Chapter 49
The next morning.
Zakan and I changed into the new clothes Mari had made for us.
Then we entered the open space in the center of the village.
The moment the children saw us...
They began cheering like they had just seen legendary heroes.
They ran circles around us.
“We’ll work hard!”
“If we work hard, Mari will give us cool clothes too!”
Their old animal-hide clothing fluttered.
Holes covered almost every piece.
Compared to theirs...
What we’re wearing might as well be luxury silk.
Our new clothes were neat enough to make the children drool.
One stared at Zakan.
“S-So cool...!”
Another pointed.
“There aren’t any holes!”
Then...
“Wind probably can’t get inside!”
Another child noticed the decoration.
“There are even pretty flower patterns!”
Their eyes were filled with admiration.
Not for us.
For the actual clothing.
Mari approached.
She looked warmly at the huge children surrounding us.
Then gently stroked their messy hair one by one.
“Wait just a little longer.”
Her smile was soft.
“I’ll make strong and pretty clothes for all of you too.”
A child immediately puffed out his chest.
“Really?!”
Then...
“I’m very good at carrying rocks!”
Another shouted,
“I’ll work the hardest on construction today!”
Another raised his hand.
“Me too!”
Then...
“I listen to Mari!”
Damn.
So a mother really is unbeatable.
I could cook delicious food.
I could build a safe fortress.
Yet there was still something those things could never replace.
Something children who had lost their parents early in this cruel land instinctively wanted.
A mother.
One warm smile.
One gentle touch.
That was enough to turn the rough barbarian children into spoiled puppies.
“KYAKYAKYAK!”
Luna copied her mother.
She walked around patting the backs of children much larger than herself.
Her bright laughter seemed to soften the entire village.
Zakan watched quietly.
Then smiled very slightly.
“...A tribe does not need only a Chief and Shaman.”
He was right.
The moment Mari and Luna joined the village...
The barren settlement filled with a different kind of life.
Something warm.
Comforting.
Reliable.
Like being wrapped inside a mother’s arms.
They’re all at the age where they desperately miss that.
I glanced beside me.
Zakan was watching the children crowd around Mari.
His expression was distant.
Complicated.
He might be the Chief leading all these younger children...
But Zakan was also only a teenager who had lost his parents far too early.
Then...
“S-She really is... beautiful, isn’t she?”
“Hm?”
A trembling voice suddenly entered my ear.
I turned.
Jack stood beside me.
Both hands gripped his hammer.
They were shaking.
His face was bright red.
He stared blankly toward Mari.
Even his ears were red.
Wait.
“Jack, don’t tell me...”
He couldn’t hear me.
He was muttering to himself.
Something like...
She’s beautiful, but how can her heart be so beautiful too...?
Then Mari looked toward us.
Jack flinched violently.
He immediately turned his head.
Mari approached.
She wore light trousers and a shirt.
A large gathering basket hung from her back.
It looked like she had done this countless times.
“Is everyone ready?”
Then...
“I know the route to the gathering area very well.”
Zakan nodded.
He strapped his greatsword onto his back.
Jack suddenly stood straight.
Like a soldier before his commander.
“D-Don’t worry!”
His voice became unnecessarily loud.
“I, Jack, and the young barbarians will protect the village like an iron fortress!”
Then...
“Construction will continue perfectly while you are away!”
Zakan turned toward Yangko.
“Yangko.”
Yangko flinched.
Zakan spoke coldly.
“Behave this time.”
Yangko immediately shouted loud enough to shake the village.
“I LISTEN TO THE CHIEF!”
Then...
“IF I LISTEN, MARI GIVES ME CLOTHES!”
Another child screamed,
“ME TOO!”
Then...
“THIS TIME WE WON’T FARM!”
He proudly added,
“WE’LL DO CONSTRUCTION!”
Hmm.
Can we actually trust them this time?
I stared suspiciously at the children pounding their chests.
Then...
We left the village under Mari’s guidance.
Deep inside the northern forest.
I still can’t get used to this place.
The temperature was much colder than the village.
The vegetation looked strange.
Because humans rarely entered this forest...
Glowing moss covered many trees and rocks.
Sometimes...
The shining eyes of unknown animals flashed between the shadows.
Mari called ahead.
“Luna, don’t go too far!”
Luna stopped.
“Even if you know the forest well, it is always dangerous.”
“Yes!”
She answered beautifully.
Only the answer.
The instant her mother finished...
Luna began running around on all fours again.
She jumped from tree to tree.
She moved through the bushes like a cat.
Mari watched her daughter.
Then sighed helplessly.
Pant. Pant.
At my feet...
Arken naturally followed on his short legs.
He was still only puppy-sized.
But...
The presence of a Divine Beast surrounded him.
Ordinary monsters didn’t even consider approaching us.
Useful little thing.
While I looked proudly at my reliable bodyguard...
Zakan quietly approached.
More accurately...
He approached Arken.
Zakan cleared his throat.
“Great Divine Beast.”
“Woof?”
Zakan carefully reached into his clothes.
Then...
He pulled out one steamed potato.
He held it in front of Arken’s nose.
His voice remained as emotionless as always.
But...
The hand holding the potato trembled slightly.
And there was clear anticipation in his eyes.
He really does feel drawn toward his original soul partner.
Unfortunately...
Arken glanced at Zakan’s hand.
Then the potato.
And...
“Haaaaaaahm.”
He gave an enormous yawn.
Then turned his head.
Arken hid behind my leg.
He even scratched the dirt with his hind legs.
Small clumps of soil flew toward Zakan’s shoes.
“...”
Zakan remained frozen.
The potato was still extended into empty air.
One thick eyebrow twitched.
Then...
Without saying anything...
He put the potato back inside his clothes.
He slowly turned away.
His back looked strangely lonely.
Sorry, Zakan.
I really didn’t know a legendary Divine Beast would sell its soul for a Savory-Smelling Bone.
I apologized inwardly.
After traveling through the forest for quite a while...
Mari stopped.
Then turned toward us.
“From this point onward, watch where you step.”
Zakan’s expression sharpened.
“Why?”
Then...
“Is there a dangerous monster nest nearby?”
Mari smiled.
She shook her head.
“Not monsters.”
Then...
“The plant we came to gather grows beyond here.”
She pointed.
“Silver Thread Nettle.”
I repeated,
“Silver Thread Nettle?”
Mari nodded.
“Yes.”
Then explained,
“It grows only between damp rocks deep within the northern forest.”
She looked toward the mist ahead.
“Its fibers are strong, soft, and excellent at preserving body temperature.”
Then...
“Clothing made from it can be worn throughout every season.”
Mari smiled slightly.
“It is one of the finest natural fibers.”
Then...
“If processed by a skilled seamstress, it sells for a high price even in the Empire.”
A high-quality natural performance fiber.
Then why not collect as much as possible?
We could make clothes for all the children.
Then sell whatever remained.
What was dangerous about that?
Mari noticed my confusion.
She continued.
“Silver Thread Nettle contains an extremely powerful paralytic poison in its leaves and fine hairs.”
Then...
“The poison is strong enough that goblins coat their arrowheads with it.”
Zakan’s face changed.
“You plan to make clothing for children with a poisonous plant?!”
Mari laughed softly.
“Don’t worry, Chief.”
Then...
“Touching it with bare skin is enough to make someone collapse.”
Zakan’s expression became even worse.
Mari quickly continued.
“But Blue Clay always appears near the rock fields where Silver Thread Nettle grows.”
I understood.
“It neutralizes the poison?”
Mari nodded.
“Exactly.”
Then...
“We wrap the nettles in thick leather and harvest them.”
She demonstrated with her hands.
“Afterward, we cover them with Blue Clay and wash them thoroughly.”
Then...
“The poison disappears.”
Mari looked toward the forest.
“It is survival knowledge our Cat Tribe developed after traveling through this forest for hundreds of years.”
I see.
Having a guide who understood the geography and ecosystem...
Made everything much easier.
Of course...
This wasn’t actually a game quest anymore.
Still.
We followed Mari through the mist.
Then entered the gathering area.
The fog cleared.
I stopped.
“This place...”
What appeared before us wasn’t an ordinary cliff or rocky mountain.
Huge stone pillars rose dozens of meters high.
They were broken...
But clearly not natural.
An enormous archway lay half-collapsed.
Delicate geometric patterns covered its surface.
Broken statues lay everywhere.
Moss covered the remains.
I stared.
This place I had assumed was just a rocky region...
Was actually the ruins of structures built by some civilization completely different from modern barbarians.
The current barbarians barely understood agriculture.
They wore animal hides.
Swung axes.
Yet...
Someone had once built structures like these in the Northern Frontier.
What is this?
Was there once a civilization here even more advanced than the Empire?
I touched the broken surface of what looked like an ancient temple wall.
Before I could think further...
Mari hurried toward vines growing through the ruins.
Beautiful silver plants bloomed between them.
“These are Silver Thread Nettles.”
I immediately shouted,
“BARBARIAN!”
Mari flinched.
Malko walked over while picking his nose.
“Don’t worry.”
He explained calmly.
“Izak has sickness where he suddenly shouts sometimes.”
Mari stared strangely.
“I-Is that so?”
Don’t look at me like that.
I’m just using a skill.
I don’t enjoy this either.
[Skill ‘Peeking’ activated.]
==========
【Target Information】
• Name: Silver Thread Nettle
• Grade: C-Rank
【Details】
• A plant capable of circulating mana through itself.
• Contact with the fine hairs on its leaves causes nervous-system paralysis within 3 seconds.
==========
Exactly as Mari said.
The nettles growing throughout the ruined city shone with a beautiful silver color.
Almost like moonlight.
But...
They contained deadly poison.
Beside them...
Sticky pools of blue mud filled depressions in the old stone floor.
I checked those too.
==========
【Target Information】
• Name: Blue Clay
• Grade: B-Rank
【Details】
• Natural clay capable of breaking down and absorbing certain toxins.
==========
Mari smiled.
“Found it.”
Then...
“Be careful.”
She put on thick animal-hide gloves shaped like mittens.
“Never touch the nettles with bare hands.”
Using a small knife...
Mari cut the plants near their bases.
Zakan and I placed our bags down.
Then wrapped our hands in thick leather.
Following Mari’s instructions...
We began helping her gather the plants.
Whenever we pulled up the stalks...
The fine silver hairs shook in the air.
But our hands were protected.
So we continued safely.
Mari pointed toward the clay.
“Now put them in there.”
We submerged the piles of nettles in the Blue Clay.
Hissssss.
A faint sound came from the plants.
Their surfaces gradually softened.
We continued gathering.
Soon...
We had more than enough to make clothes for all the children.
Then...
BOOM!
THUD!
“...!”
A massive vibration rose from beneath the ruined temple.
Zakan immediately jumped to his feet.
His hand grabbed his greatsword.
Arken, who had been dozing beside my feet...
Opened his blue eyes.
Every hair on his body stood up.
Zakan shouted,
“Izak, get back!”
Then...
“Something is coming!”
A huge silhouette emerged from the deep shadow behind a collapsed statue.
We hid behind the ruins.
Then watched.
“GRRRRRR...!”
The creature was nearly the size of a house.
Black spikes covered its entire body like a hedgehog.
Its face looked like some horrible mixture of a lion and wild boar.
One of the apex predators of the northern forest.
A Thorn-Mane Tyrant Boar.
Avoid monsters like that whenever possible.
There was no point fighting something dangerous when victory gave us nothing useful.
Zakan apparently thought the same.
He raised one finger to his lips.
Stay quiet.
Fortunately...
The Tyrant Boar seemed focused on something else.
It walked right past us.
What is it looking at?
Its gaze pointed toward a corner of the ruined temple.
Something was lying between collapsed pillars.
The Tyrant Boar approached.
Thick saliva dripped from its mouth.
It looked as though it had found a delicious meal.
Its jaws opened.
I slowly raised my head.
Then peeked toward the target.
My eyes met the eyes of a round figure curled up on the ground.
That’s a dwarf!
But why is a dwarf lying there?!
His beard was so long it almost reached his feet.
His entire body was completely stiff.
White foam covered his mouth.
Silver Thread Nettles were growing all around his feet.
Well...
I could guess what had happened.
The dwarf’s body couldn’t move.
Only his eyes rolled desperately from side to side.
Then...
He noticed me.
His eyes widened.
And he started blinking at me with everything he had.
