Chapter 93 – Oasis

“It’s truly devastated… It wouldn’t be the work of bandits… right?”

“Bandits capable of destroying an entire city… at that point, they would be an army, not bandits. Even if it were an incredibly large bandit guild, they would kill a few people as an example and extort wealth. They wouldn’t stage a massacre like this.”

Cara let out a dry laugh at Adele’s sharp point. Watching her blank expression, Belloc thought. Cara seemed to be unable to accept this situation for a moment. That is, the situation where a struggle against monsters was waiting for them once again, even before they could relieve the fatigue of their journey.

These bastards, really. Not even giving us a moment to rest. However, he had to say what needed to be said. He reinforced Adele’s opinion.

“The stronger the residents’ resistance, the greater the damage the attackers suffer. Those who know that tend to adjust their strength moderately. Because their own lives are precious.”

“If they are human… right?”

“Yes, if they are human.”

Belloc nodded silently and approached the oasis. There was a reason the city walls and streets were empty. It was because all the corpses of the city were gathered here. ‘What kind of dog-shit stunt are they pulling now?’

Instead of the bloated corpses floating on the water’s surface, he examined a relatively intact piece of flesh. An arrow stuck in the back of the neck was the deciding blow. The helmeted soldier had died while gasping for breath. He examined other corpses instead of the body clutching its own neck.

In addition to those who had their vital points pierced by arrows or daggers like the soldier from before, there were marks of being torn or eaten by something sharp, and even corpses that had been hacked to pieces, spilling their intestines and bones. Various kinds of culprits could be seen. ‘This isn’t just one or two. It seems monsters and skilled swordsmen are mixed. No, are they closer to assassins?’ Adele, who had approached at some point, also poked at the corpses with her fingers and spoke.

“The condition is decent. Flies and maggots aren’t swarming that much either. It seems to have happened relatively recently.”

“That means the ones who caused this mess might be nearby. Piled-up corpses… well, the culprit is bound to be Schola. Those bastards. But something is strange. For something prepared for a ritual, I don’t feel any particular magical aura…”

Cara, who had spoken meaningfully, rolled her eyes as she poked or examined the corpses with her staff. Then, eventually shaking her head, she stealthily walked over and clung to Belloc’s side. Belloc also scanned the surroundings using his vision that surpassed a hawk and hearing that surpassed an elf. However, he could not find any particular anomaly. Only the buzzing of flies, the sound of maggots burrowing into flesh, and the disgusting stench of corpses and sewage struck his nose.

Shit. Having high sensory stats isn’t all good. It’s quite horrific. Belloc frowned deeply at the action that ate away at his mental strength. He calmed his focused five senses and spoke.

“There doesn’t seem to be anything caught in the surroundings… but we shouldn’t let our guard down. Because they are eccentrics who use bizarre spells without hesitation.”

“You mean we should quickly pack the necessary items and leave?”

At Cara’s words, Belloc nodded. It would be better to sleep under the stars rather than spend the night in a devastated town. In this place where their traces remained thick, there might be traps they didn’t know of.

“First, we must replenish our food and water. And… we also need to change Adele’s weapon.”

He slightly turned his head and looked at Adele. The axe she was carrying had already become nicked and cracked, turning into a piece of junk. Although the dwarf’s skill was certainly excellent, its limits were clear unless it was a spell-enchanted weapon.

Adele looked at the axe, which had made distinguished contributions in smashing the skulls of monsters, with slightly regretful eyes. Stroking the axe blade, she said.

“It certainly seems impossible to use it anymore. I will go pick out a decent one.”

Though the wealth they possessed was overflowing, there was no place to spend it even if they earned it. A sudden free shopping spree. ‘Shit. Is this some apocalypse?’ While Belloc smirked and nodded, Cara raised her hand.

“Hey… I need something too. I looked as we came in, and there was a general store in this city selling herbs and monster byproducts. If it’s okay, I’d like to take some of them.”

“Should Cara and I move together while Lord Belloc secures the food? Or should we just bring it all while we are moving?”

At Adele’s words, Belloc looked up at the sky. The sun, half-draped over the horizon, dyed the faces of the three red. As they furrowed their brows, and as the heat constricting their bodies scattered like wind, their shadows only grew longer. One largest, one slightly shorter, and one smallest.

It will set soon… the timing is really bad. Without replying immediately to Adele’s words, he stroked his chin. The ones who had turned the city into this state were bound to be demons or the minions of devils. And they were always monsters that hid in the darkness and bared their claws. Massacred people. Corpses gathered in one place.

What if this place was where they conducted rituals or a food warehouse? What if they huddled somewhere during the day and came here at night to hold a festival or plot schemes?

Cara said she didn’t feel anything magical, but she didn’t know everything. The world was wide and spells were many. What to do? Belloc stopped his furiously spinning brain. Soon, he smirked.

Being cautious was good. Clearly, putting one’s foot in while knowing it was a trap was a foolish thing to do. However, they couldn’t give up their dwindling food sacks, Adele’s broken weapon, and Cara’s herbs. In the end, it would be self-defeating. ‘Well, if we can’t avoid it, we’ll fight. When did we ever care about such things?’ He spoke.

“To prepare for any unforeseen circumstances, let’s move together as three. It’d be best to stop by the blacksmith first.”

“Understood!”

Adele fidgeted with her hands and smiled faintly. She seemed utterly delighted that Belloc was taking care of her first. ‘It’s all over her face. What should I do with a kid this pure? What if she gets scammed by some rascal?’

He thought that for a moment but soon realized it was a useless thought. Because whatever the case, if anyone touched her, their head would be split open by her axe. The three of them quickly headed to the blacksmith. As they passed the sign with an anvil and hammer engraved on it, a thick smell of iron stimulated the tips of their noses. Of course, it was not pure metal but mixed with the smell of blood.

While Adele was rummaging through the blacksmith to find a weapon that fit her hand, Belloc examined the ground. A bright red paint-like mark stretched long toward the entrance. He spoke.

“Looking at the state of things, they seem to have died inside the building… but there’s no corpse here either. Did they drag them to that oasis from earlier?”

Why? For what? He didn’t bother to say those words. Since they now had a rough grasp of these guys’ methods and characteristics. Cara hardened her face slightly and stroked her chin. She seemed to be in deep thought. A moment later, she spoke.

“I was unsure, but this makes it certain. Do you remember what happened in Hamelin before?”

“You mean the place where you were captured.”

Cara furrowed her brows. This was because terrible memories rose, such as the lord’s severe torture and the guard who had tried to rape her. Along with this, the fact that the incident happening in this city was of a fairly large scale also played a part. She spoke.

“That’s right. That shitty city. The place where a devil who enticed the lord burned people alive, and using that malice and resentment as a driving force, spread the ghoul plague. A place whose current state I don’t even know, and don’t care to know.”

At Cara’s reaction, Belloc felt that his thoughts aligned. ‘So…’

“You’re saying that gathering the corpses in the oasis now is to perform some ritual.”

Cara nodded with a slightly stiffened face.

“Whether it is a ritual to summon something, or materials to create a chimera, or a stepping stone to absorb their resentment and obtain an even more evil spell. It’s not certain, but in any case, they are preparations for a defiled and bizarre ritual. If we hadn’t stepped forward, Altanis would have ended up like that too. And the village we passed through earlier would have become like that as well.”

If so, an urgent matter had arisen. He spoke.

“Can you disrupt their ritual?”

Cara shook her head. Since she had always shown confidence in matters related to magic, Belloc was slightly surprised when she acted like this. ‘Is the opponent’s level that high?’ As if reading his thoughts, Cara spoke.

“When I examined the corpses earlier, I said I didn’t feel any particular magical aura, right? Now I know. It’s because there was no ritual to speak of in the first place. In other words, the corpses in the oasis are simply piled up.”

“They didn’t do anything and just piled them up?”

Cara nodded.

“Yeah. I don’t know if they were on guard for fear of their ritual being disrupted, or if something urgent happened that they couldn’t even carve a magic circle. It is just a field of corpses. A massive grave, that’s all.”

“Then what should we do? Just burn them all?”

Cara shook her head. Her eyes held a slightly tired light.

“Not only can we not burn all of those on our own, but the thoughts of those who died must already fill this city. Therefore…”

“It’s useless to touch them, so let’s slip away quietly?”

“There’s no need to make them wary. Or we could set a trap in the oasis and ambush them first in reverse. Of course, that’s a method we can only use if they don’t know we are here…”

Dammit. How annoying. Did they target this? Belloc thought so, but soon realized the situation hadn’t changed. They still couldn’t see the enemy, and they had to finish preparing. ‘Right, there is nothing as useless as stupidly worrying.’ At that moment, Adele’s voice was heard.

“I’m finished, Lord Belloc. I’ll go with this.”

Adele approached, holding a double-edged axe of a size similar to the one she had chosen before. It didn’t look like an enchanted weapon, but its center of gravity was evenly balanced, making it look quite useful. He gave Adele a rough explanation of how the situation was unfolding and moved his feet.

I don’t know what is what. Let them come if they will. Shit. They strode across the main street. Soon, they kicked open the door of a building with a beer mug and fork painted on it.

No monster burst out from inside. Only hazy dust floated in the sunset light coming through the window. The three of them stood there for a moment, looking at the sight before them. To be precise, they were contemplating what to pack to fit more into their bags.

“Hmm…”

Even as the three stood, the light and dust crept slowly. Soon, they gently settled on the round table and the fireplace in the corner. Was it thanks to the light source? Or was it due to the unique elegance of the solid wood? A highly pastoral landscape was produced.

‘It would have been better if only there weren’t things like bright red blood or pieces of intestines.’ Leaving behind the remains of someone who had once been the innkeeper or a guest, the group immediately searched the inn.

Adele and Cara tilted the oak casks to fill their waterskins, and Belloc checked the cupboards. Before long, they gathered plenty of moldy cheese, rock-hard bread, and gamey salted meat. ‘Dammit. Having to eat these now. The good days are all over.’ ‘Should I have looked for a better-looking inn?’ He grumbled for a moment but soon stuffed several weeks’ worth of food into his backpack.

“I’m finished, Lord Belloc.”

“I’ve packed everything. But… I’m anxious after all. How about we just slip away without stopping by the general store?”

As Adele and Cara’s voices were heard in response, Belloc tried to turn around. At that moment, his eyes slightly drifted. It was toward a liquor bottle deep inside the cupboard, presumably hidden by the innkeeper. Specifically, it was because of a few strands of hair lying next to the bottle. ‘Could this be…?’

He slipped off his gauntleted hand and stroked the cupboard. Beneath the whitish dust, gold-gleaming hair caught in his hand. It was very long. It looked similar in length to what he had frequently seen before.

“Belloc?”

“Lord Belloc?”

Leaving behind the questioning voices of Cara and Adele, Belloc fell into thought. Alcohol. Golden hair. Witches’ coven Schola. A town attacked by devils. Arrows and daggers. Was all of this a coincidence? If not… soon, the image of an elven woman who used to drink and act drunk rose in his mind.