episode_0157

“Have you heard the news? A terrifying monster has appeared in the Pinewood Forest!”

“A monster? Everyone is making a fuss… Remember when Max got scared by just a goblin last time?”

“No, this time it’s real! Let’s go check it out!”

In a small inn located about a day’s journey from Svinarnt, three rough-looking adventurers were loudly chatting while pouring beer.

They were talking about a vicious monster appearing in the Pinewood Forest.

I sat at a table in the corner of the inn, eating the tasteless stew I had ordered for dinner, quietly listening to their conversation.

As the grim-faced local resident mentioned, monsters wandering in the forest instead of dungeons were usually weak, low-level monsters… but still, you never know.

It was a rare occurrence, but occasionally, powerful monsters like trolls would emerge from dungeons and roam outside.

Perhaps… when adventurers fled instead of fighting the dungeon boss?

Usually, the boss monster would only kill adventurers and return to the dungeon, but if they were lucky enough to escape the dungeon, the boss monster would chase them outside.

Seventeen out of twenty adventurers would be killed, but the remaining three would become wild monsters and freely roam outside the dungeon.

That was probably the setting. From what I remembered.

Once a boss monster left the dungeon, it was a disaster for the nearby villages.

If a troll appeared in a village that could barely handle goblins, it would be chaos.

Well, in the end, it was still a mid-level dungeon monster, so adventurers or knights would eventually subdue it… but by then, a couple of villages would have been wiped out.

So, even if the villagers were making a fuss, it wasn’t a bad idea to listen to them.

If it was a really dangerous monster, you could finish the job and return on your way back, earning fame in the name of Perenhilde.

That’s why I listened to their chatter.

“What kind of monster is causing such a commotion?”

“It’s a monster that has killed thirty people. Its body is covered in thick armor, its head is shrouded in mist, and blue flames shoot out from where its eyes should be!”

…An undead?

Coincidentally, there was a monster that matched that description among the ones I knew.

‘The Headless Knight.’

Its appearance was similar to a Dullahan, but instead of a decapitated body walking around, it was an undead with a spirit inhabiting an empty suit of armor.

If you had a means to strike the spirit, it was easy to defeat, but without that, it was a more formidable monster than a troll.

…A more dangerous monster than I thought had emerged.

It might not be a big deal for me and Freide now, but to defeat it, an elite party including a cleric would be needed for safety.

It wasn’t a matter of returning on the way back, it might be a monster that needed to be taken down right now.

“It’s not just a terrifying monster in appearance!”

The man who gulped down a mug of beer full of foam continued his story.

The other listeners became interested and leaned forward slightly to hear his words.

“That monster appears like a ghost with human-sized flesh-eating crows, and with mouths on its arms, it pierces through people’s heads and eats their contents! It has devoured dozens of people like that!”

“Good heavens, what a horrifying monster…!”

“Eating heads? My goodness, I wouldn’t want to die like that…”

End of EP.157

Huh, what’s this?

The explanation was a bit strange. Saying that the monster eats brains, the headless knight I know was not the kind of creature that would do such bizarre things.

Could it be a completely different monster that just looks similar? Seeing that it eats human brains, maybe it’s a monster related to Gangel―

“Um… there, it’s… ”

That’s when it happened.

Freida, who was sitting across from me, turned her head as if checking the surroundings and quietly whispered,

“That, could it be, our story…?”

“Ah.”

Realization always comes unexpectedly. I let out a sigh without making stew and opened my mouth dumbfoundedly.

What kind of misunderstanding was I having? The identity of the monster that the villagers were talking about was not a headless knight.

It was a being clad in black armor, wearing a perception-inhibiting helmet, piercing the head of bandits with its arms, creating holes in them.

In other words, it was me.

…Unbelievable.

Perhaps those who ran away in fear spread rumors about me everywhere… Stories shouted out in panic tend to be exaggerated.

As the exaggerated rumors spread and distorted little by little, it seems that they completely transformed from an exaggerated knight story to a monster story.

Still, it’s fortunate that there are no rumors of the lord or the church organizing a punitive force.

There is a possibility that adventurers who heard the rumors might come, but by the time they arrive at the scene, I will have already returned to the mansion, so there should be no problem.

…Right?

◆◆

The next evening. Freida and I arrived at Svinarant just before sunset, having left early in the morning.

“Welcome to Svinarant, Perehil de Ester… Sigfried… Yes, confirmed. Welcome to Svinarant.”

As a city of considerable size, it was surrounded by sturdy city walls that encircled the entire city, and guards in full armor stood guard at the four gates in all directions.

In the past, I wouldn’t have dared to come and go.

Before obtaining the perception-inhibiting helmet, let alone before obtaining it, a city as heavily guarded as this would have made me avoid it as much as possible just in case.

However, thanks to the dyeing magic tool and the disguise identity badge provided by Argantir, I could freely come and go in such a large city without any worries.

Even though I didn’t activate the perception-inhibiting magic, I still had to cover my face with the helmet just in case of any unforeseen circumstances.

“Here, Svinarant… ”

Entering the city, Freida couldn’t keep her head still for a moment, looking around in awe.

I understand that feeling well. In my eyes as well, it was a city worth exploring for various reasons, perhaps because it was famous as a tourist destination.

The Lake City of Svinarant.

The huge lake in the middle of the city was bathed in the setting sun, embracing the golden hue, and the well-maintained roads and white-painted buildings sparkled in the reflected water.

Small boats floating on the lake, small fish jumping up and down with a light water ripple.

Elderly people sitting by the lakeside were fishing with fishing rods, and a group of children were playing by the corner of the lake, beating drums.

Isn’t it cold here? This is the northern region.

I paid my respects to the children swimming nonchalantly in the chilly water and turned my gaze from the lake to the streets.

“Specialty of Svinarant that you can’t taste anywhere else! Lake pig skewers!”

“Renting boats here! Three silver coins for two hours! Don’t miss this opportunity if you’ve come with your lover!”

“Hey travelers! If you’re looking for a place to stay, come to our inn! Two silver coins per person! Beer is provided for free for two hours!”

Noisy streets filled with all sorts of hustling activities. Despite the time when the sun began to set, the square was still bustling with pedestrians and merchants.

Somewhere, a woman dressed in fancy attire was browsing through the jewelry store display, while elsewhere, an adventurer in shabby armor was swinging his arms around in the air with his lover.

Although there was a strict division between the noble district and the commoner district, everyone, regardless of their status, was laughing and enjoying themselves.

This place feels like a whole different world.

Most of the cities I’ve seen so far were dull, gloomy, or filled with rough places, but here, the atmosphere was as bright and lively as a swimsuit event in a character gacha game.

“Ugh…there are too many people, it’s so noisy…I feel dizzy…”

“Yeah. I can’t focus at all.”

Even the Vespyrian Adventurer’s Guild wasn’t this chaotic. I couldn’t quite adapt to the vibrant and noisy atmosphere.

“Let’s go rest at an inn. If we rest for a while, the organization will contact us on their own.”

It was written in the letter. Find the designated inn, insert the feather enclosed in the window, and wait.

“Yeah, that sounds good…So, where should we go…?”

“Wait, the inn’s name is… ‘Drowned Kelpie.’ It seems to be somewhere over there.”

“What…Kelpie? Why such a name?”

Fride raised her eyebrows in disbelief.

“Yeah, it’s a strange name.”

I felt the same way. Kelpie is a water monster that seduces people’s minds and drowns them in the water.

Naming an inn by the lakeside after that was already a strange sense of humor, but adding the expression of drowning in front of it made it even more bizarre.

It felt like naming a tavern “Orc Den with Infectious Diseases.”

I was curious about who came up with such a name for their inn. Even if you came to stay for a day, you might feel uneasy and want to leave after seeing the name.

Or, was that the intention from the beginning?

If the inn was originally used as a meeting place for the ‘Shadows,’ then there wouldn’t be many regular guests to disturb or bother.

“Well, anyway, since it’s such a unique name, we won’t overlook it. Let’s go check it out for now.”

I lightly tapped Fride’s shoulder and headed towards the location written in the letter.

After walking for about twenty minutes, we were greeted by a shabby inn that seemed like it could collapse at any moment.

“Uh…”

There was no need to go inside, as the dirty and unsanitary vibe of the inn was evident even from the outside. It seemed like all the rats in the neighborhood were gathered here.

“…Maybe we should sleep somewhere else.”

A sigh escaped me involuntarily.