Ruthless Measure
Hekster Walt walked ahead of me, stripped of all his weapons.
"..."
He kept glancing back at us, not because he wanted to escape, but because the air between us had grown tense.
"Why do you have to do this?"
Tyrbaen's eyes narrowed sharply.
When I said I was going to destroy the eastern lodge, that was her instinctive reaction.
To the little witch, I answered plainly.
"Because I have to."
"So tell me why you have to, you crazy son of a—!"
"Son of a what?"
"Son of a bitch!"
…Quick reflexes. Even better than Kals.
There wasn't just one reason why I had to destroy that lodge, but the simplest way to explain it was this:
"I need to tie down Eve Wyler."
But the little witch didn't back off so easily.
"That's all? If you just want to hinder her squad, there must be other ways!"
Of course, she wasn't fond of the idea — that cabin was also her sleeping place.
I sighed.
"All right. This'll take a bit, so listen carefully."
Once the lodge was destroyed, Eve and her girls would have nowhere to rest — meaning they couldn't recover or reorganize.
Especially since the girls were far less suited for sleeping outdoors than the boys, this would be a major issue.
"So Eve will have to ask the boys to share their lodge."
And when that happens—
"Both the boys and girls will end up staying together in the western lodge."
"That's… that's way too cramped, isn't it? Not to mention awkward!"
"Kals, that's not the problem."
The important thing was how this variable would affect the Ultra Wave.
The Ultra Wave was originally a disaster that targeted only the boys staying in the western lodge.
But now, with both boys and girls inside that same building…
That meant when the Ultra Wave struck, they could all be wiped out.
–Then isn't that even more dangerous? If the risk goes up, won't Eve's squad move faster?
"Well, you could think of it that way."
Baruel looked baffled by my calm tone.
"But think a bit further."
The girls who would've been perfectly safe in the eastern lodge—
Were now in the danger zone.
What did that mean?
"It means the culprit's plan just got completely thrown off."
"...!"
The priestess of Kishiris had designed this entire scheme to exterminate only the boys.
But if the kids were now all mixed together…
"She can't trigger the Ultra Wave right away."
Because if she did, the girls would be caught up and die too.
And so—
"The culprit won't even show up at the Orc Shaman's Cave."
In short, nothing would happen tonight.
Shark Lobren nodded.
"I see. If the killer doesn't appear, that means Eve's independent squad also stays put."
"Exactly."
Eve would assess the situation much like I did. She wouldn't take unnecessary action or lead her squad out.
'Unless she's an absolute idiot, that is.'
The clever young mage, Baruel, then inferred something new.
–But the Ultra Wave will still happen eventually, right?
I smiled.
"Yeah, that's the key point."
It wouldn't happen tonight, but the Ultra Wave was inevitable.
Even if the Orc Shaman was slain first, it wouldn't matter.
All that was needed was a powerful monster with strong mana.
As long as other such creatures existed, the event could trigger at any time.
'The problem is, with the lodges merged, there's no easy way to target only the boys.'
That was the culprit's dilemma.
But it was solvable — it would just take time.
"Eve herself will solve it for her. Of course, completely unintentionally."
Everyone nodded at Tyrbaen's comment, except Kals, who blinked in confusion.
"What do you mean?"
Figures — subtle plots like this weren't his strong suit.
"Think it through, big brother."
With a sweet smile befitting her "En" persona, Tyrbaen explained:
"Eve's leading all the girls herself. They're split into five teams, but they move as one unit."
"So?"
"When Eve takes them out for the next hunt, the priestess can trigger the Wave anywhere except where those girls are."
"…Ah!"
Just as the little witch said.
With the girls always moving alongside Eve, all the priestess had to do was time it right.
…The Ultra Wave's timing was merely delayed — its aim at the boys remained unchanged.
"So you're really going through with this ruthless plan, huh?"
"What's so ruthless about it? It's just an empty log cabin."
"That's my sleeping place, for the record."
"It can't be helped."
I was sorry, but if I wanted to immobilize Eve and still make sure the Wave happened, this was the only move.
"Well, fine. I'll just sleep with Kals, then."
"…Huh?"
At her bold and shameless remark, Kals's face turned red as a beet.
Tyrbaen, meanwhile, wore an expression of perfect calm, as if she were simply staying true to her role.
I couldn't help but click my tongue inwardly.
'She really scares me sometimes… all those inherited memories make her swing between innocent girl and mature temptress.'
I just wished she'd pick one and stick with it.
'Anyway…'
Leaving the awkwardly "acting siblings" behind, I turned toward the distance.
Far ahead, the rocky hill and the two cabins stood tall.
"All right. Time to crack that hill open."
Of course, that wasn't something I could do alone.
Preparation was necessary.
But now, I was a little uncertain about one detail…
"Hey, En — what kind of prey does a Rock Drake prefer? Young gnolls or old ones?"
The Drake — a subspecies of dragon — was a mid-tier monster.
"A wingless dragonkin."
Among them, the Rock Drake was one of the weaker kinds.
Also called the Stone-Scaled Dragon, though honestly, that title was a bit generous.
'It's really just a giant beast that happens to look a bit like a dragon.'
Comparing a mid-tier monster like a drake to a true dragon — an intelligent, magic-rich, long-lived species — was absurd.
Still…
Grrrrrrr…
When I actually came face-to-face with one, my thoughts changed a bit.
"…Holy hell. That's no joke."
Even a "Dragon" Wouldn't Be Too Much of a Stretch
Seeing the Drake in person — after only ever watching it through a monitor — was something else entirely.
'It's like someone mixed a lizard and a turtle, then infused it with a lion's soul and blew it up thirtyfold.'
Strangely enough, it felt more like a dragon than the dignified, intelligent ones that actually spoke human language.
"Damn… this thing's a real monster."
The Drake roared ferociously at me as I stood there muttering blankly.
Kraaaaaaah!
I simply covered my ears and stepped back.
"Ugh, my ears…"
"I told you not to get too close!"
There was no real danger.
This Rock Drake was completely restrained.
Deep beneath the rocky hill where the children's lodges were located, there was a small crevice — narrow enough for only one person to pass through at a time.
It was hidden behind thick brush, but clearly an intentionally constructed passage.
We passed through that cramped tunnel and emerged into this cavern.
[You have discovered the Hidden Area: "Beast Prison."]
It existed for one reason — to confine this thing.
Thick iron bars lined the space, and the Rock Drake's limbs were tightly bound by heavy chains.
It couldn't move an inch — only thrash and howl.
"...Why does something like this even exist?"
That was Hekster's question — dragged here without warning.
I smirked.
"To protect you, of course."
"This protects us?"
"Yeah. If it were meant to kill you, it'd be treated far better than this."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Hmm…"
They clearly didn't get it.
Scratching my cheek, I explained.
"Think about it. How could there possibly be lodges in the middle of a hunting ground?"
"...?"
"They're just two wooden huts — no defensive spells or anything — yet somehow, they're safe. Doesn't that strike you as strange?"
The reason those huts in the middle of a monster field were safe…
Baruel's eyes widened as realization dawned.
–They're using the Drake's Fear aura to keep monsters away!
Smart kid.
I nodded.
"Exactly. Even if it's a lesser subspecies, a Drake is still classified as dragonkin."
That was partly due to its physical resemblance to dragons — but also because it could wield one of their unique powers:
Fear.
A draconic authority that instilled terror in all nearby lifeforms simply by existing.
"Of course, it's nowhere near the level of a true dragon's Fear."
Which was why it couldn't even suppress these low-level kids.
"But it's strong enough to repel monsters sensitive to that kind of presence."
In other words, by secretly imprisoning the Rock Drake here, they had carved out a monster-free safe zone right in the middle of the hunting grounds.
"What an ingenious method."
"Whoever thought of this was a genius."
Even Kals and Tyrbaen couldn't help admiring it.
Come on — it's bad enough the kids don't realize it, but you two as well?
"Anyway, enough theory."
Time to get to work.
I gestured to Shark Lobren behind me.
"Take it out and toss it in — what we hunted earlier."
"Understood."
Shark opened his inventory and began pulling things out, laying them on the ground.
It was the corpse of a monster — something like a grotesquely twisted black bear.
[Monster] A hybrid creature born between a wild bear and a troll. Notorious for attacking its own mother the moment it's born.
Tyrbaen and Baruel grimaced at the sight, but—
Grrrrrrr!
Behind the bars, the Rock Drake went wild, pulling against its chains as if to tear them apart.
"Wow… it's losing its mind."
I chuckled.
The gnoll Shark had hunted was a young one — exactly what we needed.
'The perfect bait for a Rock Drake's picky appetite.'
If we tossed it in now, the starving drake would devour it in seconds.
But first—
"Let's season it a bit. En, you're up."
Following my prior instructions, Tyrbaen began to infuse the carcass with prepared magic.
[Offensive Magic: Harmony of Poisonous Herbs]
[Effect amplified by 200% due to equipped accessory.]
"Done."
The witches of Tyrbaen's line were masters of poison magic.
Now that this corpse was saturated with that potent venom—
"I bet even you'll find it a little spicy."
Dragging the now-toxic carcass to the bars, I shoved it toward the starving Rock Drake.
Moments later—
"Run! Move it!"
I pushed Hekster forward and shouted.
Behind us, the Drake's guttural swallowing echoed through the cave.
It wouldn't take long.
We were halfway through the narrow passage when—
[The Captive Rock Drake has been inflicted with Status Effect: Violent Regurgitation!]
[Sudden Event: "Eye for an Eye, Rock for a Rock" has begun!]
[Escape from the danger zone!]
"It's started!"
KRAAAAAAAAAAAH!
With an earth-shaking roar, the Rock Drake went berserk — the cavern walls trembling violently.
I shouted again.
"Unless you wanna get flattened, MOVE!"
And just like that—
The collapse began.