章 28: The master of the mountain

The morning was crystal clear. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky. This place feels warmer than the village. In fact, it probably was a few degrees hotter than the village; not something you'd expect on a mountain.

My body felt a little better. I was still in a not-so-pretty state but I could move around now without worrying too much about fatigue. I might have really had some weird blessing put on me by the God who summoned me to this world.

The light was a little bright and the mountain air was fresh. It didn't smell like rot, at least not as much as the barren wastelands at the foot of the mountain.

With the cover of rain gone many monsters were roaming around. Especially the cactus-like ones. Just one sting and you're set for a lifetime worth of pain. But the rain made the already difficult path even more difficult.

Breakfast consisted of roasted bird monsters. They tasted like chicken but with a little too chewiness. After breakfast, we continued on.

"Do goblins only stay on the ground?" I hadn't seen one up the mountain. And I certainly didn't want to see one either.

"Most species stay on the ground. However, there are a few who live on mountains such as this. There are also some who live in the seas, deserts, or frozen lands. But those species are rare and few in numbers." She paused for a second. "But they are prized hunts. So if you ever come across one, do try to bring it back alive. Then again, even if you killed them, their corpse would still fetch a lot."

So those suckers are pretty diverse and isn't that task impossible? But then again, how the hell was I supposed to bring a goblin, those very same things that almost killed me a dozen times, back without killing them?

I kind of felt annoyed. I hated those things. "I see." My voice was low. I really hated those things.

"Speaking of goblins, you came out of it twice now correct?" Lianne casually strolled down the mountain path, like it was the back of her garden.

Twice? But we've met… It didn't make sense. I only met her yesterday. But there was more to her story. She used a bow and I was saved by arrows when I was first attacked by that hobgoblin. Meaning she passively saved me twice already.

"You mean you were the one who saved me back then?" I had to ask. I kept my description vague. After all it'd be embarrassing if she wasn't the one.

"Actually I was travelling in a group and I along with one of them saved you. Of course I hadn't inspected you at the time since I was on another job, but I just assumed it'd be you."

"That's a hell of an assumption but you're right." I sighed. She was right on mark. "SO, what happened to your friends?"

Her eyes squinted for a moment but she contained it instantly. "We got separated." She was hiding something but it probably was some sort of secret.

"I see. But thank you."

I didn't ask her for details. There wasn't a point in knowing. What we needed to know was how the hell we were supposed to get of the damn mountain as the path was getting narrower and narrower. Honestly I couldn't even keep my balance anymore. I felt like I'd fall almost any second now.

At one point though, the path became so narrow that barely one of us could get through without falling, while hugging the mountain wall that is.

"I'll go first," she said. Lianne was definitely braver than me.

I nodded.

Lianne kept one hand on the mountain and used the other to keep her balance. She was like an expert and the way she moved ahead almost seemed like a dance. She carefully got on the other side of the narrow path.

I tried to follow suit. Halfway through my legs started shaking. I didn't stop. Small pebbles were falling as I went. Am I going to live through this, if I fall? Fall? Why am I thinking that? I was going crazy. My whole body started to shake.

Lianne encouraged me from the other side. "Don't look down, look at me."

I took deep breaths and followed her voice. Almost when I reached the end, my left leg slipped. I saw a few flashes of my life. The whole world slowed down, and Lianne's worried face looked amusing. At least someone worried about me. It's a shame that even my own parents didn't worry for me like that. But it wasn't the end I expected.

With lighting fast reflexes Lianne grabbed my right hand. While I was hanging like a sore monkey, she with all her strength pulled me up. I was genuinely impressed by her sheer strength. But it hurt, and I couldn't feel my arm.

"Tha - thank you…"

"Catch your breath and next time be careful," she said with a gentle tone. For a second I thought she'd lecture me but she didn't. She was different from all the people I'd met in life. She was kind, considerate and strong.

Honestly, I was glad to have had travelled with her. I was totally out of breath. My chest hurt. It was painful and I had to clench my teeth to control my groans. But I still felt glad.

After catching my breath we continued to move. The path became wide again. It was more or less a roller coaster of a ride.

At noon, after slaying countless monsters, we rested by a tree. It was hard to breath here. Lianne didn't have any problems though. All our water was exhausted. Fortunately there was a pond here similar to the one I drank from the first day; very clear and crystalline. It was very compact and deep.

Before I could take a sip Lianne stopped me. "What are you doing? That stuff is poisonous!"

"What? Poison? But it's so clear!" I felt a little strangled.

"Can't you see? There's no fish here! This is a trap set by undead mermaids," she said.

Come again? More undead? I stopped myself from sighing but this world seriously had a problem keeping their dead, dead. "But I remember drinking water from a pond such as this." Besides that water actually tasted pretty good too and I didn't die. Oh wait; I was already poisoned at the time so maybe….

I was just making excuses to justify my stupidity.

"Then you are lucky to be alive. This water contains a substance that makes you feel sleepy and once you fall asleep the mermaid eats you alive, at night." Lianne looked at me with pity. I must have really looked like a child to her.

"I'll be careful from now on," with a horrified look I replied. My eyes darted around. Am I really lucky? I probably was. I was still alive after all.

With thirst, we kept on moving. A little further ahead, we found some wild mangoes. Fortunately some were ripe. There were monkey like monsters nearby, but they didn't pose any threat; too afraid to approach us. Or maybe they didn't care.

The mangoes were a bit sour than expected but had better flavors than typical supermarket ones. To a thirsty man, this was a blessing in disguise. It was hard to breathe but it would still take some time before we could reach the top. So we rested for some time, eat our fill of mangoes and then resumed.

We were getting closer and closer to the peak, and my heart beat faster and faster. The narrow roads led us to the top and we could literally touch the clouds. When I was little I always wondered if the clouds were cotton candy. In my world they weren't. But I still had hopes that this world might. But in the end I faced disappointment.

Lianne looked back and saw my stupidity. "Hey what are you doing?"

"Umm nothing…" I tried to move my hand like I was doing some cardio or something. But honestly, I was just trying to touch the clouds. I couldn't tell her that though.

She furrowed her brows and rebuked me without saying a word. Those eyes glared, 'Are you an idiot?' but she never said a word. Her silence was like torture. If she had said something perhaps I'd probably had felt better.

I didn't say anything and followed her like an obedient child.

Just as Lianne said, we arrived at the top by the afternoon. There weren't any nests here. All there was what I'd call a graveyard but not a nest. There were raw skeletons and mummified corpses scattered everywhere: I saw some good looking armor and swords but I didn't have the luxury to worry about that. And beneath them were holes leading down the mountain. Did I forget to mention the crushed bones?

"What in the wor-..." I stopped as I quickly covered my nose.

The smell was quite intense. Kind of like, that of the sacred forest yet somewhat different. I felt like my innards wanted to get out through my mouth without any delay.

"Strange! I thought it'd still be here," Lianne said as she looked around for the monster. She wasn't affected. More like she was too worried.

I moved ahead. The peak was rather flat for a mountain this tall. When we reached the middle, both of us became immobile. It was quite strange to see so many corpses but not the monster responsible. And I was grateful, for it not being there. But the gratefulness didn't last long.

The reason for our sudden stop was simple: there was a shadow beneath our feet. It was curly and very long. Shockingly there were slight movements. I understood that we were yet again, not alone.

"Lianne," I whispered.

"I know."

If Lianne knew that meant she'd come up with a plan, at least I trusted she would. No, I hoped or rather prayed that she would. Because if she didn't have any, we'd both be dead pretty soon.

We didn't move a muscle. We were frozen in space. "On my signal," Lianne whispered. She set her bag loose and signaled me. "NOW!"

Boy that was a loud signal.

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