第１５５０堀：到着前会議 (Part1)
Chapter 1550: Pre-Arrival Briefing
Side: Ria
Before I knew it, a full day had passed since we departed the royal capital of Hinsua, and our destination was finally within sight.
That said, we hadn't reached the old royal capital of Vinosia itself. We had stopped at a line where we wouldn't be detected by the enemy—a vast plain with mountain ranges visible in the distance.
I was just thinking that the tomb containing the hidden treasure must be somewhere in those mountains when Yuki-san stood up to address us.
"Alright. Before we discuss what comes next, I need to confirm a few things."
He looked at each of us in turn.
"From what I can see, no one looks to be in poor health, but are you sure? Is anyone hiding anything?"
Oh, so that’s what it was. A health check.
Well, it’s important, I suppose.
Setting that aside, I had something to verify, so I glanced at the person next to me. There sat Seraria, as emotionless as ever. Beyond her, Dressa, who seemed to share my concern, was staring at her.
"Seraria. Are you alright? Your expression never changes, so I honestly can't tell."
"Wow, you’re pretty blunt, Dressa."
Well, I had no choice but to ask that way. I could have been a bit more tactful, I suppose. As I thought that, Seraria replied in her usual manner.
"It’s less shaky than a carriage, and I haven't felt much sensation of movement, so there are no problems at all. If anything, the hardest part is that I tend to overeat during meals."
"I see. That’s good to hear."
"Not really. I’m worried that since we’ve been traveling by bus lately and haven't been able to exercise, I might have gained weight."
"Er, well, you’ll just have to exercise once we get back."
I couldn't exactly make her work out here. Just then, I remembered Yuki-san’s briefing was still underway and turned back to him, noticing that everyone else’s gaze was also fixed on him.
"Yeah. Well, we’re all lacking exercise. After we finish this talk, we’ll set up a base and get back into the swing of things."
"Thank you very much," Seraria said, offering a sincere note of gratitude.
"Good. Now that I know everyone’s health is fine, let’s go over the upcoming schedule, just as I mentioned earlier. It’s not complicated."
Yuki-san prefaced his explanation by laying out the current situation.
"We are currently twenty kilometers away from the mountain where the royal tomb—our destination—is located. This distance is calculated based on the enemy’s dungeon expansion; in other words, we are outside their territory. Once we finish our preparations here, we’ll depart."
Right, that had been the plan from the start. And the schedule after we leave here is...
"After we depart, we’ll head into the old royal capital of Vinosia. We’ve received requests to check on the status of the Litea Church and the Adventurer’s Guild, so we’ll handle that as well. I was told we could choose whichever base we preferred, but honestly, considering the security situation, I’ve decided to make the church our primary hub. The reason is that Rurua and the others will continue their healing work there. Since the people who had gathered at the Hinsua capital are now being taken care of by the Litea Church in Hinsua, I’d like to think the enemy’s expectations were slightly off-target."
It was true. When I spoke to Rurua and the others, they mentioned that the Dark Guild might have spread rumors, causing more people to gather than expected, making it impossible to keep up with the treatments. I had been wondering how they would handle that, but so that was the solution they chose.
Well, the original plan was for the delegation from the Litea Church, including Rurua, to verify the state of old Vinosia, so it wasn't a problem, but...
"Um, if there are still people in Hinsua who want treatment, won't they be dissatisfied? It could lead to a riot if we're not careful."
I raised my hand, asking the question with a bit of hesitation.
"That won't be an issue. We’ve provided the Litea Church staff in Hinsua with plenty of magical tools for healing, along with magic stones for battery replacement. It would take a massive effort to exhaust those. If they still complain, I’ve asked the Hinsua authorities to detain them, and they’ve deployed troops to assist."
I see. I recall them mentioning they had succeeded in mass-producing recovery magic tools, developed alongside Zargis-san, Narjia-san, and Nilua-tachi. I suppose they provided them with the intention of testing them out.
"Oh, and regarding the soldiers acting as our escort—they’re already heading toward old Vinosia, or rather, they’ve already gone ahead."
"Eh? But they aren't following us."
As Dressa pointed out, we came here by bus and are waiting at this location, but there isn't a single soldier from Hinsua in sight. Or rather, there’s no way they could fit on this bus. I’m pretty sure there were over a hundred of them.
"Ah, I arranged separate buses for them. Not luxury buses like this one, but transport models. Still, they’re standard tourist buses, so if they aren't wearing their armor, they should be able to relax."
I see. But I feel like telling knights to take off their armor is a bad idea, so they’re probably crammed in there while still wearing it. In that case, no matter how nice the seats are, it must be incredibly tight.
"By the way, those soldiers are also tasked with securing the church I mentioned earlier. Ah, here they come."
Yuki-san gestured toward the road we had traveled, and as we looked, several buses drove past us. The drivers were Goblins.
Ah, so they’re being used for that kind of work, too. Well, it’s only natural, since the people of Hinsua wouldn't know how to drive.
"Alright, once the advance team arrives at the old royal capital of Vinosia and confirms the church is secure, we’ll move in. Speaking of which, Kirika, Steve."
"Yes."
"Yo."
Naturally, getting confirmation from Weed’s unit was the most important part.
"The Hinsua soldiers just passed our position in the buses. They should be there in about an hour. Does everything look okay?"
"Yes. The old royal capital of Vinosia has not been turned into a dungeon, and we have secured it, so there are no issues. Though, there were enemies present."
"It was a surprise, boss. Once you guys reached that position, we expanded our dungeon as well, but there are a lot of Dark Guild affiliates there. Do you want the data?"
"Yeah, send it over."
As soon as Yuki-san said that, the data was instantly transmitted to us. When we opened the files, a long list of names appeared, and next to it, a map of the old royal capital of Vinosia displayed a swarm of red dots.
"Ugh..."
Almost all of us, myself included, groaned involuntarily. We realized that nearly half of the people living in the old royal capital were affiliated with the Dark Guild.
But Yuki-san, as always, remained unfazed.