The Forest Race Clonne

Chapter 85

‘Is he trying to protect Semion?’

Or is it the opposite?

I gripped the hilt of my sword, just in case. Since obtaining the sword, I had practiced defensive magic occasionally, but I wasn’t sure I could activate it if I was ambushed. Soon, the man’s gaze shifted down toward my hand. Tension surged instantly.

However, unexpectedly, when the man noticed I was holding a sword, the oppressive atmosphere disappeared. The pressure vanished in an instant. Before I could even process this, the next question was even more bewildering.

"Why are you carrying a sword?"

"...What?"

"Why are you carrying something like that?"

Was he asking why I was carrying a sword I couldn’t even use? I blinked, unable to comprehend the question. But the man himself appeared to be just as confused. After observing me for a moment, he tilted his head in a way that seemed almost perplexed.

"What the hell are you?"

"...I believe that’s a question I should be asking."

“Damn, this is strange. There's definitely something off about you. Just a moment ago, I thought I had you figured out. But now, looking at you, I’m not so sure. Damn, why is this so hard? In the past, I would’ve known right away. But these damned restrictions keep getting in the way."

His grumbling was mostly incomprehensible. He seemed mentally unbalanced, yet I kept my guard up and watched his every move.

“This won’t do. I’ll use my last resort.”

The man suddenly stood and leaned in close to me. Reflexively trying to back away, I found my shoulder firmly held in place.

“What are you doing?”

“Just stay still for a moment. I need to confirm something.”

I felt his breath on my neck. He seemed to be sniffing me. Shocked, I shoved him hard, and he surprisingly moved back without resistance. It seemed he was too absorbed in whatever he was doing to notice. His next words left me equally bewildered.

"…What the hell? This is really strange. Why do you smell nice?"

"Pardon?"

"I seriously braced myself to puke while I tried to smell you, you know? No matter how well you try to hide it, you can't cover it up at this distance, right? But you smell... good. Like, really good! This doesn’t make sense, does it?"

"Ha, could you explain in a way I can understand? Otherwise, I might misunderstand you in a bad way."

"Wow, wow… Ah! Wait. Hold on. I just had a really crazy thought! But no matter how I look at it, this seems to be the only answer."

"Are you even listening to me?"

"Hey, could it be...?!"

The man, who had been muttering to himself without paying attention to anything I said, leaned in closer to me again. Then, as his hood shifted slightly, his face—previously hidden—came into view. I was met with an expression that seemed oddly pleased.

His eyes were a remarkably deep golden color. It was almost mesmerizing. They looked more beastly than human, as if they could charm anyone who met them. I found myself involuntarily captivated for a moment.

“…!”

Abruptly, the man's expression hardened, and he quickly turned his head. I followed his gaze. Two soldiers had entered the restaurant.

The server who had brought me my food hurried over to them, talking and pointing in our direction. It seemed he had reported us. While I had attracted a lot of attention alone, the appearance of this suspicious-looking man had drawn even more.

The soldiers, upon seeing me, exchanged a meaningful look. With a sigh, I realized what was happening. The fact that they were locking the door and advancing toward me meant they likely thought I might try to escape. I was no longer in a position where showing my identification would be enough.

As the soldiers entered, the other customers in the restaurant grew quiet. But to my surprise, the soldiers didn’t start inspecting the place; they sat down at the table next to mine. Then, they ordered something unexpected from the server.

"Bring us some strong liquor here."

The server seemed just as taken aback by this development, his eyes wide with surprise. The soldier repeated his order, this time more forcefully.

"Did you not hear us? Bring us the strongest liquor you have!"

“Ah, yes! Right away!”

The server hurried off to get the liquor. In the meantime, the soldiers cast overtly suggestive glances in my direction. Their leering attitude made them seem more like thugs than professional soldiers. Given that many towns relied on local toughs to bolster their ranks, this might very well be the case.

“Hey, are we really doing this?”

“You think it's a good idea? You might get into big trouble.”

“Didn’t they tell us not to cause any trouble?”

“Ah, whatever. I can’t hold back anymore. As long as there are no consequences, right? They should understand.”

“Yeah, that makes sense.”

Their snickering and whispering made it clear their intentions were far from good. Their crude demeanor had already cast a pall over the atmosphere around us.

"Hah."

A light laugh came from somewhere. It was the man sitting in front of me. He had tensed up when the soldiers entered, but now he seemed almost amused.

"...What are they rambling on about? They’re asking to die, huh?"

His voice, low and filled with contempt, was directed not just at the soldiers, but also toward me. Although I thought his attitude toward me was rude, it seemed he considered it to be a form of politeness in his own way. At least he didn’t start off by hurling insults right away. His muttering was far from quiet, though.

"What? What did you just say?"

"Did you say that to us?"

The soldiers, furious, stood up. While the man across from me wasn’t small by any means, the soldiers were much larger. Just the sight of the two giants closing in on him was intimidating. Yet, the provocateur remained unfazed. In fact, he smiled softly. The words that followed, however, were far from soft.

“Hey, back off, you stink.”

“What... What did you just say?”

“It’s really fortunate. At this distance, the smell is unmistakable. The stench is so bad it makes my nose want to fall off. There’s no way I won’t recognize it now. I was worried my nose was completely useless.”

Does he have an unusually sensitive sense of smell? Once again, the man focused on scent, seemingly using it to judge people by the presence or absence of an odor.

However, I didn’t detect any pungent smells. In fact, it felt like there was almost no scent at all, despite my not-so-clean appearance. Even the usual smell of dust and sweat seemed absent.

Maybe that’s why. It felt unsettling in itself. Like something essential to a living being was missing. The more I thought about it, the more it made me uneasy. I lifted my head abruptly to find the man looking at me as well.

‘No way.’

A heavy thump echoed through my chest. I felt my lips trembling as I realized I stood still, with my mouth slightly open. The man, now with a gentle smile, met my eyes. His earlier sharp demeanor seemed unimaginable now.

“What’s your name, friend?”

"…It’s Sei."

“Sei, huh? That’s a pretty name, friend. I’d like to have a proper conversation, but could you wait a moment?”

“Pardon?”

“I’ll handle this quickly. It won’t take long.”

I understood his implication immediately. I nodded slowly, and the man smiled brightly before getting up. The two soldiers, who had surrounded us, flinched but then, seemingly offended by their own reaction, frowned deeply.

“Ha, this guy has no fear. Do you even know who we are?”

“Well, do you know who I am?”

“Some kind of noble, I suppose? So what? That means nothing to us.”

“You’re nothing more than a bite-sized snack!”

Chaeng!

The sound of clashing metal echoed abruptly. I gasped at what I saw next. One of the soldier’s arms had swelled grotesquely, with a long, hook-like blade extending from his hand. The man had parried the attack with his sword.

A tense stillness settled over the room. Everyone who had been watching in silence froze, holding their breath. The soldiers, their surprise evident, exchanged glances. The only one who remained calm was the man who had blocked the attack.

"See? As I said, they don’t use weapons. What’s the point of disguising as humans if they can’t keep up the act until the end?"

In that moment, the expressions on the soldiers' faces changed dramatically. Their bodies swelled grotesquely, quickly shedding their human forms in a twisted transformation. It was a sight I had seen before—in the underground prison at the Imperial Palace, and back in the Clonne village.

“D-Demonic Beasts!”

“They really exist!”

"The Demonic Beasts have appeared!"

Pandemonium erupted as people screamed, unsure who initiated it, and started to flee. Yet, nobody made it to the exit. A massive figure blocked their path. One of the transformed Demonic Beast members had jumped to guard the door.

“Heh, where do you think you’re going?”

“...!”

Terrified, the people hesitated, retreating. Some hastily grabbed whatever they could use as weapons, but none dared to attack, only keeping their distance. The Demonic Beast, leisurely eyeing the frightened crowd, licked his lips before chiding his companion.

“Damn, we almost screwed up. Hey, why didn’t you take him out in one blow?”

“Sorry, sorry. I underestimated him. Blocking that attack, he’s faster than I expected.”

“Can’t you tell just by looking? He figured out our identity and still provoked us. Must be pretty confident in his skills.”

“Tch, I guess so.”