The Hunter of Hawk and Wolf-Chapter 40 : Chapter 40

The plain stretched vast and empty, the horizon swallowing the sun whole.
They raced across it like men possessed.
The pursuers were the Tusk Tribe, riding werewolves.
The pursued were Sevha and Legra on Toto, and Tataka on a werewolf.
Legra, sitting in front of Sevha, glanced back at the approaching Tusk Tribe and yelled, “Lord Sevha! What in the world is this situation?”
“Ask the ugly bastard next to me!” Sevha deflected.
Tataka let out a booming laugh. “I kidnapped their princess!”
“Well, aren’t you a mad one!”
No sooner had Sevha shouted his reply than the Tusk Tribe hurled their javelins.
Toto and Tataka’s werewolf swerved to dodge the javelins, but their pace slowed.
That was the Tusk Tribe’s objective.
They kept throwing javelins, and Sevha and Tataka’s speed continued to drop.
And when the distance had closed…
“Here they come.”
With Tataka’s warning, the Tusk Tribe spread out, a gaping maw closing around them. Then, like a wolf pack tearing into its prey, they swarmed in from all sides.
We’re being trapped.
The difference in numbers was stark.
To be surrounded was to be defeated.
Sevha made his decision in an instant: “Break through.”
Sevha and Tataka dropped their reins, firing arrows and hurling javelins at the closing Tusk Tribe.
The projectiles pierced through warriors and their werewolves, creating a gap in the encirclement.
But the Tusk Tribe immediately filled it.
This isn’t working. We can’t break through.
As Sevha wondered what to do, Tataka shouted, “They’re not a wall, they’re pillars!”
Sevha understood at once.
He saw the slivers of open space between the closing riders.
“Left!” he cried.
Toto and Tataka’s werewolf veered left, charging toward the Tusk Tribe members closing in from that direction.
The warriors in their path, assuming it was a reckless charge, hurled their javelins.
Sevha and Tataka twisted aside, dodging the javelins by a hair's breadth.
Then they drew a handaxe and a butcher's knife—weapons far too short to be effective from the saddle.
But Sevha and Tataka didn’t hesitate, plunging into the thread-like space between the warriors.
They raced through that narrow gap, weapons flashing as they scraped past the Tusk Tribe.
Shhlick!
The handaxe and butcher’s knife slit throats, spraying blood.
Their mounts charged on, shattering the airborne drops of blood as they wove between the enemy beasts.
Shhlick!
Racing so close their legs could brush, Sevha and Tataka swung their weapons without rest.
They carved a curving path, moving not like men on mounts, but like dancers in a trance.
Shhlick!
Suddenly, the chaos parted, and the view before the two entranced fighters opened up.
“Now!”
The moment they broke through the formation, Sevha and Tataka picked up speed.
They put distance between them in an instant, but the Tusk Tribe refused to give up the chase.
“How beautiful is this princess of yours? These dogs don’t know when to quit!”
“A woman with tusks that look like they could chew through a lion!”
“Then get that terrifying woman over here to chew these bastards up for us!” Sevha yelled, swiftly scanning the landscape.
All he could see was the plain, the plain, and more plain.
And a lake.
“To the lake!”
“What, are we going for a swim?”
“We’re going fishing, you damn kidnapper!”
Tataka understood Sevha’s intent, and the two raced toward the lake with all their might.
They reached the shore ahead of the Tusk Tribe and rode straight into the water.
“L-Lord Sevha? What are you doing?”
“What do you think? This!”
The moment Sevha shouted, the Tusk Tribe arrived at the water’s edge.
And they saw it.
A lake stained red by the sunset.
Toto and Tataka’s werewolf were treading water in the center.
Atop them stood Sevha and Tataka, armed with bows and javelins.
The Tusk Tribe couldn't understand why their prey had willingly walked into a deathtrap.
But Sevha gave them no time to ponder.
Sevha mocked, “What are you waiting for? Planning to mate with each other, you orcs?”
The Tusk Tribe roared. Without a second thought, they plunged into the lake on their werewolves.
Immediately, Sevha and Tataka fired arrows and threw javelins.
Swish!
The air tore as arrows and javelins pierced the heads of the Tusk Tribe who had charged into the lake.
Splash!
The water’s surface broke as more projectiles found the heads of the werewolves swimming in the lake.
Plunk!
The sound of bodies sinking echoed again and again—Tusk Tribe and werewolf alike, holes bored through their heads.
The arrows and javelins continued to find their marks, striking enemies whose movements were slowed by the water’s resistance.
The lake, already colored by the setting sun, slowly turned the dark crimson of blood.
As the surface of the water turned scarlet before their eyes, the remaining werewolves began to howl.
They finally realized that
they
had walked into the deathtrap.
Neither the Tusk Tribe nor their mounts could approach Sevha and Tataka quickly due to the water’s drag.
They tried to throw their own javelins, but they lacked the range.
In the end, the Tusk Tribe had willingly become stationary targets.
They recognized their mistake and tried to flee.
But Sevha and Tataka offered no mercy, piercing their backs and the backs of their heads as they fled.
By the time Sevha and Tataka ran out of ammunition, the lake was quiet… and scarlet.
Sevha and Tataka surveyed the corpses bobbing on the surface and sinking into the depths.
Once they confirmed every enemy was dead, they rode out of the water.
They dismounted on the shore and dropped their bows, quivers, and javelin bags to the ground.
“Is it over?” Sevha grunted.
“It seems so.”
And then…
“It’s not over, is it?”
“That also seems so.”
Sevha and Tataka swung their handaxe and butcher's knife at each other without mercy.
The blades crashed, striking sparks.
The two men immediately leaped back, separating and glaring at one another.
“Being an ugly prick is one thing, but lying on top of that? You’ll never get popular.”
“Don’t worry. I’m better looking than you.”
“What? Who’s better looking than who? Have you lost your mind?”
“Are you married?”
“…No.”
“I am. That must mean I’m better looking.”
Sevha and Tataka exchanged what sounded like jokes as they readied themselves to attack.
Just then.
Thump, thump, thump…
The ground vibrated.
The source of the vibration was soon revealed.
“Young Master!”
Eshu, Teresse, and the Blanc Knights, mounted on warhorses, took up positions behind Sevha.
“Tataka!”
The Broken-Tusks, riding werewolves, stood behind Tataka.
The humans and the Tusk Tribe drew their weapons the moment they saw each other.
The warhorses stamped and snorted, sensing the tension. The werewolves, too, grew excited, letting out deep growls.
But a strange sound cut through the tense atmosphere.
“Glarg!”
Sevha and Tataka looked toward the strange noise.
Legra was flailing in the lake.
“Please help! I can’t swim!”
“Neither can I,” Sevha snorted.
Toto gave both Sevha and Legra a pathetic look and waded into the lake.
It dragged Legra out and dumped him on the shore.
Immediately, a piece of roasted meat rolled out of the small bag at Legra’s waist.
Grumble!
Legra’s stomach rumbled.
Sevha stared at Legra, dumbfounded, before looking at Tataka and the Tusk Tribe.
Tataka and his warriors were also staring at Legra with looks of disbelief.
Their expressions were so absurd that Sevha’s aggression momentarily drained away.
He picked up the roasted meat from the ground, dusted it off, and muttered, “Legra. Let’s eat.”
“Finally! Let’s eat… huh? W-Wait, are we about to fight?”
Legra finally noticed the standoff between the humans and the Tusk Tribe and panicked.
But Sevha answered nonchalantly, “What do you mean, fight?”
Then he turned to Tataka. “We only fought because our paths crossed. It’s nothing that can’t be solved by sharing a meal.”
Tataka paused, then smiled. “I agree. I’ll provide the ale.”
The Blanc Knights and the Tusk Tribe were bewildered.
But an order was an order.
They could only watch blankly as Sevha and Tataka prepared a meal.
A short while later, once the preparations were complete, Sevha and Tataka simultaneously drove their handaxe and butcher's knife into the ground.
Then they sat facing each other and began to eat.
“Such bland meat,” Tataka complained.
“This ale is what’s bland. What did you brew it with to make it taste so bad?”
“Tusk Tribe ale isn’t as good as human ale.”
After a few bites of small talk, Tataka spoke through a mouthful of meat.
“Tataka.”
Sevha paused before calmly replying, “Sevha dan Anse.”
When Sevha said his full name, Tataka’s eyes widened and he broke into a bright smile.
“Dan Anse! I’m glad. To think a Follower of the Wolf would meet a Pure-blood Hawk…”
Tataka leaned his head toward Sevha and continued speaking while tearing at his meat.
“And to meet a fellow victim of the Empire.”
A victim of the Empire.
Sevha didn't know what Tataka was talking about.
Teresse cleared up the confusion. “In the Empire… they cut the tusks of Tusk Tribe slaves.”
Sevha now understood why Tataka and the Broken-Tusks spoke the continental language so well.
He exclaimed, “You were runaway slaves?”
“Yes. We were slaves in the Empire’s mines.”
“Your master?”
“Some noble. A viscount or a count. We carved him up good and threw him into the deepest part of the mine.”
Tataka took a swig of ale and continued, “Then we all escaped to the great plains.”
“So why did you leave the plains and come all the way here?”
Tataka smiled as if this was a story he desperately wanted to tell.
“There… I met someone.”
“Who?”
“My love.”
“You’re a romantic, for a man with a face like yours.”
“But her father saw me as a disgrace to the tribe—a defeated slave—and forbade our marriage. So… I killed him and fled with my love.”
“Romantic, in a way that suits your face.”
Tataka burst out laughing at Sevha’s sarcasm.
“The only problem is, the man I killed was the chieftain. Now the whole tribe wants me dead.”
Sevha and Teresse understood what was going on in Blanc now.
Sevha said, “So they didn’t come to raid.”
“They were just chasing after his lot.”
The reason the Tusk Tribe was in the Blanc Territory was not for plunder, but to kill the fugitive Tataka.
So in the end… there are four powers in Blanc now. Me, the Count, Tataka, and the tribe that wants him dead.
Sevha considered how complicated the situation had become.
Meanwhile, Teresse asked, “Then why not join forces with us?”
Eshu immediately shouted, “What are you saying! These are not people to be trusted!”
The Tusk Tribe felt the same.
“I’d sooner trust a succubus!”
But Teresse ignored the protests and spoke to Tataka.
“Neither of us is as strong as our enemies. When you’re weak, you should join forces with anyone you can, whether it’s a two-headed bastard or something that crawls on all fours.”
Teresse’s words were rational, if one ignored the question of what would happen after their respective enemies were defeated.
But Tataka replied without hesitation.
“No.”
Teresse shot him a look that screamed
blockhead
.
Regardless, Tataka said, “It seems you don’t understand what the Moon-chasing Wolf we serve truly governs.”
He declared proudly, “The Moon-chasing Wolf is the God of Slaughter and Greed.”
The moment Tataka referred to the Moon-chasing Wolf as a god, Eshu bristled.
“There are not seventy-two gods, but thirty-six!”
Sevha and Teresse remained silent at Eshu’s cry.
They knew that a human of the continent could not carelessly deny those words.
Tataka, however, merely snorted in dismissal and rose from his seat.
“In any case, joining forces… sounds far less interesting than fighting you.”
Tataka’s eyes seemed to ask,
Don’t you agree?
Sevha stared at him for a long moment before answering.
“You’ll find out soon enough which is more interesting.”
Tataka seemed pleased with the answer and let out a laugh.
“I’ll be looking forward to it.”
With those final words, Tataka mounted his werewolf and departed with his tribesmen.
Teresse then said to Sevha, “It would be to our advantage to ally with them.”
“I know. But it won’t happen with words.”
“Then how will you persuade him?”
Sevha tore at the remaining meat and said, “Why would a hunter try to persuade a wolf?”
Teresse smirked, her expression saying plainly,
You really are a wicked man.
Sevha added, just as plainly, “Well... leash a wolf, train it, and it might just turn into a dog.”