How a Reincarnated Warlock Lives – Chapter 152

Chapter 152: Cloud Mountains (5)

“……Pixie?”

“What is that?”

The druid, resembling an otter, suddenly spoke. Questioning murmurs were exchanged among the party members.

Despite having a considerable amount of experience, they couldn’t immediately understand the name’Pixie’. Looking at them, I quietly explained.

“They are palm-sized creatures that travel in groups. We know them better as Tooth Fairies.”

A simple explanation.

“……Ah.”

“……?”

However, some had expressions that showed they vaguely understood, while others still looked confused.

It wasn’t particularly strange. Pixies were one of the many bizarre creatures living in the Cloud Mountains, rarely seen in the outside world.

In a way, it could be said that my previous encounter with them was a very unusual case.

“Yes, Pixies. Those little gnats.”

Nodding while listening to our conversation, the otter continued speaking with a slightly displeased expression.

“They are gnawing away at the beasts and trees in our territory.”

Pixies are also quite an old race. Well, compared to druids, they are indeed a younger race.

“Ah.”

Only then did the party members, realizing the cause of the problem in the mountains, have expressions of sudden understanding.

The Tooth Fairies, that is, the Pixies, for some unknown reason, began to invade the druid territory they had never encroached upon before.

And to counter this, the druids distorted the senses of the forest.

From the beginning, it seemed that the difficulties humans would face were not even considered among them. Well, it wasn’t that the druids were particularly strange.

The Cloud Mountains were not originally a human territory.

“……That’s a very novel solution. For us, it’s like constantly changing the location of the field to avoid the sparrows that are targeting it?”

At Sir Berit’s words, everyone laughed bitterly. It was because they realized that the cause of the obstruction of both the Grand Temple’s purification work and the support for attacking the Lava Monster-filled Volcano Catacomb was due to a seemingly trivial problem.

But on the other hand, it was also fortunate.

After all, the fact that the cause wasn’t that serious also meant that the solution could be equally simple.

“Then, can’t we just catch and kill those Pixie things?”

Marchena, who reached a very simple and clear conclusion, looked around the party as if asking what the problem was.

She was right. It wouldn’t be as simple as it sounded, though.

“……It doesn’t seem like it will be as simple as that.”

In this vast mountain range, to catch and eliminate all those small and fast fairies? Perhaps it would be less troublesome to just raid the Catacombs and have a good fight.

Even the ancient druids, known for their quick wit and sensitivity, couldn’t catch each and every one of the Pixies who quickly fled into the air, so they chose an alternative.

Of course, they brilliantly solved the problem without shedding a drop of blood by distorting the senses of the forest to drive out the Tooth Fairies.

“I understand why you came here. But unfortunately, it seems difficult for us to bear the loss for the sake of a few humans.”

The otter’s words. Everyone nodded with slightly heavy faces.

It was a bit harsh, but it was the truth.

“What if we solve that problem for you.”

“……?”

At my somewhat sudden words, the otter looked up and stared at me.

“You will?”

It was a question with the words ‘How?’omitted, but I simply nodded.

Hmm. Stroking his protruding beard for a moment, he then spoke as if it were natural.

“If that’s the case, we would welcome it. Of course, I would like to receive compensation from them for the already devastated territory ……”

Acceptance. If we solved the problem for them, the druids would have no reason to further disrupt the mountain paths.

“Well.”

Berit shrugged and said.

“They must have their reasons, right? Listening to Inquisitor Luciel, it seems that the Pixie race is an intelligent life form capable of communication.”

He continued with a calm expression.

“How about trying to talk to them first?”

“That’s a good idea. But……”

At his words, the young monk Herson spoke with a slightly troubled smile.

“How do we meet them?”

He was right. They are extremely fast and wary.

Didn’t the druids also choose to distort the senses of the forest to drive them out instead of catching them?

“……”

As if by prior agreement, everyone’s gaze turned towards me. I silently stared at the party members without answering.

“……!”

Then, as if misunderstanding something, Herson flinched and stepped back.

“N-No, not my teeth.”

He seemed to think I would forcibly extract his teeth and use them as bait.

The other party members also slightly turned their heads, avoiding my gaze.

Even.

“My teeth are too hard for them to eat.”

“……”

Marchena shamelessly replied.

“You seem to have a very strange misunderstanding.”

I shook my head with a small sigh, looking at them.

“I don’t particularly prefer such drastic methods.”

“……”

“……”

At my words, Marchena and Kazan stared at me for a moment. Ignoring their gazes, I calmly rummaged through the inner pocket of my cloak.

“Then do you have a way?”

Herson’s question.

“I’m thinking of calling them.”

As the young monk said, it would be extremely foolish to search for Pixies in this vast mountain range. The lamp used to find the fixed destinations, the Cradle and the druid territory, was not very effective against the constantly moving Pixies.

Leaving bait like teeth or bones and waiting for them indefinitely was also a plan with an unknown time commitment.

“……Call them? How?”

A look of disbelief, but mixed with a strange sense of anticipation. I looked at him and answered briefly.

“With a flute.”

🔹🔹🔹

I’ve met them before.

Not long after I became an Inquisitor. Perhaps it was on the way to Sitdria, where the witch was imprisoned, with Jerit.

At that time, I discovered a small group of Pixies that had strayed from the Cloud Mountains and received this item while sending them back to the mountains.

“What is that?”

We moved to a place a little distance away from the druid territory to avoid unnecessary friction. Seeing the small flute in my hand, Herson asked curiously.

I calmly answered the monk.

“It’s a flute.”

“……”

The small flute, which appeared to be made of some kind of bone, was a gift directly from the Pixies at that time. They are a race that doesn’t lie. Surely the power residing within this is real.

Swoosh. As I put the small flute, almost like a whistle, to my mouth, the party members all stepped back a few paces.

─!

After taking a brief breath, I blew the flute with all my might.

And.

“……”

“……Are you sure you blew it?”

“I don’t hear anything?”

The party members were bewildered. There was no dramatic change as soon as the flute was blown.

“……”

But I, who blew the flute directly, could see it clearly.

The air currents around me fluctuated as soon as the flute was blown.

And I could clearly hear it.

The sound of small wings flapping from afar, carried by the rapidly spreading flow.

Flutter.

Marchena and Captain Berit, with their keen senses, were the first among the party to notice the small flapping sound.

“This is……!”

“Something is coming, and a lot of it.”

Marchena’s warning words. Everyone looked up at the sky with tense expressions.

Flutter.

The flapping sound gradually grew louder. Now, the sound, loud enough for everyone to hear, was coming from somewhere above the Cloud Mountains.

“Tooth Fairies!”

Herson shouted with a voice mixed with admiration and a bit of anxiety. His shout also contained the curiosity of a scholar.

At the same time as the sound, as if made by a single creature, a hazy something began to form around us.

“……Fog?”

Fog that left a dampness on our hands. Everyone’s vision began to blur.

Flutter!

Along with the approaching flapping sound, the clouds in the sky soon began to descend.

🔹🔹🔹

“Human!”

“It’s a human!”

Countless Pixies surrounded us. Amidst the deafening buzzing of wings, rather unpleasant questions grazed our ears.

“Will you give us your teeth if we ask?”

“Humans don’t die even without teeth!”

Thud. At the same time, something shiny fell from the sky.

Small pieces that gleamed brightly even in the hazy fog.

“……Gold?”

One of the party members recognized its identity and muttered. It was emanating from the Pixies ‘hands. A rain of gold fell from the low-hanging clouds.

“Take this!”

“Give us your teeth instead!”

“Delicious teeth!”

Excited voices. But none of the party members were blinded by the gold and picked it up.

Still the same. Shaking my head, I blew the flute in my mouth again with all my might.

─!

Then, I felt the gazes of all the Pixies, who had hidden themselves in the cloud-like fog and were flapping their wings while having a creepy conversation, turn towards me at once.

Did they realize that I, the owner of the flute given as a gift, was a friend of the Pixies? The frantic buzzing movements of the creatures calmed down a bit.

“Flute?”

“Friend of the Pixies!”

“A human we’ve never seen before?”

“All humans look the same!”

I raised my hand to stop their conversations, which were about to branch out chaotically again.

“I want to ask you something.”

Fortunately, my words worked immediately.

“Question! A question!”

“A friend’s question!”

“What are you curious about? Teeth?”

“Delicious!”

I blocked the Pixies’ nonsense and calmly asked the question I had originally intended. The reason why they suddenly left their territory and invaded the distant druid territory.

Of course, it took considerable time to filter out the constant, rambling nonsense while trying to ask this simple question. But after patiently continuing the conversation, I was finally able to hear a proper answer.

Their answer was unexpected.

“Black monster!”

“Scary!”

“If we go near it, we’ll be eaten!”

“We have to avoid it!”

Even after that, many Pixies each threw out a word or two about why they had to leave their territory.

I calmly gathered the information that the creatures were spitting out randomly from all directions.

Something black. Probably evil. The power to devour. Its location was near the Pixie territory. So, somewhere near the southern part of the Cloud Mountains.

And the conclusion I reached after combining all that information was simple.

The black energy that suddenly disrupted the Pixies’ territory. A sinister power that seemed to have been left behind by someone from the past.

“……”

I scratched my chin for a moment.

What? It was because of the legacy I left behind.

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