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Summer Camp
The sound of cicadas was deafening. When you thought of summer, it was this sound. You could feel the season.
It was the second day of summer camp. In the lush green and cool forest, today's plan was to.....take a nap. I was still lying face down on the ground.
When I thought about it, things went wrong after I was almost killed yesterday evening. It was a good thing I managed to defeat the mysterious bird somehow but I ended up using my trump card. That being the case, I obtained a means of traveling at high speed, but it came at the cost of losing my previous dog body.
And after narrowly escaping death and suffering from back pain, I realized right then that I had several problems.
Right now, I had dealt with the magical beast under the kidnapper’s control. So when will they realize it, I wonder? If they noticed it, or even if they didn’t, what would they do if the bird doesn’t show up when they should be back? They would probably go out to check.
The bird left no corpse. But, there was the body of a dead dog. It was also clear that the wound on the dog’s body was caused by the bird’s attack. In other words, they would realize that a battle took place.
And so, I started cleaning the place in a rush. I picked up my rucksack, and despite the dim light of dusk, I desperately gathered my belongings. Silver and copper coins, all of them. Also, the dog’s corpse.....that was the biggest problem. I didn't have the time to throw it far away. It might be pointless, but I still pulled it to the side, dug a simple hole, and buried it there. The blood that had been spilled could not be completely cleaned up. I covered it with dirt but, even an amateur would realize it was new if someone were to carefully observe it.
Next.
I cleaned up all sorts of things, but it was dangerous to be near the area. At any rate, it was near the road where the strange bird was keeping watch. And so, I had to move somewhere else. But I could not do it in a human body. As I would leave footprints.
And thus, I took on the form of the bird I just stole. I grabbed the rucksack with my claws. And surprisingly, it outperformed a dog in carrying things. My body easily rose up.
Then I rose above the trees, thought better of it, and decided not to fly too high. Flying at low altitude was dangerous and difficult, but I didn’t want to face the risk of the owner in the fortress spotting me. I flew from the west side to the east side of the fort, as if to go around the fortress. The highway was west of here, so I headed to the direction where the criminals would not be watching.
Now then, originally, I wanted to charge into the fortress before dawn broke.
But in the end I had defeated the guard bird. So they would probably be alert if they learned that fact. And besides, the kidnappers’ colleague would come from the highway, and there was the possibility they would start moving again. I was also worried about the young lady’s exhaustion.
But, that was impossible. I had used up my trump card. On top of that, I was fatigued and had lower back pain, so my physical condition was the worst. There was no way I could fight in this state.
Once I landed on the ground, I put my luggage down. It has gotten quite dark. These birds generally had extremely good vision compared to humans. In addition, she seemed a lot stronger than the kid me. So, I would act in this body for a while. But, I could not go to sleep like this.
My intelligence would inevitably lower as time passed. Especially when I lose focus. If I were to fall asleep, I would end up becoming a bird myself. It would certainly be safe to sleep up in the tree in this form, but there was the danger that I would not return to a human the next morning.
Oh well, I could just go to sleep after setting a condition of ‘Return to human once you wake up’ or such, but then another problem remain.
I checked the safety of my surroundings. There were no carnivorous animals like this bird nearby. This, was probably because the group of people making the fort their base had done. But, I had to be extremely cautious. I called up on everything I had read about medicinal plants at that portside warehouse.
After flying around for a while, I first found Kuteiya grass. I pull it out with my claws. I don’t want to treat it too roughly. This would emit a unique smell when ground. This keeps away beasts and insects. Still, it was easy to use, as you could clean it up just by washing it off with water.
The next thing I found was the bark of the Yerevan tree (エレバン). It would soften up if you peel the surface and soak it in water. It was an external medicine that accelerates blood circulation. Ideally, I should steep it in water below the boiling point and make a salve from the extracted ingredients but I could not use fire here. I was now in a pretty pitiful state after a week-long carriage ride. I would be in danger at the most important time if I don’t at least improve my conditions a little.
I found a small spring nearby. But, I should move away quickly after drawing water from the spring. Even if I had insect repellent, I shouldn’t lie down in the middle of a swarm of mosquitoes. I also brought back other stuff, like a bit of wild herbs I could use as a bit of food and medicinal herbs that look like they could be used as a styptic.
Once I was done preparing, I returned back to my human form. I crushed the herbs and drugs, soaked them in water, and had a simple meal. Using the gathered fallen leaves as a bed, I lie face down there. I slide a bark - in exchange for a poultice - on my back. I was a little worried about sleeping in such a place, but I had no choice but to rest my body.
And now, it was the next morning.
My joints hurt a little. But, only my back was getting better. I should be move around normally in this condition.
I began checking my luggage again while being surrounded by the noisy sounds of cicadas.
I had emergency food in hand. I had dried meat and bread, some wild vegetables I obtained from around here, but there was only a tiny bit. Even if I eat them sparingly, today was the limit. If I was going to stay longer here, then I would need more food.
There was no change of clothes. Right now, I was wearing a worn-out top and bottom. Incidentally, there were also sandals. A large towel was placed on top of the bed. It was a huge difference between having this and not.
I had 3 silver and 7 copper coins. There was no use for these at the moment. It would have been helpful if the chase had lasted longer.
And finally, the most important trump card, my Physical Enhancement pills. Of course, there was no way I dropped.....and forgot about it. Although I left most of them in the mansion. Of the necessary ingredients to make them, only the Tsumaraka’s bark was available in Pyris, but I couldn't get the other ingredients. I just brought a single pill with me, tied to a string.
Now then. Let’s think again about what to do.
At this point, I had 2 main options. First, rushing into the fortress just like this and rescuing the young lady. There were problems with this choice. In the end, I had too little information about the enemies.
If there were only 2, 3 people with abilities on the level of Jusa, then they would not pose much danger to me, after taking the Physical Strengthening pill. In that case, I could completely defeat them and slowly bring the young lady back.
But what if there were more difficult opponents? In that case, I would avoid direct confrontation as much as possible. I had to secretly take the young lady out but, even if I succeeded, there would be nowhere to run. Although if we managed to get out and successfully reached a village, our goal would already be achieved. It would be easy if I could prove my status but even if not, the silver coins I had on hand would probably do the job.
But in any case, I would face danger to some extent. And so, the safest option for me right now.....is to return to Pyris. Just pinpointing the kidnappers’ whereabouts was already a glorious achievement. It would not take me an hour if I returned using the strange bird’s form. But, the problem was after that.
The enemy must have sensed something wrong when their pet never returned. In addition, they kept watch over the highway from the well-positioned fortress. And they would probably notice it immediately if a cavalry force were to flood this small road with their glittering spears. Well, even if they fail to catch the kidnappers, my achievements would still be noted but.....it was that Viscount House, after all. If the young lady were to get hurt by mistake, they would probably say 「It’s your fault」 somehow.
And above all, the biggest problem was the means of transportation. How could a child have followed the young lady that far on foot? Thinking with common sense, you need to ride a horse at the very least, for a round trip. How do I lie to them when they asked questions about that? Khan seemed to have become suspicious of me about the matter of me purchasing Vulcan salt cheaply, so I couldn't afford to make any mistakes.
There was also the problem with my status. I was still a slave. I left the city on my own without the master’s permission and without informing the gatekeeper. If I managed to rescue the young lady successfully, I might somehow smooth things over with that, but if the search fails. If the kidnappers manage to get away first, only the fact that they escaped remains.
Ideally, as expected, I should break in, take back the young lady, and slowly return to the mansion. This way, I could cover up the time difference a bit. But no matter what, as it was now, it was just a pie in the sky.
Couldn't be helped. Resolving myself, I decided to take to the skies again.
I avoided approaching the fort suddenly. I was afraid the bird owner would discover me. Instead, I searched for an escape route when taking the young lady out.
First, in case we returned to the highway that led us here, we should walk for at least around 15 km north before reaching any settlements. This was the first and closest route to human settlements. If we were to return to Pyris, we would have to travel for more than 30 km, so if we were to succeed in running away, that would probably be the best place.
Even if I use Physical Strengthening magic to run away, it would still be a problem to go too far. Considering the 30 minutes of rampaging inside the fortress to find the young lady, and another 30 minutes to carry her out and run away, reaching that settlement would be the best I could do.
Yosh, the place to escape has been decided. Then, next up was the fort.
First, observe from as far away as possible. Surrounded by deep green trees and a slightly elevated rocky mountain, it was like the mountain stronghold itself was being buried within them.
The lower part of the fortress was completely man-made. It was unclear what era it dates from but it had a gate made of metal. But, it seemed to be quite worn out. It seemed only one side could be opened, as maybe there was rust, since it was in a half-opened state. As a result, a man was stationed to keep watch at the entrance. He was wearing leather armor and holding an unreliable-looking spear. He looked to be in his early twenties.
Let’s try checking his ability.
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Koza Mauve (21)
・Material Human Form
(Rank 5, Male, 21 years old)
・Skill Fores Language Level 5
・Skill Spearmanship Level 2
・Skill Medical Art Level 2
Empty (18)
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He could not be said to be a formidable enemy. And not that enthusiastic in his guard duty. He has been sighing in boredom while leaning on his spear like it was a walking stick the whole time. He is probably going to be easy to defeat.
But, I should not judge the enemy’s strength based on just one person’s standard. There should be another leader.
And naturally, there was a defensive wall above the gate. Only, this fortress seems to have been built by hollowing the rocky mountain so behind the defensive wall was not flat ground but stone wall. While it was not that large, it looked like a solid fort.
As such, there were 3 floors of man-made structure and natural rock, and above them, everything was buried by the rocky mountain itself. This huge rock has been thoroughly cut off so unless you could fly like me, it was not going to be easy to reach the top of the castle.
Looking carefully after getting closer, I see a small entrance at the corner of this rocky mountain. Apparently, it was connected to the inside of the castle. Still, even if I managed to escape from such a place, would it really feel like a blessing? It was right above the fort, but the top of the rocky mountain - that place included - was a little higher and uneven. The footing was bad, and there was no cover, and even if they encamped themselves there, it would probably not give them any advantage in battle.
Now then, let’s get a closer look. I want to know the number of enemies.
I lowered my altitude and peered into the fortress’s window. But at that moment, the sound of something cutting through the wind reached my ears.
The moment I looked diagonally upwards, I felt my own doom. www.ihavesinnedtranslation.com
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