Helmut: The Forsaken Child - H.F.C Chapter 22 (Part 1):

*Encounter with a New World*

At the age of fourteen, Finn was the lowest rank in the moderately sized but well-reputed Pace Mercenary corps.

He was a boy whose skills were considered fortunate enough to be recognized as a 4th-rank mercenary with a bronze medal.

Having been an orphan, Finn had been affiliated with the Pace Mercenary Corps since his childhood, taking on various errands.

‘Things will too when I get a few years older!’

For that, he needed experience. The reason Finn had set out on this mission was because it was an errand.

A large request had come in, hiring several mercenaries from the Pace Mercenary corps.

It was Finn’s first mission, and he was extremely nervous, not to mention unaccustomed to camping, which made staying in the gloomy forest unnerving.

“Why do we have to rest in a place like this? This is near the Forest of Roots.”

“Stop whining and go fetch some water. There’s a stream over there,” said Tanya, a 3rd-rank silver medal mercenary, with a smirk, pointing at the water container.

Tanya, also a member of the same mercenary corps as Finn, was a well-regarded and skilled mercenary.

She was tall with a resilient figure, not stunningly beautiful but had a cheerful look with her short hair.

Among the mercenaries, she was less demanding of Finn and had a better disposition.

Finn hesitantly picked up the heavy water container.

“Ah, it’s getting dark.”

“Ah? What a habit!”

Snap! Finn, whose head was smacked, pouted and picked up the water container.

“Hurry up and come back before it gets darker!”

His steps quickened after that remark.

The forest, being close to the Forest of Roots known for its monsters, felt drearily damp. The air was humid, adding an unpleasant feeling.

‘I should quickly fetch water and return.’

As soon as he reached the stream, Finn plunged the water container into the water, half expecting a water ghost to grab him. A water ghost?

‘Come to think of it, I think I saw something earlier.’

And Finn inadvertently raised his head.

“Aaaah!”

A tremendous scream echoed from the valley.

“What? What’s going on!”

Finn, pale as death, was seen running towards them as if his life depended on it. Surprisingly, his legs hadn’t frozen in fear. The water container was nowhere to be seen; his hands were empty.

“There, there’s a corpse, a-a corpse! Mom, save me!”

Though a mercenary, Finn, who had only done errands for the mercenary corps, had never seen a corpse before.

The mercenaries murmured among themselves.

“A corpse here?”

“That kid’s a coward. Must’ve mistaken seen a piece of wood or something”

“I’ll check it myself.”

Tanya took the lead, grabbing Finn by the shoulder.

“Where’s the corpse?”

“There, over there…”

“Lead the way! You also need to retrieve the water container you left.”

Tanya spoke firmly, and Finn, with a crestfallen face, hesitantly led the way. The fear seemed to lessen with someone by his side.

As they neared the valley, Finn hesitated and pointed.

“There, it was there.”

“Where? This way?”

Then, something caught Tanya’s eye as she wandered.

Half-buried in sand and slightly moving with the water flow, it lay long and sideways like a log.

It was unmistakably a human body.

Tanya’s expression hardened with alertness.

‘A corpse here?’

They had taken a shortcut near the feared Forest of Roots because the client wanted the mercenaries to arrive as quickly as possible.

A corpse in such a secluded place was unexpected.

Tanya approached the corpse cautiously. As she got closer to the sandy corpse, her eyes widened.

“Finn! Come here quickly!”

“Yes?”

“He’s breathing! We need to get him out of here!”

Consciousness had completely faded away. It seemed all energy had been used up to maintain consciousness, almost like entering hibernation.

The moment Helmut regained consciousness, he realized he was surrounded by bustling noise. His blood ran cold.

Barely opening his eyes and sitting up, Helmut winced from a sharp pain. His muscles felt dislocated, creaking all over.

‘Where is this? What happened to me?’

Helmut’s gaze swiftly moved around. He was lying down, wrapped in a blanket, with a fire crackling nearby.

And people were chatting close to the fire.

People? Had he ever seen such a strange sight before?

Helmut felt chillingly frozen.

“Oh? You’re awake?”

One of them noticed Helmut’s awakening and approached.

“Hey, are you conscious?”

Shocked, Helmut looked up at the person.

A woman with short hair.

Helmut, for the first and last time, saw something completely different from the women in the human farm.

She was much taller than Helmut and looked sturdy. The woman with short hair smiled at Helmut’s frozen face.

“Don’t be scared. It’s safe here.”

It wasn’t fear but caution. Helmut observed her with dissatisfaction.

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