Hulim had never heard of such a being—one who could traverse Ley Lines and bore a halo above their head.
The group of seven bickered on for a while.
Suddenly, the ground trembled.
Boom!
A massive mountain then rose abruptly in the distance.
It morphed into the shape of a giant stone golem, then shrank continuously.
Finally, it took Ogrum’s form.
"Sorry I’m late."
"Late? You’re way faster than usual, Ogrum. Did you train and get stronger? Wanna spar with this lord?"
"No need."
"Hmph, what a boring guy."
Galamand looked disappointed.
"Anyone—someone fight me!"
"You want a fight, Galamand?"
"Of course! I’m so strong, there’s barely anyone in this world who can match me. You guys too—none of you will fight me!"
"On my way here, I saw—"
"Oh! What? Did you see a strong guy?! Where? Where is he?!"
"......In that direction, there’s a—"
Ogrum pointed with his hand.
"Haha, finally a fight!"
Boom—!
In the next moment, Galamand soared into the sky and flew toward the direction Ogrum had pointed.
"......"
Ogrum hesitated, words left unsaid.
"Ogrum," Hulim asked, "what did you see? It wasn’t a strong person, was it?"
Ogrum nodded.
"No. I was going to say I saw a giant beast attacking a tribe of intelligent beings."
"......"
Hulim looked up in the direction Galamand had left.
The consequences of not listening to the end......
......
Hundreds of kilometers east of Yggdrasil.
A Rock Mountain Boar, dozens of meters tall, was attacking a primitive tribe.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
The tribe had fewer than a thousand members, and their houses were mostly tree dwellings built on giant trees.
Faced with such a cataclysmic beast attack, they were utterly powerless to resist.
They could only flee in panic, scattering in all directions.
"Help! Someone save us......"
"Foul beast, get out of our home......"
"Run......"
"It’s over, all over. Our tribe is doomed too. Building a large tribe was a mistake......"
People wailed, trembled with fear, fled, and regretted helplessly.
No one knew why the beast had attacked their home.
Perhaps it loathed their scent, perhaps it smelled something interesting to eat in their tribe, or perhaps it was just passing by, acting on a whim......
In this chaotic era, filled with giant beasts and powerful creatures born of heaven and earth, intelligent races lacking inherent strength could only survive in the cracks.
The fact that this tribe had grown to nearly a thousand members without major disasters wasn’t because they had a way to survive this era—it was purely luck.
And today, their luck had run out.
Bang—!
Another giant tree was smashed by the Rock Mountain Boar’s head. The tree dwellings on it shattered and collapsed along with the falling tree.
Boom!
At the same time, the fallen tree blocked the escape route of a group of people.
Thud!
The boar’s shadow loomed over them.
They could even feel the gale from the boar’s snorting breath.
"Mommy......"
"Don’t be afraid, Mommy’s here!"
"Why is this happening? I don’t want to die......"
"Someone save us......"
The group huddled in despair, shouting helplessly.
Yet the Rock Mountain Boar didn’t stop because of their pleas. It lifted one front hoof, ready to crush them into the dirt.
Just as they were about to be trampled.
Boom—!
A streak of fire suddenly shot down from the sky in a straight line.
It struck the Rock Mountain Boar’s head directly, slamming its massive body into the ground.
"Roar——!!!"
After a mournful cry that echoed through the mountains.
The Rock Mountain Boar drew its last breath.
"......"
The survivors stared dumbfounded at the scene, as if robbed of speech.
"Hey, you lot!"
A voice came from ahead.
People looked up toward the fallen boar’s head.
There, a red-haired man with two horns on his head stood atop the boar’s skull.
"This lord asks you—did you see a strong guy nearby?"
"......Ancestors be praised!"
"Thank you for saving us!"
"Thank you!"
"......"
The group knelt before Galamand in unison, thanking him devoutly.
"......What are you doing? This lord is asking if you saw a strong guy?"
But the people below continued kowtowing repeatedly.
"......"
Galamand was lost for words.
At that moment, Hulim and the others arrived.
"How could this happen? To do such a terrible thing to innocent people!"
As soon as Aurora saw the tribe’s tragic state, she showed a look of sympathy and sorrow.
She then flew directly toward the people.
"Don’t worry, the terrible beast is gone. You’re safe now~."
Holy light poured over them, healing their physical wounds and comforting their anxious hearts.
"Oh~, what a sacred lord......"
"My god, the ancestors must have heard our prayers......"
"All praise the ancestors......"
They knelt even more devoutly, but this time their gestures were directed at Aurora.
"Ah, ah......"
Aurora panicked.
"P-please don’t kneel to me! I’m not such a great being......"
Hulim looked down at the devoutly kneeling people, her eyes showing a hint of surprise.
She recognized their race......
Ancient Elves!
The first race to build a powerful civilization after the Chaotic Era!
Hulim glanced around.
These primitive tree dwellings were hard to reconcile with the powerful race that had dominated the longest period in the Age of Civilization in her memory......
As Aurora tended to the Ancient Elves.
"Haha, stop looking, Galamand—there’s no strong guy here at all~!"
Sylph mocked Galamand.
"Hah?! Hey——"
Galamand turned to Ogrum.
"Ogrum, you tricked this lord!"
"Haha, idiot! Who tricked you? You ran off before letting anyone finish speaking! Ogrum never said there was a strong guy here!"
"......"
Galamand’s face darkened.
"But there is a strong guy here......"
"Haha, what are you talking about? Where?"
Galamand grinned, clenched his fists, and bumped them together, his eyes fixed on Sylph.
"The strong guy is right in front of me~! Sylph—I’m talking about you!"
