Acquired the Scam Rune in the Academy

Chapter 240

The Warriors of Baraten (2)

Werewolves are divided into two main types.

Werewolves and Lycanthropes.

However, these are just monster names given by the Holders, and they actually refer to themselves as ‘Virgens’ and ‘Lycans’.

Virgens are a type of werewolf characterized by brown fur, and they basically possess the strength of a lower A-grade monster.

Moreover, unlike Lycans, they are a tribe whose language is undeveloped, so they communicate only through gestures, signals, and howling.

[Language] That’s why I couldn’t hear their conversations despite having the Language rune.

Even though they are bipedal werewolves, their temperament is closer to wolves than humans.

“Then wouldn’t the Virgens we hunted be a problem?”

Asking if we happened to harm the Virgens of the Baraten camp.

I asked Jiten, who was walking beside me, but Haten from behind cut in and answered.

“You don’t need to worry about that! The tamed Virgens are our troops and assets, but the Virgens roaming outside have nothing to do with us. In fact, the wild Virgens will far outnumber the tamed ones! Haha.”

Haten is quite talkative for a werewolf, but he often blurts out helpful information like this.

Additionally, the wild Virgens have a basic tendency to obey Lycans, so we didn’t have to fight even when encountering them walking within the camp.

They would growl at us humans, but when they saw the two leading Lycans, they would tuck their tails and run away.

Thanks to that, we were able to walk to the ‘Baraten Camp Headquarters’ without a single battle.

‘And the Lycans…’

If Virgens are a wild pack that doesn’t form groups, then Lycans are the upper class of werewolves with both intelligence and strength.

Unlike Virgens, who have similar strength across the board, Lycans possess different levels of power individually and can continue growing over time.

As such, silver-furred Lycans possess the ability of upper A-grade monsters, and Lycans who have undergone awakening and acquired their own fur colors all displayed the power of S-grade monsters.

‘Lastly, tribes.’

The decisive characteristic that distinguishes Lycans from Virgens.

They have highly developed language skills and a tendency to form groups, so they live in separate tribes.

They are a race that develops their own diverse civilizations, including housing, weapons, combat methods, and culture, and have even created a city called ‘Wolfenser’ as the culmination of those achievements.

The dungeon name humans gave it.

<City of the Estranged Wolves>.

The city mentioned here refers to this ‘Wolfenser’.

But as civilization develops, conflicts naturally arise as well.

Because their thoughts and pursuits differed, countless tribes split off even within the Lycans…

Among them, the two tribes boasting the largest scale were ‘Baraten’ and ‘Clark’.

“The etymology of the tribe names comes from ancient warriors.”

“…Ancient warriors?”

“Yes. Clark and Baraten were the most outstanding warriors in Lycan history. We are tribes that gathered to worship them. Those damned Clark bastards are disgracing the name of their ancestors.”

Jiten’s brief explanation.

And Haten chimed in again, rambling on about the history of the tribes.

I tuned it out roughly while thinking,

Anyway, the important thing is,

The two largest tribes went to war due to disagreements, and the defeated Baraten tribe was driven out of the city of Wolfenser.

And that war to reclaim it is still ongoing.

That’s why the place where Baraten currently resides is called the ‘Baraten Camp’.

“We’re here!”

Thus we arrived at the Baraten Camp Headquarters.

Countless tamed Virgens were training in the vicinity, and groups of Baraten Lycans were also curiously observing us.

Fortunately, the Lycans’ vigilance was greatly reduced because Haten and Jiten had sent advance notice with a Virgen.

“What kind of camp is this…”

However, as we slowly took in the Lycans and looked around the camp, we… soon fell silent after not long.

Then everyone looked at me with wavering eyes.

The reason was simple.

‘…Were these guys beggars?’

The camp Baraten had built was too shabby.

The tents set up here and there looked like they would tear at any moment, and the various makeshift necessities seemed ready to fall apart.

Even if we looked more closely, there wasn’t a single neatly prepared tool or material.

I didn’t specifically remember since it was such an old memory… But it seems the Baraten guys are unexpectedly living in poverty.

Perhaps because they are werewolves, they don’t cling too much to affluent and neat living.

Anyway, thanks to Jiten and Haten’s arrangements, we were able to enter Baraten’s camp without bloodshed, and before long, we were able to meet their leader as well.

“Nice to meet you. I am Enrichten, a descendant of a great warrior. In our tribe, I am called Tol Baraten.”

Unusually tall even among the giant wolf-human folk.

An enormous physique and burly muscles.

His blue fur covered him completely…

Tol Baraten, Enrichten.

He extended his hand for a handshake in front of me.

It seems he was forewarned, as he showed consideration by speaking Korean the moment he met us.

Admiring his dignified air and resonant voice, I shook his hand together.

“Pleased to meet you. I am Do Jae-hyun, the squad leader of the Ripple Raid. You may have heard, but I am one of the humans from the other world who has awakened.”

“Ah yes, I’ve heard from Jiten. After the city was transported, you are the first beings from the other world to come find us.”

“…So you believe our whole story?”

As Enrichten spoke comfortably with a warm smile, I asked, a bit surprised.

Even if the precursor informed you beforehand, the information we’re giving is completely new.

There’s a lot that’s hard to believe even when seen directly…

Yet he showed no sign of doubt.

Enrichten turned his gaze to Jiten sitting beside him and answered.

“This Jiten here, whose life you saved, is my nephew. How could I not believe you after seeing the precursor my nephew sent and the ‘token of trust’ you possess?”

“Ah…”

I didn’t know there were such circumstances behind it.

For some reason, it felt too easy entering their camp and meeting the ‘Tol Baraten’.

The Lycans we saved happened to be of the chief’s bloodline.

In a way, we were quite fortunate.

“Thank you. The favor of saving my nephew’s life will be rewarded separately, regardless of what we discuss next.”

“Thank you.”

Enrichten expressed his gratitude by patting his own shoulders twice.

I also bowed my head to him in return.

After our brief introductions, we immediately relocated.

“This way, please.”

The place Enrichten took us was inside an extremely large tent.

There was a massive table that could accommodate many people and dozens of chairs.

Uniquely shaped weapons were placed here and there around it.

And at the very front were wooden boards and things like pens.

It was surprisingly pleasant and tidy, unlike the shabby tents we’d seen before.

As expected, they seemed to prioritize combat efficiency over living comforts.

“This is where our Baraten warriors hold operational meetings. They all gather once a week to plan major operations or report on ongoing ones.”

“You don’t meet that often, huh?”

“Indeed. Our Baraten territory is quite vast, and many warriors are dispatched near the borders.”

After wiping the table, Enrichten spoke to me again.

“And the next operational meeting will be in three days’ time. Do Jae-hyun, I’d like you and your men to attend that meeting.”

“…Pardon?”

What, so sudden?

Things are moving so quickly!

Bewildered by his abrupt proposal…

Enrichten briefly bowed his head to me, as Jiten had done earlier – the highest form of respect Lycans could show.

“I’ve heard you defeated one of the Clark’ scout captains, Duke. In my lifetime, I’ve never heard of humans so effortlessly overwhelming awakened Lycans and their underlings. It must mean you are extraordinarily powerful beings transcending limits.”

Thump thump.

Once again, Enrichten patted his shoulders twice.

“We need your strength. We’re willing to grant any request you may have. So please, can you attend the operational meeting in three days’ time?”

“Ah no, wait a moment.”

I barely managed to stop Enrichten, who seemed about to kneel.

It’s not that I intended to refuse.

We came all this way to assist them in the first place, and if they make such a humble request for our cooperation, we’d gladly oblige.

But…

“Does that operational meeting have to be in three days? The distance between the entrance we came through and this base seems quite far, so it’ll be inconvenient to go back and forth.”

Time and distance were the issues.

We had started exploring the dungeon early in the morning, but it was already late at night when we finally arrived at the Baraten camp.

In other words, the distance between the dungeon entrance and Baraten base was considerable.

And being told to come back here in just three days was problematic.

“Ah, you don’t need to worry about that. There’s a warp gate in the direction you came from.”

“…A warp gate?”

Following Enrichten’s unexpected words again, we relocated.

And soon arrived at the intended destination.

A massive magic structure stood in the center of the camp base.

Although its shape and structure differed slightly…

It was undoubtedly the [Warp Gate] we had seen before.

“I suppose you can move to the coordinates where Jiten and Haten were dispatched? You all came from that direction as well.”

“……”

My squad members and I stared speechlessly at the [Warp Gate].

…The wolf-humans were surprisingly well-versed in magic.

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