Advance Preparations (2)
Every ounce of energy had drained from her body.
Having melted away the lingering grievances that had subtly gnawed at her heart through a torrent of tears, both flesh and spirit were thoroughly steeped in exhaustion. The moment her small frame stepped into the bedroom, she had gravitated toward the bed as if guided by instinct, collapsing into a sleep so deep she could not recall a single thing after hitting the sheets.
Such was the unusual conclusion to a day where the young girl had cast aside the hollow masks of merchant and noble.
"Mmm... What time is it...?"
An irregular ending inevitably left its mark on the following day. Anyone, for one reason or another, might fail to keep precisely to their schedule at least once in their life. The only difference lay in whether one's daily life demanded strict adherence to the clock or afforded some leeway. In that regard, this young girl was someone whose duties required her to execute every task with punctuality.
Brushing aside her disheveled hair to check the hour, she took one look at the time—and a shriek tore from her throat.
"Kyaaaaaak!"
"Lady Charlotte?! What's wrong?!"
Hearing a scream in the broad light of day—and from their employer, Charlotte, no less—her employees began rushing in one after another, starting with the maid who had been cleaning right outside.
Though Charlotte's physical body was still that of a child, she expertly navigated the intricate affairs of leading a merchant guild. She was an exceptionally precocious and considerate adult who carried herself with meticulous dignity and speech while remaining deeply attentive to her staff.
Yet seeing their employer fidgeting with an expression that screamed something had gone horribly wrong, everyone swallowed hard. Though many had served Charlotte for years, not once had they witnessed her in such a state—nor anything remotely resembling it.
Her hair was a messy nest, entirely unlike its usual neatness, and she had not even washed up yet, still dressed in the rumpled sleepwear she had woken up in. And when they considered the hour, she was late—staggeringly late.
Ordinarily, she would have risen at dawn, washed thoroughly, and asked them to dress and groom her with her customary mature refinement. Then she would have proceeded to her office, requested a cup of tea, and taken an elegant sip while picking up the day's first document. That was how Charlotte Eshrelt had always begun her mornings. But today, that entire routine was completely upended.
They instinctively knew that something had gone awry for the usually unflappable Charlotte. But could the issue really be so grave? They could not even begin to fathom what had happened. Until Charlotte opened her mouth, they could only swallow anxiously and watch her every move.
With the crowd in the room swelling into double digits, one maid finally plucked up the courage to speak.
"M-Milady, may we ask what happened...?"
It was a question that might have courted her displeasure under normal circumstances, but none of the other servants reprimanded her. They shared the exact same thought. They needed to know what on earth could make Charlotte scream like that, and as her staff, they stood ready to throw themselves fully into resolving whatever mess had occurred.
"Did... did a guest come by today by any chance...?"
"A guest...?"
As the maid tilted her head in confusion, the others chimed in, thinking they had caught on.
"You mean the distributor you spoke with a month ago, right? He already came and left!"
"...No, not him."
"Then the gentleman who promised to reconsider and bring back a better contract?"
"Not him either..."
They went on rattling off names of business associates one after another in an attempt to pinpoint the person, but Charlotte merely shook her head or mumbled a negative response to every single one. Eventually, they ran out of names. Exchanging bewildered glances and nudging one another, the employees whispered amongst themselves, asking if anyone remembered someone else.
Tightly wrapped in the duvet the first maid had hastily draped over her shoulders, Charlotte spoke in a shrinking voice.
"Not someone who came for business... A guest from the Academy..."
"From the Academy...?"
"Hmm. Have you heard anything?"
"No, not a clue..."
It was hardly surprising that they had no idea. While everyone was swamped managing guild affairs, a guest from the Academy was outside their purview. Such a person would have been received by personal maids, not the administrative staff. At that moment, the maid who had arrived first upon hearing Charlotte's scream seemed to recall something.
"If you mean someone from the Academy... a gentleman did stop by earlier. Would that be the one with the very rare black hair?"
"Yes! That's the one! That's the senior I mean!"
"Ah. If it was him..."
"What about him? Tell me!"
"I was going to wake you, but Milady was sleeping so soundly, which almost never happens."
Charlotte flinched at the reminder of her sleeping, but that was hardly the pressing concern right now.
"...So where is he? Where is he right now?"
"He has already left. He mentioned having urgent business to attend to and departed."
"He did...?"
When the maid told her the time he had visited, Charlotte realized that an immense amount of time had already passed since then, letting out an involuntary hiccup. Offering a gentle smile, the maid handed her an envelope.
"Instead, he left a message here explaining his business. He mentioned it wasn't exceedingly urgent and that giving it to you sometime today would be plenty."
"I'll read it right this second!"
"Yes, Milady. Here is the letter opener."
In truth, she had left out one detail: he had explicitly said that if Charlotte was asleep, there was no need to wake her, and that he would leave a letter instead. What a truly considerate man. Even if he were an important guest, the servants would not have thoughtlessly disturbed their resting employer, but he had proactively told them not to wake her if she was resting.
Ah, so that's why she came home weeping her heart out yesterday.
Considering the uncharacteristic fuss Charlotte was making, the maid smiled faintly, thinking the man must indeed be someone quite special to her.
Confidence and prudence were Charlotte's greatest weapons, easily offsetting her youthful appearance. On the outside, she looked like a frail young girl who might snap at the slightest touch. Yet her bold, decisive words and disciplined conduct commanded respect, preventing anyone from looking down on her as a mere child and naturally keeping her negotiating partners on edge. Now, however, things were quite different.
Her voice, usually brimming with composure, had shrunk meekly in sheer despondency, all while her entire body remained bundled up in a duvet like a cocoon. And then, the moment she laid eyes on the letter, her face brightened in an instant. Watching this unfold stirred an unfamiliar warmth in the hearts of her employees.
"Miladyyy..."
"H-Huh? What's the matter with you all suddenly?"
"It's all right, Milady."
The watching maids drew close one by one, gathering Charlotte into their arms. While the girl in question looked utterly bewildered,
"So you have a side like this too. You're always so sharp and flawless that it was almost intimidating at times."
"Indeed. In fact, seeing you so wonderfully human makes us adore you even more."
The administrative staff shared knowing smiles as well. Being seasoned adults who had lived plenty of life, they exchanged glances that clearly said, Well, of course, she's still just a girl.
"H-Hold on! What's wrong with everyone?!"
"Miladyyy...!"
"I-I can't breathe!"
The maturity she had pursued with such desperate intensity had merely been a shield to hide her fragile exterior. But trying to cover it up had been like trying to blot out the sky with a palm. No matter how hard she tried, she could mask the surface, but she could never erase the tender vulnerability of the child residing within her heart.
Just one day. That single day yesterday had cracked that rigid shell. And today, with Charlotte's tender girlishness spilling out through the cracks, it was plain for all to see that she truly was a girl her age. Thanks to this, the lingering awkwardness that had kept them at arm's length dissolved into genuine warmth and reassurance, vanishing without a trace.
Unlike typical nobles of the present era, the Penarive Barony had always been a family that stepped forward to protect the weak.
Lumia, the daughter of the Penarive family, was no exception. Possessing the gift of magic, she had resolved to take up arms herself for the sake of her people, and after much deliberation, the Baron and his wife had granted their daughter their blessing. Lumia had fought side by side with her people against the demonic beasts whose territory expanded with every passing day, gradually reducing the damage inflicted on the village by the marauding monsters. In this manner, Lemtert Village, the northernmost settlement in Schytz Province, had been safeguarded time and again.
Until one fateful day. It had been the day she led the family's knights into the northern forest, determined to draw a firm boundary against the demonic beasts once and for all.
"It wasn't deep inside Mount Utulum... We had split up to scout the forest at the foot of the mountain when a rat lunged at me. And then..."
What followed was obvious. What mattered was that the forest at the base of Mount Utulum was the source of the outbreak. Naturally, that was where his footsteps had led him.
"...!"
Dense clusters of rodent tracks covered the ground everywhere. Splatters of hardened, ruptured fluid were plainly visible across the soil and roots. Judging from these traces, Lemtert Village was already falling prey to the plague, completely defenseless. The other villages throughout Schytz Province were likely in a similar predicament.
Yet the people had no idea they were even infected. That was the crux of the problem. If he acted preemptively, he could prevent it from escalating into widespread catastrophe. Junon reached down without hesitation, collecting samples of the soil and clumps of hardened fluid into a pouch.
He spent tens of minutes scouring the area in greater detail, gathering reliable evidence. Soon enough, he had secured an ample amount.
And then—
Squeeeak!
A foul, unpleasant sound grated against his ears.
Squeak! Chitter! Squeee-eak!
At a glance, their numbers easily surpassed single digits. Glaring in his direction, coiled to spring, the swarm of rats hissed and squeaked aggressively, menacing the lone human before them.
"...Ha. I had a feeling this might happen, you little bastards."
Ironically, the lone human merely smirked.
One rat surged forward first as if spearheading the assault. It was roughly the size of two palms joined together—less than half the size of a Kud Rat. Given the speed of its four-legged charge, knocking it unconscious with bare hands by landing a precise blow on a vital point would normally be exceedingly tricky.
However—
Snap.
The moment his mana-clad hand made contact with the rat's body, the vital bones keeping the creature alive snapped like dry twigs. The rat collapsed onto the ground with a soft thud, completely motionless.
"Bringing back mere clumps of dirt and dried blood was never going to solve the problem anyway. This works out nicely."
Tossing the carcass aside, Junon lowered his stance and braced himself to handle the rest of the swarm.
"Do you have any idea how many Kud Rats I've put down in my time? Little pests. I've been waiting for this."
Squeeeak!
Roughly twenty rats lunged toward their prey. Despite being vastly smaller than a human, they charged with unquestioning confidence in their venomous threat—completely oblivious to the fact that the human standing before them was entirely immune to their power.
Slurp.
Taking a sip of hot coffee, Professor Dahlia read through the report before her. In her hand was a dossier detailing bizarre symptoms that had been reported from Schytz Province over the past few days.
"This again. The only common symptom among the patients is blue spots on their skin... What could this possibly be?"
Patients who had sought medical aid complaining of dizziness had been diagnosed with simple anemia and prescribed medication, but their symptoms showed no sign of improvement. When they returned some time later, they reported bluish blemishes erupting across their bodies.
"Hmm... I wonder."
As Dahlia tapped her fingers against the desk while reviewing the documents, a knock broke the silence.
Knock, knock.
"Yes, please come in."
Following the knock, the door swung open to reveal a youthful girl. The only strange thing was her appearance.
"Wh-What on earth...? Why are you so heavily bundled up?"
"I have a personal request for you, Professor Dahlia."
She was wrapped head to toe in layers of protective gear—as though terrified that a single speck might touch her skin.