Episode 568 Closing Gate (2)
The empty town is being searched.
No, in fact, the word plunder is more appropriate than search.
Because the content of the order issued by the village chief who took the body of the commander was only one.
“Search the town and collect everything you find in one place!”
Furniture fixtures equipment living tools, etc….
There was no distinction in kind.
It didn’t matter whether it looked useful or not.
Command to bring everything you find.
If so, why did the village chief issue such an order?
Guessing, it couldn’t have been because it was a pity that the things he had collected while growing the village were thrown away. Sёarᴄh the NôᴠeFire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
The village chief is not a person who has regrets about such things.
But even so, there is one reason why they plundered everything.
Jerome St. Red would have done that.
It’s obvious that he robbed everything just because it was for the royal family.
So the village chief gave such an order.
“I would like the leaders of each group to take this map and take charge of the assigned area…!”
In this way, the expeditionary force divided the district into groups and plundered the houses where the monsters who once believed themselves to be human lived and raised their children.
Boring labor with no combat whatsoever.
However, there was also a class that welcomed such simple work.
“Things that contain the lifestyles of the first monsters that could communicate!”
“This would be great research material!”
“It’s a pity… I wish I could have caught one or two alive and heard the story myself…
”
Magicians who are crazy and crazy about research.
At least they put great value on this work.
Oh, including Raven, of course.
“Mr. Yandel… said you’d stayed here before, right?”
“however?”
“Later… when I get a chance, can I listen to the story in detail?”
“Yes, when the opportunity arises.”
“You promised? Then I’ll go. break is over See you later.”
Anyway, our provisional group 4 also received this mission and diligently searched the assigned area again and again.
Still, I felt a bit strange.
Yes, as Raven said, we have memories of our time here.
“…that’s the mansion we stayed in.”
“uh! That’s the vacant lot where I fought against Pia Roccic!”
“Something is creepy. The blacksmith over there is also lit, but there is no one inside…”
“Something… it’s hard to express, but something… I feel very strange. They were monsters, but there were still a lot of good guys…”
What really separates humans from monsters?
appearance? racial traits? Do you have experience points?
Then, is the village chief who regained his human body human?
Conversely, what if I turn into a monster or enter their body through some kind of work?
So am I a monster?
Now I’m not sure.
It is no longer possible to know whether it even makes sense to distinguish.
“Yandel… are you okay? You don’t look good.”
“…Of course. Why wouldn’t it be okay?”
“…if you are, then that would be it.”
After that, he continued his mission, and when the search for the assigned area was completed, he joined the other groups in the center of the village.
It was camp time.
“The sheep are terrifying….”
“It has no choice but to be like that. It was a village where hundreds of individuals lived.”
The task of searching and looting the village that took all day is over.
Every village was searched, but no survivors were hiding.
After the day’s work was over, each group camped in a suitable empty house.
It was finally time to have a quiet conversation with colleagues.
“We’ll be… in another room far away.”
“yes. Please feel free to talk.”
Afterwards, the Armin Exploration Team and the Hex Clan moved away as they noticed, and soon after Versil used the ‘Voice Control’ magic, Amelia quickly opened her mouth.
“So… what the hell happened?”
“Ah, that’s…”
“Don’t think you’ll believe that the commander and I worked together. If you really did, there’s no way I wouldn’t have told you anything about your personality beforehand.”
without giving me time to talk.
‘…Actually, it’s not wrong.’
Otherwise, it was very dangerous.
According to the goddess, at the same time that I fainted, my comrades were overpowered by surprise.
The biggest thing was that there was no one to give the order.
What do we do? Is it right to fight here? But what about the royal army? What decision would you have made if you were me?
The moment when a momentary judgment determines the outcome.
The clan I fell into, Anavada, couldn’t make a decision in time, and in the end, all of them were impotently imprisoned.
‘…But fortunately, the result itself was good.’
However, what led to good results was not good judgment, but simply because things worked out well.
Obviously, if they had fought to the end, one of them would have been killed or seriously injured.
That’s why he doesn’t believe me either.
Because there was no way I didn’t say anything, relying on luck.
“It is as you say. There was no such thing as hidden cooperation. Or rather, Jerome St. Red was going to turn me over to the chief.”
The undeniable truth here.
“It seems that the village headman was conciliating with something like a royal family treasure. However, I managed to solve it well, and conversely, I was able to use it to catch the village chief.”
“…how did you solve it well?”
Versil carefully opened her mouth as if she couldn’t understand it at all, and I sighed inwardly and said,
“I received great help from Leatlas.”
This too was plainly true.
Well, it was kind of advice to solve it well with words.
At least I think it will be of great help in overcoming this situation.
“Leatlas-sama…?”
“Couldn’t it be that I fainted when the light burst out…?”
“Anyway, I can’t tell you the details because it’s a promise with the goddess. But… in the end, things worked out, and I escaped the village and met Jerome St. Red to make a secret deal. You’ll forget that you tried to use me as a throwaway card, so I thought I’d catch the village chief first.”
“…That’s why I said I’d give you a reward while talking about the big major.”
Soon I took a quick look around.
When the situation overlapped with the fact that even the name of the goddess was sold and the commander tried to give me a reward, most seemed to believe my words without question.
Except for one Amelia.
‘…Later, when it’s just the two of us, she’s going to ask persistently.’
My head hurts just thinking about it, but I can’t help it.
Because the less people know about the village chief’s secret, the better.
No matter how good my acting is, as long as the other person is the village chief, they will be able to notice that I shared a secret.
If that happens, that person will also become a target for any ‘sudden action’ that the village mayor might do.
‘More than anything… one day, when things really go wrong, we can prove that there is nothing involved.’
Anyway, this topic ends with a few more questions from colleagues.
It was time to move on to the next step.
“Could everyone move aside for a moment?”
“Ah… uh, you should rest too…”
“Except for you, Misha.”
“…Eh?”
When I called out, Misha panicked as if she had been singled out by her homeroom teacher.
After that, the colleagues left saying they were going to rest first, and Misha, a man alone, sat on a chair with both fists on her lap.
And cautiously asked first.
“What is it…? All of a sudden, I called only myself…”
I didn’t want to bother with roundabout words, so I went straight to the main topic.
“The Stone of Rejuvenation.”
“…!”
A shrugged shoulder, even though he only mentioned three words.
I wonder how this kid has been hiding it until now, but if you think about it, it’s all my fault.
I should have asked strongly earlier, even if I had to push myself a little.
It’s kind of hard for him to do that.
“Did Lee Baek-ho give it to you?”
Somehow I didn’t get an answer like that.
To the direct question, Misha gave a short answer.
In a voice like an ant crawling.
“Yeah…”
“What did you say when you gave it to me?”
“Stay by your side… If you die someday, use it to buy it and save it…”
Yes, that’s how it was.
It’s not surprising since I was guessing.
Just curious about a few things.
“Did you know that using the Rejuvenation Stone will cause the target to lose all of their memories?”
“…what?”
Ok, looking at his expression, he probably didn’t know that feature.
I went straight to the next question.
“If you didn’t know, why didn’t you tell me beforehand? I don’t think it’s going to harm me just by talking about it.”
“Because I said that if you found out… something worse would happen to you…” “
So you hid it from me? Because that bastard said so?”
“…”
Misha lowered her head and kept her mouth shut.
But as I stare at it, a very strange feeling blooms.
My head was calm because I was angry.
My heart keeps beating to keep my composure.
That feeling was far from sadness.
What the hell is this feeling.
“i get it. Then just leave.”
I didn’t know, so I wanted to end the conversation at this point.
It was a consideration not to make him more uncomfortable.
But why?
“…”
Misha remained silent as she sat in the chair.
So I asked.
“Why aren’t you leaving? go and rest Because I heard everything you said.”
Soon, Misha slowly raised her head.
And with difficulty he opened his mouth.
“Everything… you heard? Is that… the end?”
It was a strange question for me.
“Why do you need something more?”
“…”
“I didn’t mean to reprimand. You didn’t do it out of spite, you just did it for me, didn’t you?”
In response to my quiet reply, Misha was silent for a long time.
How long did that quiet time last?
“That’s…”
“…?”
“I hate that…”
Misha continued, bowing her head.
“Just… tell me. Because anything is fine…”
The pleading words that even felt the earnestness.
At that request, my mouth opened without my knowledge.
“I just thought there was no need to talk further.”
It was a very strange experience.
I didn’t know that the original mind that even I didn’t know could come out first through my mouth.
“Because it’s hard to believe what you say.”
He was once the most trustworthy person in this strange world, but he is no longer so.
Of course, it’s not all his fault.
On the contrary, Lee Baek-ho would have a much bigger stake if we were to judge right and wrong.
“To be honest.”
“…”
“Even after hearing the story today, the first thing I thought was whether he was hiding something more.”
“…Uh, that’s right…”
He said he was sorry.
I wanted to say that, but I didn’t think it was something I would be sorry for, so I just kept my mouth shut.
Misha looked at me for a while and then slowly stood up.
And…
trudge.
move without a word
thud.
I closed the door and quietly left the room.
***
Next morning.
After the usual morning meeting every morning, we had a private meeting with the village chief.
“Can’t we just get rid of those morning meetings that waste time?”
“I can’t. Jerome St. Red is a person who values a set routine.”
“Well, that’s how it is.”
“By the way, have you thought about the reward I told you about yesterday?”
“Ah, if that’s the case, I plan to promise later. I don’t need anything right now.”
“If so. tell me anytime.”
“I will. Anyway, I think the important thing is the plan for the future… What are you thinking now?”
“As I said back then, I’m thinking of getting used to this body over time.”
The village chief’s answer remained unchanged.
It’s just…
“Adaptation…”
In the end, that word means that you won’t trust me.
What kind of essence he possessed while living in that body, whether he really ate the essence of Iblus, whether a [pagan altar] was actually installed in the city, etc.
You might want to check that out first.
“After adaptation?”
“I will leave here right away.”
Interpreted, it means that if only the essence of Iblus can be confirmed, he will leave his seat immediately.
It was a time I was looking forward to.
Well, that and curiosity are different.
“But if you want to continue living with that body, can’t you just go out together when you escape? It is impossible to erase the essence of Iblus.”
Should I call it an occupational disease as a player?
The thought that it is too inefficient to forget the number of times to leave a little earlier still persists.
Exactly, it was too close.
It’s not even a situation where I’m losing money.
“Besides, if you die alone and escape, the royal family won’t look at you kindly. Maybe I won’t be able to keep the captain’s position.”
“Ahaha, that’s amazing! I didn’t know you would give me such advice.”
“Aren’t we on the same boat for now? There may be things to cooperate with each other outside. Didn’t your smile skills improve a lot?”
“I’m slowly getting used to it. to the human mind.”
“So what is the answer?”
“It’s the same as before. As soon as I get used to it, I’ll leave right away.”
Why is the village chief trying to do something so inefficient?
When I looked at him with such a question, the village chief forced a smile and opened his mouth.
“Maybe it’s been a little over 100 days since you entered this layer?”
“however?”
“You don’t know anything about this class yet.”
“…?”
“Of course, you will get out of here someday, as the record says… but you never know how long it will take to get there.”
The village chief continued.
“This moment… I’ve been waiting for a really long time.”
This time, it was not a forced feeling.
The village chief’s voice contained a strong emotion that he had never seen before.
Of course, that moment was extremely brief.
“Haha, aren’t all the values that people consider important different? If I can leave here even one day sooner, it’s worth it to me.”
Soon, the village chief put a fake smile on his lips again, as if he had never done that before.