SWY 123

The next morning, the group shared the remaining jerky and water to fill their stomachs. Though Sharhan had woken in the middle of the night and struggled to fall back asleep, he’d managed to get some rest afterward, and his body didn’t feel too bad. Ardelle and Samson, who had slept the best, were visibly refreshed. Their faces practically glowed.

Lestel was the exception.

He’s got dark circles under his eyes.

Seeing that only Lestel didn’t look well-rested, Sharhan brought a piece of jerky to his mouth.

“Did you not sleep? What’s with that face?”

While Ardelle and Samson chatted, Lestel seized the chance to give Sharhan’s hand a firm squeeze before letting go again. Then he smiled and replied,

“What about my face? I’m always good-looking.”

“If we had a mirror, I’d show you how deep those shadows under your eyes are.”

“That’s what gives me that decadent charm, don’t you think? It’s a kind of appeal.”

“Are you seriously saying that when you reek? What kind of charm is that?”

“Anyone hearing this would think you smelled like flowers. You stink just as much as I do.”

“Yes, yes, whatever you say. Here, eat this.”

Sharhan shoved another piece of jerky into Lestel’s mouth. His finger briefly slid inside, and when he pulled it out, Lestel wrinkled his nose.

“That’s disgusting!”

Despite the words, there was laughter in the corners of Lestel’s eyes.

“I washed my hands, okay?”

As Sharhan and Lestel bickered again, Ardelle shook her head and asked,

“What about the horses?”

“We’ll have to leave them.”

They needed to move in secret, and the sound of hooves would give them away. The horses were large and could be spotted from a distance.

“Is that safe? What if those guys come looking for them again? I overheard one of them while sneaking around, some greedy bastard of a leader gave strict orders to capture the horses alive.”

Thunder and Lightning were clearly thoroughbreds, great for transportation, and in the worst case, could be killed for meat. On top of that, they were still carrying Lestel and Sharhan’s luggage, making them prime targets for survivors.

“Thunder and Lightning aren’t easy to catch. You saw it too.”

Ardelle recalled the horses lashing out violently yesterday, one of them kicking a man armed with a weapon straight off his feet. She nodded, but a new worry surfaced.

“They were hanging around near the storehouse, probably because of Derry, but if something spooks them, they could run off.”

“It’s fine, we have this.”

Sharhan held up a whistle. Seeing the confused look, he explained its use. Ardelle finally let out a breath of relief. She hadn’t said it aloud, but she’d been quite worried about losing the horses.

“Done eating?”

Ardelle popped the last sliver of jerky into her mouth, she’d been nibbling at it to make it last, then stood up. The three men followed, each shouldering their gear.

“Let’s move out.”

Carefully opening the door in case of danger outside, Sharhan stepped out first, surveyed the area, and gave a nod.

Thunder and Lightning trotted over, nickering in greeting. As Sharhan stroked Lightning’s neck, he noticed Lestel tying something onto Thunder’s saddle and walked over.

“You’re not bringing that?”

Sharhan, remembering how they’d been caught in the avalanche while chatting outside the villa and had to struggle empty-handed, had packed everything he thought they’d need.

“Yeah. It’s important and could break.”

“What is it?”

“Oil.”

He didn’t even need to ask what kind of oil it was for.

“……”

“Thunder, guard this well.”

“You lunatic.”

Sharhan glared at Lestel, ears turning red, then hugged Lightning’s neck and whispered, “Wait here safely,” before walking off. Thankfully, the smart horse didn’t try to follow.

Sharhan and Lestel led the way while Ardelle and Samson followed behind, all four of them scanning their surroundings constantly. They couldn’t afford to let their guard down, not when a moving corpse or survivor could appear at any moment. Even their footsteps were kept quiet.

Soon, they reached the site of yesterday’s battle.

The corpses from the storehouse group were still sprawled everywhere, already attracting flies. Whether drawn by the stench of blood or the sound of yesterday’s fight, a few moving corpses had also appeared.

Moving corpses only fed on the living, so they ignored the rigid, dead bodies and wandered the area with vacant eyes.

“Who wants to do it?”

“There’s four of them, so how about one each?”

Sharhan replied to Lestel’s question. Ardelle and Samson agreed.

Just as the corpses turned toward them at the sound of their voices, the group attacked and swiftly dispatched one each.

“Are you sure this is the place?!”

A careless voice rang out. The group exchanged glances and quickly hid. Ardelle and Sharhan leapt up into the trees, while Samson and Lestel ducked behind them.

“Y-yes, I’m sure. Lieutenant Paul’s trail leads here… T-the bodies…”

Soon, five men emerged. At the front was a man in his forties with a rat-like face. Short and thin, he clearly had a weak stomach, he collapsed with a “Hiiik” at the sight of the mangled corpses. The others kicked him.

Sharhan peered down silently. From what he could tell, they were searching for someone named Paul, who had likely been the leader among the men they fought yesterday.

Bows, swords, spears, axes… Quite the variety.

Each weapon was caked in dried blood, as if displayed for intimidation. It would’ve been enough to make anyone faint, if they weren’t used to violence.

But Sharhan didn’t think they were trained fighters like mercenaries or knights. If they were, even one of them would’ve checked their surroundings before gawking at the corpses. These men didn’t.

“Shit, we see corpses every damn day. Stop being a baby. These guys are on our side, aren’t they?”

“Yeah. They were with Lieutenant Paul yesterday, trying to catch the horses. I wonder who got them?”

“If they were taken out this easily, the enemy must be pretty strong. Maybe a tough survivor group has moved in nearby.”

“Could be. Might even be a leftover mercenary unit. First, find Lieutenant Paul’s body. We need to know if he’s dead or taken.”

“Captain Gil, I found it. Lieutenant Paul’s body.”

A man with a bow on his back pointed it out. The one called Gil stepped up, confirmed the face, and clicked his tongue.

“Shit. He looked down on us just because he could fight a little, and now he’s dead. Dumb bastard. Must’ve let the horses get away too. Thought he was hot shit when I said I’d go instead.”

“What should we do? Should we go report back to the boss right away?”

Captain Gil scratched his chin with the hilt of his sword, scanning the area before kicking the rat-faced man again.

“Hey, rat. You can track horses, right? That’s your specialty.”

The rat-faced man nodded.

“Y-yeah. I can.”

“That’s a disrespectful tone.”

“S-sorry! I can do it.”

“Captain Gil, are we really going to track the horses?”

“Of course. Didn’t you hear what the boss said? We have to bring them back!”

“But shouldn’t we report about Lieutenant Paul first–?”

“What good will that do? It’s not like he’ll come back to life. Paul’s dead, but the horses aren’t. If we cheer the boss up by catching them, he’ll be pleased.”

“Still…”

“You know how many perks that bastard got by kissing up to the boss? Now it’s our chance to take his place!”

Gil looked over his men, casually kicking Paul’s corpse. His gaze was dark and heavy. The subordinates hesitated but eventually nodded. They hadn’t been particularly loyal anyway.

As Gil’s group chattered, Sharhan’s team exchanged subtle glances. They only needed to keep one alive. They’d planned to go back to the storehouse and quietly capture someone, but these men had bought them time.

Sharhan gestured toward the rat-faced man, and Lestel nodded.

“Hey rat, come over here and start tracking the horses.”

Just as the rat-faced man staggered to his feet, Sharhan leapt from the tree and drove his spear into the chest of the man holding a bow. The man didn’t even have time to notch an arrow.

“Wh-what…?”

Lestel stepped from behind the tree and brought his axe down on the head of the man with the spear. Ardelle’s thrown stone hit another man square in the forehead just as he raised his own axe.

With a choked grunt, he staggered, and Samson slit his throat with a strangely shaped blade. Blood sprayed like a fountain. In an instant, three were dead. Only Captain Gil remained.

“Who the hell are you?!”

His voice, once arrogant, now quivered with fear. Sharhan silently grabbed the fallen bow and arrow and nocked it in one fluid motion, aiming straight at Gil. The moment Gil spun around and tried to flee, Sharhan loosed the arrow.

Whoosh! The arrow hit Gil’s back, and he fell forward. But it hadn’t killed him. He began crawling desperately, arrow still lodged in his back, his will to live was so absurd it made Sharhan snort.

Just as Sharhan stepped forward to finish him off, someone darted past him like a squirrel and pushed the arrow deeper. It was the rat-faced man. After making sure Gil had stopped moving, he dropped to his knees and cried out,

“I know where the food storage is!”