Chapter 685 - Chapter 6: The Cave Where the Demon Lord Resurrects (Engrio)
The support group apparently won't return to the fortress and will stay at an inn. So, we headed directly to the inn riding in the bowls.
"Good work."
When we went to the inn, Falstaff-san came out to meet us.
"It's been a long time. Since the Monster Extermination Unit was formed, I thought I might not be able to see you anymore."
"As for me, I think it would be better if we didn't meet, though."
"Now, don't say that. By the way, what brings you here today?"
"A message."
Apparently, it's a message from King Seldic.
King Seldic's message was to confirm the future schedule related to the Demon Lord subjugation. In short, it also served as a meeting.
"Regarding the investigation of that cave, is it alright to continue once a month?"
We gathered in the room where Price-sama and the Engrio Archbishop were staying to have a discussion and listen to the message. The room didn't have a canopy bed, but it was a good room. It's probably the best room in this inn. It's larger than the room where Sianya and I are staying. There are also tables and couches for guests. The discussion took place while having wine from the cupboard served by Price-sama and the Archbishop.
"Yes. I think it will be finished in about two or three more times. Therefore, I'm thinking of ending the investigation in August and aiming to complete the report by September."
The reply was, of course, from Price-sama.
"Understood. With the same participants as now?"
"Yes. If Sianya and Jeanne are there, that girl will be pleased."
Before I knew it, participation had become mandatory.
"However, Jeanne is busy, so there may be days when she cannot participate. Bishop Harris is participating from Sertoria as well."
"Yes. I think there will be times like that."
I agreed right then and there.
"King Seldic says he wants you to participate as much as possible."
"Eh? Why?"
"It's probably because it's easier to achieve coexistence and co-prosperity with that girl."
"Guh..."
I'm weak when that's brought up.
"Within a reasonable range. Let's do that. Since others will have various circumstances, I'd like to manage somehow by adjusting the schedule and such."
"Y-Yes."
Investigation of ancient documents, huh. To be honest, I don't really want to do it.
"Regarding the monster extermination, is Bishop Jeanne the only one among everyone here who will participate in the battle to conquer our country's Demon Lord's cave?"
Everyone, including me, nodded. After that, the Henry Party should participate.
"Then, I shall inform Bishop Jeanne. The infiltration into the Demon Lord's cave has had its schedule changed. We ask for three days of standby time. Therefore, considering the movement of the conquest unit, it will be five days later at the earliest. However, depending on your convenience, it could be a little later."
"By later, for example, would after the middle of this month be alright?"
"Yes. As long as it starts within this month, it doesn't matter."
So the move will be finished in three days. Since the Henry Party is involved, they must have been told that there are plans in the middle of the month. The reason it's fine as long as it's within this month is probably that the Engrio army's expedition to the continent is after the Council of Lords in June. They want to activate the Non-Aggression Alliance with the Northwest Coast Treaty nations.
"How long is the operation period?"
"Currently, it hasn't been decided. It's until the conquest is finished. However, since we won't operate in winter, it will be until the end of November at the longest."
I can see King Seldic's seriousness. And also the situation on the continent... especially the seriousness of the King of East Liber.
"Since it's impossible to be involved throughout the entire period, I will participate as long as it's within my possible range."
"That will be fine. Ah, the transportation will be handled by the Henry Party, who call themselves a private multinational monster extermination shop."
Oh boy, a rival has been born before I knew it. I looked at the non-regular Price-sama, and he was acting composed.
It seems they are serious here too.
In the end, I returned to Nakanohara two days later. I re-entered Engrio after the recovery of the Northeastern Forest was finished. During that time, I made many Light magic circles for floodlights and loaded them onto a wagon bound for Engrio. The price was the same as Thought Communication.
I went to the Engrio border riding in the Henry Party's bowl, but this time, Harold-sama took a break. Not only that, Wilson-san wasn't there either. Wilson-san is probably because it would be troublesome if holy magic was fired wildly inside the cave. Harold-sama might be for political reasons. Neither of them will participate in the support for Engrio and will instead act with the heroes. Prince Charles is probably with them too. Incidentally, since it was said that it's better to have bowl users, Beatrix and I participated from the Class of 175.
"You've come all this way. I'm counting on you."
When we switched to the Engrio army's bowl at the checkpoint and went to the fortress that serves as the base, King Seldic came out to meet us. He's taking direct command. King Seldic himself won't participate in the Council of Lords. I hear rumors that the Engrio army is preparing to cross the sea, but since he won't be the one taking command, he can concentrate on this.
"I heard that the Henry Party, who hadn't accepted rewards until now, will accept rewards this time."
Is that so? That's surprising.
"Umu. Since we were officially recognized as a private organization by the current Majesty. We decided to make monster extermination our livelihood from now on."
Honestly, what are they thinking? At the banquet after the ancient document investigation, the King was grumbling until he was dead drunk. Since they had made various people from different countries non-regular members before he knew it, it seems the King couldn't say no. He's terrified that Magdalena-sama and the two princes might become non-regular members eventually. Miana probably won't participate, but she has a prior record of crossing to the continent without permission with Magdalena-sama and even participating in a naval battle. I can't let my guard down.
The King was looking at Charles-sama and reminiscing quite a bit about his days as a prince. Since he was a punk back then, unlike now, he must have been quite carefree.
"A royal family as a private organization, that's quite generous. I hear that even Archbishop Price and Harold have joined."
It's more than that. I can't say it, but Gwyn-sama and Eowyn-sama have joined too. Eventually, Edward-sama might participate as well.
"Umu. It's an international monster extermination organization. How about it, King Seldic? Won't you join as well?"
What are you doing, making the king of a hypothetical enemy country your subordinate?
"It sounds interesting, but I'll pass. Try inviting Falstaff instead."
"I invited him the other day, but he refused. He said that diner is better."
Normally, one would refuse. No matter how you think about it, both sides would suspect him of being a double agent.
After the mysterious conversation ended, it was a serious strategy meeting. There was an explanation from King Seldic about the procedure.
"The conquest of the first floor ended safely. Just in case, I'll send out a remnant mopping-up unit, but if there are any survivors, kill them as soon as you find them."
Conquest, huh. The traffic control must have been difficult. It seems it took three days, but I wonder how many moved out.
"Regarding the second floor, as you know, there are many snakes and lizards. However, fortunately, no flying monsters appear, so support using Flight Magic is effective."
I observed the second floor when I participated in Sertoria's third-floor conquest. It was a grassland with tall grass. Though, just like the third floor, there are also mountains, ponds, and wetlands, with some undulations. There are also huge rocks and shrubs, so it's not like you can see everything. I can't say for sure since I don't have actual combat experience, but snakes and lizards are waiting in that tall grass. On top of that, rocks are scattered around, so clearing it isn't easy. If you burn it, it'll cause a fire, smoke will fill the area, and the air will become thin. That makes conquest even more difficult. To top it off, there are wetlands and ponds. It's not easy. Fortunately, ants don't appear, so the basic strategy is to proceed while freezing things with ice magic. However, since it's wide, one must be careful about running out of magic. That said, the Demon Lord was subjugated long ago. The map is already completed, so all that's left is to eradicate the monsters.
We move in order using Teleportation Circles. Apparently, the scout unit has already secured a base.
When we actually moved, it was indeed the second-floor part of the tower connecting the first and second floors. Bonfires were lit, and a barrier that doesn't let monsters through was drawn at the entrance to the second floor. The area around the entrance was illuminated by floodlights fitted with Light magic circles, and the grass had already been mown. Regarding the floodlights, the Henry Party had brought in a prototype, and they apparently made them by imitating it. It seems they also trained in how to use them and were able to master them to some extent.
"Now then, Bishop Jeanne. I'm sorry, but please take the lead."
I rode in Beatrix's bowl along with the captain. There were five bowls in total, including the Henry Party's. An equal number of floodlights were prepared, so we would proceed while illuminating the way. The five lined up in parallel, with the Class of 175 in the center. To the right was the Henry Party, to the left was the captain of the fortress in the eastern part of the Royal Capital, and on both ends were bowls operated by magic soldiers of the Monster Extermination Unit. Floodlights were brought into all the bowls, and except for the Henry Party's operated by Will, they were handled by Engrio soldiers.
The ceiling isn't that high. About the height of a three-story building, I suppose. Since we can't look down from above, the bowls inevitably lead the way, tracking monsters with floodlights, while the ground units follow from behind, mowing the grass with Wind Cutter as they proceed. A specialized transport unit carries out the mown grass. The role of the bowl unit was to discover rocks early and crush them. By doing that, they effectively turn the area into flat land while exterminating monsters.
The formation is typical of a large nation, with five ultra-high-level mages and five high-level mages deployed. In other words, there is one in each bowl, excluding me. They are all from the church's monster extermination team. Of course, a temporary treatment center is set up at the main camp in case of injuries. The arrows held by the archers have steel heads, but they are equipped with quivers that can be soaked in holy water—this too is likely something the Henry Party spread—so they are perfectly suited for attacking from above.
There are many attribute mages, including ultra-high-level ones, for mowing grass and crushing rocks. They are mainly deployed in the ground units, but since they are constantly sharing information detected by Sense Living, they should be able to move safely.
Since there are floodlights, there's no need for me to fly my Fireflies. My role is exclusively to detect monsters with Sense Living and inform my allies. There are three other Sense Living users besides me; one is a priest from the monster extermination team, and the other two are knights who were incorporated into the Monster Extermination Unit. They were originally commoners, but apparently, they became knights just because they can use Sense Living. As soon as they find something, they contact the bowl user, and the person in charge of Holy attacks from above.
The monsters found are things like snakes, centipedes, and basilisks, which are D-rank. Since they are good at hiding, they are a threat if encountered in the grass or wetlands, but if found first, they aren't that difficult.
The bowl unit flies as slowly as possible, closing the distance, and illuminates with multiple floodlights whenever possible. This is because the illumination range is narrow. We compensate for that point with Sense Living.
When found, we immediately inform the surroundings with a loud voice, track them with the bowls, and multiple people fire Over Flow with reflectors to surely finish them off. We detect the surroundings to confirm safety and wait for the ground team to approach while mowing the grass. Once they advance safely, that area becomes conquered.
The ground team cleans up the carcasses, so we track the next prey with Sense Living. It became a relatively simple task.
"Around when did the Demon Lord resurrect in this cave?"
In the bowl I'm riding in are the captain of the Monster Extermination Unit and the Bishop who leads the church's monster extermination team. He's a veteran I've been with several times.
"That's a story from quite a long time ago. I think it was over three hundred years ago."
The Bishop answered.
"Was it that long ago?"
"Yes. In recent years, he resurrected for two consecutive generations in Sertoria, but if I recall, the time before that was here."
Is that how it is? If it was about three hundred years ago, there shouldn't have been any users of Light magic. Since it was already Forbidden Magic, there officially wouldn't have been any Dark mages either.
"Three hundred years ago, Engrio hadn't been founded yet."
That was the captain.
"That's right. It was exactly when the person who would become the first king hadn't come to this island yet. Probably, with that period as a turning point, mercenaries from the continent began coming to this island frequently, and as a result, the royal house that leads to the present must have been established."
"In other words, did wars occur frequently after the Demon Lord was subjugated, or in the next generation?"
"Yes, it seems small-scale conflicts between lords occurred within the island."
The Demon Lord was subjugated, and a peaceful era continued for a while... And then, conflicts between humans occurred. After the nations were founded, a peaceful era must have come to some extent. And then the Demon Lord resurrected in Sertoria. Perhaps, if the conflicts between small lords hadn't occurred, would the Demon Lord have resurrected even sooner?
"But, even though over three hundred years have passed since the Demon Lord was subjugated, it's impressive that they are still alive. What on earth are they eating for food?"
The priest is asking the captain. I had doubts about that point as well.
"Apparently, it's Magic Stones."
"Magic Stones?"
"Unlike on the surface, the plants are black, aren't they?"
The captain seems to know something.
"Yes, they are."
"Apparently, that's due to the influence of dense magic power."
"?"
"It seems a large amount of Magic Stone powder is embedded in the ground here, and the influence of that makes normal plants turn black."
"That's the first I've heard of it. Is that how it works?"
"So it seems. Therefore, monsters of D-rank or lower can somehow survive even without food. Of course, it must have a bad influence on humans too, but apparently, it's fine as long as you're not here for many days in a row."
Is that so? I didn't know. Come to think of it, I remember Serena saying something like that during the previous war.
"Actually, this is something I learned from Sertoria... no, nationality doesn't matter now, does it? I learned it from the Henry Party."
"Is that so?"
Both of them looked at me.
"It was the first I've heard of it too. Is that right?"
"Even Bishop Jeanne didn't know? But apparently, it's true. I heard Sertoria has already conquered the cave where the Demon Lord resurrects within its territory."
"Yes. That was last year."
I was involved too. But that story never came up.
"Apparently, it's something that was discovered only recently in Sertoria. It seems the frogs on the third floor were frequently digging holes. There are many insects on the third floor. At one point, all the surrounding insects were eaten by the frogs that had gathered in one pond, and the insects disappeared. Of course, there were frogs that got enough food and frogs that didn't. After that, the frogs that couldn't get enough food apparently dug shallow holes in the ground and burrowed into the soil as if hibernating. Isn't it mysterious? Normally, they would go far away in search of prey."
Those frogs are the ones we let live. I see, there were too many of them and not enough food. But instead, they were surviving in that way. That's why Violet could survive by eating bats.
"Then, if we dig out all those Magic Stones, the monsters won't be able to survive either..."
"That would be the case. However, if the powder is mixed into the soil..."
"Even if we take out the soil, would we be able to sort it well?"
"It would be impossible. Originally, the only use I can think of for the powder is ink. And if it's mixed with soil, it probably can't be used."
However, if that's the case, a troublesome matter arises.
"Um, if there are eggs and such, what happens to them?"
I tried asking just in case.
Humanoids are fine. I heard they can't have children. The problem is things like insects, snakes, and magic beasts of D-rank or lower.
"The problem is there; apparently, while the frogs were resting, the insect eggs hatched and many larvae came out."
Then the insects wouldn't disappear. Is that what the Vice-Demon Lord was talking about?
"In Sertoria, to reduce the insects, they are apparently digging up the ground of the cave and burning it."
They're doing something like that? The Paratroop Jaegers have it tough too.