25-185

EP.185 [The Elf Priscilla Flirts With Eugene.] 

“Grrrrrr...!” 

“Karrrrr...!” 

“They’re wolves, aren’t they?” 

What Priscilla and Eugene Schneider discovered were strange creatures-a pack of desert wolves. More than 30 heads were watching the Red Fox Mercenary Band’s movement from atop the cliff. 

“They’re not just ordinary wolves. Look closely at their eyes.” 

Eugene reacted to the unusually large number of wolves. Priscilla pointed out their eyes. 

“They’re possessed by miasma.” 

The desert wolves’ eyes were glowing red. 

“Is this the drake’s influence, Priscilla?” 

“To be precise, it’s the result of an environment where a drake could appear. If even animals are getting possessed, it means the contamination is extremely persistent.” 

Priscilla had only confirmed the possibility of a drake’s presence with the hologram stone, but that alone wasn’t enough to fully gauge the situation at Enclema Cliff. Upon entering the area, she sensed more miasma than expected, and as a result, a pack of wolves possessed by miasma appeared. 

“They’re going to attack. Beasts possessed by miasma have no fear.” 

“Understood. I’ll inform the leader and advisor right away. Priscilla, keep watching them.” 

Priscilla predicted a fight was coming, given the ominous appearance of the wolves. 

“We slow our advance. Archers, keep your eyes on the wolves. Shield-bearers, form a guard. Thomas, increase vigilance in case more show up.” 

After Eugene reported the situation, Jeanne immediately gave the order for defensive formation. 

“They’re coming!” 

At that moment, Priscilla, who had been watching the wolves, gave the signal. 

“-Kyaaaaa!” “-Kang!” “-Grrrr!” “-Kyaaaaaang!” 

-Thudthudthudthudthud!-Thudthudthudthudthud! 

More than 30 desert wolves began rapidly descending the sheer cliff. 

“Whoa! How are they so agile?” 

“Beasts possessed by miasma have slightly enhanced physical abilities!” 

Swoosh! Swish! Swoosh! 

The Red Fox Mercenary Band members immediately drew their weapons. Medic Peter was startled by the wolves’ unexpected speed, but Marie, with sharp eyes, explained the situation. 

-Pewww! -Pewww! 

At that moment, emerald flashes shot through the air-Priscilla’s World Tree Bow fired. 

-Thwack! -Thwack! 

Priscilla’s emerald arrows struck the charging wolves in the head with perfect accuracy. 

“Be careful, everyone! If you get bitten by a miasma-possessed beast, you don’t know what aftereffects there might be! If you’re bitten on a limb, you might even have to amputate!” 

Priscilla, showing off her charisma, also gave a stern warning. 

“Then we need to minimize variables!” 

-Fwoosh! 

Hearing this, Eugene Schneider immediately hefted his greatsword and charged at the wolves. With the toughest armor, he intended to draw their aggression-and since he had demon blood, he was less likely to suffer aftereffects. 

-Thwack! -Smash! -Thud! 

Eugene’s massive greatsword swung down, cleaving even the huge desert wolves in half with a single blow. 

“Wow! Sword Expert Eugene Schneider, our captain!” 

“He’s really reliable!” 

Behind him, shield-bearers formed a barricade, and archers fired arrows at wolves ahead of Eugene. But those were just for distraction-Eugene was the one actually taking down all the wolves. The others expected at least a few wolves to get past him, but none did, and the Red Fox Mercenary Band members were amazed. 

“Whew! These desert wolves really are huge.” 

In about 10 minutes, not only the first 20 but also another six wolves were all slaughtered. Seeing the desert filled with wolf corpses, Eugene was impressed. Over 30 was a lot, but it felt like even more because up close, the desert wolves were much larger than ordinary ones. 

“Can we use these for food? I heard desert wolf meat is really good.” 

“It should be fine. The miasma in beasts disappears within two days after death.” 

“Oh, really, Priscilla?” 

Seeing their impressive size, Eugene thought of using them as food. Out in the wilderness, food supply is tough. Even though the Imperial Knights brought plenty, saving more couldn’t hurt. And with almost no humidity here, it’s perfect for making jerky. 

“Alright. Let’s set up camp here. Supply and kitchen teams, process the desert wolves we brought.” 

After this “welcome party” at Enclema Cliff, the Red Fox Mercenary Band arrived at the Drake Special Quest party’s base camp area. It was a large site, with separate camps for the Imperial Knights and the Red Fox Mercenary Band. Administrator Thomas dismounted and began directing the setup. 

“Priscilla! Come help me set up the totems!” 

While the camp was being set up, Eugene called for Priscilla. The totems were monster-detection totems made by Elizabeth, the quest team’s mage. The totems had arrived about a week after the Red Fox delegation returned from the Imperial Knights’ arena. 

‘I have to keep working together with her. That’s how we’ll build good teamwork. I think all our recent efforts are paying off.’ 

Of course, Eugene could do it alone, but he specifically called Priscilla to strengthen their bond as partners. He knew she disliked trivial chores, but he was dragging her along anyway. 

“Totems? Sure, let’s go together.” 

Surprisingly, Priscilla accepted Eugene’s invitation coolly and readily. 

‘Huh? She agreed that easily?’ 

Lately, Eugene and Priscilla had grown close enough to make Marie jealous. So when Eugene asked, Priscilla usually agreed. But getting to that point hadn’t been easy-it used to take a lot of convincing, so Eugene was surprised it happened so quickly this time. 

“I think this is a good spot for the first totem, Priscilla. The elevation and direction are right.” 

Sss... 

“Yeah, looks good.” 

There were five totems in total, each to be placed in a suitable location. Eugene found a good spot for the first and took out the totem stone. 

“Huh? What are you doing, Priscilla?” 

As Eugene worked the puzzle in the totem stone’s center, he noticed Priscilla doing something odd. 

“I’m leveling the ground. The totem will dig into the earth, so what if there are rocks in the way?” 

Priscilla was squatting like at a pit latrine, diligently digging the ground. Somehow, she’d brought a trowel and was seriously digging. 

What stood out the most- 

Wiggle! Wiggle! Wiggle! Wiggle! 

-was Priscilla’s butt, wiggling constantly. 

‘Ahem... I’ve never seen Priscilla like this before. She’s always sitting somewhere with her legs crossed, acting all aloof.’ 

It was a noticeable pose, but not unheard of-just more striking because it was Priscilla. The usually arrogant elf was now wiggling her butt playfully. 

Peek...! 

At that moment, Priscilla turned her head toward Eugene. 

“What are you looking at?” 

She responded as if she’d been waiting for Eugene to look down at her. 

“Uh... I just thought it was interesting seeing you dig. I’m used to seeing you sitting somewhere with your legs crossed.” 

Eugene made an excuse. It wasn’t a complete lie-he really had looked because of that, before getting distracted by her wiggling butt. 

“You weren’t looking at my butt?” 

Priscilla brought up her own butt. 

“Ah, I was looking at your butt. It’s the most noticeable thing about you right now.” 

Eugene was slightly flustered. He hadn’t expected Priscilla to react that way. Normally, she’d make a bolder joke, like “What are you, a pervert?” and Eugene would fire back. But since she answered more modestly, Eugene stumbled a bit. 

“R-right? Hmm...” 

Priscilla, sounding a bit shy, mumbled and turned her gaze back to the ground she was digging. 

Ssssss...!! 

“Oh! So the totem really does dig into the ground?” 

“Dummy, you came to set this up without even knowing that? What would you have done if I hadn’t come?” 

When Eugene activated the mana totem stone, it glowed and began transforming into a totem. Thanks to Priscilla’s groundwork, it settled perfectly. Eugene realized her digging wasn’t pointless and was impressed, while Priscilla played it up. 

“That’s a weird-looking totem. You seem to know a lot about them, Priscilla. Are they always like this?” 

Eugene looked at the finished monster-scan totem with curiosity. It was about 180 cm tall. 

And most notably- 

“A naked woman? That’s a bit much.” 

It was shaped like a voluptuous naked woman. 

“Defensive totems are made in the shape of a voluptuous woman, while offensive totems take the form of monsters. The appearance helps determine the direction of mana flow.” 

“Oh! I see!” 

As an elf skilled with artifacts and totems, Priscilla easily answered Eugene’s questions. 

“Let’s go set up the others, Priscilla!” 

Step! Step! Step! Step! 

After confirming the first totem was glowing with mana, they set off to install the rest. 

But Priscilla kept staring at the first totem. 

“Priscilla? What are you doing? We need to finish and get dinner!” 

When Eugene noticed Priscilla wasn’t following, he called out to her. 

“Hey, Eugene.” 

With a mysterious expression, still looking at the first totem, Priscilla spoke. 

“Yes, Priscilla? Is there something you want to say?” 

Eugene stopped and turned toward her. 

Then Priscilla asked Eugene Schneider- 

“What do you think about women with small breasts?” 

A truly cheeky question.