I Became a 6★ Gacha Character-Chapter 436: People of the North 1

Everyone makes mistakes.

"...Sorry. I forgot I got stronger after getting the holy sword."

"It's fine, these things happen."

"Yes, at least we hunted successfully without casualties."

But my tiny conscience pricked too sharply to just brush it off like that. I'd mistakenly thought their tough outer hide meant their bones, muscles, and tendons were all equally hard.

While the Giant Worm and Wyvern's mistakes proved fatal, mine just covered our companions and lovers in blood.

My excuse was that I hadn't killed a Wyvern in four whole years. Unlike dumb ogres popping up everywhere, they were hunted by mages or skilled ballista operators, not walking tanks like me.

But seeing Grace grinning after roughly wringing blood from her hair and hastily washing her face, and Irene checking everyone despite her filthy priest robes, I couldn't voice my excuses.

"The carriage is wrecked, guess you'll have to carry Hanna, Roland."

"That's fine."

Even more foolishly, we'd shielded the horses but left the magic-enhanced carriage unprotected.

The barrier-protected horses just scraped their hooves irritably at the shower of warm predator bits, but the carriage took the battle's full impact. Though not completely shattered, the creaking wheels meant we'd have to abandon it.

The Empire's monsters probably weren't particularly weak - I'd just gotten too used to the tower's strengthened ones. When you're accustomed to 6m ogres evolving to 10m, this kind of disaster happens outside.

Only the culprit (me) and mana-drained Han Se-ah lying flat remained clean. Katie had shielded her with her back while helping her.

"Well, at least the wings and membrane are intact. Maybe its size made it take all the impact there."

"Wow, how much did it eat to get this big?"

"Still dissecting the Giant Worm? Can't we just take the skin?"

At least only our companions suffered my blunder. Even as noble young masters, the Ice Cross Knights who'd fought monster waves for years started salvaging the blood-soaked monster corpses.

They cleared away the balloon-like shattered Wyvern body but saved its tattered but intact wings. Wings, claws, partial beak... bone fragments. Plus the chopped Giant Worm's skin.

These noble sons worked quite professionally, getting covered in blood and filth while salvaging monster remains without any prissy complaints. Though maybe that was natural since monster wave creatures didn't vanish into mana stones like tower monsters.

"Got everything? No mana stones in the guts?"

"Checked everywhere, nothing."

"No wonder you kept searching, but why look for mana stones here? If they had them, they'd have shot something from their mouths."

They bundled the Giant Worm's sectioned hide for carrying and the largest knights took the whole Wyvern wings. Though unharmed thanks to barriers, the horses gave me sharp looks for suddenly burdening them with monster corpses and blood-soaked riders.

Ungrateful beasts, giving me those looks after I saved them from being eaten whole.

Anyway, 19 knights' horses plus two carriage horses meant 21 horses for 26 people. Though knights kept offering their mounts, everyone awkwardly smiled and refused.

Well, Grace and Irene probably couldn't ride.

"I'll carry Hanna while running, Katie can take Irene behind her. Grace can ride behind Alisa."

"That works. ...But aren't we short on horses?"

"I'll be fine running with Sir Roland. The mansion isn't far anyway."

Fortunately, noble-born Katie knew horseback riding.

The 19 knights rode with monster parts on their saddles, while Alisa and Irene shared one carriage horse, Katie and Grace the other. I'd carry Han Se-ah while running, leaving only coachman Olek horseless.

Despite being captain, he just grinned and started running beside me without asking for a horse.

...Apart from being gullible, he's really a good kid.

※

"I heard you were coming, young master. What's that... ugh, the smell!"

"Ahaha! Please prepare bath water first, nanny!"

Olek was right about the mansion not being far. Even with a Margrave guarding the Empire's borders and pioneering territory after defeating monster waves, the lord's mansion wouldn't be right on the frontline.

So Sibedev mansion was less than a day from Friedrich domain. That close proximity probably explained how those two grew up as childhood sweethearts.

But half a day's horse ride meant half a day covered in monster blood without washing. Naturally, since Han Se-ah needed Water magic but was mana-drained, just spouting nonsense to viewers while piggyback riding.

"Comfortable? Hmm, this smooth ride. Maybe if I sweet-talk right I could ride this instead of carriages, could even sleep. Can't even tell we ran faster than horses except for the dizziness from mana exhaustion."

-Even now she's indulging her selfish desires lol

-How much mana did she use to stay like this for hours?

-lol Big difference between mages having 0 or 1 mana left, she just used it all until 0

-What's with staff-holders and their excited insider talk

-Well technically leaving even an ant's tear of mana means deficiency, using absolutely everything means exhaustion, different penalty levels

"Yes, that's right. Mana deficiency simulates gradually worsening conditions like narrowing vision or dizziness as you approach zero, while mana exhaustion makes you briefly faint then gives you splitting headaches at zero. Why'd I do it if I knew? Ah shit. Why play RPGs if you're gonna hold back while monsters toy with you?"

[Magic Tower Paper Holder donated 10,000 won!]

-How do you uproot a Giant Worm like a radish with Earth Control?

Here, throw and roll this on the ground.

She broadcasted comfortably clinging to my back like a koala or sloth, camera drone circling as she described my back like a Simmons mattress. Watching her, I figured she'd take selfies in an oasis shade if dropped in a desert.

While debating whether to throw her forward or backward, a squad of maids rushed over. Wondering what was happening, I saw the woman called nanny commanding maids like a veteran captain.

Well, blood-soaked stinking knights would keep them busy. Though Han Se-ah and I avoided the blood shower, everyone else was soaked in dried blood.

"Heat enough water to bathe everyone here!"

"W-what? Young master, what happened?"

"Ahaha, we got attacked on the way!"

Kind but simple Olek seemed close with everyone from nanny to maids, scratching his head at their shocked looks.

Overhearing their whispered conversations, even the maids supported Olek and Alisa's childhood sweetheart romance. They'd expected progress from their long journey to the Kingdom, but instead they returned as bloody vagrants.

Made his initial rudeness almost incomprehensible. Maybe he'd heard nonsense from adventurer city mercenaries and thought "This is how to treat adventurer ladies!"

"Now, ladies this way. Um, that person there - was this from the attack? Should we call a priest?"

"She's a mage who fainted from mana exhaustion. She'll wash herself when she wakes - could you show us to our rooms?"

The commanding nanny approached me. True to the Russian auntie image, she was stout beyond plump with broad shoulders.

Her sturdy yet motherly appearance, like someone who'd stuff three pigs down a grandchild's throat if they said they were hungry, naturally drew out my politeness. Having received so much kindness before becoming an adventurer, I couldn't help being courteous to kind people.

Of course, this being a medieval fantasy world helped. In a place with generally terrible personalities, where adventurers, mercenaries, and even village farmers naturally robbed and killed outsiders, polite people were quite rare.

"I see, since you two are clean I'll show you to your rooms first then point out the baths. Betty! Please guide these two!"

"Yes, understood~"

"Oh, the maid skirts are long here - must be for the cold north. It's pretty in its own way, isn't it? I prefer long maid skirts to short ones. When I skip short skirt maid avatars while rolling, people rage calling me tasteless."

As I showed courtesy while thinking this, the nanny smiled contentedly like a well-fed guard dog. She seemed pleased by our polite response despite knowing we were the hero party.

...Seeing her grinning at Betty the maid's skirt, seems the debuff's almost over. Better throw her soon.