Chapter 142

"Ooh, look at this. It's powder made by grinding the buds we've collected."

"With this powder, we'll definitely succeed. It would have been good if we could share intact ones, but those humans would notice right away."

"That's right. This is the best we can do for now. Let's wait for the wind to blow well under the cover of darkness and scatter it. It will surely seep into every corner of houses and streets."

"It will bloom like flowers on those humans' bodies. Then we'll understand each other and finally be able to enjoy true immortality!"

"Yes, like flowers, like flower seeds spreading across wide and abundant fields!"

They were once people who lived together in the same village.

But they turned their backs on each other and began to believe that their own thoughts were right.

"To burn all those creatures, we have no choice but to temporarily stop the artifact that's currently operating."

"Then night would be good. We can use those in the tower, so reactivating won't be a problem."

"Let's have a few people quickly go to the outskirts during that gap."

"Let's spray this oil on the walls of each house and set it on fire. If it catches the wind well, the flames might spread greatly. It can reduce our workload."

"I wonder if they'll die from suffocating in the oil smell? They're not wasps."

"Hahaha! Those monsters. There's no need to wait. We can do it tonight."

...The other side intended to bring complete death to their opponents.

Those who sought a new life pitied yet simultaneously considered primitive those who insisted on remaining human.

Those with human forms both terribly feared and despised those monsters.

Of course, there were some who didn't unconditionally antagonize each other, but they were just a handful.

So it was natural that both sides couldn't understand each other.

All of this was the story that the human-faced rat had conveyed.

-Squeak squeak.

"...That's what happened. It seems the snowman managed to meet Leandros safely."

"Th-that's a relief."

He stroked the smooth head of the human-faced rat, which had straightened its upper body as if giving a formal report.

While he couldn't leave the tower right away, he could find out about the outside situation by utilizing the human-faced rat.

Fortunately, the human-faced rats moved faithfully according to his thoughts and intentions.

As he roughly combed his hair with his hand, a few tangled strands were pulled out with a stinging sensation.

When he handed a few strands of red hair to the human-faced rat, it tried to grasp them with its long, thin hand.

Watching this, Amelia asked.

"The s-saying that they n-need us for reactivation. S-so it's as expected."

"Now we understand what sacrifice they made to activate the artifact."

"W-we must stop them b-before the village c-catches fire. Otherwise, e-everything will burn. We c-can't wait until n-night to get out!"

That was right.

There was no question of whether they should wait until night to get out.

If they didn't get out as soon as possible, the village would be in chaos,

And if this village descended into chaos, only Leandros's reputation would suffer.

Before that, he needed to find out the identity of those monsters from the grimoire Pnakotic, and create an opportunity for Leandros to either defeat the monsters or somehow distinguish himself.

And incidentally, create a debt for the village and pull it to his side.

"But how? We don't have a key, and even if we did, as you said earlier, there are watching eyes, so we'd be caught immediately."

"I-I've thought of o-one method."

"What method?"

Amelia whispered about the method in his ear.

After hearing it, he momentarily doubted his ears.

Really? This to him?

"...Are you out of your mind?"

"B-but I'm sure it w-will work."

"No, no, whether it works is secondary. Seriously? I'm a duke, you know?"

"Y-your title won't p-protect you from b-burning. This kind of th-thing is more effective the y-younger you are."

"What about my dignity? My pride?"

"N-no one knows that y-you're a duke anyway."

It was disconcerting. Was Amelia a crazy woman?

She continued to emphasize the importance of the situation, insisting that getting out of this tower was the top priority.

Faced with Amelia's persistent persuasion, he eventually raised both hands in surrender.

A short while later.

-Knock knock.

"I-is anyone there?"

The man guarding the only entrance to the tower suddenly heard a faint voice flowing from inside.

It had been quite some time since they should have woken up, and it had been quiet, so he wondered if they were up to something.

Their calling like this now was surely a cheap trick.

The man was about to ignore it with a snort.

But the voice continued.

"I n-need to relieve myself..."

"..."

The tower was merely a prison for gathering people to activate the artifact.

So there was no way it would have a place for relieving oneself.

At most, there would be a moldy wooden barrel used as a chamber pot.

The man suppressed a sigh and whispered slightly against the door.

"Use the wooden barrel inside."

"You want me to relieve myself here? It's too dirty! Besides, there's a lady here too! And men as well!"

"How is that my problem?"

"As a man, I can't commit such an indecent act! Besides, it's, uh, a big one."

"Just do it or hold it in. Figure it out yourself."

Kids these days.

The man guessed this voice belonged to the red-haired boy who had been dragged in.

Anyway, these days, young ones needed clean chamber pots everywhere and soft bedding.

Back in his day, such things were beyond his wildest dreams.

These kids nowadays were just so weak.

Even as the man complained inwardly, the voice became more desperate.

"No way! I think I have an upset stomach!"

"That's why I'm saying if it's urgent, just do it inside."

"In front of a lady? The smell will spread everywhere! I'm not asking for much, just let me relieve myself at the hall next door or somewhere else."

"That's a big favor."

"If I can't relieve myself elsewhere... Hmm? What..."

The words were cut off for a moment.

After a brief silence, the voice cried out as if wrung in distress.

"I-I'll defecate on the floor."

Do what on the floor?

The man momentarily imagined it. The stench that would spread when he opened the door to drag them out.

And what state the floor inside the tower would be in.

Even worse, it just happened to be the day the man was scheduled to clean the tower.

It wasn't just any matter. He had said it was an upset stomach, so it wouldn't be just one corner, but everywhere...

Anything but that!

The man looked around, holding onto his reeling senses.

Fortunately, the square was empty as most villagers had gone to the inn.

The man unlocked the lock as quietly as possible, trying not to be discovered.

With a creaking sound, the door opened slightly.

The man, who put his face in the gap to peer inside, saw two hands approaching his line of sight.

That was the last scene he remembered.

Crack!

With the crisp sound of misaligned bones being set, the man's body collapsed with a thud.

Behind the door stood Arenheit with a face flushed red, and Amelia with a refreshed expression.

Arenheit quietly muttered, covering his face.

"It's hard to live as a supporting character."

"Wh-what? What did y-you say?"

"...Just wake up Verde..."

* * *

The inn where the mercenaries were staying.

Max had just finished dinner with Jonas and was heading up to their room.

He had been pondering whether they should move in a few days since there didn't seem to be any requests in this village.

Suddenly, the door shook violently with a sniffing sound.

"What kind of rotten bastard is breaking down the door... Ah, no, Sir Knight! Isn't it Sir Knight!"

When Max opened the door angrily, Sir Leandros was standing right in front of him.

His chest was heaving as he caught his breath.

At such an ambiguous time, why had he suddenly come?

Though puzzled, Max welcomed him in with a smile.

"What brings you here at this hour? Please come in and tell me."

"There's no time, so I'll speak here."

"No time?"

Jonas, who was in the room, ran out upon hearing the voice.

The child tried to cling to Leandros's leg, but seeing his expression more serious than usual, he ended up clinging to his father's leg instead.

Leandros looked at the child and Max, speaking gravely.

"Leave Gallo. Within a few hours if possible. Before it gets completely dark. You can still leave this village for now."

"What? What are you saying?"

"It's difficult to explain right now, but I'll just say that leaving the village immediately is the way to save your lives. Warn your entire mercenary band and any outsiders you might encounter."

"What's happening? What on earth is happening?"

To Max's question, Leandros finally swept back his bangs and said.

"There's a monster prowling the back of the village. A war between humans and monsters is about to break out. Pack your things and leave as soon as you can. As quickly as possible."

Leandros left after saying only that.

Until the black cloak fluttered and disappeared at the end of the corridor, Max stood frozen in place.

It felt like receiving an unexpected revelation from a black angel.

Only when Jonas tugged at his pants did Max come to his senses and look down at the child.

The child's round eyes were filled with fear.

Seeing this, Max made a decision.

"Jonas, pack your things quickly. I'll speak to the captain."

Although Max was just an ordinary human and couldn't know the details,

He knew that something was happening.

That knight must have come to warn them out of concern.

What a broad-minded and brave person!

Max, trembling with respect and awe for Leandros, hurriedly left the room to find the captain of the mercenary band.

Since Leandros had come personally, the warning could not be ignored.

And that evening, just before the sun completely hid its face.

The outsiders who had visited Gallo began to scatter as they passed through the village gate.

Almost simultaneously, the invisible maze that had divided the center and outskirts of the village began to split with a great groan.