Brian 1

The crisp morning air slapped my cheeks.

Sitting on a bench in the village square, the memories of the previous night felt vividly real.

Beside me were my companions, Marianne and Kevin, but unlike usual, no one spoke a word.

“What was that all about?”

I muttered to myself, unable to find an answer.

My slurred, lifeless voice sounded unfamiliar.

“It’s still hard to believe.”

Marianne said, fidgeting with the holy tablet around her neck.

Her trembling fingers were noticeable.

Even she, who was usually calm, was shaken.

“If only that scent hadn’t been there… We might have…”

“We would all be dead,” Kevin sighed.

His words pierced my chest.

That’s right.

We nearly died.

For C-rank adventurers like us to take on a troll was reckless.

But we had no choice.

We couldn’t just stand by and watch the villagers die.

“The troll’s cold alone would have frozen all the crops. How much longer could we have endured?”

I gripped the hilt of my sword tightly.

The ridges on the hilt dug into my palm, causing pain.

“If I were stronger…”

A bitter smile escaped my lips at the words.

Seven years.

Seven years since I defied my family’s objections and chose the path of an adventurer.

And I was still a C-rank.

My genius younger sibling had already joined the kingdom’s knight order…

“Don’t blame yourself,” Marianne said, placing a hand on my shoulder.

Her warmth was comforting.

“If it weren’t for you, Brian, we wouldn’t have even been able to stand against the troll.”

“Right. For a C-rank party like us to hold our ground against them was a miracle.”

Kevin nodded.

While their encouragement was kind, it also made my heart heavier.

If only I were stronger, I wouldn’t have put them in such danger.

Lost in self-reproach, I heard:

“An A-rank party has returned!”

“Arthur is back!”

“Now we’re safe!”

The sudden commotion made me turn my head.

The A-rank party, who had left on an urgent request, was entering the village.

Arthur, with his towering shield, looked as formidable as ever.

His sharp eyes quickly assessed the village’s condition.

Behind him were Lien, the blue-haired archer, Oldin, the seasoned mage with his white beard, and Haphel, the female warrior with her massive greatsword.

‘If I had that kind of power…’

Seeing Arthur made me feel powerless again.

That kind of power could have ended yesterday’s troll threat in an instant.

Arthur headed straight to the village square.

“What happened last night?”

His sharp voice made me flinch.

“The north side of the village is in ruins, and the crops are frozen. This must be the work of an ice troll.”

His ability to grasp the situation with just one glance left me in awe.

Of course, that’s what an A-rank party leader would do.

We had to explain.

“Yes, there were two ice trolls and a group of goblins. But…”

“Pfft! You stopped a troll? A C-rank party? That’s absurd. Even a B-rank party would struggle against an ice troll.”

Haphel sneered, interrupting.

Anger surged up, but I bit it back.

Why does she always act like this?

She’s dismissed us since the first time we met, and now she won’t even listen to our story.

“…We didn’t stop it,” I said through gritted teeth.

Someday, I’ll make her regret that arrogant attitude.

But for now, I had to endure.

Marianne noticed the anger in my voice and continued cautiously.

“We were at our limit. Then…”

“A sweet scent began to spread. And the moonlight… turned red.”

“Red moonlight?” Oldin’s eyebrows rose.

“Even if it were magic, changing the color of the moonlight is…”

“We all witnessed it,” Marianne said quietly.

As she spoke, the villagers gathered, each sharing their accounts.

Their voices were still tinged with fear and awe.

Lien, standing rigidly, spoke up.

“There must be something to it. We can’t ignore so many witnesses.”

Oldin stroked his beard, deep in thought.

“In fifty years of magical research, I’ve never heard of such a phenomenon. Fascinating.”

Even Oldin didn’t know what it was.

What was that thing from yesterday?

It was clearly not holy power, as Marianne had mentioned.

It felt ominous, dangerous, yet mysterious.

“We need to investigate,” Arthur said firmly.

“It could be a new danger in Shia Kalt.”

An opportunity.

“We’ll come too.”

I stepped forward.

“Having experienced it ourselves…”

It was an excuse.

But the truth was, joining an A-rank party could be my chance to grow stronger.

“Very well,” Arthur agreed, to my surprise.

“We’ll need your testimonies,” he said.

My heart raced.

My first adventure with an A-rank party.

Could this be the chance I’ve been waiting for to escape this stagnant C-rank?

…

Our party and Arthur’s began climbing the Shia Kalt mountain range together.

Normally, the tension would be suffocating, but the trail was eerily quiet.

“This is strange,” Arthur said, furrowing his brow.

“At this altitude, we should have encountered at least a pack of wolves.”

He was right.

Usually, we’d meet three or four wolves by now.

But today, with an A-rank party, there was no sign of them.

Arthur nodded to Lien, who began scouting ahead.

“There are no footprints either. Usually, there would be tracks from monsters by now…”

Lien’s keen insight was as impressive as ever.

Even I, who frequented this path, hadn’t noticed the absence of tracks.

“Perhaps they followed that scent and never returned,” Marianne said.

Kevin added, “Even the trolls and goblins that attacked the village haven’t come back.”

That was true.

Where had all those monsters gone?

I gripped my sword tightly.

“Something’s… off.”

As we climbed further, the eerie silence continued.

Normally a dangerous trail now felt as peaceful as a park stroll.

Yet, that calm was more unsettling.

“Wait,” Lien said abruptly, stopping.

“That smell…”

The sweet, lethal scent filled my nostrils, making my heart stop.

It was coming from higher up the mountain.

“That scent…” Marianne’s eyes widened.

“It’s the same as last night!”

Memories of the troll’s attack and the scent that saved us flashed by.

Arthur quickly raised his shield.

“Prepare yourselves.”

We climbed further and were met with a horrific sight.

Countless monster corpses littered the snowy field.

Wolves, trolls, goblins, wyverns, chimeras-too many to count.

‘This… is impossible…’

In seven years of adventuring, I’d never seen such a scene.

So many monster corpses in one place.

And among them were A-rank monsters like wyverns and chimeras.

“This is…”

Haphel gripped her greatsword tightly.

“So many monsters at once…”

For the first time, her voice showed unease.

Such a scale of battle would be daunting even for an S-rank party.

“No blood,” Oldin said, pointing to a nearby corpse with his staff.

“All their fluids are gone.”

Only then did I notice.

With so many corpses, there was not a single drop of blood on the snow.

‘Demons? Or a black mage?’

Rumors of such beings in Shia Kalt were unheard of, but…

Lien spoke as if reading my mind.

“Could this be the work of demons or a black mage?”

“No,” Oldin said, pointing to a corpse.

“The monsters fought each other.”

Looking closely, each corpse bore different wounds.

Some were pierced sharply, others crushed, and some bitten.

Yet, none had any blood.

When Lien gasped, her breath quickened.

“Look… over there…”

Beyond the mountain ridge, dark shapes squirmed.

Hundreds of insect-type monsters had gathered.

Hyperborean ants, blizzard hornets, frost hoppers, icicle araneas…

Every insect monster found in Shia Kalt was there.

‘Is that… the culprit?’

The wounds on the corpses matched the insects’ attacks.

Could these small insects have caused such a massacre?

“We must retreat!” Arthur shouted.

I readied my sword to fall back.

But where could we escape?

Surrounded by so many insects…

“Wait,” Oldin said, raising his staff to stop Arthur.

“They’re not attacking.”

Indeed, the insects weren’t moving, only watching us intently.

But their eyes were ferocious, as if restraining their instincts.

“Look,” Marianne pointed at the sky.

Isis flies had gathered above, their transparent wings glimmering as they circled us.

It was as if they were urging us to follow.

Just as I took a step, Lien’s shout snapped me back.

“Wait!”

Lien drew her bow, aiming at the flies.

“We must retreat. This could be a trap…”

But before she could finish, the insect monsters moved as one.

Hundreds of sharp claws, stingers, and fangs turned toward us.

‘Is this… the end?’

I had never imagined such a finale when I left home to become an adventurer.

Strangely, fear gave way to resignation.

Seven years as a C-rank adventurer, ending like this…

“No choice…”

Arthur sighed.

He was right.

We couldn’t take on so many monsters.

Even the kingdom’s knights would struggle against such numbers.

We slowly followed the isis flies into the insect swarm.

The sweet scent grew stronger.

“Wait…” Marianne suddenly stopped.

“That…”

Following her gaze, a breathtaking sight unfolded.

In the center of the insect circle bloomed a single flower.

Its deep red petals shimmered like rubies, and its black stem was as smooth as marble.

The reddish stamens swayed gently, releasing waves of sweet fragrance.

Dozens of black roots, like snakes, supported the flower, resembling a throne.

It looked like… the ruler of this insect army.

‘Was yesterday’s presence this flower?’

Marianne clutched her holy tablet tremblingly.

“This… this is clearly a blessing from Michel.”

“What!?” “What?” “What?!”

Everyone asked in disbelief.

I was no exception.

Monsters receiving divine blessings? Preposterous.

“It’s faint, but certain,” Marianne’s voice was filled with awe.

“I sense Michel’s divine power in this flower.”

Marianne’s words were beyond doubt.

She was a cleric raised in the Temple of Light, with a gift for sensing divine energy that even the saintess acknowledged.

But then, the air grew heavy.

“Ugh…”

An overwhelming force emanated from the flower, making breathing difficult.

Like a mountain crushing my shoulders.

Kevin and Marianne paled.

“This… this is…”

Arthur’s shield hand trembled, a sight I could hardly believe.

An A-rank party leader, trembling?

Impossible.

“S-rank monster… or beyond…”

Haphel’s greatsword rattled.

Her usual composed face flickered with fear.

“This is…”

Lien stared at the flower in shock.

“It has consciousness. And it’s very clear.”

“It… wants to learn language?” Kevin muttered.

Oldin stroked his beard.

“A monster wanting to learn language? Unprecedented.”

“But how…” I blurted out.

“How do we teach a flower?”

Arthur fell deep into thought.

“If we want to survive… we must find a way.”

We exchanged glances.

A new, unprecedented challenge lay before us.

A historical first: teaching language to a monster.