A Dragonslayer’s Peerless Regression

Chapter 65

Felix, responding to Sieg's words, promptly searched for a suitable campsite. As soon as a location was chosen, the two managed to create a surprisingly cozy camp using camping equipment that Sieg retrieved from his inventory.

Felix, having fetched water, built a fire in the earth to boil it. Then he added jerky provided by Sieg, spices, and mushrooms he had gathered nearby, concocting quite a splendid dish.

"Sir Sieg, it's ready. Please, have a taste,"

Felix invited.

Sieg slurped the soup given to him by Felix. Even if there had been poison, Sieg had the Immunity to Hundred Poisons constitution, so he gulped down the soup without hesitation.

Fortunately, it wasn't poisoned, and the taste was delightful.

"You have impressive cooking skills, Felix,"

Sieg complimented.

Felix responded with a sheepish smile.

"Haha, I once worked at a restaurant for a while, so I'm quite confident in my cooking."

"Good. In the field, there's no better companion than an excellent cook,"

Sieg replied. At that moment, Felix said to Sieg, "You seem quite accustomed to the field, Sir Sieg. Do they also conduct such training in Valhalla?"

"Well, yes,"

Sieg replied, giving an evasive answer before focusing on his soup. After finishing their meal, the two decided to take turns keeping watch.

"I only need a short nap, so wake me up in two hours. Then I'll take my turn,"

Sieg said. Thanks to his Endless Stamina passive skill, there was no need for him to sleep; he merely lay down to rest.

Meanwhile, with his eyes closed, he sensed for any unusual movements from Felix but found nothing suspicious.

Two hours later, Sieg awoke and took his turn keeping watch, guarding his surroundings. He pondered about the demonic beasts known for draining all bodily fluids.

'A demonic beast capable of absorbing bodily fluids without leaving a trace,' he mused.

In his previous life, Sieg had encountered a similar corpse. Despite tracking it for several days with his master, they eventually lost it.

It was an elusive creature, cautious and remarkably difficult to capture. Sieg compared the traces left by the beast he had seen in the past with the footprints discovered near the fence.

'The traces don't match that beast. Perhaps a different species of demonic beast emerged simultaneously.'

It wasn't common, but such occurrences weren't unheard of. Sieg considered all scenarios as he strategized on tracking the demonic beast.

At that moment, a loud CRACK reverberated.

CRACK!

A tree was heard falling beyond the forest. Sieg immediately rose and focused his senses in the direction of the sound. 'Two kilometers west,' he calculated.

He roused Felix.

"Felix."

"Hmm! Yes? Yes, Sir Sieg!"

"There's something beyond the forest. Stay here. I'll be back shortly,"

Sieg instructed Felix, leaving for the western forest.

Whoosh!

Utilizing his Swift Wind Technique, Sieg reached the source of the noise in no time. Concealing himself behind a tree, he observed the situation, encountering a race he hadn't expected.

'A Barbarian?'

Barbarians lived deep within the Giant Mountains. Though similar in appearance to humans, their physical strength was unparalleled.

Their size and power were enough to overwhelm ogres, earning them a reputation as the descendants of the giants who once ruled the mountains.

One such Barbarian warrior was engaged in combat.

"Graaagh!" it roared.

A demonic beast, almost invisible in the darkness, swung its tail at the Barbarian.

Whoosh!

The Barbarian rolled to evade the tail and uprooted a nearby tree, swinging it at the beast.

Swoosh!

The demonic beast swiftly retreated to avoid the incoming tree. Sieg observed the creature's movements and realized it was the one he had lost in his previous life.

'Master referred to it as Gaguk.'

Among demonic beasts, Gaguk species had special attributes. Sieg's master had warned him to be particularly cautious of such ancient beings, noting their strength and intelligence as beyond comparison with ordinary demonic beasts.

The creature's movements were like a monkey's, quick and cautious, and its extended tentacle-like tail drained life upon contact.

Victims became mummified instantaneously, akin to the corpse Sieg had discovered earlier.

'The livestock was taken by the Barbarian, and humans by the Gaguk, it seems.'

Although he had a general understanding, Sieg was unsure why the Barbarian and Gaguk were fighting in such a location. Thus, he continued to observe the situation.

"Kieeekk!"

The Gaguk bared its sharp teeth, menacing the Barbarian. Suddenly, its neck swelled and it spit something towards the Barbarian.

Splat!

A sharp, spear-like tongue shot out at high speed. The Barbarian warrior crossed his arms attempting to block it.

Thunk!

However, the Gaguk's tongue pierced through the Barbarian's tough body, exiting through his back.

Thud!

The Barbarian collapsed on the ground.

Observing the Barbarian, the Gaguk let out a grotesque grin, stretching the corners of its mouth.

It slowly approached the Barbarian, using its tail to drain the warrior's life force. Then, it abruptly halted, as if sensing an unseen danger, and recoiled.

It scanned the forest carefully, seemingly searching for something, but finding nothing, it attempted once more to reach the fallen Barbarian.

At that moment, Sieg stealthily swung his sword, grazing the Gaguk's neck as it neared the Barbarian.

"Kieeekk!"

Startled, the Gaguk melded into the darkness and swiftly retreated. Disappointed watching the creature vanish in an instant, Sieg remarked, "So damn fast."

Even with his master's help in his past life, they couldn't capture it. Though smaller in stature than before, it seemed even more perceptive.

"Ugh," the Barbarian groaned.

Sieg gazed down at the fallen Barbarian warrior. Poisoned, the warrior's face was pallid.

After some thought, Sieg decided to assist the Barbarian, slinging the more than 2-meter-tall warrior over his shoulder and heading to a nearby cave. There, Sieg examined the Barbarian's wound.

"Hmm."

The area pierced by the Gaguk's tongue had turned black, indicating the presence of poison.

'It's a dangerous creature, indeed.'

Sieg heated a dagger with fire and applied it to the Barbarian warrior's wound.

Ssss!

Black blood spurted from the wound. Sieg then poured an antidote from his inventory over the wound.

"Ughhh!"

Even the strong Barbarian warrior writhed in pain. Had it been an ordinary human, they would have melted from the extreme toxicity, leaving nothing but a puddle of goo.

Sieg applied another bottle of antidote, spreading it over the wound.

As the antidote started neutralizing the poison, and what seemed like some progress in eliminating the toxicity was shown, Sieg fetched a healing potion and administered it to the Barbarian.

Strangely, the healing potion had no effect on the Barbarian.

"Doesn't work if not on humans?"

Even with the poison neutralized, major organs were damaged. Without intervention, the Barbarian was at high risk of dying from shock. Contemplating, Sieg decided to try a skill he hadn't used before.

"Wide-area buff skill... Let's see if this works,"

Sieg mused. He placed his hand over the Barbarian's wound and activated his wide-area buff skill.

『Which skill would you like to use for the wide-area buff?』

Sieg chose the Healing Factor, and soon a radiant light spread around him like a wave. A golden light washed over the area, bathing the Barbarian's body in its glow. Gradually, the Barbarian's wound began to heal.

"Oh, it works. It's similar to the healing effect I used before."

In Sieg's previous life, he was able to heal others as well as himself, but in this life, he had overlooked this ability due to utilizing the system and his skill being altered to Healing Factor.

Better late than never, he realized that he could indeed provide healing to others.

The Barbarian warrior's natural resilience also played a part, as the severe wound had healed, leaving only a scar. Sieg pressed around the Barbarian's wound to confirm that his organs were also recovering.

"You're lucky. You would have died if not for me."

At that moment, "Ugh!"

Having effectively applied the Healing Factor, the Barbarian warrior began regaining consciousness. Quick to recover, Sieg was startled but soon nodded in realization.

"Ah, well, barbarians do defy conventional logic, after all."

In Sieg's previous life, he had witnessed Barbarians performing feats unimaginable for a human. Suddenly, the Barbarian warrior's eyes shot open.

He bolted upright and scanned the surroundings before spotting Sieg.

"Graaa!"

The Barbarian let out a battle cry to intimidate, stepping back cautiously.

Sieg maintained a calm demeanor as he spoke to the Barbarian warrior.

"Calm."

Surprised by Sieg speaking their language, the Barbarian asked, "You speak our words?"

Barbarian language was quite simplistic and lacked expressive diversity. Sieg nodded and replied, "I speak. I saved you."

The Barbarian inspected the injury inflicted by the Gaguk. Though he'd been impaled and poisoned, the wound was now healed.

Astonished, the Barbarian approached Sieg. "You saved?"

Sieg nodded again. "Yes. I saved you."

The Barbarian warrior, overwhelmed with emotion, suddenly hugged Sieg. "Thank you."

Having calmed the Barbarian, Sieg inquired, "My name is Sieg. What's your name?"

"I'm King Fist. Pleased, Sieg," replied the Barbarian.

"Pleased, King Fist. Why here? Your home is there,"

Sieg noted.

"I'm taking warrior test," explained King Fist.

"Hunting?"

"Yes. Must succeed in hunting to become warrior," replied King Fist. Listening to the Barbarian warrior, Sieg was surprised.

He had assumed that with his impressive build, King Fist had already passed the warrior test and was an adult warrior, but it seemed he wasn't yet of age.

"How old is King Fist? I thought you were already a warrior,"

Sieg inquired.

"I'm sixteen. Stronger than village warriors,"

King Fist stated.

"I'm seventeen. Older brother,"

Sieg responded.

With Sieg's probing, he discerned that the trial given to King Fist, who was stronger even than adult warriors, was to capture the powerful and exclusive demonic beast within their territory, the Gaguk.

Although he was physically stronger than an adult warrior, he had yet to master the finer skills of hunting. He had pursued the Gaguk until he had descended the mountains, reaching the Troy Duchy.

'He just climbed over the mountain, all the way down to the Troy Duchy.'

Indeed, barbarians defied common sense. At this, King Fist expressed his dismay, "Hunting too difficult. I will likely fail."

In response, Sieg offered, "Shall I help you hunt?"

King Fist was taken aback. "Really?"

"I also want to catch that monster,"

Sieg said.

King Fist hugged Sieg once more, his gratitude clear. "Sieg, thank you."

Sieg patted King Fist's back. "I'm the older brother."

"Oh."

* * *

Having resolved to hunt the Gaguk with King Fist, Sieg led him back to the campsite where Felix was waiting. As Sieg arrived with a more than 2-meter-tall figure, Felix was alarmed.

"S-Sir Sieg, th-that...!"

Seeing Felix's intense reaction, King Fist prepared to unleash a battle cry once more, but Sieg quickly intervened.

"He's my subordinate."

"What is a subordinate?"

King Fist asked.

Among Barbarians, all were considered warriors, and aside from the tribe chief, terms for hierarchy weren't common.

Sieg pondered how to explain the notion of subordinates using their language. Lacking an appropriate word, Sieg improvised.

"Foot cleaner?"

Sieg said.

King Fist nodded in understanding. Although Sieg momentarily felt a pang of sympathy for Felix, who had unwittingly been demoted to foot cleaner, he had few alternatives, so he let it pass.

King Fist explored the campsite, rummaging for food. Observing him, Sieg retrieved some jerky from his inventory and handed it over. However, for the Barbarian, the portion was insufficient; he scarfed it down in no time.

'No wonder he came down to the village to steal livestock,' Sieg thought, watching the newfound ally. Inspecting the proximity, Felix, who had turned pale, whispered to Sieg.

"Isn't he a Barbarian, Sir Sieg?"

Felix queried.

"Yes."

"My God, a Barbarian... Is this alright?"

"He somewhat follows my lead after being saved from the demonic beast. We've agreed to hunt the beast together."

Felix seemed daunted by Sieg's confident assertion, wide-eyed and seemingly hollowed out.

Sieg carefully observed Felix's reaction.

'He didn't draw his sword but froze upon seeing the Barbarian for the first time. If he were trained for roles like this, he wouldn't act like that.'

Aside from the aura of his instincts, he genuinely seemed like an ordinary guide.

'Am I overthinking things?'

Yet his curiosity deepened regarding Felix's true nature.

At that moment, King Fist suddenly stood. "Sieg, I smell something."

Sieg asked, "What smell?"

A gleam flashed in King Fist's eyes, teetering on the edge of madness.

"The creature's scent."