Chapter 278: Something is Strange (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 278: Something is Strange (3)
A few days after Alon began his journey toward Greinif.
“Ah—is this what they call solitude?”
[Have you started your nonsense again?]
“Shut it, snake-head.”
[I would have stayed quiet if you weren’t spouting such rubbish.]
[Kyuuu—]
Alon watched Evan and Basiliora engage in their habitual bickering before turning his gaze toward Penia, who had suddenly called out to him.
“Marquis?”
“What is it?”
“Oh, it’s just that you looked so serious. I wondered what was weighing on your mind.”
He shook his head lightly, as if it were nothing.
“No, I was just recalling what Evan told me earlier.”
“Ah, you mean that information.”
Evan had brought back news when he stopped by a village.
There were three main points.
The first concerned the underworld.
Due to the recent explosive increase in Abyss Bodies, the public security of the United Kingdoms was rapidly deteriorating.
Perhaps even more so than in the Psychedelia Alon originally knew.
“……Hmm.”
Of course, since he had only heard about it, he couldn’t accurately compare whether the situation was more disastrous than what he had encountered in the game.
However, it was clear that there was a problem.
‘……Is someone creating Abyss Bodies again, like last time?’
Alon continued to deduce the source of the creatures.
“Well, there certainly was a lot of noteworthy information. Especially—who was it? Elivan? I heard that fellow has been making quite a name for himself lately,” Penia added, nodding in agreement with Alon’s thoughts.
She was right.
Elivan was gaining a massive reputation, following the same heroic path players took in Psychedelia from the start of the original story.
‘No, he’s actually moving faster than in the original.’
In Alon’s memory, Elivan only gained serious fame after dealing with the first of the Five Great Sins, which appeared midway through the game.
In other words, according to the original timeline, that should have been at least a year away.
Yet the current Elivan had become famous rapidly by clearing Strange Gates at an incredible pace, even without having defeated a Sin yet.
“Hmm—”
Of course, this was a very good thing for Alon.
The harder Elivan worked, the more peaceful the world would become.
‘Thinking like this makes me feel like some great hero worried about global security.’
Despite his stoic expression, Alon felt a strange sensation.
Come to think of it, he had only wanted to live a quiet, leisurely life without bothering anyone or doing anything…… How did he end up here?
The thought struck him anew.
Naturally, Alon’s actions were fundamentally rooted in his own well-being.
He was going through all this trouble to reach his grand yet simple goal: ‘to live a peaceful and abundant life, eating and playing without a single worry.’
……Well, the to-do list had grown a bit long for such a modest goal.
Still, he wasn’t particularly dissatisfied. Most of what he did was because he wanted to, not just because he had to.
“But the thing you’re most concerned about is that, right?”
“……?”
Penia fidgeted with her fingers and spoke cautiously.
“Yes. The—the rumor that you’re getting married to the Elf Queen.”
“I was curious about that too. Is it true?”
Evan, who had been squabbling with Basiliora, chimed in. Alon looked at him with dead eyes.
“Do you think it’s true?”
“It’s not?”
“Of course not. Didn’t I tell you earlier?”
When Evan first brought the news, Alon had clearly stated it was a false rumor.
Evan shrugged.
“You did say that, but I’m asking because there are so many cases where people deny things only for them to turn out true.”
“When has there ever been a case—”
Alon started to retort but stopped.
Now that he thought about it, it wasn’t as if such things had never happened.
But he quickly dismissed the thought.
“Anyway, it’s absolutely not true. The rumor must have been distorted somewhere along the line.”
“……Then what’s strange is, aren’t the Nonhuman Alliance and the United Kingdoms usually on bad terms?”
“They are.”
“Then how did that rumor spread?”
“Ah, that’s a good point.”
Penia agreed with Evan’s question.
Alon also pondered for a moment where such a rumor could have originated before finally offering a guess.
“From my perspective, the most likely source is Ashtalon.”
“Ashtalon?”
“Yes, because Kurak is there.”
“Anyway, if it really is a false rumor, it’s going to be quite troublesome.”
“Well, it is a bit embarrassing.”
The only person likely to relay news from the reclusive Nonhuman Alliance to the United Kingdoms was Kurak in Ashtalon.
Just then.
Thump—!
As if on cue, a massive sound echoed from somewhere deep within the silent forest.
“?”
“?”
Alon immediately looked toward the source of the noise.
“What was that?”
“Eh—probably just some monsters fighting and knocking over a tree or two, right?”
Alon thought it sounded a bit too loud for that, but he soon lost interest.
It was a lazy afternoon, with the leaves shimmering vibrantly in the sunlight.
* * *
“Are we almost there?”
By the time Alon arrived near Greinif.
In the capital of the Ashtalon Kingdom.
“Sigh—”
Shuhtalian V let out a heavy sigh.
It wasn’t that anything major had happened.
Everything was running smoothly.
The suppression of bandits, who had recently increased in number, was proceeding quite well.
The secret project regarding the Strange Gates, conducted in tandem with the Lizardmen, was also progressing without a hitch.
The reason for the concern on Shuhtalian V’s face was a series of bizarre occurrences that had started recently.
‘What on earth is going on……?’
Shuhtalian V had been plagued by bad luck lately.
Of course, it wasn’t anything catastrophic.
A few inconvenient incidents happened every day.
For example, he would suddenly trip while walking on a perfectly flat marble floor, or he would wake up gasping after being struck by something in his sleep. Minor things like that.
However, if those minor things happened every single day for nearly two weeks, anyone would become exhausted.
‘Why is this happening to me……?’
Shuhtalian looked at his reflection in the mirror.
Anyone could see his complexion was terrible.
His eyes were sunken from the nightmares that began a week ago, and his body was covered in bruises.
‘……There’s definitely something behind this.’
After two weeks of this, Shuhtalian V instinctively realized that something was afoot.
However, the fact that he couldn’t figure out why this was happening to him only added to his stress.
“Huu—”
He took a deep breath to calm his mind.
Though his days were filled with misfortune, the day he had been waiting for had arrived.
‘Is it today?’
Kurak was supposed to return today with the results he desired.
Recalling that fact, Shuhtalian V headed to his office with a slightly lighter step.
And then.
“Your Majesty.”
“What is it?”
“A letter has arrived.”
“……A letter?”
“Yes.”
He felt a brief moment of confusion at the report delivered as soon as he arrived.
Upon receiving the letter from his subordinate, Shuhtalian V—
“What in the……?”
His hands trembled involuntarily in shock.
He couldn’t help it.
The letter he had just received was one he knew all too well—
“A—A Re-education Letter?”
It was a Re-education Letter.
“???”
Shuhtalian V stared blankly at the letter, unable to even open it, realizing that something had gone horribly, horribly wrong.
He couldn’t understand it.
He hadn’t done anything wrong, and his relationship with Rosario wasn’t bad.
In fact, when the recent crisis occurred in Rosario, he—like the other kingdoms—had donated a massive sum for the recovery efforts.
In short, there was absolutely no reason for the relationship between Rosario and Shuhtalian V to be strained.
The subordinate who delivered the letter broke into a cold sweat and bowed his head deeply.
Shuhtalian V managed to open the letter with trembling hands.
“……!”
He saw the contents.
Or rather, he saw a piece of paper so torn and tattered that it was hard to even call it a letter.
‘What…… what is this?’
He fumbled to check the contents, but he couldn't read a thing.
The parts where the words were written were so shredded, as if they had been hacked at with a blade, that they were impossible to decipher.
“…….”
Furthermore, a small fragment of a pen nib, glinting in the light, was embedded in the corner of the stationery.
There was only one thing Shuhtalian V could conclude from this letter.
The person who wrote this had done so in a state of absolute, towering rage.
Shuhtalian V swallowed hard.
Then, he realized.
He realized who the sender of this letter was.
“……Cardinal Yutia?”
Cardinal Yutia Bloodia.
The person who currently held the real power in Rosario and, with the Pope missing, wielded more authority than even the Saint.
“…….”
His brow furrowed in a mix of bewilderment and dawning realization.
Fundamentally, the United Kingdoms respected Rosario.
But this was a separate matter.
For a Cardinal of Rosario to threaten the King of a nation with a Re-education Letter that didn’t even contain a legible message was clearly crossing the line.
“Bring me stationery immediately.”
Shuhtalian V called for his subordinate, intending to send a reply instead of visiting in person—
“No, there’s no need for that.”
At the sound of a woman’s voice, he turned his head reflexively.
“I wanted to see you so badly that I came myself.”
Their eyes met.
With a gentle smile playing on her lips,
And jewel-like crimson eyes—
……No, with eyes that were utterly terrifying, Yutia Bloodia was staring at Shuhtalian V.
“So, do you have a moment? Your Majesty.”
A chilling killing intent radiated from her entire body, enough to make one’s breath hitch just by looking at her.
By any standard, this was a gross breach of etiquette.
She had entered the King’s office without permission and was now forcing an audience under the guise of asking for one.
This was the kind of thing Shuhtalian V hated most.
Normally, he would have barked out a reprimand instantly, so he took a deep breath.
No matter how powerful the person before him was, he was the King of a nation and had to maintain his dignity.
“Cardinal Yutia. Even so—”
But.
Creeeeeak—!
The moment he opened his mouth, he saw it.
The massive iron door Yutia had entered through, engraved with various patterns, was crumpled like a piece of scrap paper.
Shuhtalian V was a King.
Therefore, his judgment was also swift.
“Even so—?”
“—Of course I have time.”
He answered immediately to Yutia’s prompt.
As if satisfied, Yutia smiled brightly and took another step forward.
“I’m glad, Your Majesty. I would have been quite disappointed otherwise.”
“……I’m glad as well.”
A reign spanning over twenty years.
Having avoided a catastrophe with a masterful pivot, Shuhtalian V—
‘Did I…… survive?’
Secretly gave himself a round of applause for his survival.