Player Who Became A Constellation [EN]: Chapter 27

The ogre’s head had half disappeared.

“-Kuh… Ack…?”

The ogre tilted its head, feeling a strange emptiness.

It touched its burst head with its hand, and only then did it realize its state, its eyes rolling back. Soon, it collapsed forward.

Even with its brain destroyed, it was still alive for a moment; truly befitting the king of the forest.

But what was more impressive was something else.

Lapilta and Alber looked at the figure who had easily killed the king of the forest.

“One hit…?”

Paul muttered in surprise.

According to his common sense, the only ranged weapon that could take down an ogre in one shot was a siege weapon.

No, even with siege weapons, an ogre could catch most of them.

That’s how difficult it was to deal with an ogre.

“…Ruran’s weapon is quite good.”

The crow man pulled back the crossbow’s string and inserted what looked like a very sturdy iron skewer. It was large and sharp enough to be considered a giant spear.

It looked like a ballista bolt at a glance.

As if he didn’t care about ogres at all.

The three of them now understood what he meant when he said ‘just an ogre’.

“Who are you?”

Lapilta didn’t use honorifics.

He was too surprised to pay attention.

The crow man was blankly staring at Lapilta’s question.

‘Uh…’ He touched his chin.

‘Um…’ He touched his head.

‘Ah…!’ He snapped his fingers as if he remembered.

The crow man clapped his hands and said.

“…I’m a hunter.”

‘That’s a lie.’

‘That’s a lie.’

‘That’s a lie.’

That was the reaction of Alber, Lapilta, and Paul.

“By any chance… are you from the Nord tribe?”

Paul carefully asked, observing the crow man’s appearance.

The only race he knew that hunted wearing animal masks was the Nord tribe.

“Nord?”

Alber and Lapilta were startled and gave wary glances.

“That cult that loots villages, treats women like toys, enjoys killing, and eats children?!”

At Lapilta’s words, the crow man said in an absurd tone.

“…Of course, there are many Nords who are uneducated and only have muscles in their brains… but how did the perception of Nords become like this?”

The bad perception of Nords was widespread on the continent.

In fact, the Nords were a group of raiders who attacked small villages and territories just three years ago.

Lapilta and Alber gave wary glances.

They even placed their hands on the hilts of their swords in their waistbands, preparing for any possible danger.

“You’re being too harsh. I just saved you… are you perhaps thinking of fighting me?”

“It’s not that. However, if you are a dangerous person…”

“We can’t just stand still either.”

At Alber and Lapilta’s words, Paul waved his hands.

“Now, now! Don’t be so wary. Look. That Mr. Crow isn’t holding a weapon… huh?”

Paul stared at the crow man with wide eyes.

The ridiculously large crossbow he had been holding just a moment ago had disappeared.

Just like when he took out the crossbow, he made the crossbow disappear in the blink of an eye.

There was only one occupational group that could perform such a feat.

“Could it be… are you a magician?”

Paul asked, his eyes shining.

There are many strong warriors among the Nords.

However, there were only warriors, and almost no magicians who could use magic.

It was known that their representative figure, a being called ‘Shaman,’ was a figure who could be called a great sage, but few people knew that fact.

“A magician, you say?”

“But magic that uses space is incredibly high-level magic! Even I can’t do it!”

At Paul’s exclamation, Lapilta and Alber looked at each other.

“Judging by what that kid is saying, he must be really amazing.”

“He’s a royal magician with quite a bit of experience.”

Seeing their reaction, the crow man seemed to be thinking about something before opening his mouth.

“Well… I can use magic, but I’m not very good at it. I just have tools with magic options.”

“Magic tools?”

When Lapilta tilted his head, Paul’s eyes sparkled.

“Magic item! Could it be that outfit?!”

Paul approached the crow man without any wariness and touched his clothes here and there. The crow man simply watched Paul.

“Well, you could say that. But… how long are you going to hold your swords?”

At the crow man’s reaction, Alber cleared his throat, and Lapilta made an awkward expression.

Whatever his identity, it was certain that they had been saved.

“We should have thanked you first. I’m sorry, young man.”

“Thank you. Forgive our rudeness.”

“…….”

Lapilta said, extending his hand coolly.

“My name is Lapilta. The elder over there is Alber, and the kid over there is Paul.”

“I’m Hoon.”

The crow man, Loki, shook his hand.

“By the way… you’re a Nord after all. Is an ogre nothing to you?”

Alber was well aware of the rumors about the Nords, and he had even seen them fight from afar.

Indiscriminate and almost ignorant strength.

To put it nicely, they were excellent warriors.

To put it badly, they were berserkers crazy about battle.

‘When I saw some Nords during the war, one of them was able to fight against four elite soldiers of the kingdom.’

Even with poor equipment.

If they had proper equipment and training, they would have become even more terrifying beings.

Recalling the beast-like figures who seemed to enjoy battle, Alber did not let his guard down against Hoon.

They were excellent warriors, but they also had a strong reputation for losing their temper and going wild.

Paul looked at the sky.

The sun was already setting.

“Let’s set up camp first. I’m tired….”

Paul said, drooping his shoulders.

“Here…?”

Alber and Lapilta looked at the dead ogre.

“It’s a bit unsettling, isn’t it?”

“No. This will be a good place.”

Loki pointed to the ogre.

“Most monsters will avoid the smell of the ogre’s blood.”

At those words, Paul made a surprised expression.

“Oh? You know? Ogre blood has the effect of repelling monsters. The orcs who handle this ogre will also retreat because of the smell of blood! Of course, it will attract them if it rots.”

Hoon smiled.

“I learned it from hearsay.”

Loki had learned quite a few things from the Nords.

“Then, let’s prepare for camping!”

Loki nodded at Lapilta’s words.

***

Lapilta was on watch for the camp.

As everyone was preparing to sleep, Alber quietly looked at Hoon.

‘He’s quite different from other Nords.’

The Nords he knew were impatient, impulsive, and mostly acted before thinking.

Their skills were superior to any mercenaries, but they were difficult to control, so few people tried to hire them as mercenaries.

The only ones who welcomed them were the nobles who started territorial wars.

‘That’s why many Nords were hired during the Ronia Kingdom’s civil war.’

However, the number of Nords wandering around the continent has decreased dramatically in the last three years.

No one knows exactly where they went, but most of them were said to have returned to their homeland, the frozen land.

‘I heard rumors that a country was established there….’

But Alber thought it was an unreliable story.

Nords gathering to form a country?

It was completely unbelievable.

It was just a group of thousands of bandits forming a group, with the bandit leader calling himself a king.

There are countless unpredictable things in the world….

‘It’s probably not something to worry about.’

In his mind, or rather, in the minds of the continental people, the Nords were just ‘looters’.

Not much different from a group of bandits.

The night grew deeper.

…How much time had passed?

At that moment, Loki, who sensed a strange sound, quietly opened his eyes.

‘People?’

It was definitely not a monster.

Along with the clattering sound, he heard the sound of weapons moving and hushed conversations.

‘Where is it?’

Not far away. Quite close.

Loki looked at Lapilta and his group.

Lapilta looked at Loki with sleepy eyes and was puzzled.

“Oh? Hoon, aren’t you sleeping? There’s still time left for the shift. You should sleep a little more….”

“I hear a sound.”

“…Sound?”

“It seems like there are people. And it seems like a fairly large group.”

“…I don’t hear anything?”

Lapilta strained his ears as much as possible, but only the sound of insects could be heard.

‘…Is it because he’s a hunter and has good hearing? Or is he just talking nonsense?’

Lapilta doubted Loki’s words, but it would be rude to ask his benefactor if he was talking nonsense.

“What are you going to do?”

“Huh? Ah! Of course, we have to go. But can you guarantee that they are people?”

“I heard conversations.”

“Conversations?”

‘Is he perhaps talking in his sleep?’

It was then.

Lapilta also sensed a subtle noise.

However, it was difficult to be sure whether the sound was from a group of people or a group of monsters.

But….

‘I hear it!’

Lapilta looked at Loki in surprise.

Could it be real!?

“What are you going to do?”

“Huh? Ah! Of course, we have to meet them!”

He had been lost for a long time.

It would be nice to have a guide who knows the way!

***

Slave trader Azar was singing merrily.

He had a flushed face, a fist-sized strawberry nose, a bulging belly, and wore a leather outfit stained with dirty dust and sweat.

He proudly sang at the top of his lungs, showing his rotten teeth, but the mercenaries next to him wanted to cover their ears from the unpleasant noise.

But they couldn’t say anything, because the other party was the slave trader who hired them.

Recently, civil wars have become frequent in the Ronia Kingdom.

However, mercenaries unexpectedly avoided participating in civil wars.

In a way, it was a natural thing.

When it comes to mercenaries, it is natural to stand at the forefront of the battlefield in the war. To put it nicely, they are vanguards and shock troops, but in reality, they are just shields or consumables.

After using mercenaries to reduce the enemy’s stamina or personnel, the elites would step in.

As a result, war became an undesirable request for mercenaries, where they were deprived of credit, did not receive money, and lost their lives if they were unlucky.

Even if they participated in the war, they would not receive compensation for their lives.

As a result, mercenaries flocked to the relatively stable escort requests.

Knowing this, slave trader Azar was able to hire the mercenaries in front of him at the lowest possible price.

He could have created escorts with slaves, but complete control was difficult, so he hired mercenaries who were at least trustworthy.

‘Slave warriors try to kill me even if I just give them weapons! Just because I starved them for a few days and made them work a little. They don’t realize they are slaves enough!’

He liked free things, but his life was also important.

Imagine a slave trader being killed by a slave! How unsightly would that be!

‘Well, the deficit from hiring mercenaries can be covered later in the slums.’

For him, everyone living in the slums was the same as slaves. No one would care if they suddenly disappeared.

‘Besides, I got a treasure-like guy in my hands!’

Azar looked at the cart with the tent and smiled bitterly.

At that moment, the mercenaries’ march stopped.

They seemed flustered, their gazes focused on one place, and they became noisy.

“What…? Those guys!”

“Could it be… bandits?”

“No, that can’t be. Their equipment is too good to be bandits.”

Azar also turned his gaze to that place at the mercenaries’ words.

A group was standing in front of the path.

Equipment that was too expensive to be bandits, and among them, there was a particularly noticeable presence.

It was a man wearing a crow mask that he had never seen before.

“His outfit is strange? A crow mask? If he’s wearing an animal mask… isn’t that a Nord?”

“A Nord…? Could it be those looters…!”

The mercenaries raised their weapons in unison.

“It’s an ambush!”