CH 44

TN : Happy New Year 2023!

Meanwhile, the Demon King’s army, led by a lizardman as its general, was marching through the deep forest towards the city of Ulaine Donagh.

To get from the Demon King’s territory to the country where the city was located, one had to cross mountains and forests, which was a long way to go, and after the Demon King threw a tantrum about results immediately, he recklessly ordered his men to take the shortest path possible.

Predictably enough, the morale of the army that was put together for that was remarkably low, and everyone marched in formation looking heavily depressed.

Although, there was one man who was an exception…

[I’m so boooored, Goburokuuu~. …Wanna play word-chain?] (Sebek)

[What are you, stupid? …I think you’re a bit too relaxed about all this.] (Goburoku)

In a deep forest beyond the border, Sebek the magic swordsman and Goburoku the goblin were at the rear end of the march, where the atmosphere felt eerie, and the mood was gloomy.

Sebek was being the same jokester as usual, while Goburoku scolded him in silence, worried about the day he would be made to take responsibility for his companion’s behavior as punishment.

But it was then that Sebek brought up a certain topic.

[Hey, Goburoku. Do you know what kind of forest we’re in?] (Sebek)

[Is there anything special about it?] (Goburoku)

[Well you see, this here is… the Wendigo Forest. Y’know, they jump out all murky and moaning…] (Sebek)

Goburoku winced at that name while showing a bitter smile to Sebek, whose eyes were not smiling despite saying that in a playful tone.

Of course, Goburoku was aware of the existence of Wendigos, but he had never actually seen one.

Because seeing them personally meant that you were on death’s doorstep, making them creatures to fear for eternity.

Therefore, numerous humans and animals stayed away from their territory and consecrated grounds.

In fact, none of the humans who were foolish enough to enter their domain in hope of catching a glimpse of the Wendigos ever returned.

Apparently, save for a handful of them, the Wendigos never left territory or sacred land.

Word had it that any action taken outside of them became difficult, as if they were blocked by an invisible wall.

But their power was so great that no existing weapon or magic was a match for it.

Long ago, some people attempted to burn down the place where the Wendigos were supposed to reside from afar.

But the arsonists disappeared without a trace.

It was probably the Wendigos’ doing, but the mystery of how they managed to eliminate those who tried to burn down their land, and without leaving any trace, had yet to be resolved.

The Wisdom of Monsters, and an existence possessing unknown powers beyond the reach of human evolution. Such was the reputation of the Wendigos.

[And that’s who they are. Doesn’t matter if they’re dealing with monsters or others, they’ll mercilessly bare their fangs at anyone who intrudes upon their turf. Maybe they’ll eat them, or maybe they’ll drag them into some other dimension… But if that happens, they’re as good as dead.] (Sebek)

They attacked anyone, monsters included.

Goburoku could hardly believe it, but Sebek did not seem like the kind of man who would joke about something like that.

If this place was indeed the Wendigos’ habitat, then they were already on to the Demon King’s army.

As warriors, they had survived numerous hardships and battlefields, but here, they fell into the illusion that there was a mysterious presence in the forest.

It was a sensation that made their hearts beat faster, and made them feel as if they might lose their composure and run into desperation if they were not careful.

In contrast, Sebek was the same as usual, walking with the gait of a zombie, and his eyes wide open.

And even Goburoku himself had gotten fed up with the Demon King, wondering if he had ordered them to march through this forest knowing that it was the Wendigos’ sacred land.

If the latter were indeed observing them, they could very well attack them at any moment.

[Hey, look. …Look down here.] (Sebek)

Sebek suddenly stopped and urged Goburoku to look at the ground.

Between the ground and the weeds trampled by the monsters, they saw an antiquated wooden structure.

[…What’s this?] (Goburoku)

[A totem pole. …This was made to serve as a warning sign.] (Sebek)

[Don’t tell me…] (Goburoku)

The land past this totem pole was their sacred land.

Once they entered it, nothing could guarantee their survival anymore.

[W-We have to warn the others! It’s dangerous over there! We need to find a safe route…!] (Goburoku)

Goburoku panicked, but Sebek simply smirked, and started walking in a different direction.

Goburoku called out to him, but Sebek, who’s as humming as he moved deeper into the thickets, turned a deaf ear to him.

[G… Goddammit…!] (Goburoku)

Goburoku abandoned the advancing Demon King’s army, and ran in Sebek’s direction.

“It’s a warrior’s honor to die in battle, but dying in such a place would just be foolish”, or so he told himself.

Then, as the Demon King’s army advanced deeper into the sacred land of the Wendigos, a change occurred.

As they went deeper into it, a strange fog began to form.

Green and undulating, it began to surround the Demon King’s army, blocking their view.

The entire army, which had halted its advance, was tense and filled with fighting spirit.

[This fog is clinging to us… Don’t drop your guard, you lot!] (Lizardman)

The lizardman in the lead shouted.

However, the next moment, one of the monsters in the center of the line began to suffer, holding his neck.

[U-… Ugh…!? BLEEAAAARGH…!!?] (Monster A)

As he screamed, his mouth was ripped open, and a repulsive creature with a loud, monstrous voice came out of it.

At first glance, that thing looked like a mummy with countless lumps of moss growing on its bandages.

With its human-like mouth wide open, it emerged from the monster, stretching its arms and legs so long that they could not belong to a human.

However, that mummy was not the only one.

The monster’s belly was ripped open, then his back, and countless mummies sprung forth from them.

Little small spiderlings having eaten their way out of their parent spider’s belly, they crawled out of that monster, and quickly attacked the Demon King’s army on all four.

They were the Wendigos of the Forest who dwelled in the sacred land of the woods.

They had the horrifying appearance and aspect of something that was neither human nor monster.

Truly the appearance of “barbaric devils that went against everything we knew in this world.”

In the world of humans where normalcy and common sense were advocated, their existence was perhaps even more impossible to accept than that of monsters.

At that same time, the monsters had a hunch.

About how if the Wendigos were a type of spirit that embodied the will of nature, and if such creatures were found everywhere, then the world they lived in was just full of horrors.

And how nature was by no means a silent deity.

And how there were beings who scowled at those who were enjoying the pleasures of civilization from the depths of the unknown abyss.

[WHOAAAAAHHH…!!] (Lizardman)

The Demon King’s army panicked at their sudden appearance, which completely ignored the laws of physics and magic theory.

Moreover, because countless others came out of the other monsters, they had nowhere to run.

Even when they tried to fight back, the Wendigos were far more agile than expected, and in the blink of an eye, a large number of the monsters’ souls were claimed by the forest.

[R-Run…!! Hurry up and escape from their sacred laaaaand…!!] (Lizardman)

The lizardman rushed forward.

Following him as their commander-in-chief, the monsters also started running.

But the Wendigos of the Forest would not let them.

The thick green fog made them lose their bearings, and they slaughtered the monsters who got lost one after another.

[GYAAAAHH…!! AAAAAHHH…!!] (Monster B)

A monster who was running next to the lizardman was snatched by multiple Wendigos from the top of a tree.

The Demon King’s army ran in fear of the Wendigos, who brutally tore the monsters into pieces, chewed them, and toyed with their lumps of flesh regardless of their size, weight, race, etc.

Then, by the time they managed to escape the thick green fog, the Demon King’s army had been reduced to even less than half its original number.

When the thick fog cleared, they were greeted by the sight of the same old vast forest.

It was quiet, as if all the mayhem from earlier had been a lie. There was no blood, no flesh, and not even a trace of that agonizing spectacle.

[Ah… Aaahh… T-This is… a nightmare…] (Lizardman)

The lizardman slumped to the ground.

And so did his subordinates, even though the sacred land was still close by.

[I… I knew it… Even if it had taken us longer… we should’ve taken a detour. If we had, this would’ve never happened…] (Lizardman)

After staying there for a while, Sebek and Goburoku, who did not enter the sacred land and had gone around it by taking a different path, joined up with them.

[Man, that’s quite a number we’ve lost. …Nah, considering we got away with only this much damage, I guess it’s all good.] (Sebek) 

[There’s nothing good about that! J-Just… what in the world…!?] (Goburoku)

Goburoku was at a loss for words.

The other monsters helplessly glared at the two of them, but they did not look down on the man or abuse him as they usually did.

They had neither the physical nor mental strength to do so right now.

The Wendigos can’t leave their sacred land… But we’d better stay cautious. Why don’t we leave this place, Mr. Commander?] (Sebek)

[I-I get it… Don’t tell me… what to do…] (Lizardman)

The lizardman replied weakly, reorganized his troops and led the march again.

Everyone but Sebek had their faces painted with terror and emptiness, as if this had been the march of the dead.