Chapter 42 - [Special Chapter] The Muu Tribe's Vow (The Broken Mansion)
"…It really is broken."
They stood before a large gate on the outskirts of the city. Beyond it was the mansion where they had planned to stay. It was a stone estate with a large garden. Just as Marmie had heard, part of the building seemed to have been destroyed by a physical impact. Apparently, it had happened three days ago. She looked around, but there was no one in sight. The damage had been left unrepaired.
"Was the monster that destroyed this place subjugated?"
"It seems it was a plant monster. I heard the city's knight order took care of it," Wake replied to Patricia.
"…There's a flow of mana toward the back of the mansion."
"Yes. I also feel that something is lingering. It would be best not to get too close."
"…I want to stay here tonight," Marmie said. She didn't want to spend another night listening to those moans. The fact that the voice belonged to a proud daughter of the Muu tribe only made it worse.
"Huh?"
Wake couldn't fathom Marmie's true intentions, but he eventually nodded as if in resignation.
"I'll go check on the situation. Marmie-sama, you are absolutely not to come inside. Is that clear?"
After sternly instructing Patricia not to let Marmie into the mansion, Wake stepped into the garden with the other guards. It looked as though his back had suddenly vanished. Was it just a trick of the mansion's eerie atmosphere? Marmie suspected it was something more and tried to read the flow of mana. Just then, a young girl walked toward them.
"Muu."
"Muu."
It was Fam, shyly returning the Muu tribe's greeting.
"Marmie-sama, don't you find the Muu tribe to be a bit too childish?" Patricia asked as she watched Fam run over.
"…It's fine. She was trying so hard to act grown-up, I just had to knock her down a peg."
Patricia smiled.
"…Is your training over?" Fam nodded at Marmie's words.
"I saw you at the arena and was wondering where you were going."
Hearing this, Patricia smiled again. It seemed Marmie's affection wasn't unrequited, after all.
"…This is our inn for tonight. Want to stay too, Fam?"
"Isn't it broken? And it smells like blood…"
"It seems there was a battle with a monster here three days ago."
"Is that so? It smells much fresher than that…"
Fam approached the mansion's gate. The moment she tried to peer inside, her vision warped sickeningly.
"Ah!"
"Fam!"
Fam was being dragged through the gate. Marmie grabbed onto her, digging in her heels to try and stop it, but she was effortlessly pulled inside as well.
"Marmie-sama!"
Patricia's scream never reached them. The two of them had vanished into the gate.
The scenery outside the gate was that of an ordinary city street. However, Patricia, who should have been right there, was nowhere to be seen. There wasn't a soul in sight. It seemed like they could just open the gate and walk out. Fam tried to touch it but was blocked by an invisible wall. It was a one-way entrance.
"…A dungeon."
"This is a dungeon?"
Marmie nodded at Fam. It was completely different from the dungeons Fam had experienced. If not for the invisible wall, it would have seemed like a normal house. Marmie explained that a dungeon was a series of disconnected, enclosed spaces.
"…We find Wake and defeat the Area Guardian. That's how we get out."
"What's a 'Wake'?"
"…My strongest swordsman. He went ahead to investigate the mansion."
Marmie replied. It was fortunate that he had entered the mansion first. He would overcome any obstacle to reach her. As she was thinking this, she noticed Fam peering into her face.
"I want my master to think of me that way, too," Fam said.
"…That's a lie. You just glossed over what you truly want to be thought of as."
"Hmph! Even you'll understand when you fall in love, Marmie! It's not just one single emotion!"
"…I've never met him, but I have a fiancé. Unfortunately, I'll never understand how you feel."
"If you haven't met him, he might be a nice person. Maybe you'll fall for him when you do."
For lower or upstart nobles, perhaps, but for the aristocracy at the very top, there was no room for romance in marriage. Bloodline was everything. Marmie was destined to leave House Starunion. And it had been promised that if the child she bore was a boy, he would be adopted back into the family. It was a gamble of sorts. Some believed Marmie to be the last of the elven children.
"…My fiancé's family excels in mind-control magic. In five years, I'll have become the perfect woman for him, completely in love, so don't you worry."
"And you think a member of the Muu tribe would be reassured by hearing a story like that?"
Now there was someone besides Patricia who would get angry on her behalf. For Marmie, that was more than enough. But it was a reality that neither Marmie, Patricia, nor Fam could change.
"…Let's talk about this later. For now, let's focus on our current situation, shall we?"
"Compared to what you just told me, our current situation feels trivial, but… you're right. Let's find Wake-san. For now, let's head inside the mansion."
Perhaps it would be better to wait in a safe place. But Wake didn't know Marmie was here. Wanting to meet up with him as soon as possible, Marmie agreed. The damage to the mansion had vanished. It was a three-story building. A massive door and countless windows seemed to look down on them. A strange pressure made it difficult to enter.
"F-for now, let's try shouting to see if anyone inside responds."
"…Hm?"
Fam raised both hands and shouted, "Muu!"
"Come on, you too, Marmie." What does this girl plan to do if a monster comes out?
"Hm? Okay."
For a short while, the two of them stood with their hands raised, shouting "Muu" over and over. But nothing happened. There was no sign of anyone peering out at them from within.
"That's strange. This is a tactic my master taught me for gauging the reactions of people inside…"
"…There's no one inside."
Marmie thought Fam was the strange one, but she held her tongue, not wanting to hurt her feelings.
"Well then, it's a little scary, but let's go in."
Fam opened the door and stepped inside. Marmie followed close behind. The entrance hall was a vast, open space with a grand double staircase leading to the second floor. It was dim and unsettling.
"I don't sense anyone."
Fam scanned her surroundings carefully, but saw nothing out of the ordinary.
"…Fam. Up there. The chandelier."
Marmie noticed something clinging to the ornate fixture hanging from the ceiling.
"Uki ki, uki ki!"
The creature shrieked and began to shake the chandelier violently. The decorative crystals clashed together, creating a noisy, grating sound.
"It's going to fall!"
The chandelier came crashing down right above their heads. They barely managed to dodge it.
"Kikiki, kikiki!"
It was a monkey-like monster. Leaping down from the ceiling, it swung a long arm at Fam. Its fingertips were armed with sharp claws. Fam drew two short swords and blocked the attack with the blades. CLANG! She avoided taking damage, but her jacket was torn. Fam moved to counterattack, but the monster quickly scurried up the wall.
"…Crazy Monkey. Be careful, there are a lot of them."
Just as Marmie said, more shadows began to crawl across the walls and ceiling. This time, two of the monsters leaped down, aiming for Marmie.
"…Lightning."
A bolt of electricity shot from Marmie's wand. The two monsters collided in mid-air, pushing off each other to dodge the attack. Fam, timing it perfectly for the moment just before they landed, unleashed a [Kikuichimonji]. The blade of vacuum caught one of the Crazy Monkeys.
"Kiki!"
The wounded Crazy Monkey tried to stand. Marmie's lightning struck it at that exact moment. The monster vanished.
"…That's one."
"There are at least ten. There are too many."
"…Then let's burn the mansion. I'll start lighting things up randomly. You take care of any that come at us."
Marmie began setting fire to anything flammable—curtains, wooden furniture, and the like. Why do mages always want to burn things? Fam thought, reminded of the mage in her own party. With their perches starting to burn, the Crazy Monkeys launched an all-out assault on Fam and Marmie. Fam took out her kunai and threw them. She managed to destroy one monster with her first throw, but the second was dodged. She parried a monster's attack with a kunai, then stabbed another in the back as it landed.
"Gyaaaaaah!"
The monster vanished. Marmie was also deftly dodging the monsters' claws, deploying a small defensive barrier in front of her wand.
"Kikiki! Kikiki!"
The monsters switched tactics, deciding to press their advantage in numbers. They surrounded the two and attacked all at once.
"…Fools. I was waiting for that."
Marmie raised her wand, and a massive bolt of lightning surged toward the swarm of monsters. Five of them were obliterated. Fam threw her kunai at the two survivors. They were already damaged by the lightning, making them easy targets. They had defeated the entire pack of Crazy Monkeys in the entrance hall.
As Fam was retrieving her kunai, an old man dressed as a butler descended the grand staircase.
"Welcome, ladi—aghk!"
Before the butler could finish, Marmie blasted him with a lightning bolt. He was sent flying and twitched for a moment before going still.
"He didn't vanish. Maybe he wasn't a monster?"
"…His training is lacking. A butler who shows up this late isn't a butler."
As they cautiously approached to investigate, the fallen butler stood up as if nothing had happened. The two of them froze in terror.
"You must be Marmie-sama of House Starunion. We were awaiting your arrival yester—fugo!"
Marmie zapped him with lightning again. The butler was sent flying and stopped moving, just like before.
"…If Wake were in the mansion, there's no way he wouldn't have noticed all this commotion. Let's go back outside and circle around to the back garden. That's where the mana flow is coming from."
"Good idea."
As far as they were concerned, the butler didn't exist. They opened the door and left the mansion. The abandoned butler stood up once more.
"Good grief… I must prepare to welcome Marmie-sama and her party."
Muttering to himself, he walked up the grand staircase. It was the last time he was ever seen. He had been one of the victims when the mansion was destroyed.
Thank you for reading. To everyone who has liked, bookmarked, or rated this story, I am truly grateful. It encourages me to keep going. I'll do my best. And thank you for pointing out typos. It's a huge help.