Chapter 6: Winter Forest Exploration (4)

It was surprising enough that there were ogres at the entrance, but the news that three individually active large species were grouped together was even more serious. With this, it was safe to say it was a precursor to a monster wave, and Tehis’s expression hardened.

“We’ll take them down here. Chloe, can you help?”

The monsters in the forbidden zone were much more difficult to capture than those of the same kind elsewhere. This was because they had adapted to the special nature and had superior traits.

In the case of the Winter Forest, all the exteriors were extremely thick and tough to avoid being cut by the sharp wind. Though he was a top-level sword expert, it wasn’t that he couldn’t handle it all, but if there were casualties among the knights while dealing with them one by one, it would be a loss to fight.

“Well… it will do as a stretch.”

Chloe answered after glancing around. Thanks to the still-maintained magic circle, she didn’t need to control the raging wind and was relaxed.

A common misconception among the continent’s people is that black mages are superior in offensive magic.

‘Why bother with blood when you can just bury them alive?’

What a waste of materials.

Chloe licked her lips as she confirmed the ogre’s head in the distance.

Tehis, who witnessed this, flinched, wondering if she had tasted ogre before, but he didn’t let it show.

“We’ll clear the clearing before they arrive. I’ll take on the one in the center as soon as they enter the perimeter, so Team 1 will take the one on the left. Team 3 will assist the mage and take the one on the right, while Team 2 will retreat with the ranger unit and watch for nearby monsters. Execute!”

“Yes, Your Grace!”

The disciplined response followed Tehis’s shout as he drew his sword and moved.

Among the knights who swiftly cleared the tents and moved to their assigned positions, Chloe leisurely headed to the right.

‘Seems I only need to take down one. I’ll finish quickly and watch.’

She had seen Tehis fight at the Imperial Palace, but dealing with monsters was different. She was curious about how the knights would handle ogres, which averaged over 10 meters, and waited for the distance to close.

As the three large monsters approached, a small tremor occurred on the ground with each thud. Their increasingly rapid steps were visible beyond the tall trees.

“Wait.”

At Tehis’s command, everyone held their breath and waited to attack. The range of the wind magic circle just covered the campsite, so it would take a bit more time for the ogres to enter. Yet the already apparent pressure made some expedition members gulp.

To capture a typical large species without damage, one had to be at least an intermediate expert. Forbidden monsters were rated one or two levels higher, so only someone like Bren, at least a high-level expert, could handle them.

Team 1 with the knight commander on the left, the Grand Duke in the center, and the mage with Team 3 on the right. The groups, divided in a somewhat balanced manner, each targeted the monsters as they invaded the territory.

“Attack!”

At the word, Tehis charged first, unleashing a thick aura. He neatly cut off the central ogre’s big toe and slipped between its legs, luring the furious predator away from the group.

As the Grand Duke, who was the most mobile in the Winter Forest, took one away, the remaining two teams moved in the now spacious area.

“Follow the plan! Team A, draw attention, and Team B, aim only for the ankles!”

“Yes!”

Unlike Team 1, which instantly rushed at the left ogre, Team 3 looked at Chloe. Their role was to assist the mage, so without specific orders, they only protected her and drew the ogre’s attention.

‘They’re going to take it down separately.’

I thought I’d see some skill.

Without any sense of crisis, Chloe looked at where Tehis had disappeared and then glanced at her assigned ogre. The Grand Duke had secured the combat space, making it easier for the knights to distract the monster.

“Everyone, fall back.”

“Are you sure?”

Nodding to the hesitant team leader, she casually extended one hand. Inhaling deeply, she faced her palm forward and stared straight at the ogre.

“Wind, be still.”

The air under her influence choked the ogre’s breath. The monster, suddenly unable to breathe, tried hard to inhale, but as the mage’s hand clenched into a fist, it only felt more pressure.

The monster, unable to comprehend the situation, thrashed around, wrapped in wind. Though it slowed the movements, it didn’t stop them, and Chloe, who magically pulled a knight almost crushed by the enormous foot, narrowed her eyes.

‘It’s stronger than I thought.’

I guess just the wind isn’t enough.

Leaving her fist clenched as if squeezing the ogre’s throat, Chloe reached upward with her other hand, drawing mana from her earring. The will, further refined and strengthened through her circuit, imbued the earth.

“Earth, rise and bind.”

Responding to the double-cast spell, the ground beneath the white snow rose and bound the monster’s legs. The earth, grasping the giant’s tilting body and arms, trapped it as it fell.

───!!

“Absorb. Bind. Cover. Solidify.”

The ogre resisted fiercely, but with each ripple of the runes, it was helplessly subdued. Unable to scream due to the blocked air, the monster’s struggles, dragged into the ground, made the surroundings tremble as if an earthquake had occurred.

‘Annoying.’

With a slight frown, Chloe stomped the ground carelessly with one foot. Following her will, the earth pressing down on the ogre quickly settled.

Thud!

“Ugh!!”

“Nell!”

Distracted by the mage’s one-sided hunt, one of Team 1’s knights was struck by a hand larger than his body and sent flying. Though he protected himself with aura as much as possible, his bones were broken in several places, preventing him from getting up, and his comrade hurriedly chased after him.

“You fool…”

The knight, hastily supporting the man to retreat to safety, turned at a chilling sensation. Just as a tree, uprooted, was about to crash down on them, it was sliced in two with a ‘swish’ sound.

“Seems your training was lacking.”

“Your Highness!”

Tehis, who intervened at the right moment, assessed the situation. The ogre, its tendons cut, roared in rage, rolling around the ground and sweeping the area.

“Where’s the other one?”

“The mage buried it in the ground.”

Mistakenly assuming it was a corpse, Tehis muttered with surprise.

“I didn’t expect Chloe to give up such valuable material.”

“Ah, well… she buried it alive. She might retrieve it later.”

“Hmm.”

Quickly accepting this, he glanced at the snow-free area where the ground seemed to have flipped. Burying it alive was a rather aggressive method, but he had no room to comment, covered in ogre blood himself.

‘Team 3 seems unharmed.’

Scanning the clearing, Tehis met Chloe’s eyes from afar. Seeing her smile and wave since his appearance, he nodded briefly in thanks. It was clear that without her help, there would have been casualties, and he planned to express his gratitude properly once things were settled.

‘First, let’s finish this.’

Tehis lowered his blood-stained sword and approached the ogre Team 1 was dealing with. The massive monster, only suffering meaningful damage from thick aura, swung its arm with a ‘whoosh.’

He leaped in the same direction as the attack, landing on the broad arm and driving his greatsword in. As he ran up to the shoulder with his aura activated, a fountain of blood erupted along the path.

Roar!!

Noisy creature.

Tehis thought indifferently, dodging the hand swinging at him. Even while evading, he skillfully sliced its fingers, making the ogre scream.

Jumping off the arm and spinning in a somersault, he twisted his waist and swung his sword wide. The aura extended momentarily, delivering a critical blow by slicing halfway through the monster’s neck.

Gurgle, gurgle…

Despite the wound that would be fatal to most creatures, the giant’s hand attacked again.

Clicking his tongue at its tenacity, Tehis sidestepped the attack. From behind the ogre, fully focused on him, Bren leaped up and finished cutting through its neck. Though it didn’t separate completely, it dangled enough to extinguish its precarious life.

Finally, the heavy body fell with a thud.

Before the knights, who took a breather, could speak to Tehis, Chloe suddenly interjected.

“As expected, it was a manly skill, Tess.”

“You flatter me, Chloe. Not as much as you.”

Even though he didn’t see it, he praised her.

Chloe laughed lightly and summoned water to wash away the blood. As Tehis looked on in bewilderment at the sudden dousing, she even dried him and spoke casually.

“The blood of monsters living in the forbidden zone is mostly harmful to the body. Of course, if refined well, it’s different, but we can’t do that right now.”

“…Thank you. I owe you in many ways.”

“What’s there between us?”

Behind Tehis, Bren, who was also drenched in blood, felt forlorn. Unaware of the knight commander’s sudden longing for his wife, the Grand Duke delegated the cleanup and looked at the spot where he assumed the ogre was buried.

“The monster you captured is entirely yours, so you don’t have to settle according to the contract ratio.”

“I appreciate the sentiment, but I can’t. I’ve already reached this year’s individual collection limit.”

“There’s a limit?”

Chloe waved her hand to reveal the ground where the ogre was buried. The earth, still under her control and moving easily, revealed the dead ogre, maintaining its intact appearance.

With a rumble, she pushed the earth up and extracted the corpse, answering in her usual voice.

“There are so many rare species that the mages have driven to extinction, so such a limit was established. It’s about setting boundaries on research materials that can be directly obtained.”

This was why she had gone to the trouble of making contracts to acquire research materials, even though she could capture most monsters alone.

Due to those who constantly experimented with specific materials until they achieved the desired results, numerous monsters and plants had become extinct over time. Many theses had become useless due to species that no longer existed.

As a result, the Mage Tower now imposed restrictions on the direct collection of living creatures to prevent such unfortunate events.

“I see.”

Tehis, having roughly guessed the situation without knowing the details, nodded in agreement. Watching the ranger collect the intact ogre corpse, he spoke plainly.

“But you can rightfully accept a gift from your lover, can’t you?”