Chapter 45 : Chapter 45

Chapter 45: Master of the Desert (2)

Karab couldn’t break Narima’s stubbornness and ended up guiding me to their group.

A group of people watching from the desert ridge flinched in surprise as I approached.

I warmly clasped their hands with both of mine, touched my forehead to theirs, and offered my greetings.

“My name is Polarin, and I’ll be in your care for tonight. Please take care of me.”

At first, they were wary, but as I greeted each one following the customs of the Hamudalun tribe, they awkwardly accepted.

“Welcome… outsider.”

That didn’t mean they completely let their guard down, though.

But Narima, unlike the others, tugged at my clothes and chattered without a hint of caution.

“Mister, where are you from?”

“I’m from a mountain far away.”

“A mountain? A place full of trees?”

“Yeah, that’s right. Lots of trees and steep slopes.”

I didn’t exactly feel bad about it.

Seeing this cute kid made me smile naturally, and it eased some of my tension.

The stress from life-or-death battles and worries about this world and my future faded, even if just for a moment.

“Do people from the mountains all smell nice? Why do you smell so good?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure what you mean by a nice smell.”

Talking with the kid softened my heart, but I couldn’t reveal everything honestly.

I didn’t tell them I was from the Adjak family or that I came from Gullok.

The intelligence department had drilled into me the need to minimize exposure of my identity.

Besides, with my name already known among the demons, there was no need to voluntarily reveal myself.

“Your body smells musty! But you, as a person, have a nice scent!”

At Narima’s innocent words, I brought my sleeve to my nose and sniffed.

I hadn’t washed since the recent battle, so my body reeked.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, I noticed Karab hoisting Narima onto his shoulders and explaining to me.

“Narima can smell a person's scent.’ Seems like she really likes the scent coming from your nature.”

“That’s an impressive ability.”

“I’m surprised sometimes myself. The descendants of Hamudalun often have sharp senses of smell, but Narima’s is exceptional even among them.”

Karab set Narima down as she squirmed on his shoulders and said,“Let’s go. The journey ahead isn’t short. But before that…”

He handed me a blindfold.

“Would you mind wearing this? Even if Narima likes you, we need to be cautious.”

“Of course, I understand.”

I understood Karab’s position well enough, so I accepted the blindfold.

I wrapped it carefully over my eyes.

There was no reason for me to figure out the location of the Hamudalun tribe’s territory anyway.

Karab thanked me for my cooperation and shouted to the group,“Let’s go! Home.”

* * *

With the blindfold tightly wrapped, I couldn’t see a thing.

But I wasn’t being dragged along like a prisoner with my arms bound.

Thanks to the splendid ride Narima arranged…“Mister! How is it? Comfy, right? These are my friends!”

“Uh, yeah, it’s comfy. But… friends?”

“Yup, my friends!”

I fumbled with my hands to feel Narima’s friend that I was riding.

When I had greeted the tribe, I hadn’t seen any mounts like camels or horses.

‘Well, judging by the size of the body, it’s definitely not a camel.’

A sturdy torso and tough scales.

I could hear it cutting through the sand, yet it didn’t shake much.

It felt as if the ground itself was moving.

Among the creatures in the Hamdel desert, only a sandworm might fit this description.

But can a sandworm be controlled?

Is this even a sandworm?

Having recently seen a demon controlling a beast, it wasn’t entirely unbelievable.

But taming a wild desert creature is a different matter.

Even a skilled tamer would find it difficult to handle a sandworm.

“Come on, guys, let’s go a bit faster!”

Woooaar—

As if responding to Narima’s shout, the creatures let out a cry.

At that moment, I felt something peculiar.

First, judging by the sound, my earlier assumptions seemed wrong.

Sandworms don’t cry like that.

‘This energy…?’

A fleeting memory crossed my mind.

During the third trial of the Coming-of-Age Ceremony, I teamed up with a tiger beastman, Jadin Adjak, to navigate the maze.

The energy I felt when he summoned a forest spirit was now emanating from Narima’s friends.

“Narima, are your friends… spirits, by any chance?”

“Yup! Sand spirits! I have lots of friends! They’re strong, too!”

For a moment, I felt dizzy.

That explained why the Hamudalun tribespeople were whispering when I climbed onto the spirit’s back.

- Isn’t it dangerous? They don’t just let anyone ride them.

- It’s probably fine since Narima’s with him, right?

- But what if it eats him?

The conversation I had pretended not to hear came rushing back, and I suddenly felt uneasy.

“Narima, I’m okay, right? Your friends won’t eat me or anything, will they?”

There was a reason for my anxiety.

Sand spirits are something even skilled spirit summoners can’t control.

Not only are they rare, but they’re hostile to humans.

No, not just humans—they’re hostile to everything except themselves.

“Yup! They say you’re fine because you smell nice.”

At that moment, the sand spirit shuddered, making my body lurch as if I might fall off.

“Wahaha, see! They like you, mister!”

Narima genuinely seemed to believe that, but I didn’t have the strength to respond.

I struggled to hold onto the sand spirit’s body, which was as hard as armor and difficult to grip.

Then I heard Karab’s shout from behind.

“Polarin! Hang in there a bit longer. We’re almost at the village!”

…Even the word “hang in there” sounded ominously foreboding.

After enduring the sand spirit’s jolts for a while longer, I finally heard the words I’d been longing for.

“We’re here.”

“Can I take off the blindfold now?”

“Of course. You did well.”

I removed the blindfold.

Only then could I see the appearance of the sand spirit I’d been riding.

It was covered in tough, armor-like scales, with countless layers of teeth wriggling in its round mouth—a creature strikingly similar to a sandworm.

“Get down carefully, not near the mouth.”

For some reason, Karab stayed far away from the sand spirit.

* * *

The Hamudalun tribe’s territory was an underground city nestled in the sand.

Its winding paths resembled an ant colony, but parts of the ceiling were open, letting in sunlight and breezes.

Lamps powered by mana stones were plentiful, illuminating the underground city brightly.

Located underground, it was likely protected from the harsh desert climate, and being hidden from the surface made it easy to conceal its location.

‘With nothing but desert all around, it wouldn’t be easy to find this place even if someone tried.’

I thought I knew everything about Tune World, but pinpointing this place’s location was difficult.

A lot has changed in 300 years.

Unlike Karab, who had been wary of me as an outsider during the journey, the people in the city warmly welcomed me, a new face.

It might have been curiosity about seeing an outsider for the first time, but it seemed more due to Narima’s friendly attitude toward me.

“Narima, did you enjoy exploring the desert?”

“Yup! Next time, I want to go beyond the desert!”

“Haha, let’s do that when you’re a bit older. It’s still dangerous out there…”

“Okay! I’ll definitely go out there someday!”

I had sensed it somewhat on the way here, but this kid was cherished by the Hamudalun tribespeople.

It wasn’t hard to guess why.

She could control the rare sand spirits and had an exceptional sense of smell that could discern a person’s nature.

If she later awakened the unique traits of the Hamudalun tribe, she had the potential to make a name for herself across the continent.

Thanks to Narima’s kindness, I was able to meet her grandfather, the current chief of the Hamudalun, Zamir, in the underground cave where he resided.

We had a conversation there.

“So, Narima’s new friend. You said you’ve met a pilgrim from the outside?”

Pilgrim—a term for Hamudalun tribespeople who operate outside the continent.

“Yes, I met one while traveling. They taught me the customs of the Hamudalun tribe, but I never thought I’d use them like this.”

I felt a pang of guilt but continued the lie.

I couldn’t exactly say I’d played as a Hamudalun character.

The Hamudalun weren’t just a closed-off community.

They were a minority known for their exceptional assassination skills.

Though Narima didn’t seem to use it yet, the tribe also possessed the [Assimilation] trait.

[Assimilation], the ability to blend into their surroundings, allowed the Hamudalun to act as skilled assassins across the world.

“How were they? Did they seem happy?”

Most Hamudalun pilgrims, who roamed outside as assassins, didn’t lead peaceful lives.

Zamir likely knew this and asked out of formality.

“Yes, they seemed happy.”

But I lied. Zamir’s deep eyes seemed to see through my falsehood, but I met his gaze without wavering.

Sometimes, the truth isn’t the only thing that matters.

“Then stay here for the night. I’m sorry we can’t give you more time.”

“No, it’s fine. If you hadn’t taken me in, I’d be sleeping in the middle of the desert, so this is more than enough.”

“I’ll send a healer to look after you.”

Zamir seemed to have noticed that my physical condition wasn’t normal.

He’d been sniffing the air earlier. What an intriguing ability.

“Thank you so much for your kindness.”

“Haha, it’s nothing. It’s been a while since I’ve seen my granddaughter this happy. What wouldn’t I do for her?”

Despite their remarkable traits, the Hamudalun had been diminished by pressures from dark mages, beasts, and the Empire.

They were going through tough times, but Zamir clearly cherished his granddaughter above all.

For a moment, I thought of the elders of the Adjak family—Gerd, who genuinely cared for me after I was transmigrated into this world, and Tayon, who guided my growth from the Coming-of-Age Ceremony onward.

Not to mention the unexpected bonds I’d formed with elders from other autonomous regions.

As I was lost in thought, Zamir spoke softly.

“But don’t tell Narima too many stories about the outside.”

“Sorry?”

“That child has received too much of the desert’s blessing, so she can’t leave the desert.”

The desert’s blessing.

Along with [Assimilation] and heightened senses of smell, it’s a key trait of the Hamudalun tribe.

Those who receive the desert’s blessing can form contracts with sand spirits.

But the blessing is a double-edged sword.

The stronger the blessing, the more powerful the sand spirit one can contract with, but it often binds the person to the desert.

‘If she can’t leave the desert at all, how powerful must the spirit she’s contracted with be?’

A Hamudalun character I’d played before was born with a strong desert’s blessing and could contract with a high-grade sand spirit.

But it wasn’t to the extent of being unable to leave the desert—just a slight debuff.

I recalled Narima’s voice earlier, begging to hear about the outside world, but I couldn’t refuse the chief’s request here.

“You must never fill her head with false hopes.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Just as my heart began to feel heavy, Narima lifted the curtain at the cave’s entrance and peeked in.

She smiled brightly and said to me,“Mister! Come out! Play with me!”

“Alright, I’m coming.”

I respectfully followed the customs with Zamir before stepping outside.

“Mister! Tell me about your travels! What was the coolest place?”

Narima grabbed my clothes and chattered innocently.

It seemed she needed someone to talk to more than she needed my answers, as she kept talking without giving me time to respond.

As she excitedly swung her arms, I noticed the scars covering her forearms.

After walking for a while, we were quite far from the chief’s cave.

I glanced back at the cave, then looked down at Narima and asked,

“If there was a way for you to leave the desert, what would you do?”

I felt a bit guilty toward the chief, but I knew a way to make this child happier.

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