Chapter 61

Desert Flower (5)

Translated by WookEdited by Wook

Bang! Baang!

The giant snake repeatedly knocked its body to the ground.

Even though its skin was torn and the flesh was exposed, the snake did not stop.

To avoid getting hurt, it is better to quickly get on the snake’s body, stick a sharp thing in it, and drag the sharp thing to tear the snake apart.

However, no matter how many times it got hit, the snake held out strong.

The snake-shaped monster opened its mouth wide and rushed towards its own body.

“Uchwaa!”

As a shadow fell over his head, Perry hurriedly pulled out the sword he was holding in the snake monster, and at the same time gave strength to both feet.

The snake’s teeth were stuck in the empty spot where Perry jumped off using the recoil while bending and straightening his legs.

Kwajik!

The snake shook its tail on its stuck teeth without any result.

The snake’s, who had pulled out its stucked teeth, saliva that had accumulated, dripped, and it roared aggressively.

Whoosh!

A long whip-like tongue protruded from the snake’s jaws and wrapped around Perry’s ankles. Perry could not go further in the direction he wanted to go in the air and was dragged away. Perry quickly bent his body to close the distance between his ankles and swung the sword in his hand.

Ssak!

Perry’s body was thrown to the ground with the sound of the sword cutting through the air.

Fortunately, there was no significant impact because Perry had been prepared for it, but it was a different story for the snake-shaped monster whose tongue was cut and the remaining part was curled up in the throat due to the recoil caused by the cut.

Daddadang! Dang!

The snake rolled around on the floor with a winding body and swept all over the place. The fight, which had already been messy, was even more chaotic.

“Get away!”

“What else did that bastard Perry do? Seriously, that bastard!” 

The 1st Knights, who were fighting the snake monster at the front, avoided the glowing snake in annoyance. Even in the midst of this, they did not take their eyes off the monsters they were dealing with. Garyosa, one of the representative monsters of the desert, is not an easy enemy to fight as the baron’s knights had guaranteed.

A tough skin that doesn’t hurt easily, the ability to burrow and hide underground, strong strength and a huge body.

However, that doesn’t mean it’s unmatched.

For those who can express their swordsmanship or have the speed to dodge a huge body that is like a wielded weapon, it’s a target worth fighting for, even if it’s difficult.

And the 1st Knights are filled with only those who are capable to do just that. It wasn’t that there had been no mistakes or dangerous moments, but with Rohan’s help every time, the mangled corpses of Garyosa kept piling up on the dirt floor.

Occasionally, there would be Garyosas that dug deep into the ground and jumped up in the middle to avoid the 1st Knights defending from the front, but they were dealt with by Elisha and the remaining 1st Knights who were behind to protect her. 

“How could this be…”

The baron’s knights widened their eyes with their mouths closed, whether they were sick or not. One might think that nobody could feel more at a loss than them.

It’s just that they didn’t expect anyone to casually do something they couldn’t do even if with their best effort.

Even if it’s understandable because they’re the 1st Knights, how can the 2nd Empress be like that as well?

Those who were struggling with pain were all intimidated and couldn’t raise their eyes.

Still, what’s comforting is the fact that the crisis of death has been overcome.

So they were going to let go of this…

“Haa.”

A sigh came out of the 2nd Empress.

The people around flinched.

“What is it? There’s more?”

A frightened voice came from the side of the baron’s knights. Because he knew there was nothing meaningless in every word or action Elisha did.

Above all, she seemed to have a habit of abbreviating very big things too lightly.

She pointed over the defensive human wall made of the 1st Knights with the tip of her chin.

“Hiik!”

A startled cry was heard.

Then small groans followed by sighs erupted even among the 1st Knights.

Rohan looked back.

Over his shoulder, the waves came wild.

And not just a few lines this time.

The whole land in front of him was wriggling. There seemed to be at least dozens of Garyosas wriggling underneath the land.

As Elisha’s face hardened, Rohan tightened his grip on his sword.

He couldn’t even think of blocking it like before.

“Will we be able to get through that mess?”

Even with the 1st Knights, he could not be sure of their success.

Even without taking into account the fact that half of the baron’s knights had problems and could not move on their own.

Besides, regardless of what they do, the path through which the Garyosas move was also a big problem.

If the Garyosas keep going straight like that, there is a high possibility that they will eventually attack the entire village the party has left behind.

The place where there are people in the back of the village who depend on a poor well that Elisha had made, and live by that well.

“Anyway, we have to get out of this place first.”

Elisha, having made up her mind, turned her horse’s head and went to the carriage, which had been left shattered on one side.

The tethered horses were strewn on the ground with their bones grotesquely twisted, and the carriage had only four corners left with half the roof disappeared.

When Elisha approached and blinked, Dorian, who had been waiting patiently, hesitated and held out her hand.

Elisha pulled and placed her in front of her. Spot was a horse that the knights used to ride, therefore, it was big, so even if the three of them sat together, the seats were not narrow.

[T/N: in the previous chapters, I translated it as “a black-and-white horse”, but it is not necessarily so. The word author-nim used is “얼룩” which means “spot/ stain” and if added the word “horse” it changes meaning to “zebra/ black-and-white-colored horse”. In this sentence, author-nim only called it “spot”, so I figured it was Elisha’s way of calling the steed]

“W-What about me?”

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Tricia got out of the carriage and asked Elisha.

Elisha pointed to the side where the knight commander of her family was.

“I won’t even ask you to take care of me as an empress, so if you want help, call a knight from your family.”

Adam, who was watching the scene, came quickly, apologized for being late, took Tricia out and put her on the horse.

Elisha looked behind her shoulder and nodded at Rohan.

If one can’t go forward, they have no choice but to step back.

Rohan looked away for a moment at the group of Garyosas attacking him, then nodded his head.

As he turned around and ran toward Elisha, his horse, who was waiting from afar, came.

Rohan grabbed the reins of the approaching horse.

Pulling the reins hard, he lifted his body into the air, then gently settled on the horse’s body.

The other knights’ horses were not as smart as Rohan’s horse, so they were crushed to death by the Garyosas, or because the horses did not approach from afar, some knights had to move on their own or get help from their colleagues.

Dudududu!

The horses’ hooves knocked loudly on the soil floor.

The tsunami of the land continued to follow it.

They ran fast.

And soon arrived at the village they had said goodbye to.

“Are you going to use this place as bait?”

“Then what else is there besides that? A Garyosa tracks the position of its prey with the presence of pressure on the ground, so if we put a bait before the Garyosas, it will raise its head to attack. Aside from the fact that there will only be a few in the front, their speed will be much reduced. And at that, they will become tangled among themselves, preventing the bastards in the back from moving forward!”

The people only blinked at Elisha, who immediately took action after saying all that.

“Avoid this area. Monsters are coming in.”

Elisha said to the villagers who were surprised at the sudden return of the 2nd Empress and to the old village chief who ran out frantically.

And at the news that the Garyosas are coming.

The people of this village have lived close to the desert and have been invaded by monsters recently, so they must know better how to escape and how to survive than Elisha herself.

Whether Elisha’s words were true or not, the villagers moved frantically because no one was brave enough to refuse the 2nd Empress’ orders.

None of them paid any attention to the people in the shadows [T/N: The people who are living in the slums] that stretched out to the back of the village. 

When Elisha looked beyond the center of the village, Perry quickly drove his horse over.

“I’ll go and inform him of the news, so don’t go near the leader, Your Majesty.”

Perry was really afraid that Elisha would reject him and really disappeared in a flash.

“We have to get out of here, now!”

Adam, the commander of the baron’s knights, urged.

The person who had a strangely calm and friendly face throughout the whole time had wiped away his smile.

Instead of stopping by this village, they should’ve gone straight along the road in the direction they had run to get away from the Garyosas.

Elisha tilted her head.

“And go where?”

“Of course, toward a safe road…”

“A safe road we have never encountered on the way, that appeared while half of the baron’s knights whose limbs are fine, became unusable burdens in the midst of a flock of desert monsters.”

The longer Elisha was silent, the more Adam’s eyes trembled.

Elisha observed him.

All the urgent situations that have continued so far have crossed ambiguous boundaries.

Of the doubts and coincidences, the latter should be given more weight…

Considering the political situation, the appearance of the incompetent knights were to be expected, and Elisha agreed that even though monsters appeared, it was not very surprising, seeing that the change of the mission site is not far from the original location.

Above all, there is even a question as to whether the head of the knight [Adam], who has been loyal to the baron for a long time, will do anything to his master.

The lack of clear evidence to refute is also a problem.

If it was the superior who twisted the situation just because they were feeling insecure, the subordinate would not be able to do their jobs properly.

But Elisha concluded that it would be weirder if the subordinate did not point it out since the situation had grown to be so annoying.

In fact, not only Elisha, but Rohan and many of the members of the 1st Knights must have been thinking of the same thing. However, the matter is too heavy to come forward on its own, and if, in the end, everything is found to be a mean misunderstanding, it will put the subject of escort at a risk.

Elisha did not mean that there is no reward for making a wrong choice. Rather, sometimes the status and position gained will be greater in return, but in such a case, it is better if the person who made the choice is someone who could take responsibility for it.

“Your Majesty, it’ll be too late for us any later.”

“Really?”

“Yes. What does Sir Rohan think? Sir Rohan will surely give the same answer as me.”

Adam tried to ask Rohan for help, but his complexion grew pale when Rohan showed no impatience in his silent gaze as he watched from the side. The villagers, unable to properly pack their belongings and running away, thought it was strange to see the 2nd Empress confronting her own party in the midst of this, but that’s all.

Not only was it none of their business, but now the danger was clearly detected in the eyes of the villagers.

A cloud of dust covered all directions and was approaching quickly.

“Come on!”

The village chief took care of the people around him, and a young man carried him on his back and left the entrance of the village. In the meantime, time steadily passed.

So who’s out of breath now?

[T/N: As in who’s running out of time now]

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Elisha asked Adam with an indifferent gaze.

However, Elisha’s back was also moist.

[T/N: As in she’s also tense despite her bluff]