190: Whispering shadows, far away, that’s the tale
The room was wrapped in darkness.
Thick stone walls surrounded it—no windows at all. So the air inside was stagnant, heavy.
It could’ve been mistaken for a prison, except for the lavish mahogany table and chairs, placed there with such extravagance they declared this was a noble’s chamber.
And seated there, befitting the delicate carvings on the furniture, was a stunning woman.
Her name was Bella Bairoroad. No—she’d already been cast out from the Bairoroad family. Now, just Bella.
Bella had been the wife of Lord Bairoroad, Orthros Gandar von Bairoroad, but she’d committed an unforgivable crime—cursing her adopted son and daughter, Kyle and Maina, as well as her biological son, Zaid—and had been placed under a royal warrant. She’d escaped abroad with stunning success and was now back home, returned to the noble house of her birth, the Marquisate of Baltark.
She was forty-eight, yet looked no older than her late twenties. Rumors said she, like her eldest son Flatten, regularly took youth potions.
Her appearance radiated a witchlike allure—sinuous, dangerous, beautiful.
The room was empty except for her. She slowly brought the fan to her lips.
"...Kyle. Really, such a nuisance."
She opened the fan with a snap, then closed it with a sharp click.
"Would’ve been so much easier if I’d let Zaid inherit Bairoroad and marched forward in safety."
Pachin, pachin—the fan snapped repeatedly.
“Order’s been thrown off, but let’s crush that meddling little nation bloc… their leader, the Mizoho Shrine Nation, first.”
Bam! The fan snapped shut with a sharp crack. A man’s voice echoed through the room—empty, except for Bera.
“Only choice we got.”
Bera didn’t flinch. Didn’t even blink. Just kept talking, as if it were normal.
“Ready?”
“Not a problem. You?”
“Father’s brainwashing’s done. Emperor’s secured by tonight. I’ll have the edict out soon.”
“Seriously sure about that?”
Bera arched a brow, glaring at the wall.
No—no, wait. There, right where no one should’ve been, someone leaned against the wall.
Not a person.
The thing stood there like a monstrous bee. More precisely, some humanoid creature with bee-like features—probably.
The bee-man stretched his arms out, wide as if shrugging.
"Problem solved. The army's already under control."
"Hmm? Then good. But spare me another disaster like the one with the kingdom."
"!?"
The sharp snap of a fan opening and closing—again, again—was meant to show irritation. The bee-man didn’t flinch.
"Please? If it works, I’ll give you what we agreed on... (..)"
The bee-man plucked a small bottle and swayed it slowly in front of Bera’s face.
"Ah! That’s the last one...!"
Reaching out, Bera tried to snatch it—too late. The bee-man yanked it back.
"Wasn’t it supposed to be after we take the kingdom?"
"!?"
Bera glared at the bee-man.
"Whatever. The Empire's pretty much under control now. I’ll give you the usual special one—(....)—just for you."
He tossed a different small bottle to Bera, who fumbled to catch it, then gulped down the contents, eyes bloodshot.
Steam rose from her whole body. Her skin, just slightly, began to glow.
Not Amrita—the elixir of rejuvenation.
No. This was something far more dangerous. Something forbidden.
"Fu... fufufufu... I'm fine..."
All traces of anger vanished. Bera murmured, her face split by a wide grin.
"We’ll have everything set up exactly as planned, soon."
No one answered. The room was already empty—just her, alone.
After letting the afterglow of youth linger for a moment, she opened the thick, soundproof door and sent a message to the soldier waiting outside.
The old man arrived right away.
"Fufufu. Father, shall we begin?"
"...Yes."
Her father, Duke Dorugandes Dora Balterk, replied with a flat voice and barked an order to the soldier.
Yes. Capture His Imperial Majesty.
◆
Across the Mizoho Shrine Nation, the sound of bells rang out.
Warriors—called samurai—raced through the streets, shouting warnings for the citizens to evacuate.
"Residents, move quickly to the designated shelters! Merchants, flee beyond the territory or relocate to the places we designate!"
As the warriors’ shouts echoed, the townspeople scrambled from their homes with just a single bundle, filing one by one into the city walls.
The Mizoho Shrine Nation was built to turn its small size into an advantage. Its walls and homes were layered in a complex, interlocking pattern, growing stronger the closer they got to the central castle.
"Ah, I see. The shape of the town itself acts like a kind of fortress."
Raidock nodded in agreement.
"Built like a mountain fortress. Especially the walls from the center out to the third ring—those are designed for defense."
"So that's why there are so many soldiers scattered through the city."
Watching the Mizoho troops darting about, I noticed they weren’t just stationed on the outermost walls. They were posted along the segmented walls dividing the districts, and even the castle walls.
"In an emergency, even the outer homes are meant to become barriers against enemy advance. Common design, sure. But this nation takes it to the extreme."
I nodded. Yeah. Makes sense.
Around the imperial palace of the living god Muten, the layered defenses and densely packed homes—what was the point of it all?
The three great castles surround the palace. The townsfolk retreat into them when danger comes.
Only a small nation could pull this off.
Funny thing—Golddoon’s castle was built so all its residents could take shelter inside. So the castle and its surrounding walls are truly unbreakable.
Someone joins in our conversation, casual as ever.
“Which is why this country’s the safest.”
“People do call it the leader of the small nations.”
“Yeah. If you’re running, this is the only place to go.”
“Wait—do they even take in outsiders? Hey! What the hell are you doing, sneaking into our chat, Lucas!?”
He’d blended in so naturally I barely noticed at first. There he was, casually sliding into our chat—Lucas Lindblum, the imperial adventurer we’d met on the road.
Looked like a ranger, judging by the insignia. Probably traveling alone through those dangerous little states.
“Hey. Why the hell am I talking to some stinky bastard like you?”
“Who cares! You’re the one who just waltzed in!”
“Nah. Thought the conversation was fun. Wonder how you’d take down a city like this, though.”
Still the same lightweight guy. Light in looks. Light in speech.
“Even for you, that’s a bit much.”
We’re under attack by monsters right now. Not exactly the time for this.
“Maybe. But don’t you ever get tired of worrying about stuff like that?”
He had a point. I couldn’t say I didn’t care. Though I’d never want to storm a fortress, not in a million years.
Raidock tilted his head slightly.
"Can't say I know much since I'm not a mercenary, but breaking into a fortress like this has always been a matter of sheer numbers or a siege, pretty much set in stone."
Lucas crossed his arms behind his head.
"Huh. Siege, right? That's when you lock yourself in a castle or something, yeah? Doesn't that make defending easier?"
"Only if the besieging force doesn't break through. But if there's no relief coming, the defenders will run out eventually. If the attackers can't resupply, it just becomes a test of who can hold out longer."
"Ah, I get it. Just starve them out. Brutal."
"Sure, this is just human warfare. But with something like a stampede of monsters on our hands, a siege actually works."
"Damn, that's a cool story. Alright! Gonna go show off to that girl over there!"
Lucas dashed toward Eva. A moment later, he was blown away by a gust of wind magic.
...What the hell is he doing, that guy?
Leave him be. Tightened up the atmosphere, didn't it?
Too relaxed, man...
Me and Raidock shrugged at the same time, shook our heads with a tired sigh.