On the surface, the pure white fur, which looked soft, stood up sharply in prickly spikes.
The red eyes were filled with malice, and the open mouth revealed sharp, pointed teeth that resembled shark teeth.
If bitten by that mouth, the affected area would surely be shredded to pieces.
“It’s huge.”
The size of the monster I was seeing for the first time was much larger than I had imagined.
What I thought would be about the size of a large dog was completely wrong.
At that size, it could be compared to a large bear.
The creature’s palm was bigger than a person’s face, and its long claws gave off an ominous feeling, as if it could impale someone at any moment.
“That’s a monster…”
“Step back a little, Priest.”
“Y-Yes.”
They didn’t say anything about approaching, but they told me to step back, so of course, I followed their orders.
As I stepped back, the entire battlefield came into my view.
I didn’t know the strength of my party members, but now that I was here, it was clear that my party wasn’t ordinary.
They were handling the large, white-furred monster with ease.
And it wasn’t just one—there were two.
‘This doesn’t make sense. They’re handling them too easily.’
Even though it was supposed to be a difficult task, if someone is doing it with ease, it means that person is an expert.
And the people in my party, who were facing the monsters, all seemed to be experts.
Fwwoosh~! Fwwoosh!
Flames erupted around the monster.
The monster, which had only lived in the snowfields filled with eyes, was caught off guard by the sudden fire attack.
Thanks to the efforts of the fire spirit, who was supposedly resistant to the cold, the monster was being hunted smoothly.
As the monster’s fur was scorched by the flames, it seemed to realize it couldn’t go on like this. It scraped the ground several times before suddenly charging.
It skillfully targeted the one creating the fire and charged straight toward them.
Sssss~!
Grrr—!!
Thud, thud, thud—!!
The monster charging through the flames was extremely threatening.
Every time it stepped on the ground, it made a loud thud, and the ground slightly trembled.
Just watching from a distance made my heart race.
But the person it was charging toward seemed unbothered by it. She calmly extended her hand forward.
From her hand, a massive fireball shot out like a laser.
Fwwoosh!
Grrr—!!
Like a boar roasting in flames, the monster, its entire body aflame, collapsed onto the ground.
Even in the flames, it didn’t seem to die right away. The monster rubbed its eyes and body, trying to extinguish the fire.
It seemed the party wasn’t going to just watch.
Other members took long spears and rushed forward, stabbing them into the monster’s body.
Fwoosh!!
Grrrgh—!!
“Ugh.”
I was used to seeing blood, but seeing the monster impaled with spears was a bit unsettling.
‘I need to get used to this.’
One monster, impaled by a spear, lay still, likely dead, but the other one surprisingly dodged the spear.
Because of the fire used in the snowfields, the flames had quickly been extinguished.
Realizing that fighting up close wasn’t going to work, it changed its approach.
“Snow?”
It rapidly gathered snow and began throwing it in all directions.
The person who had been protecting me pushed me back and stepped forward with a shield.
One might think that gathering and throwing snow would be laughable, but that would be a grave mistake.
The snow, flying off course, struck a tree and instantly snapped it in half, causing it to fall.
If that snow hit someone’s head, their skull would definitely shatter.
Bang! Crash! Bang!!
The snow hitting the shield made a deafening sound, like steel balls being struck.
“Aah!”
Some people who failed to dodge the attack were knocked to the ground.
Like the tree, they weren’t dead, but their bones were definitely broken.
If the monster was attacking from a distance, we couldn’t just stand idly by.
“Are you alright?”
As the battle resumed, the person who had shielded me earlier asked about my condition.
“Yes. I’m fine… Whoa!”
The monster slammed its fists into the ground, creating a loud, thunderous noise.
The shock caused the ground to tremble as if an earthquake had just occurred.
“Be careful.”
“Phew, thank you.”
I hadn’t realized how dangerous just watching the fight could be.
‘This is no joke.’
Cold sweat ran down my back.
If I had to watch this kind of battle repeatedly, could I survive amidst all the chaos?
Swish~!
Crack! Crunch!
The white fur gradually turned crimson.
Even when there were two of them, we had been losing, so it was impossible to keep holding out after one was lost.
To pierce through its thick hide, they relentlessly swung their weapons, and eventually, the monster crouched down, letting out a desperate, gurgling sound.
No one reacted to the monster’s desperate screams.
It seemed that I was the only one who felt pity for it.
Until its breath stopped, no one ceased their attack.
Thrust!
Finally, as its resistance ceased, they drove a sword through the monster’s heart to ensure it was dead, and only then did the party sheathe their weapons.
“It’s dead.”
“Nice! Well done.”
“Check the body.”
After the battle team, sweating from the fight, stepped back, the porters began to move.
Porters played a crucial role in the party.
They helped conserve the fighting team’s energy by carrying heavy loads, and after a battle, they gathered useful items from the monster’s corpse.
With everyone doing their part, it was time for me to step in.
“Is anyone injured?”
It was my job to take care of people.
Having seen my share of injured people during fights, I expected many to come forward for treatment.
But for some reason, no one seemed eager to seek treatment.
Princess Lasiell, sensing something was off, tilted her head and said,
“There seem to be quite a few injuries, but why isn’t anyone getting treated?”
“Please treat them.”
At the words of Princess Lasiell, a few people finally came forward to receive treatment.
‘Are they still wary?’
I didn’t understand why they were so hesitant about receiving treatment. What’s there to be wary of?
As I treated the first people who came forward, I heard some murmurs from the side.
“Hey! Why are you asking for treatment for such a small scratch?”
“It hurts, alright? It may look fine on the outside, but the bone is probably broken.”
It seemed like one of the people who had been hit by the snow earlier was stopping his companion from receiving treatment.
‘I guess I have no choice.’
At this point, it seemed like I had to step in directly.
“It seems like you’re injured. Could you tell me where it hurts?”
“…No, it’s nothing. It’s just that this guy is being dramatic.”
His companion, seemingly trying to prevent him from getting treatment, said a clear lie even though I was standing right there.
“It’s better to show me even small wounds. If you hide it and it becomes worse, it’ll be much harder to treat later. If there’s any discomfort at all, please tell me. I’ll take a look.”
“I’m not being dramatic. It really could be a broken bone!”
“If your bone is broken from getting hit by snow, wouldn’t you need to be reborn?”
“Ugh!”
“Where did it hit?”
“My arm.”
I couldn’t tell whether his bone was broken or just fractured by looking, so I placed my holy power into his arm to check.
“It’s broken.”
“See! I told you it was broken! I’ve broken my arm more times than you think!”
Upon hearing my confirmation that his arm was broken, his companion stepped back awkwardly.
“Can it be treated? I heard this kind of injury is really hard to heal.”
“Don’t worry, it’s not that difficult.”
I checked his condition and added a little more holy power to heal his broken arm.
“Oh, this feels great! The pain is going away! You’re really good at this!”
The pain in his arm gradually faded, and he smiled contently while giving me a thumbs-up.
“Can you move your arm? Not too roughly, just carefully.”
The man answered cheerfully, “Yes!” and moved his arm.
“It doesn’t hurt at all!”
“Glad to hear that. Are there any other areas that are bothering you?”
“I have some bruises, but… this will heal on its own with time.”
“Would you like me to check again?”
After healing his broken arm, the remaining holy power began to treat the smaller wounds as well.
“Huh? The bruises are gone!”
“So, there’s nothing else bothering you?”
“Nope! Thank you! Hey, you’ve got injuries too, right? Go ask for treatment.”
“M-Me?”
The companion who had been stopping him from getting treatment earlier flinched noticeably at his words.
“Do you have any injuries?”
“Well… it’s not like I don’t, but it’s embarrassing to show you, Priest.”
“Please don’t think of me as someone difficult to approach. I didn’t follow you here for no reason, right? If you’re uncomfortable with anything, even the smallest issue, please don’t hesitate to call me. I’ll do my best to help.”
He was silent for a moment as though deep in thought before speaking.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to think badly of you. I was just worried you’d be annoyed if I bothered you over something small.”
“It’s alright. That’s understandable. Next time, don’t stop me and just tell me to come over quickly. That would be much better for me.”
The man, his face flushed, nodded his head.
Then, without hesitation, he grabbed my hand firmly and said:
“If anyone ever touches you, Priest, call me. I’ll deal with them for you!”
“What?!”
“I must have misunderstood and misjudged you. I’m sorry. I had my own reasons for joining late, but I didn’t realize I had such prejudices.”