Monster Hunting Part 3

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My breathing was rough, sweat clung to my skin, and my heartbeat was intense. My lungs screamed in protest as I forced my legs to move. Despite the fatigue building up throughout my body, I persevered.

My magic power seemed to be running out, and my body felt sluggish, making it difficult to move the way I wanted to. But I knew that lamenting wouldn’t change the reality of the situation.

“Theon!” My sister’s voice rang out as she fought off a group of Kobolds a few meters away.

Without waiting for instructions, I gathered my magic and immediately released a Lightning Burst. The electric shock emanating from both my hands struck several Kobolds, causing them to scream, convulse, and fall to the ground.

I had lost count of how many enemies we had defeated. This was probably the fifth village we had encountered, and we had already taken down over a hundred monsters. Of course, most of them were defeated by my father or Glast.

“Oraa!”

“Hmph!”

Father and Glast fought alongside us, easily defeating the Kobolds. My father stuck to the basics with his one-handed sword, while Glast wielded two short swords with skill and finesse. Both of them were too strong for us to learn from.

Although my sister and I fought well, we were no match for the two of them. Thanks to their strength, we were able to dispatch the Kobolds relatively easily.

As I fought, I realized I was running out of magic. If I used any more, I wouldn’t be able to move. I was close to my mental limit and didn’t feel like doing anything.

A minute passed before Father spoke. “Hmm, looks like we wiped them out.”

“That’s all? They didn’t even put up a fight,” Glast added, sounding disappointed.

While they may not have been satisfied, my sister and I were on the brink of exhaustion. “Haa, haa… Is it over?” I asked, panting heavily.

“I think so…”

We fought together in perfect harmony, breathing in unison despite it being our first battle. There were countless things we were unsure of, but we managed to wipe out all the Kobolds earlier. I didn’t feel any monster presence in the village.

“I can’t do it anymore… I’m exhausted,” I admitted, sitting down on the ground.

“Me too… I’ve reached my limit,” my sister added, sitting next to me.

Despite our daily training and stamina, we were far from matching the energy and endurance of Father and Glast, who didn’t even seem to be out of breath. It felt like catching up to them would be a daunting task.

“But we also learned that we can fight,” she said.

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“Yeah, just that alone made today’s battle worthwhile.”

“I suppose so… But I need to become even stronger. I learned a lot.”

It seemed Marie had also found her own challenges to overcome. Practice and real-life combat were truly different. There was a lot more to realize in the latter.

“Now, let’s gather the Kobold’s ears and loot. You guys can rest,” our father said.

Father and the Glast seemed to be searching for the stolen goods the Kobolds had within the village. While the Kobolds had a certain level of creativity, it wasn’t as much as humans. If they had anything of value, it would most likely be either stolen goods or resources like minerals.

After attacking the enemy’s base, it was a basic principle to gather the loot following the battle. So mu father and Glast were exploring the village while we rested since we had no energy left to move.

As I rested for a while, my breathing gradually calmed down. However, my lethargy didn’t go away. I might not be able to move tomorrow.

While I was thinking about that, I suddenly looked up for no particular reason. For some reason, unconsciously, my gaze was fixed on one of the tents. I stood up and slowly moved towards it.

“Theon, what’s wrong?” my sister asked.

“I don’t know, but I feel like there’s something… there.” I replied, sensing something was communicating with me. “Come this way,” it seemed to say.

Despite the lack of evidence, I stumbled towards the tent, and upon entering, I was met with the sight of many ornaments made of bone and wood. It was clear that this was the dwelling of a relatively high-ranking kobold.

As my sister and I ventured deeper into the dimly lit interior, I saw a faint light in a particular direction that drew me towards it. “Th-Theon, it’s dark and dangerous in here!” my sister exclaimed, her voice trembling slightly.

Although there were no monsters around, the darkness still frightened her. She held onto my arm as we cautiously approached the light source.

To my surprise, the source of the light was a humanoid creature in a birdcage. It glowed all over and looked sad, sitting down with its wings hanging limply from its back. The creature was in the form of a young girl, but her eyes and hair were unlike those of a human.

I had seen this before, from afar. It was a fairy.

The moment the fairy noticed me, she trembled in fear. Had she been captured by the kobolds? As I approached, she moved away from me, as if afraid.

I suddenly realized that the light she emitted was magical in nature. It didn’t shine on the birdcage or illuminate the area around her. Fairies are imbued with magic, as are goblins and kobolds. Magical creatures possess magical power.

I knew it was dangerous to approach them, but for now, I could confirm that it was indeed a fairy.

“What is this, child?” my sister asked, eyeing the fairy.

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“I think it’s probably a fairy,” I replied.

“A fairy? You mentioned them before, right? They’re different from magical creatures, aren’t they?”

“I’m not sure, but I think they’re probably less dangerous than magical creatures.”

The fairy seemed to be weaker and afraid of us, likely due to a scary experience. Though she appeared weak and dirty, she did not appear injured.

“What do you want to do with her, Theon? There’s a fairy shop nearby where we could sell her.”

“I’m not really enthusiastic about that.”

Although I was initially intrigued by the idea of the fairy shop, I find myself conflicted about selling living creatures, especially if they’re humanoid. It feels hypocritical of me, but it just doesn’t sit right. Plus, seeing how pitiful and weak she was…

“Should we let her go?”

“If you want to, it’s okay, right?” My sister smiled a little happily. It seemed she had the same idea.

I approached the birdcage. As I did, the fairy trembled and produced a small magical light at the corner of her mouth, appearing nervous.

I opened the birdcage with ease, wondering why the kobolds didn’t have the same knowledge or dexterity.

As the fairy hesitantly made her way out of the cage, she stared at me with fear in her eyes. Then, in the next moment, she flapped her wings and flew up into the air.

“Oh, she can fly after all.”

“…Beautiful.”

Countless particles of light slowly fall to the ground. It was mesmerizing and captivating.

Perhaps the fairy was happy to be free, as she flew around above us, but eventually came to a stop in the air. Then she produced a magical light from her mouth and flew away.

I hope she can make it back safely.

“Looks like she’s doing better than I thought.”

“Yeah, and it was great to see the fairy too.”

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I had been so caught up in my studies of magic and helping out Glast that I had neglected to learn more about fairies and monsters. It was a topic that I knew I should explore, but it seemed like something to tackle at a later time.

Lost in thought, I was jolted back to reality by Marie’s small scream. She had stumbled, and I quickly rushed to her side.

“Are you okay? Did you hurt yourself?” I asked with concern.

Marie shook her head. “N-no, I just feel a little dizzy. I think it’s because I’m tired.”

I could relate. Despite our training, my sister and I were still just children, and we were tired from all the new experiences.

I tried to help her by getting closer and offering her my hand. But she gently refused my hand. “I can walk. Thank you.”

I relented and watched her carefully as we made our way back to our father’s side.

●○●○

On the way back.

We were clearly walking at a slower pace due to fatigue. Amidst that, something caught my eye and I stopped.

“What’s up, Theon?” Father asked.

“Father. There’s a lake over there.”

“True. It’s a forest, so it’s not unusual to have a lake around here.”

“I wonder if there are any Ettentraut in there?” I asked.

“There probably are. They’re usually found in most lakes around here. What’s the matter?”

“I want to check something. Can I go over there?”

“Sure, go ahead.”

I headed towards the lake. It was a normal lake without any distinctive features, and it wasn’t the spawning season for Ettentraut, so they weren’t displaying any mating behavior that produces magical light. But that was alright. It was more reliable that way.

However, that wasn’t what I was interested in. I stared at the lake, and kept staring and staring.

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“What’s Theon doing?”

“I have no idea.”

“It looks like he’s looking at something.”

The three of them watched me from behind for a while. I continued to stare at the bottom of the lake until I finally stood up.

“Okay, let’s go back,” I said.

“Are you done already?”

“Yeah, I found out what I wanted to know.”

“So, what was it that you wanted to know, Theon?”

I glanced at the lake in response to my sister’s question.

“I wanted to know if the Ettentraut in this lake have magical powers. I found out that they don’t.”

I have been practicing and training my magical abilities for a long time, which allowed me to sense the level of magic power in a certain object to some extent.

Goblin, Ettentraut.

Marie and Rose.

Myself.

Even if I don’t release magic power or activate the magic state aura, magic power flows through my body. If I concentrate, I can tell whether something has magic power or not. So, I realized that there are no creatures with magic in this lake. In other words, only the Ettentraut living in the lake near my home have it. I should consider that there is something in that lake. I don’t know anything more than that, but that’s enough for now.

“Then let’s go back,” I said, and the three of them were a little bewildered, but they quickly regained their composure. We left the lake and returned to Istria, where we reported our achievement to the guild and then returned home.

Mission Details: Kobold Subjugation
Conditions for Achievement: Subjugation of at least five bodies
Reward Amount: 5,000 Lirums per body
Actual Subjugation Count: 112 bodies
Total Reward Amount: 112,000 Lirums.

 

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