Mastery Is Earned

The members of the tracking party began returning the next morning. The first to arrive was an old hunter.

There were five trackers in total, but they had not traveled together. Each had followed the gnolls from a different direction, using whichever tracking methods they knew best. This reduced the risk of discovery and allowed them to compare their findings afterward.

“The gnolls followed a pass into the Blackstone Mountains. I didn’t dare follow them any farther.” The old hunter reported what he had seen to Dario as soon as he returned.

Dario’s expression turned grave, but he said nothing and merely ordered someone to prepare food for the man.

Henk returned second. His account matched the old hunter’s, and Dario’s expression grew even darker.

By their agreed meeting time at noon, only four of the five trackers had returned. The group waited for more than another hour, but the last tracker still did not appear.

The four returning trackers all gave essentially the same report. The gnolls had followed the mountain pass into the Blackstone Mountains, and their tracks continued deep into the mist. Thick fog shrouded the mountains year-round. People had tried entering before, but none had ever returned alive.

The mist over the Blackstone Mountains had grown much thinner, but the locals’ fear of the place ran deep. Even with the mist thinning, no one dared venture inside. Yet these gnolls could travel in and out of the mountains unharmed. To Dario and the others, that posed a serious threat.

“Leave markers behind. We’ll return and report what happened, then organize a search. We can’t afford to lose more people here without even knowing what happened to them.” Dario gazed toward the distant Blackstone Mountains, his voice heavy.

At his order, the others began packing for the journey back to Blackstone. They were only a little over ten miles from town. If they moved quickly, they could return before nightfall.

Henk and the other trackers were exhausted, but none of them had been injured. The weather was dry, and there was no mud. Although the old forest road was difficult to travel, they still made good time. Once they reached the familiar village road, their pace increased again, and they arrived in Blackstone just before dark.

Dario immediately took his men to report the situation and organize a search for the missing tracker. Raymond and Henk were allowed to leave. They returned to the Blackstone Inn, ordered a simple meal, then went to their room and fell into a deep sleep.

Early the next morning, Raymond ate breakfast and went alone to Carter’s training yard to resume practicing swordsmanship.

His Basic Swordsmanship had already reached Lv. 2, and his Proficiency now rose very slowly through training. With the situation growing ever more complicated, Raymond believed that improving his combat ability remained his most important task. He could seek out a more accomplished swordmaster and learn advanced swordsmanship, or take up other skills such as archery, riding, or even the use of heavy weapons. Any of them would help him greatly.

Carter was a capable swordsman, but his disabled body limited him. He could guide Raymond through basic training, yet he could no longer personally demonstrate more advanced techniques.

Raymond now had enough money to stop taking commissions for a while and focus on training. If he could improve his combat skills further, he would have a much better chance of protecting himself against either gnolls or goblins.

As Raymond practiced his strikes against a wooden post, Carter suddenly spoke from nearby. “I hear the goblins are somewhere to the west?”

Stolen story; please report.

Raymond was not surprised that Carter had heard the news. He had been one of the main members of the original investigation, so it was only natural that Marcus would ask him to confirm the details again.

Raymond put away his sword and wiped away his sweat. “Possibly. We can’t be sure the information is accurate.”

“Mm.” Carter nodded. “I hear Marcus plans to gather a large force and sweep the western forest clean of goblins. As you know, plenty of outsiders have arrived in town lately. Now is the time to put them to use.”

“Gathering people so openly may only alert the goblins.” Raymond sighed. “They aren’t mindless monsters. If they spot the search parties in advance, matters could become even more troublesome.”

“True.” Carter nodded. “If these outsiders can’t make a living here, they can always leave. They can go to Brightwater or somewhere else. In the end, the people of Blackstone will be the ones left to suffer the consequences.”

Raymond set down his cup. “Brightwater? Things aren’t peaceful there either. More and more fishfolk are appearing in the lake, and they’ve even begun attacking nearby villagers. The authorities in Brightwater have issued an official bounty, and it pays well—twenty copper for each one.”

“Twenty copper apiece? Brightwater certainly is wealthy.” Carter spoke wistfully to himself. “What a shame. But why are all these monsters suddenly appearing at the same time? I’ve been to Brightwater. There used to be very few fishfolk around there.”

That remark gave Raymond pause. Until then, he had never considered the question. Gnolls had always lived in the Blackstone Mountains, and goblins had long existed nearby, but neither had ever been as rampant as they were now. Fishfolk had once been even rarer around Brightwater. Combined with the steadily thinning mist over the mountains, it was difficult not to suspect that these changes were somehow connected.

Raymond suddenly remembered the heat-emitting gemstone he had seen in the black market, as well as the manual that supposedly contained a breathing technique. He asked Carter in earnest, “I saw some unusual things in Brightwater’s black market. I wonder whether you’ve ever heard of them.”

“Oh? What were they?”

“A form of training called a breathing technique. Supposedly, mastering it can make someone much stronger. There was also a strange gemstone that gave off heat whenever anyone approached it,” Raymond said as he drank his water.

“Ha!” Carter laughed. “I’ve heard about more supposedly magical trinkets than I can count. They’re nothing but tricks for fooling children. I can’t believe people in Brightwater are still selling such things. Breathing techniques, though... I have heard of those.”

“Breathing techniques really exist?” Raymond’s tone grew more intent.

“They seem to be passed down only within ancient families and organizations. Such things are far beyond the reach of commoners like us.” Carter glanced at him.

“Oh? How do you know so much about them, Captain Carter?” Raymond was surprised that Carter had heard of such things at all.

Carter chuckled. “I spent some time traveling in the royal capital, and I did see knights trained in breathing techniques. You’re strong, Raymond, and so is Henk. But even at your level, defeating a Greater Goblin would be difficult. Those knights aren’t merely stronger and faster. They can use special methods to unleash far greater bursts of power. Cutting a Greater Goblin in half with a single sword stroke would be easy for them.”

“Incredible,” Raymond said in wonder.

His thoughts returned to the breathing-technique manual in the black market. It had most likely been a fake, though it might also have been an incomplete copy stolen from somewhere. Unfortunately, Raymond had not known that breathing techniques might truly exist. Otherwise, he would have found some way to determine whether the book was genuine.

Whether that manual was real or fake, if the breathing technique it contained could appear on his Proficiency panel, Raymond was confident that he could continue training it indefinitely.

Of course, that depended on obtaining a breathing technique that was genuine, complete, and actually possible to practice.

“If you’re interested, you could travel north,” Carter said. “You’ve seen Henk, so you know how strong he is. Full-blooded orcs must be even stronger. The Duchy of Nightraven has fought them for a very long time. It must have access to breathing techniques. Without them, I can’t imagine how ordinary humans could fight orcs on equal terms.”

Raymond held a different view, but he did not voice it. He merely nodded calmly.

Orcs might indeed possess outstanding individual strength, but wars were not decided by the bravery of one or two warriors. Equipment, supplies, organization, and discipline ultimately determined victory.

Unless, of course, those orc warriors were so powerful that the usual rules of war no longer applied. But if that were true, the Duchy of Nightraven could never have fought the orcs on equal terms for so long.