The road didn't take much time. We left the city on foot, and then, within just a couple of hours, Night brought us to the right place — or rather, to the general area of the last attack. A quiet, unremarkable little forest flanked both sides of the road. A quick look around and a scan using Mana and Qi perception didn't give us anything useful, so we had to go a bit deeper in.
The forest wasn't exactly big or dense, so I was surprised that a monster could attack merchants so easily and get away with it. There wasn't really anywhere to hide here, let alone launch a surprise attack. The outer edge of the forest was too sparse and "bald."
"Feel anything, birdie?"
"Mmm..." Night closed her eyes and focused. At first she didn't say anything, but then she sniffed the air a bit... "I think I do."
She started walking in a direction where I couldn't sense a thing. I shrugged and followed. After all, my sense of smell's not much better than a regular human's, while Night's — if I'm not wrong — should be even sharper than a dog's.
"It's... here." After about ten minutes of walking, we came to another edge of the forest, a bit farther from our starting point.
Night crouched down and began intently inspecting something on the ground. When I came closer, just out of curiosity, I tried scanning the area again... and this time, I think I actually felt something.
Right beneath Night — exactly where she was staring with a furrowed brow — my Qi perception caught a faint trace.
"Blood. You smelled it, didn't you?"
"Yeah."
"Impressive."
To sniff out a drop of blood that had already started to dry up — yeah, a dog's nose probably wouldn't cut it. Especially not from this far away. The life in that little drop felt very faint, just because the trace was old. But still — it was something.
Now that I had a 'template', I could act more effectively.
It was tough to latch onto such a faint 'life trace', and I kept losing it along the way. If the last incident had happened even a day earlier, I probably wouldn't have been able to sense anything at all — not even that trace.
Still, by painstakingly following the weak trail, I managed to level up the Qi Control skill one more time — it was now at level 6.
Only... when we finally reached what looked like the monster's den — apparently a burrow it had dug itself — it wasn't there.
"Yeah. And here I was, hoping to get it done in one go..."
Remus had expected something like this. If I couldn't track the monster down immediately or if it just wasn't here, he suggested I go with the next merchant traveling along this route.
And sure enough, there was one. This guy was a bit more prominent and influential than the ones who'd passed through before — which meant he could afford better protection. That made things a bit tricky — the monster might just skip the convoy if it didn't want to take the risk. But hey, stranger things have happened.
…
"So you're the... mercenary, huh." The man, probably in his 40s, eyed me with open skepticism.
And oh, the warmth in that gaze... mmm…
"Yep. Looks like I'll be tagging along with you," I said — with a nice little smile too.
"Kh... Fine. Do your job. But know this — I'm not paying you."
"Got it."
After teleporting back to Zeltoble and speaking with Remus, we synced up our departure with the merchant's trade caravan and set out. Before that, of course, Night and I spent a few more hours combing through the area again — but still came up empty. The merchant was scheduled to leave two days after our return, so there was a decent chance something might change by then.
We spent half the day just waiting. A little longer and I would've had to head back empty-handed again — there was no point in escorting the caravan beyond Zeltoble's border territory.
But I didn't have to go back empty-handed.
"Night."
"Yeah."
The birdie started to slow down. A few minutes later, a low, guttural growl echoed from the woods.
"Everyone get ready! Defend the wagons!" the escort commander barked out orders. "Hey, mercenary, fall in line!"
"I'm not part of your escort, remember?" I said, turning to flash him a smile.
"Tch. That's the Black-Winged Haku, isn't it?! You're gonna die out there, idiot!" he screamed, eyes bulging, the moment the monster stepped out of the forest.
Black-winged indeed. The thing looked like a massive tiger, only its fur was almost completely black with a few scattered white stripes. And yeah, it had wings — looked like bat wings, though. I seriously doubted those things could lift a beast that size even if they were in good shape. Right now, they looked like nothing but shredded rags. Like someone had deliberately mutilated the creature to keep it from flying away.
The tiger roared and lunged for its first victim — someone at the rear of the caravan. The guards leveled their spears, but to a beast that big, they were like toothpicks. Annoying, painful, but not fatal.
"Ga-haah!" The first guy's body was torn apart and scattered like a sack of meat with a single swipe of those massive, clawed paws.
Well, I'm not some sadist or villain, so unnecessary casualties weren't on the menu. Grabbing my Battle Scythe, I dashed toward the monster. Or... was it just a beast? Hard to say.
Night rushed after me, keeping a bit of distance, and I didn't bother stopping her. After I'd pumped her full of stat-boosting potions, she'd gotten noticeably stronger. This monster was weaker than the Leper Undead, so I didn't see any real danger.
The monster was already leaping toward its next target when I dropkicked it in the side with both feet, knocking it off course.
"Th-thank you!" the soldier I saved stammered nervously.
I didn't pay him much attention and charged forward again, aiming straight at the 'tiger' who was now shaking off the impact. The monster spread its wings and reared up on its hind legs, using its front paws to bat the Scythe aside. Gotta admit — for something that bulky, it was pretty quick.
But my Strength and Speed stats weren't exactly low either.
The blade of the deflected Scythe bit into the ground, and without losing a beat, I blocked its next swipe with my foot, twisting my torso to redirect the force.
Then came a horizontal slash with the Scythe — but the monster dodged again! This time it flapped its ragged wings and somehow managed to lift its whole bulk just enough. Full flight clearly wasn't happening anymore, but maneuvers like that were still on the table.
"Mmm… Night, if you would."
With a nod, the birdie quietly chanted a spell and slapped some debuffs on the tiger — slowing it down and lowering its defense.
"Thanks."
To bystanders, it probably looked like I'd just given a command to my pet, who then used one of its innate abilities. Monsters using magic weren't super common, but still something people had seen before.
A talking filolial, though? That would've been a lot harder to explain.
After that, things got easier. The tiger could still dodge, but not as effectively anymore — the first drops of blood hit the ground, mixing into its black fur. I still remembered the request to deliver the body in a recognizable state, so I made sure to tailor my attacks with that in mind.
"He's... pushing back Black-Winged Haku all by himself?"
"And that's the 'new hotshot' everyone's talking about?"
Meanwhile, the rest of the merchant's guards just stood to the side, watching our fight unfold. Honestly, not the worst call — a crowd like that would've just gotten in the way more than anything.
But it was time to wrap this little show up.
Ice Chains.
The final beginner-tier spell from the book.
A thin layer of ice shot across the ground from my foot toward the tiger. It managed to dodge once, but the second wave caught its paws, and the freezing spread fast — layering sheet after sheet of ice, weighing down its body and locking up its movement.
When the icy mass had nearly sealed its front legs and was creeping up toward its head...
Shlick.
…that very head dropped to the ground with a soft thud. Then, with a snap of my fingers, the ice encasing the body began to crack and crumble away.
"He killed it..."
"Yeah..."
Using the same Ice Magic, I froze the stump of the tiger's neck so its blood wouldn't drip all over Night's sides, then hoisted the whole body onto her back. Even that kind of load wasn't too much for her, and we didn't have far to go anyway. We just needed to get out of sight — then I'd use teleportation.
"Hey, mercenary! Wait!" — but of course, my plan got interrupted by that same merchant.
"What?"
"No need to drag that whole corpse back to the city. I'll buy it off you right here."
"Mmm… I think I'll pass," I said with a smile, and kept walking.
"Mistake."
I sensed him make a move. Then suddenly — I had to deflect an arrow flying straight at me.
"Oh. I've heard that entire trade caravans have gone missing in these woods," I said, still without turning around. "It'd be such a shame if something unfortunate happened here again..."
"What are you standing around for, you idiots?! Do what you're being paid for!"
"We are doing what we're being paid for, sir. And your men are doing what they're being paid for. If you think your little plan can be pulled off with just your own crew... well, good luck with that."
— It was the voice of the same guy who'd told me to fall in line earlier.
"What?! Do you have any idea what's going to happen to all of you?!"
"I have a pretty good idea. Pretty good," he muttered, watching me walk away.
No one else made a move after that. Well, at least this time, no one had to die.
And so, with the merchant's angry shouting fading into the distance, we walked out of sight — then I used teleportation to bring us back to Zeltoble.
Mission complete.