worry.”

“Hmm.”

I wonder how I look to those people right now.

I did want to see Bell through their eyes once.

As long as Oko is inside me, that’s probably impossible.

“Ah, and he says he’s found them.”

“Oh, is that so?”

The Knight Commander smiled with interest.

He seemed fascinated by the sight of a god helping humans.

“We can depart right away.”

“Hmm, alright.”

The Knight Commander nodded at my words and turned to the pre-arranged branch unit forces behind us.

Among them was Muyeon, whom I hadn’t seen in a while.

But he had a somewhat sulky expression—I wondered why.

Hmm.

Perhaps Mushin said something unnecessary.

Given Muyeon’s personality, I thought he might be uncomfortable around me.

The Knight Commander checked all the troops and smiled with his characteristic confidence.

“I’ve already explained the operation, so you should understand it well.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Good, then from now on, we’ll commence the Second Candle Elimination Operation.”

The Knight Commander announced this in a firm voice, but the knights looked somewhat dubious and glanced at each other.

I wondered why, then realized their gazes were all fixed on Bell.

One knight seemed to have lost strength in his legs and sat down with a blank expression.

Ah.

Could it be.

Aphtha, did you not suppress Bell’s presence?

“Ah.”

Oh, so that’s what’s happening.

This is really frustrating.

With a throbbing headache, I turned to ask the Knight Commander what to do, but for some reason, he was looking at the collapsed knights with a slight sneer.

“You’ll have to fight much worse than this in the future. Is it appropriate to collapse already?”

Perhaps because it was the Commander’s words.

Though tears mixed with fear in the knights’ eyes, they stood up with firm resolve.

Watching them, the Knight Commander laughed heartily and said:

“And there’s no need to worry too much. This one doesn’t bite people. And don’t worry about it charging at you. Look, we have an experienced dog trainer right here.”

The Knight Commander pointed at me as he spoke.

Hmm.

I wondered why he was laughing, but it seems he just wanted to tease me.

An experienced dog trainer.

Saying it like that makes me think of that famous dog trainer who supposedly colludes with the dogs he trains, the one who’s basically a puppy himself.

Perhaps because of the Knight Commander’s words.

The knight who appeared to be the lowest-ranking in the order approached me stealthily, grabbed my hands with both of his, and looked up at me with tears and snot running down his face.

“S-Senior Tanthyn. I earnestly beseech you. Please handle that Outer God gently…”

Hmm.

Would I be a terrible person if I thought about colluding with Bell later to tease them a bit?