Chapter 57

Chapter 57

They walked for about three hours, following where the tree branch pointed.

Thud!

“Ouch!”

Sari tripped over a rock and fell.

Thick, dark blood flowed from her knee.

‘I’d forgotten for a moment. That Sari was a Grey Elf.’

Being among the Grey Elves all day, I’d momentarily forgotten.

That to Dojae, they were monsters.

Dojai turned away from the black blood he could never get used to and handed her a low-grade potion.

“Here, pour it on the wound.”

Even a slightly torn wound could be healed instantly with just a lowest-grade potion.

And sure enough, the moment Sari spilled the potion on her knee, the wound began healing rapidly.

“Thanks, Dojae.”

Sari said in a slightly gloomy voice.

Dojae checked her condition and then sat her down on some dry grass nearby.

“Let’s rest for a moment.”

“No, I’m fine now. Let’s hurry!”

Sari tried to stand.

Dojae pressed her shoulders down again.

Sari’s forehead was glistening with sweat, and her expression clearly showed exhaustion.

Night would soon fall, and moving any further would only slow them down and increase Sari’s fatigue.

“Let’s rest here tonight.”

“Rest here? Sleeping like this is dangerous. If we don’t keep walking…”

“Don’t worry, Sari.”

Dojae opened his pocket dimension and pulled out the golems.

These were the four golems remaining after the battle with Rishun.

“Mon… Monsters!”

Sari jumped up in shock.

The golems he’d brought out to reassure her ended up startling her instead.

“It’s okay. They’re my golems.”

Dojae’s gentle words made Sari breathe a sigh of relief.

Her fatigue seemed to be greatly amplified by the tension.

“These golems will protect us today, so relax and get some rest.”

The golems scattered and took their positions in the four cardinal directions.

They were the strongest ones, forged from one A-grade magic stone and three B-grade magic stones.

Even while ordering the attack on Lishun, I had spared these ones specifically, wanting to keep them alive. In hindsight, it was a good decision to leave them behind.

Flutter-.

Dojae pulled out Sari’s backpack and also took out a sleeping bag, unfolding it.

Then he leaned his back against a sturdy tree.

“Get in there and get some shut-eye.”

“Huh? Here?”

“Yeah, it’s soft and fluffy, so it’ll be warm and comfortable.”

Dojae gave up his only sleeping bag for Sari.

He could get enough sleep just by closing his eyes for a moment.

But Sari was extremely exhausted.

It was better to let her rest properly, even if just for tomorrow.

“Wow… Just like Dojae said, it’s really warm and cozy.”

Sari crawled into the sleeping bag and said with a satisfied voice.

“It’s the opposite.”

Dojae said, stifling a laugh.

Sari had actually crawled into the sleeping bag, leaving only her feet peeking out.

“You were laughing just now! How could you not know? How could you possibly be mocking me?”

“I didn’t laugh.”

“Ugh… Sorry, Dojae. It’s my fault… Annoying, isn’t it?”

“Nah, not really.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, really.”

Just as he’d told Sari, Dojae genuinely didn’t find her bothersome.

She was extremely knowledgeable about the mountain’s terrain, and thanks to that, they could take a shortcut and quickly cross over one mountain.

Moreover, Dojae wasn’t walking slowly; he was moving at a brisk pace. Just keeping up with that speed alone made it clear to Sari that he wasn’t human, but a Grey Elf.

The only thing lacking was experience.

She possessed extensive knowledge of the mountains, but this was only her third time venturing outside the village. Her nerves were frayed, sapping her stamina.

“Hey, Dojae. Can’t you tell me a little about yourself? Your mysterious magic pouch, cup noodles, even the golem. Come to think of it, I don’t know anything about you at all.”

Come to think of it, Dojae had only ever asked questions; he’d never properly answered Sari’s.

‘Have I ever told anyone about myself?’

Unwanted memories of Chilgok High’s Class 3 and Eun-hee surfaced.

Dojae hesitated for a moment, wondering what to say, then opened his mouth.

After all, he was a different being from another world.

He decided to just tell her whatever came to mind.

“The place I lived was called Earth…”

Softly, softly-.

Just as Dojae’s story was about to begin, Sari’s breathing could be heard.

She had already drifted off to dreamland.

Dojae also stopped talking and closed his eyes.

‘What the hell, you’re not even listening.’

***

Rustle-!

Dawn was breaking.

The sound of footsteps crunching on grass reached her ears.

Startled by the unfamiliar sound, Sari awoke from her sleep.

“Dojae?”

Dojae had already turned his body toward the source of the sound.

“Something is coming.”

Dojae drew his sword and aimed it toward the forest.

Footsteps grew steadily closer.

Soon, a massive figure emerged from between the trees.

“Kuuuuu!”

A monster, a Horned Boar.

A Grade 5 monster, it possessed horns capable of piercing steel and jaws strong enough to crush rocks.

“Dojae! Run for your life! Escape!”

Sari grabbed Dojae’s arm, ready to run.

But Dojae stood still and asked.

“Sari, is that thing a monster? Or is it another species?”

“You idiot! Can’t you tell? Look at it drooling. It’s trying to eat us!”

“So it’s a monster.”

Dojae drew up his mana.

Dirt and rocks from the surrounding area climbed up Dojae’s legs.

The same method he’d used when he first met Son Jeong-gyu from Chilgok High’s Class 3.

He utilized the partial golem armor.

Whoosh-!

Scratch-.

“Whoa!”

Sari was startled and jumped back.

The boar’s neck had been severed, blood spurting like a fountain onto the ground.

Thud-.

The headless boar’s body crashed to the ground with a thunderous roar.

“Dojae, you’re incredible! Even in our village, only a warrior of Kuchan’s caliber can hunt a Horned Boar! And you killed one with a single strike!”

Sari approached the boar, marveling at Dojae’s skill.

Meanwhile, Dojae slowly looked at his sword.

‘This is quite a fine sword, isn’t it?’

Dojae’s sword, Black Scale, seemed to suck in the blood.

The sticky blood of the horned boar flowed down the engraved patterns, leaving not a single drop on the blade.

It felt as if the sword itself was absorbing the blood.

Thud, thud.

Sari picked up a fallen branch and stabbed the horned boar.

True to its nature as a monster, its body twitched with each stab from the branch.

“What a waste. Horned boar meat sells for a high price, and I have to leave it behind.”

“Sari, what did you just say?”

“Huh? Oh, fresh horned boar meat tastes incredibly good. But it spoils quickly, so it’s hard to eat. That’s why it sells for a high price. Let’s just cut off those horns and go. Horned boar horns make excellent trumpet material and will sell well.”

“Oh… I see.”

Dojae drew his dagger and sliced off the horned boar’s front leg.

The dagger displayed incredible cutting power, creating a perfect clean cut without requiring much force.

Then he opened his pocket dimension and swallowed the torso whole.

“Right! Dojae’s mysterious pouch!”

Dojae began carving off the rest of the horned boar’s horns.

Once again, it sliced cleanly through the horn without requiring much force.

Even if this wasn’t the ‘Srakka’s Fang’, it was an incredibly good dagger for something obtained for free.

“Sari, do you know how to cook this?”

Dojae handed the boar’s front leg to Sari.

Sari nodded solemnly.

“I’ll show you a dish that blows instant noodles out of the water!”

Sari rolled up her sleeves and pulled out various cooking tools from her backpack.

She then began cooking the wild boar foreleg with practiced ease.

‘Who knew I’d end up eating monster meat.’

Ordinary people don’t eat monsters.

Monsters are targets for killing, not ingredients.

However, a small number of humans eat monsters and call themselves gourmets.

But to others, it’s ‘monster cuisine’.

So most people called them monstrosity eaters.

And now.

Dojae intends to become one of those bizarre food enthusiasts.

‘If possible, it’s better to prevent waste by using what’s available locally rather than raiding the warehouse.’

Even though there was plenty of food in the sub-space, Dojae decided it was better to save when he could.

And a little bit…

He was also a little curious about the taste of horned boar meat.

“It’s ready! Try it. You’ll be surprised!”

Sari brought out a stew with large chunks of meat floating in it.

Half worried, half hopeful, Dojae dipped his spoon in.

Slurp.

Dojae tasted the stew.

His eyes widened as he couldn’t stop spooning it up.

‘This is delicious, isn’t it?’

***

Dojae and Sari continued toward the kingdom, slowly but steadily.

They needed to rest frequently for Sari, and each time, Dojae put on a spectacular monster dismemberment show.

He had preemptively ordered the golems to lead the way, hunting every monster they encountered. Thus, without much fighting, they steadily filled their sub-space.

And then, around the time the sun rose high in the sky.

The golems returned bearing their prey, and interestingly, a dwarf was among them.

‘What’s that?’

Dojae scrutinized the dwarf’s appearance.

A muscular physique that would put Zuk to shame, a stout build barely reaching Dojae’s waist, and fists so large they stood out.

He was the very image of a dwarf Dojae had imagined.

“Let go, you bastards!”

The dwarf stamped his feet and yelled at the top of his lungs.

“Huh? Why is a dwarf here?”

Sari asked with a curious look.

As she said, the dwarf was indeed a dwarf.

‘I suppose he had no choice but to bring it along since he was told not to hunt humanoid monsters.’

Dojae had ordered the golem not to hunt human-shaped monsters but to send them away.

If they hunted the gray elf wandering outside the village, wouldn’t Sari be shocked?

‘If they’d just left, I would have let them go.’

The large scar marks on the golems.

They were healing quickly, but they were clearly made by the small double-bladed axe held in that dwarf’s hand.

The golems had decided to subdue him and bring him to Dohae, caught between Dohae’s orders and the dwarf’s attack.

“Dwarf, why are you in the Kuran Mountains?”

Sari stepped forward to ask.

A language different from any heard before.

Unlike the Grey Elf language, heavy with bursting sounds like ‘k’ and ‘t’, this one had many soft sounds.

“The common tongue? That’s fortunate. Hey, elf lass over there, lend me a hand. These golems are incredibly strong!”

The dwarf struggles desperately.

Sari gave Daejae a meaningful glance.

Trusting Sari, Dojae commanded the golems to release the dwarf.

Thud.

The dwarf fell to the floor.

After a moment, he shrugged his shoulders, straightened his chest, and declared boldly.

“Hmph! I don’t know why you dragged me all the way here, but with this broad chest of mine, I’ll pretend nothing just happened! Now then, I’ll be off.”

The dwarf hurriedly tried to leave.

“Hold on, you there, dwarf!”

But Dojae stopped the dwarf in his tracks.

“Ahem! I am Oson Ironhammer, son of the proud Pusson Ironhammer. I have a name, after all!”

“So, proud dwarf. You intend to run away like this?”

“Heeek! What nonsense! This Oson Ironhammer does not run away! Where did you hear such nonsense?”

“Then what about them?”

Dojae pointed at the golems.

The golems, which had stopped repairing their wounds at some point.

No, they looked like they were about to collapse, beyond just being wounded.

“What… What the hell! Why are they acting like that?”

“It’s probably because of you? You’re not just going to leave, are you?”

Osun panicked.

Dojae watched this scene, his eyes flashing with certainty.