CH 212

“Kelbrem! Where did you get that potion ……!”

“What ……!?”

“Lars-kun ……!?”

The vial that Kelbrem took out was familiar to me. It’s the same as the one used by the kidnappers of Luciel and Luciela. If that’s the case, drinking the contents must turn him into an ogre …… so I can’t let him drink that.

And if we can grab this guy, we can find out who’s the mastermind behind that escaped!

“Answer me!”

“Kuku, that’ll not work on me! I knew you were a cocky kid when I met you, and it seems I’m right! Watch how you talk to me!”

I jumped close to him and punched Kelbrem in the stomach. The damage is not as severe as it could be due to the armor he wears. I was about to give chase when Kelbrem swung his sword down at me.

“It’s too late!”

“In the knee ……!? You little brat!”

He’s a short-tempered fellow, and if I see an opening and take the vial …… he’ll turn his attention to the vial, but then it surprised me. There’s a little less in it ……!? I back-stepped away from the sword and asked Kelbrem.

“Did you drink it ……!”

“You’re called Lars, right? How do you know this vial.”

“…… I know it because it’s the same one that belonged to the adventurers who tried to kidnap someone in my hometown in Gust Territory. After they drank the liquid inside …… they turned into ogres.”

” ” “What!?” ” “

Conrad, the adventurers, and even the five bandits were astonished by my words. One of them is even Kelbrem. 

“Don’t tell me …… you drank the without knowing it!? Who gave it to you!”

“…… I’ve only drunk half of it!”

“Hiiii ……!?”

Sarge flaps his wings, riding on my shoulder, and says to Kelbrem. The bandit looked at Sarge and his body stiffened and shook.

“D-Dragon ……!? W-What the hell are you ……?”

“I’m–“

“Oh, let me, Basleigh-chan, explain the rest! This person is Lars Irving, the son of Roen Irving, the lord of Gust! And he’s also the one who made the Ogre disappear in the kidnapping case. A musclehead like you is no match to him! Gehyahyahyahya!”

“Oh, yeah, you’re right. Could you please shut up for a second, Basleigh-sensei?”

“Oh, yes.”

It seems that my words have sobered up Basleigh-sensei, who nods her head and turns to face Kelbrem with awkward movements. Then, in a cold sweat, Kelbrem looked at me and shouted. 

“The son of the Lord of the Gust territory ……!? You’re the one who crushed the plans at the Gust territory!? He was a disagreeable bastard, but he was good, and you’re telling me that Retzel was beaten by this guy ……!?”

“What!? You know Retzel!?”

Kelbrem mentioned a name I didn’t expect to hear, and I screamed …… Hmm? I felt something strange, but before I could think about it, Kelbrem narrowed his eyes and continued.

“…… I see. If you’ve beaten him, you’re pretty good. That’s why you’ll be able to successfully subjugate the Treants and return alive. And now Oriola’s plans have been crushed …… It seems that keeping you alive is a danger to us all. An ogre, huh …… Interesting.”

Kelbrem turns his cold sweat into a greasy sweat and opens the lid of the vial. Is he planning to drink that!?

“Stop it! You’re going to lose your intelligence too, you know!?”

“‘Ha, haha! I’m probably not going to make it, but if I can just kill Hugel, I’ll be happy, let’s die together, Hugel ……!”

“Kelbrem, why are you doing this to me ……”

“You probably don’t remember, but the woman who was going to be my wife is dead because you were a coward ……! Fifteen years ago, there was an increase in the number of monsters in this territory. I advised you to organize a team to subjugate them. But you said it was no problem. What happened after that? A couple of villages were attacked. And in one of those villages was my girlfriend. That’s when I swore I’d get my revenge on you someday.”

So that kind of thing happened …… So this guy made a plan to bring down the lord. You came to this mansion instead of running away to kill Hugel-san.

“It’s true, that did happen, it’s a time when I was in my second year as a lord …… I, I see… that’s what it was …… listen to me, Kelbrem! At that time–“

“Shut up ……! If I can at at least kill you and your family …… Right, if I kill your wife and daughter, will you understand my pain? If you were an ogre, you’d kill me before I killed you ……!”

“I told you to stop!”

When I jumped at him with my levitation to get the vial, a slash came at me that was faster than the previous one. I turned around in a panic to avoid it, but in the meantime, he had drunk all the liquid from the bottle.

“You surprised? I told you I drank half of it earlier, didn’t I? After that, I suddenly felt a surge of power. I thought this was some kind of enhancer. But, well, no wonder it turns you into an ogre ……”

“Kuh ……!”

“Yeah ……!”

Kelbrem muttered, his face a mixture of resignation and regret. It’s not that I can’t defeat him by transforming into an ogre, but there are some things you can’t do. While I was thinking about this, I saw a figure quickly pass by my side. 

“Secret Technique [Fatal Wound] ……!”

“Ah!?”

“Ah!?”

The figure was Basleigh-sensei! Using her skill, she delivers a heavy blow to Kelbrem’s belly that is out of proportion to his body, and a dull sound is heard.

“Geho!? …… Oehhhhh ……”

(T/N: He’s puking, I think.)

“This is the only way to get rid of all the liquid you just drank.”

“What are you doing ……!”

“Kyaaah!?”

“Basleigh-sensei!? …… Kelbrem!”

“I’ll take care of Basleigh-sensei!”

Even though he was on one knee, Basleigh-sensei was hit by Kelbrem’s swinging arm and was blown to the wall and fell to the floor. When I saw that Makina was going to check on him, I turned my attention to Kelbrem.

“I-I threw up a little, but it seems that you’re late …… I …… I’m getting stronger …… Soraaah!”

He swung his sword down, and with a thud, the floor shook. That’s a hell of a lot of power ……!　

“…… He’s not turning into an ogre? Does he also have awareness?”

“Kuku, It seems that you’re right? I don’t know about the adventurer who became an ogre, but I’m pretty strong right now ……? If I hadn’t thrown up, I would have become an ogre, huh ……? Well, whatever. Now …… if you don’t want to die, go get your wife and daughter ……! If you do, I’ll spare your life.”

“I just have to beat you first!”

I pull out my Sargeblade and stand my ground. Then Conrad and the others, who had been listening to the conversation in a daze, came to their senses and opened their mouths.

“We have to stop Kelbrem! Protect the Lord!”

” ” ” “Ohhhhhhhhhh!” ” ” “

“I’ll have you guys join the fight too?”

“……”

The adventurers on this side and the reluctant-looking bandits on the other side stand side by side, weapons at the ready. Don’t worry …… I won’t let him kill anyone ……!

Don’t worry, Basleigh-sensei is a gag character, so she shouldn’t die ……!

Thank you for reading!

[Afterword Theater]

“Basleiiiiiiiiiiigh! Get a grip!”

What!? You’re surprisingly close!?