The four remaining lizardmen moved toward the scout.
Two of them rode a water lizard at the front, holding a sword in his hands.
Behind him were two more lizardmen on foot, also armed with swords.
The two lizardmen the scout had killed were lying in the swamp behind them, their bows still in their hands.
The scout had already eliminated the ones that required the most attention.
Now...
Only four remained.
I tightened my grip on my spear.
The moment I rushed forward, the lizardmen turned toward us.
But this time, I was already prepared.
Rusty rushed forward.
My spear moved from the right side of my body toward the upper left in a diagonal swing.
SHING!
The spear struck the first lizardman's neck.
But it didn't cut his head off.
The blade became lodged between his neck bones.
Pain shot through my shoulder from the force of the impact.
I gritted my teeth.
I couldn't stop.
Another lizardman came from my left.
His sword was already moving toward my ribs.
I still had my spear buried in the first lizardman's neck.
There was no time to pull it free.
I violently jerked the spear toward my left.
The sudden movement tore the blade free.
The dead lizardman's body was thrown off balance and collapsed directly in front of the attacking swordsman.
The swordsman's step faltered.
That was enough.
I stepped inside his attack.
He swung his sword toward me.
I raised my spear and brought it down from above.
CLANG!
His sword collided with the shaft.
The impact pushed his weapon aside.
His footing was already unstable.
My spear continued downward.
The blade struck his shoulder and cut deeply through it.
He dropped to one knee.
Black blood poured from the wound.
He opened his mouth, trying to scream.
I didn't give him the chance.
I twisted the spear sidewards. Make it slash.
The blade pierced through his chest.
His body went limp.
I pulled the spear free.
Then I looked toward the remaining lizardmen.
The scout was already there.
Two more lizardmen collapsed into the swamp.
I stared at him.
He had killed his opponents almost effortlessly.
If a scout from a great Northern house is this strong...
Then what are the knights of that house like?
Before I could think any further, the scout looked at me.
"We need to go."
That was all he said.
I nodded.
We continued moving through the forest.
After a short distance, I noticed several more bodies lying in the swamp.
Four dead lizardmen.
I stopped for a moment.
I looked at the bodies.
Then I looked at the scout.
He hadn't miscounted.
He hadn't made a mistake.
There really had been ten.
He had killed four of them before I had even made contact with the enemy.
A small chill ran through my entire body.
What kind of scout is he?
I followed him silently.
We continued deeper into the forest.
The scout suddenly accelerated.
I urged Rusty forward.
But after a short distance, the scout stopped.
I immediately stopped Rusty as well.
He jumped down from the tree.
Then he simply stood there.
No words.
No explanation.
Nothing.
I remained on Rusty's back, keeping my Sensory Field active.
I watched the scout carefully.
He closed his eyes.
Then leaned his back against a tree and crossed his arms.
It looked as though he were waiting.
I didn't understand what was happening.
I extended my Sensory Field farther.
At first, I sensed nothing.
Only the swamp.
The trees.
The wind.
Then...
Something appeared.
A faint presence.
No.
Several.
My eyes moved toward the trees.
More than ten figures appeared among the branches.
They were wearing uniforms similar to the scout's.
They had surrounded us without making a sound.
My body tensed.
The scout opened his eyes.
One of the figures above us spoke.
"Who is this kid?"
The scout answered calmly.
"I found him in the forest."
"He was separated from Commander Azpen's unit."
"I gave him a choice."
"He chose to follow me."
The man looked down at me.
"So he followed you all this way?"
"Yes."
The man remained silent for a moment.
Then he asked,
"Does he know what we're doing?"
The scout nodded.
"He understands enough."
I looked around at the surrounding figures.
There were at least ten of them.
So this is their unit.
One of the men in the trees suddenly spoke.
"What is the status?"
The scout immediately answered.
"Everything is clear."
He lifted his head and looked toward the man who had asked the question.
The man then turned his attention toward the scout.
"What about your status?"
The question had barely left scout's mouth when the man's lips curled into a dry smile.
He slowly removed the cloth covering his face.
Then he looked directly at him.
"And when did you get permission to ask me questions?"
The entire forest seemed to fall silent.