Ch.31Chapter 31. Flee to South (1)

Chapter 31. Fleeing South (1)

Zombies fighting demons?

“I confirmed it for the first time yesterday. There had been strange noises for several days, but I didn’t realize the situation had become like this.”

Nix let out a long sigh.

I racked my brain to assess the situation.

The region where the Sky Tree tribe lives is Dubenheim. In Dubenheim, there’s the Necromancer’s Tomb.

Controlling zombies is a necromancer’s skill. I went to the Necromancer’s Tomb to obtain it, and I saw several zombie soldiers there.

There are two possibilities.

First, there were more zombies besides the ones I saw, and they came out.

Second, a secret weapon left by Charon awakened for unknown reasons.

If it’s the first scenario, that would be somewhat fortunate, but if it’s the second, we’re in big trouble.

The worst-case scenario I feared has happened.

Did someone somehow find it despite how well I hid it? Or did they know the location from the beginning…

Wait.

– Hold on a moment.

With a bad feeling, I instinctively accessed the community.

[3rep500: Any guys who reincarnated as women?] (2)

[TrustedMonkeyUncle: Live update… gender-bender… exploring abandoned house…] (4)

[NotACatfish: The sea is beautiful]

[UsingPresidentialPower: In this world, eliminating every single demon without exception is the wish of all paladins] (5)

Among these ordinary posts, there was one strange one.

[Rinojohnnson: Strangers from another world.] (2)

A chill ran down my spine.

That guy Charon was said to have learned how to steal souls by peering into the world beyond the starlight.

…I wish all of this was just my delusion. But having come this far, the answer seems clear.

Rinojohnnson must have gone back to the Necromancer’s Tomb and had his body stolen.

Wasn’t there a better way to hide the tomb? No, that’s pointless thinking.

In that situation, there was no better response.

No matter what I did, Rinojohnnson would have visited the Necromancer’s Tomb.

It’s too late for regrets. Let’s read the post first.

[Poor sacrificial lambs of Isutania.

My name is Charon. I am a necromancer who once stood against the gods who toyed with the mortal realm.

Through the memories of the man who uses the title Rinojohnnson, I’ve assessed your situation.

You must be filled with the desire to survive and return home.

Unfortunately, you cannot go back.

For a soul that has crossed the gate to return to its place requires tremendous power.

Do you think Isutania would go to such trouble for you?

Gods are beings who toy with human fate. Beings who never place themselves on the scales.

It will never happen.

But it’s too early to despair.

This body I’ve stolen possessed great potential and unusual abilities.

Surely your souls must be the same.

I have a proposal for you.

Entrust your souls to me and become part of my army.

Then I will kill the demons and gods who ruined your lives.

I am different from the fraudulent gods. I always keep my word.

My power is still insufficient, but given time, I can build a force to match them.

If you’ve read this, come to Dubenheim quickly.]

This crazy bastard…

Give him my soul? That’s no different from telling me to die.

Even if I don’t die, I’d certainly become a will-less slave. No different from a worshipper.

In the end, he’s no different from a demon.

It would be a disaster if any paladins went to Dubenheim after seeing this post.

I anxiously checked the comments.

[TrustedMonkeyUncle: -ugh-]

[ShotgunAttack: Another role-player?]

Fortunately, no one was taking Charon’s words seriously.

And there were only two comments.

It’s still too early to relax.

He will post as many times as necessary.

If he keeps posting these recruitment messages, someone might become curious and head to Dubenheim just for fun.

There aren’t many paladins strong enough to travel between regions, but I can’t say there aren’t any who might do something foolish like Hanna.

This is something I’ll definitely need to address eventually.

For now, let’s put out the immediate fire.

– Alright. Chief Nix. How far have the zombies come?

“They haven’t reached this mountain yet. …But I think it’s only a matter of time. They’ve been continuously attacking villages controlled by demons without rest.”

In this case, we need to evacuate the entire Sky Tree tribe to somewhere other than Dubenheim.

– Would it be okay to relocate the tribe?

Nix smiled bitterly.

“We’ve already moved once, so it doesn’t matter. Wherever the Sky Tree tribe members are, that’s where the Sky Tree tribe is.”

– I’ll do my best to find a way.

It’s decided that the Sky Tree tribe will leave the mountain.

Demons might not come to the mountain, but zombies are different.

That madman Charon might sacrifice even his own people to expand his army.

The question is where to evacuate to. It can’t be too far, nor too close.

I’ll need help from my subordinates for this.

I called Lakye, Paya, and Muri to Totem #1.

– I’ll now relay Nix’s words.

If I move between Totem #1 and #2 to relay messages, they can communicate with Nix.

Since I don’t know this world well, I don’t have a clear solution, but if four natives put their heads together, they should find a good method.

After several minutes of discussion, Nix decided to go to a region called “Bolbano.”

It’s a place straight south from here.

It’s an area settled by a prairie tribe called the Golden Sun tribe, located in the most remote part of the Empire’s territory.

The Golden Sun tribe. I briefly heard about them from Paya when we were trying to recruit another tribe.

They’re supposedly the only tribe that still has thousands of members. Being on the frontier, they suffered the least damage.

The problem is that to reach Bolbano, we need to cross a region called “Latria.”

Latria… that’s where George’s raid party last settled. The place swept by the cloud demon.

It’s hard to imagine what it looks like now.

Still, this is the best option we have at present.

– Prepare to depart.

“Understood.”

The less than thirty Sky Tree tribe members completed their evacuation preparations.

They finished quite quickly, as if they had been preparing even before calling me.

– Let’s depart.

Since none of the Sky Tree tribe members had been to Bolbano, I needed to be their guide.

With the help of maps brought by Muri and Lakye, who had traveled extensively during their exchanges with tribes 30 years ago, there shouldn’t be any problems.

– During combat, holding the totem restricts movement, so entrust it to someone else.

We must assume battles will occur. It’s impossible to travel such a long distance without encountering any fights.

Nix entrusted Totem #2 to a woman. She’s an old friend and the second-in-command of the tribe.

“Let’s go. Malak will protect us.”

Nix looked at the tribe members with a solemn face.

And so, twelve warriors, seven children, three elders, and five non-combatants set out.

…These were all people I had to keep alive.

***

We were on our way down from the mountain.

– Wait.

As a totem, I can now freely rotate my head 360 degrees.

If I concentrate well, I can see a wider range than others.

Something suspicious caught my eye.

– Sky Tree tribe. Cover your mouths and hide.

They were too far to see clearly, just dots, but something was running toward us.

Their disorderly movement suggested they weren’t coming because they knew we were here.

A few minutes after the barbarians had all hidden, a cow-sized raccoon appeared, dripping blood.

It was a raccoon demon with tentacles growing from its back. Its injuries were severe, with the left ribs fully exposed.

Perhaps a low-level demon that fled from a village to here.

Judging by its condition, it didn’t look like it would live much longer.

Gurk… gurgle…

It spat out a handful of blood and sat down.

No, “collapsed weakly” would be a more accurate description.

Grrrk… grk…

After spitting out blood a few more times, the raccoon demon’s eyes rolled back.

Just when I thought it would turn to ash…

The whites of its eyes slowly reddened… until they were completely filled with a red glow.

Then it slowly rose to its feet.

What? Demons can be turned into zombies too? It didn’t work for me. Is it a difference in skill level?

Either way, it’s not a good sign.

It means Charon’s corpse army now includes demons.

Shaaaa…

The zombified raccoon demon flashed its red eyes and returned the way it came.

Perhaps it was responding to Charon’s call.

The Sky Tree tribe only moved after the zombie raccoon demon had been out of sight for 10 minutes.

Perhaps because of what just happened, everyone’s faces were filled with worry.

“Mommy…”

A young girl quietly sobbed as she nestled in her mother’s arms.

– Let’s move.

For all of them, death here means the end, but I won’t die even if Totem #2 is destroyed.

At least I’m free from the fear of death. So I need to keep my wits about me.

Ignoring the ominous thoughts rising in my mind, I looked around.

None of the many demon sights were visible.

No infected either.

…What kind of hell has the foot of the mountain become?