Chapter 19

Story 5  The Fox and the Panther

The people of the Grand Duchy began to get stirred up when news of the temple’s imminent shutdown was made known.

“How can people who expanded their power by adopting God’s name be this cold-hearted?!”

“Those treacherous temple guys…!”

Count Brunn and Count Dennis rapped the table in anger while Marquess Eli rejoined in a low voice,

“The current Church Order doesn’t feel like the Church Order of the past.”

Baron Romeo clasped his hands and took a deep breath.

“This is truly a great dilemma. We can’t simply deprive the fief of a healer of some sort…”

Even as her retainers were worried sick, Kynemeia was agonizing about something else altogether.

‘Has he not decided yet?’

She burrowed deep into the seat of honour in the conference room. She had requested the ingredients from Mikhaela quite easily. As monsters would crop up in droves around this period, the creatures which rarely revealed themselves would be easily spotted.

The Liquor of God. The secret of the liquor that Xuan Tian Xinghai searched everywhere in the novel was inside of a monster.

A mutated monkshood named Staghorn Monkshood.

The poison buried within the core of a Staghorn Monkshood would crystallize with time and take the shape of a pellet. Should it graze one’s lips even a little, they could die. Its toxicity was that strong, so it was that much dangerous. However, this poison pill had a peculiar characteristic. When diluted in water or alcohol, it would emit a unique scent, creating a taste of fantasy.

As a result, the taste of Staghorn Monkshood’s poison pill became an inedible phantasmal existence because it was especially life-threatening—

But there was only one person among the people Kynemeia knew who could drink it—Xuan Tian Xinghai. That man possessed an insanely robust constitution which would detoxify any poison he consumes immediately. Xuan Tian had also stumbled upon this discovery in the original novel since he would consume everything under the sun while accompanying the protagonist in his quest to subjugate monsters.

‘Fufufu— To think I could make use of this info like this. How very good this situation is. I love it,’ she mused with a wicked grin and laced her hands together above her belly.

While lounging in her chair as if she was a mob boss, she suddenly remembered the pokemon that would come to her in person. The raised corners of her mouth drooped. ‘He’s a man who’s crazy about liquors, so there should’ve been a response.’

Recalling how the original novel described Xuan Tian, she felt his non-appearance was all the weirder.

‘Should I have just sent a carriage to the inn?’  She should wait for a few days, and if he was still a no-show, she would definitely send a carriage to pick him up. Not knowing why Kynemeia was a million miles away, the retainers started to feel at a loss.

‘You rascal, are you trying to upset Miss Faaaaaairy?!’

‘Hey, was I the only one? Everyone was behaving anxiously!’

‘I think we should not let the Young Lady shoulder this burden for now.’

Count Brunn, Count Dennis, and Baron Romeo began communicating with their eyes. When these men stared hard at Marquess Eli as if urging him to speak up, the latter smiled obligingly and said,

“You don’t need to be so worried, My Lady.”

“L-Lord Eli is right, My Lady.”

“Right, right.”

Count Dennis and Count Brunn added on to the Marquess’s words, their heads bobbing nonstop.

“My Lady, for now, we will try our best to do something. Please don’t worry too much.”

“Yes, My Lady. It’s not that big of a deal yet.”

The retainers tried hard to allay her anxiety. Then they hurriedly busied themselves with trying to get in touch with every one of their acquaintances from the temple. It was their only recourse even if there was a ghost of a chance.

And it was at that moment that two foreign guys arrived at the Grand Duke’s castle.

* * *

The first to discover them were the two gatekeepers guarding the front entrance of the castle.

‘A fox and… a panther?’

The man walking two steps ahead of the other was a slender, handsome fellow garbed in an exotic outfit and haughtily puffing on tobacco. His long hair was loosely braided on the side, and his elongated, monolid eyes lent him the likeness of a fox.

A little ways behind him was a man of such towering stature that one had to crane their neck upward to look him in the face. Even clothed, his body was visibly taut with muscles, and his swarthy skin gave the fierce-looking attractive man an impression of a panther.

“Meow—”

Right then, the cat that the Panther was holding cried out cutely at the sight of the gatekeepers.

“…?”

“…Uhmm.”

The gatekeepers peered hard at the duo before exchanging glances with each other.

“…”

“…”

They nodded once in unison then turned to face ahead, feeling that it would be wiser to pretend they’d seen nothing.

“You there.” 

‘“There”? Just what is he calling out to?’ The gatekeeper who stood to the right of the gates scrunched up his face.

“Did you not hear me?”

The slender Fox took a drag of the tobacco and exhaled.

“You there, is no one here.”

“They’re obviously in front of you.”

The Panther retorted.

“Just hold your tongue.”

The grumpy Xuan Tian walked towards the gatekeeper while staring straight into his eyes and shouted again.

“You there!”

“…?”

As he was yelling too close to the gatekeeper, the latter could not help but ask.

“Who are you. This is the castle of the Grand Duke of Lyonne.”

“I see that I have reached the right destination.”

“The Grand Duke’s castle, you say. Did someone from this place really summon you, Master?”

“They did, okay? This personage has come to meet your lord. Open the gates.”

The gatekeeper took stock of their appearance then declared sternly,

“The Lady shall not receive lunatics.”

“Lu… Lunatics!”

“What? Lunatics?”

The Panther knitted his brows, and something lit up in his eyes.

Oop, the gatekeeper gave a start and shut his mouth at the man’s fierce glower.

“O Gatekeeper, I wish to inquire something of you.”

“W-What might that be.”

“Am I included in what you termed as lunatics?”

“Is that important right now?!”

“Very much so, sir.”

Xuan Tian snapped crossly, but Law merely replied unflinchingly.

“I shall inquire of you anew, O Gatekeeper. Am I included amongst those lunatics?”

“Y-You are not.”

The gatekeeper answered in a slightly timid voice. The Panther then raised his hand.

“All is well then.”

“What part of it is well!”

The Panther returned to being expressionless as he stroked the cat while the Fox next to him fumed silently. As they could no longer pretend to turn a blind eye to the men, the gatekeepers surrounded them, spears at the ready.

“Suspicious men, present to us your proof of identification.”

“…!”

Proof of identification! Xuan Tian clamped the tobacco between his teeth in surprise.

“I shall repeat myself. Suspicious men, present your proof of identification.”

“…”

With skittish eyes, he blew out a puff before he replied.

“…I possess none.”

Xuan Tian Xinghai was an illegal immigrant; he had no means of identification.

“If that is so, you are prohibited from entry into the castle.”

“Ha!”

With a snort, he began rummaging inside his breast pockets, thereby spooking the gatekeepers and causing them to make a fuss.

“Draw your hand out of your chest!”

“Draw your hand out and freeze!”

His expression fell.

“No, I… have an invitation…”

His actions, having been misconstrued by the gatekeepers who assumed he was drawing a weapon when in fact he was only trying to take out the letter from the lord of the castle, prompted them to blow the horn. It was a signal to summon the other knights in the castle—or all of them should the need arise.

“What is going on?”

Just then, two knights who were on watch duty asked from above the walls.

“We must capture these men!”

“They’re suspicious!”

“What?!”

At the gatekeepers’ words, the knights swiftly leapt down the walls. They examined Xuan Tian and Law closely and nodded because sure enough, the men did indeed bear a suspicious appearance.