Chapter 132: Catfight (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 132: Catfight (4)
Only three of us entered Aztera: me, Narupa, and Levantello.
I already told you that Yarismal and Diane moved ahead for the operation, right?
"The plan is simple. We’ll make a scene inside Aztera to draw Krima’s attention. Meanwhile, we’ll track down Villen’s hiding spot and launch a concentrated strike."
"It is simple enough, but why are Lady Yarismal and Lady Diane acting separately?"
I shrugged at Levantello’s question.
"Those two are in charge of purifying the Duchy."
"Ah, forgive me. They have been entrusted with a far greater task than ours."
"We’re only handling Aztera, but Diane will use her space-time leaps to travel across the Duchy’s cities while Yarismal plants the holy relics one by one. Once the preparations are complete, they’ll begin the purification ritual immediately."
"Alto, surely you aren't suggesting we have to hold out until the ritual is finished?"
"Not necessarily."
I handed Levantello his spear and scanned our surroundings.
We should have started seeing zombies by now, but there wasn't a sign of life—or un-life.
Knowing Villen, that coward would have definitely hoarded a massive crowd at his base.
"Regardless of whether the ritual starts, we’re going to kill Villen. That’s the order of operations. We kill the source first, then perform the purification ritual to make the Duchy habitable again."
"Then, depending on the state of their preparations, there is a possibility that Lady Yarismal might join us."
"Exactly."
"I understand."
Narupa watched us as we bumped fists, looking at us as if we were being ridiculous.
Lowering her voice on purpose, she asked me, "Villen’s lackeys must be everywhere. Is it really okay to talk about the plan so openly?"
"It’s fine. That guy is simple-minded. Like I said before, he even relies on his host to make decisions. It won't be a problem at all."
"If he hates living and thinking for himself that much, he should just go ahead and die."
"I wholeheartedly agree. Why even bother living?"
"I have had that same thought more than once," Levantello added.
It was truly impressive how Villen managed to make all three of us recoil in disgust with such unity.
Narupa held her staff and focused for a moment, then began chanting at an incomprehensible speed.
It sounded as if multiple different incantations were overlapping and echoing over one another.
"Engage!"
As she slammed her staff against the ground, a massive wave of mana surged outward.
I and Levantello stared blankly at the spell, which was powerful enough to generate actual wind pressure. Narupa nonchalantly brushed her hair back.
"You said we needed to draw attention, right?"
"I did, but..."
"I used a heat-detection spell. Based on what you told me, he should be hiding somewhere with his host, right? Undead don't have body heat anyway."
Is she a genius? No, wait, she always was a genius.
That’s exactly why Resin used to throw those fits of inferiority.
"As expected of Lord Bisharen’s daughter."
"She hates that comparison."
"He's right. Please don't lump me in with that sociopath."
"Hmm... Ah, Lord Bisharen used to go around every day saying he would make Alto his son-in-law."
"That’s the only thing I like about my father. But did you know? That man had no money, so I didn't inherit a single cent. If anything, I was plagued by his debts."
"What? Did the Kingdom not provide a bereavement payout?"
"There was such a thing?"
This was news to both me and Narupa.
Levantello seemed to realize something was wrong, as his voice trailed off.
"I am certain they announced at the first Victory Commemoration Ceremony that they would provide compensation..."
"Narupa, did Rune get anything?"
"No? Do you have any idea how much the Count struggled to rebuild Hus after the war?"
"Hah..."
This was absurd.
"They didn't even pay the Four Heroes who killed the Demon King? This world is truly something else."
"I'll ask Yarismal about it later, Alto."
I was losing all respect for this place.
It was an old story now, but even Arasen, who had served in the rear, said she was only given a single wagon as compensation.
Thinking about how Arasen ended up made my mood plummet instantly.
"We want love!"
"We want our own Alto!"
Right on cue, those garbage slogans reached my ears.
Thinking about Arasen made me even angrier.
My name wasn't originally meant to be used like that.
It became a symbol because Arasen’s sobbing screams to Fran—about how she just wanted to be loved by a man like me—had echoed through the plaza.
"Fine. That Alto is right here."
Do you hear me, Krima?
"I'm here, so what are you going to do about it?"
That wasn't a slogan to be mouthed by a stupid woman who didn't even realize she was being used.
The shouting of the undead stopped.
One by one, they turned their gaze toward me.
Even the ones whose eyeballs weren't properly attached.
The undead filled every alleyway in Aztera.
They all opened their mouths in unison to chant.
"Lord Alto."
"Krima."
"Why are you here...?"
"Why? I suppose you never wanted to be in the same place as me."
"N-no. It’s not like that...!"
When I spoke self-deprecatingly, Krima flustered.
Controlling a hive mind didn't just have perks.
It was painfully obvious how she was scrambling for words, her eyes darting around through her puppets.
"Lord Alto, I prepared the Duchy for you. I arranged this to apologize for all the wrongs I’ve done to you, so please...!"
"You've got to be kidding me."
"Pardon?"
Look around.
The eerily silent buildings and the chill lingering in the lifeless streets.
"You turned an entire country into this mess and you’re saying you did it for me?"
"G-God chose this place as the land where I should offer my apologies to you. I didn't do this without thinking."
"God, huh? I wouldn't know. I’ve never spoken to him, so I have no idea what kind of person he is."
"That is blasphemy!"
"Right. So why did God tell a blasphemer like me to take the Duchy? And by killing every single citizen? What use is a land without a single person in it? And what exactly are you apologizing for?"
Krima the Priestess.
A woman easily swept away by her surroundings.
If you push her, she’ll hesitate and cave in.
But I never did that to her.
Even when I invited her to the party, I gave her plenty of time to think.
I told her to weigh her options and decide for herself, and that I would respect whatever choice she made.
And Krima, you said you joined because you trusted that attitude of mine.
I made sure to ask for your opinion and let you decide on even the simplest things.
But perhaps that was too much pressure for you.
You struggled to even pick a lunch menu, and in the dungeons, you preferred to follow Mirei’s orders with a sigh of relief.
Without even bothering to distinguish whether those orders were right or wrong.
"The Duchy is fertile land! The 40 million Dalk debt I saddled you with is a joke compared to the value of this territory!"
"What? What did you say?"
"Whether you farm here or do something else, you can earn several times more than 40 million Dalk a year!"
"Krima, say that again. What?"
"Oh, honestly! I’m saying that if you farm and sell grain or start a business here, you’ll make much more than the 40 million Dalk I owed...!"
"You crazy bitch—!!!!!"
My roar thundered through Aztera.
"You killed all the people of the Duchy just to try and pay me back?! Does that even make sense?!"
"L-Lord Alto..."
"Look at yourself. Look at you, dragging around these undead who can neither live nor die! You’re saying this was done under God’s guidance? What kind of God plays soldier with lives caught between the border of life and death?!"
"No matter if it’s you, Lord Alto, insulting God is..."
"Or what?"
"......."
"Well? What are you going to do about it?"
I looked around... damn it, they were all moving their mouths at the same time, so I couldn't tell which one I should be looking at to talk to.
"You betrayed me from the very beginning. Who do you think you are? You’re just a filthy adulteress. Resin and Mirei were busy sleeping with Claude in the party house I paid for—what guarantee is there that you didn't do the same?"
"I never did that!!"
"Ge... I don't even remember his name. Ah, Gerend. Do you think I didn't know you went out to frolic with that bastard and Diane on my birthday? Did you think I wouldn't find out the goddamn fact that my own party members were the ones who helped the entire city treat me like a total fool?!"
"Lord Alto!"
The undead parted to the left and right, and Krima finally appeared from between them.
Finally! I get to see that face in person.
"That’s why I... I’m trying to give you the whole country, not just a city. Why won't you understand my heart?"
Krima rushed toward me, grabbing my hand and half-kneeling as she pleaded.
"I have to understand your heart? Back then, I understood that you saw me as an obstacle, so I left on my own, didn't I? Before that, I understood you, so I even took out a 40-million Dalk loan for you. I did everything you wanted, so why do you keep trying to show up in front of me?"
"I was wrong about everything. I did it all to pay you back... to make amends. Please, just listen to me a little more. I’ll tell you how I feel, please!"
It was all so pathetic.
"Preparing something on your own, forcing it on me while asking for forgiveness, and then one-sidedly ranting about how you've been feeling... you’re exactly like Resin."
I shook off Krima’s hand and stepped back.
"Krima San. We have come to Aztera at the request of the Adventurer Guild headquarters and the Church’s Council of Elders. We are here to eliminate the demons that have taken root in the Duchy."
"I see. I’ll help you. If even the Council of Elders requested it, it must be a serious matter. I’ll join you. I’m different than before. I’ve changed!"
"The target for extermination is Villen of Dependence, one of the Four Heavenly Kings."
The undead flinched just now.
They felt the pressure instinctively.
I drew Roar and Howling and aimed them at Krima.
"And his host, the traitor of the Church, Krima San."
"...What?"
Rumble!
Narupa raised her staff.
Blazing mana surged within her eyes.
"Levantello, get back!"
"Understood!"
Now,
The hunt begins.
"Burn to ashes!!!!"
With Narupa’s incantation, the entire area of Aztera was engulfed in flames.