Chapter 431: Return of the Dead (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 431: Return of the Dead (2)
The sky was a little gloomy. Nevertheless, sunlight peeked through the clouds, the warmth driving out the chill that had seeped into my bones. This was a place without shivering cold or hunger.
"It... feels real now. We really got back alive..."
As always, being in the city after the ordeals we faced in the labyrinth was a strange feeling. We were definitely glad to have survived, but our hearts were heavy. There were some who hadn't been able to come home with us.
"If they lasted... if they lasted just a little longer..."
If they did, a few more people may have been here with us.
"Ms. Marrone," Sven Parav called in a warning tone. Marrone stopped her mumbling and gritted her teeth.
Just because we were back in the city didn't mean this was over. It was too early to let our guards down. We may be faced with tougher challenges than the ones we overcame in the labyrinth now.
Squeeze.
We swallowed down the complaints bubbling up inside of us, and not just because the place we were in now was the same mansion we stayed at for a few days before entering the labyrinth. It was simply that we couldn't go there. No matter how high and steep the climb, no matter how hard it would be, we had to leave behind those people who fought to the bitter end to get us here.
"Kaislan, how are you feeling?"
"Ah, I couldn't be better. But I guess I'm the last one?" Once Kaislan returned from his appointment with a priest who had been summoned to the mansion, the entire squadron gathered in the entrance hall.
"Why don't we go for a walk instead of just staying here? Looks like it's a nice day today."
"I wish we could."
"Wish we could?"
"You saw the knights in front of the hall, right? They'll stop us from leaving even for a second," Akurava explained.
"Ha! As if we've done something wrong!" the wizard Marrone huffed, resentful. "Being treated like this even after we completed our mission—we should be getting treated like heroes!"
"Um, Miss Marrone..."
"What! Did I say something wrong?"
Sven glanced at me but I didn't really feel the need to stop her. It'd be weirder for us not to complain. I told them all to in the first place. The important thing here was something else.
"Haha, our squadron is part of the military, after all. Our journey can't be considered complete until an official report is made to the higher-ups," said Kaislan.
"Still. I also come from the military, but isn't this too demanding?"
"Now, now, let's all calm down. We're the ones who accomplished the task of destroying the Eye of the Sky, right? Once the reports are completed, we'll receive our long-awaited reward."
"Hah, finally," James Calla responded with a whistle.
Conversation between us flowed naturally. We spoke arrogantly about the reward, how impatient we were to get it, and what each person was going to ask for. Of course, this exchange was all for the benefit of our eavesdroppers. With their help, our words would be carried directly into the ears of all relevant high-ranking officials.
"Mister, at least they were able to find us something to eat fast. Try some of this."
"Ah, thanks." I bit into the meat on Erwen's plate and reflected on everything that had happened since our return to the city. If we'd made any mistakes, we needed to prepare solutions as soon as possible.
The guys at the checkpoint didn't seem to notice.
We stored our backpacks in our binding-type sub-spaces as soon as we got back to Dimension Square. We'd separated the equipment into gear we could show the royal officials and gear we couldn't. From there, we arrived at the checkpoint. There, I loudly declared we were a special forces team under the royal family and asked to contact the marquess. This had been intentional.
Since the checkpoint was full of adventurers, talk of the special forces team would have spread through the city by now.
The checkpoint officer who contacted the marquess had seemed flustered at first, but he took the marquess's instructions to "keep us there" to heart, as he then detained us for a while. Knights sent by the marquess arrived less than thirty minutes later.
"We will guide you from now on."
They escorted us to the empty mansion in the imperial capital where the inauguration ceremony had once been held.
"We will take your luggage."
"Our luggage...?"
"Lord Tercerion's orders. I can promise you on my honor as a knight that no items will go missing."
The backpacks that held loot that was okay for the palace to see had thus been taken away. Once at the mansion, we were each treated by priests summoned by the knights. And that brought us to now.
Knock, knock.
There was a knock, and the door opened.
It's about time. I guess he's finally gotten a handle on the situation.
"Lord Tercerion has requested to meet with all of you."
We needed to be on our toes now.
We followed the knights and arrived at a reception room similar to the one we were just in. The only unusual thing was that the seat at the head of the table was empty, and there was a mana crystal in its place.
A message stone, huh?
It was so ridiculous that I had to laugh. The marquess's home wasn't far from here but he was opting for long-distance communication. I guessed he knew that he'd committed an act terrible enough that he was liable to get his head bashed in the moment our eyes met.
"Please forgive me for greeting you this way. I have urgent business to attend to."
"Well, I'm sure you do."
As soon as I sat on the sofa, the marquess started in on me, his tone probing. "Hmm, seeing as you're not using honorifics with me... I guess the squadron knows?"
Since I didn't feel that was something to hide, I coolly admitted it. "I got caught. I've already told them I'm Bjorn Yandel. Ah, of course, I explained I was only disguised on the palace's orders."
"I'm glad to hear that."
"Whatever. Don't you have some explaining to do?" I ended the small talk there and got to the point, anger seeping into my tone. "Now, tell me: why didn't the rescue team come?" In our remaining time, the squad and I had discussed what the most natural reaction we could have would be. "I'm sure they heard my voice—it was sent out to the entire region. What happened?"
"...The exact circumstances are still being investigated."
"You still haven't figured it out, and you're contacting me through a mana crystal?"
"From what I've heard thus far, it seems there were more enemy troops in the Deadwood than we could have imagined. That's why they had no choice but to give up on the rescue effort." It was a rough, theoretical answer that sounded almost believable, but even I didn't expect the follow-up. "It seems since you sent out your message to the entire region, Noark was also alerted to the existence of a rescue team."
The guys at the checkpoint didn't seem to notice.
We stored our backpacks in our binding-type sub-spaces as soon as we got back to Dimension Square. We'd separated the equipment into gear we could show the royal officials and gear we couldn't. From there, we arrived at the checkpoint. There, I loudly declared we were a special forces team under the royal family and asked to contact the marquess. This had been intentional.
Since the checkpoint was full of adventurers, talk of the special forces team would have spread through the city by now.
The checkpoint officer who contacted the marquess had seemed flustered at first, but he took the marquess's instructions to "keep us there" to heart, as he then detained us for a while. Knights sent by the marquess arrived less than thirty minutes later.
"We will guide you from now on."
They escorted us to the empty mansion in the imperial capital where the inauguration ceremony had once been held.
"We will take your luggage."
"Our luggage...?"
"Lord Tercerion's orders. I can promise you on my honor as a knight that no items will go missing."
The backpacks that held loot that was okay for the palace to see had thus been taken away. Once at the mansion, we were each treated by priests summoned by the knights. And that brought us to now.
Knock, knock.
There was a knock, and the door opened.
It's about time. I guess he's finally gotten a handle on the situation.
"Lord Tercerion has requested to meet with all of you."
We needed to be on our toes now.
We followed the knights and arrived at a reception room similar to the one we were just in. The only unusual thing was that the seat at the head of the table was empty, and there was a mana crystal in its place.
A message stone, huh?
It was so ridiculous that I had to laugh. The marquess's home wasn't far from here but he was opting for long-distance communication. I guessed he knew that he'd committed an act terrible enough that he was liable to get his head bashed in the moment our eyes met.
"Please forgive me for greeting you this way. I have urgent business to attend to."
"Well, I'm sure you do."
As soon as I sat on the sofa, the marquess started in on me, his tone probing. "Hmm, seeing as you're not using honorifics with me... I guess the squadron knows?"
Since I didn't feel that was something to hide, I coolly admitted it. "I got caught. I've already told them I'm Bjorn Yandel. Ah, of course, I explained I was only disguised on the palace's orders."
"I'm glad to hear that."
"Whatever. Don't you have some explaining to do?" I ended the small talk there and got to the point, anger seeping into my tone. "Now, tell me: why didn't the rescue team come?" In our remaining time, the squad and I had discussed what the most natural reaction we could have would be. "I'm sure they heard my voice—it was sent out to the entire region. What happened?"
"...The exact circumstances are still being investigated."
"You still haven't figured it out, and you're contacting me through a mana crystal?"
"From what I've heard thus far, it seems there were more enemy troops in the Deadwood than we could have imagined. That's why they had no choice but to give up on the rescue effort." It was a rough, theoretical answer that sounded almost believable, but even I didn't expect the follow-up. "It seems since you sent out your message to the entire region, Noark was also alerted to the existence of a rescue team."
Wow, you're really going to try to argue that I'm responsible for this? Just how shameless is this guy?
"Then why didn't our initial transmissions reach them? If we got a hold of them the first time, none of that would've happened to begin with!"
"That... seems to have been a mistake on my son's part."
"...A mistake?" I echoed him, unsure if I'd heard him right.
"I apologize for this on his behalf. I'm sorry—"
My anger boiled over. "Behel—aaaaaah!" This outburst, of course, was not directed at the marquess or the palace, but the poor chess piece they were throwing under the bus. "Eltora Tercerion!"
"Wait, calm down—"
"So, this was all his fault. It was all because he was incompetent! He didn't receive our call by mistake!"
"That's—"
"Marquess!" I roared. "Where is that bastard? No, wait, don't tell me. I feel like I'll crack his skull by mistake the moment I find him." I smashed the table in front of me like a man who couldn't control his rage, then stood there huffing and puffing.
"...Have you calmed down now?"
There was an unease in the marquess's eyes. Well, it wasn't like me to get angry like this. I may have been slightly more aggressive than the average person, but I always acted rationally in pursuit of my best interests.
"Reward." I cooled my head and spoke, though the anger was still there. I made it seem as if my show of open hostility was all for this. "You better have a proper reward prepared. I took on the role of commander like you wanted, and the mission was a success."
"Ah... of course. The reward... of course you should be rewarded."
As soon as we managed to extract a promise from the marquess, I turned to the crew and exchanged glances with them. Some of the members nodded back in approval. It was important to iron out the details when it came to things like this.
"Now, let's postpone talking about your compensation for this mistake. Tell me what happened in the labyrinth."
So, we're at this part now.
I took a breath and recounted the story I had prepared. It took a bit longer because the marquess interrupted me throughout to ask questions, but I finished the story in less than an hour.
"You've had a hard time because of my foolish son." This was his takeaway once the story was over.
A hard time, huh?
Blood rushed to my head when I heard our fight for survival summed up in that one sentence, but I managed to endure it.
"I will do my best to ensure you receive compensation for my son's mistakes," the marquess continued as if he really meant it. "And... I sincerely congratulate you on your return. We'll speak again soon."
Anyway, with that, our call with the marquess ended.
"I'll lead you to your room."
I wondered if our story worked. Well, only time would tell.
Afterward, the knights guided us each to our rooms. There was a large bed with soft blankets, and warm sunlight filtered through the windows. Considering I'd spent the past few weeks sleeping on ice, the room felt far too luxurious. However, though my body was exhausted from the past seventy-five days, it showed no signs of falling asleep any time soon. This was probably the case for all my comrades in the other rooms as well. They were likely worried about being attacked by knights the moment they closed their eyes too.
Despite that, the moment I lay down, my exhaustion crept up on me and I soon fell asleep.
***
My head is still attached to my body.
The next morning, I woke up unscathed.
Jeez, will I have to sleep with this kind of anxiety every night from now on? If so, this is going to be long and hard. Well, what can I do? I still have to do it.
That was how I greeted our second day back in the city. Once we were all up, we retrieved our backpacks, which were stolen from us the day before. When I asked why they had to take them in the first place, the marquess's answer was truly impressive.
"My... I guess that's how it must have seemed to you. All I did was instruct my knights to appraise the loot on behalf of your tired selves and purchase it above market price. I will let them know not to misrepresent my instructions from now on."
It was ridiculous, but the marquess actually kept his word. He purchased the loot we were willing to sell at a much higher price, and we didn't pass up this opportunity to get rid of any items we didn't want. It seemed we'd have plenty of military funds in the future.
"Oh, and one more thing. The public is showing great interest in the expedition after you showed up at the checkpoint."
That was good news. The radio transmission that the Eye of the Sky had been destroyed had been broadcast throughout the Dark Continent. A special forces team had appeared in the city. When these two pieces of information came together, it seemed word spread fast.
"There will be a ceremony in two days."
"A ceremony?"
"It will be held at the royal palace. Your identities, which have been kept secret from both the kingdom's nobility and its subjects, will be announced so all can praise your achievements."
I expected this to happen, but two days seemed fast. Was it really possible for them to get things done this quickly? I had my doubts, but it soon clicked.
Ah, I guess he already had it prepared.
The ceremony must have been prepared a long time ago. After all, it wasn't like he couldn't have held one if there were no survivors. With the accomplishment of destroying the Eye of the Sky behind them, he and our other sponsors had probably planned to mourn the annihilated squadron and share the credit amongst themselves.
"So, get ready. I will send you the details of the event and ceremony so make sure to read what I've prepared. Ah, your clothing will all be provided by us, of course."
"Okay. I will tell the team that."
"As I said before, there is a significant amount of interest from the public. Though it may be inconvenient, I ask that you all stay hidden here for the next few days in order to ensure the ceremony's success. If you need anything over the course of your stay, let your requests be known at any time."
"Ah, there is something I want to request..."
I made a request of the marquess and after that, time passed quickly.
"Woahhh!"
"A parade of heroes!"
Just like that, it was the day of the ceremony.
Wow, you're really going to try to argue that I'm responsible for this? Just how shameless is this guy?
"Then why didn't our initial transmissions reach them? If we got a hold of them the first time, none of that would've happened to begin with!"
"That... seems to have been a mistake on my son's part."
"...A mistake?" I echoed him, unsure if I'd heard him right.
"I apologize for this on his behalf. I'm sorry—"
My anger boiled over. "Behel—aaaaaah!" This outburst, of course, was not directed at the marquess or the palace, but the poor chess piece they were throwing under the bus. "Eltora Tercerion!"
"Wait, calm down—"
"So, this was all his fault. It was all because he was incompetent! He didn't receive our call by mistake!"
"That's—"
"Marquess!" I roared. "Where is that bastard? No, wait, don't tell me. I feel like I'll crack his skull by mistake the moment I find him." I smashed the table in front of me like a man who couldn't control his rage, then stood there huffing and puffing.
"...Have you calmed down now?"
There was an unease in the marquess's eyes. Well, it wasn't like me to get angry like this. I may have been slightly more aggressive than the average person, but I always acted rationally in pursuit of my best interests.
"Reward." I cooled my head and spoke, though the anger was still there. I made it seem as if my show of open hostility was all for this. "You better have a proper reward prepared. I took on the role of commander like you wanted, and the mission was a success."
"Ah... of course. The reward... of course you should be rewarded."
As soon as we managed to extract a promise from the marquess, I turned to the crew and exchanged glances with them. Some of the members nodded back in approval. It was important to iron out the details when it came to things like this.
"Now, let's postpone talking about your compensation for this mistake. Tell me what happened in the labyrinth."
So, we're at this part now.
I took a breath and recounted the story I had prepared. It took a bit longer because the marquess interrupted me throughout to ask questions, but I finished the story in less than an hour.
"You've had a hard time because of my foolish son." This was his takeaway once the story was over.
A hard time, huh?
Blood rushed to my head when I heard our fight for survival summed up in that one sentence, but I managed to endure it.
"I will do my best to ensure you receive compensation for my son's mistakes," the marquess continued as if he really meant it. "And... I sincerely congratulate you on your return. We'll speak again soon."
Anyway, with that, our call with the marquess ended.
"I'll lead you to your room."
I wondered if our story worked. Well, only time would tell.
Afterward, the knights guided us each to our rooms. There was a large bed with soft blankets, and warm sunlight filtered through the windows. Considering I'd spent the past few weeks sleeping on ice, the room felt far too luxurious. However, though my body was exhausted from the past seventy-five days, it showed no signs of falling asleep any time soon. This was probably the case for all my comrades in the other rooms as well. They were likely worried about being attacked by knights the moment they closed their eyes too.
Despite that, the moment I lay down, my exhaustion crept up on me and I soon fell asleep.
***
My head is still attached to my body.
The next morning, I woke up unscathed.
Jeez, will I have to sleep with this kind of anxiety every night from now on? If so, this is going to be long and hard. Well, what can I do? I still have to do it.
That was how I greeted our second day back in the city. Once we were all up, we retrieved our backpacks, which were stolen from us the day before. When I asked why they had to take them in the first place, the marquess's answer was truly impressive.
"My... I guess that's how it must have seemed to you. All I did was instruct my knights to appraise the loot on behalf of your tired selves and purchase it above market price. I will let them know not to misrepresent my instructions from now on."
It was ridiculous, but the marquess actually kept his word. He purchased the loot we were willing to sell at a much higher price, and we didn't pass up this opportunity to get rid of any items we didn't want. It seemed we'd have plenty of military funds in the future.
"Oh, and one more thing. The public is showing great interest in the expedition after you showed up at the checkpoint."
That was good news. The radio transmission that the Eye of the Sky had been destroyed had been broadcast throughout the Dark Continent. A special forces team had appeared in the city. When these two pieces of information came together, it seemed word spread fast.
"There will be a ceremony in two days."
"A ceremony?"
"It will be held at the royal palace. Your identities, which have been kept secret from both the kingdom's nobility and its subjects, will be announced so all can praise your achievements."
I expected this to happen, but two days seemed fast. Was it really possible for them to get things done this quickly? I had my doubts, but it soon clicked.
Ah, I guess he already had it prepared.
The ceremony must have been prepared a long time ago. After all, it wasn't like he couldn't have held one if there were no survivors. With the accomplishment of destroying the Eye of the Sky behind them, he and our other sponsors had probably planned to mourn the annihilated squadron and share the credit amongst themselves.
"So, get ready. I will send you the details of the event and ceremony so make sure to read what I've prepared. Ah, your clothing will all be provided by us, of course."
"Okay. I will tell the team that."
"As I said before, there is a significant amount of interest from the public. Though it may be inconvenient, I ask that you all stay hidden here for the next few days in order to ensure the ceremony's success. If you need anything over the course of your stay, let your requests be known at any time."
"Ah, there is something I want to request..."
I made a request of the marquess and after that, time passed quickly.
"Woahhh!"
"A parade of heroes!"
Just like that, it was the day of the ceremony.