Chapter : 40. Suspicion or…
2023.09.09
Karan stood up from the chair he had placed near Elise’s carriage, keeping a watchful eye on the surroundings.
From the barracks, Tetris’s warriors rushed out, moving frantically.
“It’s a Procrizard! Everyone, take up your weapons!”
Bernard’s shout awakened the slumbering forest.
Watching a flock of birds flutter into the sky, Karan turned his gaze back to Elise’s carriage.
Perhaps startled by the commotion, lights came on inside the carriage.
“Elise, it’s Karan. Don’t come out—it’s dangerous.”
Karan searched for Elise first.
From inside the carriage came a rustling sound. Soon, a window opened and Elise peered out.
“What’s happened?”
“A monster has appeared. But don’t worry—we’ll handle it quickly.”
“I’m not worried, Your Highness.”
Despite the danger, Elise remained composed. Not a trace of fear showed on her face.
She truly was a brave person. Karan admired her once again as he closed the window.
Meanwhile, Hartwin came running toward Karan, out of breath.
“Your Highness, it’s a Procrizard.”
The Procrizard was a swamp-dwelling monster.
It had a lizard-like appearance, a slippery outer skin, and a body covered in strong acid—both a shield and a weapon.
Therefore, long-range attacks were the standard against it, with wizards usually being deployed.
“Do we have enough arrows?”
“Plenty, but the situation isn’t good. There are too many adults.”
Arrows were useless against adult Procrizards.
The larger they were, the more concentrated the acid, which could dissolve the arrows on impact.
The arrows could slow their movement, but could not deal fatal damage.
Hence, wizards had to step in when facing adult Procrizards.
They were the nemesis of Tetris’s warriors, who specialized in close combat.
They had chosen the campsite to avoid such monsters—but for one to appear here…
This was bad luck beyond mere misfortune.
“Some of you pack up, the rest secure a retreat path.”
There was no chance in a head-on fight. In such situations, a swift retreat was the path to victory.
“Understood. We’ll prepare immediately.”
“I’ll focus on securing the retreat path.”
Before leaving Elise’s carriage, Karan widened his senses to scan the area around the carriage.
He detected the presence of wild animals, but they weren’t dangerous.
Feeling somewhat reassured, Karan swept the carriage door and turned his body.
In an instant, his eyes filled with killing intent.
It had been a while since Karan felt this tense.
“Don’t get hurt.”
Elise’s words echoed in his mind.
Dealing with a tricky Procrizard without getting hurt required extreme caution.
Karan ran his tongue over his dry lips to calm the excitement rising before the difficult battle.
A few steps away, he saw the warriors murmuring among themselves.
Karan’s brows immediately furrowed.
“In a crisis, and you’re just standing around?”
Karan’s stern voice made even the towering warriors tense.
A disciplined warrior approached him.
“Reporting: The Procrizard hasn’t been able to approach the campsite beyond a certain point.”
“What do you mean?”
The warriors stepped aside, holding up torches so Karan could see clearly.
He saw the situation they described.
The Procrizard writhed on the ground in agony.
It tried to step toward the campsite, but failed and collapsed.
As if an invisible barrier had been erected across the ground.
It was a stroke of luck, but as the leader, Karan couldn’t simply watch this mysterious phenomenon.
There was no guarantee that the Procrizard’s misfortune wouldn’t extend to his party.
“I’ll go.”
“It’s dangerous, Your Highness. The ground is already ruined by the Procrizard’s fluids. If you touch it, you could be seriously injured.”
Hartwin, who had rushed over after hearing the report while packing, blocked him.
“Are you suggesting I just watch? Or should I send someone in my place? I can’t do either.”
Karan didn’t send his subordinates into an uncertain situation.
The more dangerous and difficult, the more Karan took the lead.
This was one of the many reasons his subordinates trusted and followed him.
“Your Highness, then go once the Procrizards calm down a bit.”
Hartwin could not stop him. The best he could do was minimize risks.
But, as always, Karan ignored Hartwin’s advice.
Any delay could turn into a dangerous factor.
That time would allow enemies to regroup, and for a capable commander, it was a chance to strike.
“Be careful.”
Karan patted Hartwin’s shoulder, signaling that he understood the concern, and turned toward the Procrizard.
It was then.
Rustle—he heard the sound of a dress brushing against the ground.
A sound that didn’t belong in such rough terrain.
Because of that, even the faintest noise drew everyone’s attention.
It was Elise, who should have been resting in the carriage.
“Elise, I told you not to come out.”
Karan immediately moved to block her path and gestured.
Hartwin positioned the warriors in formation on his own.
They shielded the grotesque Procrizard from view.
Then Elise lifted her heels slightly.
She wanted to see what Karan was trying to shield her from.
Wasn’t this scene created by her own preparations?
It might be disgusting, terrifying even, but she was immune.
‘I’ve already been splattered by monster blood multiple times.’
Though she seemed delicate, Elise had participated in gate-clearing for extermination missions.
Karan, unaware of this, treated her like a fragile greenhouse flower.
“Elise, it’s dangerous here. Go back to the carriage. No, I’ll take you there.”
“It doesn’t look dangerous. Is that a Procrizard?”
Elise moved aside Karan’s body and stepped forward.
The warriors, unsure whether to step aside or block her, looked at Hartwin.
Hartwin waved his hands to signal them to give way.
The warriors stepped aside.
Karan was too late to cover her eyes.
Elise saw clearly the scene of the writhing, screaming creature.
A faint smile appeared on her lips.
“You don’t need to see, Your Highness. The Procrizard won’t be a threat.”
Her tone was confident.
“What do you mean, Elise?”
“I’m the one who made the Procrizard like that, Your Highness.”
Everyone who heard Elise’s words widened their eyes in astonishment.
“So you’re saying you predicted the Procrizard would come and sprinkled salt around?”
Inside the carriage, Karan and Elise sat facing each other.
Karan had intended to drop her off and leave quietly, but she held onto him.
“I’m already awake anyway. If you’re curious, ask now, Your Highness.”
Karan came inside after scanning outside and entrusted Hartwin with managing the surroundings and the follow-up.
Elise immediately began explaining what she had done today.
“I can’t believe it.”
Karan rubbed his chin, lost in thought.
What Elise did could only be done if she had known the Procrizard would appear.
From preparing a large quantity of salt to spreading it in advance.
‘It was already odd when she loaded so much salt from Tetris,’ he thought.
And it was all to counter the Procrizard.
“Curious how she knew, aren’t you, Your Highness?”
“Elise, it’s not that I don’t trust you.”
Karan spoke quickly, not wanting her to think he doubted her.
Elise’s eyes conveyed that she understood everything.
“Before departure, I asked you to mark the travel route on the map. Remember?”
Of course. Karan rarely forgot anything related to Elise, and her request for a map had been unusual.
“I anticipated the ground would get muddy early this spring. I also confirmed that our camping spot wasn’t far from the Procrizard’s habitat.”
“That’s right. It was close, though still somewhat outside their normal range of activity.”
“Do you know why the Procrizard’s range is limited?”
Karan, an expert at killing monsters but ignorant of their ecology, shook his head.
“Procrizards can’t move on dry land. The dry air dehydrates them. Spring came early, the frozen ground thawed quickly, and it’s been raining lately. Even tonight, it’s humid.”
That had made building fires quite difficult.
“They now have a good environment to be active, and we happened to appear. For those who went hungry all winter, we were a tasty prey.”
They were gathered, seemed weak, and were careless.
Of course, the Procrizards hadn’t thought things through— they weren’t intelligent beings.
But there was no denying that they had perceived humans as a delicious-smelling prey.
“The distance is too far for them to find us just by smell.”
“We must have first entered their habitat. You sent scouts around the campsite.”
Ah, Karan muttered in low admiration. Elise was right.
Before setting up the barracks, a few warriors had scouted far around to check the area.
At that time, the Procrizard must have caught their scent and slowly followed behind.
Warriors being tracked—Karan shook his head in disbelief.
“You investigated thoroughly. I said I’d protect you, but it turns out you protected me instead, Elise. I have one more question—may I ask?”
“Of course.”
Elise felt proud for having helped Karan.
“How did you know the Procrizard was weak against salt?”
