第３５８堀：いざ潜入 (Part1)
### Chapter 358: Infiltration
**Side: Raiya**
……Why would undead exist here?
This New Continent suffers from a severe lack of magical energy. Creatures that live by consuming mana simply cannot survive here. For a human, it would be like trying to breathe in a vacuum. We learned this well during our experiments in the demi-human village we visited with Yuki early on.
Thanks to the research conducted by Yuki and Zargis, we found countermeasures, but that’s only for us. Could the nations of this New Continent possibly understand these principles and have developed their own ways to cope? Or perhaps, as we suspected, there is another Dungeon Master on the other side who already knew about the mana depletion?
Well, there’s no point in me overthinking it, but looking at the scattered remains of the zombies at my feet, I couldn’t help but ponder.
Just then, I spotted something glinting amidst the rotting flesh of a zombie and picked it up.
"This is..."
"Sir!! Thank goodness you're safe!!"
The merchant, who had been preparing to flee behind us, came rushing over. Perhaps because the immediate need to run had passed, the other stragglers were also beginning to walk again, albeit slowly.
"Looks like you were safe over there."
"All thanks to you, sir. You folks are quite the experts. Say, that necklace in your hand looks expensive. Is it a keepsake?"
"Ah, no. It’s just loot from that zombie."
Yes, what I had picked up was a pendant. Why would a zombie be carrying something like this?
"My, that’s magnificent. It’s got a fine gem on it. That’ll fetch a good price. You should collect them, sir. Sell them off and you’ll be able to afford a delicious meal and a nice inn."
"I suppose you're right."
No use thinking about it here. It feels dangerous to hand it over to just anyone, so we’ll collect them ourselves and have Yuki and the others examine them. Fortunately, this makes it look like we’ve just struck it rich, which makes our movements easier to justify.
"Curse, I found something like this. There might be more, so let’s collect them. It’s money."
"……Understood."
I’m grateful he catches on so quickly. That’s the benefit of being partners for so many years.
"Hey!! Raiya, Curse!! These guys have huge gems on them!! Make sure you collect them!! If you leave them behind, Rosetta’s group will snatch them up!!"
"Don't be an idiot. I’m a mercenary, too. You think I’d steal someone else’s spoils? That would ruin my reputation."
As they exchanged those words, a relatively young female mercenary appeared from the opposite side, chatting harmoniously with the man who had been with her.
……That guy really only thinks about money. Or is he aware of the situation and saying that on purpose? I still can’t tell.
"Oh, that red-haired one is Rosetta the Crusher."
"Merchant…… you didn't give your name. I’m Raiya, that mage in the robe is Curse, and the one with that woman Rosetta is Mauve."
"Ah, I’m Torneko."
"So, Torneko, you seem to know that Rosetta over there?"
"Hm? You don’t know Rosetta? Ah, right, you’re from out of town. She’s a mercenary who wields significant influence within the Ex Kingdom. She mainly hunts monsters in the unexplored regions, not human-versus-human wars, so it’s no wonder outsiders don’t know her. She brings back high-quality materials, so she’s highly trusted by the royal family and merchants alike."
"I see. A useful pawn, then."
"……You’re sharp, sir. That’s exactly it. Putting merchants aside, trust from the royal family is usually strange. After all, it’s taking the bread out of the soldiers' mouths."
"The 'unexplored regions' part caught my attention. If they send soldiers and fail, they waste supplies and manpower, drawing criticism. But if it’s mercenaries……"
"That’s how it is. If they fail, it’s just 'too bad,' and if they succeed, they gain new territory—a win-win. Well, they pay them properly and grant them a fair amount of freedom, so it’s not all bad, I suppose…… but I think they’ll be used up and discarded eventually."
……Every country really does have its own way of doing things.
While thinking about that, I searched the zombie remains. It seemed like every single one had a gem embedded in it. Some had been shattered during the battle, but most were intact.
"Fifteen, I think."
"Yeah, they were in better shape than I expected."
"Yes. Since Mauve-san was using brute force, I thought there would be fewer."
"You guys, what do you take me for?"
"When it comes to delicate matters like this, anyway."
"I agree with Raiya-san."
"That was a good haul. If you don't mind, I’ll buy those gems at a good price. I owe you for saving us, after all."
"Oh, really? That helps. Hey, Raiya, sell them to Torneko……"
As I thought, he wasn't thinking at all. I dragged Mauve away and left Curse to deal with Torneko.
"What is it?"
"Don't 'what is it' me. You thought it was strange that there were undead in this New Continent, didn't you?"
"Yeah."
"And it’s even stranger that all the undead are wearing gems like that. Plus, they aren't human zombies; they’re monster zombies."
"Ah. Wait, are you saying it’s suspicious?"
"Exactly. So you *did* realize. That makes things easier. We can't sell them carelessly. We need to have Yuki and the others look at them first."
"Understood……"
While I was talking to Mauve, Curse was handling Torneko smoothly.
"We’d like to examine them thoroughly before selling. Could you wait a day or two?"
"Ah, my apologies. I only meant that if you were going to sell, I’d like to be the one to buy them."
"Understood. When we do sell, we’ll be sure to come to you, Torneko-san."
This way, we can create the narrative that we sold them to Torneko and got the money. Since it would be unnatural for us to have a large amount of cash when we go to buy slaves, this works out perfectly.
"Hey, Mauve!! That big Orc zombie from earlier? We got a huge gem from it. Here!"
The Rosetta Mercenary Corps had finished collecting their loot and dutifully tossed the Orc King’s gem toward us.
"Oh, thanks for being so honest."
"You saved us. I wouldn't do anything so shameless. And……"
Hm? For some reason, Rosetta was looking at me.
"Are you the one who threw the spear back then?"
"Yeah, don't worry about it."
I had originally intended to skewer it, but the Orc King’s reaction was better than I expected. Well, we were coordinating, and I figured Mauve and Curse would handle the rest. Saving Rosetta from her predicament was just a coincidence.
"I can't just let it go. You really saved us. Thank you."
"You’re still young. Just take it as good experience. It shows that there are Orcs with that kind of skill out there. Brute force isn't bad, but it’s a bad matchup against an opponent like that."
"Yeah, I appreciate the advice. And, here is your spear."
"Thanks. ……Doesn't seem to be any problem."
It felt fine in my hand; no nicks on the blade, no warping. Now for the rest……
"Hmph."
I swung it to check. If there were any issues, I could just ask Narjia. Though, Yuki is the only one who can really do anything to the works she creates. I spun it to check the balance, then performed a series of thrusts to see if it hit the mark and if there was any distortion.
*Whoosh, whoosh…… vwooooooo……!!*
"W-what!?"
As expected, that much didn't cause any issues. As expected of Narjia.
"Doesn't look like there's a problem."
"I agree."
"Yeah. Doesn't seem like this much would do anything to it."
"Well, it was made by a blacksmithing fanatic, after all."