Chekhov's Cannon
Ho-yeong’s first step erased the bloodstains in an instant.
The resolute aura he wore was so unmistakable that it looked almost like he had invoked purification itself, and Lucy flinched despite herself.
A giant troll will be summoned in approximately 30 minutes.
“We’ll discuss the details later. Right now, the giant troll is the more urgent problem.”
The marquess, who had been about to object, shut his mouth under Ho-yeong’s gaze.
You have accepted the invitation from the leader of the Cliad Sect. The audience event with Lucy Perhela will resume. Time remaining until termination: 35 seconds.
Dice of Adversity effect has ended. A 180-minute cooldown has been applied.
Tip
The cooldown for this item becomes shorter the fewer dice are rolled for the stat under buff, and the more dice are rolled for the stat under debuff.
With the effect of the Dice of Adversity gone and his mental power and intelligence fully restored, Lucy finally regained her composure. But that wasn’t the only reason.
“Heh. That’s right. If you people can’t stop the giant troll, then the archangel’s invitation card will be stained red with blood.”
“So the fact that your master saved your life has you feeling pretty grateful, huh?”
As Ho-yeong had said, the biggest reason was the relief she felt that the one she served had preserved her life.
“The last move you pulled was quite impressive for an insect. But thanks to it, I’m able to return safely, so how ironic.”
Ho-yeong had promised not to lay a hand on Lucy Perhela.
“Why keep pretending to be all refined and dignified? You looked a lot better earlier, with your eyes rolled back and screaming your head off.”
If he couldn’t hit her with his fists, he’d hit her with words.
“And for a madwoman like you, a bright clean outfit is nothing compared to the see-through look you’ve got going on now.”
“...What is a see-through look?”
“Clothes that show everything. Look at your stomach. It’s been pierced through by a spear, so the inside is all itch-bitch. You go around acting all pure and holy, shoving that light of purification around, but the exposed flesh and the itch-bitch look are what you actually are. Tsk tsk.”
It was also a crude jab comparing Lucy’s outward beauty and elegance to her ugly inner self.
“Y-you!”
“Why do you keep saying ‘you-you’? Are you trying to switch careers and become a merchant? Because from the way you’re doing things, you look like you’d only end up taking losses. You were all strutting around as the Guide of the Twilight or whatever, and now you’ve turned into an item courier for me. That says it all.”
Lucy, who had just regained her stability, felt her mental state begin to wobble again.
The audience event with Lucy Perhela has ended.
So much so that she had forgotten to activate the dimensional rift.
“What, were you only puffing yourself up because it was dangerous? The moment things got tight you went running to call in the boss. Now that you’ve barely survived, your spine’s come crawling back too, has it? You’ve been calling yourself some kind of apostle and making a show of it, but what exactly have you done here?”
“The magic circle you people were relying on, I—”
“Oh, so you were going to brag because you messed around in the dirt and threw a few rings? If I hadn’t stopped you then, you’d be dead. I only let you keep going so I could see just how amazing your power was.”
But he wasn’t just needling her with the idea of, Well, the audience time is almost up anyway, so let’s just hurl abuse at each other.
“You think what you showed me is all you’ve got? Pathetic. Want me to show you my full power? You promised not to harm me, but there’s no problem with me attacking you right now. Ahahaha.”
He was trying to make Lucy show a crack.
“If you want, go ahead and try. I only said I’d accept your proposal; I never promised anything. If I kill you now, that’ll be the end of it.”
“Idiot! Have you already forgotten that if you lay a hand on me, the children die?”
“Of course it’d be sad if the kids died. But I did start thinking about it. Are you saying I should risk my life to go looking for children who aren’t even mine? The dead can be brought back with resurrection.”
Everyone was horrified by how casually Ho-yeong said it.
“...Are you serious?”
“L-Lord Byeonbangbaek! W-what are you even saying...?”
Everyone looked at the Ring of Truth on Ho-yeong’s hand. But the gem in the ring still hadn’t turned clear, so it couldn’t tell them whether the wearer’s words came from sincerity.
“No way...”
With a grim expression, Demis Ezef raised the winged cross. If the wings rose, it meant truth; if they drooped, it meant falsehood. And now those wings were thrust upward.
“No, Lord Byeonbangbaek!”
The brows of the others watching that sight shot up as well.
“Kukuk. So it was sincere. You’re the one peeling off the mask of hypocrisy and showing your true colors. As expected, insects are better suited to insect shells than human skin.”
Lucy Perhela laughed, lifting her chin high.
“But Lucy Perhela, you’re an elf, not a human, so if you die you can’t be resurrected, can you? If you’ve got two lives, why don’t you try attacking me right now?”
“Oh? Are you trying to scare me? A decent attempt, but clumsy. If you really mean to kill me, then why aren’t you doing it right now? In the end, it only looks like you’re answering the archangel’s offer.”
Her sharp eyes fixed on Ho-yeong.
“Why am I not killing you right this second? Simple. Because you’ll be the last one I kill.”
“...What did you say?”
“I’m going to torture you later until you spill everything about the rest of your little gang. I’ll make you watch them die hating you.”
Lucy, startled, lifted one of the rings hanging from her staff above her head.
The ring had grown large enough for one person to pass through. Within it, a dimensional rift was beginning to form.
It’s a different method from the sphere she used to summon monsters. But why would she set a spell in the ring in advance and only now try to use it? No, I can think about that later. That bitch looks ready to bolt any second. First, let’s confirm one thing.
Ho-yeong delivered one final provocation.
“What do you think I came to answer the leader’s offer for? Sure, I do want to save the children and the soldiers. But that’s not the biggest reason.”
“There’s something bigger?”
“I want to punch that bastard leader in the face. A guy who’s been hiding his identity and sneaking around everywhere is actually sitting there with a formal invitation, waiting for us? When would I ever get such a good chance again? Right?”
He had softened the expression for the sake of controlling his temper, but the hostility in his voice was plain as day.
“Heh. You’re like a moth flying straight into a fire. Do you really think this will go well? With only five of you—”
“You thought I was only bringing five people? I’m not an idiot. Isn’t the rational choice to bring as much force as possible? I don’t know where your hideout is, but I’m sure I don’t have to worry about it being cramped. If you kidnapped nearly twenty people, the place must have some room.”
The smile Lucy had been forcing onto her face trembled.
“Y-you fool. Did you already forget what the archangel said? If you bring anyone other than the designated people, then the sacrifices will lose their lives!”
Startled, she blurted out the word sacrifices.
“Have you already forgotten what I said? The people being held aren’t family to me or anything.”
Before she could even realize her mistake, she was shocked all over again.
“W-what?!”
“I’m not going to be dragged around by your ridiculous hostage act. Let me make this clear: my top priority is to crush every last one of you. That’s why I accepted the invitation.”
This crazy bastard!
The sound of fear inside her mind was loud enough for Ho-yeong to hear.
Lucy Perhela is afraid that the Guardian will bring a large-scale force. She is also anxious at the thought that the scheme she has set in motion may become a major danger to the sect as a result.
Because the dark pupil of the Anxious Evil Eye was piercing straight through Lucy.
“Then make sure you’ve got plenty of seats at that party you’re opening. Looks like there’ll be a lot of guests.”
Lucy had originally intended to mock Ho-yeong with a parting line. But now she had no time even to grow angry at being mocked in return. The instant the space-time gap opened fully, she shot up into the air.
* * *
“I know everyone has plenty to say. I do too. But the first thing we need to do right now is something else.”
A giant troll will be summoned in approximately 25 minutes. Summoning location unknown.
“We need to keep the signal tower safe from that ridiculously huge and powerful troll.”
Having reminded everyone of the importance of defense, Ho-yeong moved immediately into action.
“Marquis Iolid, harden the mana into a sphere. About this shield’s size. Make it harder than dandanium. Is that possible?”
“You mean to hurl it at the giant troll...? But maintaining that size and hardness while transferring it at high speed will likely be impossible... If a monster on the scale of a giant troll is summoned, then the dimensional rift itself will be enormous. The mana currents around it will be completely warped—”
“I asked whether you could harden it.”
“Well, yes, of course I can, but—”
“Then hurry.”
At Ho-yeong’s firm order, the marquess began chanting at once.
“Young Marquis Kristian, I want you to investigate the rings Lucy Perhela left behind. It would be ideal if you could figure out what magic is bound to them, but first I need the range of their effect.”
“The range of their effect, you say?”
The young marquis looked confused, and Ho-yeong, holding back his impatience, explained.
“Why do you think that crazy elf spread those rings out so wide? It’s obvious she set them up as a trap to keep us from approaching. And earlier, didn’t you say you could feel something ominous in the mana? I want you to detect the boundaries of that mana. After that, what should we do?”
“Mark it so our allies can identify the range?”
“Exactly. If you understand, get moving.”
To the three highest-ranking men among the station guards, he gave the role of messengers.
“Captain Rio, go to Darckovo village, find out where Shrakhim is, and bring back all the troops there. Special Soldier Sonia, go to Bojedo village and bring back Meyril and the troops with her. Senior Soldier Steiner, go to the shelter and bring back the village chiefs... and Peach.”
“Yes, sir!”
“The rest of the guards will build a mound over there. Make it sturdy enough for five people to stand on top of. The minotaur cavalry will help, so it’ll be done quickly.”
“Yes, sir!”
To Keiji Iolid, he assigned the task of making traps in case things went wrong.
“You’ll build traps wherever I point. Anything that can hold the giant troll back, even for a moment, is fine. Make good use of a mage’s creativity.”
“You mean the giant troll will come this way? How could Lord Byeonbangbaek know that...?”
Unlike the soldiers who obeyed without complaint, Keiji asked the question with an anxious expression.
“I know, so I’m ordering it. We don’t have time for an explanation, so trust me and follow along.”
Ho-yeong used all the patience he had to reassure him as gently as possible.
It wasn’t as though he didn’t find those useless young nobles from the marquess’s house infuriating.
Sergeant Bang Ho-yeong... are we maybe about to go to war?
I heard leave got delayed too. This seems serious...
On that young face of Keiji’s, he could almost see the rookie soldiers from the army.
The anxious expressions they wore whenever the front line grew tense under the threat of repeated provocation from North Korea.
You brats, don’t worry so much. The army is like that. It just means you’ve got to be fully prepared because you never know what’ll happen.
“Don’t worry. This is just preparation for the off chance something happens.”
Keiji looked exactly like a clueless rookie.
But what if that off chance actually happens? What if the North Korean army attacks all the way here...
“But if the giant troll really does make it all the way here... what do we do if even the defense line we’re building can’t stop it?”
Ho-yeong gave a smirk, as though he’d already lost, and picked up his secret weapon.
If those North Korean bastards ever invaded, they still wouldn’t get this far. This big brother would blast them all to hell with a mortar.
“No matter what kind of tantrum the giant troll throws, it won’t reach the signal tower. It’ll blow apart long before that on this Bakgyeokpo.”
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