Now That It's Come to This — To the Capital!
The carriage rattled and jolted along the road, hooves hammering the dirt. I laid out the plan for the women inside. Lumina called through the little window between the driver's box and the cabin.
"So going to the capital fixes everything? That bastard's there, right?"
I shook my head.
"Nah. First we find that preacher bastard James and wring him dry. Something'll come of it."
Lao, the cult leader of Those Who Recite Sins, was dead. Normally, when the person holding a group together dies, the whole thing falls apart. These guys showed no sign of that at all. That preacher James must have had serious influence. Which made him priority number one. Kill him, torture him — whatever it took.
I sighed and looked out the window. My head was a tangle of worries, but outside the weather was gorgeous.
First time I've ever ridden in a carriage. Huh. Pretty damn cool. This is what setting off on an adventure actually feels like!
It was a completely different kind of thrill from riding Lin alone. I hooked my arm over the window frame and called out to Lumina.
"Lumina, how're you holding up as driver?!"
"Aaah, the wind feels so fucking goooood!"
Beastkin really were beastkin. She actually enjoyed racing along with the wind in her face. Never mind that the driver's box was the most dangerous seat on the whole carriage if a dust storm or sandstorm ever hit.
I snorted and shook my head. Then again, that was just Lumina being Lumina.
Then Aki held something out. A tray wrapped in cloth.
"Here. Even on the road, you've got to keep your stomach full. Eat up!"
She pulled the cloth away, and sitting on the tray was a set of rice dumplings I'd only ever seen Annie make. Glutinous rice dumplings, sorghum dumplings — even rabbit-shaped ones dressed in syrup. Just looking at them made my mouth water. I carefully tried one of each.
They were incredible.
"Whoa, Aki Mama! These are amazing!"
"Ohoho♥ Right? Now that my memories are back, I remember I used to be pretty good at these!"
"Please make them all the time from now on! Especially that combo of syrup and dumpling — incredible!"
If syrup worked, honey or chocolate probably would too, right? Man, I was a mediocre cook at best, but this was getting my food-brain going.
Hm?
Something prickled at me and I turned my head. Aunt Sharia was staring daggers — not at me, but at Aki. Ah. So this was what Auntie looked like normally. That ice-cold face, those razor-sharp eyes. Still pretty, though. A beautiful woman really did look good no matter what she was doing.
I wanted to defuse the atmosphere.
"H-haha, better not fill up too much, so that's enough for now!"
"Hee♥ Got it!"
Aki Mama collected the tray. I wanted more, but at this rate an unnecessary catfight was going to break out, so I let it go.
I took a swig from the waterskin and pulled out the map. It was worn, but everything that needed marking had been marked.
Hmm... we just came out of the forest path, so we're about here.
I looked around, matching the terrain to the map, and nodded.
"Yeah, we just crossed a bridge, so the Thor Wasteland should be coming up soon. Once we're through that it's forest again — we just need to find a good spot to camp!"
Auntie beamed at that.
"Our Lashu has a plan, doesn't he?"
"Haha, of course! I'm the leader!"
"The most adorable, precious leader in the whole world♥"
Talk about pressure. Not that I minded hearing it.
Aki chimed in with a dopey grin.
"And a healthy, manly, strapping leader, too♥"
Even I hadn't seen that one coming. Auntie's face went cold again. She glared at Aki, then turned her head away. A sigh escaped me on its own.
Haa. We've got a long way to go. Aki has zero social awareness, and Auntie only has eyes for me. This is... something.
Please just don't fight. I'm begging you. This isn't a group project — when there's conflict, someone has to step in and mediate.
This is what they call a leader's burden, huh? *sniffle*
Haa. I'll do my best...
I scratched my cheek and sighed. Whether it was adventuring or dealing with people, we still had a long road ahead.
Then Auntie turned her gaze out the window and spoke. God, that slender, soft line of her profile — she was unreal.
"By the way, is that really true?"
"Huh?"
"That the next lord is addicted to Kahloom."
"Ah, yeah. Looks like Those Who Recite Sins were behind it. That's one of the reasons we're heading to the capital."
There was actually another reason we were going to the capital. I was curious what kind of women I'd find there. I wondered how the capital's MILFs would be different. People were people everywhere, but maybe there'd be a lot of well-kept MILFs?
Hehehe.
Auntie narrowed her eyes at my answer and clicked her tongue.
"That's a little too convenient to be a coincidence."
"What is?"
"The last mission I had before I came to see you was investigating the Black Troops."
"Black Troops?"
"Monsters or humans addicted to Kahloom."
I flinched at Auntie's unexpected words. What, the capital already had a name for them? Then they already knew about Kahloom too?
That's the capital for you! Always one step ahead!
I wet my lips and asked.
"How did that mission go?"
"There were over twenty people addicted to Kahloom. As for the monsters, there were so many I couldn't even keep count."
"...Did they find out who did it?"
"No. Nobody even knows where it started. Those Who Recite Sins... they're well-known in the capital, too."
This was starting to sound serious. Still, there had to be some kind of guideline, right?
"How dangerous are these Black Troops?"
"They're addicted to an unknown energy called Kahloom to begin with. Cut off an arm or a leg and they don't even feel pain. Sometimes they don't die even if you blow their heads off. Some of them lose all reason. Others actually become more advanced."
I frowned without meaning to. This wasn't even the early stage of some epidemic. We really were working with almost no leads.
Once we get to the capital... will I be able to handle this?
I felt it all over again — the answers were in the capital. I let out a sigh that drifted out the window and closed my eyes. I just sat quietly and felt the wind.
The general store in Gailwards Fief.
Annie went past the hidden chamber into the bedroom and opened a box. It creaked as the lid came up. Inside was a single black orb, about the size of a fist, wreathed in an ominous energy.
"I didn't want to take this out... but."
Annie Bahrenheit closed her eyes. She pictured Lashu smiling at her.
"This place doesn't mean anything without Lashu. I want to... follow him."
As if she'd made up her mind, Annie opened her eyes. She pressed the orb to her lips and gently breathed on it.
The moment the orb dissolved into smoke, Annie's clothes transformed in an instant. A glossy black pointed hat, a black opera mask covering half her face, and a pitch-black robe. A ring that looked as though it had been corroded by jet-black energy appeared around the ring finger of Annie's left hand. Dark energy tangled across the ring's surface like veins, pulsing like a heartbeat.
"Haaaah...♥"
Annie's eyes half-lidded like someone on drugs, a smile playing on her lips. Then she looked in the mirror. She licked her lips at her own reflection.
Lashu, you're mine. I'll kill anyone if it means I can have you. Even this whole world...!
She packed lightly.
So wait for me. Once I get to the capital... let's have outdoor sex all day long. I'll spread everything for you — my pussy, my ass, all of it. Yeah, doing it in front of people would be good too, right? Especially in front of the guards. Make those insects die of envy. Ehehehe...!
Annie's eyes gleamed as she laughed. She was so happy she didn't even notice the drool running down her chin. Just thinking about Lashu soaked her whole body in sweat and brought tears of ecstasy to her eyes.
"Haaah♥ Nngh♥ I miss you, Lashu. I want that savage cock of yours buried inside me♥ That's what I live for...♥"
She cupped her cheeks with both hands, her chest heaving. Even her pulse was swelling like it was about to burst.
"Ahh, my Lashu...♥"
The lights in the room went out in an instant.
Myra, capital of the Dharma Empire.
At a lecture hall, a middle-aged man with salt-and-pepper hair swept back was smiling warmly. His face was smiling, but the words coming out of his mouth were dead serious.
"...Therefore, members of the Legion Academy Expedition Society, do not lose your faith. Faith comes first — that is what I wish to say. Even if despair follows despair, in the final moment, the Lord will extend His hand. That is what we call a miracle."
The man finished his lecture. Thunderous cheers and applause erupted from every direction.
Leaving the cheers behind, he stepped down from the podium, went into the waiting room, and started packing his things. Then he rummaged through his backpack and let out a sigh of relief.
"Look at me, I thought I'd lost it. Hahaha."
What he'd pulled out was a pretty rabbit doll. A pink rabbit with shining eyes.
It's a present for my daughter. Should I have bought something more expensive?
He shook his head almost immediately.
No. Then I'd just get scolded again. She'd ignore me for a week for buying something expensive. I don't want that!
As he was sighing, a pastor approached him.
"Cardinal James, I have a report."
"Go ahead. Did you run here? Goodness, you're sweating. Sit down and have some water."
James handed over a waterskin. The pastor drank, then looked at the doll James was holding.
"Oh, is that...?"
"A present for my daughter. What do you think? Hahaha."
"It's lovely. You chose well. Your daughter will adore it."
"Oh, really? I've always had good taste, haven't I? Still, you never know. She might scold me again for buying something expensive."
"You really can't stand up to your daughter, can you?"
"Don't end up like me. No — don't get married at all. Haaaah."
The kind of complaint every married man made. The pastor still chuckled.
"But you're happy, aren't you?"
"Oh, please. The report?"
"Ah, right. The Cult Leader has been martyred!"
James's eyes went wide. Beyond that, nothing else changed.
The Bishop is dead? Is that even possible? No — wait. That means the highest rank right now is... me?
There were a few others who held the title of Cardinal, of course. But in terms of factions, James's was the largest. There were even rumors that the remaining Cardinal factions had formed an alliance just to keep James's faction in check.
"Is that so? Who else knows about this?"
"Only you, Cardinal James. We plan to inform the other Cardinals shortly."
"Hmm. Is that really necessary?"
"Pardon? But the Cult Leader said everyone should receive information equally. And there's another intel—"
James pulled a thick Bible from his backpack and smashed it across the pastor's face with all his strength.
The pastor collapsed and managed to ask,
"C-Cardinal...?"
The James he knew was already gone. With a face as dry as if every emotion had been carved out of him, James spoke as if talking to himself.
"The other Cardinals can't know. Who would that benefit?"
"Ghhk, Cardinal, wait— ngh!"
James drew the self-defense weapon he always carried — a portable flintlock — and aimed it at the pastor.
"Regrettable, but you'll have to die. Don't worry. The Lord knows how faithful you've been."
"Wait, we've been together all this—"
"What good is time? People are wicked, every last one of them. This cult that's about to swallow the world... it has to be mine. Think of it as the few sacrificed for the many."
Click. BANG!
James pulled the trigger with a grotesque smile. The pastor died without even a scream, his face blown apart.
James tilted his head at the dead pastor.
"Oh my, look at me. You have a much younger sister, don't you?"
A shadow fell across his face. His mouth opened, and a smile bloomed. His teeth gleamed white.
"Don't worry. I'll... guide her well down the path of faith. Hwuhuhuhuhu!"
Madness blazing in both eyes, James burst into wild laughter. Then he grabbed his backpack and left.