Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Preparing for the First Vacation
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“Hmm. A failure, you say? Even after deploying all those personnel and equipment, it was still a failure…”
Ludwig Brandt looked down at his reporting subordinate from his chair as the Director of Intelligence, his expression one of utter boredom.
“My apologies. We managed to corner them in Kanta Village, but the White Mercenary Corps’ forces were stronger than anticipated. We never expected them to commit their full strength…”
The subordinate standing before Ludwig Brandt felt a chill run down his spine and swallowed dryly.
In this position, one had to weigh every single word, every choice of vocabulary.
The man before him despised any talk of failure, as if he had a compulsion for success.
The failure had been truly unexpected. They had thought they could capture Kanta Village before the White Mercenary Corps’ reinforcements arrived.
But at the most unbelievable moment, the White Mercenary Corps, who had been out on a mission, returned and slaughtered all the monsters.
The subsequent second and third waves were on the verge of success, but they ended in failure when the wave tower installed in the center of the desert collapsed.
“On top of that, the ruin excavation camp was wiped out. And the ruin itself has vanished.”
An ominous red energy swirled in Ludwig Brandt’s hand.
“The research data went up in smoke. The antenna is beyond repair. The demonic energy has scattered across the desert.”
“Forgive me…”
There was nothing he could do but tremble and bow his head even lower.
Had it only been the monster wave that failed, things might have been different. But the most critical mission had ended in failure. The research personnel, the research data, even the ruin itself—all had evaporated.
This was no small matter. The excavation of certain ruins, in particular, was one of the Intelligence Bureau’s highest priorities.
And they were acting as a direct instrument of the Emperor, carrying out his orders.
In other words, the failure of this mission was not just a simple failure.
“Failure is death. I suppose I’ll have to take your useless life in its place.”
The flames that began in Ludwig Brandt’s hand…
“Guaaaargh—!”
…began to burn the subordinate before him alive.
With each scream he let out as he burned, a dark energy flowed out like threads and was absorbed by Ludwig.
“Hmph. Clean this up.”
Watching the body turn to charcoal in a matter of seconds, Ludwig waved his hand with an indifferent expression.
A figure then rose from the shadows and cleared away the charred remains as if absorbing them.
“What happened?”
“It is as the report states. By a stroke of luck, the mercenary corps managed to stop the first wave just before Kanta Village fell. Afterward, they deployed several more units and established a defensive posture.”
“To hear the word ‘luck’ come so easily from your lips is absurd. There is no such thing as luck in this world.”
The man, shimmering like a shadow, simply bowed his head, awaiting Ludwig’s next words.
“Hmm. I wonder where the intelligence breach occurred. What variable could have interfered?”
He knew the question was not meant to be answered.
“Raise the threat level of the White Mercenary Corps. Additionally, increase the alert level for all other ruin sites. This must never happen again.”
“Understood.”
“And accelerate the improvements on the antenna. It’s troublesome when it cuts out like that.”
They were an exceptionally grating bunch. And the charges against them were numerous.
“If this were wartime, I’d have thrown them all in Alcatraz. A real shame.”
But the time was not yet right. Not yet.
***
“Information? Information on whom?”
- “Mainly on individuals related to Lord Prometheus. People like Theos Thule, Clara Renoir, and Haveron.”
Mike Hoare nodded, understanding why Kratos had requested that information from Peri Batoni’s words.
The names he mentioned were all people close to Lord Prometheus.
Their current circumstances were all different. Some had joined the Empire, some were living in squalor, and some had vanished without a trace.
‘Figures from the past. It makes sense he’d look for them. Lord Prometheus, for all his grumbling, had a soft heart. He must be trying to find others who can help.’
He was the only one who knew the secret that Kratos was the one carrying on Lord Prometheus’s will.
Therefore, even Batoni didn't know the exact reason for the request. He was simply reporting it because it was related to Lord Prometheus.
“Give it to him. Make it as detailed as possible. Include top-secret, confidential files. Ah, but limit it to just five people. Offer other compensation for what’s missing.”
- “Top-secret files? Understood. I will organize them and have them delivered.”
A surprised voice came from over the receiver, but Batoni had always trusted Mike Hoare, so he quickly composed himself.
“I’ll be out of contact for a while. It seems I have to go deep into the mountain range.”
- “Please be careful.”
“I’ll see you when I get back. Take good care of the corps until then.”
Even if he was His Lordship’s disciple, he couldn't lay everything bare.
His true intentions were not yet clear, even if they both sought the same revenge. That was also why he had set a limit of five people.
He was curious to see what choices Kratos would make and how he would react upon receiving their information.
How long had it been since he felt this intrigued? A small bit of fun in an otherwise tedious life, I suppose.
“Yes. Well, this is a kind of fun, I suppose.”
“Guh…”
The knight squirming under Mike Hoare’s foot let out a groan.
“They’ve been up to some very interesting things in the desert. Of course, I don’t expect you to know anything about that.”
“How dare you! Treason against the Empire…”
“Haha. The current Empire was once a kingdom that dared to wage war against an empire. How quickly the frog forgets it was once a tadpole.”
The knight’s expression showed he wanted nothing more than to shove aside the foot pressing on his head and slice off Mike Hoare’s neck.
Unfortunately, the knight lacked the skill to do so. That was why he and all his men were lying on the cold ground, wasn’t it?
“Grrgh…”
As the foot pressed down harder on his head, the blood vessels in his eyes burst, turning them crimson, and he could no longer form proper words.
*Crunch—*
“Just like cockroaches. No matter how many you kill, they just keep coming back.”
Thick demonic energy flowed from the shattered head, like a creeping fog.
“Prepare to move out!”
For some reason, the Empire’s presence in the Shadow Mountains was relentless. That was why Mike Hoare had come here himself.
The knight dead at his feet had surely entered this place with the same objective.
At Mike Hoare’s command, the mercenaries who had accompanied him on the mission dusted themselves off and stood up.
A desolate camp. Bodies piled up like mountains. Among them, not a single mercenary corpse was to be seen.
“Listen up, you bastards! We’re heading deeper in. You heard the news from the desert, right? We can’t let those guys get ahead of us, can we? Mwahahaha—!”
Mike Hoare let out a loud, hearty laugh, his expression one of immense satisfaction.
***
“Hmm. It looks even more splendid now.”
Dwalin looked at the hammer and nodded with a satisfied expression.
It was Dwalin’s philosophy that weapons existed to be used for their intended purpose.
“Still, you should take better care of your weapons, Death Worm Slayer.”
“Oh, Death Worm Slayer is too much praise. In fact, I came here because I wanted to learn how to maintain it. It’s a fine weapon, so it deserves proper care, but I am too inexperienced… Haha.”
“Hmph. It’s only because it’s a weapon I made that it’s in this condition. A normal hammer would have cracked long ago.”
The marks of battle. And the bloodstains that hadn’t been completely wiped away.
It meant the hammer, which had been sleeping in the storage, had finally fulfilled its role. How could he not be satisfied?
“Of course, it’s a hammer made by the one and only Dwalin, the third child of the fourth descendant of the tenth master of the Iron Hammer. You should have seen it, piercing the Death Worm by driving its horn into it with this hammer.”
“Khaha. That must have been a sight to behold. I can read it well enough, what this weapon has been through. This fellow here is happy about it, yes he is.”
It seemed Dwalin truly was a master craftsman. His expression suggested he wasn’t just saying it to sound impressive.
Besides, the hammer was also quite satisfactory. It was withstanding this ridiculous strength of mine, after all.
The reason I had sought out Dwalin was because I needed an additional weapon, using the extra reward I received from the desert mission.
I just couldn't forget the feel of it in my hands.
“So. What do you need this time? As for repairing this one, you can just leave it with me.”
“Do you have something like a crowbar?”
“Huh? A crowbar? A cro-w-bar? Are you asking me for a crowbar? Me, a master craftsman? Not a magic sword or a suit of armor, but a crowbar?”
“Yes. I used to use a crowbar, and the feel of it was… well, let’s just say a sturdy one would be perfect. The one I used before bent too easily.”
“You crazy bastard. How do you use a crowbar to make it bend?”
“Well, I did crack a few orc skulls with it back in Rzhev.”
At Kratos’s words, Dwalin thought for a moment, then, recalling something, disappeared into the storeroom without a word.
Could it be that he even has a crowbar in that storeroom?
“This one should do nicely.”
Dwalin came out holding a long, white material that had a slight sheen to it.
“Ethernelle. It’ll be perfect for a brute like you. It’s absolutely unbreakable.”
Ethernelle. I’d heard of it. The eternal mineral. Not in a good way.
It was known to be a mineral of extreme difficulty to refine, making it hard to fashion into a weapon, with the only method being to carve it with another tool made of Ethernelle.
However, it was renowned for its hardness, and it had the distinct advantage of being able to channel energy well.
Whatever that energy might be.
“There’s not enough to make a proper weapon. It’ll be perfect for you. A crowbar. Ha. I doubt I’ll ever meet another one like you in my life. Come back in three days. I’ll have it carved by then.”
***
After commissioning the weapon from Dwalin, Peri Batoni’s secretary handed me a rather thick security file, saying it was the requested data.
“Please review this alone. The security code is here.”
Naturally, it took many things to grow a kingdom into an empire. It could be money, or it could be time.
But the one thing that was most lacking was, without a doubt, talent. An absolute shortage of good people.
That was why I had appointed and recommended countless individuals. Among them were certainly people close to me.
“But then I suddenly died. Framed for some bullshit, no less.”
So, what would have happened to the people left behind?
If I were to weigh the odds of the Empire saying, ‘You didn’t commit treason, right? We believe you,’ against them saying, ‘You’re an accomplice, too! Confess!’ while torturing them, I would bet everything I have on the latter.
As the saying goes, a stream is only as clean as its source. The effort I put into making that source clear… just thinking about it brings tears to my eyes.
The list of requested individuals totaled five—the number Peri Batoni had said was possible.
That was with the condition of including top-secret, confidential information. This was enough. What mattered was getting started.
Of course, seeing as they compensated for the missing parts with other rewards, it was clear that Mike Hoare had set the limit at five, even though I could have gotten more.
He never lets go of his suspicions all at once.
Why does Mike Hoare seem even more stubborn than before?
Upon entering the security code, the seal on the thick file, stamped with a bright red ‘Confidential,’ broke, revealing its contents.
“Just as I thought.”
As I read the contents of the file, my heart, which had just been pounding, cooled rapidly.
No, it didn’t just cool; it sank into a cold abyss.
Theos Thule had been branded a co-conspirator in the rebellion with me, and his entire family had been annihilated. His wife and even his young daughter.
Clara Renoir and Adson Inken had apparently decided to become the Empire’s dogs, taking the lead in proclaiming Prometheus’s treason and continuing to live as nobles.
Of course, I had no intention of blaming them for their betrayal. If they had been tainted by demonic energy, that would be a different matter entirely.
I had expected it, but it was still irritating. Who should I trust now? Who can I trust?
“Hattie Shaw. And Haveron.”
Hattie Shaw was missing, her fate unknown. As for Haveron…
“Huuu…”
I took a deep breath and exhaled, trying to calm my boiling emotions.
He was living at the bottom. In the slums. A miserable existence at the very lowest rung of society.
And as for Hattie Shaw…
Yes, she must be alive. I don’t know where, but she must be.
I’ll have to look for her, but there’s a definite possibility she returned to her old life.
“Looks like I won’t be getting any rest on my vacation.”
The leave I earned after finishing this mission was quite long. Of course, I’d have to return quickly if anything urgent came up.
It feels like I’ve been given a mountain of homework for the break.
First, find the survivors. Second, recover the remnants of my past identity.
This feels like going to retrieve my inventory items after dying in a game.