Wolves and Sunshowers
***
Fwooh—
Only after all six of the remaining wolves had retreated did Elbridge let out a sigh of relief.
No matter how skilled Elbridge was, it was not an easy task to subdue all six wolves without injury. Especially since his physical condition was at its worst, and there were a great number of people behind him who did not know how to fight.
While Elbridge was dusting off the dirt from his clothes, a slightly excited Rick approached him.
"El! That was amazing!"
"Ah, yes."
"But just now, how did you do that?"
"It was just, well, I was lucky."
"There's no way something like that is possible with luck..."
Rick seemed to trail off, then asked in a sly voice as if he knew everything.
"You... you're a mercenary, aren't you?"
When recruiting Elbridge in the village, Rick had heard him talk about being a paladin.
However, Rick had judged that Elbridge was not a paladin.
This was because the way Elbridge fought was different from the way a paladin fought.
The knights Rick had seen tended to rely on the overwhelming strength and speed they exerted using mana.
They would run at a speed that was hard to describe as human movement and overpower their opponents with strength that surpassed human limits.
He had even seen an armored knight slam into a bear with his pauldron and send it flying. He had heard that a paladin's combat was not much different.
On the other hand, Elbridge, while his movements were excellent, did not display speed or strength that went beyond the human realm.
Fighting with skill using physical abilities that did not deviate from the human realm was closer to the way of a mercenary. Though it would have to be a very seasoned mercenary, not an ordinary one...
Elbridge had no intention of explaining the situation in great detail.
"Something like that."
"I knew it. By the way, to have that much skill at such a young age... That's incredible."
"It's not to the extent of being called incredible."
"Being overly humble isn't good to see either. If you took down a wolf pack by yourself, it's better to swagger a bit. Isn't that a feat worthy of a knight?"
"...Pardon? What do you mean by that?"
Elbridge could not lightly brush off Rick's praise. It was because Rick's compliment felt a little strange.
The expression "wolf hunter" or "bear hunter" was one of the insulting expressions directed at knights and paladins.
It meant that despite being a knight, one's skills were so severely lacking or one was so cowardly that they were only ever called upon for wolf or bear subjugations.
Given the circumstances, it was not strange for Rick to praise Elbridge, but to praise him by specifically mentioning a knight was unnatural.
It was also unlikely that a man as worldly as Rick would not know that fact.
'...No. Did something change in the last two hundred years?'
Whatever Elbridge thought, Rick was still smiling cheerfully.
"It's just as I said. When you're young, it's okay to show a bit of a childish side..."
"No, not that. I'm talking about the part about a feat worthy of a knight."
"Why? Is something strange?"
"It's not that... Do knights hunt wolves?"
"If a pack of wolves kills livestock or attacks a private house, it's common to ask the nearest lord for help. And it's the standard response for the lord to dispatch a knight upon receiving the request."
However, contrary to Rick's story, in Elbridge's memory, wolf hunting was always the job of seasoned hunters or mercenaries.
Just as calling a knight a wolf hunter was an insult, a lord dispatching a knight to deal with wolves was an insult to the knight.
So then, in Elbridge's era, what did knights and paladins hunt if not wolves or bears?
Elbridge said.
"Aren't knights busy hunting magical beasts and demons?"
When Elbridge said that, a few of the people who had been tense let out small laughs. They thought Elbridge had thrown a joke to lighten the mood.
Similarly, Rick also burst into laughter.
"What? That's ridiculous. It's not like magical beasts are common... And demons? Where in the world are there demons?"
"What do you mean there are no demons? There definitely..."
"You, you have a surprisingly naive side to you. Demons are just stories made up by paladins and priests to save their own face. Have you ever once met someone who said they met a demon in person?"
Elbridge faltered.
Even in the past, demons had been on a downward trend. It was the result of knights and paladins fighting with their lives on the line and sealing the demons one by one.
And finally, it was two hundred years ago that even the Great Archdemon was sealed.
If the people of the world now no longer believed in the existence of demons.
If a world had come where the blood shed by paladins and knights in the distant past was considered mere bluffing.
Did that not mean that the world the dead knights had dreamed of had arrived?
After a short deliberation, Elbridge threw a question.
"True, I've never met a person who said they saw a demon in person. Is it the same for you, sir?"
And he waited for Rick's answer, a little tense.
"I'm telling you. Demons are the talk of drunkards or braggarts. Or the nonsense of some half-wit who saw a magical beast and thought it was a demon."
Elbridge smiled without realizing it.
Because that was the very story he had wanted to hear the most.
<><><>
While the two were talking for a moment, the presence of people was felt from the front.
When he turned his head, he saw mercenaries. Three of the mercenaries who had been escorting the caravan ahead.
Among them was the mercenary with the scar on the bridge of his nose who had given Elbridge a talking-to.
"What's the matter?"
When Rick asked, the mercenary with the scar on the bridge of his nose answered.
"There was a small clash with a wolf pack a little while ago. I thought the wolves might attack this group, but fortunately, nothing..."
The scarred mercenary's gaze, as he was speaking, fell upon the wolf's carcass. One of the mercenary's eyebrows shot up crookedly.
"Why is that wolf dead?"
"That friend killed it. It was almost a disaster, but it was a stroke of great luck."
Rick pointed at Elbridge. The scarred mercenary looked a little surprised.
"He took down a wolf by himself?"
"Yes."
"He's a man of great skill, unlike how he looks."
Elbridge gave a slight nod.
"Good fortune was on my side."
"A person without skill can't seize good fortune. Let alone against a wolf that big... Why didn't you just introduce yourself as a mercenary in the village instead of spouting strange nonsense? If you had, you might have been able to travel with our caravan."
As Elbridge gave an awkward smile, the scarred mercenary carefully stroked his own left forearm with his fingers.
"No, if that had happened, the people here wouldn't have been safe. In the end, was it good fortune that followed... Anyway."
The scarred mercenary spoke to Rick again.
"My employer said that since a mishap could occur because of the wolves, we should just spend the night together."
Elbridge recalled the plump person in charge of the caravan. It seemed he was a rather considerate person, unlike his greedy-looking appearance.
Furthermore, that was not a bad decision for the person in charge of the caravan ahead either. The more people gathered, the lower the probability that the wolves would attack.
'He's a rather wise person. Then again, that must be why he's in charge of the caravan...'
<><><>
Rick and Elbridge's party of about forty people joined up with the caravan that had gone ahead.
As they were able to spend a night among the sword-wielding mercenaries, a light of relief appeared on the faces of the people who had been so tense.
People lit bonfires here and there and fell asleep.
The mercenaries included in the caravan took turns setting the watch, and the first person to stand watch was the scarred mercenary from before.
He stretched out his arms and then squatted down in front of the bonfire.
Elbridge could not sleep either, so instead of lying down and trying to sleep, he sat across from the mercenary.
The mercenary spoke good-naturedly.
"I guess this is fate, too? Call me Marcus. I hope you don't take what I said before to heart."
Elbridge gave a small nod.
"Yes. Mister Marcus. Are we only staying together for today and then separating again tomorrow?"
"My employer has a good personality, so he won't be fussy about that kind of problem. But you don't need to worry too much from tomorrow on anyway."
"Why is that?"
"My employer sent a person to a nearby barony. He said he's quite acquainted with the lord... A knight will arrive by tomorrow evening, so there's no need to worry about wolves."
Just like Rick, Marcus did not seem to find the situation of a knight hunting wolves particularly strange.
Elbridge said.
"Mister Marcus. Is it common for wolf packs to attack people? Rick... I mean, our leader said that if a lot of people gather, the wolves won't attack."
Elbridge did not know much about the ecology of wolves. It was only natural, as he had almost no experience hunting them.
"It's not common. Wolves often attack a person who is alone, but they become cautious when there are more than ten people."
"So Old Man Rick's story wasn't wrong."
"Rick is a man who's cut his teeth as a merchant in this area. There's no way he doesn't know the ecology of wolves."
"It seems you are acquainted with the old gentleman."
"Of course. Old Man Rick has followed the caravan I escort at least six or seven times. Though this is the first time we've camped together like this..."
According to Marcus, the merchants did not particularly like Old Man Rick, who would trail after the caravan.
It was a story that Elbridge could also understand without difficulty. From a merchant's perspective, Rick, who followed them closely like a stray dog looking for scraps of meat, would be subtly annoying.
Elbridge changed the subject.
"By the way, wolves are more timid animals than I thought."
"Why?"
"Didn't you say they retreat if there are more than ten people? Seeing the wolves in a pack earlier, it looked like they could easily hunt not just ten, but even more than twenty ordinary people."
At Elbridge's words, Marcus tilted his head.
"I don't know. That wolf pack was a bit strange."
"Pardon?"
"In the cold north, wolves can form large packs, but the wolves of the east don't form packs in that way."
"Then, how do they form packs?"
"A pack of wolves in the east is usually just composed of two parents and several pups. Sometimes another adult wolf takes shelter with the pack, but... even so, it's normal for there to be only up to three or four adults."
Two adult wolves.
If it was to that extent, it would be natural for wolves not to attack if there were only about ten people. The east was not a region where food was scarce like the north, so there was no need for wolves to take unnecessary risks.
"We were just damn unlucky. To have seven adults without any pups. I wonder why they were gathered like that..."
As Elbridge muttered, Marcus said.
"Actually, it's not like I have no idea at all."
When Elbridge stared silently at Marcus, Marcus needlessly poked the bonfire with a tree branch. Embers that wanted to become stars soared up into the night sky.
"What do you mean, you have an idea?"
"A few months ago, a rumor started circulating among the mercenaries that a magical beast was seen in this area. At first, I thought it was a groundless rumor. Because magical beasts are so rare that it's hard to encounter one even once in several years..."
Elbridge thought.
'It really seems like there aren't many magical beasts these days.'
Two hundred years ago, magical beasts were not that rare.
Naturally, knights and paladins had to run around until their feet were sweating to deal with the magical beasts.
Marcus continued his story.
"But as time passed, the number of people who said they saw a magical beast gradually increased."
"Ahem. But what is the relationship between that magical beast and the wolves?"
"As it happens, they say that magical beast is a wolf-type."
"..."
There were various types of magical beasts.
Although they were called magical beasts with their own unique forms, animals that had undergone magical beast transformation were also called magical beasts.
And an animal that had undergone magical beast transformation would naturally gather and rule over its own kind in the vicinity.
Since the behavior of a magical beast was different from that of an ordinary animal, it was not uncommon to see the animals under a magical beast exhibit unusual behavior.
As Elbridge made a sour face, Marcus burst into hearty laughter.
"Haha, don't worry. Even if it's nearby, it's a place that takes almost ten days to get to from here."
"Ah, yes..."
For Elbridge, it was not a very reassuring story.
"Besides, I've been following the God of Sunshowers since the winter of the year before last. As you know, when you live as a mercenary, life-threatening moments come by quite often, don't they? But since the winter of the year before last, the God of Sunshowers has bestowed upon me some amazing good fortune. Thanks to that, I'm still alive and well to this day."
As he said that, Marcus rolled up his left sleeve and showed his forearm.
A tattoo of a raindrop, symbolizing the God of Sunshowers, was visible. Elbridge felt even more uneasy.
"..."
The God of Sunshowers was a god that symbolized luck.
However, the God of Sunshowers was not a very popular god two hundred years ago. It was to the point where even gamblers often served the God of the Golden Tray, who symbolized wealth, rather than the God of Sunshowers, who symbolized luck.
'In those days, did the God of Sunshowers barely hold one seat in the celestial council...'
Elbridge asked.
"Mister Marcus. How many seats does the God of Sunshowers hold in the celestial council?"
"Was it eight seats this year? If you go by the number of seats, he'd be about tenth. He's a respectable mid-tier or higher."
"I see..."
Elbridge answered as such, then let out a deep sigh inwardly.
It was because he had realized what kind of good fortune the God of Sunshowers had arranged for Marcus.
Furthermore, there was one more thing that Marcus had not realized.
That in order to show good fortune most clearly, a correspondingly perilous moment was needed.
'...This has become tiresome.'
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