Chapter 299
After leaving Namila Village, Adlus and the others traveled north under a clouded sky . It was the direction that the Queen’s Night Goblin had come from . That was the only reason, but that was all they had to go on .
Blizzards overtook them on the way, but they somehow arrived in the forest . And when they used Presence Detection, they found several goblins . Adlus hadn’t noticed it at that point, but their path was starting to veer to the east . It was likely because of the blizzard . We had been lucky to have good weather during our journey .
They advanced through the forest and exterminated several groups of goblins that they came across . It was through doing this that they discovered the giant tree . I didn’t know much about trees, but Daniela suggested that it was a ‘Nise Yggdra Tree . ’ They derived from the Yggdrasill trees that the ancient elves had planted, back when they ruled the world . But they no longer existed .
However, it was said that a Hero had found a branch in the past . And it was planted through cutting .
In any case, the goblin nest was under this great tree . Apparently, many years of rainwater had carved away at it . The water was absorbed into the ground and eventually created a cavern . Or so Adlus had said . And yet, the tree was not dead . I suppose that was why the Yggdrasil tree was so special .
“I sent some of our best scouts down there . According to them, there are countless goblins . ”
“Queens can give birth to many in just a week…this will be very dangerous . ”
How long had they been there underneath the Nise Yggdra tree? If it was a year, that would be fifty-two weeks .
“Just how many children can she give birth to at once?”
“According to the guild, approximately thirty . ”
“Ah…”
So, that could mean one thousand five hundred and sixty in one year? That was crazy . And considering a number of them could have evolved… No, I didn’t want to consider that .
“What about this? Pour oil into the hole and burn it . ”
“The Nise Yggdra is an important tree . We cannot burn it down . ”
Adlus said with a shake of his head .
“Besides, this is an underground nest that is filled with goblins . It is quite likely that there are other exits . If they were to escape, the damage will only increase . ”
“Well, it will be the same if we just attack them head-on, won’t it?”
They would run from us just as they would run from a fire . They would leave by their other exits and scatter .
“Indeed . That is the problem . We wanted someone who had overwhelming destructive power that didn’t rely on fire . ”
Adlus said as he turned to me . It was Daniela’s turn to shake her head .
“It might be possible with Asagi . But not now . His wounds are worse than I thought . As his partner, I cannot allow it . ”
“This is not the time for such concerns . Surely, you can understand? There is a horde of monsters down there . And the stampede is already starting . ”
Adlus had done some research on us before . And so he knew . We had once prevented a stampede from occurring . This was a similar situation . Perhaps it was much worse .
“…Alright . I’ll do it . ”
“Hey, Asagi . Wait . ”
“But, Daniela . There will be no point if I don’t do it now . It will be hard, but I have no choice . You understand, don’t you?”
“…”
I could tell that she was thinking about what happened last time .
“We protected Spiris . We have no reason to act differently with the Imperial City . ”
“I understand the reason . It makes sense . But my feelings will not allow it . Asagi, you are falling apart . I cannot allow you to be whipped any harder . I do not want to . You are important to me . ”
She held my arm and would not let go . It was as if she felt that once she did, I would go someplace that was far away… I could sense the desperation through her grip .
Sponsored Content
“You’re right . I’m a wreck inside . It was the price I paid for overusing my skills . I can’t fight like I want to . However, I can still fight a little . Even if it’s not enough, you are all with me . Adlus is reliable . Manager will be there too . And of course, you, Daniela . And so I can fight . ”
“…”
“Besides, I hate the idea of coming this far and not being able to do anything . If there is something that only I can do, then I want to do it . ”
That’s the way it has always been . That’s how I survived in this world . My time in this world had not been that long, but it was more eventful than all the years I lived before it .
And yet, even someone like me was capable of helping others . That was something I learned . The day that I first killed someone, I also saved a small girl . It was a painful experience, but the thing I felt more than anything was joy over saving her .
“…Yes…yes, I understand . Now that I think about it, you have always acted that way . You are not capable of ignoring someone that is in need of help . I know that more than anyone…”
Daniela let go of my arm and smiled with resignation .
“That’s my nature…I guess . I never really thought about it until now . But that’s just how I am . ”
“Yes . It is how you are . And I would prefer it that you live as yourself, Asagi . ”
I couldn’t suppress the overwhelming emotion rising up within me . And before I knew it, I was embracing her tightly .
“Thank you… It’s because of you that I can still fight, Daniela . ”
“Asagi…”
“Daniela…”
Her arms slowly rose to my back . Then she hugged me, much tighter than I had her . And then our lips drew towards each other . The platinum eyelashes closed over her jade-colored eyes, and her lips and my lips…
“Well, I suppose we should hold a war council then . ”
Sponsored Content
We moved away as if Adlus’s voice had torn us apart .
The meeting began two minutes later . Well, since we were outside, we were all still standing . But there was a table made of ice in the center that the seven of us stood around . Adlus, Manager, Daniela, me, and three scouts . Perhaps we were his favorites .
“Now, please repeat your findings to Asagi and Daniela . ”
“Understood . ”
Anis, the short-haired scout leader, turned to us with a sharp expression . It made you want to straighten your back .
“There is a large cavity near the base of the Nise Yggdra Tree . And when we searched with Presence Detection, we sensed numerous monsters below . Even around the tree, there were many claw marks and filth that further confirmed that this was the goblin nest . ”
Hmm . Daniela nodded .
“But did you see them?”
“Yes . We observed them both outside and inside of the nest . ”
“And how was it inside?”
“It…”
Anis’s eyebrows lowered and she suddenly seemed hesitant .
“We do not have the Night Eyes skill, so we could not clearly make out what it was like . However, we could tell that there were many goblins by using Presence Detection . That is for certain . ”
“I see… So that’s where I come in . ”
Sponsored Content
I looked at Anis with Night Eyes and she looked surprised . She had a very expressive face .
“Thankfully, I also have equipment that goes well with Presence Block, so I should be able to find out what is happening . ”
“You have many skills…”
She looked a little discouraged . I shook my head .
“But I’m a master with none of them . You can’t beat a professional . In fact, I was hoping you could teach me a few things later . ”
“If there is anything that I can help you with…”
Then she straightened her posture and did a perfect ninety-degree bow . And so I frantically bowed my head as well .
“What are you doing…”
Adlus looked at us coldly . Anis suddenly seemed embarrassed .
“Regardless, we should expect the worst . And that is how we will plan . ”
Everyone nodded and the discussion began .
It continued for some time . It soon grew dark, and food was brought to us . And still, the talks continued . This time, I wasn’t manipulated . Many ideas were brought forward and many rejected . We took short breaks in between, but I couldn’t think of anything else but the plan…
In the end, one of the Jades who was taking the night watch had to tell us rather unkindly to get some sleep .
The moon was starting to fall by the time we retired to our beds .
The next morning, we continued where we left off . Once we had thought of and discussed everything that we could, we inspected what we had come up with .
Please download our sponsor's game to support us!