Chapter 164 - 163: Minotaur
The horses were quickly led over, and a local hunter deftly removed their harnesses and fitted them with saddles.
Minotaurs don’t travel very fast to begin with, especially while escorting villagers. Since the Adventurer Squad had horses, they would likely catch up quickly.
Hope ignited in Village Chief Barov’s eyes.
"Village Chief Barov, I need to make something clear before we go."
Marcus decided to temper the chief’s expectations.
"Those Minotaur-type Demons are very cunning. We can only promise to do our best. We’ll save who we can, but if the situation is impossible... then you need to be prepared for the worst."
Hearing this, Village Chief Barov’s expression fell, but he still forced a nod.
"Mm... I believe in you!"
Zelir stood before a horse and suddenly fell silent.
"What are you standing there for? Let’s get moving," Gray said as he vaulted onto his horse.
Marcus and Valles also mounted their horses steadily.
"Uh... I don’t know how to ride a horse," Zelir said.
"..."
"Fine, you can ride with me."
Gray pulled Zelir up onto the horse.
"Let’s move out!"
...
「In the forest.」
A line of people, bound by hemp ropes, were dragged through the woods.
Their hands were bound tightly behind their backs, their clothes were tattered, and their bodies were stained with dried blood.
Among them were two young boys, not yet adults, and three young women.
Their faces were filled with terror and sorrow.
Only yesterday, they had been drinking hot soup by the fireplace in their warm homes. Today, they were captured by these fierce, terrifying Minotaurs and driven like cattle.
’What kind of fate awaited them...? Would the village send someone to save them?’
Among them was a young, brown-haired boy, the youngest of the group.
During the attack, he’d lost his shoes in the chaos. Walking on the forest floor, which was covered in dead branches, had scraped the soles of his feet raw and bloody.
He moved very slowly and had already fallen behind several times.
"GIBBLE-WABBLE! ROAR!"
An impatient roar came from the Minotaur up ahead.
Though they couldn’t understand the words, the meaning was clear: hurry up.
The one leading the villagers was a black-furred Minotaur.
Its head had the primitive features of a wild bull. Its eyes were as large as bronze bells, and its wide, wet, black nose periodically snorted out blasts of hot air.
Most striking of all was the pair of sharp, thick horns on their heads.
In battle, a slight bend at the waist before a Charge was all it took for their horns to tear an enemy to shreds!
Beyond that, Minotaurs were also incredibly sturdy.
Their muscles were extremely developed, with trapezius muscles like small hills running from their necks to their spines. Each one easily stood over two and a half meters tall.
This was the Minotaur, a Tier 26 Demon in the Adventurer’s Association Universal Monster Atlas.
The black-furred Minotaur suddenly yanked the rope, the immense force causing the captives, including the three women, to stumble.
The shoeless boy was pulled completely off his feet, falling to the ground and scraping his knees bloody.
The physical pain and emotional despair were too much to bear. The dual pressure broke him, and he began to cry with soft whimpers.
His sobs were contagious, spreading to the other villagers who were also on the brink of collapse.
Sorrow began to spread, and soon the air was filled with a chaotic mix of crying and sobbing.
THUD!
The crying agitated the black-furred Minotaur.
It slammed its Giant Axe into the ground with a mighty blow, sinking the blade deep into the earth as it let out a menacing growl.
"YEE-HO-GURU-WA...!"
The display thoroughly stunned the prisoners.
They scrambled to their feet in fear, daring not to make another sound. They could only weep silently as they were once again dragged mercilessly forward.
The Minotaur at the head of the procession was even larger, standing nearly three meters tall. Its body was packed with explosive muscle, and its mane was yellow, giving it an especially majestic appearance.
It was the one who had planned this raid.
’Truth be told, it hadn’t wanted to attack humans unless absolutely necessary. Possessing a degree of intelligence, it knew this act would draw the wrath of human Adventurers, who would hunt it down.’
’But there was no other way. With winter approaching, food was simply too scarce. It had to take the risk and attack the village.’
’Now, all it has to do is cross the river and get back to its lair...’
’Then, the humans will never be able to find a trace of it.’
The group continued to advance.
Suddenly, a rustling sound came from up ahead. The yellow-maned leader immediately waved its hand, signaling the others to halt.
It lowered its body and, along with the other four Minotaurs, cautiously parted the bushes blocking their line of sight to peer ahead.
’There’s a human up ahead!’
’He looks like a harmless Medicine Gatherer, digging for plants on the ground.’
’And he looks so soft and tender... His meat must be delicious!’
The Minotaurs’ eyes lit up, and saliva began to dribble from the corners of their mouths.
’This is a prime cut of meat!’
’What great luck! Another one for the winter stockpile!’
Sensing the Minotaurs behind him preparing to sneak up and surround him, Zelir breathed an inward sigh of relief.
’Finally... they took the bait.’
This was the plan he had come up with.
The plan was to use the horses’ speed to get ahead of the Minotaurs and set an ambush along their path.
Then, he—the one who looked weakest—would act as bait to draw their attention.
Of course, this was only the first part of the plan.
While pretending to gather herbs, Zelir angled his body slightly, using his peripheral vision to watch the Minotaurs’ movements.
Just as the Minotaurs were about to creep up on him, Zelir suddenly let out a startled cry.
He acted as if he had just noticed the hideous Demons and bolted.
From the Minotaurs’ perspective, the Medicine Gatherer was terrified—or at least appeared to be—and had started to flee in a panic.
"GA-GURU! HURU-HAHA!"
The yellow-maned leader gave an excited bellow, "Get him! Don’t let him get away!" and led the other four Minotaurs in a swarming, fan-shaped pursuit.
At the same time, it didn’t forget to roar an order to the black-furred Minotaur guarding the villagers.
"JI-KA-KA-LU-WA-WA!"
"You stay here! We’ll catch him and bring him back!"
The yellow-maned Minotaur and its four subordinates charged wildly after Zelir.
In a straight race, Zelir could never outrun a Minotaur, but he had cast a Swift Blessing on himself beforehand.
As a result, Zelir’s speed was instantly boosted.
A chase unfolded through the forest.
Zelir nimbly weaved between the trees while turning his head to observe the Minotaurs behind him.
He had to carefully manage his lead, making sure not to get too far ahead, or they might give up the chase.
Sure enough, the Minotaurs were completely focused on catching him, just as he’d hoped.
The second step of the plan was also a success.
Next...
A cold smile appeared on the corner of Zelir’s mouth.
’Now, just to wait for the signal!’
...
"HUUUH..."
Meanwhile, hidden in the canopy of a tall tree...
Concealed by the dense foliage, Valles slowly drew his bowstring.
He aimed at the black-furred Minotaur guarding the villagers, the Arrow pointed steadily at its head.
’Now that Zelir has lured away the main force, I just need to take this one out, and the villagers will be safe.’
’I can’t miss this shot. It has to be fatal!’
He infused the Arrow with his Thunder Fighting Qi. Faint sparks of lightning flickered around its fletching.
He unleashed his Thunder Arrow!
The Arrow tore through the air and struck the black-furred Minotaur squarely in the head.
BOOM!
The instant the Thunder Fighting Qi made contact, it detonated, causing the black-furred Minotaur’s head to explode along with it!
Thick, foul-smelling blood and brain matter splattered all over a nearby woman.
She froze for a second, then, horrified by the gruesome sight, she began to scream uncontrollably.
"Nice."
Having succeeded with a single, decapitating shot, Valles broke into a satisfied smile.
’So Zelir’s plan to lure them away actually worked.’
Valles put away his Longbow and looked in the direction Zelir had fled.
Meanwhile, the chase was still in full swing.
The Minotaurs were panting, breathless from chasing Zelir.
’No... something’s not right...’
’How can this human run so fast?’
’Every time we’re about to catch him, he suddenly speeds up and pulls away again.’
They were stuck in this game of cat and mouse, always close but never catching him, which infuriated the Minotaurs, but there was nothing they could do.
Suddenly, a sound like a thunderous explosion echoed from behind them.
The sound startled the yellow-maned Minotaur.
It stopped abruptly and looked back in the direction they had come from.
’Did something happen...?’
Just then, Zelir, who had been running all this time, also came to a halt.
’Heh... looks like Valles handled his part.’
’Then I can finally drop the act...’
To make the Minotaurs let down their guard, Zelir had even unstrapped his Longsword ahead of time.
Now, he slowly turned to face the five Minotaurs and drew the Magic Wand that had been concealed by his robes.
Seeing Zelir’s calm demeanor, so unlike his previous panic, the Minotaurs finally caught on.
’He’s not a Medicine Gatherer... he’s an Adventurer!’
’And a Mage!’
’This damned bait! He deliberately lured us away from the prisoners!’
"ROAR!"
The realization that they’d been tricked instantly consumed the Minotaurs’ reason with rage!
They let out angry roars, their eyes turned red, and jets of hot white steam shot from their nostrils.
’Cunning human! I’ll tear you to shreds!!!’
From behind a tree to Zelir’s left, Marcus emerged from his hiding spot.
Without a word, he moved silently to stand in front of Zelir, shield raised.
Even Gray’s excited cry echoed from above.
"Meet your doom! Minotaurs!"
Gray drew his sword and leaped from a branch, launching an attack with the momentum of his descent!
SWISH!
In a single blow, he severed one of the Minotaur’s arms!
The final assault had officially begun!
The ambushed Minotaur collapsed in agony, clutching its severed limb and wailing.
Having landed a successful blow, Gray didn’t linger.
He rolled nimbly across the ground, retreating several meters to avoid being targeted by the other Minotaurs as they reacted to the attack.