Chương 57: Chapter 57
"Ian, wake up!"
Under a high-hanging full moon, Ian slowly opened his eyes to the sound of his name being called, emerging from a deep sleep.
Inglan was pacing restlessly by his bed.
"What's going on?"
Inglan, sweating profusely and with a trembling voice, said,
"There's something outside. I don't know what it is, but it's definitely targeting us!"
The drowsiness vanished instantly.
Ian realized he was in a situation often seen in movies or fantasy settings—an ambush.
"Damn... Could it be tomb robbers?"
"No, no! Not human! More like beings of mystery!"
"Mystery?"
Ian reflexively thought of intelligent monsters like drakes or manticores.
Such beasts wouldn't hesitate to emerge from the night and devour humans as a midnight snack.
If it really was a giant carnivorous monster, Ian was in deep trouble.
'Always be wary of monsters!'
Hadn't Eredith warned him to the point earwax built up?
Monsters are dangerous, and in this damned medieval fantasy world, they're everywhere, hindering the exchange between domains and slowing human expansion.
In a world where Man vs. Wild was a real-time event, even the strongest human forces were just that—human.
"Caw! Master!"
Just then, Oberon flew in.
"Oberon. Did you see something?"
[Yes! Some small human-like creatures have arrived!]
"Small humans?"
Immediately, one word flashed through Ian's mind.
'... Fairies?'
"Let's go check it out."
But the information was still lacking.
Ian wanted to see the nocturnal visitors with his own eyes.
Inglan, shivering, said,
"Do we have to go?"
"It's better that we do. We don't know their intentions."
"You make sense... You do..."
As Inglan shivered, Ian found him slightly pathetic.
It was understandable to be scared, but the trembling made him seem like a coward.
"If you're scared, stay here."
"But I need to see it with my own eyes..."
"Then let's go together."
"... Isn't it dangerous? Maybe we should wake the knights..."
Such a troublesome old man.
That's what Ian thought, but then he reconsidered.
Or is that the secret to longevity?
Being fearful, in other words, means being cautious.
History has proven that the fearless often die first.
Inglan himself proved the importance of caution for longevity, so he's probably right.
"Then I'll bring Belenka."
Ian woke Belenka and brought her along.
Surprised by Ian's sudden appearance, Belenka quickly understood the situation and cooperated smoothly.
Belenka was so cooperative that she didn't even negotiate a fee.
"But if I achieve something noteworthy, there should be a bonus..."
"F*ck. It'll go towards your debt, so please just stop talking about money."
"That's refreshingly straightforward."
Despite having been woken up, Belenka's face was full of vitality, possibly pleased at the prospect of not having to negotiate a fee.
It was a dimly lit night, but Ian moved forward without hesitation.
His communion with the darkness deepened day by day, making dark vision magic act almost like a passive skill.
Finding his way in the dark was as easy as pie.
"Ian."
Inglan, who had been following closely behind, suddenly spoke up.
It was because of one of Inglan's specialties, the magic of the sentinel bug, reacted.
"There's a suspicious group up ahead."
Ian and Belenka saved their breath.
There was no reason to chat with the enemy so close.
Ian, blending into the darkness, muttered in the language of magic,
"[Let the darkness illuminate our path.]"
[Shadow Manipulation – Casting Dark Vision.]
Darkness spread out from Ian, revealing a vision in black and white, like an old movie.
It was a third-eye view, created based on what the darkness sensed and felt.
'That's...'
Ian observed what Inglan had described as 'beings of mystery'.
And... he was a bit let down.
'What the hell is that?'
The midnight visitors turned out to be dwarves, barely thirty centimeters tall.
'Monsters?'
Ian couldn't make heads or tails of it.
After all, such fundamentally fantastic creatures of this true fantasy world were unfamiliar to him too.
He could recognize any creature from Earth at a glance, but fantasy creatures like these were unknown to him.
'It doesn't seem like an attack...?'
Ian's head tilted as he observed the group of dwarves.
The dwarves were huddled together, not moving.
If these were attackers, they would be up to something suspicious, but to Ian, a wizard, they didn't seem to be plotting anything.
'What are they doing?'
Ian's question was unexpectedly answered when Oberon began to frantically tap his shoulder.
"Stay still. You're shedding feathers, Oberon."
[S-Sorry! Master! But, over there...!]
"Over there?"
Oberon trembled, staring into the darkness.
[There...! There's a monster hiding!]
"Monster?"
Ian concentrated, extending his dark vision toward the tree Oberon had mentioned, and then he realized.
"Oh. An eagle owl?"
[Screech!]
Atop the tree, a large eagle owl gazed calmly at the dwarves with its serene eyes.
To Ian, a human, it was nothing special.
But to Oberon, barely more than a crow, it was terrifying enough to make him tremble and shed feathers.
[Ah! Those wings! That beak...!]
"Damn, you're shedding."
[I-I'm scared! I'm going to faint, Master!]
"Fine. Just pass out. Want me to put you in my pocket?"
With a wingspan of 180 centimeters, the eagle owl is acknowledged as one of the supreme hunters of the night.
It was like facing a tiger.
Just as an ordinary human would tremble and wet themselves when faced with a tiger, Oberon, being just a common crow, was struck with terror upon spotting the eagle owl.
"Belenka. Do you have any of that leftover meat from yesterday? Bring it here."
"Will do."
Ian strode towards the tree where the eagle owl perched.
"It's a human! A human!"
"What do we do! A human has appeared!"
Ian closely observed the group that had come to their camp, whether they were attackers or something else.
'Wow.'
Up close, it was clear.
Thirty centimeters tall, with mysterious wings extending from their backs, each one cute and adorable...
They were fairies.
Recognized by everyone as a fantasy world species, unlike elves, they were an unfortunate race that has been on the declin.
Typically, when one mentions elves, they think of the long-eared, long-lived, beautiful, and superior race created by Tolkien.
But those were just a myth.
The real foundational elves were these short-statured fantastical beings.
Though they are more commonly referred to as fairies to distinguish them from the tall-eared elves.
Unlike elves, fairies are not as commonly found in Western legends.
This is because they have fewer fans.
While the slender and beautiful appearance of elves has bred countless elf enthusiasts, fairies have failed to cultivate a fanbase.
Their appearance, which could easily be mistaken for catering to lolicon tastes, is to blame.
Elf enthusiasts may seem like they have a preference, but fairy enthusiasts... (the rest is omitted)
Anyway.
Fairies, now relegated to being first-floor tutorial tower bosses, blasting challengers' heads off as their main job, appeared before Ian.
Why? To blow Ian's head off?
'...'
It would be creepy if they actually had that ability.
But from what Ian could see, these fairies, unlike those in tutorials, seemed incapable of decapitating humans.
If they could, he would have heard of such gruesome tales several times over.
Besides, there was no reason for them to huddle together in front of an eagle owl like that.
The fairies, upon making eye contact with Ian, all flinched collectively.
They looked incredibly cute.
A Japanese dungeon survival expert once said that the appearance of all creatures is necessary for their survival.
It meant that cute creatures are cute for a reason.
Well, the dungeon version of Bear Grylls might say that and then proceed to eat the monster.
Ian was genuinely curious.
What could be the reason for fairies to look so adorable?
"Here. I brought it."
"Thanks."
Ian approached the eagle owl with the meat in hand.
Drawing on his experience of communicating with animals in nature, he spoke with a voice filled with firm intent.
"Come down."
[???]
"I won't hurt you. It's okay, come down."
The eagle owl stared at Ian for a while...
With a whoosh, the eagle owl flapped its large wings and descended before Ian.
Ian quickly extended his staff to create a perch for it.
'It's lighter than I thought?'
Given its enormous size, Ian had expected the eagle owl to be quite heavy, but surprisingly, it was light.
No wonder British wizards use them as mail carriers.
Ian gently scratched the eagle owl's back, feeding it leftover meat scraps.
The eagle owl, looking somewhat dumbfounded, hungrily gulped down the food Ian offered.
Despite wondering why Ian was suddenly being so nice, filling its stomach was the priority.
"Ah."
Watching Ian skillfully handle the eagle owl, Inglan's eyes lit up.
That guy.
His ability to communicate with nature is no joke, right?
Inglan thought for sure Ian would become a great summoner, having already witnessed Ian's odd behaviors multiple times.
Belenka, too, found it fascinating how Ian tamed the owl so quickly.
Wizards sure have a lot of tricks up their sleeves.
Ian, after filling the eagle owl's stomach, approached the fairies.
"This guy was bothering you, right?"
"Eek!"
The fairies went into a frenzy as Ian approached with the eagle owl, terrified out of their minds.
What kind of monster is an eagle owl!
A monstrous beast that kidnaps fairies with its huge body and eats them alive!
But to subdue, no, to tame such a monster with just a few words...!
The fairies felt a terror that Ian might just command, "Go! Eat those insolent ones!" releasing the eagle owl on them.
Then the eagle owl would "Swoosh! Swoosh!" swoop down on the fairies...
Just the thought was horrifying!
"We're so, so sorry!"
The terrified fairies collectively bowed their heads, performing a perfect dogeza.
Then, the eagle owl flapped its wings as if to take off, stirred by the fairies' screams, its hunting instincts kicking in.
"Stay calm."
But Ian gently pressed on the eagle owl's shoulder, calming it down.
The fairies watching this scene felt a sense of awe towards Ian.
'Incredible...!'
While they would typically avoid a mere violent human in disgust, meeting a human who could skillfully tame a fearsome beast, they couldn't help but respect and revere him.
Worship is one way to forget fear.
Without attempting any tricks, the fairies confessed everything to Ian.
"We came to ask you, human, to please return the sword!"
"Sword?"
The sword the fairies spoke of could only be one.
The magic sword, Anor-lsil.
As Ian drew the sword, the fairies chirped in unison.
"Yes! That sword!"
"Without it, we can no longer weave the heavens!"
Ian sheathed the sword and asked,
"Heavens? What heavens?"
To which the fairies replied,
"The heavens that are as precious as our lives!"
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