Seeker 347

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Chapter 348. Strange People

The warrior Reguld of the Tigerkin tribe was confused, yet he felt he had no choice but to accept the reality before him.

It seemed the three members of Daichi's Spear had dealt with the two Owlbears and returned faster than Reguld's group.

He even asked the coachman as a test, but there were no discrepancies in their stories.

At almost the exact same time that Reguld's group had entered the forest on the right side, the three from Daichi's Spear had entered the forest on the left side.

Then, after hearing what seemed to be the sounds of battle, in less than thirty seconds, all three returned without a scratch.

When the coachman asked what happened to the monsters, the leader of the group said, "We defeated them," and showed two magic stones.

The coachman said that was when Reguld's group returned.

The claim of being "unscathed" was also suspicious.

Now that he thought about it, none of the three from Daichi's Spear had any damage to their equipment.

For Awakened Ones, healing their bodily wounds with magic is possible.

But the same can't be said for armor.

Magic-stone-based armor does naturally repair over time, but not in under a minute.

In fact, Reguld's breastplate, torn by the Owlbear's sharp claws, had yet to be repaired.

It’s impossible to fight two Owlbears and have your armor remain unscathed.

How could something like that be possible?

Could they have dodged every attack of those swift Owlbears with such grace, winning without taking a single hit?

The battle scenario was hard to imagine, but if they truly did that, it could explain why they returned sooner than Reguld's group.

"You’re telling me you defeated those two Owlbears without a scratch?"

Reguld asked, not hiding his suspicion, and the three from Daichi's Spear exchanged troubled looks.

They seemed unsure of how to respond.

But after a moment, the leader, a young boy, seemed to make up his mind and replied.

"Yes, that’s correct."

The boy looked tense.

Sweat was forming on his forehead.

It didn’t seem like he was lying.

But Reguld didn’t think these three were bad people.

Reguld sighed deeply.

"Alright. I don’t know what you’re hiding, and that’s fine. But just let me confirm one thing. You did your job properly, right?"

"Yes. That’s certain. We encountered the two Owlbears and defeated them."

This time, his response was more confident.

The spear-wielding boy looked Reguld straight in the eyes, and this time, he didn’t seem to be lying.

"Then, that’s good enough. Come on, let's go report this to Mr. Marcus."

As Reguld said this and started toward the front of the carriage, he caught a glimpse of the three young adventurers breathing a sigh of relief.

(They’re strange people, but they don’t seem like bad folks.)

Reguld chuckled to himself as he led the leader of Daichi's Spear to report the successful monster subjugation.

＊＊＊

When Reguld's group went to report, Adela and the Crimson Axe had also finished their battle and returned to the carriage.

The Crimson Axe had also encountered two Owlbears but had dealt with them without issue.

They were a capable adventurer party, and with five members, they had a good amount of fighting power.

Since Reguld knew them well, he wasn’t too worried about them.

With the threat dealt with, the carriage resumed its journey.

After that, nothing happened for a while.

Even in an area where Owlbears frequently appear, they don’t attack constantly.

Sometimes, a caravan can travel without being attacked at all, even when hiring adventurers as guards.

On the other hand, sometimes they’re attacked three or four times before reaching Lahati, but that’s just a matter of luck.

And so, the group safely continued their journey until evening.

Before it got completely dark, they began preparing to camp.

The adventurers all carried their camping gear stored in their [Item Boxes].

Merchant Marcus also had everything prepared for his servants.

Firewood was collected locally.

Though damp wood can be troublesome, the wood gathered that day served as decent firewood.

What caught Reguld’s attention was the poor camping skills of the Daichi's Spear members.

They might have high combat power, but they seemed like complete amateurs when it came to camping—maybe not that bad, but they didn’t seem very experienced.

There were things they didn’t know, and the woman in black and the girl dressed as a mage were seen asking other adventurers for advice.

The leader boy seemed shy, relying on the two women for help.

There was a stark contrast between him leading his party and his current demeanor.

Reguld increasingly found them to be a peculiar bunch.

After starting a fire with the gathered wood, they began cooking using their portable food, water, and cooking utensils.

With nearly twenty people in the group, it was a large gathering.

The two female adventurers from Daichi's Spear also joined in the cooking and were helpful.

The leader boy was just waiting.

Is he a traditionalist? Reguld thought, but after seeing the boy start eating the food handed to him and then getting bossed around by the women, he figured he was probably under their thumb.

In any case, those three seemed to be getting along very well and were enjoying themselves.

Watching them, Reguld couldn’t help but feel a bit joyful too.

They often got closer than necessary and started playfully flirting, which was amusing to watch.

Being young is nice, Reguld thought, feeling a bit lonely himself.

"Hey, Adela."

While Reguld was eating with the Wild Fang party, he took a moment to approach the Crimson Axe party.

He turned to the female leader of Crimson Axe and, gesturing with his thumb toward the forest, said, "How about we go over there for a bit?"

Hearing this, the adventurers from both Wild Fang and Crimson Axe whistled and jeered teasingly.

The leader of Crimson Axe, a Human woman, and axe-wielder named Adela, responded to the Tigerkin warrior’s invitation with a smile.

"Sure. But it’s rare for you to ask me in front of the others, Reguld."

"Those young ones rubbed off on me."

When Reguld pointed to the three members of Daichi's Spear, Adela laughed heartily.

"Hahaha, I get it. Those kids don’t hold back, even in public. But you’re not suggesting we go fool around in the woods, are you?"

"What do you take me for?"

"Haha, just kidding."

Adela took Reguld's hand and stood up.

The two warriors began heading into the woods for some time alone.

But then it happened.

"—Wait a moment!"

The woman in black from Daichi's Spear suddenly raised her voice in warning.

The relaxed atmosphere immediately tightened.

Some reached for their nearby weapons.

Among both Wild Fang and Crimson Axe were adventurers skilled in [Presence Detection].

They, too, seemed on edge.

But after a moment, the two of them voiced their confusion with a simultaneous "Huh?"

They seemed stunned.

Only the woman in black remained alert, scanning the surroundings with sharp eyes, and spoke.

"Five from the front, seven from the left, four from the right—sixteen presences in total! They’re approaching! Prepare for battle!"

The surrounding adventurers couldn’t immediately grasp what she was saying.