Chapter 588: Quaul Ganesto (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 588: Quaul Ganesto (3)
For someone so prickly and stubborn, Quaul surprisingly got along with everyone right from the start.
He had a sharp edge, but he also showed a gruff warmth toward the children, and the companions quickly accepted him.
"Young Master, it seems everyone really misses Lord Murakan," Gilly said, sitting beside Jin. They were both watching the children tease Quaul, calling him a bandit or a bandit leader.
"Murakan?"
"When Lord Murakan was here, Tikan was always so lively. He’d shout and yell, but he took care of everyone and played well with the kids. It feels like Lord Quaul is filling that role now."
"I agree he plays well with the kids, but has he really started taking care of anyone? He only got here three hours ago."
Gilly’s eyes widened at Jin's remark. Now that she thought about it, he was right.
In the three hours since his arrival, all Quaul had done was appoint Amela as his assistant and offer Beris the same position—only to be flatly rejected, which led to a heated exchange of profanities between the two.
He had even taken a punch to the jaw from Quicantel for acting up, though it didn't seem to dampen his spirits in the slightest.
"Oh, um… You’re right."
I guess Gilly just misses Murakan, Jin thought, figuring that was all it was.
The thought of those two becoming a couple feels a bit strange…
To Jin, they were essentially his parents. Perhaps that was why he felt an inexplicable awkwardness whenever a strange atmosphere developed between them.
"Ahem. I should get back to my chores, Young Master."
As Gilly hurried away, Jin let out a small chuckle.
I wonder if Murakan is doing well.
Murakan was currently away, filling in for Misha. He was performing his duties as the deputy to Solderet’s deputy.
Jin didn't know exactly what those duties entailed. Since it was the work of a god, he could only assume it involved maintaining the balance or order of the world. Even Misha had mentioned that she never fully understood what she was doing. It was a task that transcended mortal perception.
"Sir Amela."
Roll, roll. Amela, wearing her round, tumbleweed-like outfit, rolled over to Jin.
"Speak, Lord."
"You were talking with Lord Quaul for quite a while earlier. What do you think of him?"
"His abilities, you mean?"
"Yes."
"Even if there were ten of me, I wouldn't be fit to touch Old Man Quaul’s toes."
"Is he that good?"
"Technically, he’s at least several hundred years ahead of me. We started looking at the Mana-Injection Spray-Type All-Weather Accelerated Crushing Cannon today, and he’s already solved several problems I couldn't crack. It’ll still take time to perfect it, but it won't be long before it surpasses the Kozec’s main cannon."
"Oh…"
Quaul’s boast that meeting him was the greatest stroke of luck Jin would ever have hadn't been an empty one. Amela, who was more of a researcher than a mercenary at heart, even seemed to hold a hint of respect for him.
"Zipple was insane to just toss that old man aside. It’s their biggest mistake."
There was another reason Quaul had been left neglected in the middle of nowhere: Zipple was under the delusion that they had already extracted most of his knowledge.
They weren't entirely wrong, either. At least, not until recently.
It was true that Quaul had been a genius among geniuses from the very beginning. However, his skills as an engineer were currently improving in real time.
Just as he had only recently learned he carried the Ganesto bloodline, some of his sealed ‘inherited memories’ were being released as the power of stories weakened in the aftermath of the Sword Emperor Holy War.
The Ten Great Knight Lokia Ganesto must have created some kind of device to pass memories down to his descendants… something like that.
Memory transfer.
Jin had already experienced firsthand that such a thing was possible, thanks to the Pluto Tribe brothers. The Hister family also passed down magic, mana, records, and memories to their descendants through ‘heritage sites.’
The Ganesto family was achieving a similar transfer of memories through some other means, and Zipple was completely oblivious.
Even so, Zipple should have either killed Quaul or kept him under special surveillance. They likely would have, had they not taken such a massive hit during the Sword Emperor Holy War.
"It won't be long before they come looking for Lord Quaul again. So, Sir Amela, please keep a close eye on him. You must prevent him from leaving Tikan at all costs."
"So you're saying I should lock him up and make him do nothing but research?"
"Essentially, yes."
"Don't you worry about that. He’s the type who’d stay holed up in the lab even if you told him to leave. But I’ll be sure to pay extra attention."
There was much to be done through Quaul. And all of it had to yield better results than what Rosa would have achieved by choosing the Prophet.
—Originally, I planned to use those items through the Prophet. However, I changed my mind after suspending Joshua’s status as a flagbearer. I will defer negotiations with the Prophet. During that time, prove to me that you have a method superior to hers.
—If I fail, the Acting Patriarch… will hand those things over to the Prophet. Is that what you're saying?
The machines and the ship blueprints—Rosa still maintained her stance that she could hand them over to the Prophet at any time.
If Zipple hadn't suffered such heavy losses during the Sword Emperor Holy War, Mother would have already tried to take them from me.
Though she hadn't said it to Jin, Rosa actually wanted to negotiate with the Prophet right now to complete the devices and ships. Like Quaul, she had undergone an internal change after the war.
The only reason she was deferring the negotiation was that the clan’s power had weakened; if any unforeseen variables arose during talks with the Prophet, her ability to respond would be diminished.
The Prophet's true military strength remained unknown. One could only infer that she wasn't powerful enough to overthrow the Runcandel Clan at will, given that she had yet to exert any direct influence over the Garden of Swords.
"For now, please have Lord Quaul disguise himself using products from the Gold Snow Tribe. Sir Amela, you should get ready to head out as well."
"Oh? Where are we going?"
"There are some bastards who need to pay for their crimes. They might try to scam us again, and I have no way of detecting it, so I’ll need help from you two."
*
Kinzelo Main Branch.
As usual, the Kinzelo executives were watching Ainas and Bubar frolic around with troubled expressions.
"Ron Hairan… I never imagined he would actually reach the realm of Creation."
Even Margiella, who usually wore a beaming smile, had a shadow of worry on her face.
She had foreseen Dante’s death even before the Sword Emperor Holy War began. Not only that, she knew how the world’s landscape would shift after Gliek awakened from the White Stone.
However, every future Margiella had prophesied had gone awry. It was all because Ron had reached the realm of Creation at the last possible moment.
"I have a bad feeling. I don't think making Sir Jin one of us will ever be possible now."
"Did you confirm that with your ability to see the future?" Zephyrin asked.
Mardiella shook her head.
"Sir Jin's fate is completely hidden from me. It's just… with how wrong things have gone, it feels like he's slipped even further from our grasp."
"That devil was already a world away from us."
"That’s not wrong, either."
"And even if the fate you saw had unfolded as planned, Sir Jin still would have distanced himself from us, wouldn't he?"
"His heart might have been distant, but he would have been in a position where he had no choice but to seek our help."
A member of the Red Tiger Tribe rushed into the room.
"What is it?" Verakt demanded, glaring at the Red Tiger who had charged in so carelessly.
"Jin Runcandel has come to the Land of the Beastmen! Huff, huff. He says he’s here for the meeting he mentioned last time…"
The Red Tiger was out of breath from how hard he had run. The reason for his haste was simple.
"He… he said if we don't show up at the Yuka Yuka Market by noon, the meeting is off and he’s leaving!"
The executives' eyes simultaneously turned to the clock on the wall.
There were only two minutes left until noon. Even if Zephyrin transformed into her true form, burst through the headquarters' ceiling, and flew at full speed, it was impossible to arrive in time.
"Ha! Is that arrogant brat mocking us again? This won't do, Lord Verakt! Let’s send a letter to Tikan. Tell them if he doesn't return to the Land of the Beastmen within the day, we’ll strike Tikan immediately!"
Seeing Jo shouting indignantly, Verakt, for once, seemed inclined to agree.
But the instant Margiella shook her head, Verakt shut Jo down.
"Shut up, Jo."
"She’s right, Uncle Jo. Sir Jin never makes empty threats. If we don't go now, we’ll never see those devices or blueprints again."
The ship blueprints and mechanical devices were extremely important to Kinzelo as well. They had tried to seize them in the Sota Desert, enduring significant losses in the process.
Margiella soon made a decision.
"I’ll open the gate. I’m sorry, Leader!"
As she waved her hand, a massive Steel Gate materialized in the middle of the conference room. At that moment, the Kinzelo Leader, lying in the inner chambers of the headquarters, unfortunately coughed up blood once again.
"Every time we get involved with that devil, my master’s recovery is delayed…" Zephyrin muttered.
"Let’s all go!"
All the executives stepped through the Steel Gate. As soon as they arrived at the Yuka Yuka Market, they saw Jin, who was holding a pocket watch.
"11:59:57 AM. A pity. If you’d been just four seconds later, there would have been no need for us to talk. I suppose the items from the Sota Desert are quite important to you all?"
"Um, it’s been a while, Sir Jin! Have you been well?" Margiella forced a smile.
"I don't think we’re on the kind of terms where we exchange pleasantries, Margiella."
"I think so too, Sir Jin," Zephyrin said, gritting her teeth. "Since we came in such a hurry, we couldn't bring any engineers. I trust you’ll understand. Otherwise, this won't be fun for either of us."
Jin snorted. "Well, fine. I’ll overlook that. However, you’ve all earned a penalty for your contempt. You knew Gliek could awaken, didn't you?"
"Even if we did, what’s the problem? That’s just superior information gathering. As you said, we aren't close enough to exchange pleasantries, and we certainly aren't allies, so there was no need to share that information."
"You’re right. Since we aren't allies, I just feel like charging you for your contempt. Honestly, there’s no reason for me to share what I got from the Sota Desert with you, either. Therefore, there is one more condition for this meeting. If you want to see the items…"
Jin finished, his expression grim.
"Tell me how Viment found Temar’s body."