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Chapter 71 – part 2

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In the evening of that day.

The deadline is about 24 hours remaining.

By now, the letters should have started reaching their destinations…

If we’re talking about the scale of a hero, we can bring up a scale larger than that and blow away the entire situation. That’s what I thought in preparation, but it seems Lilith is feeling uneasy about my response.

It won’t be a joke if the deadline passes.

Well, if it comes to the point where sticking it out until the last moment doesn’t work, I have no choice but to turn the helm towards crushing Nuralis Trading Company on my own.

In that case… Well, I’ll probably end up being the villain.

After all, a single individual exerting their will through violence against a major trading company is quite a big deal.

No, involving Cordelia, we would end up fighting the country we were born in as well.

For an individual to pick a fight with a nation, well, winning and coming out on top would be truly troublesome.

That would be equivalent to being recognized as an enemy of the world, and a coalition would be formed by all nations for a punitive expedition.

Or rather, even I, with all my might, can’t possibly win against the entire world.

For example, if attacked continuously by a group without time to rest for several days, it would be a deadlock, and with ritual magic by a group… If there is time for ritual construction, there can be magic activation that can overturn the difference in power to some extent.

While the role of the overwhelming majority of individuals plays a significant part in wars in this world, it’s not absolute, and that’s why armies are organized.

And at that moment, a loud knocking on the door echoed in my room.

「L-Lute, Lute… Lute-san!?」

This is the Guild Master old man’s voice.

Wondering what happened, both Lilith, who was taking a nap on the sofa, and I, who was sleeping in bed, woke up.

As Lilith opened the door, the Guild Master old man rushed to the front of my bed.

「Hey, old man?」

The old man kneeled on the spot and assumed a bowing posture.

「S-S-Sorry!」

「What’s going on?」

With a pale face, the old man responded.

「Yesterday… I received custody of Liz-chan from Miss Lilith… and then, she was abducted.」

My head spun.

From the bowing posture, it can be easily imagined…

No, I only have a bad premonition.

「So, what’s going on?」

「While being placed in the orphanage… she was kidnapped.」

At that moment, a high-pitched scream echoed from outside the room.

This voice… it’s the inn employee’s daughter.

「Hey, hey, what’s happening now? Give me a break…!」

As the scream ended, the sound of someone running down the corridor reached us.

In quick succession, my room’s door was banged on loudly.

「It’s my place after all! Ah, come on… what the hell is going on, one after another!」

Opening the door somewhat irritated, the inn employee stood there with a pale face.

It’s undoubtedly bad news through and through, and I prepared myself for the worst.

「S-S-Sorry… I-I had a pet named Orto… I was keeping it in the doghouse in the courtyard…」

「Are you serious? This is not a joke, you know?」

With a click of the tongue, I rushed to the window and looked at the courtyard.

「Orto?」

Lilith quickly approached the window.

But, as Lilith was about to lean out, I restrained her with my hand.

「It’s better not to see.」

The reason is—

—Outside the doghouse, a mass of flesh resembling squashed tomatoes was rolling.

「The promised time… there should have been 24 hours left.」

Lilith, who instantly grasped the various situations, clenched her fists and said with several veins pulsing on her forehead.

「The opponent is not normal. So, Lute? What are you going to do?」

「…」

Facing my silence, Lilith sighed.

「From the beginning, I never intended to keep the promise of 48 hours with Lute. The opponent just found me troublesome as an A-rank adventurer, and conveniently… acted fast because Liz left my side.」

「…」

「As for Orto, it’s probably just harassment against us.」

「…」

「Are you still… going to stay silent? Well, fine, I get it.」

Lilith took out a large bag from the item box filled with gold coins.

Next, she took out three bags containing rare items and gems.

This amounted to ninety-eight percent of all items stored in Lilith’s item box in terms of monetary value.

「Thank you for everything. If there’s anything else Lute needs, tell me now.」

While taking out her beloved magic wand, Lilith said so.

「Lilith. Are you planning a direct assault? If so, stop.」

「The opponent is known. Both the trading company and the beastman country. Either way is fine. If we massacre them, we’ll get to the mastermind.」

「If you’re planning to retaliate alone, stop it, Lilith.」

「Orthros was killed, Liz was abducted…」

「That’s why I’m telling you. Stop it, Lilith. Hold back.」

「Even so, if you’re a man who would stop me, our partnership ends here—I’ll withdraw my request.」

「Lilith, this is an order. Stop.」

Lilith brushed away my hand.

「Goodbye, Lute. My… cherished person. But, please remember this much. You will forever be etched in my heart as the first precious opposite sex in my life.」

Then, I firmly grabbed Lilith’s shoulder.

「Hey, Lilith!」

An unintentional loud voice escaped.

Lilith, trembling at the shoulder shake, turned hesitantly toward me.

However, she quickly stared at me with a sharp gaze.

「I have left Lute’s jurisdiction. In that case, I won’t yield to threats.」

「Hey, you? What misunderstanding do you have?」

「Lute said it. Stop retaliation and endure it. If that’s the case, I have no choice but to part ways with Lute.」

With a wry smile, I chuckled.

「If you’re silent after going this far—I’m not much of a man.」

「…What do you mean?」

「I’m saying I have a proper set of balls.」

「What are you talking about?」

「We’re dealing with a country here. You can’t win alone. I told you to stop the retaliation after dismantling the trading company because it would end there.」

Lilith pondered for a moment, and with a slightly delighted smirk—soon replaced it with a stern expression.

「Understood. So, Lute, specifically… what are your plans for retaliation?」

「The same conclusion as yours.」

「…And, what is that?」

「To charge head-on, cutting down all obstacles. That way, we’ll quickly get to the mastermind. Retaliation is simpler when it’s straightforward.」

「…In other words?」

「They’ve crossed a line. No, they unknowingly touched the reverse scale of a super-grade dragon. Moreover, it’s the reverse scale of an extremely powerful dragon.」

I could feel the veins throbbing on my own forehead.

Blood dripped from my bitten lips to the tip of my chin, and I could see that my expression had become far from serene, even without looking in the mirror.

Well, there’s no helping it now.

It seems I need to make a firm decision around here.

「Lute? So… what will you do?」

「First, Cordelia’s uncle. I’ll make him regret picking a fight with me by sending him to hell.」

As I moved towards the entrance… I stopped.

After some contemplation, I turned back, and after a brief hesitation… in the end, I decided to bow my head to Lilith.

「I’m sorry.」

「…For what?」

「I didn’t think Cordelia’s uncle would be this much of a scoundrel. Despite everything, he’s Cordelia’s relative, so I expected him to keep the bare minimum of conscience. I was too complacent, assuming perfect results based on that premise and spending time on it.」

「…Now is not the time to regret. Liz can still be recovered.」

While still bowing, I remained silent on the spot.

After gaining power close to the strongest, everything went my way, and I got carried away… there was undoubtedly a time when I thought I could punch my way through anything.

The consequences of such arrogance are now a reality.

「…」

「…」

「…」

「…」

「It’s rare to see Lute bowing to someone. Now, lift your head?」

Saying that, Lilith gently stroked my head.

「Lute is strong. Indeed, you can do anything with your actual strength. But, Lute is also human.」

「Yeah, that’s right.」

「…You don’t have to carry everything alone. For that reason… I’m here. You can rely on me a little.」

「Yeah, that’s right. I’m sorry.」

「…Let’s put off regretting various things for later. Now, without stopping, we should prioritize recovering Liz as quickly as possible.」

「Right. So, shall we go? To settle things properly and get Liz back.」