novelraw Chapter 70
Chapter 70
Chapter 70
After being toyed with by that cunning Leon, I went up to the gate, thinking I should at least get some fresh air.
Right now, it was Rudick’s turn to guard the gate along with the 2nd Knight Order.
When I climbed up and looked down, I saw Rudick yelling loudly while pinning a few knights to the ground.
It seemed that some rookie knights who weren’t used to gate defense had made mistakes.
The 2nd Knight Order was composed entirely of knights who had been promoted from soldiers.
Whenever Rudick was deployed with the 2nd Knight Order to defend the gate, he always showed a rather sharp side.
And that was only natural.
At this northern fortress, a single mistake could endanger not only oneself but also one’s comrades.
Even though things had gotten easier, it was still a season and place where a careless slip could lead to disaster.
Especially when commanding a unit filled with so many men unfamiliar with gate defense, he had to be several times more cautious than usual.
Sure, we had enough potions stocked to overcome most injuries, but that only mattered if you stayed alive in the first place.
After driving the knights hard for quite some time, Rudick finally ordered them to clean up the field, then climbed up onto the gate.
But the moment he spotted me, the guy who’d been red and fuming just moments ago suddenly grinned from ear to ear and strolled over as if nothing had happened.
It felt strangely unpleasant.
“What’s with you? Why are you grinning like an idiot?”
“Now, now, such a temper. Why take it out on me?”
“Because you’re grinning like an idiot for no reason.”
“Just by looking, I can tell you lost again today.”
“……”
– Truly, this male’s instincts were sharp.
With just one sentence, Rudick completely shut me up, then snickered and shook his head.
“I mean, really, how could you possibly hope to take on that brat with that team? It was hopeless from the start. Brother, you’re too optimistic.”
“This time, it was possible. At the very end……”
“End, my foot. Those future sisters-in-law aren’t even human. You’re trying to play a game meant for humans while teaming with trolls—how’s that supposed to work out?”
Damn it, I couldn’t argue with that.
I also admitted that Leisha and Irene didn’t exactly play like humans, but hearing it from Rudick, the least human of us all, somehow made it even more annoying.
It was like a fool calling another fool a fool.
Besides, the real MVP of this battle was without a doubt Celine.
I wondered if he would still talk like this if he knew that.
“Why are you leaving out Sir Celine? She’s not much different from the others.”
“Celine’s just unlucky. There’s a difference between being thoughtless and being unlucky—how could you lump those together?”
“…Yeah, unlucky indeed. Just meeting you proves that.”
“Oh, so that’s how it is? If Celine’s unlucky for meeting me, then what about you, Brother? Did you sell off two whole kingdoms in your past life?”
“You bastard. Enough.”
– Master, your stamina is already gone. You’ve lost this one.
Damn it, losing to a fool in a battle of logic.
Once the debate veered in that direction, I really had nothing left to say.
So it was best to cut it off here.
It felt humiliating, but it was still better than taking more hits.
“How are the newly commissioned knights? Are they adapting well?”
“Newly commissioned or not, they were already soldiers of the territory. Nothing for them to struggle with.”
“Is that so? That’s good to hear.”
Rudick’s assessment was that they were doing fine since they weren’t total outsiders.
His earlier scolding of them was just to keep them tense and alert.
Well, if even the outsiders like Crimson Comet were managing fine, then it would’ve been shameful if the native-born Johnson knights had been the ones faltering.
And Rudick wasn’t one to give empty words in matters like this, so I could trust him.
“Besides, the monsters are more numerous than in past years, but it’s just the numbers that increased. Isn’t this the perfect chance to gain experience?”
“True. Since the Gnolls aren’t moving.”
“If it ends just like this, that would be ideal.”
“I think so too. But winter’s not over yet, so don’t let your guard down.”
“This isn’t my first winter, Brother. You worry too much……”
Just as he said, although there were more monsters this year, the numbers were still at a level perfectly suited for us to gain experience.
The frequency of raids had risen, but they weren’t swarming in numbers we couldn’t handle, nor were any extremely powerful monsters crawling down.
Aside from the Variant Crocodile that popped out at the very start and scared us half to death, we hadn’t even seen another Class 2 Monster.
The difficulty level was actually perfect for the strengthened Johnson Territory.
“So, it’s all because the Gnolls haven’t moved.”
“Exactly.”
Since the Great Cataclysm, it wouldn’t be wrong to call the history of Johnson Territory a record of struggle against the Gnolls.
Every winter, it was the Gnolls who attacked the Northern Gate Fortress. It was the Gnolls who first breached it.
The last defensive battle Johnson Territory fought also ended with the Gnolls breaking through the fortress and advancing all the way to the castle.
And above all, even Iron Johnson’s father, the former lord, died on a battlefield clashing with the Gnolls.
Just thinking about it was enough to make one sick of them.
If I recalled Rudelrof’s reaction, I could already imagine just how tiresome the Gnolls really were.
Even the valiant Lion Tribe’s Rudelrof came forward in support of forming a united front against the Gnolls.
This meant that even the Lion Tribe was concerned about a battle with the Gnolls.
The reason we had been stuck here all this time despite the monster raids dying down until now was also because of the Gnolls.
If the Gnolls, who moved in units of at least hundreds, started crawling down from the mountains, we would not be able to afford the leisure we had now.
They were less like monsters and more like an actual army, their every stride already different from the brainless beasts that simply rammed into the fortress.
The problem was when exactly they would crawl down.
In past years, they would have already come down by now, so while their silence was good, it also left me with a bit of unease.
Most of the time, when things turned out like this, it was because something unusual was happening.
“The Gnolls’ habitat is deep in the mountains, so we can’t even send scouts. I guess we just have to wait. That aside, how are supplies? Nothing lacking?”
“Everything else is fine, but arrows need attention.”
“Ah, right. The number of archers has increased by dozens.”
The arrows used by the territory’s archers were highly special.
The Iron Arrows, with heads and shafts both made of steel, packed tremendous destructive power, but they were just as difficult and time-consuming to produce.
Up until now, only thirty Rangers had been using them, but this season, with forty Horn Assault and even Rabbit Tribe Rangers added, the consumption had soared.
Since they were so durable, they could be collected and reused multiple times, but with monsters constantly crawling down this winter, the reserves were bound to run low.
Thankfully, the only reason we were still holding on was because the Lion Tribe had supplied plenty of quality iron.
“It’s only natural, since we never expected this many archers. We should get the forge to prioritize this first.”
“Of course. We can’t just sit around sucking our thumbs when the Gnolls come down and we’re short on arrows.”
“Exactly. What about everything else?”
“All fine. As you know, Brother, we’ve never defended this place with supplies already stockpiled. Complaining when we’ve got steaming hot meat soup morning and evening would be ridiculous.”
Even now, butchered Horned Rabbit meat was being steadily supplied to the gate.
Other resources were also being distributed here with top priority, so there was really no situation where anyone felt lacking.
The Lion Tribe warriors were especially thrilled about the endless flow of Horned Rabbit meat, but I too had to admit that the current situation was satisfactory. I just hoped winter would pass cleanly like this.
“If only the Gnolls stayed away.”
And if they did not crawl down, that was exactly how it would be.
By late February, the winter in the territory was nearing its end.
And so far, the Johnson Territory’s forces had held the Northern Gate without suffering any notable losses.
“What the hell? Where did they all go?”
Strangely enough, not a single Gnoll, who tormented us every year, had crawled down to the gate.
At first, I assumed they would surely appear, so I only maintained strict vigilance without worrying too much. But with things like this, I could not help but sense something unusual.
Because until now, there had never been a winter when the Gnolls didn’t come down.
“Is something really going on with them?”
For group-type monsters, unless there was some special circumstance, they never neglected sending out sentries.
But this time, they hadn’t dispatched any, and so we hadn’t even gotten a glimpse of a Gnoll all winter.
– Something must be going on. Could it be they really have a special circumstance?
‘That only makes it more unsettling.’
Special circumstances usually meant one of two things: they were under attack from an external force and couldn’t spare the manpower for sentries, or they were too tied up in internal power struggles to mind the outside.
If someone had attacked them, all we had to do was tighten defenses. But if there was an unpredictable new variable, things could become truly troublesome.
“Not just us, even over in Rotsy, they haven’t seen a single Gnoll. Doesn’t that prove something’s up?”
“Yeah, something’s definitely going on.”
Through the shared Mana Communicators, we had been exchanging updates with Henil and Rotsy, and both had also reported no Gnoll activity this winter.
Those two, both highly experienced with the Gnolls, also felt the situation was strange.
Rudelrof of Rotsy had even tried sending scouts quite deep into the Monster Mountains to track the Gnolls’ movements, but within the areas the Lion Tribe could safely cover, they found nothing.
But even the Lion Tribe could not afford to explore the deeper regions of the Monster Mountains where the Catastrophe-Class Monster, the Fallen Yggdrasil, lurked.
It was a situation none of us had ever experienced, and Rudelrof seemed quite troubled.
“Could it be that they relocated their base? Or maybe their numbers fell so much from infighting that they’re hiding?”
“If that’s the case, that would be best. But we also have to consider the opposite.”
If the tribes had fought among themselves, reduced in numbers, and couldn’t expand outward, then it was nothing to worry about.
They would surely replenish their numbers quickly given their breeding capacity, but at least for a year we could rest easy.
But if the tribes had united through those conflicts, then we could be in serious trouble.
The most terrifying thing about group-type monsters was that the larger their numbers grew, the stronger they became.
“If they did unite and are now rebuilding their numbers, then this silence would make sense.”
“Do you really think so? The Gnolls have never once united as one tribe.”
“True. But we can’t be certain. Honestly, I feel like sending Rangers all the way to their base.”
“Do you even know where that is? We’ve never once reached that deep.”
“That’s the problem, isn’t it.”
No matter how curious we were, it was impossible to send scouts all the way into the heart of the Monster Mountains.
If it were possible, Rudelrof would have already gathered the information and sent it to us.
Not knowing their situation and just having to wait like this was irritating.
Still, at least for this winter, it seemed we wouldn’t need to worry about Gnoll attacks.
We didn’t know how things would unfold going forward, but for now, the best we could do was strengthen the territory as much as possible and prepare against a Great Raid of the Gnolls.
Winter was their favorite season, so it was best to have defenses fully in place by next winter.
And so, this winter was wrapping up without any major damage, though leaving behind a faint sense of unease.