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chapter 17
“Run! Hurry!”
By the time I snapped back to my senses at Mary’s command, she was already sprinting far ahead.
–KRHHOOOONG!!!
The beast’s savage roar shook the entire forest.
“Get up, little one.”
“Huh?! R-Really… you’re just going to leave us?”
The boy’s face was smeared with a strange mix of fear and guilt as he asked if we were truly going to leave Mary behind.
Of course, I couldn’t abandon her here.
But with my weak body, trying to help would be the dumbest thing I could do.
‘At least I can’t get in the way.’
I needed another plan.
“Uh… th-then…!”
“Can you run?”
“Y-Yes! But that lady…?”
I helped the old man, who seemed unable to rise due to a twisted ankle, and asked the boy. His face went pale.
I looked at the boy and muttered something strange.
“See her?”
“…Huh?”
Not you, kid.
But there was no time to waste on idle words.
“Mary isn’t alone. Forget us for now—help her.”
There had to be another observer here.
I didn’t know who Azell had sent, but at least they could help Mary.
I planned to send the boy and the old man ahead, then act again.
‘I’ll set this cursed forest on fire if I have to to save Mary.’
I had already considered the worst-case scenario.
If Mary could hold out even a little, and if the observer followed my instructions, we could all survive.
But…
–KRRRRUNG!
The sky was still against us.
“…You clever beasts.”
Another one appeared before us.
They were driving us into a coordinated hunt.
Darya stiffened at the expression on the woman’s face and sensed death.
–Krrr…
He didn’t even need to look.
Another beast had appeared.
The woman’s voice, this time, wasn’t calm but thick with rage.
‘Ah… it’s really the end.’
The one who had saved him earlier was already far away, struggling against the first beast.
There was no way she could handle another appearing suddenly.
They were all but doomed.
“…Father…”
At that moment, Darya noticed delicate, dirt-covered hands supporting his father.
Darya and his father lived in one of the smallest, most insignificant villages in the barony.
Yet the woman before them not only supported the dirt-streaked man but risked her life to save them.
‘…I have to buy time somehow.’
The realization gave Darya courage.
‘I have to do something too!’
It was just the bravado of a small child with a big heart.
‘If there’s a god, please let the rest survive!’
With desperate prayer, the boy charged at the beast.
“AAAAAAH!”
“Darya—!”
His father screamed in panic as he realized what his son was attempting, but it changed nothing.
Then, a miracle occurred.
No, it wasn’t really a miracle—nothing happened at all.
The beast ignored Darya completely.
–Krrr?
It made a strange sound.
“Uh… huh?”
–Grrr?
The beast sniffed and twitched its massive nose at the woman repeatedly.
–…Krrr?
And then, strangely… it was almost as if it were thinking,
‘Wait… what is that?’
“……?”
Darya was naturally bewildered.
By now, the beast had lightly tapped its snout with its thick paw, almost as if checking if its nose still worked.
–Krrr, phheng! Krrrk!
It shook its massive head a couple of times, and between shakes, it looked at the woman in what was perhaps the most striking expression of all.
‘Is it… crazy?’
“Kid, come here.”
The woman behind called Darya.
He hesitated, and she stepped forward, shielding him.
And then something even more astonishing happened.
–Phkheeng?
The beast’s eyes went wide.
He had never seen a beast make that expression. Shocked, it stared at the woman.
A tense silence fell over the group.
But that wasn’t the end.
–KRHHUNG!
The beast, now terrified, tucked its tail and backed away like a small child.
“……?”
–Khrng! Huhng!
Not stopping there, it lowered itself to the ground and lay belly-down, glancing cautiously at her.
It was unmistakably a posture of submission.
Its bright yellow eyes were fixed solely on the woman.
“…….”
The group fell completely silent.
“……What on earth am I seeing?”
A low voice cut through the tension.
Turning around, they saw a man holding the neck of another beast.
The beast that had been aggressively cornering the short-haired woman was now covered in blood, breathing heavily.
Yet Darya was no longer shocked.
“…Uh… huh?”
He had already witnessed a scene even more staggering.
Meanwhile, Darya wasn’t the only one stunned.
Mary, witnessing the impossible spectacle, was left speechless for the first time in ages.
‘What… am I even seeing?’
When they had first discovered Aegis in the Red Forest, Mary had thought it was all over.
‘Without the master, there’s no way to win.’
Aegis was originally the ruler of the mountains and the king of beasts—the most ferocious calamity.
Ten elite knights would be barely enough to subdue it.
No matter who was sent as an observer, victory was impossible.
Thus, Mary threw herself into the fight, trying to save Elpis.
‘While I buy time, another observer can take her to the master.’
A perfectly rational decision.
Even as Aegis’s sharp claws cut her left shoulder, Mary believed her decision was right.
Then, astonishingly,
“Bow.”
The next instant, Aegis’s blood splattered in the air.
“…Master?”
–KRHHOOOONG…!
Azell Biots—her master—was there.
“Why are you here…!”
“Your first priority was saving her.”
Mary realized the meaning of his presence a beat too late.
She didn’t understand why he was here, but he had been sent to save her by Elpis.
“Why….”
It was a decision she couldn’t comprehend. How could anyone prioritize her life in a place swarming with deadly beasts?
“Let’s go back.”
In the blink of an eye, it was over.
–Krhng, grrrk.
The beast, covered in blood and barely breathing, was no threat to Azell.
“…Yes.”
Mary returned to where Elpis was, still puzzled.
And there, an even more shocking sight awaited her.
“…El… Elpis?”
Beside Elpis, Aegis was sprawled on the ground like a playful giant house cat, wriggling about.
And that wasn’t all.
–KRHHOOOONG!
“Elpis!”
Aegis, held obediently by Azell, suddenly lunged toward Elpis.
But instead of baring sharp teeth, it rolled its soft, pale belly in playfulness.
Mary was utterly stunned.
“I don’t know anything about this.”
Someone’s frantic voice sounded, but it didn’t register.
“Don’t worry, Mary. This place doesn’t require an escort.”
The thought replayed in her mind from earlier.
‘From the start, she never needed my protection.’
And so, the true chaos began.
