chapter 96
95. A trick
“Brother.”
As I was being kicked out of the room, Royman and Isabel, who were standing on one side of the hallway, approached me.
Come to think of it, while I was talking with Adrien a moment ago, Royman tried to enter the room as if he had something to say.
“Sorry. I was talking to Adrien for a while…. By the way, what about Robin?”
“After eating, I went for a walk with Maya. It won’t take long.”
“Really?”
I’ve been feeling these days, but it seems that Robin and Maya have become very close.
If you get along well with your party members, that’s a good thing. Hmm. I’m also trying to forget the bad things with the warrior party including Adrien.
“With Adrien… Did it work out well?”
“What….”
Now that the unscrupulous Adrienne has become so docile, and she has repented of her own mistakes, it can be said that she has been well resolved.
“… Did she work out? Huh. But how did you rehabilitate it?”
“The next step will be important. Adrien, me, and the hero….”
“… You can forget about the old Adrien. There won’t be anything like this in the future.”
I believe in Adrien. The Hero, Gracie, and Maya. Not to mention Isabelle.
After a brief conversation with Isabel, she turned her head to Roy Mun, who was standing next to her.
“… So, what happened?”
“I have something to tell you. To tell you here… I’m afraid that someone might eavesdrop.”
“… Is it something important?”
“This information was obtained directly from the Cathedral. You can trust us.”
Royman’s expression was quite serious. What information did you ask for? .
“… If it’s a cathedral, it’s sure information. Let’s go to the first floor. I’ll reserve a room for you.”
“I hope the saintess will be with you….”
“… Of course.”
It’s not often that Royman takes such a serious attitude, so I lead Isabel and Roiman down to the restaurant on the first floor of the inn and get a separate room to eat.
As if to make sure that no one was eavesdropping, Royman, who had been looking around the hallway outside the door for a long time, finally opened his mouth cautiously.
“I have come to see Your Highness the Cardinal.”
“Your Highness the Cardinal….”
I talked about meeting His Highness the Cardinal in Harman, but I didn’t expect to see her for real.
Roymon seems to be considerably more famous in the church than I thought.
“His Highness the Cardinal…. When I first participated in the monster subjugation, he was the one who personally encouraged me. Although you have made the decision to demote me to Harman’s Church, someday you will understand the proud spoils I offer to Akron.”
… Apparently, it seems to be famous for the bad side. What was His Highness the Cardinal thinking when she met such an idiot?
“Haa…. Let’s stop chatting and get to the point. So, is it bad?”
“Not good… That’s not very good. However, there is no clear evidence yet.”
“… Is it church affairs?”
Isabel’s eyes sharpened at Royman’s unusually serious attitude. Seeing Isabel who was seriously in her saintly mode, Royman and I both gulped down our saliva.
“That….”
“Father Royman. I’ll ask again. Is it something related to the church?”
“Since His Highness the Cardinal acted, it has some connection with the church, but…. It’s not something to worry about too much.”
“Whew….”
Kyoguk must be protected by human weapons, the Holy Knights, so why worry so much?
“Then, what the hell is going on, why are you calling me separately like this?”
“Originally, I wanted to explain to the Hero, but…. Unfortunately, he is currently vacant. First of all, it seemed necessary to speak to the two of you first.”
“Tell me.”
“The witch of oblivion and the wire destroyer suddenly disappeared from the front…. You must have heard of it.”
“So what?”
Roiman, who had been hesitant about what to say next with his mouth shut, continued after a while.
“… His Highness the Cardinal is very wary of the sudden disappearance of the two. It is said that a separate investigation team was dispatched in consultation with the ranger…. Near the border, we were able to find the last traces of the two of them.”
“… Okay?”
I was nervous because Roy Munn was holding his weight, but when I heard it, it wasn’t particularly great information. I knew long ago that the two of them had fallen from the front, and whether they had been wounded or had fled to the West Continent, where a small-scale guerrilla war was still taking place, there were many reasons to leave the front.
So, the not-so-important thing….
‘… No, wait.’
It’s strange when you think about it. If you are injured, there is no need to publicly show that you have been removed from the front. It might increase the enemy’s morale.
If I were the Demon King, even if I was injured, I would not have been removed from the battle line. I don’t send them out only to battle, it’s enough if only their faces are reflected occasionally…. Can’t you see the nose at all?
“Isn’t it missing to subdue the militia of the West Continent?”
“It doesn’t make sense to remove two corps commanders to wipe out the militia. Furthermore, in the current Demon King’s Army, five corps commanders are vacant. Every remaining resource is a waste.”
Royman was right. I bit my lips with my fingernails and lost myself in thought.
Two corps commanders are missing. I don’t know if it’s the other guys, but it’s all about Urgan, the strongest in hand-to-hand combat of the Demon King’s army, and Ash, the witch of oblivion that’s the most difficult to deal with.
Just pulling them off the wire?
… Why?
“Wait a minute. Then….”
Isabel made a confused expression. Perhaps I, too, have a similar expression to Isabel.
“… His Highness the Cardinal is currently inferring three possibilities.”
Towards us, Roy Mann spread his fingers and continued his explanation.
“One is the hypothesis that the demon king has already purged them both.”
“… However, I don’t think they would have been purged for no particular reason at a time when Huntly and Galan had already been killed in action and the front line was weakened even more.”
“Yes. For that reason Your Highness Cardinal does not give too much weight to the first hypothesis. And the second… It is a division within the Demon King’s army.”
The division within the Demon King’s Army. The reason why Urgan and Ash left the front line was to overthrow the demon lord? For the overthrow of the leadership?
That means….
“… Rebellion.”
Ash and Urgan stood up against an unknown demon lord?
“But… For what?”
They have followed the orders of the Demon King well until now. Ash and Urgan in particular, even gave their lives to fight us.
“Rebellion is not so… It doesn’t seem believable.”
“Not very likely, but keep that in mind. And the third one is the most likely…. It is highly likely that the Demon King took them both off the front line and dispatched them to a place of higher importance.”
It’s far more important than maintaining a wire that’s so weak that it might break through….
‘Near the border, I was able to find the last traces of the two.’
Traces of the two near the border….
… Near the border.
“Wait a minute, no way….”
The two corps commanders suddenly disappeared without a word. The last journey of the two was cut off at the border of Maetel Kingdom.
“You said earlier that it was cut off near the border, right?”
“Yes. That’s right. The characteristic of Ash’s magic, the smoky ash mana, has been confirmed… I’m sure.”
“Then, those two now….”
Isabel’s face was slowly transforming into a shocked expression. At this point, wouldn’t anyone who doesn’t know the whereabouts of the two be fools?
“… There is a strong possibility that they have infiltrated the kingdom.”
Royman nailed it.
I got confused. No, those two are infiltrating the kingdom right now?
“This is not the time for this! I have to bring the warrior right now… !”
As Isabel hurriedly stood up, Royman patted her on the shoulder to calm her excitement.
“Calm down. It is still a hypothetical story.”
“But… !”
“Actually, thanks to His Highness the Cardinal for conveying this to His Majesty the King… Even His Majesty the King knows this. Ordering Brother Austin back to the party was also a decision made to deal with them.”
“That, that….”
Isabelle slumped weakly and sat down in her chair. As the situation was, the atmosphere was becoming endlessly heavy.
“Austin… ! Ooh, what should we do… ? Uh, what should I do… !”
“… For a moment. Let’s think.”
If the two of them ever show up in the middle of a big city, it’s safe to say that it’s already over. It would be difficult to have one of the two, but do they work together? This is nothing short of a catastrophe.
Since we are in the capital city of Mettelheim, the possibility of the two of them being here is remarkably slim. Then, Bellion, a military strategic point? Or, to pierce the sluggish front, to Cologne….
“… No. No.”
It is as reckless as finding a needle in the desert to guess where they are in this vast land of the kingdom. Before that, you need to come up with a purpose for the two of them to infiltrate the kingdom.
“… What is the purpose?”
I don’t know who the demon lord is, but he was always a guy who worked with thorough calculations. Just because a city is destroyed, a kingdom is not easily destroyed.
I can’t believe I didn’t send them to occupy just one city….
“They, the Demon King….”
Without taking over a single city, you can end the kingdom with one blow….
That’s… Is there… ?
Maybe you can find it if you look for it. For example, the treasure hall of the royal palace…. Like the great devil in an old oral tradition that is said to be sealed inside the Awl Mountains….
If you think about it, that’s a lot. That is, their purpose is….
“A game that can completely overturn the game of this sluggish war….”
“The secret… one number.”
Isabel, as if realizing something about her, opened her eyes wide and looked up at me and Roy Mun.
“If Royman is right, the Demon King….”
Haven’t completely put it together yet, but half of the puzzle pieces fit together.
It’s such an important matter that they act hastily. The reason why the Demon King dared to send Monta, who was protecting himself, to the front.
The reason those two infiltrated the kingdom.
The devil’s ulterior motive. A hidden peace that can completely end war.
The Demon King is now.
“I am trying to end this war…. With just one chance… !”
I didn’t know Isabel’s mouth would shut up. I shook my head, dazed as if it had been beaten with a hammer.
Roiman opened his mouth sternly.
“We should also prepare.”
The devil’s trump card. Only one chance. A hidden piece hidden in the kingdom that can destroy the tower of hard work.
I don’t know what it is, but I did know one thing.
Only a hero can stop the plan.
* * *
“Hey! How long are you going to sleep?!”
“Grrrung….”
“Ugh, really… ! I can’t live!”
Ash, now living under the pseudonym Zoe, slapped Lycan Slope on the butt as she lay on her bed, hugging her blanket tightly.
Seeing Simon fall asleep again without blinking, Joey seemed to be on fire.
“You, I told you to clean your room today!”
Simon responded with one scratch on his butt.
“Whew…. Okay. Today you will die and I will die.”
Joey went straight to the bed and grabbed Simon by the tail.
Then, Simon, who had been sleeping soundly, began to struggle, jumping up and down like a fish.
“Kaeng?! Crack! Tail, don’t pull the tail! Wow! Sick! Sick! Hey, let go of this!!!”
“How, how can this bastard be the Great Warrior of the Lycanthrope! Are you still a real warrior?!”
“aaah!!! The tail falls off!!!”
“Just get off your tail!!! I will sell it to the leather workshop!!!”
The corps commanders of the Demon King’s army, who infiltrated the kingdom while hiding their past for a while, were spending an ordinary day today.