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“And it’s not like we came back empty-handed. Didn’t we proudly gain another Aura user?”

Only then did Siris’s expression brighten a little.

“Is that so?”

Tassid puffed out his chest and burst into hearty laughter.

“That’s right. Thanks to you, I finally received the blessing of Debata. Siris, without you, I wouldn’t have had such fortune.”

Siris smiled bashfully as she watched Tassid laugh heartily. Seeing the two of them, Repenhardt muttered to himself.

‘I never thought Tassid would awaken his Aura already. He wasn’t supposed to awaken for another ten years.’

In his previous life, Tassid became an Aura user after leaving the Blue Bear Tribe and wandering the world. He was always pursued in the human world, fighting against various strong opponents, and each time he broke through his limits.

‘He awakened his Aura while fighting the Aura user Cameron from the Kingdom of Hallein, right?’

Thinking about it, the current Tassid had entered the world much earlier than in his previous life. He had grown through numerous battles during the civil war in the Kingdom of Crovence, steadily honing his sense of Aura through his encounters with Russ. Unlike Kalken or Stalla, Russ was a human Aura user, which allowed Tassid to gain much more than when he only fought Orc Aura users.

Then, when he faced Stefan, who used the Berserker Armor, he brought out everything he had, and finally, the blocked dam burst.

‘It’s definitely fortunate, but it’s not an entirely unexpected turn of events.’

“Anyway, we found the Jerunting as originally planned, and we got an unexpected bonus, so this trip has been successful.”

Agreeing with Russ’s words, Tassid added.

“Let’s hurry back home and get some rest.”

By now, everyone referred to Antares Ducal Castle as their home without any awkwardness. Watching Tassid naturally call it home, Repenhardt smiled.

“Yes, let’s go back. To our home.”

* * *

Three shadows raced swiftly through the dense tropical forest. They were trolls, a species with rough skin and long, spindly limbs like those of a spider. A tall troll, who appeared to be an adult, was frantically slashing through the underbrush with a stone knife, leading two young trolls.

“Huff, huff, huff!”

Panting heavily, they leapt over rocks and pushed through bushes. One of the young trolls tripped over a tree root and fell. The troll child sat down on the spot, on the verge of tears.

“Huff, huff, huff! I can’t run anymore, Utrang!”

“We can’t stop! The humans are coming!”

“But…”

Utrang looked at the panting young trolls and felt troubled. Unlike him, who had already undergone the coming-of-age ceremony, these young trolls hadn’t yet developed their regenerative abilities. If they continued to strain their lungs like this, their lives would be at risk. Adult trolls, even if they lost limbs, could fully recover as long as they had proper meals. In contrast, young trolls were frail beings who could easily die from overexertion or excessive bleeding.

Anxiously, Utrang gazed across the forest.

“But… if we stay here, we’ll get caught by the humans…”

About 200 meters away from the trolls, through the tangled vines of the rainforest, a group of humans moved forward. They were armed with crossbows, spears, and swords, and clad in high-quality leather armor. The middle-aged man, who appeared to be their leader, pushed through the forest and shouted.

“Have you found any traces?”

A young man, who was inspecting the rocks and ground ahead, pointed and replied.

“They fled that way, Captain Londen!”

The middle-aged man, Londen, grinned and loaded a bolt into his crossbow.

“Good! Tighten the encirclement as planned and drive them out!”

“Understood!”

Following Londen’s command, the others quickly disappeared into the forest.

These were monster hunters with considerable fame in the southern region of Hallein Kingdom, particularly in the Denkid area. The blood and biological tissues of monsters were precious materials for alchemists, leading many hunters to accept requests from the Alchemist Guild to hunt various monsters.

Among these, trolls were the most valuable.

Troll blood was an excellent ingredient for healing potions. Normally, healing potions were created by alchemists combining various rare herbs and mages infusing them with magic. However, with troll blood, this process was greatly simplified. Even with cheap herbs, a few drops of troll blood could produce a potion with efficacy comparable to an authentic healing potion. Moreover, the mage’s magic infusion wasn’t even necessary.

Healing potions were expensive, fetching at least ten silver coins per bottle. Consequently, troll blood was worth its weight in gold.

Of course, hunting such trolls wasn’t an easy task. Trolls were powerful monsters that only seasoned monster hunters could handle, and they resided deep within forests, making them difficult to spot by humans.

In this regard, Londen was fortunate.

While hunting monsters, he stumbled upon a village in the ancient jungle where the villagers pleaded for him to eliminate a troll that had appeared nearby. Londen and his companions were experienced and powerful enough to take on trolls.

After thoroughly searching the jungle surrounding the village for a week, they finally found and began tracking the troll. With greed gleaming in his eyes, Londen muttered to himself.

“We’ve found a jackpot after much effort. We can’t let it slip away, huhuhu.”

* * *

The humans’ encirclement was gradually tightening. Utrang looked up at the sky. If he were alone, he could somehow escape from them. But it was impossible with these children.

‘This is my mistake!’

With a heart full of regret, Utrang beat his chest. It was a mistake not to listen to Guru Matero, the leader of their tribe, and to venture beyond the forbidden zone.

‘I shouldn’t have gone to that waterfall.’

Discovering the waterfall with its concentrated spiritual energy outside the forbidden zone was the root of the problem. As an apprentice shaman striving to become a great shaman, Utrang found the pure spiritual energy of the waterfall immensely tempting. Despite it being a forbidden zone, he thought there wouldn’t be a problem since it was far from human villages, so he secretly visited the place.

As the saying goes, “A long tail gets stepped on.” Eventually, while training under the waterfall, Utrang was spotted by a villager. The frightened villagers then gathered hunters to exterminate the troll. By that time, Utrang was oblivious to this and continued visiting the waterfall, even making the grave mistake of bringing along the young trolls he was close to.

This was the result. He found himself in a dreadful situation where not only he but also precious children were being chased by humans. Utrang racked his brain in frustration.

‘What should I do?’

The answer came quickly. Nature is a great teacher. Within the laws of nature, Utrang found a way to resolve the situation.

‘When a nest is in danger, the sandpiper pretends to be injured to protect its eggs by luring the predator away.’

Having made up his mind, Utrang began digging under a tree. The young trolls looked at him in confusion. After digging a large hole, Utrang pushed the children into it.

“Both of you, hide here! Got it?”

As the young trolls entered the hole, Utrang gathered leaves to cover them. The children, startled, asked,

“What about you, Utrang?”

Without answering, Utrang gave a sad smile. His prominent cheekbones and long jaw, typical of trolls, displayed a determined expression. Realizing what Utrang intended to do, the young trolls began to cry and tried to stop him.

“No! Utrang!”

Utrang placed a hand on each of their heads and pushed them back into the hole.

“When you grow up, take care of the other children.”

“No!”

“Utrang!”

The children started to thrash and cry, which would reveal their location. Slightly panicked, Utrang snapped his fingers repeatedly.

Snap! Snap! Snap!

“Soft clouds, drifting, poppy night.”

Although Utrang hadn’t reached the level of a guru, he could still use simple sleep spells. The rhythmic finger snaps echoed in the children’s ears. Their struggles subsided, and they became quiet.

“Phew…”

Utrang stood up, eyes shining. The humans were almost upon them, as evidenced by the loud noises echoing through the jungle.

Drawing his stone knife, Utrang let out a powerful shout.

“Raaaaah!”

* * *

The bushes shook, and a large shadow suddenly burst out. The hunters shouted as they saw the revealed troll.

“It’s here!”

“It’s a troll!”

The relatively inexperienced young men swallowed nervously at the sight of the troll. As they had heard, the troll was indeed a ferocious monster. It stood over two meters tall with grotesquely long limbs, skin like tree bark adorned with bizarre tattoo-like markings, and a hideously demonic face. An ordinary person would have wet themselves in fear just by facing such a monster.

“Graaaah!”

The troll roared and started running among the hunters. At first, it seemed to be attacking, but it was just brandishing a stone knife and dashing toward the other side of the jungle. Londen shouted frantically.

“It’s escaping! Shoot it!”

Crossbows were pulled back simultaneously. Dozens of arrows lodged into the troll’s back. The troll, which had been running, flinched and slowed down. Londen shouted again.

“Chase it! Don’t let it get away!”

The slowed troll, Utrang, clicked his tongue inwardly.

“Damn! I need to gain more distance…”

Hunters quickly caught up with Utrang, whose steps had slowed due to the pain. They formed a siege and began throwing spears.

“Take this!”

“Bind its legs!”

“Everyone! Aim for the legs!”

Utrang swung the stone knife to knock down the spears. However, as someone who had not yet completed his training as a guru, he didn’t possess that level of skill. The stone knife missed its mark, and spears pierced his limbs here and there. Utrang screamed in pain.

“Grrrraaaah!”

Continuously swinging the stone knife to keep the hunters at bay, Utrang hastily pulled out the spears embedded in his body with his free hand. As soon as the deeply lodged wounds were freed from the spears, they began to heal at a terrifying speed. The regeneration ability of an adult troll was formidable, making these injuries insignificant.

“It’s regenerating!”

“Throw the nets to restrain its movement and burn it! That’s the only way to stop its regeneration!”

Hunters outside the siege began throwing nets. Covered in nets, Utrang kept moving his arms. Some hunters approached with spears and swords to attack.

In the midst of this, one hunter was struck squarely by Utrang’s wildly swung stone knife, flying through the air and spraying blood.

“Gaaaah!”

“Dirand!”

As their comrade fell, the hunters became even more enraged and pressed the troll harder. Spears and swords continuously cut and stabbed Utrang’s limbs. Flaming sticks burned his blue skin here and there. In agony, Utrang clenched his teeth. The pain was making his mind increasingly foggy.

‘Is this the end…?’

The power of continuous healing began to overwhelm Utrang’s mind. His rationality faded, and instincts took over. Once the defensive instinct surfaced, it grew increasingly dominant in his mind, never fading away.

“Aaaaah!”

Utrang let out a wail. Another self, engraved in the blood of their race, was awakening. The savage and violent nature, both the blessing and curse of trolls, pushed Utrang aside and took over. Amid the horrifying sensation of flames burning through his mind, Utrang eventually lost consciousness.

The troll’s eyes turned red. Sensing the change, Londen shouted.

“Be careful! It’s the giant transformation!”

Crack, crack, crack!

With the sound of bones breaking, the troll trapped in the net began to swell. Its previously lean body grew to a frightening size, muscles bulging. Its slender waist and thighs expanded several times over. The troll, which had stood a little over two meters, transformed into a nearly three-meter-tall, ogre-sized giant and let out a roar.

“Ugh, aaah, aaah!”

With a ferocious cry that shook the air, the troll tore through the net. No longer Utrang, but a true monster, it glared at the hunters with blood-red eyes. With thick claws, it swiped at a hunter’s head, smashing it and sending a fountain of blood spraying.

“Ah, ah, ah!”

Howling like a beast, the troll charged at the hunters. Each swing of its arms sent hunters flying like leaves. Flesh was torn, bones were shattered, and screams erupted from all around. One middle-aged hunter trembled and shouted.

“Damn it! It’s truly a monster!”

Londen, encouraging everyone, shouted calmly.

“Don’t panic! That is the true troll! Isn’t this something we already knew?”

Ordinary trolls weren’t so powerful. However, when cornered, they grew astonishingly large and ferociously wild. In that state, trolls were as strong as ogres, the terrifying monsters of stories originating from this very transformation.

Hunters, avoiding the rampaging giant troll’s attacks, broke the siege. Londen retreated and shouted.

“Everything is going according to plan! Stay calm and lure that monster into the trap!”