Chapter 50: Spying the Approaching Foes

"Big brother, we need to talk." Kalluto pulled Regriel to her room, showing him the scroll as she explained everything to him. As for General Artica, she only looked at the room once before heading upstairs, intending to take a bath and get some sleep.

"T-This…" Regriel was shocked at the information Kalluto said, muttering in disbelief, "To think such a thing had happened."

"Yes," Kalluto said, pushing the scroll towards him, "I haven't taken a look at the scroll myself. I'm weak, so even if I looked into it, I would be unable to do anything about it. So, please…"

"Help me with this."

Regriel gazed at the scroll, noticing that it seemed to have been sealed with a wax stamp, understanding that Kalluto hadn't seen its contents as she had said. 'I planned to head towards the capital and gain some more allies while using the tournament as an excuse. Once I get into the Royal Academy, my life would be one of luxury once again. But, this changes things.'

'If there's a treasure there, then I'll be able to become even stronger by obtaining it.' Regriel had just thought as such when the System's voice resounded in his mind.

<Ding>

[Quest: Solve the Great Megwest Empire's puzzle of chaos]

[Quest Difficulty: A-Grade]

[Time Limit: 1 Year]

[Rewards: Enslaved Women Slot +10, Pinnacle Puppeteer Affinity]

[Failure: Removal of Darlac]

'It's finally here!' Regriel was overjoyed, obtaining a Quest with tremendous Rewards, 'My current slot of Enslaved Women is only 5. With this, I'll be able to have 10 more. And not to mention, I'll also obtain the highest affinity to become a Puppeteer. The rewards are tremendous.'

'But, the Quest Difficulty is A-Grade.' He frowned, deep in thought, 'With my current power, clearing an A-Grade Quest is impossible. The one I just completed was only a D-Grade Quest, but even it took 2 days.'

Upon seeing him deep in thought, Kalluto was flustered, unable to think of what else to say. Now that she knew her father had lost his life in pursuing the truth in the scroll, she was afraid. After all, she hadn't left Peckle City since birth, having always stayed in one place.

So, her horizons weren't broadened. And, even though she wished to accompany Regriel, she knew that she would only drag him down. That's why she had hardened her resolve to entirely trust the matter to Regriel. But, she hadn't expected Regriel to think about it this much.

She had assumed he would accept it right away, but reality proved otherwise. It was a blow to her fragile heart, causing her to almost tear up when Regriel finished contemplating, "Kalluto, I'll be honest with you. This would be hard, if not impossible with my current strength. But, I promise that I'll definitely exact justice to your father. So…"

"Would you be willing to accompany me to the capital?" Regriel said, staring straight at her eyes, causing Kalluto to blush as she nodded.

Immediately upon doing so, she got up and rushed out of the room, her head bowed for some reason. But, as it was what he had been doing all along, and having understood the cause behind Kalluto's actions, Regriel was confused.

He muttered, scratching his cheek, "But, how is this possible? I never used my Skill on her."

…

It was late into the afternoon as Compass Carburettor lazed around at the side of the path, having fallen unconsciousness quite a few times as a result of the cheap liquor. He was someone that was unable to hold his liquor.

Moreover, he was the type that got drunk just from the smell. So, it was impossible for him to remain conscious after smelling the liquor. But, that was his plan. Even though he fell unconscious, he woke up around fifteen to twenty minutes later, completely clear-headed.

And, he once again inhaled the alcohol, even going to the extent of taking a couple of sips, dropping the liquor bottle on the ground while he fainted, repeating the process numerous times. This gave him the perfect image of someone so drunk, he was unable to even tell day and night apart.

Once his persona was successfully created, Compass Carburettor continued to behave in such a manner, at times closing his eyes as he saw and heard everything that transpired in the inn. Today was the day Regriel had planned to set off towards the capital of the Heroica Empire, Grenstan.

So, once he returned from a Dungeon exploration that spanned a couple of days, he and General Artica rested a little while he went through the scroll, reading it completely. In the end, he decided to make a prompt visit and finish a part of the task before heading off towards the capital.

And, that was why Compass Carburettor had disguised himself as a beggar. The moment he noticed Regriel and General Artica exiting the inn, his heart thumped, trembling as little as he was tense. Keeping his eyes closed, he focused on manipulating the Puppet, Spydragon.

In its serpentine form, the Puppet slithered through the corners of the inn, hidden from view as it reached the exit, placing itself at the far end of its range of vision from General Artica and Regriel, keeping track of them.

Once they began to move through the streets, it assumed its flight mode, shrinking to a length of 5 centimetres as it took flight, landing on the roof of a house, making a swift flight from one rooftop to another.

All along, it kept track of its targets. Compass Carburettor began to sweat upon the Darlac exertion as he was controlling the Puppet from a significant distance. Had the Puppet been any bigger, he wouldn't have been able to control it at all.

Consistently, the Spydragon kept pace, hidden from view while barely making any sounds as its flight was always short and quick. But, once Regriel exited the city, Compass Carburettor faced some trouble.

After all, there was an open patch of land for a kilometre surrounding Peckle City. This part had been cleared out to prevent any sort of army from marching towards the city undetected. And now, this proved to be the most dangerous for the Spydragon as it didn't have anything to hide behind.