Chapter 47

Not everyone liked the plan. Honestly, even Hakon would have loved to come up with something better. A strategy that allowed them to fight Pearot head-on.

Unfortunately, that was simply not feasible. All he could do was to adjust the plan so that nobody felt like they had to abandon the way of the Barbarian.

While not perfect, revealing some of the Skills the Ancestors had granted him, was enough to convince everyone to follow him.

Once that was taken care of, the group focused on recovering until the sun disappeared beyond the mountains. The moons rose high up into the starry sky, their brilliant light illuminating the eerie forest dimly.

That was when the young warriors moved out. Hakon half-expected his peers to run into deadly plants, to thunder through the forest, waking all those trying to sleep, or to charge straight at the enemy camp as soon as they saw it, but his expectations were shattered. Everything went down as he had secretly hoped, despite expecting the worst.

It took a while to find their way back to the small camp, prompting [Tracking] and [Scent of Lifelight] to improve by yet another level, but he found several suitable locations and positioned his people. Once Hakon made sure that everyone understood what they were supposed to do, he checked out the camp again and found a group of no less than four Barbarians guarding it.

While the group was a little bit larger than he had hoped for, it didn’t change much. Adjusting the variables a little, Hakon retreated back into the dimly lit forest, his attention lingering on the sleeping figures beside the campfire.

He could have thrown his hand axes and bone daggers, imbued with mana, to kill several sleeping threats in an instant. If the others joined him, they could have killed most of them long before they could react. That, however, would betray all they stood for. It would be an insult to the Ancestors and dishonorable.

Neither Hakon nor his peers were willing to stoop that low. The least they could do was wake them up. And that was the plan: to wake their enemies with the guttural, pained screams of their comrades.

Back in position, Hakon looked down at his chest. The intricate design of his Runeskin glowed with an abundance of power. Enough to make this work, hopefully.

Dispelling the doubts lingering in his mind, he motioned to Eren.

A light conjured not too far from the camp a moment later. It was neither too close to the camp nor too far, and it wasn’t too bright either. Just enough to attract some attention.

Gruff voices rang out from the camp. An exchange, a verbal spat that ended with two disgruntled figures moving through the forest, carrying longswords in their large, paw-like hands. They were towering figures, their muscles tense and ready to leap right into battle at the first sign of danger. But as they approached the light levitating several trees away from the camp, nothing happened.

No fight was waiting for them. The glowing enemy they must have expected to appear was nowhere to be seen. Only a light made of mana that levitated before them.

The taller Barbarian slashed at the mote without any real effort. It floated to the side, smoothly evading the incoming strike.

“Monster?” he asked, turning to his comrade.

The other Barbarian stepped forward, head tilted. “A Wisp?”

He poked the light, only for his fingers to pass through. Eyes narrowed, he punched through the light, making it dissipate. Eren didn’t bother maintaining the Skill, knowing it would be too draining.

When they turned their attention back to the clearing, they looked at each other, shrugged, and turned around to return to the camp. That was when the light flickered to life again.

The taller Barbarian let out a grunt but spun around to crush it anyway.

“Annoying light!” he growled, turning back to his grimacing comrade, who walked ahead even when the light materialized for the third time.

Letting out a curse, the tall Barbarian spun around, his red face shimmering faintly in the moons’ dim light. His hand was already lunging toward the light when the ground around him started to shake. A moment later, a massive frame peeled from the shadows around him. It charged straight at him with a perfectly executed [Crushing Advance].

Distracted by the light and his emotions, the Pearot Barbarian was too slow to react in time. Björn was already upon him when he finally regained his senses. His body showed signs of erupting in power, but it was too late. Björn crashed into the target, stunning him momentarily.

Taking advantage of that moment, a bone dagger whistled through the air, finding purchase in the stunned Barbarian’s left eye.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.