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148 Gathering Storm

 

「Red signal fire! Four reds! Four reds!!」

It took only a few beats for the green-haired men to stop moving. Confirming they were dead, the regular army captain barked out orders.

「We head for Fathie. The main force should be arriving soon to enforce martial law, but since most of our strength is on expedition, our numbers are limited. We’ll hurry to rendezvous.」

「What about the knights…?」

「They were pawns for hunting the Elves from the start. Dump them in the backstreets of Fathie under watch, let them kill as many Elves as they can, then burn the city down. The diplomats and spokesmen will handle the rest—‘The knights crossed the border in their obsession with subjugating demi-humans.’ That’ll be the narrative.」

「Understood. Their fanaticism for hunting demi-humans is widely known. Many will believe it.」

「Indeed. At first, I thought they must’ve lost family to demi-humans, but it turns out they’re just concentrated bigotry. Terrifying. But maybe that’s why they can hate with such purity—because the object of their hatred is an illusion.」

「Hating a mirage, praised as heroes by those who share the same hate… to the point they forget what’s real. Pitiful creatures. No wonder they drown themselves in drugs.」

「We descend. Avoid the signal relay posts to save time. Stay alert.」

「Understood.」

The regular army marched ahead, with the knight order staggering behind them.

One man watched them leave from behind cover, trembling.

A green-haired youth, who had stepped away to relieve himself, had by pure chance escaped the slaughter.

「Wh-what do I do!? The mountains are crawling with monsters, and if I go to the city… No, wait—signal fire! Signal fire! Let’s see, it was…」

He barely remembered the signal codes, but his fallen comrades’ final cries had reached him. A desperate gamble—to shout ‘Four reds’ repeatedly, hoping that if nothing else, their deaths might ensure this young man survived, and with him, word of what happened.

「Right—four reds! Gotta raise four reds! But… if I do it too soon, they might notice and come back. I’ll wait a bit longer.」

Nearly an hour after the massacre, four red columns of smoke rose from the mountainside.

◇

—That same moment, in Fathie.

「Now then, Almond-san.」

「It’s Remonde, alchemist Angelina. Almonds get stuck in my teeth. Can’t stand them.」

「Oh, you too? Gelli doesn’t like them either.」

「You don’t say. World peace may be within reach.」

「How about lemons then? Your name sounds similar.」

「That’s exactly the kind of question I hate.」

「You sure have a lot of dislikes.」

The morning after fleeing the inn, which had received too many unwelcome visitors like Altora’s group and the Vehl Family.

We had moved our base to a small inn at the edge of town, just outside the mountains—in other words, at the entrance of the country. We figured any part of the city would be within the Elves’ surveillance network.

Remonde was locked in an ice prison. Curled up inside the tiny cage, the Elf found herself being interrogated by Angelina—who’d slept through most of the commotion, yet now wore a smug grin as if she’d earned this moment.

As for Remonde, whether she had resigned herself or was simply that bold, her attitude was astonishingly brazen.

「So Marge, even if you tell me to spill everything, I’ve already said most of what you’d want to hear.」

「True enough. But you did so knowingly, didn’t you? You knew what would happen if you came face-to-face with someone like me—someone who can use suggestion skills. You waited until you were safe to speak. That’s the only logical conclusion.」

「Sharp as ever.」

I hadn’t brought Remonde here to extract information. Our goal had always been to stop the drug exports and prevent Narshe from invading.

Now that we knew the operation’s mastermind wasn’t the Elves but the Narshe government, we had no further use for Remonde. Simply keeping her detained and unable to act was enough.

「We’ve got the head. Now we just need to crush the manufacturing sites to stop the supply.」

「Think it’ll be that easy? The people behind this are Narshe’s top brass. Even if you stop us, the army will move.」

「They’re taking the long way around the mountains, right? It’ll take time for them to return to Fathie. Maybe they left behind a token force, but that won’t be enough to do real damage.」

「Heh. A military force, no matter how small, is still a military force. Or do you think you can beat them alone?」

「I once defeated 700 soldiers from the Abik Domain.」

「…I see. So that’s the strength of someone who has stopped a Dungeon Break. I couldn’t grasp it before—but now it clicks.」

Remonde laughed bitterly.

Among the swirl of emotions—panic, regret, despair—there was also a trace of relief. Perhaps even she had doubts. Turning Kinui into a monster-infested hellscape just to secure a homeland? Anyone with a conscience would hesitate. And Narshe’s leadership had forced that cruel choice on the Elves.

My thoughts were cut short by a voice outside.

「The army! The army’s here!」

「…What?」

「The army? Already?」

We looked out the window. Citizens were running in panic. Could they have already reacted to Remonde’s failure?

A man in military attire soon arrived, loudly announcing the imposition of martial law while holding a government-issued writ.

「It has been confirmed that inhumane activities by demi-humans are being conducted in this area! Therefore, martial law is now in effect across Fathie and its surroundings! Movement without military permission is forbidden! Violators will not be guaranteed safety!」

They didn’t seem to know Remonde was here. Watching the soldier leave through the window, Angelina and I exchanged glances under our breath.

「They’re here already. Isn’t this too fast?」

「Yeah. Way too fast. A coincidence? …No—that armor!」

The next figures to arrive wore unmistakable gear.

「The knights…!?」

「Black trim, turtle insignia… looks like the Black Tortoise Knight Order. Duke Abik said the orders were addicted to the drugs and completely broken.」

「If they’re walking around in broad daylight, that means they’re working with the Narshe military—or being used by them.」

Too fast to be a reaction to Remonde’s failure. And now a knight order infamous for demi-humans hunts had appeared.

Which meant…

Whether the plan succeeded or failed, this was always going to happen.

「Remonde…」

「Don’t bother. I get it. We’ve been discarded.」

「That’s the likeliest explanation.」

「So they’re going to crush the backstreets to cover their tracks. Damn them!」

Still bound in ice shackles, Remonde bit her lip.

Even Koe-san looked pale, already imagining the outcome.

「Master, if the army causes a scene in such a densely packed part of town…」

「Yeah. Innocents will be caught in the crossfire. No telling how much damage it’ll cause.」

「But wouldn’t that be a loss for the government, too? Fewer homes means fewer people, and less tax revenue. Would they really do that?」

To that question, Remonde chuckled bitterly.

「Listen, little girl. Maybe farmers who work the land still count for something. But to the government, people who earn a few coins from day labor in the slums are just… there.」

A nation’s population is vital to its economy. The more people, the stronger the country—that’s a truth as old as civilization itself.

But when the population outpaces available jobs, people end up in low-paying, low-productivity roles. And from the state’s perspective, they become a burden.

「Burning down a slum? That won’t cost the country a damn thing. At least, that’s what they think.」