Chapter 11
A Spirit Mage was even rarer than a mage.
Spirit Mages could not even attempt their craft unless they were born with an innate affinity for spirits, and intermediate Spirit Mages were rarer still.
Even more astonishing was the drake cradled in the man's arms.
It plainly looked like a hatchling drake, but the mage could hardly understand how that was possible.
‘Taming a drake is impossible. Not only can you not obtain a drake egg, but even if you did, there’s no way a hatchling drake would obey a human.’
There were plenty of records in the continent's history books of wyverns and griffins being tamed.
If they were trained from the moment they hatched using the imprinting effect, it was possible to raise them in human hands.
But there had never been a single record of a drake being tamed.
The mage was even seeing a Gold Drake for the first time.
‘What kind of person is he?’
Anyone could see that the hatchling drake was showing affection toward the Spirit Mage.
That only made the mage understand even less.
The only plausible explanation was that, as a Spirit Mage, the man might inspire affection in it unlike other humans.
Chiiik! Chiiiiik!
Meanwhile, the orcs abandoned the fight the moment Jade appeared.
The orcs coming as reinforcements had turned around long ago, while those attacking the knights scattered in all directions the instant Noim raised an earthen wall and separated them.
Though this was their first time seeing Jade in person, the Red Orcs knew of him through their kin.
They knew that a monstrously strong human lived in the Great Forest.
Grrrrr!
The problem, however, was that even if Jade intended to let them go, Whid had no intention of doing so.
Moreover, believing that driving away the orcs would help Jade, Whid instantly enlarged its body and flew off.
“Gasp!”
“W-what is that?”
“Is that really a drake?”
Whid, which had grown gigantic in the blink of an eye, was just over three meters long.
Of course, it was still tiny compared to a fully grown drake, but three meters was by no means small to humans.
Moreover, despite its small size, the sight of it exhaling lightning breath was terrifying enough.
Gulp!
Unlike when it had been adorably cradled in Jade's arms, it was horrifyingly ferocious when attacking the orcs.
It savagely bit and trampled the fleeing orcs, as if to prove that it was a predator for a reason.
Yet what was astonishing was that the orcs who had courageously charged even a Sword Master did not attack the drake at all.
“A Spirit Mage with a drake.”
Unlike her younger brother, who was too shocked for words, the woman looked at the young man with shining eyes.
To her, the young man's appearance felt like a ray of hope.
“M-my lord—no. My lady.”
Haines approached the woman.
After using his Aura Blade, his complexion had grown so pale that it was almost indistinguishable from his white hair, but his eyes remained fierce.
He was suppressing the pain with sheer mental fortitude.
“Sir Haines.”
“That young man is strong.”
“That strong?”
The woman was startled.
Haines was a knight who was more sparing with praise than anyone.
Indeed, Haines would call even an upper Expert-level fighter merely “useful enough.”
So when he said the young man was strong, the woman's gaze changed.
“Yes. I cannot say for certain whether he is strong as a Spirit Mage or as a warrior, but there is no doubt he is powerful enough that even I, in my uninjured state, would have had difficulty guaranteeing victory.”
“Gasp!”
At Haines's ensuing words, the young nobleman, who had been quietly listening, drew in a breath.
He had given off an air of strength, but the young nobleman had never imagined he was strong to that extent.
“However, we should watch him a little longer before deciding whether he can be trusted.”
“Judging by his clothes, he seems to have lived in the Great Forest for quite some time.”
“Clothes can be altered however one likes.”
“Then let me ask differently. Would they be capable of sending someone that strong?”
Haines blinked.
Come to think of it, there was no room for doubt.
If their enemies had possessed someone that strong, they would never have made it this far.
They would have been dead, not merely wounded.
“...Then we absolutely have to capture him.”
“I agree.”
The two wore the same expression.
They had reached the same conclusion without needing to say much.
Meanwhile, Whid, having driven away the orcs, let out another triumphant roar.
“Th-thank you! You saved our lives!”
“Let's move first. This place is close to the Red Orcs' territory. There's also a Killer Bee nest nearby.”
“K-Killer Bees?”
“Yes.”
The middle-aged mage who had come to thank him wore a horrified expression.
Killer Bees were infamous not only for their ferocious nature, but also for flying in swarms and pursuing their enemies to the very end.
That was why it was best to avoid them whenever possible.
“We move now.”
“Let's do that.”
Haines spoke with a brief nod, taking the place of the speechless mage.
He believed moving had to come first.
Since so many orcs had died, there was a high chance other monsters would be drawn by the smell of blood, so they had to leave without fail.
That was why they entrusted the guiding to Jade.
‘It's unlikely, but that doesn't mean we can trust him completely.’
Even as he naturally entrusted Jade with leading the way, Haines held on to a thread of suspicion.
Since he had to protect the siblings, he questioned and guarded against everything.
-That old man is looking at Jade suspiciously!
-That's only natural. Being grateful and being suspicious are separate matters.
-I guess getting old made him suspicious of everything!
Jade snickered.
Silestin and Elestera were both far older if age was the issue.
But he saw no reason to point that out.
Kyu-u! Kyu-kyu-kyu!
Whid seemed displeased with the old knight's gaze as well, repeatedly glaring with its huge eyes and baring its molars.
As if to say it wouldn't let him off if he gave it even the slightest excuse.
“Let's rest here for a moment. It looks like many of you are injured.”
“...I didn't know there was a place like this.”
“It's one of the places I found while exploring. It's narrow for extended use, but sufficient for a short rest. There's also a stream nearby.”
“It's late, but thank you. Thanks to you, we were able to escape safely without losing anyone.”
Seeing his companions sit down one by one, Haines extended his hand.
But Jade did not readily shake it.
Since Haines's intention was obvious, Jade simply replaced the handshake with a smile.
“Think nothing of it. We have to help one another.”
“Ahem! Do you live in the Great Forest?”
“Yes. I have personal reasons.”
“Then you must know the way well.”
Haines's eyes lit up.
He thought that, if things went well, they might be able to leave the Great Forest while minimizing their battles with monsters.
Moreover, if Jade had lived in the Great Forest, it was highly unlikely that he had any connection to their enemies.
“I know the outskirts fairly well.”
“I know it's shameless to ask after you've already helped us, but could you guide us to the Morkas Domain? I'll pay you handsomely.”
“The Morkas Domain?”
Jade pretended to ponder.
He had had a rough idea from the moment Baron Leon's family was mentioned.
If they were being pursued by Baron Leon's family of the Kingdom of Polstein, there was only one place they could go.
“Please.”
“Please help us.”
Following Haines, the woman also bowed politely.
She was plainly pleading with a face that suggested she had a complicated story.
But no matter how dignified and beautiful she looked, Jade felt little interest.
His soul was from Earth, and his tastes ran more toward Eastern beauties than Western ones.
“I'll guide you. It isn't very far.”
“Thank you. First, please accept this as an advance.”
The woman, who had secretly been growing worried as Jade took longer than expected to decide, let out a sigh of relief without anyone noticing.
Haines, on the other hand, pulled a small ruby gemstone from his pocket with an impassive face, contrary to his words.
He had intended to offer it as an advance payment.
“I'll take it when we arrive. It seems treating you should come first, anyway. Some of you appear to have internal injuries.”
Several people flinched at Jade's words.
Fortunately, everyone had survived, but they had all sustained injuries, major or minor.
The mage in particular was desperate for rest, as his internal injuries were showing little sign of improvement.
“Do you have a way?”
“I'll gather some medicinal herbs nearby. I'll hunt while I'm at it. Rest here in the meantime.”
“Do you know herbal medicine?”
“I used to be a hunter. I know the basics. Well, then.”
At the sight of Jade turning away coldly, Haines wore an awkward expression.
It strongly felt as though Jade had helped them simply because they were fellow humans.
“Let's rest for now. You all look exhausted.”
“Phew!”
No sooner had the woman finished speaking than the knights and mage collapsed onto the ground.
They said nothing, but everyone's body felt as heavy as a ton.
On top of that, the successive battles had taken a mental toll.
“One person needs to stand watch.”
“Even after coming this far?”
The boy sat on the ground with a face as clearly exhausted as everyone else's and looked puzzled.
Since they were inside a cave, outside eyes were naturally blocked, and he wondered if they really needed to go that far.
But Haines was firm.
“It is true that this man helped us, but that doesn't mean we can trust him completely. Even if he has no connection to our enemies. Moreover, this is the worst-case assumption, but he may instead have trapped us here to prevent us from escaping.”
“Hmm!”
The woman groaned.
The cave was certainly a double-edged sword for them.
What was more, if their opponent was a Spirit Mage who controlled earth spirits, this place was no different from a prison.
“Do we really need to go that far?”
“There's no harm in being cautious. Especially given the situation we're in.”
“...You have a point.”
The boy's face darkened.
Worry clouded his already frail-looking face, making him seem even more timid.
But that did not mean he had given up on everything.
“We'll take turns resting for now. We do need the rest.”
“Understood.”
“What about food?”
“...We only have a few pieces of jerky left. We had to flee in a hurry.”
Haines's face hardened at the knight's answer.
And the others were no different.
“Let's wait for now. Didn't he say he used to be a hunter? And judging by his appearance, he seems to have lived in the Great Forest for quite some time, so I imagine he can bring back enough for at least one meal.”
“Even if he brings back game, smoke will be a problem.”
Haines's face had not stiffened without reason.
As a capable Spirit Mage, hunting should not be difficult for Jade.
The problem was that they were fugitives.
The moment smoke rose, it would reveal their location to the pursuing party, so even if the Spirit Mage hunted game, they would have to eat it raw.
‘We'd be fine, but...’
Haines's gaze shifted to the two siblings.
He had drunk blood instead of water on battlefields, but the siblings had lived lives entirely different from that.
“Phew.”
Once he thought that far, a sigh escaped him.
Whoosh! Swish!
Jade's form swiftly cut through the Great Forest.
He was heading for his hideout.
He saw medicinal herbs good for external and internal injuries growing here and there, but Jade did not pick them.
-You're going home because there are things you need to get, right?
“Yeah. First, I don't have any money at all. Fortunately, silver and copper coins from the Kingdom of Polstein can be exchanged in the Kingdom of Arhan. And there are some other things I need to take along, too.”
-You grow most of the herbs in the yard, too.
“Exactly.”