Chapter 256: Just Attack the Weak Points. (1)
There are things a person can do and things they can’t.
To catch 100,000 monsters in half a year, how many would they need to catch each day?
For these low-level knights, it was absolutely impossible.
“……”
The knights, who had been silent, looked at Kaor.
That guy should be having a fit, but instead, he just arrogantly lifted his chin as if he were confident. The look on his face suggested he had already received some kind of hint.
‘Well, that guy is a lunatic anyway.’
‘He must think he can catch 100,000 monsters, huh?’
But they were ordinary people, normal individuals. If something didn’t make sense, they had to say it didn’t.
So, instead of Kaor, the knights threw a fit.
“No! How does that even make sense? How could we catch 100,000 monsters in half a year with our skills!”
“Is there really someone who can do that?”
“We’re low-level knights! Show some mercy!”
Ghislaine casually replied, not bothering to acknowledge them.
“Have you tried it?”
“I don’t need to try something that ridiculous!”
“You’re told to catch them because you can catch them. What’s impossible about that? Has anything not worked out so far?”
The knights couldn’t really retort and shifted the direction of their complaints.
Even if they could get stronger through training and might be able to catch them, there were still other problems.
“Are there really 100,000 monsters living around?”
“There are. The Shadow Mountain Range is vast and deep. If the monsters are wiped out here, they’ll keep popping up from elsewhere.”
Ghislaine continued with a confident voice.
“If the speed of new monsters is too slow or their numbers dwindle, go to the neighboring mountains and catch them there. If they’re not there, check the next mountain. Find them and catch them somehow.”
“…….”
“Deliver enough leather for the equivalent of 100,000 monsters within half a year. Secure as many tendons as you can as well. If you work hard, you can do it. If you meet the quota, I’ll rotate you out with the other knights.”
As expected, just like always, the lord didn’t understand. So, the knights attempted to threaten him with a slightly lower intensity.
“Uh… Have you not thought about the possibility that we might run away without meeting the quota?”
“It’s fine. If you want to run away and live hidden in the continent until you die, go ahead. By the way, I’m a very persistent person.”
They knew that well. They had seen him push forward relentlessly once he got fixated on something. If they ran, he would undoubtedly send pursuers after them until the end.
The knights sighed deeply and pleaded.
“……We really don’t think we can do that.”
“Just fight hard continually. That’s how I trained here too.”
Ghislaine grinned. He had very special memories of this place.
Before he earned the title of the Mercenary King in his previous life, his nickname was “The Slayer of the Shadow Mountain Range.”
‘Ah, I caught so many back then.’
There was a time when he was fueled by rage and constantly sought out battles. The only answer to quickly raising his skills was combat that risked his life.
The Forest of Monsters was being developed by the Duke Delphine’s house, so he couldn’t go there. The alternative he found was the Shadow Mountain Range.
He had lived here for several years, training and catching countless monsters, so much so that parts of the mountain range had been completely emptied.
‘I later came back with my followers for pocket money now and then.’
Thinking back, those were quite enjoyable memories. Coming back now with new followers brought back fond memories, and he was filled with joy.
I remembered. Even now, with my new followers, nostalgia bubbled up joyfully.
Fun is fun, and training is training.
“Let’s all roll around and try not to die.”
The knights exchanged uncertain glances at Ghislaine’s confident claim that fighting was all they needed to do.
It didn’t feel real since the stakes were too high and Ghislaine was being so nonchalant.
“He’s just saying to put in some effort, right?”
“Our Lord usually thinks big, after all.”
“Yeah, he probably just set a huge target.”
Despite these hopeful thoughts, an uneasy premonition lingered. Everything Ghislaine had done so far was anything but ordinary.
Seeing the knights dawdling, Ghislaine said, “Don’t be scared, we can do this. We’re heading out to hunt, so get your weapons ready.”
Hearing this, the knights brought dozens of giant wooden boxes and set them down.
Inside the boxes were gigantic two-handed greatswords. A hit from one of these would shatter or send a typical monster flying.
BAM!
Ghislaine gripped the greatsword with one hand and slammed it on the ground, laughing.
“Alright, let’s get going. It’s time to crush some monster skulls.”
*
Before departing, Ghislaine didn’t head outside but rather moved deeper into the city.
Kaor asked, “Where are we going? We need to go the opposite way to head outside the fortress.”
“Manpower Agency.”
“Why? We can find people here too?”
“We can’t carry everything we hunt, right? We need someone to dismantle and collect the byproducts. We’re hiring porters.”
“Got it.”
Kaor and the knights quickly understood. Carrying too much would surely hinder their focus during battles.
The more they hunted, the heavier the load would become, leading to greater travel constraints.
“But are there really many porters around here, besides hunters?”
“Of course, where there’s money to be made, people will gather.”
“Wow, our Lord knows everything. Truly the money bug of the North… cough!”
Kaor, having received a bump to the head, rubbed his eyes and obediently followed Ghislaine.
As Ghislaine had said, many people gathered here to earn money. Mainly, they were merchants processing what hunters brought back, and those doing menial tasks.
There were also hunters looking to earn cash without engaging in fights.
When there’s a demand for something, people pop up to capitalize on that, it’s just the way of the world.
Some merchant groups didn’t just handle goods but even set up specialized manpower agencies to hire porters.
When Kaor and the knights reached the fortress’s center, their eyes widened in admiration.
“Wow, there are so many people here!”
“It’s not any different from the big cities in the North, is it?”
“Except it’s dirtier, of course.”
The fortress was so large that its core rivaled the commercial districts of considerable cities.
Countless people were buying and selling between bustling shops. Dismantling workshops for monster byproducts were scattered throughout.
Smaller groups or solo hunters often looked for parties here.
Since porters were essential for hunters’ expeditions, the area around the manpower agency was quite noisy with vendors calling out.
“Veteran porters with five years of experience!”
“Former hunters, capable of fighting if needed!”
“An S-ranked hunter is disguising as a porter!”
Ghislaine sought out a suitably large manpower agency and spoke to a busy staff member.
“I’d like to hire 100.”
“Yes! Ten! Just a moment, I’ll bring them right away!”
“I said 100.”
“Wait, 100?!”
The staff member was taken aback and asked again.
The average number of porters hired by hunters was about 10. Since they couldn’t hunt for too long, hiring more wouldn’t be beneficial.
Only bigger hunter guilds or large-scale parties would hire such a number.
The staff member quickly scanned Ghislaine from head to toe and asked, “Are you heading off to war or something?”
“I believe in gathering as much as possible at once. We have quite a few people with us.”
Seeing the 50 or so people waiting outside with greatswords, the manpower agency staff nodded in understanding.
“Well, we only have about 30 people right now.”
“I’ll hire them all.”
Ghislaine went around the manpower agency and gathered 100 people. With over 150 personnel moving, including the knights, the hunters looked bewildered.
“Weren’t those guys new here?”
“They probably don’t even know the area well; isn’t it a bit excessive to push themselves from the start?”
“They seem pretty skilled, but their greed is too much. Those types are the first to die.”
“Let’s see how many they catch. They probably won’t even fill half the quota. Hahaha!”
With the derisive laughter and murmurs of the hunters behind him, Ghislaine moved forward in high spirits.
The porters were initially flustered, but seeing the numbers, they seemed a bit reassured.
“Alright, let’s hurry up. We need to sweep through the good hunting grounds first.”
Hunters refer to the territories where monsters reside as hunting grounds. There are countless hunting grounds, but some are better than others for the hunt.
If a party has already settled in one hunting ground, it is an unspoken rule to avoid it.
Of course, if you have the confidence to wipe out the party already there without getting caught, staying isn’t an issue.
Kaor inquired again, curiosity piqued.
“Is there really a good hunting ground? If you clear it, isn’t that the end of it?”
“That spot gets repopulated in just a few days. The types of monsters might change a bit, though. Still, it’s where monsters appear in suspiciously high numbers.”
“Wow, that’s interesting. It seems monsters really do show up in droves. But how does the lord know all this?”
Ghislaine just laughed it off, as it was common sense among hunters who had spent a long time here.
In fact, he only knew it because he had been here often in his past life. The exact reason for that in his previous life was still unclear.
In front of the fortress’s massive gates, numerous wagons and coachmen were waiting.
They were in charge of guiding hunters to the edge of the forest comfortably.
Since they had to go into the mountains, they couldn’t bring their horses along. It was quite a distance to walk to the mountains.
After all, they couldn’t build a fortress right below the mountains where monsters might pop out at any moment.
When the hunting was over and they had to bring back all the monster byproducts, it would be even more difficult.
Naturally, there were people looking to make money by taking advantage of situations like this.
“5 silver per person to the base of the mountain!”
“I’ll take you there the fastest and most comfortably!”
“S-class hunters hidden strength joining the coachman!”
Kaor and the knights chuckled at the spectacle, finding it absurd.
“This place really has everything.”
To survive in dangerous areas, they had to adapt and develop quickly. The fortresses built in the Shadow Mountain Range were all evolving to enhance the convenience of hunting.
The group split onto a few large wagons that pretended to be carts. They could move swiftly and comfortably like this when entering the mountain.
Of course, there was no guarantee they could return this comfortably.
The coachmen, who didn’t want to face danger, would turn back as soon as they dropped off their passengers, leaving only those eager to earn more money at the mountain’s base.
Dududududu!
The horses galloped vigorously. As the speed increased, the wagon rattled chaotically.
Clatter! Clatter! Clatter!
The ride was abysmally uncomfortable. It was just a wagon modified to carry as much cargo and people as possible.
“I’ll take you there quickly! Just leave it to us!”
The coachmen happily raced as they took on a lot of passengers at once. They instinctively headed to the nearest mountain’s edge, as the areas frequented by hunters were well-known.
But then Ghislaine, riding in the lead wagon, spoke to the coachman.
“Turn the direction. Go where I point instead.”
“Huh? Why?”
“The place we were heading to probably has other hunters hunting there. They’ve been clearing it almost daily, so the monster count would be lower.”
“Whoa?”
The coachman looked horrified. The place they were originally planning to go was already precarious. It was natural that other areas would be even more dangerous.
Without continuous hunting, monsters would be far more abundant.
There are far more than that.
“No, the place we’re going to is full of monsters too! It’s the road where the most monsters come down to the fortress! That’s why hunters hunt there the most!”
“Why are you talking so much when the customer wants to go?”
“This is your first time here, right? Why would you want to go to a more dangerous place! I’ll just guide you!”
“This isn’t my first time! I’m trying to catch more monsters, so turn the direction quickly. Are we going to break the wagon?”
No matter how much he persuaded, it didn’t work. The coachman eventually turned the direction due to Ghislaine’s insistence.
“I’m going to turn back as soon as we arrive!”
“Good.”
The porters wore anxious expressions. If they went to a place they weren’t familiar with, it would be hard to avoid any potential dangers.
However, Ghislaine and the knights looked like they had nothing to worry about.
Ghislaine had plenty of experience, and the knights were still oblivious. It didn’t even feel real to them.
Finally, the wagon stopped at a chilling place where a cold wind blew. The massive shadow of the mountain seemed to weigh down on everyone.
Now that they stepped into this place, they would have to face numerous monsters. With the unknown threats before them, even the knights finally showed nervous and wary expressions.
But Ghislaine hopped off the wagon with a grin.
“Alright, since there are plenty of monsters here, let’s go take them down and train. There are hardly any bizarre creatures like in the Forest of Monsters, so no need to worry. It’s just that there are a lot of them.”
As soon as Ghislaine finished speaking, the roar of a monster echoed.
Kaaaarrr!
“…….”
The knights couldn’t say a word. Monsters rushed out as if they were welcoming them before they even climbed the mountain.
“Whoa! Monsters are already appearing!”
The monsters that appeared were a horde of owlbears. A fierce monster with the body of a bear and the head of an owl, boasting a height that easily surpassed that of an average adult male.
“The owlbears have come down!”
“I told you not to come here! Why don’t you listen?”
The coachmen and porters were thrown into a panic. The oncoming owlbears looked to be at least dozens.
The porter, a former hunter who hid his strength, quickly tried to climb back onto the wagon, shouting.
“What are you doing! Let’s run away first! There’s too many!”
At that, everyone began to fumble around. The coachmen could run away without problems, but the porters had already been paid.
If they ran away like this, it would be hard to find work in the future.
Seeing the horde of owlbears approaching, even the knights exchanged uneasy glances.
“What… an owlbear came down from the mountain?”
“What kind of place is this? Are we really training in a place like this?”
“It must be as messed up as the Forest of Monsters.”
Owlbears usually live deep in the mountains. Coming down to the base of the mountain like this means they were either pushed out in territorial battles or completely insane.
Kaaaarrr!
The leading owlbear was the largest and fastest among the group. The others couldn’t keep up.
Whether it was really insane was uncertain, but it was drooling a nasty liquid and had bloodshot eyes.
Seeing that, Ghislaine wore a pleased smile.
“Wow, looks like we can get some good leather right from the start. Everyone pay attention. Now I’ll show you how to easily kill monsters and get their leather cleanly. Just attack their weaknesses.”
The knights nodded at Ghislaine’s confident words. Knowing a monster’s weakness and how to exploit it makes things easier.
The coachmen and porters hesitated for a moment. Ghislaine looked too relaxed.
Strong hunters can take on dozens of monsters alone. That thought crept into their minds.
Ghislaine raised his hand and shouted loudly.
“Everyone, prepare for combat!”
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The knights raised their greatswords and got ready for battle. Of course, they didn’t rush out first.
Ghislaine planned to show them how to exploit the weaknesses first.
Swoosh.
Ghislaine’s eyes turned red. It was hard to tell if the owlbear was crazy or if Ghislaine was.
Boom!
Ghislaine exploded his mana and charged forward.
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