kscans

Chapter 36 - Chapter 10. Part Two. The Next Prophecy

"What will happen to Calest?"

I asked the Grand Duchess. She sat on a simple yet luxurious chair prepared by her butler, shaded by a parasol held by a maid. Even in the lower town, nobility acts like nobility.

"Since they went so far as to use private soldiers, they won't get off scot-free, but it's not as if we can say they caused a national crisis, unlike Dorefano. Putting the current head aside, the company itself will probably survive. The Grand Duke of the East and the Chancellor will also likely move to defend them."

"However, this is a major blunder coming right after they mended their relationship with the Chancellor's house. Their faction will have its own share of troubles," the butler added. Apparently, he's the one who manages their intelligence network as well.

While I was mulling that over, the attackers were being carted off. Just then, a single carriage approached. That's odd. I wasn't expecting any more visitors.

A man emerged from the high-quality, nimble-looking carriage. He knelt before the Grand Duchess. He was a slender man with refined features, his face resembling a certain pair of twins I'd seen recently.

"Well, well, Your Grace Grand Duchess Bertold. To meet you in such an unexpected place."

After finishing his greeting to the Grand Duchess, the man walked over to me. Rilka let out a cry of surprise.

"Lord Cornes."

"Ah, Rilka. Good work on your role as messenger."

I see. So this is the chairman of Kenwell, who was just chosen to be the next Guild Master.

"I was wondering how you'd use that information, but I never imagined you'd take it this far."

His tone was calm. His attitude, not flaunting his authority, was more likable than Dorefano's or Calest's. I wouldn't let my guard down, though.

"This may be a bit premature, but congratulations on becoming the Food Guild Master."

"Ah, and congratulations to you as well on your promotion to Silver Member. Though it is a bit premature."

His smooth reply contained an element I couldn't ignore.

"…Wasn't that just a rumor?"

"To lure out Calest, the real thing would be more effective, would it not? Well then, Lord Paul Vinder, let's iron out the details on that matter."

Kenwell smiled at my father.

"We just finished with the Grand Duchess. I didn't hear about this, Ricardo-kun."

"I didn't hear about it either. Please deal with this great merchant's high-handedness as well, Chairman."

Don't talk as if the business with the Grand Duchess is finally settled. As someone who could be held jointly responsible, I wish you'd be a little more concerned with self-preservation. My father shrugged and invited Kenwell into the shop.

"May I ask one thing? What would you have done if Calest hadn't made a move?" Kenwell said as he passed me.

"Nothing at all. A children's quarrel is just that, as long as the parents stay out of it. Besides, as long as we aren't caught in the crossfire, it's no problem for me if Calest and Kenwell fight."

"You're just the man Jean and Maria said you were. Once I'm Guild Master, I'll make sure not to make an enemy of you. I might be the one to lose my head next."

"Is it over? Let's get back to work. We have to clean up the entrance."

Alfina, who came out of the shop with Mia, said while looking at the broken pot. The gazes of the maid and butler stabbed into me.

"About that, Alfie. A message came from the Cathedral. It seems the crystal is acting up again," the Grand Duchess said with a sour expression, as if she'd bitten into something bitter.

"The crystal… I understand. I'm sorry, Ricardo-kun."

"Not at all. Please prioritize your official duties."

Alfina's expression instantly shifted to that of a public figure. She exchanged a word or two with Mia and then hurried toward the Grand Duchess's carriage.

"...A prophecy?"

"It seems the signs are beginning to show. She might not be able to attend the academy for a while, even after the break ends."

"I thought the timing for prophecies was fixed."

Even as I tried to suppress it, a bitter tone crept into my voice.

"It was. For prophecies that are mere formalities, that is."

The Grand Duchess's face clouded over. I put a fist to my forehead. Right, this isn't a performance. It's the real thing. Thanks to our last success, the prophecy might be heeded without question this time. But…

"A second time would be bad, wouldn't it?"

"It would. It would be better if no prophecy came out at all."

I could only pray it wasn't something ominous. To know of a great disaster in advance is too much power for any single person to bear. If it happens again, it will attract fear, dependency, or both. In any case, I can't see a bright future. As someone who considers himself Alfina's guardian, I don't want to burden that girl with such a thing.

The crystal of prophecy, huh. I'll need to ask Fulsy as soon as possible about the mechanism behind it.

"Don't make such a face. You'll see her again soon. In three days, I invite you, your father, and Mia to my residence. I'll prepare some fine tea. And do not worry, you need not bring a gift. Just make that French-something-or-other for me."

"If you mean French toast, there are far more delicious versions sold elsewhere than what I can make."

It was a place I never wanted to visit again. I don't remember the taste of the tea, but I can still recall the murderous aura I felt from that old butler at my back.

"I jest. The investment is settled, but there are still matters we must discuss. Paul called it a shareholders' meeting, was it? That is what we shall hold."

The Grand Duchess said, twirling her feather fan. Well, if that's the case, it can't be helped. Whether she's a high noble or not, the system is designed for us to discuss things on equal footing as shareholders, at least in principle.

"I'll also make absolutely sure never to get on the Vinders' bad side."

Rilka said after the Grand Duchess's carriage had left and peace had finally returned to the front of the shop. She was helping clean up the entrance.

Her gaze was directed toward the reception room in the back, where the head of her parent company was in a meeting with my father.

"That would be a great help. My senpai makes an enemy every time he steps out of the house."

"They say a man finds seven enemies the moment he steps over his own threshold. It can't be helped," I said, offering a poor excuse. Mia and Rilka looked at each other and laughed.

Well, I managed to save my own skin this time, too. It's a shame I couldn't stop the situation from getting progressively more troublesome, though.

◇◇

Night. The center of the continent.

In the heart of a basin the color of dried blood, the creature looked up at the blue moon. As it spread its twin arms, bronze-colored hexagonal scales reflected the moonlight.

A jet-black crystal embedded between its brows absorbed the miasma rising from the ground and turned red. The ominously glowing crystal pulsed in the night's silence. Patterns emerged on both its arms. A fluorescent light flowed between the scales, extending from its arms to its back, forming a membrane of the same color.

Wings were formed, lighter and tougher than the organ with the same function it possessed in its youth. As it raised both arms, the translucent veil caught the wind. Bulging muscles contracted and powerfully struck the air. Its stocky body was easily lifted into the air.

Every movement was natural. Manipulating two completely different types of energy, it freed the creature from the yoke of gravity.

In an instant, it broke through the clouds. For a creature that crawls on the ground, the thin atmosphere would have robbed it of consciousness. But its arm muscles were brimming with power. An efficient air circulation system continuously fed oxygen to the muscles supporting the wings.

Controlling its posture in the air, it looked down. Through breaks in the clouds, it gazed down upon a land divided in two by a great river flowing from east to west. The creature had taken flight from the central mountain range of the northern half. In the creature's eyes, the shimmering red miasma was stronger there than anywhere else.

It needed a large amount of food for its next stage of growth. Unlike miasma, it could not be obtained by simply waiting. To ingest it efficiently, it needed a feeding ground where it could hunt a great number of decently-sized animals.

Its bloodshot eyes turned west. There lay a land where green plains were scattered between the mountains. Though thinner than in the center, there was enough miasma for it to be active.

The creatures that formed herds in the narrow green lands were its favorite prey. The size of each one was a little unsatisfying, but the scale of their herds was exceptionally larger than any other animal of similar size.

Its back tingled. It remembered the unexpected counterattack from another herd during its last hunt, after it had devoured two herds entirely. It became conscious of the scales that had just regrown, aware of the only wound it had ever suffered.

Its distorted gaze turned south, beyond the great river.

A plain lacking in miasma spread out. With that much space, there must surely be a great deal of prey. But it was an inconvenient land for its activities. The mountain ranges to the east and west of the plain were too distant to use as a foothold. The miasma it could store in its brow would not be enough.

But then, the creature's eyes caught a red light in a part of it. On an isolated mountain near the great river, a small amount of miasma was wavering. The creature narrowed its eyes.