When Hans was informed that he would be participating in the Warrior’s Festival, surprisingly, his party members didn’t strongly oppose it. Was it because they didn’t know much about the festival? Or was there another reason?
Anyway, Hans wanted to kill yesterday’s version of himself, who thought it was a good idea. The next day, when he was about to leave with the Orcs, he found all his party members waiting at the entrance!
Naturally, Hans was bewildered and wanted to show his authority as the Commander with a sharp remark, but unfortunately, he couldn’t do what he wanted this time.
“The Commander decided this without consulting us.”
“……”
“Especially for something as dangerous as the Warrior’s Festival. Right?”
“……”
Even though he was arguing in a soft voice, his demeanor was cold, almost ghostly. Cluna smiled sweetly while properly holding the Commander accountable one by one.
Thanks to that, Hans couldn’t say a word and got shot down without even a chance. The other members didn’t say anything, but they were probably thinking the same as Cluna.
Indeed, it was true that not consulting the others was wrong, but from Hans’ perspective, it was for the best. After all, it was obvious that everyone would oppose it if he mentioned it beforehand.
“What are those? Your partners?”
“Partners? What nonsense are you talking about?”
“Well, brave warriors take many women.”
“……”
Suddenly, the Rusted Overlord appeared with his arms crossed, nodding. Hans made a dumbfounded expression. Then the members in front of him chimed in.
“Partners?! I’m not ready yet…!!”
“The Orc has keen eyes.”
“Maybe Orcs aren’t such a bad race after all…?”
“……”
I wish they would all just disappear.
There was a brief commotion, but the departure wasn’t delayed much. Even though Hans strongly opposed leaving Lionheart Fortress, he crumbled at a single word from Helia.
“The fortress can be reclaimed anytime. But if we lose our teacher, we’ll be nothing.”
“That’s….”
“Teacher, we made it this far thanks to you. Please, don’t forget that.”
With such words, how could he oppose? He even received a direct assurance that they would protect the Lionheart Fortress from the Human Kingdom. The King of Humans, how dare he betray me?!
While lamenting internally, Hans had no choice but to allow the companions. Surprisingly, the Rusted Overlord Dezra didn’t think poorly of it. In fact, he greatly praised Hans.
“Drink, take women, and fight for your life. Truly, you’re a model of a warrior.”
“What are you talking about?”
Dezra’s words represented the Orc’s value system, but unfortunately, Hans wasn’t in a position to accept that right now. After finishing all preparations, they set off immediately.
The Orcs lived in a land called Aberka, located in the extreme north. Surprisingly, it seems they didn’t lack prey despite the harsh conditions. Curious, Hans asked a question.
“Are there that many plants and animals living there?”
“It’s simple. Monsters. Edible.”
“…….”
“Tasteless. Like Dwarves. Beastmen. Most delicious.”
Veins popped on Bayard’s forehead, who was walking right next to Hans’s horse. This was the moment he finally understood why the Twelve Tribes had such a bad relationship with Orcs.
If it weren’t for the Demons, the Twelve Tribes and Orcs would likely fight until one side was completely wiped out. But as the Commander of the Royal Knights, Hans had to put a stop to that.
At least until all the Demons are defeated… wait? Hold on. Why was I so eager to exterminate the Demons? Hans felt a sense of unease. Of course, exterminating the Demons was important.
But there seemed to be another reason too.
That lingering unease was always present, but now it seemed to swell larger than before. As if someone were gradually adjusting some sort of restriction. For now, Hans shook off that unease.
Solving the problem in front of him came first. Hans lifted his head in silence. What was in front of him had large wings.
It had fur on its head and was sharpening its enormous, sharp teeth. The reason Hans didn’t draw his sword was that no one around was showing any hostile intentions.
“Aberka. Far from here. Riding takes half a year, or even more than a year.”
“Is it that far?”
“Distance is one thing, but most importantly, the path is the worst. It’s quicker for Elves to run through forests?”
“That’s why we fly. Wyverns.”
Certainly, he understood why they needed to fly. However, one major question remained unanswered. If his memory served correctly, wyverns were also a type of monster.
Would it really be okay to ride one of those?
*
To put it bluntly, that was Hans’ unnecessary worry. The riding experience on the wyverns controlled by the Orcs was unbelievably superb. The view from the sky was more beautiful than he could have imagined.
If he were to sum up how he felt right now in one phrase, it was like galloping through the blue sky on horseback. If only it weren’t for the fact that he was giving a back hug to a green Orc.
“I want to ride alone next time.”
“Kah-ha! Exactly! Wyverns feel great!”
“No, that’s not what I meant.”
Dezra replied heartily with laughter. Thanks to that, it was Hans who was stuck in a difficult position. Hugging a green monster was incredibly nauseating, but he was afraid that if he let go of his arms, he would be blown away by the wind right in front of him.
Ultimately, unable to neither pull away nor hold on, just then, Dezra, who was laughing loudly in front, spoke to Hans.
“Over there! That’s Aberka.”
“That’s a snowy mountain.”
“Mm! Enough cold weather gear?”
“Thanks to you.”
The cold weather gear provided by the Orcs looked a bit shabby but had solid performance. Otherwise, he might have frozen to death right away. Dezra kindly continued explaining.
“Orcs are strong against the cold. But the cold of Aberka is deadly, even for Orcs.”
“Really?”
“Therefore, the Warrior’s Festival. Be careful.”
“What?”
There was an important fact that had not been mentioned here. Orcs are originally violent and ferocious. There’s no communication even among Orcs of the same kind. How would it be with other races?
The current situation was the result of that effect. The Warrior’s Festival, the method is quite simple. Survive in the icy forests of Aberka. No matter how many years it takes.
But there are no guides in that forest. The moment you enter, both guides and pilgrims are devoured. That’s why the Orcs thought, let’s just drop them from the sky.
I can confidently say that over 40% of the pilgrims will likely die from falling. Anyway, the Commander of the Royal Knights, Hans, was no exception. And the result is this.
“Ahhh?!”
Hans, suddenly diving from the sky, couldn’t help but scream. No matter what, sky diving from the air out of nowhere is definitely not something you can keep a poker face about.
However, the fact that he could still think in this situation was thanks to the valuable experience he had gained from fighting for his life thus far. Whether it’s falling to death or fighting to death, it’s all the same.
‘Time Stop?! No, no! Even if I use Time Stop, I’d still die! Time Acceleration?! Am I supposed to die faster?! Are you insane?!’
Ultimately, Hans had only one option to choose in this situation. That was Time Deceleration. At least compared to Time Acceleration, the penalty of deceleration was more bearable, which was some consolation.
However, it couldn’t be used right now. The headache from using Time Deceleration wasn’t an ordinary headache. It felt like someone was splitting his head with an axe and poking his brain with needles.
It was only slightly better than Time Acceleration. The penalty for Time Deceleration was also considerable. But if he used it too late, he could get seriously injured or even die.
‘Now’s the time!’
But the truth was that this wasn’t a big problem for Hans. In situations where he could have easily lost his life or gotten seriously hurt until now, he had used his abilities with his life on the line to get this far.
This meant that his proficiency related to his abilities had unknowingly developed significantly. Let alone, compared to the battlefield where he could die from the slightest change, this was nothing.
Thanks to using Time Deceleration on himself for about 2 seconds, Hans was able to land on a thick tree trunk without difficulty. He let out a sigh of relief and raised his head.
He saw the wyverns flying high above the sky.
It can’t be helped.
I didn’t expect it to start so soon, but let’s resolve this quickly.
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