Chapter 132
Chapter 132
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 132
Chapter Title: The Betrayed General Betrays
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The next morning.
Vittorio dispatched a few elves to urgently summon the officers to his barracks.
"... "
"Don't use telepathy. It's a matter concerning Lady Benedetta Bianchi."
"Ah, understood."
He answered the elves who naturally inquired telepathically with his voice aloud, waiting for everyone to arrive.
"So, Commander-in-Chief. What's going on? Has something happened to Lady Bianchi?"
To Salvatore, who spoke on behalf of the puzzled officers,
"...The bucket."
"Pardon?"
"What the hell is that damn bucket!"
-Thud!
Vittorio slammed his fist on the desk and shouted.
"Didn't you hear? It's been chaos since dawn!"
"...You're right. Even last night, some of the sentries said they moved the bucket."
"Yesterday? Every day, every single day! Calling us over and over...! ...Your summons are causing a clear drop in the soldiers' morale."
Vittorio, who devoted the most care to Benedetta, took the lead in speaking, and the officers began voicing their complaints one by one.
"...We still have to carry out the orders. Didn't you see? She crushes hundreds of orcs in a single day."
"... "
"If you could do the same, you'd get the same treatment. How about it?"
"...My apologies."
Vittorio, who believed serving Benedetta well was essential, dismissed his own frustrations about the orders echoing in his mind every day.
"Anyway. The important thing right now is that bucket left out every night. Do we still not know what's in it?"
"Yes. We suspected it was some kind of fruit juice, but we couldn't find any fruit that produces a similar juice. We couldn't find a matching tree sap either."
"Still nothing? Ha... "
"Um, Commander-in-Chief."
Ugo, standing beside him, cautiously called out to Vittorio, who was sighing and clutching his head.
"What."
"Is that bucket really that important? It's not poison at least, and Lady Bianchi seems to like it... "
"That's the problem! That's exactly it!"
Vittorio pounded his chest and glared at Ugo.
"The problem is that we're letting Lady Benedetta Bianchi consume something we don't even know what it is, and she likes it!"
"... "
But seeing Ugo just staring blankly at him only made Vittorio's anger pierce the heavens.
"Ha... Frustrating. So frustrating! Do I have to explain that Victor and his adjutant carried the bucket themselves before you understand?"
"...Pardon?"
"The Imperial Army, of all things... "
Only after he directly revealed the bucket's origin did the elves' murmurs grow louder.
"Now do you get it? The Imperial Army is clearly up to something."
"... "
However, unlike Vittorio, whose anxiety had reached its peak,
"Is it really that serious?"
"What did you say?"
Salvatore hadn't even dreamed that this could be a grave issue.
"They're humans who don't know telepathy or our language. Even if they plotted something against Lady Bianchi, do you think she'd pay them any mind?"
"... "
"She asked about the identity of that mystery liquid several times, but nothing beyond that, right? The liquid itself—we don't know exactly what it is, but it's probably not anything special."
"I even tasted a bit, and it didn't have any particular flavor or seem poisonous."
"You tasted it? Do you even know what it is!"
"... "
The elf who admitted to tasting it shrank back at Vittorio's scolding,
"But it wasn't something she ordered, and it wasn't part of her usual fare. Who knows what'll happen if she keeps consuming it."
"You seem overly sensitive. It's just one bucket—at most two yesterday—and she demands dozens of barrels of water a day. Do you think she'd fuss over something like that?"
Even with Vittorio's continued persuasion, the officers didn't sense the gravity.
"Is human contact with Benedetta Bianchi really not an issue?"
"If we take unnecessary action and she gets angry... That's what scares me more. Maybe we should ask Lady Bianchi's opinion."
"What if the Imperial Army serving her together isn't so bad? Maybe they've realized her greatness."
Vittorio's stance was that a high elf, who had lived hundreds of years and was terrifyingly arrogant, changing was no small matter.
But ever since Benedetta, a clear superior, arrived at Lento and everyone saw Vittorio attending to her, his once-absolute authority had already been greatly undermined.
The other elves freely pointed out that his reaction seemed overly intense.
"No, what nonsense is that! We've been handling all the hard work so far, and now you're saying the Imperial Army is catching her eye?"
"That's not what... "
"Daring to talk about catching her eye or not—you insolent...! "
"No, that's not it... "
One officer mentioned something similar to Vittorio's thoughts, but the others erupted in anger under the pretext of irreverence.
"Drag him out!"
"Commander-in-Chief! That's not what I meant!"
"...Quickly!"
Vittorio had no choice but to punish that officer.
"...That bucket might be stimulating Lady Benedetta Bianchi. We need to heighten security."
"With her right at the temporary gate, it's hard for us to control... "
"Let's at least keep a proper watch. Alright?"
"...Understood."
Vittorio could only swallow the inexplicable anxiety rising within him.
"...Why is it so quiet today?"
Especially since, even though it was well past morning, no orders had come from her.
"... "
His hands trembled faintly as he sat there.
"The latter language seems like the common tongue, but... I can't quite make out the meaning from this."
"I see."
Erika shook her head after reading the notebook Anna and I had diligently compiled.
"Yes. The elves' language has many different phonetic structures, so transcribing it into Imperial script makes it hard to grasp the original meaning."
"Certainly... There were a lot of unfamiliar pronunciations I couldn't even figure out how to vocalize."
"If I had to interpret a bit, it seems like simple greetings along with requests for something. By any chance, who said this?"
"... "
"... "
I locked eyes with Anna, who had a strange expression beside me.
At this point,
"So, you could understand if you heard it directly."
"...? Yes. If it's elven common tongue."
"Then there's only one way."
"... "
I couldn't miss this once-in-a-lifetime chance to converse with a surprisingly amicable high elf.
"Miss Erika. Prepare to go out at 11 tonight. Have Adjutant Anna help a bit."
"Understood."
"???"
I instructed her to come along tonight.
Erika's eyes widened as she looked back and forth between Anna and me,
"Um... Lord Victor?"
"Hm?"
"Wasn't this a secret rendezvous between the two of you?"
She tossed out an odd question and hurriedly covered her mouth as if realizing her mistake.
And before I could even respond,
-Smack!
"Eek!"
"Don't say strange things. It was part of official duties."
"It hurts... "
Anna's right hand had swung sharply toward her back.
"Be careful."
"Yes... "
"As Adjutant Anna said, we were just accompanying to give Benedetta Bianchi a sort of gift."
To avoid any needless misunderstandings, I explained why Anna and I had been wandering alone at midnight,
"Benedetta... You mean you gave a gift to that high elf over there?"
"Mm. According to your interpretation, Miss Erika, she seemed quite satisfied."
"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!"
Erika's mouth fell open, her hands flailing everywhere.
"Th-then, by any chance, that conversation you just had me interpret?"
"She approached first."
"...How, th-this, uh, ah!"
She flailed wildly before pulling out a notebook and pencil from her bosom, scribbling furiously.
"...It's amazing, but I didn't expect you'd be this shocked."
"... "
-Snap.
Erika, who had filled a palm-sized sheet of paper to the brim with writing, closed her notebook.
"No human has ever succeeded in conversing with a high elf except legendary heroes...! "
"I know."
"Wh-what if you hadn't come out tonight? We can't miss a chance like this... "
Indeed an extraordinary situation—her reaction was even more intense than I'd anticipated.
"Rice-washing water."
"...Pardon?"
"She really loves rice-washing water. With you along, Miss Erika, three barrels should do."
"The cloudy water from rinsing rice?"
"That's right."
This fact, even more astonishing and one that had left me baffled too, silenced her.
"...Ah."
"Miss Erika."
"This isn't a dream, is it?"
"No, it's not."
"I have some work left, so Anna, handle a bit for me."
"Understood."
I left Erika, who was pressing her hand to her forehead like a tragic heroine, in Anna's care and left the barracks first.
That night.
"...! Lord Victor! There, there!"
"Told you she'd come."
As we placed three barrels of rice-washing water at the boundary of her territory, the center of the tree split open just like yesterday, revealing Benedetta.
"D-don't provoke her no matter what. Eek, she's coming here, coming here... "
"Anna."
"Yes."
"Eek, sh-she's, co—mmph!"
While Anna covered Erika's mouth, Benedetta approached with slightly quicker steps than yesterday.
-Splash. Splash.
"... "
The sound of her stepping in the blood still pooled on the ground heightened the tension, even though she approached with a faint smile.
She pointed right at me in front of me and said something.
As if startled by this.
Erika muttered from behind me in a pronunciation similar to Benedetta's words, without telling me what they meant.
Whatever conversation they were having.
Benedetta frowned.