Ch.63The Artisan of the Wilderness

I arrived at the mining destination as early evening set in. There were no dwarves working at the Grimith Mine. It was an abandoned mine—a closed one. Old footprints near the entrance suggested occasional visitors still came by.

“Everyone should be careful. Abandoned mines rarely see human traffic and provide shelter from rain and wind. That makes them perfect habitats for monsters. You never know when or where one might jump out.”

Seorin nodded. Since becoming a knight, she hadn’t directly encountered many monsters. After all, the Blue Wing’s job was hunting reincarnators, not monsters.

Walking alongside Black Light, Seorin asked, “Why was this mine abandoned?”

Black Light had mentioned they came to collect iron ore that could only be found here. Usually, mines were abandoned for one reason: when the mineral deposits ran out. If mining was still possible, there would be no reason to abandon it.

Seeing the question in Seorin’s eyes, Black Light answered, “Because the ground is unstable. This mine couldn’t withstand large-scale mining operations anymore.”

“T-then aren’t we in danger too?” Envy asked with a start, her eyes darting around to scan the entire mine. The dwarf, who was about the same height as Seorin, burst into light laughter watching her.

“Don’t worry! We won’t be going in too deep!”

“Ugh…”

The mine’s interior, which they entered with a mixture of small expectations and anxiety, was cleaner than expected. Luminous stones lined the well-maintained passages, and signs attached to the walls listed various precautions.

“Oh…”

“What a strange place…”

“This is…”

Envy, Shave, and Seorin all had similar reactions. Having bodies sensitive to mana, they could feel its flow inside the mine.

‘It’s not much…’

There wasn’t enough mana to affect the surrounding environment. As Black Light had said, it seemed that mana from the iron ore was flowing through the air inside the mine.

“Come on now. We don’t have time for this. Let’s start working before monsters catch our scent and swarm us.”

Black Light urged them on. He was the leader of the group now. No one objected. The small dwarf took the lead, with Seorin and the two mages following close behind.

The abandoned mine’s interior offered quite a few sights. Discarded pickaxes, rotting wood, skeletons whose origins were impossible to guess, and broken weapons littered the floor.

The dark stains on one wall were clearly dried, twisted blood. Looking at these traces of battle that no longer even carried a scent, the girl moved on.

“Quite a few people seem to have died here.”

“That’s inevitable. It’s close to the city, and they say valuable minerals can still be mined. People desperate for money might think it’s worth a visit. Then they get attacked by monsters and die.”

“If there’s a monster den so close to the city, doesn’t the kingdom care?”

“Of course. I heard they initially planned to drive them out. They gathered troops and prepared to advance into the abandoned mine. But they didn’t.”

“Why not?”

“Well… I haven’t heard the exact reason… Perhaps they wanted the monsters to keep people out of this mine… That’s what I think. It saves human resources, you know.”

They continued making light conversation. While talking, Seorin carefully observed the two mages. Envy and Shave occasionally looked around and took notes.

She couldn’t see what they were writing because of their height.

‘I could probably see if I jumped a little…’

But she needed to avoid anything that might arouse suspicion. Seorin shook her head.

“Well, we seem to be lucky today. Usually, we would have encountered monsters by now, coming this far in.”

At Black Light’s words, Shave looked at the young knight in front of him. They hadn’t encountered any monsters on their way to the center of the mine. The reason was right in front of them. Only Black Light didn’t know.

From the moment they entered the abandoned mine, a sharp aura had been flowing from Seorin’s body. Rather than manipulating mana, she was projecting her natural presence as a living being.

The wild nature emanating from the small girl prevented ordinary monsters from approaching.

Time passed quickly. And now, they had arrived at the place Black Light wanted to reach. The dwarf stopped, put down his bag, and spoke with a bright smile on his face.

“This is it! I’ll finish the work quickly. Sit down and rest over there!”

Rummaging through his bag, his thick arms laid out various work tools. A pickaxe, hammer, chisel, and stiff brushes tumbled out. The first thing he picked up was a large pickaxe.

The small dwarf shouldered it, went to the wall, and struck it with all his might.

Kwang-!

Interest began to show on Seorin’s previously bored face. The sound was crisp. It meant proper force had been applied. Moreover, the following sounds were consistent. It meant he was always applying the right amount of force at the same moment.

‘Not bad…’

Though it was simple pickaxe work, there were things to learn from it. Seorin leaned against the wall and watched the dwarf.

“Hey, dwarf sir. Aren’t you going to collect these?”

Shave asked. He was standing holding a sparkling gem he had picked up from the pile of fallen rocks. Black Light turned his head to glance at it.

“Ah, you can take it if you want. They’re too small and have surface cracks, so they have no commercial value.”

“Hmm… What’s the name of this mineral?”

“Well… that one looks like a red sapphire, and this is a purple heart…”

Various minerals with different hardness levels were mixed together. It meant they weren’t much use except as decorations. Shave, who had been looking at them with curiosity, soon lost interest and threw the gem away.

It was when Black Light had mined several pieces of unrefined iron ore. Seorin detected a massive presence not far away. She didn’t need to extend her detection range widely to know. That’s how tremendous the aura it emitted was.

“What is this…?”

“W-what is it? A monster?”

Shave and Envy reacted a beat late. Seorin had already drawn her sword and was pointing it toward the darkness. The small girl’s gaze scanned the surroundings. The passage was narrow. It meant she couldn’t swing her sword freely. Moreover, the ground of this mine was weak, as they’d been told. The mine itself might collapse during the fight.

Retreating was the right choice.

Seorin shouted.

“Black Light!”

“W-what…?”

Black Light, who had been busily mining, reacted belatedly. He wasn’t oblivious. Reading the serious atmosphere from Envy and Shave, he quickly gathered a few minerals from the ground into his bag and hurried over.

“W-what is it! A monster?”

“A rather strong one.”

The four immediately began to run. Their pace was slow. The girl’s gaze swept over the other three. She could escape alone, but she couldn’t bring herself to abandon them. Seorin naturally adjusted her speed.

That’s when it happened. A gust of wind swept through the area. The movements of the three people, except for Seorin, froze in place. It wasn’t intentional. Their bodies had stiffened due to the killing intent emitted by the monster.

Seorin had witnessed such scenes several times before. Rookie warriors often showed this reaction on their first hunt. What they needed was a small shock to release the tension. It didn’t have to be gentle. They just needed their surprised, stiffened muscles to move again.

She stopped running and rotated. Using her right leg as an axis, a cloud of dust rose as her mana-infused left leg extended to take a firm stance.

Kung-!

Her pulled-back sword pointed down along her face toward the ground. In a lowered stance, she raised her aura, and a chilling cold swirled around Seorin’s body. As the girl’s gaze identified the enemy, the stiffness of the three people was released. Seorin shouted.

“Run!”

What appeared in the dim light was a giant wolf. Not an ordinary wolf. It stood on two legs like a human, with a highly developed upper body so muscular that its physique showed through its fur. Its long claws were as sharp as blades; its entire body was no different from a weapon.

A werewolf.

[Grrrr…]

With a low growl, it began to run. Though it had been standing on two legs when it appeared, its running form wasn’t much different from that of any wolf.

Seorin felt the hair on her body stand on end. It was a strength different in dimension from the monsters she had faced so far. It was also different from reincarnators. Not a tempered blade. A wave of wildness rushed toward Seorin like a shadow.

Shiiik-!

She avoided the widely swung claws like flowing water. Blocking the following attack with her sword, she assessed the opponent’s strength. It wasn’t difficult. Their strength levels were similar. She was slightly slower in speed. But this too could be compensated for with technique.

“Seorin! I’ll help you!”

At that moment, Seorin twisted her body. A violent explosion occurred in the empty space she had just vacated.

Kwang-!

“I said run!”

Envy probably had her own reasons for staying, but it was unnecessary help. Seorin shouted as she felt the roughly shaking ground. Her vision was obscured by the hazy explosion smoke. She could sense the opponent by its presence, but not being able to see was a major disadvantage.

At that moment, a nimble movement was detected through the hazy smoke. The creature, which seemed well over 2 meters tall, was also fast. Seorin swung her sword at the werewolf as it brushed past her.

Skak-!

Shallow. The feeling at the tip of the sword was too shallow. Seorin immediately rotated her body and threw the White Dragon Sword in her hand.

Swaaaak!

The mana-infused sword shot in a straight line. The wolf, which had been rushing toward Envy, immediately changed direction.

Seorin’s gaze swept over Envy’s expression. With a stubborn look, as if she had no intention of running away, she was concentrating mana. Because she stayed, Seorin could feel Shave’s presence returning, though he had jumped far away.

She wasn’t confident in fighting an opponent faster than herself in this narrow space while protecting two mages. If only the two were in one place. Seorin kicked off the ground and drew her second sword.

Seurueng-

The moment she gripped it, mana was drained from her body. As the Mage Killer revealed its blade, the surrounding mana fluctuated greatly.

Kang-!

The dark-colored sword and sharp claws clashed. Unlike before, she had the upper hand in strength. As Seorin applied force to her wrist, part of the extended claws was cut off.

Kkang-!

That’s when it happened. Seorin’s gaze caught a strange movement. The werewolf’s right arm muscles twitched greatly. She tensed up, thinking it might be preparing for an additional attack, but that wasn’t it. Its arm was reaching behind its back.

What was this movement for? In the brief moment, Seorin’s thoughts continued. Then, the muscular arm emerged holding a shining blade.

‘A sword…?’

Her reaction was slightly delayed by the unexpected sight. Seorin immediately backed away and wrapped her left arm around Envy’s waist, pulling her. As she felt the soft, warm sensation, a silver slash cut through the empty space.

Seugeok-!

Due to the misjudged distance, a few strands of silver hair were cut off. Seorin pulled Envy and kicked the ground. At that moment, Envy, who was held close to her, cheerfully shouted.

“Die!”

Kiing-!

Mana, incomparably greater than before, gathered instantly to form a mystery. The air temperature rose rapidly, creating hot heat haze, and then a massive explosion occurred right in front of the werewolf.

Kwaaang-!

The enormous impact shook the abandoned mine. Huge cracks formed in the ground, walls, and ceiling, causing everything to collapse.