I Became the Keeper of a Suspicious Forest - Chapter 65

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 65

The sight of Ron holding a rotting deer head with a happy expression was nothing but a bizarre scene to Ponia.

“So you’re saying that looks like treasure to you?”

“Don’t play dumb! You guys hid it!”

“That’s not treasure. It’s a hallucination.”

“What, what did you say?”

“What you’re holding. To my eyes, it only looks like a dead deer’s head.”

Gordon’s words finally made sense now.

‘I have some business to take care of…’

When the man who encountered Ponia immediately disappeared, she thought he had just left the forest, but he had seen the scene of burying the deer’s head in the ground. That’s when he was caught in the hallucination.

Gordon, who heard the story from the man who went outside, showed interest and came with his people.

‘So he really came for money after all.’

Parts of the man’s hands and face were black. He had set the fire to disperse the people in the cabin.

“You think I’ll fall for such a clumsy lie?!”

“There’s no way there would be treasure in a forest like this in the first place.”

Ponia explained calmly, but nothing entered the ears of the extremely excited Ron.

“Get up.”

After putting the deer head down on the ground, he pointed his sword at her and led her toward the cabin.

Just then, Chad, who was outside the warehouse, spotted them and his face hardened.

“Nia, are you okay?”

“Yes.”

Her body was fine, but she hung her head in embarrassment. How long had it been since she confidently set out, only to be captured and brought back like this?

The one who captured her was stronger than expected and held her without any gaps, making it difficult to escape.

Ron, his face red from the atmosphere lacking any tension, pressed his sword close to Ponia’s neck and shouted.

“Four-eyes! You know me, right? You saw me back then and just let me go!”

“I went out of my way to let you go quietly, and this is how you repay that kindness.”

Chad responded leisurely, but his eyes closely watched the angle of the sword pressed against Ponia’s neck and Ron’s movements.

“What do you want?”

“Release all the people in the warehouse! Right now! Then I’ll let the woman go.”

“Hmm…”

The distance between him and Ponia was more than ten steps. Normally, he would move quickly and use the opponent’s confusion to rescue the hostage, but.

‘I can’t do that.’

Though clumsy, Ron seemed to have received training for quite a long period, as he didn’t let his guard down and stayed close to Ponia.

And those eyes that had already lost their sanity.

The moment he tried to approach, he would stab her without hesitation.

“Fine.”

Chad opened the warehouse door wide. Those who had been sleeping comfortably woke up in a daze.

“Go ahead, take them.”

Ron unconsciously started to move his feet but stopped again. From the closer distance, Chad showed a kind smile.

“Come on, you need to come get your comrades.”

Ron didn’t come any closer. The warehouse itself felt like a giant trap meant to catch him. If he hadn’t sensed the man’s killing intent before, he wouldn’t have known.

“I’ll stay here, so tell everyone to come over here.”

Ron twisted up the corner of his mouth, and Chad, watching him, gave a dry command.

“Come out.”

They came out one by one, reading the situation, but the baron pushed through them and came out, then ran straight to where Ron was.

When the mercenaries also all went to Ron without exception, Chad asked.

“Just asking in case, but do you have any intention of quietly releasing the hostage?”

Ron didn’t answer. Instead, he held onto Ponia and slowly moved away. Chad sighed.

“Criminals are all exactly the same.”

The fact that he too had worked in a position similar to criminals was overlooked.

“Stay still! Don’t you care about the woman’s life?”

“You’d better not do that. If you value your own life.”

Everyone cowered at the gaze filled with killing intent, but Chad didn’t take any other action.

Ron and his group entered the forest path as they were, and Chad’s figure was no longer visible. Only then did the relieved mercenaries pat Ron’s shoulder.

“Hey, you’re pretty good!”

“You’ve got talent! Want to work with us?”

Ron shrugged his shoulders at the words that praised him. This was the moment when Ron’s dream of becoming a knight changed.

“I even found the treasure, so let’s go there.”

Amidst their heightened atmosphere, Ponia tried to remain as inconspicuous as possible.

‘This is trouble.’

The man who captured her wasn’t as stupid as she thought. She expected him to act emotionally, but he deliberately didn’t touch her and kept her close without diminishing her value as a hostage.

‘Chad will follow soon.’

What worried her a bit was the fire. Fortunately, it seemed Sionel had put out all the flames in time.

To escape safely, she needed to get away from them. And there would only be one chance to do so.

Soon a pit appeared before them.

“There’s so much treasure that we’ll all have to carry it together.”

“Of course! We’re taking every last bit!”

Gordon, who couldn’t resist when it came to money, quickly ran ahead.

“That’s right, all that suffering should be worth it! Let me see…”

And Gordon couldn’t take his eyes off the pit. The mercenaries also lined up around Gordon.

Ron, who couldn’t get close because he was holding Ponia, anticipated their reaction. However, the eyes of those who turned to look at Ron were filled with nothing but confusion, not joy.

“Where’s this treasure supposed to be?”

“What are you talking about. It’s all right there.”

“All that’s here is a deer head.”

Confused by everyone’s identical reaction, Ron let go of her.

“I definitely left it here!”

Ron lifted the monster’s head from inside the pit. Ponia confirmed that the white lily attached to the deer’s antler was withering and falling off.

As expected, each flower could only target one person for the hallucination.

“It’s right here! You’re all crazy… Ugh!”

“You’re the crazy one, you bastard. Were you just out of your mind? We came all this way for nothing because of you!”

One mercenary who couldn’t contain his anger grabbed Ron by the collar and shook him.

“Then what am I seeing…”

‘Now’s my chance.’

While everyone’s attention was focused on Ron, Ponia quietly got up and turned around. However, Ron, who was also in mortal danger, spotted her.

“There! That woman is escaping!”

‘Useless to the very end!’

Ponia immediately started running, and behind her came shouts followed by the sound of footsteps.

Only two mercenaries had followed. They thought they could easily catch a frail woman like her. In reality, Ponia would be caught quickly.

If this were an ordinary forest, that is.

Ponia suddenly turned and entered the grass rather than staying on the path.

Grrrr…

She heard an unusually welcome growling sound today. The monsters, sensitive to territorial intrusion, had detected Ponia and the mercenaries.

“What! There’s something strange here…”

“Wait…!”

The voices cut off and the presence disappeared. With the time the mercenaries had bought her, Ponia safely reached the safe zone.

However, it wasn’t only the mercenaries who had followed her. Someone blocked her path, breathing heavily.

“You cunning little…”

“Baron.”

Though he had confirmed there was no treasure in the forest, he still couldn’t leave this forest yet.

“Ponia, you have the promissory note with you, don’t you?”

“I don’t know anything about that.”

“Don’t tell useless lies. Would you be the type to leave something that important somewhere else! It seems you’re using a false name here too.”

The baron’s words were true. The promissory note was in Ponia’s sleeve. Ponia tightly gripped the stone she had secretly picked up.

“If I have it, will you take it from me? It was money you borrowed from the beginning anyway.”

“It wasn’t borrowed, it was an investment. The risk of investment is something your father should be responsible for.”

“So you call stabbing a friend in the back to make a profit an investment, Baron?”

“Ponia Harbel!”

“Gordon Rambo. You’ll have to spit back every penny. And never appear before our family again.”

“Family? That fool probably pities me more than you. Isn’t that right?”

“…”

Gordon clicked his tongue as he looked her over.

“A noble lady working in a place like this. You’re the one bringing down the House of Harbel’s reputation.”

Ponia didn’t bother to react. She simply waited for the baron who would soon approach her, staring only at his head.

‘I’ll make you a bruise that’ll last a month.’

Gordon closed the distance, but he couldn’t reach her.

“Ugh!”

He collapsed after being struck precisely on the side of his head, exactly where she had been aiming.

Ponia’s eyes widened. Sionel was standing right behind Gordon.

Holding a stone dripping with blood, Sionel spoke gently.

“Don’t listen to such words.”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————