A Flawed Plan

"Jane, can you make it a bit brighter?"

"...I'm only doing this because you asked. It's not because I'm afraid of the dark or anything."

Jane's unnecessary defense only made it painfully obvious that she was, in fact, terrified.

After muttering a few more excuses, she coaxed her flames to burn brighter.

As the light expanded, illuminating the wide, empty sewer—

"Gasp...!"

Jane stumbled backward.

The firelight had just revealed a mountain of corpses piled high in the canal.

Some slumped against the walls, others face-down in the stagnant water, stacked on top of one another in layers.

They were rotting bodies, discarded as carelessly as trash.

Yet, strangely, a sweet fragrance hung in the air rather than the stench of decay.

"...Hold on."

Roan noticed something on the wall and crushed it.

It was an incense candle.

The moment he broke it, the foul stench of rot immediately assaulted their noses.

Her mind seemingly clearing from the sudden shift in smell, Jane slowly approached the shattered candle.

"...It's infused with mana. If we had stayed here any longer, our minds might have gone completely blank."

"So those people definitely had an agenda, then?"

While the two conversed, Belgard stepped forward.

Unbothered by the corpse water and buzzing flies, he strode right up to the pile and began rummaging through the bodies.

"Ah, just as I thought."

He pulled something out and walked back.

It was expensive fabric, gold ornaments, and a badge.

"Look at this. It seems these people were associated with the former lord."

"...Indeed."

Roan managed a nod.

He had seen Belgard dissect monsters and butcher meat before, but he hadn't expected him to go this far without a second thought.

"...Since the man himself is right here, why don't we ask him?"

"Yes, I'll give it a try."

Belgard nodded at Roan's suggestion.

The experience Belgard had gathered from real combat made him incredibly reliable in situations like this.

—It's... unfair...

Even with them talking right in front of him, the former lord could barely squeeze out a single word.

Belgard stepped closer to him.

It was a bizarre sight—a living man silently staring face-to-face with a rotting corpse.

After absorbing the lingering resentment for a few minutes, Belgard nodded.

"I have the general idea now."

He began to explain the information he had gathered.

"The current lord... is a monster. A cunning beast that has hidden its desires among humans for a very long time."

He explained that the monster had used its abilities to keep the citizens from doubting him while carrying out his schemes.

"We have to stop him. The current lord, and all of his underlings."

"Wait a second."

Jane cut off Belgard, who spoke with fierce resolve.

"...Setting that aside, didn't the people in the city seem to be doing just fine? Do we really need to go out of our way to raid them?"

"No, we must,"

Belgard said firmly.

The reason was simple.

"The current lord is planning to put everyone to sleep. It's a plan called... the Black Sun."

The Black Sun.

...The Black Sun?

Roan tilted his head in confusion.

"Is there such a ritual?"

Jane's eyes widened at his question.

She was surprised because Roan, who usually seemed to know everything about suspicious occurrences, was genuinely clueless.

"Yes. They say it's a ritual to put the sun to sleep and bring eternal darkness upon the world."

It was a vague explanation.

Likely because Belgard had only read the fragmented memories of the dead lord.

At least it's not one of the apocalypses I know of.

Had the continent's past been this chaotic?

Roan realized once again that there were many other threats besides the major apocalypses he had foreseen.

A brief silence fell over them.

Finally, Roan pointed toward the exit.

"Alright. Then our next move is decided."

First, they had to deal with the incense candles.

Since everyone was under their subtle influence, they had to be thoroughly destroyed.

Leaving the sewer, Roan's party began clearing out the incense.

It wasn't difficult.

All they had to do was follow the strongest scent.

As expected, they didn't hide them very well. If they had, it would have ended up like the Blood Moon.

Or rather, I would ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠have noticed it.

After swiftly destroying all the candles, the party headed toward the grand mansion.

It was the very mansion where the banquet had been held just moments ago.

Its lights were still burning bright, refusing to go out.

"It doesn't seem very lively."

"Even during the banquet, they didn't make much noise."

"Doesn't matter. Let's go in."

—CRASH!

Roan suggested entering politely, only to immediately kick the door off its hinges.

Through the shattered doorway, the nobles came into view.

The mansion's knights quickly stepped forward to shield the panicked aristocrats.

"What do you think you are doing?! How dare you trespass into the grand man—ARGH!"

There was no need for a prolonged struggle.

A quick throw here, a spark of fire shoved into the gaps of armor there.

The situation was resolved in a matter of seconds.

It was the joint work of an already powerful Roan and a newly strengthened Jane.

"T-This is impossible...! How could the mansion's knights be defeated so easily...!"

"Hmph. That's what happens when you only do rigid, formal training."

Just then, a group of figures stepped forward to shield the trembling nobles.

It was the bandits they had encountered in the forest.

"We already captured these fools once. Even if they've changed a bit, the result will be the same."

The leader of the bandits drew a dagger from his waist.

Then, he pulled a flask from his belt.

He poured out a thick, viscous green liquid.

As steam rose from the bubbling fluid, he thrust it toward Roan.

"Surrender quietly if you don't want to experience something truly nasty."

It was a highly confident declaration.

...

"Aaargh! Argh! My Lord! My Lords!"

The bandit was subdued in an instant.

His confident smirk was entirely gone, replaced by pitiful, agonizing screams.

"Unbelievable... What kind of strength is that?"

"That mage's skill is also incredibly high..."

A simple display of blocking every single attack.

The sheer difference in power was painfully obvious.

The people inside the mansion began to shrink back in fear.

"Tsk, useless fools..."

Through the parting crowd, the man they were looking for finally appeared.

After glaring coldly at the defeated bandits, the lord instantly masked his expression and turned to Roan's party with a warm smile.

"Ah, you have returned. I have been waiting for you, heroes. Did you discover the identity of whatever was making those noises in the sewer?"

The lord asked, still playing his part perfectly.

"The former lord."

Roan saw no reason to play along anymore.

"The man you tried to bury. His lingering resentment is keeping him from moving on. It seems we'll have to avenge him so he can rest in peace."

Roan spoke casually as he drew his sword.

"I told you that if you were plotting something, you'd have to take responsibility, didn't I? You monster."

Monster.

At that word, the lord's demeanor shifted instantly.

"Haha, you must have heard some strange rumors. Surely the one who fits the description of a monster is the man in the sewer? From what I hear, he is nothing but a moving corpse—"

Thrust!

Instead of a verbal reply, a sharp thrust flew forward.

Even though Roan's sword pierced his heart, the lord didn't even flinch.

Not a single drop of blood spilled from the wound.

"So this is how you want to play. Yes... perhaps this is actually more convenient."

Muttering to himself, his body began to swell.

"You fools who covet my position and my reputation. I should have just broken your minds like I did the others. To think my laziness would come back to bite me like this."

Soon, the monster fully revealed its true form.

The surrounding servants and nobles also began transforming into monstrous shapes.

However, there was no violent rampage or desperate struggle as expected.

—*Psssssh!*

With a deflating hiss, a thick gas began leaking from the monsters' skin.

"Hehehe... Once you inhale this gas, your minds will melt away. Cleaning up the mansion afterward will be a pain, but this is more than enough to—"

—CRACK!!!

"Argh?!"

His face twisted violently from the impact.

—WHOOSH!!!

"A-Aaargh!"

His flesh began to burn.

With his vision spinning and death staring him in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the face, the terrified monster looked forward.

None of the three humans were affected by the gas.

Not a single one of them showed any signs of distress.

"W-What... What did you do?! Damn it...! All of you, attack!"

At the leader's signal, the horde of monsters lunged at them.

But their attacks were useless.

They were deflected by a shield and parried by a sword.

The small human standing right before them was blocking every single strike from all directions entirely on his own.

"Why...! Why are you unaffected?! My absolute ability should work on any human!"

"It didn't seem very absolute to me,"

Belgard replied.

A faint, shimmering barrier of holy power could be seen enveloping their bodies.

It was a protective barrier designed to block out any external intrusions.

"You... you bastard..."

Gnashings its teeth, the monster took a deep breath to calm itself.

"Whew... It doesn't matter. My plan is already in its final stages anyway."

"The Black Sun?"

"Hmph, yes. Even if you try to stop it, you are far too late. Every single citizen in this city has already been hypnotized."

The monster confidently brought its hands together.

Judging by the way it was gathering mana, it was preparing to trigger the final phase.

"The ritual has already begun! Even if you kill me, it will not stop! The humans will throw themselves into the river, and the sun will finally draw its last breath!"

"...Sorry to interrupt your grand speech, but..."

"Trying to distract me won't work! Face your demise!"

The monster spread its arms wide, proclaiming the end.

Yet, nothing happened.

There was no sound of splashing water, nor any other sign of the ritual taking effect.

"W-What...? The incense candles should have taken effect by now..."

"I guess you haven't stepped outside the mansion lately. We smashed every single one of those candles."

"Y-You bastards...!"

The monster's face flushed with rage.

Only then did Roan realize.

So that's why I didn't notice it before.

The Blood Moon had been impossible to detect until it actually began.

This ritual was similar in nature, but the level of sloppiness was on a completely different scale.

Still, there was no denying it was a dangerous ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ritual.

Since the monster had graciously explained everything itself, it was time to put an end to this.

"N-No...! No!!"

The monster's desperate screams echoed through the halls.

One by one, the breathing of the monsters occupying the grand mansion ceased.

Eventually, the mansion fell into a deep silence, and the Black Sun ritual was successfully thwarted.

The citizens regained their memories, and the administration of the territory was temporarily handed over to an acting representative.

It was the inevitable outcome of the monster's complacency, believing it had already succeeded.

Now, shouldn't they deliver this tragic news to the one who deserved to hear it?

Roan's party descended back into the sewer.

"Huh?"

But the voice chanting its bitter resentment was gone.

Wondering what had happened, they ventured a bit deeper.

"...It seems he realized. Or perhaps he used up the last of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠his remaining strength."

Before them lay the former lord, now nothing more than a lifeless, soulless corpse.

"Nothing we can do. Let's get out of here quickly. It's dark, damp, and way too quiet..."

"Wait a moment. There's something here..."

Belgard found something hidden among the pile of corpses.

It was a small note that hadn't been there when they first visited.