Chapter 78
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: Biology Lesson
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Having entered Alvheim amid such lavish hospitality(?),
we crossed the massive gates beneath the World Tree into the royal palace. The architecture blended city and forest seamlessly, just like their race's innate affinity with nature.
The pristine sight drew the same exclamation from all of us.
"Oh..."
"Oh..."
"Oh..."
[Oh...]
The inner palace symbolized purity with its balanced white marble floors, lined with elegant wooden furniture.
Instead of a welcome, the Kanf Queen summoned a redheaded bob-cut Kanf.
"Send the Second Knight Order to retrieve the First Knight Order."
"Has something happened to the First Knight Order...?"
"Questions later."
"Yes, ma'am!"
She placed a hand over her heart, bowed, and headed out.
Only then did the Kanf Queen turn to us.
"Welcome to the inner palace. Your quarters are being prepared, so please wait a moment."
She led us to a reception room filled with wooden furniture.
The group’s eyes sparkled at the fresh, vibrant pieces.
"Wow... these are beautifully crafted in such a classic style."
"And the scent is amazing!"
As we looked around the room, the Kanf Queen spoke up.
"Crown Prince, could you come with me for a moment?"
I nodded and followed her gaze.
We arrived at a nearby parlor. I nodded to the attendants holding the door and sat on the sofa.
"So, shall we get to talking?"
The Kanf Queen sat across from me, sighed once, and began.
"Sigh... We originally requested troops... but someone far more important showed up than expected."
She'd wanted soldiers, but got someone hard to handle instead.
"I'm not one to hold back curiosity, but I don't plan to stay long either. You know Alvheim tested the waters by shoving the Third Princess at us first, right?"
Just checking how serious they were by using their daughter as bait... I had no intention of lingering.
-Slurp!
I took a sip of the tea an attendant offered and set it down.
The Queen ignored her cup and started sorting things out.
"Ha... I'm not here to haggle or anything, so cut the overthinking? I don't want to waste taxes stirring up trouble either."
A light remark for a crown prince of an empire, but I hoped she'd take it at face value, even a little.
'I just want to wrap this up and go home.'
Expecting the Kanfs to handle it themselves was unrealistic after seeing their level...
They were strong, sure, but not numerous enough.
The Queen seemed to reach a decision after some thought.
"I'll share the intel our hunters gathered... And I apologize for the prior rudeness."
"You've already checked everything out... Eh, whatever. I did rush over on short notice, so just send the info to the reception room."
As I set down the herbal-scented tea and rose to leave...
"You should be careful."
Not quite a provocation—more a candid warning. I looked at the Queen.
"...What do you sense?"
"Instinct."
A vague answer, but the intuition of someone at her level wasn't to be dismissed.
"Duly noted. I came to assess the situation, not solve it, so don't expect miracles."
I came to avoid the worst-case scenario. If it was too big, retreat was on the table.
Our people mattered more than Alvheim crumbling and causing headaches.
The Queen nodded.
"We'll treat this as an unofficial visit. Thank you for any help."
She sure loved freebies.
That meant no official debt.
Eh... no point squeezing a tiny kingdom anyway. I smirked and headed back to the reception room where the group waited.
"You're back?"
I waved off Jenia as she started to stand and spread out the intel the attendants brought.
"This matches what we heard. Increased magical beasts near Alvheim's borders. Focus on intel gathering over resolution this time."
"Yes!"
"If things go south, we bail—so report anything suspicious first. If it's just an ecosystem glitch... we don't need to fix it ourselves."
Everyone rummaged through their subs paces, saving locations to teleport scrolls.
As we checked supplies...
"Um... I want to come along too!"
The Kanf Princess stood at the door, her expression resolute as she shouted.
"Miss Anais?"
Veronica, digging through her subspace, gave her a puzzled look. The Princess stared back at Veronica for a moment before shouting again.
"You'll need a guide! And... I'm sensitive to environmental oddities, so I can help."
Guides could be handled with mana sensing, but she seemed useful for spotting subtle anomalies.
I tossed her a teleport scroll from my subspace.
"Ah!"
"Save your location there. Guard your own life."
Her face lit up. She eagerly infused the scroll with mana.
"Hee hee... Looking forward to working with you, Miss Anais!"
"Yeah!"
Watching Veronica, who got along with her, take the Kanf under her wing, I said,
"Alright! Let's scout quick and head home. Nothing beats your own bed."
I clapped and headed out.
"Let's finish this fast, honey!"
Lea perked up at "home," earning a suspicious glance from Jenia.
Nothing to do about it now, so Jenia nodded and followed.
Thus began our investigation.
Soon we reached the forest entrance. Dense trees blocked the sunlight, with no signs of cleared paths.
"This is the entrance to 'Moonview Forest.' Suspicious magical beasts have come down from around here, and powerful ones appear occasionally, so stay sharp."
I closed my eyes and focused my senses, but nothing stood out. We'd need to go deeper.
I turned to the Kanf.
"You're guiding from here. Speak up about anything off—no holding back."
"Yes."
The Kanf circulated mana and summoned a spirit.
"Sylvia, scout ahead. Alert me to anything suspicious."
The massive wind spirit nodded and headed into the forest.
"Let's go."
We trekked the rugged forest path for a while...
-Groooar!
Turning toward the roar, we spotted a magical beast bellowing amid the thick trees.
A hulking body, eyes glowing red, dripping black blood.
"Everyone see that? Observe first."
"Yes."
I hid us all with magic and approached the bear.
Up close, mangled wolf corpses littered its feet.
'That...'
Among the half-eaten bodies with torn lower halves dangled a blackened heart.
"Milord... it seems..."
"Haa... yeah."
Dark magic lingered in the sinister aura from its heart.
I dropped the concealment and looked up at the bear.
-Grrr... Roooar!!!
Unfazed by our sudden appearance, it charged. I pinned it with magic and slammed it down.
-Groooarrr...!!
Too noisy—I sealed its mouth too.
"Hmm... source seems to be the heart."
"Yeah. So something's definitely in this forest..."
"Wanna crack it open?"
"Th-that's a pretty strong beast..."
The Kanf blinked in shock as we treated it like a frog for dissection.
"Lancelot, slice from base to chin. No bisecting."
"Got it!"
Lancelot drew his sword smoothly and slit upward. Guts spilled out. The Kanf gulped as the beast thrashed silently.
"Veronica."
"Yes!"
I pried open the cavity, blocked the gushing blood with magic, and Veronica's holy power settled gently over it.
"Hmm... spreading from the heart?"
"Looks like. Other organs seem less corroded."
"Not ingestion-based infection then?"
"I think... we should check the head too."
"Ah, hit the head a bit?"
"Yes!"
"Urk!"
As we enjoyed this delightful biology lesson...
-Groooaaarrr!
A horde of beasts charged at incredible speed—bodies twice the gutted bear's size.
"Oh! These reek stronger. Let two live, kill the rest."
"Yes~"
"Honey, shield me?"
"Ah."
I coated everyone in thin barriers. Blood splatter's a mess otherwise.
Lea grinned at the enveloping mana.
"Hee hee... you get me."
Come to think of it... she nailed exactly what I wanted, somehow.
"Incoming!"
No time to dwell—the group leaped out, dispatching the horde.
Jenia bashed heads flat with her sword's flat side, sorting by type, nodded, and resumed hunting.
"Got samples! Kill 'em all!"
She yelled once, then charged back, carving beasts apart.
Lancelot, Jenia, and Lea rampaged gleefully.
The Kanf gawked at the shredded remains.
"Know the beasts' traits well?"
"Y-yes...? Yes!"
I lined up the strongest-emitting ones first.
"Watch close. Point out anything weird pronto."
"Yes!"
I nodded to the stiffened Kanf and gathered data.
"See here—these specimens have misaligned bones... signs of rapid growth."
"These vessels from the heart are unusually black. Probably hit the brain..."
"No... no fecal traces. Not clean eaters..."
"Teeth... too pristine. Some show intake traces, but..."
My expression hardened with each detail.
"Jenia! Lea! Over here!"
The two dashed over, mid-chop on the few remaining beasts.
"What?"
"Black magic affecting beasts, aside from Demon Lord's?"
They pondered, then shared.
"From memory, just summoning or taming."
Lea's answer crumpled Jenia's face.
"Doesn't feel like Demon Lord's work... these lack reason."
"No reason?"
The unprecedented phenomenon twisted their faces.
"Yeah... Demon Lord's beasts were rigidly ordered. Obeyed commands to the letter."
"Rapid growth cases?"
"Varies, but... bear-like beasts this numerous? Food chain collapse would've led to overpopulation and self-destruction."
"Princess, how many stronger than bears?"
"Not many..."
"Minimal intake on teeth too..."
"Then..."
"Yeah..."
Seemed the Heretics developed magic to artificially boost beast populations.
Far graver than expected—our faces darkened.