The Tough-Faced Owner of A Fluffy Cafe ~ The Strongest Mercenary Feared as the Headhunter, Living Leisurely Surrounded by Little Girls and Cute Monsters ~ - Chapter 37

Episode 037: Headhunter, Embarking on a Light Mountain Climb

A few minutes’ northward journey from the town.

Ack ascends the foothills of the Great Blizzard Mountain at a brisk pace.

This is a bitterly cold land, where temperatures drop below -20 degrees Celsius. There are few signs of life around. In reality, there are far more creatures instinctively hiding from Ack than those visible. As he progresses further, the blizzard changes its appearance.

—Crackling sounds—

Instead of just a blizzard, large hailstones begin to pelt Ack’s skin.

For an ordinary person, reaching this stage would not only make summiting difficult but also put their life at risk. However, mere hailstones cannot harm Ack’s superhuman physique.

However, the threat of this mountain isn’t just limited to hailstorms.

—Rumbling sounds—

After running for a few minutes amid the blizzard and hailstorm, the ground, now completely white, begins to tremble along with a rumble.

Although visibility is hindered, the noise indicates an approaching avalanche.

Like a tsunami, a wall of snow with tremendous force descends upon Ack. Instead of fleeing from the avalanche, Ack confronts it head-on.

—Crash—

Ordinarily, one would be swallowed by the avalanche, but merely colliding with Ack causes it to disintegrate into nothingness.

With that force, the avalanche and blizzard temporarily cease, and visibility improves.

“Uhoh!?”

Ahead, a group of gorilla-like monsters with pure white fur stand agape in astonishment.

In fact, the recent avalanche was a disaster they orchestrated to eliminate a formidable enemy, Ack. Originally, it should have ended there, but the sheer force of the impact caused it to disintegrate, which wasn’t part of their plan.

“Are those… Frost Kongs?”

Ack’s eyes gleam as he observes the fur covering the Frost Kongs’ bodies.

He closes the distance in an instant and touches the fur.

The Frost Kong’s fur isn’t soft and fluffy but rather rough.

Disappointing.

There’s no use in dealing with such opponents.

“If you don’t want trouble, leave.”

During his mercenary days, Ack wouldn’t hesitate to kill those who came to assassinate him, but now, he has no intention of senselessly taking lives.

The meat of Frost Kongs retains an unappetizing odor no matter what, and no matter how much they’re stewed, they never become tender enough to eat.

Fighting such monsters would be futile.

So, this time, he decides to let them go.

“Hohoho! Hoo hoo, hoo hoo, hoo!”

The leader of the Frost Kongs bows to Ack and hurriedly urges its comrades. Disregarding the sluggish movements of its companions, the leader turns its back to Ack and dashes away. The rest of the group follows suit.

After seeing them off, the blizzard, which had stopped, begins to rage once more.

And Ack, too, resumes running towards his destination.

“Huff.”

A few minutes later, a wall-like cliff blocks his path. With a light exhale, Ack, with movements surprisingly nimble for his large frame, ascends the perpendicular rock face.

It’s a movement that blatantly defies gravity.

Ack dives straight into the grayish clouds ahead.

—Rumbling sounds—

Inside, along with the blizzard, lightning runs rampant everywhere, attacking the intruder.

Even Ack finds it challenging to dodge attacks coming at the speed of light.

However, he continues to run nonchalantly despite being struck by lightning. The lightning doesn’t manage to harm Ack’s body.

—Boom—

Running amidst being struck by lightning several times for tens of seconds, he breaks through the clouds, and the sun shines brightly, illuminating the mountain. The clear blue sky seems so beautiful that it appears to be sucking everything in.

The sunlight reflecting off the snow makes the entire mountain glitter.

Ack is slightly moved by the view.

“GYAAAAAAH!”

As he gazes in wonder, a monster attacks him.

“An Ice Wyvern, huh?”

The opponent is a monster resembling a dragon called a wyvern, with a lizard-like head and body, chicken-like legs, and bat-like wings.

It is light blue in color, lacks arms, and has talon-like hands at the ends of its wings.

While Ack let the Frost Kongs go, he has no intention of letting the Ice Wyvern escape.

Because dragon meat is delicious.

Even though Wyverns are inferior to dragons, their meat is incomparably tastier than the snake that attacked Tina shortly after meeting her, providing a perfect souvenir for Tina and her companions who have been feeling lonely.

“Hmph!”

Ack skillfully turns around and slashes at the Wyvern’s neck as it attacks, holding its body in his left hand and its head in his right hand, then continues to climb the rock wall.

After a few minutes, he finally reaches an open area.

Kicking off the edge of the wall, he jumps into the air and lands on the ground, stowing the Wyvern in his bag.

Raising his head, he sees a cave ahead. That’s his destination this time.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t encounter any fluffy creatures…

As Ack approaches the cave, a shadow appears, cutting in between the cave and Ack.

Then, a voice descends from above.

“Oh… Humans trespassing into my territory, huh. What brings you here?”

In front of him stands a giant wolf with a pale, fluffy fur.