The Fat Aristocrat Waltz in the Labyrinth - Chapter 29
Chapter 29: The fat aristocrat knocks down a boar
Without even looking back, Mitrof raised his voice and pulled out his thrusting sword. He raised it in front of him and lowered his waist.
A heavier presence than himself was coming at an astonishing speed. If they collided, he would surely die.
Despite being aware of this fact, Mitrof’s thinking remained calm. The improvement in his mental strength through sublimation provided him with calmness at all times.
However, calmness is the ability to recognize reality. It’s not something to change to your advantage.
Even though he held his thrusting sword, he knew that he couldn’t stop that huge body with the small sword in his hand. He would only bounce back.
Mitrof led the boar until his mind could barely handle it and then jumped sideways.
It seemed as if a thick, warm wall of air had passed by.
Immediately after.
A loud, hard sound shook him to the bottom of his stomach.
Mitrof, struggling to get up with his body shaking from the excess fat, looked back and saw the ochre boar’s tusk embedded in the wall. The wall was being scraped and expanded from the thousands and tens of thousands of times that the ochre boar had struck its tusk into it.
Now is the opportunity to attack while the ochre boar has stopped moving. However, it is far away from Mitrof. Although Mitrof’s body is as large as a boar’s, he cannot run as fast as a four-legged boar.
However, when it comes to animals, there is a far superior entity than Mitrof.
When Mitrof recognized the ochre boar’s face, shaking its head and reversing its body, an arrow pierced its forehead.
“Even if it’s a monster, if it’s a boar, I’m used to dealing with them.”
Grace, who had attached a second arrow to her bow, took aim at the ochre boar with sharp eyes. The boar writhed in agony from the arrow in its forehead, scraping the wall with its tusks and banging its body. It was clear that getting closer to it was not an option.
Canule, who had been keeping her distance, jogged over to the pair.
“This is… What do we do…?”
“We can’t get close enough to finish it off.”
“Hmm,” Grace groaned.
“If it were a regular boar, we could take care of it, but perhaps it’s because it’s a monster—I wonder if its skin, meat, or bones are too sturdy for my bow to handle.”
Grace looked at her bow with mixed feelings, as she had relied on and used it as a hunter. She had no complaints or worries about this bow, as it had become completely familiar to her.
However, it was becoming evident that it was not trustworthy in the labyrinth, where all sorts of demons and monsters dwelled, even though it was good for hunting animals in the wilderness.
The ochre boar forcefully pulled out the arrow by rubbing its head against the wall and looked at the three of them with anger.
With a scrape on the ground with its front hooves, it put weight on its knees, and an arrow pierced through them.
The ochre boar fell to the ground, prostrated. Grace pulled the arrow again. The bow squeaked as she pulled harder than usual.
The arrow hit the ochre boar’s forehead and finally stopped its breath.
“Well done.”
Mitrof exclaimed, sheathing his rapier.
The bow is a difficult weapon to handle. It takes years of practice to hit the target accurately. Even in the army, skilled bowmen are more valuable than any other soldier.
Even Mitrof, who had little understanding, could see that hitting a wild boar from such a distance was quite an impressive feat.
However, Grace barely concealed her dissatisfaction as she watched.
“I aimed for the eye socket—I have to get used to a tighter draw.”
“…Still, I think it’s an incredible skill.”
Canule, speaking timidly, seemed completely impressed.
“In the forest, we often hunt small animals that are faster than wild boars—with such a large target, it makes things easier.”
“I see—that’s how it is.”
With a look of wonder on her face, Canule nodded and walked closer to the ochre boar.
“The tusks of the ochre boar are highly prized—its fur, tendons, meat, and bones are all valuable resources. However, dismantling and carrying it back in the labyrinth will be a big task.”
If it were a forest hunt, they would call their comrades with joy.
However, this is a labyrinth, and the ochre boar is nothing more than an obstacle to be overcome in their exploration.
The three of them discussed it and decided to carefully select the items to recover.
They chose the two tusks and the flesh from its back. Of course, the tusks were valuable, but the back flesh was also a valuable part that the guild purchased. It was not only used in the guild’s cafeteria but also had spread around the town and was accepted by citizens who were hesitant to eat monster meat.
“…It feels like biting only the sweet part of a fruit and throwing away the rest—I feel guilty.”
“That’s called a hunter’s habit.”
“Yes, we should make use of everything we’ve caught, but let’s not bring our forest consciousness into the labyrinth—let’s move forward.”
Grace took the lead as the scout. Canule walked in the middle, carrying the ochre boar’s two tusks, making it difficult to respond to sudden attacks. Therefore, Mitrof walked at the back, keeping an eye out for any potential threats.