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124. Things That Change, Things That Don’t

 

「Wheeze… wheeze… Hahaha… I’ve survived…」

「Marge-sama, Bellman-san is the last one! That’s everyone accounted for!」

「Good. Take them to the public bath. It’s been repurposed as a temporary clinic.」

「Understood!」

As the survivors rescued from the dungeon rejoiced in reunion with family and friends, the very last person—Bellman, who insisted that the captain must be the final one out—was finally carried to safety. With the full tally confirmed, a lighter mood at last returned to the village.

At the public bath now acting as a clinic, the place buzzed with a clamor fit for a battlefield. The steam and hot water—byproducts of the dwarves’ steam engine—were perfect for warming bodies chilled to the bone.

「Wheeze… wheeze… Egg… hatched…」

「Get a hold of yourself, Bellman! Why are your eyes so wide open!? Angelina-dono, is he going to be all right!?」

「Please calm down, Asagi-san. His face may be the color of wet clay, but he’ll live. If we keep him hydrated and feed him rice cooked with plenty of water, he’ll recover eventually.」

「You mean porridge! Everyone, prepare rice gruel for those who returned from the dungeon! For the weak, serve them only the broth!」

Asagi, still overseeing the rescue effort, looked like the tension had finally eased from his shoulders. He must have been deeply worried about those who didn’t return right away. His daughter Shizuku was also running about, lending her help.

「Shizuku, any serious injuries requiring healing via Skill?」

「None to that extent. It was thanks to Bellman’s insistence on building proper shelters to keep out the rain. If it had just been the werewolves, they might’ve relied too much on their natural toughness and let themselves get soaked and chilled.」

「A true show of an expert in wilderness survival.」

「Though the expert himself overdid it, as you can see.」

Over where she was looking, the other werewolves were struggling to get medicine into the exhausted yet stubborn Bellman.

「All right then. Shizuku, I leave everything here in your hands. Let those who’ve recovered return home. Asagi and I will go check on the rice.」

「Understood, my king.」

Nearly two years had passed since I first met Shizuku. She’d become so dependable. Maybe it was her werewolf blood—longer-lived than humans—but though she hadn’t changed much outwardly, she’d grown taller and more poised, showing the dignity of a leader. In a few more years, she’d be a strong, graceful head of the village.

Meanwhile, beside me stood Angelina—who hadn’t changed at all in appearance—tilting her head.

「You sure about this? One shot of Skill Lender-san’s healing skill could fix everyone in an instant.」

「The people of the village are worried. They want to help however they can. It’d be cruel for the king to rob them of that chance, don’t you think?」

「Geli understands.」

「That’s good enough.」

「Besides, the porridge’s tasty. Especially with egg.」

「Why is it so good?」

「Beats me.」

Maybe it was the water. Our village-grown rice had restorative properties, likely from the mana-rich water we used, sourced from the S-Rank Dungeon Farthest Ends of the Blue. That’s what Angelina thought, anyway.

Eat what you grow. Heal with medicines gained through trade. That’s how it should be.

We finally had a moment to breathe. Or so I thought—until Shizuku’s sharp voice rang out.

「Wait!!」

Many had been saved thanks to the medicine we obtained from Kinui. But hearing Shizuku’s tone, I immediately realized that every blessing carries a risk as well.

「What are you giving him!?」

Shizuku was stopping a female werewolf who was about to give Bellman a pill. The deep green tablet was one I recognized.

「…Where did you get that medicine?」

「W-We bought it in Kinui as a painkiller…? It was being sold at a regular pharmacy. Is something wrong with it?」

It wasn’t just Shizuku and me who noticed. Several others did too—those who’d fought off the knight order’s attack on Kinui. Shizuku snatched the pill, sniffed it, and her eyes grew sharp.

「This smell is the same as the smell of the anti-demi-human drug used by the White Phoenix Knight Order. When applied to a blade, any demi-human cut by it gets their internal power flow disrupted, paralyzing them. Even the effects of my [Garou] were dispelled by it.」

That was just one of its effects. I continued for her.

「It’s a painkiller with addictive and dependency-forming properties. Altora relied on it to push himself beyond his limits, causing his Unique Skill to be amplified—and eventually spiral out of control.」

The image of Altora’s berserk charge, devoid of reason, flashed across my mind. If he had turned that fury on the village or Kinui instead of me, I didn’t want to imagine the outcome.

What troubled me most was how readily this drug was now available.

It used to be a substance accessible only through shadowy channels—via S-Rank adventurers or knight orders with ties to the capital. It had no place being sold casually in a countryside pharmacy.

「Why is something like this…?」

「Welp, let Geli take a look.」

「Angelina, can you figure anything out?」

「Geli will ask her ancestors.」

Angelina carried the memories of over 1100 years of Emesmes alchemists. Even if she didn’t know the drug directly, her inherited insight could unravel most mysteries.

「…I see.」

「What’s the verdict?」

「Geli doesn’t know. Gelli was only able to confirm that this drug doesn’t exist in Geli’s family’s knowledge.」

「So not even the Emesmes archives know of it…」

Many formulas are kept secret. But a potent medicine would at least be familiar to top-tier alchemists like those of Emesmes. If this one wasn’t, there had to be a reason.

Shizuku murmured her theory.

「Maybe it wasn’t made with human technology?」

「Yes, Geli thinks it’s demi-human.」

「But only a few demi-human tribes could produce such a drug. Don’t tell me—it’s from the elves…?」

That nostalgic name carried a tension with it. The elves supposedly had supposedly habituated these woods a long time ago.

They avoid eating meat, yet are master archers.

They dislike conflict, yet excel in medicine and poison.

A race full of contradictions. If they were involved, anything could happen.

「Marge, what’s your take?」

「Jumping to conclusions clouds the mind. First, we need solid intel.」

There was no way a drug like this would suddenly flood the market without reason. Someone had to be behind it. If we traced its supply chain to Kinui, we might find answers.

「Angelina. If I asked you to identify the source in three days, could you do it?」

「Not through proper academic methods.」

「So you can do it. Can I count on you?」

「You think the Emesmes family would hesitate to use improper methods, Skill Lender-san?」

「Nope.」

「Correct.」

The fact that she now even considers what’s ‘proper’ by general standards is already progress. Whether she minds it is another matter.

「So, what’s the plan? Will it be dangerous to the village?」

「First, we’ll buy out the medicine from Kinui’s shops.」

「And then?」

「The shopkeepers will think, ‘Wow, this stuff’s selling!’ and order more. The suppliers will be happy to deliver. We’ll lure them out and catch them.」

「Hmm.」

「Then we torture them for information.」

「Definitely not a proper academic method.」

「Who said scholars must use academic methods?」

I thought she meant ‘non-standard academic methods’, but no—this was neither academic nor proper. Very Emesmes, really.

「It’s efficient and effective. Let’s go with that.」

「If you prefer, I can also do improper academic methods. For example…」

「Let’s not. I have a bad feeling about that. Asagi, you heard her. Buy out the medicine and monitor who reacts.」

「Understood. No doubt it will be someone greedy and lacking conscience.」

「Exactly. I’d also like to inform Duke Abik. Though with Bellman out of commission, that might take time…」

Duke Abik ruled this region. Officially, he opposed the werewolf village, but privately, he aimed for peaceful coexistence. If he learned of this drug’s spread, he’d take action. We normally contacted him through Bellman, who was formerly one of his soldiers. We’d have to wait for his recovery.

Or so I thought—until one werewolf stepped forward.

「My king.」

It was the black-haired young man who’d gone into the dungeon with Bellman—something of a leader among the village youths.

「Allow me to contact the duke in his place.」

「You only just returned yourself. Do you even know how?」

「We Werewolves are built to endure. And Bellman gave me a full handover.」

「A handover?」

「He said, ‘Sooner or later, you’ll have to deal with human nobles without us around.’」

「Bellman said that…」

「Also, he complained that traveling mountain roads is rough on the back, and he needs a replacement.」

「Let’s keep that part to ourselves.」

「I’ll take Bellman’s place and carry out his duty. Please, grant me your command.」

It seems even this village has been quietly nurturing talent.

She’s not exactly my disciple, but Shizuku—Asagi’s daughter—has been learning my way of thinking and governing from me. And Bellman seems to have chosen this young man in much the same way.

「Then I command you. Report everything to Duke Abik, and ask him to investigate and take countermeasures as well.」

「By your will.」

「Whoever’s behind this—whatever their goal—shut them down. Quickly.」

Probably just someone blinded by greed. But if we didn’t catch and punish them, the village would suffer.

That was the extent of what I thought this would be.

None of us knew at the time that this investigation would eventually entangle the entire nation.

「Anyway. I should go check the dungeon next.」