Volume 6 - CH 17

Translator: Silver Editor: Namorax

「Reinforcements Arc」

“Is this alright?”

We were currently borrowing one of the rooms in the mansion of Keen’s feudal lord. Princess Lille was sitting behind a large desk as the contract specifying the rewards for this job was drawn up.

After looking over the contract I confirmed that everything was in order.

“These are the conditioned we discussed a while ago.”

One of the people beside me glanced at the contents and nodded their head.

After Ariane looked over the contract she started to whisper something in my ear.

(Do you really believe that a small child’s promise will be fulfilled? Even if she herself wants to hold up her end of the bargain, I doubt she has the power to do so)

She cast a suspicious glance towards Lille escorts, Nina and Zahar, that were currently flanking her side.

I couldn’t deny that she had a point.

While the conditions set had been accurately recorded, whether or not Lille was capable of fulfilling them was up in the air.

(You have a point Ariane-dono, I also doubt that our demands will be met completely.)

Ariane made a dubious expression when I replied to her.

I couldn’t deny the uncertainty that a country deeply-rooted in the Hiruku religion’s doctrine wouldn’t violate its contract with Ariane, Chiome, and I.

(Then, why are you having a contract written up?)

Ariane raised an eyebrow and expressed her dissatisfaction at me.

As long as we held a contract written by royal hands, I imagine we could get the opposition to partially hold up their end of the bargain.

Above all else, the best way to request a favor is to……

(The contract proves that an agreement was made in advance when we make a show of strength similar to those of the Hiruku Theocracy)

In the corner of the room, Chiome reacted to my remark.

Her cat ears did a little pitter-patter when I made that comment.

On top of my head, Ponta’s normally stationary ears did a similar pitter-patter to Chiome’s.

The only person that reacted differently was Ariane, who looked puzzled as she stared at me.

(The Theocracy demonstrates their military might by having their holy knights intervene in the conflicts of the other countries. We elves shall showcase our own strength and warn others not to underestimate us.)

Ariane was openly distraught when she heard my explanation.

(Are you even thinking this through?)

While she obviously wanted to continue the conversation, Lille had finished signing the contract and interrupted us by presenting me the contract.

“I have given my signature. The agreement will be finalized once you sign it.”

The contract was presented to me after she said that and I turned toward Ariane.

She looked confused as she stared back at me.

“This should be a good place for Ariane-dono to sign”

The eyes of those on Nozan’s side, including Lille’s, were all directed at a confused Ariane, who glared at me in return.

(Wait, Arc. Why do I have to sign it!?)

I offered Ariane a brief explanation in a measured but strong tone, all the while avoiding her glare.

“As the newest member, I’m still at the bottom of the village ranking, that’s why Ariane is more qualified as our representative.”

Ariane and Lille both stared at me when they heard my remark.

The was a slight sliver of surprise in their eyes.

She probably assumed that I was our group’s representative, but It wasn’t that long ago that I joined Raratoia. In terms of elven society, Ariane was leagues above me.

And above all else, I couldn’t actually write in the language of this world.

While I could understand the meaning of the words I looked at, you needed to know the alphabet and grammar.

This might be a problem later down the line.

Ariane let out a large sigh when she saw the look on the princess’s face and reluctantly signed the contract.

“Is this good?”

After Ariane asked Lille read over the contract and nodded.

“Yes, with this negotiations are complete, Ariane-dono, Arc-dono and Chiome-dono. I believe that the promise to save my country shall be fulfilled?”

Ariane looked a bit uncomfortable and shrugged her shoulder as Lille’s big gray eyes focused on her.

I nodded in response to Lille’s question once I received the contract from here.

“Don’t worry, Lille-dono. We will tirelessly work to rescue Nozan’s capital from the undead horde. All Lille-dono has to do is prepare our reward.”

Lille released a small breath of relief once she heard my words.

Nina, who’d silently watched the proceedings until now, looked in my direction and opened her mouth to ask a question.

“Assuming we manage to enter the capital, there will be many injured there…… will you administer the same kind of healing magic you used on me?”

When Nina asked that question, she was stroking her arm that had been cut off by the spider chimera before I seamlessly reattached it.

Using too much of healing magic may cause troubled in the future, and there’s also a limit on how much I damage I can heal with my magic depending on the number of people.

Even though I possessed a large amount of mana I couldn’t help an absurd number of people…… I considered all of these things before answering her question.

“As long as it’s within my power…… I promise to provide adequate treatment.”

She breathed a relieved sigh and gave me a small nod.

Of course, I’d already thought of this option.

Even if it’s the work of a different race, those that adhered to the Hiruke doctrine wouldn’t immediately be able to mistreat those with healing magic in a dire situation.

Though it was impossible to extinguish prejudice, promoting tolerance or goodwill towards other races in a small group of people would be a satisfactory result.

As I internally praised myself for the level of coverage my plan had, a servant entered the room and delivered a message.

“Princess Lille, the Earl wishes to inform you that the cavalry is ready.”

“I understand, please tell them we shall arrive soon.”

When she heard the message from Earl Dimo, Lille leaped to her feet and turned to her two personal escorts, looking at Nina in particular.

“Your complexion doesn’t look too good, Nina. Would you like to stay behind?”

There was a hit of worry for her guard in Lille’s expression.

Nina’s complexion was as bad as Lille said. She’d lost a lot of blood when her arm was cut off.

My healing magic lacks the ability to restore lost blood.

Despite our short acquaintanceship, however, I already had a grasp on her personality.

Nina shook her head before kneeling in front of Lille.

“No. If I were to stay here while Princess Lille returned to the capital, even under your command, I would not be able to accept it!”

Nina’s strong will and stubbornness were transmitted to the princess through her words.

While Lille had a worried expression on her face, I could see a hint of joy within her eyes.

“There’s no choice then. …… let us prepare to set off.”

There was a smile on Lille face as she said that, and it remained there as she started strapping a set of elegantly designed leather armor over her dress.

I guess this was standard for royalty?

Although the armor was well put together, unlike Zahar’s and Nina’s armor, it didn’t seem capable of withstanding much damage.

However, it was better than nothing.

When Lille left the office, her two guards followed behind her.

Ariane, Chiome and I exchanged glances with one another as we stayed behind.

Ariane was the first to speak up, though her voice was rather weaker than normal.

“…… this may be just like usual, but it feels like there’ve been some strange developments.”

“Kyun?”

On top my head, Ponta seemed confused by Ariane’s grievances.

Chiome spoke up in an apologetic when she heard Ariane’s statement.

“The request I asked for is the source if our current situation……”

Ariane immediately shook her head and tried to ease Chiome’s worries.

“I’m not blaming you Chiome-chan, it’s just that I’m not a representative of my village and I just exchanged an absurd promise with a human country…… don’t you see?”

Ariane looked a bit troubled as she spoke and looked towards me.

The sense of reluctance in her gaze was almost audible.

“It’s just a private contract between us and Nozan Kingdom. Canada and the village won’t be bothered by it. In any case, the rewards stipulated in this contract are dependent on the success on our part. You won’t lose anything if we fail to hold up our end of the deal.”

“I guess so……”

Even though she wasn’t completely satisfied by my explanation, I could see the strength return to her eyes after she let out a large sigh.

“But, even if we fail, we can still get into the royal treasury, right?”

Besides me, Chiome vigorously nodded her head at the idea of following Sasuke’s footsteps.

“Well, we should also get going.”

Saying only that, I stood up and followed after Lille’s group.

When we reached the mansion’s large front yard, we were greeted by one hundred mounted cavalrymen.

Each rider sat firmly in their saddle and wore a matching set of armor.

Under the light of day the cavalrymen seemed to dazzle and shine, Princess Lille nodded her head as she glanced over their spectacular appearance.

However, though these hundred cavalrymen seemed brave and competent, they would be consumed by the murky stream of the hundred thousand undead we would face.

Earl Dimo must have not told them the purpose for this unit’s formation because all of the cavalrymen had a triumphant look on their face.

Well, I suppose telling them of the sheer scale of the enemy they would be facing would frighten them off. If all of them fled it would be a disgrace to the Earl’s honor and Lille’s guards wouldn’t let us past Fort Hill, so I guess it wasn’t a bad decision.

When Lille and her guards entered the front yard everyone went quiet, only the hoof beats of the horses could be heard.

Earl Dimo, the ruler of this territory, soon arrived at Lille’s side.

“All of you, rejoice! Today, this territory’s cavalry has been given a glorious mission! You shall be escorting Princess Lille on her return trip to the capital! Proceed with caution!”

The cavalrymen straightened their posture upon hearing the Earl’s speech.

Once the Earl’s speech was finished, Zahar surveyed the group before he began his.

“You have been informed of the contents of your mission, we must cross the Salma Kingdom as quickly as possible! We will reach Fort Hill tonight and start to traverse the Burnett territory in the morning! Certain factors will make this a tough journey, but those who fall behind will be abandoned! Proceed with caution!”

His explanation caused a momentary outburst, but Zahar ignored them and gave the signal to set off for Fort hill.

“Dimo Cavalry, to Fort Hill! These are the instruction the Earl has written for the fort commander.”

Zahar handed a rolled-up parchment sealed with wax to one of the mounted soldiers and saluted them before they set off.

Lille would be riding along with Nana, so the guards she brought formed a defensive formation around them as they awaited Zahar’s orders.

Before taking the lead position, Zahar turned towards us as we watched them prepare.

“We will return to Fort Hill. Arc-dono, bring up the rear.”

“Alright.”

After hearing my reply, Zahar moved to where Lille was waiting.

I looked around and found a giant reddish figure resting in the corner of the garden.

I saw Shiden pressing his snout in-between his legs as I approached. All around him the grass had vanished and the soil had been dug up.

When Shiden noticed me, he raised his head with something still in his mouth.

It seems like he’d made a snack out of the garden.

The garden had been ruined, obviously, so we’d best leave before the Earl’s generosity ran out.

“Let’s go, Shiden.”

“Giyuriiin!”

Once I’d finished strapping the saddle on Shiden’s back, he stood up and let out a spirited roar.

The Earl’s servants simultaneously fell on their butts when they saw this.

To ordinary people, he must have seemed like a dangerous dragon or a savage beast, but he was quite loyal to his master.

Chiome sat in the front and Ariane behind me as we saddled up.

Once Ponta slipped into her new favorite spot in Shiden’s mane I took hold of the reins.

When Lille’s group left out the mansion’s gate and entered Keen’s residential area, Shiden slowly followed behind them.

I confirmed the position of the sun and calculated the time until we reach the fort.

“We’ll arrive sometime in the evening……”

When I turned away from the sun and focused on the line of people ahead of us, I noticed that Chiome was looking up at me.

While she opened her mouth she didn’t say anything, only nodding her head.

“Well, it’s time to go.”

While the city guards were keeping the streets clear of traffic, people flocked around us for a chance to catch a glance of Lille’s group. It felt like being part of a small parade.

All eyes were on us until we finally left the city behind.

Dimo’s mounted soldiers were full of fighting spirit as they led the way, or at least that was what it looked like from my position at the rear.

Actually, it was a mistake to put us at the rear of the group, we couldn’t overtake Lille’s group, so I intentionally limited our speed.

Thinking back to the Giant Basilisk I once encountered, I wondered if having six legs really increased one’s mobility?

My eyes focused on the scenery as my mind pondered over the intricacies of this world.

The scenic view of the farmland spread to my left and right, with farmers looking up when they heard the hoofbeats of our group.

Eventually, Fort Hill’s massive defensive wall came into view.

I wonder why I felt a bit nostalgic even though just half a day had passed since the last time we had been here.

The fort’s gate gradually began to open after the preceding cavalry raised a flag embroiled with the Earl’s family crest.

“This should be today’s destination, right? We can finally rest……”

Ariane let out a relieved sigh as she voiced her complaints.

An exhausted Ponta was sprawled across Shiden’s head.

That reminds me, we didn’t eat lunch today……

While that thought was crossing my mind, the cavalry had already vanished into the fort. Once Lille’s group and ours passed it, the gate was closed once more.

The one I assumed to be the cavalry’s leader met with Fort Hill’s commander and discussed the contents of the Earl’s letter. Meanwhile it became noisy around Lille’s group,

“Hold on, Nina!”

The main source of the commotion was Lille, when I turned towards them I saw that Nina’s complexion had worsened and she was on the verge of falling off her horse.

“Take her somewhere to rest! Quickly!”

Zahar immediately took charge of the situation.

Following his orders, two of the nearby guards helped her off her horse and led her away.

Lille was rather anxious about the whole thing, when she noticed my stare she came to plead with me.

“Arc-dono, please examine Nina!”

“I don’t mind doing so, but Nina is most likely still anemic. I don’t think there’s any way for her to recover besides bedrest and a steady diet.”

I dismounted Shiden as I replied to the princess, but she still directed her worried face at me.

When I saw a few droplets forming in the corner of her eyes I give in and nodded my head.

“Alright, I’ll cast healing magic and see how things go from there……”

Happiness bloomed on her face when I said that.

Seeing that exchange play out put a smile on Ariane’s face as she started mocking me.

“So, you’re weak to the tears of small children, Arc?”

“I don’t want to hear that coming from you, Ariane-dono.”

Ariane looked away and pretended to ignore me at my comeback.

It would have been for the best to have Nina rest for a couple of days, but her pride wouldn’t allow her to leave Lille’s side.

I could try to force her to rest by chopping the back of her neck whenever she woke up, but it would be really bad if I accidentally decapitated her.

I suppose I could cast 【Revitalization】 or 【Rejuvenation】, but I never tried either of them before or seen their effects on another person.

“I guess I’m a magic doctor venturing into the bush.”

Sunset was already upon us and I narrowed my eyes at the red glimmer of the sky as bonfires started going up around the fort.

If all went according to plan, we’d pass through the Salma Kingdom in about two days, but could we adhere to the schedule without incident.

I cleared my mind with a shake of my head, as thinking unnecessary thought like that only became omens.