Paradigm Parasite

Chapter 155: "Moth Man"

The elves move through the forest, exploring their surroundings with the help of their magic and their sharpened senses.

The darkness around them is deepening as the night falls, but they do not care, checking carefully in the grass, behind the trees and even in the tree hollows.

They are looking for a man.

He is said to be guilty of disrespecting the messenger in any way.

Hearing this, the elves were enraged.

A great being who had brought them a great blessing.

He refused to accept their blessing and even tried to kill them.

I can't forgive them.

They are convinced that he must pay for his crime.

I was given a description of the guilty man, but was told that he had a distinctive appearance and was missing the lower half of his body and one arm, as if that were a minor problem.

We were then told that they might possibly regenerate and take human form, and some of us tilted our heads and wondered what we were looking for, but what we were to do remained the same.

Being able to go outside the village was a valuable experience, but it was mentally hard to work with such low expectations of results.

At first, some people thought that he might be hiding in the Dark Elves' village. The warriors went to the village to confirm this, and it was confirmed that he was not there.

They have been told that there is no need to go near their villages, so they have been searching aimlessly in the forests.

If they are found, they are under strict orders to capture them alive, so they are all equipped with magical tools for capturing them.

At first I was nervous, but as the days have gone by, I've become a little less tense, but I'm not letting my guard down.

Today, too, they are using magic to check the reactions of their surroundings, and if there is a change, they head for it, searching for signs.

The sun has set and darkness is deepening, when something unusual strikes them.

There are a total of nine elves engaged in the search in this area.

They work in groups of three, and it is this number that makes it easier to deal with any problems that may arise.

One of them disappears.

Literally without a sound.

The remaining two immediately notice and warn their surroundings.

These elves have been living in the forest for a long time and are very aware of changes in their surroundings.

They were completely unaware that one of their own had disappeared.

The idea of going somewhere or getting lost is not a possibility in the first place.

The reason is that anyone who acts on their own will be severely punished. The only possible reason for their disappearance is that they were attacked by the enemy.

They suppress their agitation and prepare for the attack with their bows and magic, respectively, without being careless.

The elf with the bow gives the companions a line of sight.

The one who is given the order nods and activates his magic.

The presence of the surroundings -.

"But..."

The fellow grunts as he tries to find out.

The bowman turns to his companion and sees something like a string stuck in his shoulder, but the next moment his body is fished upwards and disappears into the trees.

The remaining bowman quickly points his bow upwards, but only darkness spreads and he cannot see his companions or the attacker.

No...

I see some red lights shimmering and moving above me.

What was that? The man was puzzled.

Was it some kind of monster?

At least, he couldn't remember any monsters that moved like that.

There are several types of monsters living in this area, the most dangerous being the Goriberingay, a huge humanoid monster, but they don't attack unless they invade their territory.

Other than that, there should be no other fearsome opponents.

...Then who the hell are they... No, where did they appear from in the first place ......?

The man's hand suddenly loses strength and the bow falls out of his hand.

What strikes the man is intense drowsiness.

While holding his head, he checks his surroundings.

There was... nothing out of the ordinary.

Something powdery was falling from above. It was dark, so I reacted too late.

By the time I realised it was the work of those above, it was too late. And fatally so.

Something stabs him in the back, causing him pain, but he cannot resist it, painted over by the overwhelming sleepiness.

The man falls asleep, feeling himself being fished out.

A sleep he cannot wake up from.

Thus, the man who had been searching in the forest on the west side of the village disappeared without being seen.

Several carts drawn by orcs and trolls speed through the forest, rattling and scraping the ground.

Their cargo consists of goblins and a large number of wooden baskets.

They stop just before they are caught in the elf's warning net.

The orcs are on guard, weapons at the ready.

The goblin jumps down from the cart and approaches the nearest tree, giving instructions to the trolls.

The trolls receive instructions and slam their pickaxes into the tree to make a hole.

The goblins throw something from their baskets into the hole.

Once they have done so, they move on to the next tree.

After repeating the process until the basket is emptied into the nearest tree, the goblins jump on the cart and leave the scene.

The trees, with something planted in them, make a faint, unpleasant creaking sound inside.

It was several days later that the elves realised the significance of their work.

I was in a frontline stronghold that the goblins had carved out of the forest.

Next to me is the first goblin in charge of the base.

He looks astonished at the scene in front of him.

Of course he is.

Ahead of him is a pile of dead elves.

Is he surprised that they killed so many in just a few days, or is he surprised at the people who did it...?

...well, maybe both?

As I watched, they came back dragging the body.

They are about slightly larger than goblins in size, but the difference is the huge ochre-coloured wings on their backs.

Their huge eyes, a remnant of their goblin days, are dark red. Two antennae on its forehead.

Its entire body is covered with hair of the same colour as its wings.

It looks like a combination of a creature called a moth in Japan... or rather on Earth, and a goblin, divided by two.

Its name is Mothman.

They originated from a mysterious, unidentified creature that appeared in West Virginia, USA.

This species was created based on goblins, but they are quite useful.

In addition to their short flight time, they are equipped with scales that cause sleepiness when sucked from their wings, and instead of having a tongue in their mouths, they have a straw-like, expandable organ called a proboscis.

They can also capture their prey by piercing it and suspending it.

Its original purpose is to suck blood, but it is a useful organ that can also be used in this way.

The eyes have the ability to stop the movement of opponents in their line of sight, called the 'magic eye of restraint'.

...Well, I have him refrain from using it because it's not fuel-efficient.

According to the report from Mossman, who has returned, the cleaning of the west side has been roughly completed.

Also, the dark elf settlement that I had asked for was attacked by ...... and was in a terrible state.

I guess they thought they were sheltering me after all.

They do well against their own people, even if they are former.

I'll at least follow up with them later.

The returning Mothmen disappear back into the forest, while the operatives return with their carts.

The first goblin, who seems to be the leader, jumps down from the cart and rushes towards me.

"The head... oops, 'the head'?"

I switch to subhuman language on the way.

"Ha. All the work has been completed without delay."

"Thanks for your hard work. You can rest now, as you won't be working for a while."

The returned men are told to receive their meals and to take a rest, and are sent back.

"Lord Roe. The work of those just mentioned has really..."

The first-class goblin next to me asked me semi-skeptically.

This goblin seems to have a good command of human speech, and is speaking to me in that language, as if he is paying attention to me.

I can use both, so I don't mind if he speaks subhuman.

"Ah, now we can neutralise the traps in the south. Well, the west side doesn't have any traps in the first place, so it's good to know we didn't have to go through the hassle."

The goblins look incredulous, but I guess that's a natural reaction.

They didn't realise where I was until the end.

Didn't they come up with the idea that I was holding Goliveringay territory?

Reports are that some of them came in a little while ago and I got rid of them, but they didn't really step in.

In the end, you just wasted your time looking in the wrong place until today.

"According to the report, it will take a few days to seize control, so we'll attack as soon as we're done. The plan is to crush the villages in the west and south that day and the centre the next day, but... well, that's not going to work."

"Is that the Grigori you're referring to?"

"Yes. The outcome depends on how many High Elves we can crush before they come out. Do you understand?"

The ideal would be to destroy the host before they come out.

If that happens, they will be nothing more than a noisy radio signal.

"We have made sure that those who are on their way kill the High Elves as soon as they find them."

The goblin nodded as a matter of course.

"Don't show any mercy, even if it's women and children, okay?"

"Of course not. Let's kill them all and see what happens."

After the attack on the village, I'll go forward, so Abdullah will be in charge of the place.

He seems to have got used to it and is motivated for this battle.

After successfully crushing the centre and Grigori, the remaining villages are good if they are going to fall.

If not, let them perish.

Well, even if they do, they may pretend to follow, so I'll prepare a treadmill.

I was half-convinced that this would not happen.

The evolution of the memory-sucking elves towards the High Elves has gone beyond longing to obsession.

At the same time, their loyalty is extremely high.

They will not betray them.

Babies and the like would be subtle, but judging by the motivated Abdullah, they probably won't stay behind.

I think they are all on a fertiliser course for the fields.

...ah... come to think of it, I was asked to name that flower.

The giant Rafflesia was an important source of funding for Oratorium.

I went to see it once and it had grown quite big.

Not as big as the one I'd seen before, but it was almost as big as the grounds of the mansion.

Rafflesia? is not good...

What should I do?

There's still time to think about it.

Let's get back to the story.

Will they notice our movement and move?

Or will they let us in unnoticed?

Well, they're obviously not experienced enough in this kind of thing, so it's a bit much to ask them to notice.

Or are they too busy searching?

I don't know which one it is, but I'm looking forward to waiting for the preparations to be finished.

The time for battle is near.