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Chapter 66 – part 2

「What problem?」

 

「My father and mother… they truly fell in love with each other. Initially, it was a captive and master relationship, akin to a sexual slave and its owner…」

 

「And then? 」

 

「The Beastmens prince, my father, became more tolerant toward the Elven race and advocated for a policy of reconciliation. Due to this, he was placed in a politically precarious position. Furthermore, unfortunately… my existence… or, more precisely, my parents and me, started being publicized internally and externally as a way to symbolize harmony between the Beastmen and the Elven races…」

 

「I see.」

 

Lilith nodded in response to Liz’s words.

 

「…For the Beastman nation, you became a nuisance. But they can’t openly kill the King’s granddaughter. And… due to various circumstances, you are afflicted with an advanced curse and left in that slum area… you were on the brink of death.」

 

「Surprised? I’m being targeted by those kinds of people. Even if Lute-onii-chan and Lilith-onee-chan is stronger than me…」

 

「…No, we are not surprised. Rather—」

 

Nodding vigorously, I continued Lilith’s words.

 

「Well… it’s mostly just like what we imagined.」

 

「As you imagined?」

 

「Well, speaking in terms of demi-humans… as Lilith mentioned, a Were-Saber Tiger, if considered a monster and in the adventurer’s guild terms, would be an SS+ difficulty level for subjugation. Literally capable of picking a fight with an entire country single-handedly.」

 

「Yes, single-handedly able to crush a division of a large nation… or even the elite forces of the adventurer’s guild. That’s my grandfather.」

 

Lute and Lilith exchanged glances, nodded at each other, then shrugged.

 

「…Lute? The Beastman country seems to have an abnormal enhancement of military power… where a species evolution occured. Is this considered a Great Disaster?」

 

「Remember the Ogre incident?」

 

「…Yeah.」

 

「It might be a subtype of a Great Disaster, but it’s not something naturally occurring.」

 

「…Then…?」

 

「This is undoubtedly a man-made occurrence.」

 

「…I see. So… indeed?」

 

I nodded emphatically.

 

「It’s centered around those, like me, who were given cheats by the goddess during reincarnation. They’re trying to cause something that even Cordelia… no, gathering the heroes from all corners of the world won’t be enough to maintain harmony in this world.」

 

「…The very fabric of the world is crumbling. If left unchecked, perhaps this series of disturbances, including the human world, the demon realm, and the polar region—could lead to a crisis resulting in the world’s disappearance. Isn’t that what the witch Merlin from the demon realm and the hermit… Liu Hai predicted?」

 

「That’s about it.」

 

Or perhaps it’s not about a hero, but rather a great emperor who will dominate the continent.

Or even the Grand Guild Master, the leader of the Adventurer’s Guild, which oversees all S-rank adventurers who boast extraordinary power.

 

Ultimately, they only possess military force that is considered common sense in this world. 

 

To be frank… I could probably hold my ground taking on the world by myself in a fight.

Not to mention, if I mobilize all my acquaintances, it wouldn’t be difficult to achieve a stalemate… or probably even win.

 

—The reason being, I’m a reincarnated person.

 

In my case, since I started in a situation that was like trash, if I’d just gone along with things, I’d probably have been done for.

 

But, 

I’ve come this far by maneuvering cleverly.

 

However, there are other reincarnated individuals like Moses, who weren’t a Villager from the start like me, but rather, blessed ones. 

 

And not just one or two of them.

 

I was informed about the current situation where a major disaster could be artificially instigated when I just acquired the God Eater skill, roughly a year ago.

 

Ideally, after devouring Beelzebub, I wanted to gain the power of Demon Kings or Demons even more.

 

But, in reality… that was the time limit.

 

—Moses is targeting Cordelia. 

And he won’t hesitate in his methods.

 

Moreover, the assurance that Moses won’t touch Cordelia was only guaranteed until just after I died last time.

 

In other words, it was up until the time limit I set from the start of my training to enroll in the magic school.

 

Regarding the relationship with the Demons, it’s probably without a doubt that they’re involved.

 

So, why am I carelessly away from Cordelia doing something like this… well, for the past few months, I have had insurance that she’ll be absolutely safe even if Cordelia’s life is threatened with Ultra-C-level danger.

 

That aside.

 

Lilith opened her mouth with an exasperated expression.

 

「…It’s different from what I imagined.」

 

「Hmm?」

 

「…This time, we fought against small fries at the Adventurer’s Guild, raised our rank to A or B, and gained a title that’s not just a protector for Cordelia Allston. This was supposed to be such a casual and carefree journey…」

 

「Casual and carefree journey… Shouldn’t we have been a bit more serious about it… in various ways?」

 

Reprimanding Lilith slightly, I said in a somewhat questioning tone.

 

Well, I don’t really have the right to lecture Lilith either.

 

After all, I have this book full of gourmet information on the eateries in the vicinity—an item purchased from the magic academy’s shop—safely stashed in my pocket.

 

Lilith and I exchanged glances and sighed, shoulders slumping.

 

—Somehow or other, it seems we’ll end up encountering the events we’re pursuing even in a place like this.

 

「Um… Lute-onii-chan?」

 

「What’s up?」

 

「I’ve been completely unable to follow the conversation since earlier…」

 

「Don’t worry, anyway, you’re safe.」

 

「No, I mean, I’m being targeted by SS-rank beastmen, right!」

 

With a laugh, I patted Liz’s head gently. 

Her hair swayed lightly as she widened her eyes.

 

She has typical elven pure-white skin and silky golden hair…

 

Hmm… In a few years, she might become more beautiful than Cordelia, this one.

 

I cleared my throat and proudly declared, 

 

「I’ve told you, right? Since I picked you up, I’ll protect you with all I’ve got.」

 

「But… physically… it’s impossible, right? I mean, even if the king himself won’t attack me, this literally involves military actions from a whole country…」

 

Ah, a little irritated, I pointed towards the thickets.

 

「Hey, Liz?」

 

「Yes, what is it?」

 

「Do you know what that monster is?」

 

Appearing conveniently right then…

 

「Huh? Th-th-that’s… Orth… Orthros… Rank A difficulty level… Why… is it here… in a place like this?」

 

Liz explained it clearly. 

That creature was, without a doubt, Orthros, just as Liz described.

 

「Why would it be here?」

 

Well, if such a high-rank monster was found here, it would cause a major panic. 

Immediately, requests for high-rank adventurers would flood the adventurer’s guild in the royal and imperial cities.

 

But it’s not ordinary for such a high-ranking monster to appear coincidentally in a place like this.

 

「Most likely, someone from your bloodline instigated it.」

 

Ah, Liz seemed to understand then and nodded in agreement.

 

Then, she lowered her eyelashes apologetically.

 

「Lute…-onii-chan… Lilith… -onee-chan… I’m sorry. It’s all because of me that this disaster happened…」

 

Ignoring Liz’s words, I drew the sword from my back and calmly walked towards Orthros.

 

「Are you… planning to confront it like that?」

 

「What else does it look like?」

 

「W-W-We can’t do that! Let’s… Let’s run away! Everyone… Let’s run!」

 

With a chuckle, I said, 

 

「Well, watch me. And, didn’t I just say that a while ago?」

 

「Huh?」

 

「I said I’d protect you, didn’t I?」