Chapter 5 (1/2)

This chapter is a bit longer than usual, enjoy!

An announcement will be coming tomorrow in regards to chapter release schedule and novels.

I could discern a few points from running around the mountain for the past two days.

First, there were a countless number of wild animals in Mount Buckan such as rabbits, squirrels, racc.o.o.ns, woodp.e.c.k.e.rs. Porcupines, etc…

Second, a number of animals were killed by a stab from long nails.

Third, many traps had been set recently.

The first piece of information was the norm for a mountain, but something was off about the second and third points. Animals being killed by a stab wound was especially troubling.

'Is it the work of a hunter? Or...?'

Traps were set in several places around the mountain. Notably, there were many traps set here in the past month or so. This meant the presence of poachers or trespa.s.sing hunters.

Or… There was another possibility. I still had to consider the possibility that members of Aletheia could have returned as well. Because of this, I hid my presence while I looked for any signs of such activity. If the gate was their goal, I had to prepare for engagement. Thankfully, I had my bird hunting rifle in hand.

Even if they awakened, it shouldn't have been too long; I definitely had the advantage with my copious experience in battle. But what if they possessed a shotgun or a rifle?

'That could cause quite the headache for me.'

My current body was limited by physical factors. Even if I could predict the path of bullets, my body had to move fast enough. The maximum range for my bird hunting rifle was barely 20 meters. A shotgun's range was several times this range.

On the other hand, I had a clear chance over them. They were not aware of my presence. Conversely, I knew they could be anywhere in this mountain range.

I hid my tracks as I moved, and followed their trail. Tracking them was not hard, as they would never have suspected someone following them.

As a result, I found them 12 hours later.

'Three people.'

Three unfamiliar men who looked to be in their 30s and 40s  were in the middle of boiling ramen in the middle of a small campsite. They didn't seem to be any of the high ranking figures of Aletheia.

I didn't sense the fanatic aura that was common amongst the followers of Aletheia either. I hid against a tree and eavesdropped on their conversation.

'Ah, I'm going crazy. How long are we going to stay in this mountain?”

”Until we find the golden squirrel! We will be rolling in dough after we catch it.”

”But does it really exist? We looked everywhere during the past month, and we didn't even catch a glimpse of its tail.”

”You saw the pictures. My G.o.d! I've never seen something more beautiful in my life. Its coat was s.h.i.+ning like a bar of gold.”

”Okay, okay. My ear drums are going to self-destruct down if I hear one more word from you.”

”Guys, stop fighting. We've been gaining some leads in the past few days. Let's capture the d.a.m.ned squirrel so we can go home, yeah?”

The oldest looking man with a thick beard coughed and opened his mouth.

”We just have to be patient for a few more days. The squirrel should definitely be around the peak of the mountain.”

”This is the last time I'm trusting you, okay?”

The conversation faded away on that note, and the trio began to dig into their ramen noodles. A smile appeared on my face. This was an unexpected lucky break; I was glad I met them here.

'A golden squirrel!'

These men had nothing to do with Aletheia. However, the animal they were chasing might have something to do with the gate.

Changes incurred in organisms affected by the gate. Firstly, some aspects were observable with the naked eye such as an increase in size and color. They also grew more aggressive and became stronger. I had already confirmed that the animal corpses littered around the mountain were killed by a long nail. After a.n.a.lyzing the evidence gathered so far, it was highly likely that the golden squirrel was the culprit.

'The altar of the Ancient One is also gold.'

Organisms mutated into six different colors depending on the type of gate they were affected: gold, t.i.tian, violet, azure, white and black. A golden gate had relations with ancient relics or beasts; violet gates were often the nest of powerful beasts or a false G.o.d; t.i.tian was linked to a rare phenomenon, and azure gates were the residences of a plethora of beast races. As for the rest, the majority of gates were white. Only a small number of gates fell into these categorical colors. In particular, gold and t.i.tian gates were considered almost non-existent due to their extremely small numbers.

And for the last, the black gate was a portal straight into the depths of the abyss. One could never step inside and hope to return alive. It was speculated that existences like the Demon Lord came in through a black gate.

At that moment, a query propped up in my mind.

'There are too many animal corpses.'

Even a mutated squirrel could only do so much. I couldn't explain how a number of predators were buried around the mountain.

It buried the animals it hunted, but it couldn't fool my eyes. My first guess was that an animal like a boar was affected by the gate. I followed this train of thought and widened my range of search.

'To think it was a squirrel.'

Could it… perhaps be a rare variant? An animal who underwent the so-called ”rare variation” was in and of itself a monster. I couldn't take something like that down by myself.

'The golden squirrel is near the peak of the mountain.'

The location was well within my expectations, Anyhow, I secured this vital piece of information. Even though the possibility of a rare variant made the situation dangerous for me… I turned my head towards the direction of the three men who were engrossed in eating their meal.

'I'm sorry, but you guys will have to be my bait.'

The tip of a mountain was only a tip in name. In actuality, the area it covered was wide. On the other hand, I was still able to find tracks of the golden squirrel which was clearer larger than ordinary squirrels. I used the entirety of my day to find any traces of the squirrel.

'The son of a b*tch is exuding unbelievable bloodl.u.s.t. I can't find any traces of other animals here.'

Golden Squirrel; its killing methods were beyond my imagination. Be that as it may, the s.h.i.+thead showed plenty of cleverness. It didn't attack humans and buried its kills underground.

But it still couldn't control its violent nature.

'I'll have to lure it in somehow.'

Rather than facing it head on in its home turf, I had a much better chance at winning if I lured it to my chosen location. By coincidence, the three men I met earlier who had set up a stone trap on the other side of the peak. Although there wasn't any chance the mutated squirrel would fall for such a trap, I used my time to hunt animals to gather blood. I subsequently gathered the different types of blood and mixed them in one bottle. As the liquids h.o.m.ogenized, an odd scent emanated from the bottle. It would be the perfect tool to trigger the squirrel's bloodl.u.s.t.

'My preparation is complete.'

I shut the lid on the bottle to prevent the scent from prematurely leaking and patiently waited for the sun to set.

”Ah, I'm tired.”

”Let's call it a day. Starting tomorrow we'll be luring it in.”