Chapter 23 "Mansion"

The journey to the mansion was completed without any problems, and on the second night after our departure, we reached the vicinity of the mansion.

　"What is that?"

"I have no idea what that is."

We saw the mansion from a distance, but... it was very different from what I remembered.

　First of all, it was surrounded by a high wall, so we could not see inside.

　We could barely see the house, but we couldn't see what was going on outside of it.

"Even if it was built after we left the mansion, it was too quick. How could they have built such a large wall in such a short period of time?"

The budget must have come from Liard, right?

　But it would be difficult to build such a magnificent wall in such a short period of time.

　It's not something that was put together in the usual way.

　Well, the first thing that comes to mind is magic.

　It is not difficult to build a wall with earth-based magic...but to build a wall like that, it would take more than one mage.

　It is not uncommon for people to be able to use magic, but few have mastered it to a practical level.

　Take the earth system, for example, there are people everywhere at the level of a child playing in the sand, but not many who can build a sturdy wall or even a little fortress.

　I learned how to use magic by looking at my memory, but there were many things I did not understand.

　First of all, I didn't understand the definition of magic power...in short, MP.

　If I continued to use magic, I would feel tired, and if I used it more, I would lose consciousness.

　It seems to recover over time, but I am not sure how to increase the total amount.

　The most popular theory is to use it like a muscle and train it.

　This has been shown to work, so most guys train themselves with that policy.

　Rothfeldt also believed in it and practiced magic that he could not even use properly.

　But as far as I can remember, there's a huge difference between individuals.

　Some people train hard for years and become strong, while others become strong on their own without much training.

　In my case, it's hard to say.

　I've been using it a lot, but I've never had that kind of disorientation.

Even when I used that cheating ring in the mountains that amplifies the power of the magic, I didn't feel anything in particular.

No, maybe I'm just unaware of it?

　I had used magic many times after repeatedly remodeling my body, but thinking about it calmly... I see, the power and accuracy have increased.

　The power of the shots I fired around the bar with flair was nothing compared to when I started using my body.

　I'm growing too... or am I not?

　Then, is it more natural to think that I'm unconsciously optimizing?

　There are so many things I don't understand about myself.　

　Let's go back to the story.

Perhaps that wall was made by magic.

　I'm not sure if it's made of hardened earth or some kind of illusion, but I'm sure it's not something that was put together in a normal way.

　This kind of thing is usually a pretense or a trap to block the view.

　This is a story that I have heard second-hand, but it was during the siege of a fort during a war many years ago.

　One side was attacking the other side.

　The fort was surrounded by a double wall and was solidly built.

　However, when they entered the fort, they found that the walls were only an illusion.

　The commander shouted, "Are you kidding me?" and he and his men charged the other wall.

However, the second wall was only an illusion, but it had a moat underneath, and they inflicted a lot of damage.

　Others, and this is a different story, have a surface that rises up and attacks you like a sword mountain when you touch it.

　There are many other things of a bad nature, such as things that are liquid like mud, and when you touch them, you can't get them off.

　I'm staring at that wall, wondering if that's what it is.

　Heidi next to me is still grumbling and groaning, so let's see what she has to say.

She's here, I should put her to good use.

　When I asked Heidi about it, she generally agreed with me.

　"I don't know much about it myself, but I can agree that the wall is made by magic.　I just wonder how they maintain it."

　Well, that's true.

　Well, let's see. That kind of wall requires a supply of magic power to maintain it?

　Really? Then how are they maintaining it?

　It's natural to think that they built it when they sensed that we were already nearby... but it must take a certain number of people to maintain something that big.

　I have no idea.

　I shake my head.

　"You're right, it would take a lot of magic to maintain it. If it's the perfect illusion I mentioned earlier, it wouldn't be that much... but even if it were, it's more than an individual can afford."

　"I see. If you don't understand it, I don't understand it either. But it's amazing!"

　"What is?"

　"The amount of knowledge you have. You're like a different person from the one I used to be."

　I've forgotten about that. I completely forgot about that setting.

　I'll have to say something clever to cover it up.

　"I'm still an adventurer. I learned a lot from working with other adventurers."

　"I see. I guess being an adventurer gives you a lot of experience! I wish I could be an adventurer, too."

　What are you talking about?

　You're going back to the Oratorium family when this is all over.

"Um..."

　"We'll talk later. Either way, I can't make a decision from this distance."

　I won't tell you.

　I'm not taking you with me.

　Let's just shove it in and think about it.

　"Hey, hey! What are you doing?"

　"There's nothing I can do but watch. I'm going to have a little look around."

　"You said yourself it could be a trap!?"

　"I'll figure something out."

I turn to the mansion.

　I'm going to get this mess over with.

　My poor, poor, poor....

　I - Zubel Bonnord - was in the biggest crisis of my life.

　I was surprised when I saw that man in Enkau, but I asked the "soul hunters," who I have known for generations, to dispose of him.

　They are a mysterious bunch, but as long as you pay them, they will always get rid of their targets.

　In that respect, they were trustworthy.

　Now I could sleep with my pillow up high. Or so I thought.

　However, a liaison posing as a merchant gave me an unbelievable report.

　The result was almost total annihilation.

After killing all 50 of the first attackers, he seemed to have cut his way into the main camp in the opposite direction.

　At that time, the top of the list - the brothers Shuduri and Sudri, and no one else who stood in front of him and returned alive... a joke of a report came back.

　There are even unconfirmed reports that even the head of the "hunter of souls" has been killed.

　It seems that the people who came to report were planning to leave Enkau because it had become too difficult for them to continue their activities there.

　The reason why they came in rather large numbers this time is probably because they stopped by on their way to retreat with the survivors.

But why did they come here even if it was not part of their route? I understand the story, though I have my doubts.

　I understood the story, but I didn't understand Rothfeldt's behavior.

At least, he didn't seem like the little boy I knew.

The boy is a fool who believes blindly in the word "trust."

　At the very least, he is pitiful in that he has had little contact with any kind of malice.

　However, I am not obliged to go along with his foolishness.

　I have had more than enough of this house for the previous generation and the one before that.

　Isn't it about time you gave me a little better look?

　The previous lords of Oratorium had gentle personalities, but they were strong enough to leave no stone unturned.

　He was a very capable lord, but he made the folly of not putting much effort into training his successor and of taking everything into his own hands and not assigning tasks to others.

　As a result, Rothfeldt had to learn to work on his own.

　If I had assisted him, no major problems would have occurred... but I did not do that, and when I conversely broke his footing, he fell as easily as if he were rolling down a slope.

　After that, I would talk to the little lass of Liard and she would get the title of Lord of Oratorium and I would get my own personal fiefdom in the territory.

　From the looks of it, the lass did not have good feelings for the lad.

　But I guess she had to marry him because of the family orders.

　I decided to take advantage of that. I whispered to her, "If you just marry in and get rid of the boy, the house will be yours..."

　As a result, the little girl took me up on the offer.

　And when all was said and done, taxes, laws, and everything else would be at my disposal...my kingdom!

　I will have to pay some taxes to the state, but that's a minor problem.

　And then there is the "thing" that I found in the territory that was given to me when I made a contract with the little girl.

　If I use it well, it will generate enormous wealth.

　A tailwind is blowing for me. I felt it strongly.

　In fact, I was doing well until the point where I was kicked off...or so I thought.

　Looking back, maybe it was because it was so long ago that things started to go crazy.

　At first, it was a condition that the little girl had set.

She wanted to keep Rothfeldt alive and entrusted her with the management of things.

Not kidding.

　Even if all goes well, as long as the kid is alive, my position is nothing more than a blowhard.

　No matter what the little girl says, the boy's elimination is absolute.

　So I decided to get rid of the kid without anyone noticing.

I'm going to use drugs to incapacitate him and then throw him out into the goblin territory.

　The boy had taken an unsuspecting dose of paralyzing poison that was more than lethal, so I didn't need to throw him out to kill him instantly.

However, I could not leave his corpse there, so I threw him out into the wilderness as planned.

　I reported to the little girl that he had gone to kill the goblins and disappeared.

I don't know what she intended to do with the boy, but she didn't seem to be obsessed with him, and when she heard the report, she put it away with a single word: "Yeah."

　The rest of the day went by without any problems.

　The declaration of the temporary retirement of the lord due to medical treatment and the appointment of the little girl as acting lord went well.

The restoration of the fief also proceeded smoothly with the support of Liard, and everything went on without a hitch.

　We should have moved on.　

It doesn't matter that the hit man was beaten back.

All I had to do was send the next one.

　That was the way it was supposed to be.

　So...I couldn't believe what was happening before my eyes.

I am currently in a corner of the Oratorium gardens.

Just a few minutes ago, I was about to discuss the future with my liaison officers when someone appeared without a sound and magically immobilized everyone in the room except for me.

All of them were rolling on the ground with their limbs immersed in ice.

　"What are you...?"

　These were the only words that came out of my mouth.

　My mind could not process what was happening before my eyes.

　Fatima Rose Liard, the little girl, walks slowly toward me with a thin smile on her face.

　"Now, Zubel. What is the meaning of this?"

　"What do you mean...?"

　The little girl steps on the foot of the liaison who is struggling to move.

　The liaison's foot cracks at the spot where she stepped on it, and it shatters.

　"Oh...oh...my leg..."

　He looked at the block of ice that used to be his leg with a stunned expression, as if he felt no pain.

"Don't tell me I don't know about...Mr. Rothfeldt?"

This time she stepped on another liaison's arm and shattered it.

"You didn't tell me you tried to kill him, did you?"

She stomps on another liaison's leg.

　"Wait a minute, Fatima, there's a very good reason for this..."

　"I am aware of it. Is there a deeper reason than Mr. Rothfeldt was in the way?"

The little girl is crushing the limbs of the liaison in her path as she approaches me.

　To my horror, her expression is completely still.

　This girl is a monster who can easily kill people.

"No, no!　Fatima-sama must have been fed up with that little boy!　I was just trying to take away that sorrow..."

　"Shut up."

　The little girl smiles off and waves her hand lightly.

　The wind was blowing toward me. I couldn't help but try to protect myself with my hand...

　My left arm from the elbow to the tip had disappeared.

　When I fearfully lowered my gaze... my arm had fallen off, exposing a red section.

　I did not notice.

　And the fact that there was no pain at all was conversely terrifying.

My heart was beating wildly.

　I heard a grating ticking sound.

A few seconds later, I realized that it was the sound of my teeth clacking in unison.

"I cooperated with your trifling scheme on the condition that I take custody of Lord Rothfeldt."

　The girl stops.

　"But of all things, you were going to kill Mr. Rothfeldt. Let me ask you again. What is the meaning of this?"

She's going to kill me.

　I instinctively knew.

　The monster in front of me was going to kill me.

　"You won't understand if I don't tell you, will you?"

　I was too terrified to speak.

　I desperately moved my eyes to look for a way out.

　Think, think, think.

　My eyes catch sight of the collapsed liaison.

　He was frozen and trying to open the pouch on his waist with his arm, which was not moving properly.

　Seeing this reminds me.

　It's a magic stone for contact.

　I believe I heard that they have a type of flash that shoots up when impacted.

　Well, we can win by calling in the people who are waiting outside.

No matter how good a witch she is, she can't beat 20 of the skilled ones outside.

　I opened my mouth with determination.

　"Okay, I'll tell you. I'll tell you...actually..."

　The next moment, I jumped on my liaison and quickly pulled a magic stone out of my pouch and slammed it down.

　The little girl, who was concentrating on my story, seemed to be slow to react.

　The magic stone that was struck took effect and shot a white flash into the sky.

"Ha-ha-ha... I did it!"

　"...So what's the rest of the story?"

　The little girl urged onward as if nothing had happened.

　"You idiot!　Did you not see that?　That flash was meant to bring in my men from outside!　Twenty of the most skilled assassins are coming here!　You'd better run for your life!"

　"Yes. So that's your answer."

　The little girl lets out a small sigh.

What the hell is this woman calmly saying!?

A bad feeling grows in my heart at her unbroken composure.

　"Oh, it's no use if you're expecting the people out there, sir.　Because all of them have frozen their limbs and are unable to move."

　...Eh?

　I didn't understand what she said.

　No, I didn't want to understand...if help wasn't coming, I would be...here....

　"I thought you were a foolish man from the first time I met you, but to this extent...you could have lived a long life if you had only known how to behave yourself..."

She slowly turns her hand toward me.

　I don't like it...I've come this far.... I'm so close...my dream of so many years...my dream....

I screamed as I turned away and ran...but I couldn't.

　My legs were frozen and I couldn't move.

　I couldn't run away...I hate it...I hate it...

　"Don't worry, I won't kill you now, okay?　You have one last job left to do."

　Right after I heard that, my consciousness disappeared.