The snow giant struggled desperately to stand again after seeing the weapon Guda had drawn, but by now it had almost no strength left.
Sean looked at the snow giant, which bore the status effects of [Rage!] and [Fear!], with only [2350/9000] HP remaining... Was it already in a dying state with just a quarter of its life left?
Perhaps it also had to do with the constant loss of HP it had been suffering.
"Be careful, Guda. That snow giant is tenacious!" Kree warned from the side.
"It's fine. No matter how strong it is, it can't outrun a gunpowder weapon."
Maybe worried about a last-ditch struggle, Guda deliberately stood about five meters away. That way, no matter what the creature did, he'd have time to react. Besides, climbing out of the snow pit to fight again would be very difficult for the snow giant in its current state.
Bang!
The gunshot rang out, and a chunk instantly blew out of the blue head.
The sound echoed through the valley...
When Sean looked back at the snow giant, it had instantly lost 1000 HP and collapsed in a pool of blood.
"Is it dead?" The nearby guards were curious and wanted to move closer.
"Don't get close! It's not dead yet." Sean quickly stopped everyone, startling even Guda and Gevin, who had been about to approach.
Then, suddenly, they saw the snow giant in the pit drag its heavy body and twitch. It turned its head in surprise to stare at Sean.
How did he know that from so far away?
Bang!!
Another shot rang out, and this time it finally had no strength left.
The last 300 HP were rapidly draining away...
"It should be dead now."
"This time it's dead." The final 100 HP were almost gone—just the last flicker of consciousness before death. It couldn't possibly stir again.
"How do you know all this?" Lucille asked, puzzled.
"Just some keen observational knowledge!" Sean replied casually, then led the group forward.
"Is everyone alright?"
"We're fine~ But we can't find all the sleds." The guards gathered around from all directions.
Those who hadn't been attacked by the snow giant were naturally fine, but those who had stood in the front and been severely injured were still bleeding from their heads, hastily bandaged with cloth strips. They probably couldn't hold out much longer.
A normal adult's HP was almost always 1000. The guards, due to regular training, had a bit more—maybe a little over a thousand, or a couple hundred extra for the stronger ones. The injured had lost two to three hundred HP from the snow giant's strikes.
After this battle, Sean understood that once HP dropped below half, a person was essentially incapacitated. Watching the injured's HP trickle away drop by drop, he knew they wouldn't last long without prompt treatment.
"Have someone pack up. We're heading back immediately. We can't stay here!"
Just then, Kree beside him pulled out a few small bottles from his waist pouch and handed them over.
"Sir, I have some potions here. Maybe give them to the injured first."
Sean took the bottles, each the size of a palm.
Holding them for a moment, a small line of text appeared: [Restoration Potion: Stops bleeding and restores 50–100 HP]. This was probably the most common type of potion.
But as long as it could stop the bleeding, it should prevent further HP loss.
"Thanks."
He handed them to the guards to use, and sure enough, the HP stopped dropping. However, a potion that only restored up to 100 HP couldn't fully heal the wounds; they'd still need to get back to town.
Sean continued to have people prepare for the return trip, but he paused by the pit where the snow giant had fallen.
He crouched down to carefully examine the strange, ferocious beast. Its body was somewhat like an ape's, but up close, its face looked more like the demons described in stories from his past life—a sharp nose with small warts on the bridge, half of its face blown off by the gunpowder bullet.
"Still think something's off, Lord Weigel?" Kree suddenly crouched down beside him and asked.
Kree and Lucille had been sticking close to him the whole time. Though they weren't residents of Tylermian Town, they were essentially acting as his hired guards now. After the recent battle, they'd both gained a lot more respect for him.
As Kree had put it: "Lord Weigel has an innate sharpness of observation—a born talent!"
Hmph—Sean chuckled inwardly at that. It was indeed a talent.
Just one they wouldn't understand.
"Ilia, Kree. What do you think the odds are of a natural avalanche? When I first saw the snow giant, I thought the avalanche might be connected to them, but later I realized they're just muscular, tough beasts. It shouldn't be related... but... why are they here?"
First, there was the inexplicable massive avalanche, then the appearance of a snow giant that shouldn't exist in the Tylermian region.
Linking the two events made it hard not to be suspicious...
"Lord Weigel thinks something's off?"
"It's not what I think—what do you two think?" Sean threw the question back at them. If he followed his own line of reasoning, they'd probably just call it an accident.
"It is suspicious, but it could also be a coincidence. I once saw land beasts from across the sea in a southern harbor nation, and I don't know how they snuck onto ships to cross the ocean." Kree tried to offer some rare coincidences that defied common sense.
"But... if it's man-made, that's very dangerous," Lucille added from the other side.
"So I'd like to ask you both for a favor!"
Lucille and Kree exchanged glances.
"Please go ahead, Lord Weigel. If we can help, we'll do our utmost."
...
On the way back, the group was still split into the same batches as when they'd come, just with a few more people this time. Compared to the battle they'd just fought, the atmosphere now was far more oppressive.
So many dead... Sean could imagine what it would be like when the townsfolk saw their loved ones' bodies.
"Lucille!"
The group's arrangement was the same as before, so Lucille stayed close to Sean.
"What is it?"
Lucille could tell he was troubled, so her tone lacked its usual edge.
"If it really is another wizard, as you said, who brought the snow giant—could you take them on?"
"Do you think this incident is connected to another wizard?" Lucille asked.
"I'm the lord of Tylermian. I have to consider every possibility." Sean was tired of debating the doubts, but if someone was secretly pulling the strings, that would be the greatest threat to Tylermian.
"If it's just about bringing a few snow giants here, I could do that too. So it's hard to judge based on that alone."
"So you're saying the other party is also a powerful wizard?" Sean said.
"Can I take that as a compliment?"
Lucille chuckled, then turned serious.
"If such a wizard exists, I'll definitely help you take them down."