Chapter 384: Us (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 384: Us (3)
[The labyrinth is now closed. You are being transported to Rafdonia.]
I felt the sunlight of the outside world on my skin for the first time in almost two months. Perhaps because I had spent the past few days in Atlante deep under the sea, the light felt even stronger than usual.
Humans definitely need light.
Taking a moment to look up at the gloomy sky like the rest of the adventurers around me, I quickly headed to the checkpoint.
"Over here!" Erwen, who had arrived first, waved at me. When I joined her in line, it wasn't long before Amelia arrived.
"You're late."
"It took me a surprisingly long time to find him," Amelia answered and glanced at the navigator, who was awkwardly standing to her right.
"I guess it was true they entered through the square in District Seven with us."
"This guy doesn't lie."
Jeez, how long has it been since you met, again? How can you be so sure?
I was a little dumbfounded, but I didn't let it show. "Were there any issues?"
"None. He stayed put and waited until I came to get him." Amelia's voice was full of pride. Was she that pleased that he had listened to her?
On the other hand, the navigator Auyen Rockrobe seemed to finally process his situation. "Hehehe..." As soon as his eyes met mine, he put on a business-like smile. I kind of felt bad for him, but since they were the ones who targeted us first, I also thought it was karma.
"It's our turn now."
After waiting in line for a while, we soon reached the front, exchanged all our mana stones for money, and passed through the checkpoint. A street full of people appeared before us. From here, we moved in a different formation. Amelia was positioned at the very back and the navigator was right in front of her.
"Haha... I-I'm not going to run away..."
"You could get lost while following us."
"I've lived in District Seven for twenty years..." the sailor mumbled, but he didn't try to break out of formation as we traveled through the crowded streets and arrived at our home. "This is the place...?" Eventually, we arrived at a three-story mansion. As we walked past the high walls and entered the yard, the navigator gaped in admiration. But I guessed he noticed that something was off as he did. "Why are the windows all..." The navigator wasn't able to finish his sentence. His eyes were locked on the boarded-up windows.
"Don't worry about it. It's a security measure."
"Ah, right..." He didn't say much but the navigator's eyes and expression held a mix of both curiosity and fear. He seemed to be wondering who the hell we were to be living in a house like this.
Come to think of it, I think he's already figured out who Erwen is... I should check on that later.
Once we crossed through the garden and into the house, we decided to assign one of the remaining rooms to the navigator after some discussion. It was a room located in the basement.
"...Basement? We have a basement?"
When I tilted my head, Erwen blushed shyly. "I deliberately looked for a house with one. Since, you never know..."
Well, I had heard rich people often had panic rooms in their houses.
Creak, creak, creak.
Despite feeling somewhat uncomfortable, I watched Erwen remove the carpet and operate the mechanism to reveal the stairs. As we headed down, a space that seemed to have been designed as a storage room appeared before us. It was completely empty, as we had never filled it with anything. In the deepest part was a thick iron door with a lock.
Rattle.
When Erwen took out the key and opened the door, a room with a large bed appeared. I didn't know why, but there were also restraints on the wall.
"This... isn't a room, it's a prison..." The navigator's face paled as he took in his assigned room. Actually, I felt similarly. For some reason, chills ran down my spine as soon as I saw the room in the basement. Well, it wasn't my problem, though.
"...Prison? It's just an ordinary room. Look, there's even a toilet and bathroom. It's nice you don't have to share it with anyone." I cleared my throat. "Ahem-hem, anyway, I'm going to head up. I'm suddenly not feeling well..."
Ugh, why is my heart pounding so much? It's not like I'm claustrophobic.
When I shoved the navigator into the room and closed the door, Erwen quickly locked it.
Rattle.
"W-Wait! Wait!"
Bang, bang, bang!
The navigator banged on the door but all of us pretended not to hear it.
"Can I hold onto the key?" asked Amelia.
"Sure."
Amelia took custody of the key, thus settling the issue of the navigator's sleeping quarters. I was sure she'd take care of feeding him too.
There was something else I'd been wondering. "Emily, is that poison real? A poison that kills you if you don't take the antidote every day? I've never heard of it."
It sounded like something a Poison Witch from a Wuxia novel could do. The typical cliché was that the demonic cult used poison like that to threaten and manipulate members of the righteous sect into becoming their subordinates. If this was a real thing, I could think of various ways it could be useful in the future.
"I guess you have a naïve side to you, too, Schuitz."
"...Huh?"
"There's no way a poison like that exists. Thankfully, that guy doesn't seem to know much about poison."
"Ah..." So it was a bluff after all. I was only checking because it seemed kind of possible.
"Whaaat?" Just then, Erwen recoiled. "The poison... it doesn't exist...?" For some reason, she sounded very disappointed. I couldn't just ignore that, so I asked if she needed it for something. Erwen averted her eyes. "Y-You never know..."
What exactly don't I know?
I wanted to ask her to elaborate but I stopped, figuring I wouldn't get a proper answer anyway.
***
The first day after returning from the labyrinth, everyone spent time resting in their respective rooms. Starting the next day, however, we got busy. We weren't just dealing with one or two bits of loot, after all.
"Erwen, you should go with me," said Amelia.
"Eh? Me? But you can do it alone—"
"Are you saying you can't do it for Schuitz?"
"...That's not what I meant."
From the second day onward, Erwen and Amelia were in and out of the house exchanging the loot for cash, and I spent most of my time guarding the house.
"Schuitz, I've prepared the food for him and set it out on the table in order, so just bring it to him on time."
Aside from going down to the basement every breakfast, lunch, and dinner, my daily routine was nothing special.
Rattle.
When Erwen took out the key and opened the door, a room with a large bed appeared. I didn't know why, but there were also restraints on the wall.
"This... isn't a room, it's a prison..." The navigator's face paled as he took in his assigned room. Actually, I felt similarly. For some reason, chills ran down my spine as soon as I saw the room in the basement. Well, it wasn't my problem, though.
"...Prison? It's just an ordinary room. Look, there's even a toilet and bathroom. It's nice you don't have to share it with anyone." I cleared my throat. "Ahem-hem, anyway, I'm going to head up. I'm suddenly not feeling well..."
Ugh, why is my heart pounding so much? It's not like I'm claustrophobic.
When I shoved the navigator into the room and closed the door, Erwen quickly locked it.
Rattle.
"W-Wait! Wait!"
Bang, bang, bang!
The navigator banged on the door but all of us pretended not to hear it.
"Can I hold onto the key?" asked Amelia.
"Sure."
Amelia took custody of the key, thus settling the issue of the navigator's sleeping quarters. I was sure she'd take care of feeding him too.
There was something else I'd been wondering. "Emily, is that poison real? A poison that kills you if you don't take the antidote every day? I've never heard of it."
It sounded like something a Poison Witch from a Wuxia novel could do. The typical cliché was that the demonic cult used poison like that to threaten and manipulate members of the righteous sect into becoming their subordinates. If this was a real thing, I could think of various ways it could be useful in the future.
"I guess you have a naïve side to you, too, Schuitz."
"...Huh?"
"There's no way a poison like that exists. Thankfully, that guy doesn't seem to know much about poison."
"Ah..." So it was a bluff after all. I was only checking because it seemed kind of possible.
"Whaaat?" Just then, Erwen recoiled. "The poison... it doesn't exist...?" For some reason, she sounded very disappointed. I couldn't just ignore that, so I asked if she needed it for something. Erwen averted her eyes. "Y-You never know..."
What exactly don't I know?
I wanted to ask her to elaborate but I stopped, figuring I wouldn't get a proper answer anyway.
***
The first day after returning from the labyrinth, everyone spent time resting in their respective rooms. Starting the next day, however, we got busy. We weren't just dealing with one or two bits of loot, after all.
"Erwen, you should go with me," said Amelia.
"Eh? Me? But you can do it alone—"
"Are you saying you can't do it for Schuitz?"
"...That's not what I meant."
From the second day onward, Erwen and Amelia were in and out of the house exchanging the loot for cash, and I spent most of my time guarding the house.
"Schuitz, I've prepared the food for him and set it out on the table in order, so just bring it to him on time."
Aside from going down to the basement every breakfast, lunch, and dinner, my daily routine was nothing special.
On the third day, someone came to see me. "Raven."
"I was going to come yesterday but I was a little busy. Can I come in?"
"Of course."
When she entered, Raven glanced around the house and asked, "Where are the other two?"
"They went out to take care of the loot."
"Hmm..." Her humming sounded a bit strange. When I asked if something was wrong, Raven answered that it was nothing. "I was just thinking about how they're doing the work I used to do."
"I'm sorry about back then. You were the only person I could entrust that task to."
"I didn't say that to get an apology from you. More importantly... it's not something that you need to apologize for."
"Thanks for thinking that way."
I guided Raven to the living room and sat down facing her. We briefly filled each other in on our goings-on.
"How were things on your end?" Raven asked.
"It all ended up working out somehow. You guys?"
"Same as usual. It's not like the war will end overnight, after all."
"I see."
I felt a wall between us I didn't feel back when we used to be teammates. She probably felt the same. Since we were both in the labyrinth, we were technically seeing each other for the first time in two months.
Boom, boom, boom!
Just then, thumps rang out from below.
"I think I just heard something from the basement..."
Ah, it's already past lunchtime.
"We had some work done on the pipes—I think it's because of that. Don't worry about it." It'd be a bit shady to tell her we were holding someone hostage so I just came up with a random excuse.
Thankfully, Raven didn't seem suspicious. Anyway, our conversation proceeded smoothly after that, and in the process, I was able to learn what happened during this expedition. Well, the most important information came up at the end.
"Ah, and Mr. Y—no, Mr. Schuitz, about that thing you asked about."
"That thing?"
"The National Incorporation Bill."
"Did you find out who brought it up?"
"Yes. It was the Countess of Peprok."
"Peprok...?" I was surprised. After all, that was the surname of someone I used to be close with—Ragna Litaniel Peprok. I wondered if it was just someone with the same last name, but I couldn't seem to shake a nagging suspicion. Last I checked, there was no noble family named Peprok anywhere in Rafdonia. "Raven, what's the countess's name?"
"Ragna Peprok, I believe. Her name was something like that."
"...What?"
It's really her? But her middle name is omitted...
"...Do you know her?"
"Perhaps. Can you tell me more about the Peprok family?"
"They're textbook fallen nobles. They were even erased from the Royal Noble Department, but they were reinstated a year ago without anyone noticing."
What the—then it's only natural I couldn't find her when I looked two years ago. Does that mean Ragna really is the countess Raven's talking about?
While I was thinking this, Raven lowered her voice and continued. "I looked more into it because that part didn't make sense to me. It's not rare for fallen nobles to be reinstated, but how did they build up enough political power to participate in a royal council meeting in such a short period of time? The answer was simple. They had a sponsor."
"Who was it?"
"The prime minister of Rafdonia, Marquess Tercerion."
"...What?"
I felt a headache coming on. Aside from the fact that the Countess of Peprok was Ragna, if what Raven was saying was true, the said countess was on the same side as the prime minister.
"Then... that means it was the prime minister who insisted on pushing the National Incorporation bill..." I blurted without thinking.
Raven shook her head slightly. "No. That's a bit unclear. In fact, they say the prime minister himself shouted that it was nonsense the moment the National Incorporation bill was raised. The other nobles were so surprised that the discussion quickly fizzled out."
"Maybe he was just putting on a show."
"A show...?"
"A staged play. Let the other nobles see how angry this makes him so that they don't get any ideas."
"Ah..." Raven's lips parted like she'd never considered that possibility. "I guess you're well-versed in politics too...?"
"I'm just interested in people." Of course, this was just speculation and I had no way of knowing the truth. I still had too little information. "Raven, can you look more into Countess Peprok?"
"I will. I still have a lot of questions about her too."
"Thanks as always."
"Then I'll get going now."
"Sure, get home safe." My meeting with Raven that day ended there.
***
A week later, on a sunny afternoon, Erwen and Amelia were once again out in the commercial district collecting the proceeds of our loot sales. Knights wearing the crest of the royal family broke down the front door and invaded our home.
Kwaaang!
"Riehen Schuitz, you are under arrest on suspicion of colluding with Noark."
Ha, so it's finally come to this.
On the third day, someone came to see me. "Raven."
"I was going to come yesterday but I was a little busy. Can I come in?"
"Of course."
When she entered, Raven glanced around the house and asked, "Where are the other two?"
"They went out to take care of the loot."
"Hmm..." Her humming sounded a bit strange. When I asked if something was wrong, Raven answered that it was nothing. "I was just thinking about how they're doing the work I used to do."
"I'm sorry about back then. You were the only person I could entrust that task to."
"I didn't say that to get an apology from you. More importantly... it's not something that you need to apologize for."
"Thanks for thinking that way."
I guided Raven to the living room and sat down facing her. We briefly filled each other in on our goings-on.
"How were things on your end?" Raven asked.
"It all ended up working out somehow. You guys?"
"Same as usual. It's not like the war will end overnight, after all."
"I see."
I felt a wall between us I didn't feel back when we used to be teammates. She probably felt the same. Since we were both in the labyrinth, we were technically seeing each other for the first time in two months.
Boom, boom, boom!
Just then, thumps rang out from below.
"I think I just heard something from the basement..."
Ah, it's already past lunchtime.
"We had some work done on the pipes—I think it's because of that. Don't worry about it." It'd be a bit shady to tell her we were holding someone hostage so I just came up with a random excuse.
Thankfully, Raven didn't seem suspicious. Anyway, our conversation proceeded smoothly after that, and in the process, I was able to learn what happened during this expedition. Well, the most important information came up at the end.
"Ah, and Mr. Y—no, Mr. Schuitz, about that thing you asked about."
"That thing?"
"The National Incorporation Bill."
"Did you find out who brought it up?"
"Yes. It was the Countess of Peprok."
"Peprok...?" I was surprised. After all, that was the surname of someone I used to be close with—Ragna Litaniel Peprok. I wondered if it was just someone with the same last name, but I couldn't seem to shake a nagging suspicion. Last I checked, there was no noble family named Peprok anywhere in Rafdonia. "Raven, what's the countess's name?"
"Ragna Peprok, I believe. Her name was something like that."
"...What?"
It's really her? But her middle name is omitted...
"...Do you know her?"
"Perhaps. Can you tell me more about the Peprok family?"
"They're textbook fallen nobles. They were even erased from the Royal Noble Department, but they were reinstated a year ago without anyone noticing."
What the—then it's only natural I couldn't find her when I looked two years ago. Does that mean Ragna really is the countess Raven's talking about?
While I was thinking this, Raven lowered her voice and continued. "I looked more into it because that part didn't make sense to me. It's not rare for fallen nobles to be reinstated, but how did they build up enough political power to participate in a royal council meeting in such a short period of time? The answer was simple. They had a sponsor."
"Who was it?"
"The prime minister of Rafdonia, Marquess Tercerion."
"...What?"
I felt a headache coming on. Aside from the fact that the Countess of Peprok was Ragna, if what Raven was saying was true, the said countess was on the same side as the prime minister.
"Then... that means it was the prime minister who insisted on pushing the National Incorporation bill..." I blurted without thinking.
Raven shook her head slightly. "No. That's a bit unclear. In fact, they say the prime minister himself shouted that it was nonsense the moment the National Incorporation bill was raised. The other nobles were so surprised that the discussion quickly fizzled out."
"Maybe he was just putting on a show."
"A show...?"
"A staged play. Let the other nobles see how angry this makes him so that they don't get any ideas."
"Ah..." Raven's lips parted like she'd never considered that possibility. "I guess you're well-versed in politics too...?"
"I'm just interested in people." Of course, this was just speculation and I had no way of knowing the truth. I still had too little information. "Raven, can you look more into Countess Peprok?"
"I will. I still have a lot of questions about her too."
"Thanks as always."
"Then I'll get going now."
"Sure, get home safe." My meeting with Raven that day ended there.
***
A week later, on a sunny afternoon, Erwen and Amelia were once again out in the commercial district collecting the proceeds of our loot sales. Knights wearing the crest of the royal family broke down the front door and invaded our home.
Kwaaang!
"Riehen Schuitz, you are under arrest on suspicion of colluding with Noark."
Ha, so it's finally come to this.