How the Shadow of the Marquis Lives

Episode 14

Erze, who had all applications rejected, let his shoulders droop.

In fact, not all were rejected.

About 2/3 of them were rejected for one reason or another, and about 1/3 didn’t even notice when I spoke to them.

Because of the mana that has the temperament of his concealment.

She sighed and met his eyes.

Cyan Agrid.

“… … !”

Seeing Xian, who also seemed unable to find a mate, Erze turned his head away.

Feeling cold sweat running down the nape of her neck, she hurriedly looked around.

“Uh, uh… … .”

Maybe there are people who haven’t paired up yet?

oh, there’s no way Are there so many people?

‘If you look for one person… … .’

She quickly turned her head and looked at the people diligently.

However, no matter how much I searched, the result did not change.

Except for her and him, all 58 were already paired up.

“Erge, right?”

Xian came up to her and asked.

Her shoulders shook greatly.

“yes yes! Mm, that’s right… … !”

“You don’t have to speak honorifics. It’s the Everwhale rule.”

“Ah, uh… … sorry.”

Erze replied with a pale face.

do you know my name

Oh my God, that cyan Agrid remembers his name. It couldn’t have been more terrifying.

“Looks like you and I are the only ones left. Please take good care of me.”

“Uh, yes… … .”

Responding softly, Erze slammed his chest inwardly.

Concealment mana that always obscured his presence and put him in trouble. But why doesn’t it work when it’s like this!

“Is this the last group?”

At that time, the teaching assistant who had not yet entered the forest and remained behind approached and asked.

Erze wanted to shout something, but couldn’t.

What would be different if I shouted something here? I don’t think it’s anything other than childish bullying.

In the meantime, the teaching assistant faithfully wrote down the names of Xian and Erze on the document.

“Good job. I’ll tell you in advance, if your partner fails, you’ll be eliminated together, so take good care of each other.”

“What do I have to take care of? She is also an Everwhale student.”

“Oh, you have a good brain.”

While she was alone, the assistant and Xian were having a friendly conversation.

no way… … Already bought… … ? Same side from the beginning… … ?

Ergé’s face became more blue, and only the wings of a strange imagination were flying up through the clouds.

“Herze junior.”

“Yes, old!”

At that time, the teaching assistant called Erze, who was still trembling.

The assistant’s eyes caught her drawn face.

“You don’t have to worry too much. The entrance isn’t that dangerous, and the familiars of the professor and our assistants keep an eye on it. It won’t be a big deal.”

“Yes, yes… … .”

“Don’t worry, there won’t be any accidents.”

At the assistant’s words, Ergé’s complexion began to slowly return.

yes, he is right After all, this is an academy class, so what’s the big deal?

Rather, it was the goblins that he had to worry about. It was the first time she had actually seen a monster.

“All right.”

“good. So let’s both do our best.”

“yes.”

“yes!”

The teaching assistant has left.

And soon after, class started.

“Chu, please leave!”

With Professor Derek’s words, the students began to enter the forest one by one.

“We go too.”

“yes yes!”

“… … .”

As I casually used honorifics, Xian’s staring gaze returned.

She already felt like crying. How difficult it is for a commoner to speak ill of an aristocrat!

And it wasn’t even the aristocrats whose opponents were mediocre.

He was a marquis of an empire high up in the sky.

“M-I’m sorry.”

Still, when she tried to use short words, Xian finally took his eyes off her.

He wandered into the woods. Erze hurriedly followed.

I felt reassured when I heard the teaching assistant’s story earlier, but the thought of going into the woods alone made me nervous again.

Among the endless rumors about Xian, there were many problems with women… … .

An awkward energy that had no choice but to flow between the two.

I firmly gripped the dagger that Ergé kept in his arms.

‘To goblins and to cyan.’

Both sides couldn’t relax.

Others laughed and talked about goblins as the lowest rank monsters, but to her, who had never seen a monster in her life, that alone was an object of fear.

How much more so to hunt goblins together with Cyan Agrid.

It was dark before my eyes as to what to do.

at that time.

“hey.”

“uh?”

Xian grabbed her wrist. Then, isn’t it pulling them by force?

At that moment, various rumors about Xian crossed my mind.

Could it really be!?

Ergé’s pupils dilated and his mouth opened.

A scream rises up your throat and is about to burst out of your mouth.

―Pasasasasa!

A tree trunk jumped up from where she had just been.

A noose made of vines dangled from its end.

Erze opened his mouth.

Only then was I able to grasp the situation.

If it wasn’t for Xian, he would have been stuck there.

“Thank you.”

“be careful. There are many traps where goblins have been living for a long time.”

“Yes.”

Xian swings his sword and cuts the vines to keep the trap from recycling.

Seeing him like that, Ergé couldn’t help but admire before fear.

Even though he was still taking each step with utmost caution, he hadn’t noticed the trap at all.

But how can you see that at a glance?

Regardless of rumors, his skills seemed certain.

Is this the power of a prestigious family?

“egg plant.”

“huh.”

let me work hard

Unknowingly, she calmed down before she knew it, and she followed Xian.

* * *

Even after avoiding the first trap, Xian saw through all of them.

As a result, Xian and Erje were able to navigate through the forest faster than anyone else.

“The goblin trap is clever in camouflage, but the principle is simple. The level of intelligence is not high.”

“okay?”

“After all, the types of traps they make are limited. The limited form means that there are limited places to install it.”

“It’s easy to find if you know that.”

“Roughly. But you can’t just believe it. The best thing is to discover the unnatural sense of incongruity itself.”

“That is difficult… … .”

Xian remembered the past and continued explaining to Erze.

A few years ago, I was led by the hand of Yeomno, saying that I was training for real combat, and I was wandering around.

All of my current experiences were gained then.

“… … This way.”

Xian quietly inspected the trail left in the forest and then turned to one side.

It happened all over the road.

“How do you orient yourself?”

“Goblins deliberately leave many traces far from the village. The closer you get to the village, the more the trace disappears.”

“You’re trying to disguise yourself.”

“On the other hand, the traps become much more numerous the closer you get to the village. If you match the direction in which traps increase and the direction in which traces disappear, you can find out the location of the village.”

“and… … .”

Hergé admired his knowledge accompanied by practical experience.

As the lecture continued from the beginning of the forest, she became like a student who listens well.

Her fear of Xian had already subsided considerably.

Seeing through the pitfalls, taking the right direction and moving forward without hesitation.

Now, let alone fear, I felt nothing but awe at the sight he had shown me all the way into the forest.

It’s hard to believe that we’re the same age as you.

‘As expected, I can’t believe the rumors.’

Compared to Ran’s vigilance against Xian as an impostor in a similar situation.

Ergé’s vigilance toward him has been greatly lowered.

In the first place, she had only heard rumors, but had never personally seen the Xian of the past.

“see.”

At that moment, Xi’an’s eyes flashed.

Erze followed his gaze. There was a clumsily built primitive village.

It was a goblin colony.

“already?”

“It must have been pretty close.”

The two crouched down behind a large tree and began observing the colony.

What is the scale, what is the topography like, and what is the structure.

And at the same time, the operation meeting began.

“Do you have stealth-type abilities?”

“uh? how did you know?”

“You know when you see it.”

At Xian’s words, she opened her eyes wide.

Many people couldn’t see her because the awakened Mana had the disposition of concealment.

However, it was the first time that I thought it was a cover-up.

At least among my peers.

“I’ll draw your attention, so you turn around and slit the head of the chieftain. Whether it’s a piece of bone or a piece of stone, there must be a guy wearing this and that.”

Ergé agitatedly came to her senses at Xian’s continuing briefing.

“You’re going to be the bait yourself? Are you okay?”

“You just need to catch the chief quickly. After the boss dies, the remaining goblins are just ragtags.”

she swallowed.

Certainly, the operation is simple and reasonable. But that’s only if you can properly defeat the Chief.

‘Can I do it?’

You must not fail. It is obvious that Xian will suffer damage if he fails.

An incompetent comrade on the battlefield is a sin in itself.

But come to think of it, this wasn’t a place that could be called a battlefield yet.

A place where professors and teaching assistants ensure safety. Even if the hunt fails, it is a place where you can easily get out of your body.

Isn’t it something we should try in a place like this?

“… … Can I try it?”

“However much.”

Xian’s words pushed her back.

She nodded resolutely and hid herself in nearby brush.

so that it can pop out at any time.

-Jerbuck.

After making sure she was well hidden, Xian came out from behind a tree.

sereung.

He drew his sword and threw the sheath appropriately. The scabbard hit the floor and fell with a bruising sound.

A goblin at the entrance of the village found him.

“Kiyiik!”

Goblins start to glow. But it wasn’t to the point of being called a commotion yet.

‘This much is not enough.’

This alone is not enough.

It is not enough just to show up to attract attention to the extent that even the chieftain who is hiding deep in the village is startled.

Xian inspected the entrance to the village.

There’s a sandy field nearby, and with that structure, there won’t be much damage.

After confirming that, he took out the torch he had stored just in case from his luggage.

To be precise, an F-class magic tool for ignition made from a rod wrapped in oil and a steel mage tower.

and.

keying-!

He lit a torch and threw it into the village entrance.

Perhaps it was very dry, the wooden structures at the entrance of the village began to burn.

I could see the heat rising and the goblins panicking.

‘Are you crazy about fire in the mountains!?’

Erze, who was hiding in the bushes, was shocked to see it.

But thanks.

At least one thing that drew attention was certain.

―Puuu!

The entire goblin colony was in an emergency.