Chapter 560 - Episode 4: Regnentes Mine Exploration ⑧
The interrogation in the hole enlarged from the underground passage at the landslide site took all morning. So, we decided to take turns having lunch. The main dish was dried fish that had turned into monsters, but the Otter man and woman had brought crab meat in leather bags. It's a debriefing session and tasting session for everyone. I feel sorry for Harrison-san, the Horse Man, the Boar Man, and the Otter girl who are currently staying behind, but it's their turn next.
「It's certainly delicious. This will fetch a high price.」
Harold-sama was looking at the crab meat in his hand as if surprised. A great noble of Regnentes said it. There's no doubt.
「It is a truly wonderful delicacy. I would like the Grand Archbishop to eat it as well, so please by all means send some to the Church.」
「Hmph. A solicitation for a donation? Well, fine. I'll have the scout unit do something about it.」
「Thank you very much.」
Is this Prince the only one on the White Island who would speak to Price-sama in such a way?
「Does it seem like farming is possible?」
To change the subject, I asked the Otter boy.
「It'll be fine. Judging by the shape, the original crabs are all over the place. If it's the same as fish, they'll get big in three or four months. Though, I don't know how long it takes to become extra-large.」
Apparently, crabs shed their shells to grow. I didn't know that. He said the rear part splits open, and the body, legs, and claws all slide out from there. Naturally, the shell remains, and the body is soft until a new shell forms. After sliding out, a new shell forms, and once it's packed full of meat, it's done.
「Until they're full of meat, they're hollow, so it's better to catch them before they shed. The ones we're eating now are just right.」
We were lucky. I don't know what it takes for a crab to become an extra-large crab, but if the rat method applies, they should grow if there's plenty of food. It might be okay to raise at least one.
「Does the shed shell seem useful?」
The Prince asked. He was originally concerned about the effective use of the shells.
「Well. The shed shells are a bit brittle, so it's better to catch live ones and use them.」
「I see. Understood. Then hand over the shells of this catch for free. I'll have the craftsmen in the Royal Capital devise something. If something good can be made, after that, it'll be as per the agreement.」
「I'm counting on you.」
It seems things will go well.
After the crab tasting session, it was the report session for the interrogation results. Since they had put on Magic-Sealing Rings without fail, it seems it ended without them committing suicide.
The Bear Man was called, and after a short while, he came carrying the unconscious one.
「In this exploration, the ones we must face are one Demon and seven remaining Revenants.」
A wordless groan could be heard. We were prepared, but tension still ran through us when it came to actually facing them.
「Currently, there are no Demons. Only Revenants are inside.」
Everyone let out a big sigh.
「However, as you know, the Demon Race uses Teleport. In other words, we don't know when or where they will appear. And we were ambushed immediately after entering. There were also signs that the altar had been moved, and there's a possibility they are communicating with those inside using a magic circle for sending letters. Do not let your guard down.」
The fact that they move freely with Teleport is also troublesome. Apparently, the lower half of the High-level Demons—meaning the underlings—mostly use it. For some reason, the higher-ups cannot use it. Just like their way of thinking, their abilities and roles are clearly defined. You could say they are specialized. The opponent this time is like facing a scout. It's not just a frontal attack. We really can't let our guard down.
「Shall we call for reinforcements?」
The Prince asked.
「If possible, please. We need to get more information from this captured person, so we want to make sure they aren't taken back.」
「Understood. I will request it from my father the King now. Harold, I leave the welcoming to you.」
「Understood!」
When Harold-sama stood up smoothly, he vanished into the darkness.
In about an hour, the scout unit led by the King of Regnentes arrived. Harold-sama and Godwynn-sama were also there. To top it off, even the Elder came.
「Eh? Elder, why?」
「Well, once in a while, you know.」
When the Wolf Man asked, the Elder was scratching his head.
「Now, don't say that. I invited him.」
It was the King.
「Before I ascended the throne, I was entrusted with the management of the mine. The Elder used to guide me.」
Is that so? the Wolf Man was asking. The Fox Man left the place with quiet footsteps. He must have known.
「It was about thirty years ago. I used to go to various places with my younger brother.」
「Hah—, since back then?」
According to the Elder, at that time, there was almost no cooperation with the Beastmen, and in effect, the King and the King's brother were the two who achieved negotiations through the Fox Man and the scout unit.
「Is that so? Fox? Eh? Where did that guy go?」
The Fox Man was already gone.
「It's almost time for the stay-behinds to switch. Jeanne, shall we go too!」
The Wildcat Sister pulled my sleeve. Maybe she knew as well.
The King of Regnentes, after hearing the situation from Harold-sama, took it a step further. Of course, he had already consulted with the Elder.
They were going to extensively renovate the entrance to this cave and build a fortress for the scout unit. The silver that the King's brother had been secretly siphoning off was now obtainable. If they could expect that much in sales, they could probably provide enough funds. This place is closer to the human villages than the conventional fortress and has a river. It was originally a buffer zone, and it would be just right as a midway base for trade. On top of that, they would protect this land together with the Beastmen and run the crab farm. The Otter would be the head of the crab farm and would receive a fairly good salary.
「It seems a lot of things are going to change.」
After hearing the general story, we switched with Harrison-san and the others.
Beside me were the Fox Man and the Wildcat Sister, who were in charge of security.
「I guess so, it's probably thanks to that Archbishop who came from Medioland.」
In other words, were the elders the ones preventing cooperation with the Beastmen?
「I think so. At least, it wasn't that King or the King's brother.」
「Have you known for a long time?」
By "a long time," I mean, needless to say, thirty years ago.
「Well, yeah, I was a scout and my role was to monitor the humans.」
He didn't tell me the details, but there was a small catalyst, and from then until he ascended the throne, he apparently came across the river secretly about once a year. The King's brother, who used to come to play, was also with him. At that time, the ones who responded were the Fox Man and the current Elder, who was acting as the Elder's assistant at the time. Actually, this was a secret from most of the people in the Village, and in exchange for guiding them, they received compensation such as silver weapons and food. The tradition from that time has been carried over to the present, and under-the-surface negotiations and transactions with the Fox Man as the window have been carried out.
「The previous Elder hated humans because they killed his son. And it was almost decided that the current Elder would be the successor. So, thinking that the day of reconciliation would eventually come, they kept it a secret.」
After that, the generations changed smoothly. That said, they couldn't change policy immediately. While waiting for a catalyst, I, a user of light magic, appeared.
「Jeanne was meant to come, then.」
It was the Wildcat Sister.
The current Elder apparently said daily that when a user of light magic came, he would guide them to the Village. And he reportedly told stories many times about the Priestess who came to the Village before and the First King who came to another village. I see, that's why the Wolf Man leader asked me when I first met him.
Eh? Wait a minute.
「By any chance, did you tell that story to Sawelyn-sama as well?」
「Yeah, that's right. I told him.」
That's why he talked about magic without even greeting me when we first met. For the Prince, it was a reconciliation with the Beastmen achieved over two generations of father and son. The fact that he immediately showed the future policy in the discussion after conquering the Gnome's cave was also something he had been thinking about for a long time. But then, he could have just said so secretly, just how poor a communicator is he?
The King and half of the scout unit withdrew to escort the captured Revenants to the fortress, and we resumed the conquest.
If they don't jump in with Teleport, there are seven Revenants. There are many of them, and they've likely set traps, so we re-selected the people and changed to a brute-force formation. We climbed into the bowls and advanced all at once while releasing [Light] from the tips of our staffs. Based on past experience, it's basically a straight road to the wall. There are branches, but they are to the extent that you can tell as soon as you turn the first corner. At the branches, we left one [Firefly] lit while going to the corner and then turning back. There seemed to be a pitfall on the way, but we ignored it and broke through.
As we kept going, it became a dead end.
「Is this it? Doesn't it look new?」
The Fox Man asked.
「No, it's not. It's not a wall of earth.」
「Which means, a trap.」
「Yes. It's just been filled in.」
「Then, shall we dig?」
It was the Wolf Man. It's an assault while crushing traps. This is the kind of thing that could happen, and it's a stroke of genius in Harold-sama's selection of people for the first squad.
「I think we'll be attacked as soon as we break through.」
「Then, we shall counterattack as well. Let's get out of the bowls for now.」
We took Harrison-san's suggestion and disassembled the bowls.
The Wolf Man dug a hole with earth magic. The dug-up earth was hardened into square blocks. The blocks flew over everyone's heads while they were waiting and piled up behind us. It made a loud clunking sound, but it couldn't be helped. We had him keep flying them back like that.
「Oh, we're through.」
No sooner had he said it than lightning came flying.
Just as expected. We continued the cycle of digging, hardening, and flying. During that time, lightning kept coming at us, but it was fine. We were holding up a wall of [Light] diagonally like a shield, so it all bounced off to the side and hit the wall. The opponent seemed to notice halfway through and sent round stones like those used in catapults flying, but the wall was reinforced with a [Wind Barrier] with a hole in the middle, so it didn't budge. To top it off, the [Clump Stone] released through the hole was in top form, and we were able to keep digging. Finally, the wall of earth was gone and it was wide open.
「It's open! Get 'em!」
The Wolf Man gave the signal and dropped to the ground at the same time. The Wildcat Sister's lightning and the Fox Man's foxfire were released. Harrison-san also released an extra-thick [Holy Lance]. Occasionally, he was releasing [Purification].
It's the method Harold-sama taught us. Just by opening a hole in the middle of the reinforcing [Wind Barrier], we can attack unilaterally. It might be the strongest attack method in a cave.
「Is it about time?」
It was the Bear Man. He put down his spear and rolled up his sleeves.
The Horse Man changed the shape of the [Wind Barrier] to create a shield with a handle. The wall of [Light] also changed its size accordingly. The completion of the Shield of Light.
「Here we go!」
When I maximized the output I had been suppressing until now, the Shield of Light strongly illuminated the front.
「Dosseeeeeiiiiiiii!」
The Bear Man charged. It was a breakthrough.
Four very painful-sounding noises echoed, and the Bear Man let out a roar.
We captured four more Revenants. They were emitting smoke from their bodies from bathing in the [Light], but they wouldn't perish. We gagged them, tied them up, and left them lying in a row. That makes seven, so there are three left.
「With only three left, it'll likely be the final battle in front of the wall.」
「An ambush?」
「Most likely.」
As a result of Harrison-san and the Wolf Man's consultation, they decided to send a message to the second squad.
Reinforcements jumped in with the Simple Teleportation Magic Circle. It was the Prince, Harold-sama, Price-sama, Harris-san, Sianya, the Boar Man, and the Deer Man. Godwynn-sama and the Otter girl are maintaining a midway base near the altar with ten scouts.
Price-sama proposed advancing to the wall all at once.
While several foxfires illuminated the cave in pale blue, we advanced cautiously, thinking there might be traps, but there was nothing in particular. We reached the wall easily.
「We're going to have a final meeting, so Beastmen, please gather in front of the wall centered around the Deer Man. Humans, gather here, behind the Beastmen.」
He separated the humans and Beastmen. It seems instructions to the Beastmen will come from the Deer Man.
They split up and formed two circles.
「Now, I shall explain the plan.」
Harold-sama began to explain the future plan in a spirited voice.
「Here I go, [Light]!」
While everyone was lined up in front of the wall, I illuminated it with all my might. And then I immediately deactivated it.
「I-It's disappearing. The wall is really disappearing.」
「Oh! Awesome, the wall is disappearing!」
「It's amazing, for the wall to really disappear.」
The Beastmen were making a fuss.
「How long does it stay gone?」
「In an instant. It doesn't disappear all the way to the top. Once about two-thirds from the bottom disappears, it returns to normal before you can even count to five.」
When the Wolf Man leader asked, Harold-sama answered. Never mind the Wolf Man, even Harold-sama was standing facing the wall.
「So, when we enter, we have to line up like this and go in all at once?」
Everyone was standing in two rows in front of the wall. Large ones like the Bear, Boar, Wolf, Horse, and Harrison-san were in the back, and others were in the front.
「Yes. Just as I explained earlier. Be ready when I give the signal, we're going in all at once.」
「It's tough. Is it the same when we come out?」
「Once you've entered, you can get inside with Teleport without opening the wall. And you don't even need to come this far.」
「Where do you jump from?」
「From anywhere. You just have to chant. That's how the mechanism works. By the way, no one can enter except those who have entered. Be careful, because even if you've entered once, you can't enter if others are with you.」
「A-Amazing.」
「After all, it has five thousand years of history.」
The Beastmen were all saying how amazing it was.
「Is that... really true?」
「You are in the presence of an Archbishop who serves at the Medioland Great Church. There's no way he would tell a lie.」
「I-I see, sorry.」
This time the Fox Man asked, and Harold-sama's tone became stronger.
「Oh, it's almost time. Are you ready? When I give the signal, run in all at once.」
「Alright, everyone, don't be late. Just look forward.」
「Got it!」
They answered one after another and braced themselves.
「Alright, are you ready! Don't look away, look firmly at the space under the wall, and jump in when I give the signal. Don't stop for a while even after you cross the wall.」
「Oh!」
「It's almost time, ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one, now!」
Except for three people, everyone ducked with their heads in their hands all at once. The Wolf Man created a wall of earth behind us, and the Horse Man deployed a [Wind Barrier]. Thanks to the effect of Mel's Stone, I was able to deploy [Magic Reflection] an instant faster than the two of them activated their magic.
A thunderous roar echoed, and angry shouts rang out. Along with the sound of swords cutting through the air with a swish, the sound of clashing blades could be heard. For a while, there was a clatter and a bang, but...
「We, the Wetlands Priestess and Knight Order! Have brilliantly struck down the Demon!」
Along with a victory cry, a grand cheer could be heard. Or so it should have been. At least I heard it. I don't know if the other people heard it, though.