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Chapter 178: ???? ??????? (5)
Chapter 178: ???? ??????? (5)
Chapter 178: ???? ??????? (5)
“Today I will rest well and starting tomorrow I will thoroughly dig into the prices.”
“I see. Have you caught many monsters before?”
“Not many.”
The captain of the Minema mercenary group received a request from the order of knights to go hunting, so he came running after recruiting several more nearby. Although there were several new recruits whose skills were not yet verified, the mercenaries who were used to working together were decent enough.
Even those who did not professionally hunt, it was rare for a mercenary to not have caught a monster at least once before.
‘???? ???’? ???? ???? ???????.’
Johan was someone who learned directly from a ranger-turned-hunter from the Eastern region. Just looking at the mercenaries’ preparation, he could estimate their capabilities to an extent.
Hunters going after monsters, especially monsters whose identity is unknown, basically wear light clothing and minimize any noisy equipment. Clanging metal armor was prohibited. Monsters can quickly detect such noises.
In addition, to eliminate scent, they burn animal feces or use various herbs, but these mercenaries did not seem well prepared in that regard.
It was not particularly unusual. Mercenaries who specialized exclusively in hunting monsters were a rare breed, and mercenaries typically took on any profitable job that came their way. Besides, hunting humans tended to be easier than hunting monsters.
“It’s good that you have experience. I was thinking of doing reconnaissance myself as well, so it’ll be reassuring to have you along.”
“What? You’re coming along, Your Excellency?”
“Is that a problem?”
“No, not at all. . .”
The captain was hesitant. Of course this count was more casual than other nobles, but he was still a count. There was too large a gap in status from the mercenaries.
He was worried that if something happened while they were together and his subordinates made a mistake or acted rudely, their heads would roll along with the count’s.
“Could it be you don’t trust my abilities?”
“Oh no, of course not! Absolutely not.”
When Johan spoke like this, the captain had nothing more to say. He had no choice but to say it was fine for Johan to come along.
“Why are you so nervous about this?”
“Dealing with these foolish men. . . Gather around. Listen carefully to my instructions from now on. First, do not speak to the count first.”
“Why not?”
A fist flew at the clueless new recruit. The captain spoke again.
“Second, do not speak to the count first.”
“Is the third the same too?”
“A bit different. Never speak to the count first no matter what. If someone speaks to him first while drunk, I will personally strangle them to death.”
While the mercenary captain was nervous about the count joining them, the other mercenaries did not take it so gravely.
Besides, considering Johan’s amiable attitude from their recent conversation, it did not seem like he would give them a hard time during the reconnaissance either.
“I don’t understand why he’s being like that to the nice-looking Count.”
“You’re so naive. When dealing with nobles, you always have to be careful. Well, this count is a bit more lenient.”
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“Your Excellency. Why do you associate with such lowly men?”
The St. Guntsalva knights were flustered and tried to stop Johan.
They were not flustered at the thought of using the mercenaries as decoys. Even if they were caught, the nobles would blink at them and say ‘??? ?? ??? ??? ???? ?????? ??? ?????’
What flustered them was that Johan would join the reconnaissance with the mercenaries.
As a noble, was it not proper to leisurely wait until receiving a report of discovery, then make a move to hunt?
“My subordinates are skilled at tracking monster trails. It would be much faster for me to take action directly rather than leave it all to those mercenaries. More than anything, if left only to those mercenary men, things may not go well. It would be better in many ways for me to issue orders directly.”
“Uh. . .”
‘?? ?? ??????? ??’? ???? ??? ???? ???????’
There were rumors of nobles from the Holy Empire moving together with their hired mercenaries, even joining foreheads to confer or fight, but seeing it in person was fascinating.
The knights pleaded one last time.
“Your Excellency. To be honest, we don’t even know how well those mercenaries can fight, and if a skirmish occurs they likely won’t be of much help. Wouldn’t it be better to just wait?”
“It’s irrelevant if those mercenary men all flee, since my subordinates are still with me.”
Johan had his reasons for taking this approach.
But it was not to protect the abandoned mercenaries. . . it was to find the manticore first.
If the mercenaries were left alone, regardless of how torn to shreds the mercenaries were, once the manticore was discovered a report would be submitted to the knights. Out of courtesy, Johan’s party would then have to wait for their turn.
But by joining forces first, if they discovered it before submitting a report, they could launch a preemptive strike and deal with it then and there.
The knights would likely panic if they heard this idea, but given the opportunity, Johan also intended to take down the manticore or anything else they discovered immediately.
‘??? ??????? ??? ???? ???????? ??? ???????, ??? ???? ????? ?? ?? ???? ???? ????????? ??????.’
Besides, the mercenaries were warriors bearing arms nonetheless. With many whom Johan could exploit, there was little downside that he could see.
The knights withdrew at Johan’s firm statement. Or at least, that was what Johan believed.
In fact, they scurried to inform the Emperor.
“Your Majesty. Please order Count Yeats to refrain. We fear he may get hurt associating needlessly with those mercenaries.”
“. . .Since when were they so close. . .?”
“Is it not a knight’s virtue to respect honorable nobles, Your Majesty?”
Watching the knights speak so solemnly, the Emperor could only feel bewildered.
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“There are rumors of a manticore.”
“What???????”
As soon as they left the base and got some distance away, Johan quietly told the mercenary captain what they were chasing. The mercenary captain was horrified.
“A manticore?!”
“It’s best to keep your voice down. Newer mercenaries might run away.”
“Oh no. . .”
He had heard that there was an unidentified monster, but he thought it would be something like a wild boar or a wolf, or a water spirit or a swamp spirit. But a manticore?
For mercenaries, it didn’t matter if they could hunt the monster or not. What mattered was how dangerous the monster was, and how much it liked to kill people.
And manticores were known for their love of killing people.
‘??? ?? ? ?*?????. . .’
Even if they were nobles, it was only natural for a man to be angry when he was tricked. The mercenary captain gritted his teeth at the thought of being taken advantage of.
If Johan hadn’t been there, he would have cursed right away.
“I didn’t know. What do you think we should do?”
“How do I do. . . what do you want me to do? I have to look hard.”
A lie was a lie, and a contract was a contract. If you don’t work after getting paid, rumors will spread.
And before the rumors spread, the nobles could have held them accountable and punished them. . .
Mercenary work was originally like this. In the process, such misfortunes also happen. Even in this situation, if you’re lucky, you might survive.
“Even in this situation, you don’t run away. Impressive.”
“No. . . it’s natural.”
In fact, it was that he couldn’t escape, but still it felt good to be praised. Moreover, if the other party was a count, it was even more so.
He was already grateful for letting him know It was a Manticore, anyway. The mercenary captain swore allegiance to Johan in his heart.
Unlike those untrustworthy Knights Order guys, this cunt seemed like a truthful noble who knew honor.
“The Knights Order people were too much.”
“No. . .”
“You can speak comfortably to me.”
“Those guys, weren’t they too much??”
‘???’? ?? ??????? ??? ?????’
The mercenary captain took out all the rumors, true or not, cursing the Knights Order. Not only did those who took vows of poverty in monasteries enjoy luxurious lives, but they also embezzled taxes that should have been paid up. . .
“Oh. Tell me more.”
Johan was excited and urged the captain. It was not easy to get these disgraces just by catching the Knights Order or their servants and asking them.
In order to spill it out like this, one had to be well-versed in local rumors and harbor resentment. Johan remembered it piece by piece so as not to forget and use it later.
“Do you know how the Knights Order guys catch monsters?”
“I’ve heard they use weapons enchanted with magic, but I’ve never seen them myself.”
Johan was refreshed by the plausible remark. If it was magic passed down for generations in the Knights Order, he was curious. If it was true, it would be the kind of magic that could damage monsters as well.
“Your Excellency. Something is wrong.”
“What’s the matter?”
“I don’t hear the cry of birds, even if it’s not manticore, you should be cautious.”
“I see.”
Johan nodded at the centaurs’ report. Jyanina had said this before coming here.
???????? ? ????????? ?????? ?? ??? ?????????.
???? ????? ???? ??????? ???? ??????? ???? ?? ??.
? . . .??? ?*????? ??? ? ??????? ??? ????? ??????, ?? ?? ?????? ???? ??????, ?? ???? ?????????? ?????? ?????. ?? ?? ??? ???? ???? ??? ??????????? ??????, ??? ??????? ?? ?? ?????? ??? ??? ????.
??? ???? ???? ???? ??’? ?????? ?? ???? ??? ?? ???? ??? ??????????? ???? ???????
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???????? ?’?? ???? ???? ?? ?? ?????. . . ? ????? ??’? ???????? ???? ????. . .
Jyanina was not confident, but Johan took her opinion highly. Monsters were basically impatient. Manticores even more so.
“Can I get some water? My throat is dry.”
“. . . . . .”
The centaurs guarding the surroundings and the mercenary captain looked at the clueless mercenary with incredulous eyes.
Going to the waterside for water in this situation. He was brave in his ignorance.
When there were many colleagues, it was easy to mistakenly think that one would not die. But a person could be killed by a single arrow. It was even more so when dealing with monsters.
“What should we do?”
“Let’s see what happens. Get ready to shoot arrows.”
Johan picked up his spear and the centaurs inserted short arrows into their quivers. There were quite a few trees, but there were not many leaves, so it was impossible to ambush from any direction.
If a manticore came out, they would be able to spot it first.
The mercenary approached the stream and started drinking water. At that moment, a pillar of water erupted.
‘??? ?? ?????? ?? ??????? ???? ??? ?????? ?? ??? ?????!’
Johan admired the manticore’s trick and threw his spear. Although it was not clearly visible, it didn’t matter anyway since the beast’s bulk would be there. The centaurs seemed to think the same way and fired arrows.
“Ahhhhhhh!”
The mercenary screamed, not even knowing what had appeared. He managed to grab his dagger and threw it. But the Manticore’s skin didn’t have a single scratch. It was the same with the arrows the centaurs shot.
“The thing’s skin is much tougher than I thought. Aim for the eyes!”
The centaurs had faced many monsters with tough skin many times. They were not startled by some arrows bouncing off.
“W-What is that! It’s a monster!”
“What the hell kind of monster is it!”
The mercenaries looked at the Manticore in horror. It was so ugly they couldn’t even figure out what kind of monster it was right away. Just then, Johan’s spear flew at the Manticore’s neck.
The Manticore nimbly rose up and grabbed the spear shaft with its thick claws. Then it slammed it into the ground with astounding solidity and strength.
???? ?????? ? ??? ?????? ??? ?????? ? ??? ??????”
The human face on the Manticore’s head made an awkward and eerie voice. If a Siren lures men with a sweet voice, the Manticore had exactly the opposite kind of voice.
The mercenaries’ faces turned white as sheets as they trembled violently.
???? ?????? ? ??? ????
The Manticore’s head exploded, blood spurting like a fountain. Its huge, ugly body shook violently before collapsing. Its thick, sharp tail with lethal venom didn’t have the strength to move.
“Lucky.”
Johan said as he lowered the Giant Slayer.
After throwing his spear and shooting arrows, Johan immediately erased his presence and went around to the side.
The arrogant Manticore was so focused on its prey it didn’t notice Johan stealthily approaching from the side.
The result was instant death. It probably didn’t expect that it couldn’t withstand a single hit from Johan either.
“. . . . . .”
“. . . . . .”
The mercenaries looked at Johan with astonished expressions.