Chapter 106
Chapter 106 – Survivors (6)
“It’s as wild as a warrior’s reputation suggests. But since he’s been hit by the chieftain’s arrow… Garhan won’t last much longer. We’re really close now, Chieftain.”
In the battlefield where fierce combat had erupted, a lively warrior fawned over him amidst the stark remnants of corpses, injured, overturned earth, and broken equipment.
It was a statement that could certainly be made. They had emerged victorious from a bloody conflict with their rivals and now only had to hunt down the remaining foes and collect the spoils.
“It’s not over yet. Can’t you see this?”
Yet, he didn’t smile; instead, he pointed out something different. Everyone’s gaze followed his sword to the fallen corpse on the ground.
“The armor worn by Garhan’s soldiers, and the weapons including arrows. All high-quality steel that can’t be found in this grassland.”
“W-well, he must have obtained it as the chieftain from the east, right?”
“That’s too uniform and cohesive to just be scavenged. It’s definitely not.”
He had been concerned about the gear of Garhan’s soldiers right from the start of the battle.
Eventually, he didn’t let this fact go unnoticed and brought over a prisoner. He wanted to find out where such rare items had come from.
“Is there another tribe farther to the east? One that can produce iron on their own?”
“I-I’m not sure. The dealings were led by the chieftain and R’tai… I’ve only heard rumors.”
Thanks to that, they acquired information on the Arin Tribe, a new faction established farther east from Garhan, who had previously been the chieftain of the eastern tribes, building a powerful influence.
Moreover, they were said to be living within a castle, news that caused all of them to stir with excitement.
“C-can this really be true?”
“What reason would there be to lie? The evidence is right here.”
Though the content was hard to believe, he couldn’t help but smirk at the weapons supported by the Arin Tribe.
‘The eastern expedition may take longer than expected.’
If he hadn’t known, it would have been different, but since he was aware, there was no helping it. As a chieftain of a minor tribe who had come this far to unify the grassland, he viewed this as merely adding another target to conquer.
“It seems we’ll be delayed. That’s not such good news, Chieftain.”
“It’ll just be another tribe of a manageable size. It won’t take long.”
As he was about to revise his plan on the spot, someone approached him. This person’s appearance was distinct from the surrounding warriors.
Draped in a lengthy robe with a hood concealing his face, the enigmatic man leaned on a staff adorned with a jewel at the end.
“I’m asking for your understanding. I, too, serve my lord and find it difficult to respond under pressure from above.”
“It appears the King is in a hurry. Don’t worry, though, my lord. Once we accomplish the task of unification, the warriors, full of vigor and achievement, will go wild on their own.”
He boldly declared himself a mage, yet in a land where the concept of a mage didn’t exist, he was a unique and rare entity.
The very presence of this mage speaking with Chieftain Luke served as evidence of some kind of transaction between them.
Without this deal, Luke wouldn’t have been able to crush Garhan outright and claim victory.
“If it’s so urgent, why not step in personally? If you go beyond just providing supplies and offer assistance, the remaining battles will be easier.”
“If word spreads, it would become troublesome.”
“Let it spread. We’re already taking control of this land.”
Luke smirked, but the mage shook his head.
While there was a reason they supported Luke from the beginning, he didn’t want their relationship to be revealed to the world just yet.
Luke kept his mouth shut for the time being. After all, with just the support they received, it was enough to sweep through this grassland.
Ultimately, this was like giving wings to a capable conqueror already meant to excel.
*
“I can’t believe this…”
Immediately after Garhan suffered defeat in his confrontation with Luke.
The scouts of the Arin Tribe were shocked to see refugees continuously flowing in from the west.
The authority brought together by the chieftain lost its focus and scattered, with some beginning to flock east upon hearing rumors about the Arin Tribe.
“Increase the forces. We must take in every single one of them.”
Upon hearing this news, Balun issued an emergency decree, mobilizing the villagers to prepare for receiving the refugees.
In a hurry, he had shelters built for them beneath the castle wall and mobilized miners and transporters to construct homes to shield them from the rain.
“Please save us! Those guys will try to kill us all if we don’t surrender to them!”
The refugees desperately cried for their lives upon encountering the soldiers of the Arin Tribe.
Luke, who attempted to absorb the entire tribes under Garhan, was following the laws of the grassland. Surrendering would mean merciful acceptance, but refusal would lead to a brutal massacre.
‘They came to us despite that. We must not let them go.’
Balun, who personally stepped into the battle command, took the risk and sought to accept as many as possible who approached him.
Most of those fleeing were those who had genuinely pledged their loyalty to Garhan, unable to bring themselves to join under Luke, who had destroyed their home.
“There they are! Those guys!”
In the process, Luke’s soldiers finally clashed with the Arin soldiers.
It was inevitable that the scouts from both sides would collide as they fought to capture the desperately fleeing refugees and protect them.
“Ugh.”
“T-this is…”
However, they didn’t really engage. Just before the clash, a massive hammer fell from the sky, crushing Luke’s soldiers.
Both the soldiers of the Arin Tribe and the refugees cheered upon witnessing this.
‘So many of you.’
But the one who had dropped the hammer, while monitoring the ongoing chaos, was sweating profusely.
The number of hammers was limited, yet the sheer number of refugees and enemies was overwhelming.
“Can I frame this positively?”
With reports coming in from all directions, Balun chuckled bitterly. Ultimately, conflicts between soldiers broke out, growing into fights among warriors.
The opponent was mostly a small pursuit force, so the Arin Tribe emerged victorious, but they didn’t go unscathed.
Balun’s primary concern was how this would jeopardize negotiations with Chieftain Luke.
“But we absolutely cannot hand over the refugees.”
Riena, thoroughly armed and having joined the group, was worried that Balun might consider abandoning the refugees for smoother negotiations.
Abandoning the refugees would be akin to defying the intentions of the Guardian Deity, who sought to bring those refugees into the ranks of the allied forces.
“I’m aware of that. I would never do such a thing.”
Startled, Balun shook his head as if to say, “What do you take me for?” Negotiations were merely a means; their sole purpose was to accept the people.
“Looks like we need to prepare for the worst. What do you think, Riena, the strongest warrior? There are elite troops gathered at the Northern Fortress, so the soldiers we can mobilize now are barely around two thousand. That’s only possible if we recruit some of the refugees as soldiers.”
“I heard the enemy numbers exceed ten thousand.”
“Impressive, isn’t it? But that implies they can only mobilize a portion of their troops. Still, is it truly possible that the elite troops number a full ten thousand?”
Balun bitterly smiled at Riena’s nonchalant remark. Ten thousand was a dream number in this region.
A thousand mounted warriors gathering could confidently do anything.
Now he found himself in the position of facing that number.
“We can win.”
Yet, Riena expressed confidence.
Logically, it seemed impossible, but they had faith in their ability to achieve things that defied logic. They had already endured tedious confrontations due to the incessant attacks from bugs.
“I don’t think I’ll lose. However, it would be best to resolve things without a fight if possible. The real monsters we need to contend with are elsewhere.”
The stance of the Arin Tribe had always been clear: they would accept everyone who fled to them.
What mattered was Luke’s intentions. They could talk if he wished to, but if he attempted to compel surrender like subjugating other tribes, he wouldn’t budge.
‘What a nuisance. I feel like I’m preparing for war as well.’
Frowning, he continued flipping through the screens.
The residents were not the only ones busy. It was the same during fierce battles against the bugs.
If all was well, he could have left the monitor to take some personal time or manage other matters.
However, when the situation became urgent, he had to stay tense and alert, even neglecting bathroom breaks. He worried that he might miss an opportunity to provide assistance.
Even as the residents grew and advanced, his mindset remained largely unchanged.
“Ah, I need to add another monitor.”
Suddenly feeling fatigued, he rubbed his head and muttered.
As the residents expanded their activities, viewing dozens of screens became cumbersome.
He believed that with more monitors, the workload would ease, so he immediately opened an online shopping site to order additional monitors.
‘Do the bugs not appear in other regions?’
The fall of Garhan’s tribe and the subsequent influx of refugees wasn’t a bad thing, but the nagging thought of possibly facing war again made him fidgety as he crossed his arms, staring blankly at the desktop of the bustling residents.
If the enemy knew of the bugs’ existence, they might understand the necessity of thwarting those foes who had amassed a legion in the north.
In fact, bugs frequently infiltrated by opening short-lived cracks, so it was likely they had appeared in other regions too.
‘No, that would be an even greater calamity.’
He shook his head. The Dwarf Kingdom, already ruined by bugs, remained quiet for now, but he had witnessed parasites occupying the fallen fortresses within the game.
He judged it better for bugs to only appear in this area.
The worst-case scenario would be bugs overrunning regions that had collapsed and then explosively multiplying by feasting on them.
[Elf Village Entrance: 1500P]
‘So it’s still intact?’
As he thought that, biting his lip, he opened a file. It was a file yet to be accessed, which contained the desktop of another untainted region.
Unlike when heading to the Dwarves’ domain, it had not yet been marked with contamination.
However, with contamination being labeled even in the border region indicating it had fully succumbed, he decided that handling this current problem well would open the door to exploring new lands.
