episode_0055

The naked dragon soldier I encountered after coming out of the rabbit cave fainted immediately before he could say anything more.

Among those who came running after hearing my call, the druid girl and the female warrior did not know who she was.

I was just surprised that a living person was brought into this cave.

But it was nothing compared to me, Luvia, and Emma, who recognized her.

“…I didn’t know you were alive.”

“Moreover, in that monstrous rabbit’s den… What on earth happened?”

“…Are you sure it’s her?”

While Luvia and Emma were talking with serious expressions, I was more cautious and asked the guide who followed them for a moment to confirm.

“Yes… I’m sure.

Well, it was hard to see their faces because they were almost always wearing helmets, but their builds and eye colors were exactly the same…

After all, I’ve only seen her face once before.

However, I am not sure which of the two dragon soldiers it is. Actually, I never really tried to differentiate…”

“It’s okay. That’s enough.”

Through his testimony, it became almost certain that the woman in front of us who had fainted and whom we covered with a blanket was Yong A-byeong.

That was also the reason we detained her.

Not only do I not have a weapon right now, and even if I had one, I doubt I would be able to lift it, but it would have been foolish to let my guard down against the mercenary soldiers.

Of course, those who understood her as a great warrior who made a name for herself in the empire were puzzled by our attitude.

“It looks like they’re almost as wary of that woman as the cursed rabbit we’re chasing…

Who on earth are you, an imperialist?”

I thought for a moment about how to explain her question, and then asked her if there were any stories about dragons in this land.

“The story is a little different, but I know what you’re talking about. But what does that have to do with that woman?

“Yongabyeong and Spartoi have the meaning of the planted ones.

When they sprinkle dragon’s teeth on the ground, they are born fully grown and armed from the beginning.”

“…Huh, to be honest.

I thought I had experienced all sorts of amazing things while living as a warrior in this country, but this is the first time I have heard of a story like this.

I wonder why you became hostile towards those warriors?”

“They kill each other as soon as they are born, and only those who survive get their name from the person who planted those teeth.

Recognize him as your master and follow his orders.

And, as it happens, the master they serve this time is a man named Katenis, who monopolizes the empire’s slave business.

He heard the story of a rabbit who was rumored to be immortal in this land, and he seemed to be greedy for the secret, so he gave orders to the girls in Britannia.”

“Ah… damn it. I thought that if I did well, I could attract him as an ally in this hunt.

But then again, questions arise. Why did you save her…or why are you still keeping her alive?”

“Information. I don’t know if the other dragon soldiers are still alive and if so, I don’t know where they are.

In addition, they have been Catenis’ confidants for a long time and carried out his orders throughout the empire.

I know too much of value to just kill it when it’s down. What happened in that forest back then-”

“If that’s the reason… I don’t think it would make much difference if you killed me. What’s the use of information you won’t hear anyway?”

When a voice that was still weak but firm at the same time cut me off, we naturally turned our gaze toward the source of the voice.

Her skin and hair, as white as the dragon’s teeth from which she was born, were clearly visible even in the darkness of the cave and covered in a blanket.

The hostility on her face was that clear.

“You finally woke up. I had a lot of questions to ask.”

However, I continued speaking without even paying attention to the hostility, and it seemed that Yong A-byeong clearly did not like it.

“You probably know why I came to Britannia.

And there’s a lot of information you have that will be helpful for the hunt I’m about to do now.”

“…You know how to act more shamelessly than you think.

You just said the reason you didn’t kill me was because of the information, so why do you think I’d give it away?”

“In your current state, if we succeed in hunting the rabbit, isn’t there a possibility of intercepting it and escaping Britannia?”

“…”

She remained silent and her face became more distorted, but she could not deny what I said.

She always considered the orders given by Katenis to be her top priority, and could not allow her own emotions to ignore reality or interfere with her mission.

“First of all, the most important question… Did the rabbit come back here?”

I gripped the window tightly as I asked that question, and so did the rest of us.

Although the rabbit recently injured its ear, it can still hear Yong A-byeong’s answer. The moment the rabbit gives a definite answer, it will rush forward, revealing its body that it had hidden somewhere in the cave.

“…Okay.”

I was about to raise my spear and swing it in response to her answer, but I stopped my arm when I sensed that Yong A-byeong’s tone was too calm and contained a bit of mockery.

“…Are you still here?”

“I heard you stayed for a while and then left again?”

I didn’t completely trust what she said yet, so I didn’t let my guard down, but I couldn’t help but feel a little discouraged.

“…Well, then at least I have time to ask the next question. How did you end up trapped here in that condition?

I knew that you had failed in the middle of the hunt. But I didn’t expect you to be alive like this.

And that too in the rabbit’s den. I didn’t know that people also collect it as loot.”

“The monster probably didn’t intend to do that at first. The only problem for it was that it wasn’t easy to remove my armor.”

When I heard that story, I nodded in understanding.

Certainly, their armor, which was created the moment Yongahbyeong was born from the ground, must have been the most excellent weapon in the eyes of a rabbit who had fought countless battles.

However, in the first place, it would not have been easy to remove the armor that was almost like a body of dragon soldiers.

In the end, it seemed like he had no choice but to drag her to the cave and finish the job.

“Even so, I thought he would kill me after he took off my armor, even if it meant sticking a sword in…

At that time, something seemed to have caught his attention, so he went out of the cave. He came back today bleeding.

What on earth did you do?…”

As she said that, her gaze towards us was filled with a mixture of emotions, including suspicion, longing, and anger.

“If you’re a little more forthcoming with the information we need, maybe we can tell you the story.”

After hearing my suggestion, she seemed lost in thought for a moment.

Which choice would be more helpful in carrying out the orders she received.

“…I-”

But before she could give either answer, the cave that had only heard our words suddenly became noisy.

Something was moving around in the darkness, getting closer and closer to us.

“Didn’t you say that the rabbit came out of the cave?”

The female warrior, who was looking around for the source of the commotion while holding up her ax, shouted in anger at Yongahyeong.

However, when she turned around, Yong Ah-byeong’s expression also showed embarrassment.

“…Okay. I definitely saw it go out. What the hell is this-”

“I guess this isn’t the rabbit right now…”

I said, trying to aim my spear at the target that was getting closer in the darkness.

Considering the behavior the rabbit had shown when fighting us so far, it felt somewhat unnatural for it to openly announce its presence and attack us like this.

She would prefer a lethal surprise attack that leaves us without even a breath, and leaves us unaware until the blade is thrust into our throats.

And as the sound grew closer, I became convinced of my reasoning.

That wasn’t the sound of human footsteps.

– Suga each time…

The sound of it moving slowly in the dark naturally gave goosebumps to my body.

Even so, it is even more so because I cannot trace its existence at all with my eyes.

But fortunately for vampires, darkness is a weapon for hunting, so their red gaze can see what I cannot.

“Hey!”

The moment Luvia stretched out her hand and pointed to the ceiling of the cave, I picked up my spear and threw it at it.

The sound of the spear blade cutting through its shell made it fall to the ground without even being able to scream.

As I approached with a torch to confirm its identity, I could see a large spider whose head had been pierced by a spear.

Just looking at its size, it was larger than most cows, and its fangs, which oozed a corrosive liquid, were the size of daggers.

No matter how quietly it could move, I wondered how it had not noticed until it got so close.

“…How on earth did it suddenly appear? Or was it in there all along and we just didn’t know?”

“No. It wasn’t like that. Master.”

Luvia also looked at the corpse lying on the floor of the cave in disbelief and continued speaking.

“I don’t know what this monster is… but it literally appeared out of nowhere.

It wasn’t just something that came out of hiding somewhere in a cave… It really suddenly appeared where there was nothing before.”

After pulling the spear out of the guy’s head, I listened to Rubia’s words and lightly touched the guy’s body with my foot.

Although the squishy feeling I could feel even through my shoes was unpleasant, it didn’t look much different from the monsters we had killed so far.

‘But it’s also true that that’s the only story that can explain why Rubia, who was always on guard, didn’t notice the guy approaching…’

“Wait a minute.”

At that time, the female warrior approached the giant spider’s corpse as if she had remembered something, and began to look at it closely.

“…I think I’ve heard of these before.”

“What was the story?”

“The story of a spider weaving cloth and her children.

To put it simply, omitting the details, they are monsters who committed sins and were cast out beyond the darkness by the gods.

Normally, it was just a story told to teach us not to let down our guard when it gets dark, but…

I guess it’s hard to think of it as just a story anymore.”

However, there was one part of her story that caught my attention more than anything else.

“…Did you say ‘monsters’?”

And as if the words I had spoken were a signal, the sounds we had heard earlier began to echo countless times in the darkness.

The sound of numerous spider legs approaching, stepping on the relics of dead warriors.