第４４９堀：情報収集の一時報告と戦闘の結果 (Part1)
Chapter 449: Interim Report on Intelligence Gathering and Battle Results
Side: Mauve
Damn, they moved faster than I thought.
While Kirika and the rest of us were busy investigating, an invasion of Ranks was confirmed.
Fortunately, the Sword Kingdom hasn't shown any movement, so Yuki has concluded that the "Idiot Princess" is acting on her own.
Well, for now, at least.
That’s why, despite it being the middle of the night, we’re wide awake, waiting quietly for the results of the battle unfolding in Ranks.
If things go south, the Sword Kingdom will likely make a move soon, too.
"Still, considering how fast this is moving..."
"We should assume the missing adventurers were used specifically for this invasion," Lari said.
"Damn it!!"
Hearing the conversation between Raiya and Curse, I couldn't help but shout.
"Calm down."
"Yeah. I understand how you feel, but keep it quiet for now."
"...My bad. I lost my cool."
When I apologized, both of them said it didn't bother them.
"It can't be helped. Anyone would want to scream if such disgusting things were happening in their homeland."
"Exactly. Let’s save that anger and unleash it on Nogosh and the Idiot Princess."
"Yeah!!"
The three of us shared a laugh.
As expected of my partners.
"I’m sure the friendship of you hot-blooded middle-aged men is touching, but could you keep your voices down?"
Before I knew it, Kirika was sitting on the open window frame.
"Kirika. How are things on your end?"
"Nothing to report. Unlike your situation, we haven't had a mass disappearance of adventurers."
"I guess I don't need to mention what's happening here, then."
"No, please, I would appreciate a detailed explanation. Since it’s only adventurers going missing, if you probed the guild directly, you must have more specific information, right?"
"Right, understood. But is it okay to leave the castle unmonitored?"
"It’s fine. I don't have permission to infiltrate the castle, so I can only monitor it from a distance. Given the princess currently invading Ranks, if they are moving in secret, there’s no way to detect it. Conversely, if they launch an overt sortie, the castle and town will be in an uproar, and we’ll know immediately."
"Ah, I suppose that’s true. So, have you confirmed the princess's location?"
"No. I haven't confirmed it myself. However, I have heard rumors that a woman resembling the Idiot Princess is having an audience with Nogosh. That is all. Now, may I hear the information you gathered, Mauve-san? Reinforcements from the Master are arriving soon, and I’d like to organize the intelligence beforehand."
Kirika said this while glaring at me.
Oh, right, she was the one asking the questions.
"Sorry. Don't glare at me like that."
"My apologies. I’m just a bit irritable. There are too many scumbags who only want me for my body."
"Ah, I see."
Understood—in both senses.
Kirika is undeniably beautiful, and if someone like her approached them, men would naturally want to reach out. Assuming they didn't know what she was really like.
"Well, to change the mood, I’ll talk. Though, to be honest, even we aren't sure what to make of it."
"What do you mean?"
"Well..."
As I hesitated on how to explain it, Raiya started to fill in the gaps. I was honestly relieved.
"At first, we considered the possibility that the guild was in on it, so we didn't act like we were openly suspicious. But, ironically, we were immediately summoned to the Guild Master's office."
"Couldn't that mean they were targeting you, Mauve-san? Being summoned so quickly seems too blatant."
"We suspected that at first, but something is off. The Guild Master didn't seem to have a good grasp of the missing adventurer situation. He even went out of his way to pull out a map and record the locations of the disappearances. But that’s to be expected—most of the quest locations were wrong."
"...That is highly inefficient."
That’s right. The Guild Master who summoned us was at a loss as to why the adventurers were disappearing.
They had sent out investigation teams in groups several times, but with no results, he was at his wit's end. When he heard we were visiting the guild, he hoped we might provide some clues.
"Because of that, we don't think the upper echelons of the guild are colluding with the Sword Kingdom."
"Well, that may be true. The guild is equipped with magical tools—lower quality than the ones from Call, but capable of contacting other branches immediately. They could have called for reinforcements from all over at any time."
"I understand that, Curse-san. But what if they are cooperating out of fear that their incompetence will be exposed?"
"If that were the case, they would be enforcing a news blackout. Instead, they’ve already sent out requests for support to every branch. The disappearance of so many adventurers is a significant loss for the guild. We’ve confirmed that they’ve already contacted Ovik and his group in Weed, and even the Grand Master. That’s when they heard we were in the area and asked if we could cooperate."
"...I see. So this situation has already moved beyond just the local branch of the Sword Kingdom's guild."
"Yes. High-ranking adventurers from all over are already gathering at the Weed adventurer guild. It’s not quite a stopgap measure, but they wanted opinions from outside sources, and the search is slated to begin once the reinforcements from Weed arrive."
"In that case, the possibility of their involvement is indeed low. Skilled adventurers won't be stopped by anything less than the kind of malicious traps the Master sets."
As Kirika said, skilled people aren't stopped by a few strong monsters or high-difficulty dungeons.
We just evaluate them as "weak" because we’ve become too strong ourselves.
They aren't the type to stubbornly throw their lives away if they can't defeat a strong monster.
They are the type who will survive at all costs. That’s a requirement for high-ranking, skilled adventurers.
Unless, of course, it’s a dungeon that defies common sense, like Yuki’s.
"...Hmm. Do you remember the map where the disappearances were recorded?"
"Yes, of course. Actually, I secretly took a photo of it. Here."
Curse placed the photo on the table. Since it was zoomed in, it was quite large.
"My, this is truly scattered. At most, there are three in one cluster. With this, it’s impossible to know where to search."
"Exactly. And we’ve already sent search parties to the areas where those three are concentrated, but they found nothing."
"...It really is strange. This is beyond inefficient. The only possibility is that they are creating dungeon entrances on the spot, pulling the adventurers in, and then immediately closing them..."
"I don't see the point in that. It would be easier to collect DP by fixing the dungeon in place and letting people find it."
"That is true. ...Then, what possibilities is the Adventurer's Guild considering?"
"Their view is that a mutated monster was born and is wandering the Sword Kingdom, or that it’s an attack by a criminal organization."
"That’s a reasonable assessment. The 'criminal organization' part doesn't seem entirely off the mark, though."