POTC - Chapter 68

The surroundings were quiet.

"..."

As Fenrir took a step, his gaze rested on the foggy spot visible ahead.

It had already been quite a while since they split up and moved from the center, so that over there must have been the monster's umbilical cord Siegfried had mentioned.

He wanted to check what the terrain was like and what was there, but nothing was visible as it was obscured by a thick fog.

It was just a terrible stench that was painful enough to sting the nose.

"The smell is terrible."

One of the knights accompanying Siegfried muttered with a deep frown.

"I don't know what on earth is up there causing this, but... I have smelled a stench like this before. On a battlefield. You all know what I mean."

The knight was right. This terrible stench was exactly the same smell that anyone who had traversed a battlefield would have undoubtedly encountered at least once.

So, shit.

The smell of a rotting corpse.

"You must be careful, as you never know what might jump out."

Siegfried, who had frowned as hard as he could, unable to bear the stench any longer, turned to look at the party and said.

Kevin nodded briefly and looked at Fenrir.

Fenrir's gaze did not rest on one spot. He was rapidly scanning his surroundings.

To gauge the distance to the other group coming from behind and determining how to utilize the terrain to eliminate Siegfried with a single blow.

In any case, exploring the Forbidden Forest was not part of Fenrir's purpose.

In other words, that also meant there was no reason to go out of his way to examine the monster's umbilical cord.

All he had to do was kill Siegfried.

'A distance of at most a little over 3 minutes from the rear guard.....'

Although it was tight, it seemed he could succeed if he moved quickly. It wasn't far from the place known as the Monster's Umbilical Cord, so framing it as the work of monsters wouldn't be a bad idea either.

As soon as he drew his sword, Kevin planned to strike the accompanying knight, while he himself planned to strike Siegfried.

"..."

Tension set in Kevin's face as he quietly watched Fenrir.

Not long after, he saw Fenrir's large hand reaching his waist, all the way to the hilt of his sword, reflected in his eyes.

And so, Fenrir very quickly drew his sharply honed sword.

But it was what happened right after that.

Siegfried, too, drew his sword while gritting his teeth.

"It's a monster, it's a monster!"

The knight's voice echoed sharply in the air. And as if to prove the words were true, dozens of monsters began to pour out.

From way back, where he couldn't sense a hint just moments ago.

"Grand Duke!"

Kevin let out a short scream upon seeing the gargoyle charging at Fenrir. Fenrir, who had been aiming his sword at Siegfried, quickly changed his movements and thrust his sword into the chest of the gargoyle that was trying to bite his neck.

Siegfried, who was swinging his sword at the monsters attacking him, also fell upon Fenrir, and he wore a look of utter bewilderment.

'...Attacking the Grand Duke? A monster?'

"If the Grand Duke is truly connected to monsters, there will be signs that something has changed. And the moment you see such movements, kill the Grand Duke on the spot."

Siegfried also knew. He knew that monsters, or those with monster blood mixed in them, would not be attacked by them.

However, even at this very moment, in addition to the gargoyle that had been pierced through the village and killed, countless monsters continued to rush toward Fenrir and Kevin.

Siegfried soon realized.

The fact that Fenrir was a person completely unrelated to monsters

Dietrich's order was wrong, and venturing deep into the forbidden forest was also a useless adventure.

"Damn it..."

A curse escaped from between Siegfried's tightly closed lips.

And understandably so, since even Siegfried had never experienced a crisis like this.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that he had joined the Knights, killed a dragon at a young age, been granted a holy sword, and spent his entire childhood in the Forbidden Forest, but it was the first time he had seen such a large number of monsters rushing at him all at once.

There were far too many of them, and the variety was immense.

“Ugh-!”

At that moment, what came from afar was a sharp scream.

And not only Siegfried and the Knights, but Fenrir and Kevin also realized it at the same time: the monsters of the Forbidden Forest had begun their attack.

"Grand Duke Fenrir, it looks like monsters are swarming in from the rear...!"

Whether he was unfazed by the situation or was simply trying to maintain his composure, Fenrir still wore a blank expression. With that utterly cold face, he mechanically cut, slashed, and severed the breaths of the monsters charging at him.

'If the monsters killed the rear guard, I have nothing to lose.'

Fenrir's blood-red eyes gleamed sinisterly.

'And since a monster has actually appeared, it is easy to frame it.'

The conclusion was simple.

After dealing with just enough monsters to ensure minimal safety, kill Siegfried immediately. Then, retreat promptly and inform the waiting Knights of his death.

There was not a single trace of fear or terror on Fenrir's face as he assessed the situation and organized his thoughts on his own.

"Grand Duke, at this rate, our retreat route is effectively gone...!"

Siegfried, unaware of Fenrir's dark intentions, looked at him and muttered in an urgent voice.

"Now, we have no choice but to move forward. At least monsters aren't appearing over there..."

Siegfried's gaze turned toward the monster's umbilical cord, which was obscured by a thick fog.

"I will go and assess the situation. You must also drive out the monsters and come this way, Grand Duke."

In any case, from Siegfried's perspective, Fenrir was now on his side. This was especially true since he had even become convinced that Fenrir had absolutely no connection to monsters.

"Okay..."

Fenrir answered briefly.

“That’s right.”

He didn't know what was in the monster's umbilical cord, but that way must be a dead end. The foolish Siegfried was effectively cutting off his own escape route completely. Just like a mouse trapped in a jar.

“Kevin.”

No sooner had Siegfried disappeared than Fenrir briefly called Kevin's name.

"Over there, first, get out of there... Argh!"

And the head of the knight who had been swinging his sword haphazardly in panic rolled on the ground with a loud groan, severed by Kevin's sword.

"Grand Duke, monsters are continuously swarming in."

Kevin, having dealt with the knight, approached Fenrir and spoke.

“What should I do?”

"How many people headed east and northeast earlier?"

Fenrir asked as he ceaselessly slashed through the monsters.

"It is one-third of the total force. Another third will follow us, and the last third will stand by a dead tree just in case."

"If they were attacked by monsters, there is a possibility they will come north likewise."

"Yes, that is especially true for the northeast. The only retreat route there is a side path, but since that place is connected to the village, it cannot be used. It would only make the situation worse."

"You stop the monsters chasing me from behind."

"Yes." 

Kevin answered briefly and quickly followed behind Fenrir, who brushed the blood off his sword haphazardly and began to walk.

To the north, where Siegfried walked, to the monster's umbilical cord.

***

Whether Vidar's words were a lie or not, Presepe did not encounter anyone the entire time she walked the path Vidar had shown her.

Whether it was a human or a monster.

However, the further he advanced, the more an unexpected ambush struck Presepe.

"Rancidity..."

Presepe clutched his nose, grimaced, and gagged briefly. It was the first time in her life she had ever smelled such a stench.

What on earth is up ahead?

"..."

Presepe held her breath as much as possible and forced herself to walk.

The narrow path Vidar told me about came to an end not long after.

And what unfolded before her eyes was a sheer cliff. Thick with fog.

'It looks ominous to anyone.'

Presepe recoiled slightly at the instinctive anxiety she felt.

But then, a strange sound came from down there.

It sounds like a bubbling sound, or perhaps a strange moan that is somehow difficult to describe...

"North of the Forbidden Forest, the Monster's Umbilical Cord, where I last saw the Demon King."

Yeah, I've come this far, so I can't just go back.

Presepe clenched his fist tightly with her hands, which were covered in cold sweat. Then, she approached the cliff very cautiously and looked down.

"This..."

Then, something completely unexpected appeared.

"What's this?"

The bottom of the cliff was just like the hell she had only seen in books.

Blood-red mud bubbling and simmering, and trapped within it, fragments of monsters being newly generated even at this very moment—internal wounds, severed heads, broken limbs, sharp teeth...

Reflected in Presepe's violet eyes, which were staring blankly down at the bottom of the cliff, was the image of a massive Ripon flying up from the mud, spitting out bubbling foam.

‘The place where monsters are born...’

She thought she finally understood. Why this area is called the monster's umbilical cord.

...Then did the Demon King also repeatedly die and come back to life here? Just as Vidar said, he survived even after his head was severed.

But nothing with a human form was to be seen anywhere. All she could see were beast heads or large wings with exposed bones because the flesh hadn't grown yet.

It was right then.

"Ugh, ugh..."

Suddenly, the sound of someone's presence was heard.

Flustered, Presepe quickly hid behind a large tree next to the cliff.

Then he looked at Siegfried, who was running breathlessly.

Also, a considerable number of monsters were chasing him.

"..."

Siegfried swung his sword with all his might, but it seemed he was already outmatched. He fought the monsters by backing away little by little, until he eventually reached the edge of the cliff.

"Get lost, you bastard!"

Siegfried swung his sword wildly while cursing, and the head of the monster, Delphine, who had rushed at him, fell off with an unpleasant sound.

Exactly, at Presepe's feet.

“Ugh!”

That was the moment Presepe reflexively let out a scream.

The monsters that had been rushing toward Siegfried all stopped in a flash and stared intently at her.

Of course, Siegfried as well.

But that was the end of it. Unlike how they had treated Siegfried, the monsters did not rush toward Presepe. They merely stared at Presepe with gleaming eyes.

'What, what is this? Why is it staying still?'

Ah. If...

'Is it because monster blood flows in me?'

But Siegfried just saw this. It was clearly not a good thing to anyone who saw it; it was just the right thing to be suspected.

Presepe looked at Siegfried with trembling eyes, and Siegfried also looked back at her with a dazed expression.

However, that was only for a moment. The monsters attacked Siegfried again, and although Siegfried seemed to fight back, he eventually fell down the cliff.

“La, Lady Presepe..."

Immediately, with a fading voice, Siegfried's large, wounded hand placed on the ground. Dangling from the cliff, Siegfried wore an expression of incomprehension as to why Praesepe was there, but soon he looked at her as if pleading for help...

It was that moment.

The moment Presepe's feet began to move on their own accord and approach Siegfried.

'Ugh, ugh...!'

Presepe realized that she should also keep the work to herself.

Something tiring was about to happen again.

And as if to prove that her intuition was not wrong, a bug option appeared.

[◆ Kill Siegfried.]

Just one word.

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