CH 55

Words : 1070 Updated : Sep 12th, 2025

Orcs Appeared After walking for about an hour, we started to be able to hear the sounds of running water up ahead. This was…the same sound I heard when we first got lost here. “Everyone. The river seems to be close by. …Lady Claire, you will be able to rest once we reach the river.” “…Ha…ha…very well. I can keep going…until we reach it…ha…” “Are you all right, Lady Claire?” “…I can manage… Ha…ha…” Apparently, Ms. Claire wasn’t used to walking in the forest, and was very tired. And she was quite out of breath as she answered the worried Johanna. Sebastian, Phillip, and Ms. Lyra all walked in the lead and cut down any ivy, grass or branches that were in the way so that it would be easier to walk. But the ground was still not even, and so it was difficult to walk. Someone who usually lived in a mansion would not have many opportunities to travel through a place like this, and she was also a noblewoman. And though it was the lightest out of all the baggage, she still had to carry something. While I was also a little tired, I somehow managed to walk without getting out of breath. After all, I had been made to work until midnight several nights in a row, or given work from morning until night without breaks in the middle of summer during my last job. So this was nothing in comparison. When I was made to work outside, it was less exhaustion and more dehydration that made me feel dizzy… Leo was walking next to me. And since she was so big, the branches and grass still hit her even after Sebastian and the others had cleared a path, but she showed no signs of noticing and was still in a good mood as she walked. That’s a Silver Fenrir for you, huh? But even when she was small, it was always me who became tired first when taking her out to play. “Lady Claire, it’s just a little farther now.” “…Yes… Ha…ha…” Sebastian said to Ms. Claire as we continued on. The sounds of the rushing water were getting louder. We would likely arrive in the next ten minutes… It was just as I thought this that Leo’s tail pointed upwards suddenly. “What is it, Leo?” “Wou! …Oooooo!” “Why are you growling?” After barking once, Leo started to growl. “Sebastian, please stop. Leo is…” “What is it, Leo?” I called out to Sebastian, who was in the lead, and everyone stopped. Leo was still growling as she looked up ahead, and then glared towards the right. “Wou! Wou!” “…I see.” Ms. Claire looked at Leo and then turned to me with a worried expression. While no one was far away, I spoke in a loud voice so that they would all hear. “I believe an orc is approaching us!” “…Ha…ahh…an orc…” Thanks to everyone stopping, Ms. Claire was able to catch her breath. “An orc…Phillip!” “Yes! Johanna, Nicola. You know what to do.” “Yes! We won’t let them touch a hair on Lady Claire’s head!” “Understood!” As soon as Sebastian called Philip’s name, they all moved at once. Phillip, Johanna and Nicolas? all lined up in the direction that Leo was looking. And then Sebastian and Lyra stood in front of Ms. Claire as if to protect her. “Wooooooo.” Leo continued to growl. And then, from the direction that Leo was glaring, the sounds of several figures moving through the trees and grass could be heard. “Woof! Wou-wou-wou! Grou!” The first woof was for orc, and the three wous meant three…so there were three of them…I think? “There are three orcs. Please be careful!” “Yes!” “Aye!” “Understood.” …One of them…Nicolas? Talked in a more formal way than the others…but this was not the time to be making such observations. The guards were all brandishing their weapons. Leo was also ready to pounce at any moment. Her sharp claws ended from her paws. Just in case, I too unsheathed my short sword that Sebastian had given me. …I had never wielded a sword before… “It’s heavier than I expected…” I wasn’t confident that I could swing it when it mattered… Once the orcs became visible through the gaps between the trees, there was an air of nervousness that overcame us. And just like the one I first encountered in this forest, the orcs that emerged from the trees were wielding spears with rusted heads. Their bodies were plump and they had the heads of pigs. “Gyuuo!” “Gyu-gyu!” “Gyugigigigi!” While they may have resembled pigs, their voices were quite different. And as Leo had said, there were three of them. They each looked at us and cried. Then they directed their spears at us and began to run. However, perhaps their round stomachs got in the way, and they could not run very fast. But the weight made the sounds of their footsteps very loud. If they charged at you like that, a light person would easily be thrown into the air. Upon seeing the orcs run towards us, Phillip and the others went into a low stance in order to intercept them. But then, Leo passed the three guards and jumped onto the orcs. “Leo!?” Leo was moving so fast that my eyes could barely follow her. And with this inhuman speed, she reached the orcs and unleashed an upper slash with the extended claws of her right paw. The first orc was cut from the left side of its stomach to the right armpit. It fell to the ground in two pieces. But without delay, Leo’s left paw flashed from below. And then the second orc fell after splitting in two from the opposite side. Upon seeing this, the last orc became very afraid, and it stopped and was about to turn around to flee…but it was too late. The moment that the second orc was slashed open, Leo had pounced forward and caught the last orc’s throat with her jaws. “Graauu!” “Gyuuaaaaa!” The orc’s cry echoed through the forest. And then they were all dead. Both the guards and I were unable to follow all of Leo’s movements. So we just stood there. Watching but not wholly comprehending.

CH 55

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