第２３０掘：捕虜の情報とおとぎ話の真実 (Part1)
**Dungeon 230: Prisoner Information and the Truth of the Fairy Tale**
**Side: Yuki**
"Haa, I see. It’s tough being you, Yuki."
"Well, I’m a mercenary. If I don’t work after signing a contract, it’ll affect my next job."
"Ain't that the truth everywhere."
We were chatting amicably while sipping tea.
"But honestly, isn't it a bit too reckless to handle the defense of Betan *and* investigate this mysterious army?"
"I was paid a contract fee that makes it worth it. As for the monster army, it was more of a 'wait and see' situation than an actual negotiation, but I was surprised when the guard monsters actually spoke to me."
"Haha, I bet. We’ve been desperately scavenging for food in the ruins just to survive, but I never imagined we were stealing the rations meant for General Mino-chan and his troops. It wasn't until our allies came to help that I finally understood why the monsters were moving so sluggishly. Honestly, I can't thank General Mino-chan enough; he didn't take the lives of us ignorant fools who were rampaging about, and handled it peacefully."
"Indeed. Thanks to that, it looks like Zilba and Enaria might avoid a direct clash."
"That’s for sure. I just want to end this war quickly and bury myself in research on these ruins."
I’m chatting leisurely with General Agil, but it seems she really is a mad scientist. Declaring that she wants the war to end quickly—effectively saying she doesn't care that her own country is losing territory—is proof enough of her madness.
"Um, General Agil, surely ignoring the fact that your territory is being taken... that kind of statement is..."
See? Even Nork, the regular soldier sitting next to us, is at the level of voicing complaints to a general.
"What are you talking about? It’s just a matter of national face, arguing over whose land is whose. As long as there’s no harm to the people living there, I don't care who governs it."
"Th-that is..."
"True, it’s a granary region, so it’s a factor that enriches the national treasury. But the land isn't a granary because of the country. It’s because the people living there work hard every single day. So, what about this conflict? If not for the collapse accident in the ruins caused by General Mino-chan, we were on the verge of starting a war that would have trampled, ruined, and burned the fields that the people of the granary region had painstakingly cultivated. It’s a truly stupid story."
"..."
"The harvest here is used not just for Enaria, but for negotiations and trade with Zilba and other countries. There is almost no value in making this a battlefield. A quick seizure like Zilba planned, or a defensive battle concentrated at a base—that’s all that should be done. But if things had continued, we would have started a war right in the middle of a vast granary region, army against army. If that happened, the damage to the upcoming harvest would be catastrophic. We’d even have to worry about famine. Though, I’m one to talk, considering I was supposed to take it back in the blink of an eye."
Huh, she’s actually thinking this through. As Agil says, if they were to clash again, it wouldn't be a quick skirmish at a base, but a war that would destroy the carefully tended fields. I had heard the harvest volume of the Betan region as data, but I didn't realize it was a place of such high importance.
"Anyway, how did your Magic Sword User take the fort so quickly? Thanks to that, we’re in total chaos. Also, do you know if the Holy Sword User is safe?"
"Well, I was in the rear at the time, so I have no idea. I hear the Holy Sword User is being treated hospitably at the fort."
"...What a load of lies you're spouting."
"...That's true."
The monster next to me is being noisy. Thankfully, it didn't seem to reach Agil's ears.
"I see, that’s a relief. After all, I’m the one who gave her the Holy Sword."
She exhaled and sank deeply into the sofa, looking relieved. Wait—did she just say something incredibly important?
"E-ehhh!? General Agil, what do you mean by that!? Wasn't the Holy Sword User chosen by fate to pull the sword from the stone!?"
"Ahahaha... no, no. You’ve been reading too many fairy tales. I found that Holy Sword User back when I was excavating Magic Sword Users. I recovered the Holy Sword itself from the ruins directly beneath the Enaria royal capital."
"Huh? There are ruins under the Enaria royal capital!?"
"It’s not like I’m hiding it. You know the cathedral? That was built by repurposing the ruins."
Just as Peace said, it seems there really was a dungeon in Enaria. This gives credibility to the story that the person who antagonized Peace back then was utilizing a dungeon.
"Well, I found the Holy Sword when I was looking through old Enaria documents to kill time. I found a passage that piqued my interest, investigated it, and out came the Holy Sword."
"But what was the reason you judged it to be the *real* Holy Sword?"
"Oh, good point, Yuki. You’re right, normally one would call it a Magic Sword. But there was proof that it was a Holy Sword."
"Proof?"
"Yeah. Do you know the fairy tale of the thirteen Holy Swords?"
"I know it as well as the average person."
I'm glad I heard the story from Jessica. By the way, Ria and Jessica are listening to this conversation intently from the surveillance room next door. They’re so diligent about things like this, so why are they the way they are when it’s just us?
"Zilba... I see, it wasn't in your records, so it’s natural you wouldn't know. There are two versions of the thirteen Holy Swords: the fairy tale version and the one that records history."
"By history, do you mean the origin of the Holy Swords?"
"Well, that’s included. It’s the truth behind the fairy tale of the Holy Swords. Well, you can probably tell by now, but the truth and history are honestly troublesome topics. That’s why the country that possessed the Holy Swords at the time created a fairy tale to cover up the truth."
"Isn't that usually how 'truth' works? But is it okay for you to be telling us this, Agil?"
That’s the problem. Agil is telling *us* this. It’s information that could flip the country upside down if it got out. Even for a general who is a Magic Sword User, I’d expect her head to physically fly off for saying this.
"...That’s true. That possibility isn't zero. But my intuition tells me that if I don't talk about it here, there won't be a next time."
Agil says this with complete seriousness. Mad scientists of this type are the kind who charge forward unless the odds are overwhelmingly against them. ...Which means there’s a high probability that Agil is about to end up in a situation where she can no longer speak.
"I hope that doesn't happen. Though, even if you tell others about this, they won't believe you."
"Well, you’ve been pulling strings since long ago to cover it up. It’s not a simple story that can be easily overturned."
"Yeah, as Yuki says, it’s content no one would believe. To begin with, the thirteen Holy Swords didn't exist for the war against the demi-humans. The origin of the Holy Swords was that they were possessed by thirteen heroes when the Demon King appeared."
...The Demon King, huh? Is this Peace’s story?
"When the Demon King appeared, coincidentally, there were thirteen women who possessed Holy Swords. Humans and demi-humans alike. It seems there was some movement to exclude demi-humans back then, but they had bigger problems. After the Demon King appeared, the land was overflowing with monsters. Everyone, everywhere, fought desperately to survive. There are even documents showing that they cooperated with demi-humans to push back the monsters. It’s hard to believe given the current state of things, right?"
Nork is surprised by Agil’s story, but since I had information from Peace, I wasn't that shocked. Still, it’s impressive that documents from over 500 years ago survived. But how does this turn into a story about driving away demi-humans with thirteen Holy Swords?
"The problem here is why there’s no story about defeating the Demon King with the thirteen Holy Swords. Where and why did the Demon King get swapped out for demi-humans? Nork seems to be struggling to keep up. Yuki, are you okay? Can you follow along?"
Agil looks at me, as if concerned. ...I understand the problem Agil is pointing out perfectly. But there is no reason to tilt my head in confusion over this issue.
The answer had been presented from the very beginning.