Chapter 87 (2/2)

I was a little scared to think of the fate that might have befell the multiple women and children we rescued from the capital.

Currently, I was carrying on my back the dead body of the large ferocious monster that had attacked us a while ago as we walked.

Chiome and Ariane had called the monster an Umbra Tiger, a powerful monster that inhabited mountainous regions and said that an entire squad would normally be dispatched to deal with one of them.

It was about four meter tall and five meter long from head to tail. The tiger-like monster had fangs on its upper jaw that reminded me of a sabretooth tiger, its eyes were blood red, two purple horns grew from his head, and its whole body was covered in black fur.

The monster was normally nocturnal, but I happened to come across it when I was pushing some foliage aside.

Normally the creature would blend into the night as it preyed upon its victims, but a large, black tiger in broad daylight was hard to miss.

Faster than the instant noodles from my former world could cook, the three of us had slain the Umbra Tiger.

“Sorry, Arc-dono. It’s not too heavy is it?”

Chiome suddenly looked back at me with a worried expression.

It was her request that we take the Umbra Tiger with us.

When the purple horns on its head were filed down, they could be shaped into knives stronger and sharper than steel.

In fact, the dagger Chiome carried was made from one such horn.

In addition, its fur could be tailored into a coat useful for mountain winters, and the large fangs could be ground into medicine. The fur and fangs were also a luxurious item for humans and could be sold to raise funds for food and weapons.

“It doesn’t weigh as much as the Giant Basilisk I killed before.”

I lightly bounced the Umbra Tiger on my shoulder and chuckled when I said that.

Ariane, who was carrying Ponta beneath her breast, made an amazed comment when she heard that.

“Arc you’re beyond normal in a different way from mother……”

“It’s a little embarrassing to receive praise from you.”

Ariane had an unreadable expression on her face when I made my joking remark.

Maybe she hadn’t been complementing me.

Chiome had continued to lead us through a patch of densely packed forest as we talked. When we cleared the area she pointed out a mountain on the other side of a steep cliff.

“My village is in front of that mountain. We should arrive before nightfall. That is, if we continue at our current pace without stopping.”

Chiome gaze traveled up the mountain as she said so.

“Then let’s cover the rest of the distance. Chiome, we can take a rest once we reach the village, right?”

“Yes.”

When Ariane nodded, we crossed the valley with transfer magic.

The day had almost passed, and dusk was gradually fading away by the time we finally set eyes upon Chiome’s hidden village.

An outer wall composed of wooden logs and an inner stone wall surrounding the village and the sharpened point atop the wall made it seem like a fortress rather than a village.

The main entrance was a drawbridge that was currently sealed tight to keep out intruders.

The village’s houses were built along the slope and windmills were built at the top of the mountain. The was also a small field in-between the wooden and stone walls.

The landscape was reminiscent of Machu Picchu.

From here I could see the shadows of people maintaining the fields. Since monsters thrived in the mountainous regions, I ignored the emotions the picturesque view invoked.

It was impossible to say that this was an easy place to live in.

“The village is set on such a terrible slope……”

Ariane honest impression leaked out as glanced up at the village.

The majority of the Calcutta Mountain Range consisted of mountains and valleys, so it was next to impossible to find suitable land to built on.

This mountain face was probably the only somewhat flat area around.

“It’s praiseworthy that a village could be built is this place, but how many people live there now? I can’t image there are all that many……”

It was an impressive achievement to build a safe haven in such a mountainous region, but the village was considerably smaller than Ariane’s childhood home, Raratoia.

Chiome blue eyes listlessly stared at her village as she answered my question.

“After the raid in the capital, the population surpassed one thousand people.”

“I see…… that’s quite the number of people.”

When I voiced my surprise, Ariane nodded while staring at the village as she agreed with the statement.

Only Ponta let out a large yawn while gently wagging her tail in Ariane’s arms.

She had decent insight when it came to food, but not for anything else. However, a spirit beast like Ponta fretting over things like population density would be a problem in it of itself.

When she saw Ponta’s innocent behavior, Chiome cleared away her melancholy expression.

“Well, let’s introduce you to the current head of the Blade Heart Clan.”