"Oink? What is this? Could it be that…the seokbinggo is completed already, oink?!"
Orc Arosh was a natural-born warrior. He battled against enemies and he hunted for the tribe. So, he naturally came to consider courage as a virtue. He had lived his whole life fighting. He was ignorant when it came to construction, so the processes and results all were a blur for him. However, he understood this one thing and that was that no construction ended in a day. So, Arosh was shocked when he returned to the construction site.
"A few days ago, this area was just a hole! What happened?! It is full of rocks, oink!"
Arosh had every bit of reason to be taken aback. After all, he had to put down his shovel and leave to go hunting.
"I'm sorry! I'll hunt for a few days and come back, oink!"
Hunting was one of the warriors' sacred duties. Like all South Korean males who had to serve in the military and attend reserved force training, all the orcs were mandated to regularly attend group hunts and Arosh's turn had come.
"I will help you once I come back, oink!" He spoke as he tapped Lloyd on the shoulder.
When the hunt was over, he ran as fast as he could to return to the construction site. He did so to help out his savior Lloyd, but when he came back, his expectations were shattered. It had been only a few days, but everything changed. The empty lot, which everyone once struggled to burrow, was replaced with a stone chamber made of thick, dense granite! Lloyd was standing in front of the stone chamber, no, the seokbinggo.
"Hey, Arosh. I know, right? I didn't even realize how far I got. But it's not fully constructed yet."
Lloyd shrugged, unimpressed by the progress. Arosh gulped in nervousness. He suddenly felt as if he was in the presence of a mythical creature. Who in the world is my savior, oink?! There was something great about him. He felt that way the more he spent time with Lloyd. Lloyd seemed to possess some kind of magical ability to create whatever he wanted. It wasn't a rare event and it happened all the time. Lloyd, my savior, gave an order to Javier. Then, a part of the rocky mountain got sliced into half: He brought those rocks and dug the ground, oink. And… There it was…a stone chamber Lloyd called the seokbinggo. But he didn't even use any magic, oink. Arosh thought that Lloyd surpassed the limits of magic and so, he gave a thumbs up to Lloyd.
"My savior! You! I declare that you have a wide nostril! Oink!"
"A wide…nostril?"
"Yes, oink!!"
Lloyd cocked his head to the side. Arosh heavily exhaled through his nose.
"Wide nostrils make breathing easier. Easy breathing makes you last longer in fights and hunting. A tireless orc is the best warrior, oink!"
"Aha! Did you mean that as a compliment?"
"Of course, oink!"
Arosh smiled, his sharp fangs sticking out of his mouth. Lloyd chuckled.
"You're very generous to compliment me over just this. I'm embarrassed. I actually never took a lesson on how to build a seokbinggo."
"You didn't learn how to make it, oink?"
"No, I didn't. My major is civil engineering, so this area is a completely different field of study."
"Civil…Oink?"
"Haha, there is such a thing like that. But I have always been interested in stuff like this. I guess it's finally paying off."
Lloyd had been a long-time enthusiast for traditional architecture, including the heated flooring system and seokbinggo. The student society he had signed up for back in college was also related to the field. What's more, when his financial situation was good back then, he and his friends traveled to various places in the country to enjoy these architectural spectacles.
"But it's all in the past now. Anyway, this seokbinggo is not finished yet. Sure, the shell is there, but I have yet to construct the inside. It's far from being finished."
Clap clap! Lloyd slapped the walls with his palm as he continued.
"But as you can see, the slope is there, and so are the waterway, arch, and ventilation system. All thanks to your strong warriors."
It was true as the orc warriors were exceedingly strong. Each ore did more than what a hundred soldiers could do. They were like gorillas, and thanks to their bulky muscles, Lloyd enjoyed the comfort of working on the construction site without soiling his hands with dirt for the past few days. The walls and arch ceiling were completed in the blink of an eye as the orcs transferred the bricks around using their muscles, but the construction wasn't finished yet.
"It's just flashy on the outside. But it can't properly store anything right now."
"Useless, oink?" asked Arosh.
"Uh-huh. There's no insulation." Lloyd continued to speak.
"Even with the thickest granite bricks, it doesn't have any insulation right now. Without additional layers of insulation, the heat during the summer will seep into the storage. So I need some other things to prevent that from happening."
"Where can Arosh get the insulation, oink?"
"You don't have to get anything," said Lloyd.
"Nothing, oink?"
"Yep. We just have to wait. I sent ten soldiers back to my fiefdom to bring here the materials that can be used for insulation."
It was true. Sometime before Lloyd taught Javier the mana blast, he selected ten of the strongest soldiers and sent them back to the fiefdom. Their mission was to come back with materials that could be used for insulation.
"TI told them to bring the things that can't be acquired here. Rice husks, wheat straws, and sawdust."
The village lacked those materials because it sat in the middle of the wilderness. The barren land gave no crops, so the orcs knew nothing about farming. The materials Lloyd just mentioned could only be obtained on farms and agricultural lands.
"Hmn, they should be back soon. It's been days since they left already," Lloyd told Arosh. Since they were expected soon, Lloyd simply waited for their return.
The waiting, however, dragged on. A day passed, two days passed, and just like that, even after four and five days later… No soldiers returned to the village even after ten days passed. Not a single sign indicated their return. Hmm…This is strange. Lloyd waited for them as he fooled around with Javier in the village. His gaze always darted to the west to seek any signs of their return, but as the waiting dragged on without any promise, Lloyd began to grow anxious. They should have come back yesterday at the latest. Since the soldiers took the same route Lloyd had traveled to get to the orc village from home, he was able to calculate how much time it would take for the soldiers to travel back to the fiefdom and return with the materials. According to his calculation, they should have been back the previous night at the latest.
"Hey, Javier." Lloyd, who was lazily swinging his leg on the bed in the tent, spoke.
The answer was quick to return.
"Did you call me?" Javier asked.
"Yes, I did. I have an errand for you."
"What is it…?"
"I need you to go to the mountain range over there."
"Ts it a search?"
"Yes,"
The two didn't need to explain. Javier was already aware of what was going on with his young master lately and what concerned him.
"It would be a welcome and search party at the same time."
"I suppose it will. Their belated arrival can only mean that something happened to them." Lloyd spoke, his voice sounding firm. The previous day was the final deadline for Lloyd. The delegation should have arrived yesterday. Lloyd had considered all the factors, their stamina, the weight and size of their loads, and even the delays the rough geography would pose. So, it was sufficient to say that the deadline factored in every possible element that could affect their arrival.
"But no news? This means that one of the two things happened. Something's up, or they're just goofing around."
"I understand. I will go out on a search, taking the same route we took last time."
"Yes and be careful out there. And while you're at it, bring me a slushy."
"Excuse me…?"
"Nothing. Off you go," Lloyd said as he stuck his tongue out. Javier sighed instead of replying back.
He immediately rose up and stashed his camping bag along with several other items. Once everything was set, he walked over to the exit. But before exiting, he halted and whipped around with a cynical expression unique to him. Then, he deadpanned, "Right back at you…"
"Eh?!"
Javier then bolted out of the tent, leaving no second for Lloyd to respond.
"Huh! Hahaha." Lloyd snorted involuntarily. But he immediately grew serious a second later. Whew…hope everyone's fine. He had a bad feeling about this. Four days later, Lloyd's bad feelings became a reality.
"I found this, Young Master." Javier spoke as he passed a tattered glove to Lloyd. Lloyd recognized the glove right away. This is the glove we use. Lloyd recognized it because he had personally given those pairs to the soldiers who were doing construction work. Lloyd's face darkened. He asked, "Where did you find it?"
"I found it in the valley located beside the eastern range. It is marked as 'Plogia Gorge' on the royal map. I found it two days ago."
"Explain more."
"My search initially focused on the route we had used to cross the range. I figured that would give me the best chance to bump into them as they may be coming late. But I didn't meet them even when I went over to Pano Peak and Pesano Peak. Of course, not a single footstep could be found, either. That told me one thing."
"Chances of them slacking around were zero."
"Yes, and after making that conclusion, I weighed the possibility that they might have fallen in an accident. And that's when I picked up this glove in Plogia Gorge and some strands of husks scattered around on the ground."
"So?" Lloyd asked.
"They were scattered by strands here and there. So I followed until I was led to a cave of considerable size."
"Plogia Gorge and a cave…So? Did you go in?"
"Yes, and there I found…"
Javier impassively rolled up his left sleeve, revealing his white arm and there was a serious wound on it, which stood in stark contrast with his nonchalant expression.
"This happened. There was a magic circle at the entrance. It got activated when I took a few steps inside."
"Hey, are you all right…?"
"Yes, I am fine. It's just a scrape."
"A scrape? It looks like a bad burn." The wound was considerably big and it wasn't a simple burn. Javier's skin looked red and blue as though he suffered from a burn and frostbite at the same time.
"Although I cannot ascertain it, it looks like a form of curse magic. Thankfully, however, I managed to avoid the full blow."
"Tam truly fine. The wound didn't spread into my muscles. I will be completely healed without any scars as long as I keep using my mana to heal the injury."
"Okay, that is a relief, and as for the soldiers…"
"Yes, I am worried about the soldiers." Javier, who was impassive when he showed his wound, grew serious when he mentioned the soldiers.
"The husks went deeper into the cave. That means that they were…"
"Dragged in there," Lloyd cut in and finished Javier's words.
"It appears so." Javier lowered his head.
"Even after the blow from the first magic circle, I tried to get in several more times. But that was impossible. Please forgive me, Young Master."
"Tsk. Don't be." Javier didn't do anything wrong. He actually did a fantastic job by making it out alive despite the defensive magic in the cave.
"I'm a knight. My duty is not only to command the soldiers in the fiefdom but to keep the forces safe and intact. Thus, I failed in my duty to rescue them because I was not good enough. So if you give me another chance…"
Javier paused for a second before continuing.
"I shall return to the fiefdom as fast as possible and prepare to lay an offense on the cave."
"Are you saying you'll attack the cave?"
"Yes. Given the force of the protective magic at the entrance and the intricacy of the curse, I presume that a dark sorcerer of considerable power lurks in the cave. The sorcerer must have kidnapped our soldiers with evil intentions."
"It looks like time is of the essence then."
"Precisely. The longer they are with the sorcerer, the greater danger they'll be."
"Hmm. Then let's go right away,' suggested Lloyd.
His suggestion was out of the blue, as though he was just making a trip to a convenience store to buy some sushi or to an internet cafe for a game. His voice sounded very casual and confident. Javier's eyes widened at his sudden suggestion.
"Pardon? What are you…"
"What are you, what? You said it yourself. The dark sorcerer took my men. And not to mention, he usurped all of my precious construction supplies. Isn't that right?"
"Yes, but…" Javier shook his head.
"But it is dangerous for you to personally go in this one without any prior preparation. It is too risky."
"You think so?" Lloyd asked.
"Yes. Very much." Javier's gaze was serious and resolute.
"Even I struggled against the defensive magic in there. Your miserable ability in fighting will stand no chance against our opponent, who is no other than a dark sorcerer. No one knows what evil traps are set up there."
"Dang. Miserable? You're not holding back at all."
"It is just the truth when you are compared to me."
"Well, whatever. So you are saying that I'll be beaten up if I go now, right?"
"Precisely. I fear that you will be slashed, frozen, crushed, or fried to pieces with your current abilities. All black and crisp like a burnt prawn the cook forgot to pull out of a fryer on Thanksgiving."
"Hey…That description sounded very personal, you know that?"
"Not at all. You misunderstand me, Young Master."
"Misunderstanding, my ass. It sounded super serious." Lloyd chuckled and stood up. Before he knew it, there was a fully packed bag in his hand. The bag contained food and other supplies that would last several days in the mountain.
"Let's go then."
"Excuse me?"
"I told you. We should go to that cave right now. You said we were short on time. The longer we leave them hostage, the more danger they'll be in."
"Yes, it is true, but right now…"
"Te's alright. Just trust me on this." Lloyd spoke as he carried another bag and tossed it into Javier's arms.
"Come along quickly. If not, I'm going to leave you behind." Javier took the bag in a daze. But the knight's face had darkened. This act was far too reckless. However, there was something Javier was oblivious to but was known to Lloyd. The cave in Plogia Gorge, no, the dungeon of the dark sorcerer, which he had to leave, appeared in The Knight of Blood and Iron. In the novel, Javier laid his attack on the cave a few years after the current time. Lloyd had read about it and so he knew how they should storm the dungeon. However, Javier was completely unaware of this. The guy who got beaten up by Javier in the gorge episode… What was his name? Was it Lupellan?
Crack! Lloyd gritted his teeth. He didn't care whether or not there was a defensive curse magic circle in there. It was time for Lloyd to teach the sorcerer what fate awaited those who messed with his men and construction supplies. As payback, Lloyd resolved to loot anything that had value in the dungeon. Even the smallest things would become his. Death would be a sweet escape for the sorcerer. But he wouldn't get it easily. Lloyd was determined to squeeze him dry.
So, in short, you're dead meat.
With the goals of retaliation and extortion in mind, Lloyd headed to the gorge.
Translator: https://bettertranslation9.wordpress.com