Volume 3 Chapter 138 Progress Report
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”──That’s the full report.”
Inside the usual house in the dream world, Kian finally finished giving a calm report of all that had happened since the last meeting. Across from him, Maribel and Priscilla both looked uneasy, their faces showing signs of confusion.
Maribel, dressed in a short-sleeved shirt, lifted the same hand she’d been swinging a wooden sword with moments ago. She touched her cheek, furrowing her brow in thought.
Priscilla, seated at the same table, leaned her elbow on the surface and gently rubbed her forehead with tired fingers.
”Hold on. That’s way too much stuff happening all at once. You got attacked, took back an ancient temple, and then one of the former Twelve Divine Generals, old Umar, escaped from prison? And then he came to help you, Lord Kian?”
”Help may be too strong a word. Still, his arrival pushed the enemy to retreat. Sarah—my partner—was already hurt. Not needing to fight more saved us from extra danger. That much, at least, was good.”
”That’s a big deal.”
”Kian, I’m just glad you’re safe~desuno. I never expected Lord Jibril to show up, too. To think he was after you… Just imagining you being taken by Azrael gives me chills.”
”Hah. Princess, Lord Kian beat Oswald. There’s no way he’d lose now.”
”Yes, of course. But still…”
”If I didn’t have the Misty Magic Sword, I would’ve lost. That’s the truth, Lady Priscilla.”
Kian gave a calm bow. Priscilla gently waved her hand in a forgiving motion.
”It’s fine, it’s fine. If anything hard comes up again, just tell me. Châtillon will give you all the help you need.”
”Thank you.”
”But really—breaking through even ‘High Warlord’ Isthbaran? That’s amazing. When Lishena and Elder Brother Louis get here, I have to tell them. This will become a bard’s song for sure.”
Although they had already covered the topic of Isthbaran in the last meeting, Kian explained it again since the name had come up and it fit the flow of the conversation. Maribel didn’t seem to know who he was, but Priscilla clearly did. She remembered the old general of the Storm Herd.
”There’s a lot to unpack from your report, Kian. Let’s take it step by step.”
Maribel turned toward the blackboard mounted on the living room wall. She flicked her finger toward it, and a stick of white chalk rose by itself, writing: About Mr. Rean.
Kian wasn’t sure when it had been set up, but the board was clearly useful for meetings like this.
”Everyone in Mr. Rean’s team except him is wiped out. They aren’t dead, but two are in comas, and one has turned into crystal. We don’t even know if they’re alive anymore~desuno.”
”Yes. Ms. Vestacia was recovered, so we’ll count the Guild’s search request as complete. But the quest isn’t officially over until the handover is done. We’ll keep giving life support to Ms. Ninini for now.”
”I’ll tell Friedrich and Gonzales right away. We’ll send new people past the Great Forest. But about getting new members for Rean’s ‘Lion’s Companion’—we can’t do anything without the right documents proving we’re allowed to act for him. I’m sorry.”
”Yeah, if we hired adventurers using Rean’s name, and he later said, ‘I never asked for that,’ the people who joined might demand money or blame me and the princess. That’s risky, Lord Kian.”
”It’s okay.”
Kian shook his head gently.
”Rean is unpredictable. He might change his mind and say, ‘Forget it,’ at the last second. Then he could blame the whole thing on Your Excellency and Lady Priscilla, saying you acted on your own. I can’t let that happen. Wing Cain already sent a letter for me, so we’ll wait for the reply.”
”I’ll pretend I don’t know anything about Rean’s armor or his magic contract. As for Izerland, as long as he finishes his monster-hunting tasks in town, that’s enough.”
”I’m a bit curious about Lyritisse. I’m going to ask Lishena to take over her care, and I’ll go see them once she arrives.”
”Please do, Your Excellency, and Ms. Priscilla.”
”Okay. Let’s move to the next topic.”
Maribel smoothly led the conversation forward. When she waved her hand, the chalk wrote: Lord Jibril’s Matters.
”So… Lord Jibril had a lot of hidden troops?”
”Yes. We caught one of his men, and he said they were working with Ozeas and Barghest from the Storm Herd. Barghest was doing research to gain immortality, but all of it was stolen. He also ran off to Azrael. I’m sorry.”
”That’s not like you, Lord Kian. I thought you would’ve caught both Barghest and his research papers.”
”…I have no excuse.”
”But Immortality, huh.”
Maribel leaned back against her chair, arms folded.
”Kian, don’t let anyone know about your current state. That includes your aides—Natra and Rufna, too.”
”Understood. But I’m not immortal. I will still age. Becoming a Wraith isn’t true immortality either—it has its own problems.”
”It’s still better than becoming a Lich. Your face and smell get worse. Your body weakens. You have to drink human blood to stay alive. You lose your s*x drive. You stop needing sleep. You’re just a corpse that walks.”
”For someone like Lady Priscilla, who lives long already, becoming a Lich must sound insane. I can’t understand it either. Especially the part about eating. That drives you crazy.”
”Oh? Not the part about s*x drive? ‘Lord Kian seems to suffer more from lower-body urges,’ doesn’t he?”
”────”
Kian was left speechless. The two of them had stabbed him with the same line at the same time.
”…Kian, Christy was lonely.”
Maribel’s voice turned cold.
”She has been saying all day that she wanted to meet you. I’m really happy~desuwa. You have such a sweet lover.”
”Christina’s your good friend, right? But you’re going to leave her in the end, aren’t you?”
”I’m not going to leave her! Hey, both of you—can we not talk about this right now? There’s no time. Jibril’s situation matters more.”
”I’ll look into the two people you fought last. The warrior monk from Azrael is one thing, but we might be able to figure out who the Wolfwoman was.”
”Did you find the body of the warrior monk named Linca?”
”No.”
Kian shook his head.
”The Bloodsucking Kind are moving around the mountains. They ate the bodies of the warrior monks who died there. Linca likely died and became their breakfast, too.”
”Then, the monk you spoke to…”
”That was someone else. That person is already dead.”
”I see~desuno.”
”There may still be some soldiers hiding nearby. If Umar and his people are close, they won’t act easily, but still—please be careful.”
”Yes. I understand.”
When Kian nodded, Priscilla said quickly, “Next. Let’s move on.”
Maribel nodded beside her.
”The emissary from the Beastmen Alliance is coming, right~desuwa?”
”What about the gate? Are we going to give it up?”
”No, we can’t. If the Bloodsucking Kind are gone, then the enemy doesn’t need to worry about their supply lines being cut off from the Great Forest and the mountains up north. That means they can attack Ramsey without worrying about attacks from behind, right?”
”That’s true.”
”We must not let the gate close. Please do everything to stop that from happening.”
(So it’s come to this…)
Kian made a bitter face inside.
He had known this would happen. Still, it hurt to hear the words said out loud.
Now he had to think of a way to make a deal with the emissary.
Just guarding the gate wouldn’t be enough to win their trust. It would take something painful. Someone had to bleed. Both sides needed to hurt a little, or it wouldn’t be accepted.
As Kian was quietly doing the math in his head, Priscilla jumped in.
”Princess, what’s the current defense strength in Ramsey?”
”If you count the mercenaries and conscripted soldiers, each fortress has about a hundred men. In the city of Ramsey, there are soldiers from Owl. Even counting the undead troops, they don’t even reach a hundred people.”
”Eh…”
Kian was shocked.
The enemy had more than a hundred soldiers just in the ‘Storm Herd’ group.
Plus, the black panther tribe—who stood side by side with the Wolfmen—was still strong, and other groups were in play, too.
What’s worse, the Beastmen didn’t know how to farm or collect taxes.
They didn’t leave soldiers to protect the places they took.
So Owl’s forces had to face a group that was many times larger than them, over and over again, without backup.
Until they ran away or were killed to the last man deep in Ramsey… this nightmare would keep going.
”…Lord Owl is holding the line. But it’s too much. Way too much.”
”Eh? Is it really? I thought Lord Owl would be okay. He hasn’t said anything.”
”Don’t you think they’re ready to die defending the place? The only reason they haven’t been wiped out is because the enemy hasn’t attacked with all their strength yet.”
”I—I see. Then, Kian, I want you to look into all that when you go to Ramsey.”
All that?
Maribel’s order was so vague, Kian couldn’t hide his confusion.
”…You mean you want me to confirm it with my own eyes?”
”Not just check it. I want all the info needed for our kingdom to make the right decision. What you gather is up to you, Kian.”
(Maribel doesn’t even know what we need. That’s why her orders are always so unclear.)
Kian placed his hands together on the table.
”Your Excellency, the ‘Storm Herd’ magicians I’ve seen for sure number at least six or seven. That’s not counting the ones I beat or Barghest. Also, even the regular soldiers can use magic strong enough to burn a whole human alive. Do you understand what that means?”
”You think it means more than just what the words say?”
”I know it might be strange for me, a simple adventurer, to say this. But in war today, the side with more magicians usually wins. Just the ‘Storm Herd’ alone has over six or seven real magicians, plus more than a hundred regular fighters. We don’t even know how strong the other Beastman tribes are. But if you ask me—just the ‘Storm Herd’ alone is enough to bring down Ramsey.”
”Priscilla, what do you think?”
The silver-haired witch shrugged her shoulders.
”Don’t ask me. I’m Châtillon’s head magician, not a soldier. I can’t be responsible for any guesses.”
Character Notes:
• Mag – The wolfwoman under Yelmar—the one who was caught by Kian’s group earlier.
• Isthbaran – The High Warlord of the ‘Storm Herd.’
• Lishena – Trusted subordinates from the Châtillon family, part of Guy’s elite force.
• Louis – Trusted subordinates from the Châtillon family, part of Guy’s elite force.
• Ozeas – Son of Glen, involved in forbidden experiments.
• Linca – Jibril’s favorite girl. High-ranking warrior monk woman from Shin, with strong abilities like ignoring attacks and poisons.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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