Extra in a Romance Fantasy

110 – Monster (1)

With the sudden death, a faint tension spread across the faces of those who had shown no signs of anxiety.

It was because they had witnessed the evidence that this forest was a dangerous place.

Moreover, the condition of the deceased was so horrific that even those accustomed to such sights could not help but frown.

As a result, a considerable number of people in the group came to a halt.

It was not an unreasonable judgment.

This forest was not a place to simply pass by any potential danger.

Of course, there were some in the group who continued to move forward without concern, but those including mercenaries or adventurers paused their progress.

Naturally, our group was among them.

“This is… a mark I’ve never seen before.”

After examining the brutally murdered body, Max said.

“Me too.”

Johanna agreed with him.

“Are you all the same? I feel that way too.”

Hector, who was conducting the investigation alongside the two, offered the same response.

All three were veterans among Darville’s mercenaries.

The fact that none of them had any information means that this is at least a creature that has not appeared recently.

“Then it’s either a new species or a mutation…”

“Looking at the shape of the claws, could it be a beast?”

“For now, it would be wise to gather information from the others as well.”

As the three began their discussion over this trace, I quietly observed the carnage.

“……”

This trace, I had seen it before.

Relatively recently, in fact.

When I took on El’s commission, I had encountered a group of people brutally murdered on the way to the destination.

At that time, Charlie, who was leading the group, had examined the traces left on the bodies and said this:

It was a type of trace he had never seen before.

However, the traces left on those corpses and the ones on the body before me now were strikingly similar, no matter how I looked at them.

That meant the likelihood was high that the one who committed that act back then was the same as the one responsible for this atrocity now.

Or perhaps they belonged to the same species.

I organized my thoughts this way, but I didn’t share it with Max or the others.

It wasn’t that I was trying to hide anything.

It was simply because I had no substantial information to offer.

I had only seen this trace once before, and I was in a state of ignorance regarding the details.

In any case, while I was lost in thought, the conversation among the three had progressed in its own way.

They called over other mercenaries to discuss the wounds, but ultimately, no one recognized the trace.

“Hmm… It’s not uncommon for mutations or new species to appear in the forest, but…”

Max said, stroking his chin.

As he said, the ecosystem of this forest was unlike any other place on the continent.

One could even say that the emergence of new entities or mutations was quite common.

However.

“The problem is that this one doesn’t seem ordinary.”

The serious atmosphere among such a number of people was partly due to the gruesome state of the murdered individual, but there was a more fundamental reason.

It was that the deceased was a capable warrior who had come from outside.

I had never heard that name before, but I realized through the residual magic on the corpse that those words were true.

The dead man’s skills were quite decent.

Although he wasn’t outstanding among this group, he was certainly not at a level where he could be mercilessly taken down in a forest of this caliber.

Knowing this well, they were tense, and Max was showing a rare serious demeanor.

“Hmm… Still, I think it should be fine if we just stay cautious? In this case, the problem was that he was too far away on his own.”

That was Hector’s opinion.

As he said, since there were quite a few people around, as long as we maintained a certain distance, even if we were ambushed by an unknown monster, we could receive help quickly.

“Yeah. That seems to be the best course.”

After coming to that conclusion, Max conveyed the opinion to the other mercenaries.

Of course, it was merely a suggestion without any force behind it, but it wasn’t anything strange, and it would be a reasonable opinion in their eyes, so they would likely adhere to it if they didn’t want to die.

With that, we organized our thoughts and set out on the road again.

However, it wasn’t long before our steps came to a halt once more.

Because yet another victim had emerged.

“Tsk. I told them to keep their distance.”

Max clicked his tongue at the sight of another casualty.

This victim had also strayed too far without maintaining an appropriate distance, resulting in their demise.

After all, those gathered here were strong-willed individuals.

It was unreasonable to expect them to follow a mercenary’s words to the letter.

In any case, yet another victim had fallen.

The mercenaries, including Max, examined the body again, but as expected, no particular features or clues were found, and this time, we resumed our journey relatively early.

A few more deaths occurred after that.

All of them were those who had not heeded Max’s words.

Only after the number of those dying in such a tragic manner began to increase one by one did the mercenaries start to follow the rules.

And it was only then that no more victims emerged.

“They should have done this from the start.”

Max clicked his tongue at their behavior.

If they had followed his advice earlier, unnecessary deaths could have been avoided.

He regretted that fact.

However, regardless of his regrets, no more deaths occurred, and the group returned to a normal flow.

Yet, the peace that had come was short-lived and soon shattered once again.

This time, in a slightly different form.

“It’s an attack!”

The incident occurred with a shout that echoed as we ventured into the forest.

Our group, along with those nearby, hurried toward the direction of the sound, and what we saw was astonishing.

A horde of monsters, easily numbering in the dozens.

“What the hell, vine deer?”

Max frowned immediately upon seeing the true nature of the creature.

And a look of bewilderment crossed both Johanna’s and my faces.

The identity of the monster was far too unexpected.

“Are these things the ones attacking?”

The vine deer is a creature that began to appear at the edge of the forest, a deer that, instead of antlers, has vines growing from its head.

Aside from the fact that its size far exceeds that of an ordinary deer, its appearance isn’t horrific enough to be called a monster.

And fitting its appearance, its temperament is generally mild.

While it doesn’t outright oppose humans, it rarely takes the initiative to attack unless approached too aggressively or attacked first.

In fact, the vines that grow from its head are considered a rare medicinal ingredient, making them quite valuable.

At first glance, one might think that mercenaries or adventurers would rush in at the sight of them in the forest, but that’s not quite the case.

Because the combat prowess of the vine deer is no trivial matter.

Even seasoned mercenaries cannot afford to underestimate its fighting ability.

It’s not by mere chance that such a gentle creature can survive in a forest as perilous as this.

However, despite their strength, vine deer are creatures that generally do not attack humans first.

Yet here they were, not just one or two, but dozens of these gentle vine deer simultaneously launching an assault on humans.

It was undoubtedly an extraordinary sight.

Even as a mercenary who had heard various tales, I had never heard of vine deer attacking humans in a group.

And yet, such an unusual event was unfolding right before my eyes.

But ultimately, this extraordinary incident was resolved more quickly than expected.

Though the vine deer were indeed formidable creatures, and there were dozens of them, those present here were more than capable of handling a few vine deer without difficulty.

Did it even take ten minutes?

In that brief span, the assault by the vine deer came to an end.

Without even a single person sustaining serious injuries.

“So what on earth just happened?”

“How could we know? It’s not like the vine deer collectively took some kind of drug.”

It was at that moment, as Max and Hector were trying to grasp the situation while looking at the now motionless vine deer, that they heard it.

“We have a casualty!”

The sudden voice interrupted their conversation.

*

The casualty from this attack was not caused by the vine deer.

“That b*stard did this.”

The one who had caused deaths time and again.

It was his doing.

“Of all times, to have this happen while our attention was drawn to the vine deer…”

Hector clicked his tongue.

But then, Johanna spoke up.

“Should we really just chalk this up to bad luck?”

“What do you mean?”

Hector turned his head sharply towards Johanna.

With her heavy-lidded eyes, Johanna gazed down at the corpse and continued.

“Isn’t it too strange to call it a coincidence? Starting with the attack by the vine deer. I’ve never heard of vine deer attacking people like that.”

“…….”

Hector’s expression darkened.

At that moment, Max opened his mouth.

“Maybe it’s not a coincidence after all.”

A terrifying possibility.

“…Are you suggesting that the vine deer’s attack was intentional from the start?”

“Perhaps.”

At Max’s response, Hector’s gaze grew somber.

“So, you’re saying that from the very beginning, that b*stard planned to create chaos using the vine deer and kill people amidst that chaos?”

“That’s just a possibility, after all.”

“…That’s absurd.”

Hector let out a low sigh.

It was a notion that shattered common sense.

—

But if that assumption is true.

“Perhaps, this creature might be hunting us.”

We might be in a position of being hunted.