The Wizard's Story (11)
The Wizard's Story (11)
#
"Urgh... m-my head..."
"Have you come to?"
"Wh-who are you... and where..."
"You'd collapsed among the monsters. We moved you here and treated your injuries. What's your name?"
"M-my name is... O-Orma... ugh..."
"Why were you in a place like that?"
"Urgh... I-I was... on my way to bring the ostriches... to the Arena..."
Just as I'd expected, Ostrich Man's memory had been wiped. Well, even if it hadn't been, this bastard wasn't going to be able to do anything about us. I mean, he couldn't exactly go around telling people what had been done to him, could he?
"Reni. Put him back out."
"Yes..."
The moment Reni used Relax, Ostrich Man went completely limp again. Relax my ass—it didn't just loosen your body, it straight-up knocked you out. Hadn't they named it wrong? I wasn't the only one who thought so; Yuri looked curious too.
"But why does Relax put people to sleep? What's the principle behind it?"
"Ah, w-well... it's simply... when you pour Divine Power into someone over a very short period..."
"Huh..."
...Terrifying. The sheer output of a Saintess Candidate.
"Will he really be all right like this?"
Reni looked down at the sleeping Ostrich Man. She was worried about someone who had tried to attack us? She really was the type people took advantage of. Then again, if she hadn't been like that, I might never have gotten to fondle her so freely.
And yet that same pushover priestess turned into an absolute beast the moment sex was involved...
"Yoo-jin?"
"...It's fine. This is the beginner zone. Worst case, he'll get a few nibbles from a rabbit or something."
With that, we left Orma behind, still drooling and snoring, and departed the dungeon.
#
"Oh my. Heading back already today?"
"Yes. We've got a separate matter to see to."
Lize looked slightly puzzled but didn't ask further. Come to think of it, she'd always been like that. She never seemed interested in prying into anything beyond business. A strict separation of professional and personal life? For someone like that, she sure did emphasize her sex appeal more than strictly necessary...
"Did you stop by the Witch's place yet?"
"Ah, well, about that..."
"I'd recommend visiting as soon as possible. An opportunity like that doesn't come around often."
"Understood."
With that, we parted ways with Lize and headed for Ariel's mansion.
"But if they went that far even inside the dungeon... will we really be safe once we go outside?"
Yuri spoke while wrapping her arms around herself, as if a little frightened.
"The mansion is a place that person cannot interfere with. If he dares to play games there, the contract is stipulated to be nullified."
"Hmm... then wouldn't it have made more sense to meet at the mansion from the start? Why insist on the dunge—agh. What?!"
Yuri clutched the side I'd jabbed and glared at me. I grabbed her ear and quickly whispered into it.
'Can't you read the room! Can't you see she's clearly broke! If your place was full of cobwebs, would you want to invite people over?!'
'Ah, o-oh, I see...?'
"...It's not that badly unkempt."
"Eep, s-sorry."
Tch, that was right, her ears were sharp. Couldn't even whisper anymore.
We reached Ariel’s mansion while carrying on with that pathetic banter.
The structure of the mansion itself looked large and impressive. Only, it wasn't maintained. Rusted fixtures here and there, weeds growing through the stone path to the entrance, and the shadows of garden trees that made the mansion feel even more dreary...
The two of them seemed a little intimidated and clutched at the hems of my clothes as they walked.
"I feel like a g-ghost could jump out at any moment."
"You're s-so right..."
"...You two aren't scared of undead, but ghosts freak you out?"
"Of course they're scary! Undead, you hit them and they die, but ghosts don't die, do they?"
To me, the fact that monsters existed at all was far more terrifying. Even carnivorous rabbits were frightening.
"Eek! A-a maiden ghost in white just appeared in the window!"
"Eeek?!"
"Calling a house where people live haunted is rather rude, is it not?"
"S-sorry."
I had no choice but to apologize on behalf of the two idiots, over and over.
"No, I'm telling you, it was right there!"
But in the window Yuri was pointing at, something that did look like white cloth was indeed fluttering...
"You moron. That window is well taken care of. It's clean, no vines. That's someone's room."
"...Y-you called me a moron?! How dare you say that to me?!"
While she was sputtering all that nonsense, we'd arrived at the mansion's entrance. When we opened the front door, a butler dressed in black was there to greet us.
"Ah, Lady Ariel. You've returned."
"Mm."
The butler had a slender figure and looked a little taller than Yuri. A beauty with sharp eyes who gave off a brisk, efficient impression. Her dark brown hair was tied up, practically radiating the air of a career woman.
"And these people are...?"
"My guests. Fellow adventurers."
"Fellow adventurers..."
The butler’s ears perked up in puzzlement. ...Ears? Wait, this woman had ears on top of her head?! Was she a beastfolk?
I'd seen a cat-headed beastfolk while walking down a main street before, but this woman looked no different from an ordinary human wearing a headband with ears attached. Hang on, what about the tail, then?!
"Ack."
"Y-Yoo-jin! It's rude to, to stare at a person's... backside like that!"
No, the reason I was looking at that woman's backside was to confirm whether she really was a dog-type beastfolk! Because if she was, she might be a certain character I knew about! And you were the one who was making a scene about ghosts living in someone's house—don't you talk to me about being rude!
"Where is Niniel?"
"She is awake."
"Tell her I will be visiting shortly. We'll be in the drawing room."
"Understood."
While the rest of us were engaging in idiotic banter, Ariel guided us to the drawing room.
"Sit wherever you like. I'm a bit embarrassed to receive guests in such a shabby place."
"Shabby..."
Contrary to the exterior, the inside of the mansion was remarkably clean. The furniture was slightly old but clearly high-quality. The sofa was a little worn yet so soft that I might sink into it if I let my guard down, and the table was spotless.
"Whoa..."
I wasn't the only one impressed; the other two were looking around in every direction too.
...The way those two gawked around made them look like complete bumpkins. At least I needed to keep my composure.
"The word 'shabby' doesn't quite seem to fit. I'm not widely knowledgeable enough to speak with authority, but I doubt you'll find a mansion maintained to this standard very easily."
I meant every word. The only mansions I'd ever seen were the gold-plated nauseafests of nouveau riche on TV dramas, but this place was... well, the kind of place where the word 'antique' could be used in a genuinely positive sense.
"...Thank you. Rebecca will be pleased."
"Rebecca?"
"You saw her earlier. She does all the work around here on her own."
Rebecca... Rebecca, now that I thought of it...
"...!"
Right. I remembered. Shit! That woman was Rebecca!
#
Rebecca.
I didn't know her surname. An assassin who appeared in the north, just like Ariel.
Back when Ariel went on her rampage alongside Naias, the people in charge hadn't simply been sitting around twiddling their thumbs waiting for the heroes, naturally.
The nobles who held territories in the north assembled subjugation forces from their private soldiers and mercenaries. But before they could even confront Naias, every force was dismantled by a certain assassin.
That assassin didn't go so far as to kill them all. She merely infiltrated at night to poison their provisions, or assassinated a mercenary captain or the noble family's commander.
In the end, the assassin was captured by the group of heroes who arrived later and interrogated by the authorities to learn Naias’s whereabouts. But all they managed to discover was the name Rebecca.
I'd always wondered why an assassin had popped up out of nowhere during a spirit subjugation, but now it made sense: the elf had been her master.
Fine, I could acknowledge her loyalty, but an assassin!
Terrifying! Shit!
"Why are you trembling like that?"
"N-no, nothing."
-Knock, knock.
"Come in."
At Ariel’s permission, Rebecca brought in the tea. A cup was placed before each of us... and Rebecca poured the tea with a completely expressionless face... Terrifying! Shit, now that I looked more closely, what I had taken for a cool, sharp gaze looked like the eyes of a killer.
After serving a cup to everyone, Rebecca took a place behind Ariel's seat and stared... down at us. As though telling us to hurry up and drink.
The teacup set before me had somehow taken on an ominous hue. Purple—wasn't this poison?!
"Oh my, it's Northern Ailac."
"Wait—!"
Reni drank her tea before I could say a word. A pleased smile hung on her face. Now that very face would soon twist into hideous agony...!
"Yoo-jin? What's the matter?"
"...No, nothing."
Reni was perfectly fine. Somehow I got the feeling I'd been doing something stupid. You couldn't hold baseless prejudices against someone just because they were an assassin. Besides, I was a guest of her mistress. Though that gaze of hers was pretty oppressive.
After we'd sipped our tea for a while, Ariel opened her mouth.
"Right. I promised to tell you why I'm indebted to that person."
"Lady Ariel?!"
The iron-blooded assassin was visibly taken aback in that instant.
"It's fine. I've caused these people a great deal of trouble in many ways. And it's no longer such a secret story, is it."
"..."
After soothing Rebecca that way, Ariel began her tale.