Volume 6, Chapter 29 – Surveying the Forest

“I look forward to working with you.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

The one who gave me that short response was the rising star of the Second Knight Order, Alois Baldiribia, age 18.

A stunningly handsome young man with blond hair and blue eyes—the kind of knight you’d see in a shoujo manga.

Though, he wasn’t riding a white horse.

Apparently, he is the third son of a Baron’s family located in the remote reaches of the Ronbelia Peninsula in the southwestern part of the White Moon Kingdom. He left home at sixteen to become a knight apprentice and climbed the ranks to Platoon Commander in just two years.

Except for outliers like Chris-san, his promotion has been remarkably fast. It is said that in a few more years, he might even reach Company Commander, which is effectively the highest post attainable for someone from a Baron’s house.

I personally think it’s a bit questionable to choose military commanders based on social rank, but apparently, the sons of high-ranking nobles sometimes refuse to follow orders if the commander is of lower status, so I suppose this is just how things are.

Now then, it is the morning after I kicked “the one we don’t need” out of the field hospital.

Since all the injured had been discharged and I was free, we decided to head into the southern forest for some light monster subjugation, partly to check on the state of the woods.

However—whether out of thoughtfulness or simply so they wouldn’t be held responsible if one of us got hurt—I wasn’t sure—a platoon of about thirty men had tagged along.

And the commander of that platoon was this Alois-san.

I did say I didn’t need anyone.

Sigh.

“Saint-sama, I believe it would be best to first send out scouts to survey the area.”

Alois-san offers very conventional, common-sense advice, but since we have Lu-chan, we are capable of taking actions that defy such common sense.

“No, we have Lumia, so that won’t be necessary. Now then, Lu-chan, please.”

“Yes!”

With the spirits’ help, Lu-chan had the forest open a path, inviting us deeper and deeper into the woods.

“Wh-what… is this the Saint-sama’s… attendant…?”

Alois-san stared in shock. It was the same reaction the border guards in Calvara had.

Well, since there are almost no opportunities to act alongside an Elf, I suppose his surprise is only natural.

“Muu, this forest is crawling with monsters. Onee-sama, they’re coming from the right!”

“Saint-sama, leave it to—”

“Mashiro!”

The moment Lu-chan spoke, Mashiro-chan—who had grown considerably larger than before—appeared and drove a Wind Blade into the thicket to the right.

“GYAAAAAA!”

A scream rang out, followed by silence.

“Three pests down!”

Upon hearing Lu-chan’s report, the knights checked the bushes and confirmed that three Goblins had been slain.

Rеαԁ оո КatRеаdіոɡСafе

“Th-this is the Saint-sama’s attendant…”

Alois-san is aghast once again.

Come to think of it, I feel like I saw a similar scene back in Calvara.

And so, we continued our journey deeper into the forest.

◇ ◇ ◇

“Saint-sama, it is nearly noon. I believe it would be wise to consider returning.”

Alois-san informs me as we walk. It seems about three to four hours have passed since we entered the forest.

Since entering, I feel like we’ve been attacked by monsters every five to ten minutes. The most common “pests” were Goblins, followed mainly by Forest Wolves and Big Boars. There were the occasional Orcs, but so far we haven’t encountered any groups containing Higher Species like we did with Chi Tien.

“You’re right. I think I have a good idea of the situation, so let’s head back after we eat our lunches.”

It was a little too bloody to call a picnic, but since I’ve gotten a general sense of the forest’s condition, I’d call it a successful first day.

I looked for a suitable spot to sit down and was just about to take the special sandwiches Viscount Manteni had given me out of Storage when it happened.

“Onee-sama! There’s a battle over there!”

The moment I heard that, we took off as if we’d been launched.

Alois-san and his men, noticing our sudden movement, chased after us, lagging far behind.

“That is…! Fiene-sama, those are Ogres!”

After pushing through several thickets, we reached a small clearing. There, three giants—each roughly four to five meters tall with horns protruding from their heads—looked like they’d been fighting with a group of humans.

I say “seemed to have been,” because no one was moving anymore.

All that remained were pools of blood and chunks of flesh the Ogres had beaten into pulp.

As I frowned at the gruesome sight, I spotted something that was still moving.

“Hee… a… a… agh…”

It was at the mouth of the Ogre furthest from us.

A person, wearing something like a mask and covered in a cloak, was sticking out of its mouth from the waist up.

The Ogre had grabbed the person’s right leg; they had likely been hoisted up by the leg and brought to the mouth.

Judging by the size and the voice, it was likely a woman.

Rip.

As if trying to tear apart a piece of meat it couldn’t bite through, the Ogre simply yanked on her right leg with brute force until it ripped clean off.

“Egh… oh…”

The Ogre’s face was stained crimson with blood, and the voice ceased.

“I shall handle this!”

Shizuku-san leaped forward, slicing through one leg of each of the two nearest Ogres to immobilize them, before closing in on the Ogre in the back. Sensing Shizuku-san’s intent, we immediately followed her lead.

Rеаԁ oո ΚαtReаⅾіոgСafе

“Release that person!”

With a single stroke each, Shizuku-san sliced off both legs and both arms of the Ogre that had been attempting to eat the woman’s torso.

The Ogre wobbled and lost its balance—or rather, lost its support—and crashed to the ground.

Shizuku-san decapitated the falling Ogre in one blow and rescued the woman whose leg had been torn away.

We finished off the Ogres that Shizuku-san had immobilized before regrouping with her.

“Are you alright?!”

I called out to the woman lying on the ground, but there was no answer. She seemed to be alive, but unconscious.

“S-Saint-sama! In that state…! Already…”

Alois-san, having finally caught up, was lost for words at the sheer carnage.

Not only was the leg missing from the thigh down, but there was significant bleeding from the abdomen; it looked like a wound caused by a knife or something similar.

“Healing!”

I hurriedly cast Healing Magic.

Even though an entire leg was gone, with Level 6—no, Level 7 Healing Magic, a loss that happened this recently should be completely regenerable.

The woman’s body was enveloped in a soft light, and the left leg torn away by the Ogre began to bubble and regenerate from the hip.

However, I felt that the Healing Magic wasn’t taking hold very well.

“What, the missing limb is…!?”

Alois-san said something, but I didn’t care right now.

I had to focus on healing this person!

…

…

…

After a few minutes, the torn-off left leg was perfectly regenerated.

Other bruises, fractures, and the mysterious stab wound should have been healed as well.

But what on earth was happening?

First, I felt an odd amount of MP being drained.

It felt as if there were a hole in a bucket, and the mana of the Healing Magic was leaking out somewhere.

And secondly, for some reason, I could still feel a response from my Healing Magic.

I stopped the magic for a moment.

“Saint-sama! Truly magnificent. To think you could restore such a loss.”

Rеad οn KаtReаԁіnɡСαfe

“Hmm, something’s strange. I’m not actually finished yet.”

She seemed to have survived; her complexion was poor, but she wouldn’t die. If Level 7 equivalent magic couldn’t fix it, it meant there was an injury more severe than a missing limb.

Could it be the brain?

But nothing in the books I’d studied covered anything beyond this, so I wasn’t sure. In that case, I had no choice but to examine her.

Just as I was about to remove the woman’s clothes, I felt a gaze and stopped.

“Um, Alois-san? Could you look away for a moment? The patient is a woman.”

“Ah! M-my apologies!”

As if jolted, Alois-san hurried away from us and ordered the other knights to maintain a perimeter.

“Now then, Barrier.”

I cast a Barrier to block any outside views and removed the mask.

“What…!”

Beneath the mask was a massive scar, as if she had been clawed; she had likely lost her left eye to it.

Furthermore, there were countless burns around the scar, and the skin had become keloid.

“How horrible. How could this happen…?”

Moreover, her clothes were in tatters, and she gave off a foul odor, as though she hadn’t bathed in weeks.

However, around her neck was a golden choker that didn’t suit her ragged clothing. No, rather than a choker, it was thick enough to be called a collar.

A large red gem was set in the center. It featured intricate carvings and looked to be quite a luxury item.

I removed the tattered clothes to check her entire body.

Her entire body was covered in gruesome scars.

The claw-like wounds from her face continued down her body, reaching from her chest to her waist.

Furthermore, there were burn marks and cut marks all over; the only skin untouched was what little of her hands had been exposed outside her sleeves.

Her body was skeletal, suggesting she had entered this dangerous forest without sufficient nutrition.

“What in the world is this? Why would this happen?”

“No matter how much a hunter’s injuries are their own responsibility, this is simply too cruel. No, but these wounds? Why on earth?”

Chris-san spoke with a somber expression.

“These are not wounds sustained in battle,” Shizuku-san added, knitting her brows.

“Um, Onee-sama… people like this… when I was captured, there were other captured people who…”

Lu-chan told me this in a frail voice.

Apparently, there were other slaves who bore such wounds while being held captive.

“Fiene-sama, as Shizuku-dono says, it is hard to imagine sustaining such wounds in combat. Moreover, this woman’s equipment is not meant for fighting.”

Read οn ΚatReаⅾinɡСаfе

Chris-san agreed.

“Which means… she’d been cut and burned on a daily basis?”

“But who would do such a thing, and why?”

“Hmm. But it’s just too sad for a woman’s skin to end up like this. She smells a bit and is covered in blood, so let’s clean her up first, then treat her.”

I cast Cleansing Magic to clean the woman, then applied Healing Magic at full power.

I felt nothing during the Cleansing Magic, but with the Healing Magic, Mana kept leaking away as though I were pouring it into a bucket with a hole in it, and it failed to produce sufficient effects.

“No, it’s like something is interfering with my Healing Magic.”

I stopped the magic and used Mana Control to manipulate the mana of Healing Magic, carefully examining the woman.

The Mana I’d poured into her body as Healing Magic, circulated through her, but a significant portion of it was being sucked away and disappearing somewhere.

However, using Mana Control, it was possible to track the mana that was still under my command.

I cautiously traced the destination of the mana, and then I found it.

“Ah, it’s this.”

I pointed to the collar the woman was wearing.

“Chris-san, I need this removed for the treatment. Could you take it off?”

“Yes.”

Chris-san lifted the woman’s head and tried to remove it, but she seemed to struggle and couldn’t get it off.

Chris-san looked at me and shook her head.

“Fiene-sama, this collar has no seam. It may be something that can be removed by the owner’s will, but if not, it is an illegal item. Whoever fitted this would be subject to punishment.”

“An illegal item? Does that mean it’s a cursed item? Hmph, Dispel Curse!”

I cast Dispel Curse Magic on the collar.

With a light snap , the collar split clean in two at the gem.

The Mana it had absorbed slowly began to leak from the gem, but there was no sign of it exploding. It should be safe to leave as is.

Having removed the cause, I cast Healing Magic once more, this time at full power.

A dazzling light of healing enveloped the woman, and the old wounds and scars began to fade.

After a few minutes, the woman’s scars had completely vanished.

“Phew.”

I let out a long sigh and drank the MP Potion I had made with Shishou.

While the unpleasant taste of MP Recovery Medicines remained, it was far better, and the amount I needed to drink was drastically reduced.

Now that’s a handy invention, I thought, doing a little victory pose in my head.