Chapter 154: Multi-Race Alliance 4
TL/Editor: RaeiThe initial posting of this chapter occurred via N0v3l.B11n.
Schedule: 5/Week Wed-Sun
Illustrations: Posted in discord.
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As we ventured deeper into the northwestern wastelands, the land became increasingly desolate and barren.
Now, there were no trees or shrubs in sight.
Tumbleweeds, like those seen in Western films, rolled about, and the wind kicked up dust clouds that obscured our vision.
The air felt dry, parching our lips.
We could feel it on our sensitive skin.
"Should we have brought horses or something to ride?"
"If the orcs returned within a day, they couldn't have gone too far. Riding wolves, it would take half a day, but at our pace, we'll catch up in a day. ...Though we'll still have to camp out."
Han Se-ah turned off her stream with the promise of turning it back on after finding the orc base.
She moistened her lips with water droplets conjured by magic and walked through the wasteland.
It's a tedious and challenging journey, but the women were filled with enthusiasm.
Perhaps it was witnessing a bandit who sided with the orcs, a traitor to humankind, that reignited their sense of purpose.
"How can a human bow down to orcs? No matter how hard life is."
"I thought the West was rich because of the traders, but it seems that the wealth gap is more significant than I thought."
"In the north, if you leave the village, you'll freeze to death, so there aren't many people like that... It's not that people develop bad intentions just because it's harsh. Those guys, even if they die, are just worthless scum."
Lily remained silent while the others exchanged words.
She seemed relieved that the orcs hadn't harmed the captives, but the sight of humans tormenting others unsettled her.
Recognizing this, Irene gently approached Lily and comforted her.
"You seem very worried about your group."
"Well, yeah..."
"I haven't heard about your companions. Who are they?"
"There are three of them, all intermediate adventurers. One woman and two men. So our party had an equal gender split."
Whether to distract from the monotonous walk or to calm her uneasy heart, Lily began to speak.
The rest of the group, who were previously just trudging along, began to listen intently.
Lily, like me, was a senior adventurer.
She also worked as a mercenary, traveling to the West and occasionally trading.
It was only natural for the less experienced members of the group to focus on her story.
"We were all originally intermediate adventurers, but after a request with Roland, I learned some things and advanced to senior adventurer first. But my group is close behind, and they'll soon reach my level."
"And they were... Oh, I'm sorry."
"It's okay. Mercenaries and adventurers are both occupations like that. But given their skills, they probably weren't defeated by the orcs. This isn't just wishful thinking; they might have defeated the orcs and, due to some money issues, are now taking on requests."
"Have you experienced something like that?"
"Once, I went to assist in hunting a large monster, and we got separated. I lost both my money pouch and food, left only with my weapon and adventurer badge. Like a desperate novice mercenary, I quickly completed requests to earn money and then got in touch with them."
Being on the verge of harnessing mana outside their bodies, her companions were probably at the very peak of the intermediate level.
In gaming terms, they were likely stuck at the 'X9' level, on the brink of advancing.
Raei Translations
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In a barren land with nothing but the footprints of wolves and orcs, the sun rises.
We had a peaceful morning without incidents like wolves sniffing our scent or orcs discovering the bonfire flames.
The only notable occurrence was that Han Se-ah logged off the game late at night and reconnected to sync up with her streaming schedule.
We should be seeing their base soon.
How do you know?
There are overlapping traces. It seems like a place where they gather people they've kidnapped from various places.
Grace thinks that in a few hours, we will run into them.
Han Se-ah discreetly fiddled with the system window, still viewing the pre-stream interface.
It breaks my heart watching Han Se-ah and her quest. It looks like she hasn't grown at all since the last time... She hasn't even thought of asking the magic tower for support even once. It's so sad...
The Knights Division is clearly involved with this quest, but she seems determined to do this all with just her party members... My heart is aching...
To soothe the viewers who were starting to feel bored with the wasteland and orcs, and to give a brief direction to Han Se-ah's stream, I wrote a short post.
Although we climb the tower to defeat the Demon King in the name of the Goddess, we don't necessarily have to personally protect the peace of the world.
Once we find Lily's companions, the rest is the job of the Knights.
To think that the orcs who escaped from the Knights, from the forest they protect under orders from the Royal Family, are plundering the kingdom's merchants?
If they don't want to tarnish the name of the Knights Division, this is a pressing issue that demands their attention.
Ah sh*t, what now...? Do I need to ask Roland to contact the Knights Division? It seems like the viewers are getting bored too."
Did you see it already?
After a quick meal of reheated leftover soup, we resumed our journey.
Han Se-ahs mutterings could be faintly heard.
As it's related to outside the game world, the NPC party members couldnt hear it, but I clearly heard her self-talk.
Considering how much advice from Mr.Heartache seemed to help, she probably had set notifications for it.
Judging by her swift reaction to the post, a post I discreetly wrote only 3 minutes ago, she didn't find it by chance.
Roland, look ahead!
Whats happening, oh?
And thus, we discovered the orc base.
Or rather, what used to be the orc base.
...Isn't that Rebecca?
Large tents made of giant animal hides lay trampled and shattered, with mana stones scattered about.
A dust cloud in the distance indicated that the smarter ones might have fled.
People, who had been hostages, huddled terrified amidst the ruins, some even wetting themselves in fear.
Responsible for this devastation were four individuals.
A man with a shield, a woman with a staff, a man with a bow.
Maybe she has an unlucky star? Or a star that clashes with orcs?
And then there was Rebecca.
Looks like her mercenary group was ambushed by orcs again.
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