Chapter 51: The Exiled Marquise and the First Designated Request 2
The three of us spent the entire day holed up in the Guild’s library and archives, and the only thing we learned was that we knew nothing.
Of course, there was some useful information, like the location of the church said to be built in the Demon Realm, but it was all information from that time; there was absolutely nothing about its current state.
Old maps showed routes to the Demon Realm Church, but we were talking about the Demon Realm; there was no doubt those paths were long gone.
Having only old information vividly illustrated the extent of the damage caused by that tragedy, which forced humanity to retreat from the parts of the Demon Realm they had pioneered.
Losing so many skilled adventurers was the same as losing the skilled adventurers who would have come after them.
Hecate, having lost many skilled adventurers who would take on apprentices and train the next generation, still hasn’t fully recovered from that blow.
The border between the Demon Realm and human territory, which remains significantly pushed back from its peak, is proof of that.
＊
“What are we going to do now?”
Shara asked, her overworked eyes looking tired.
I took a sip of water from my wooden cup, wondering how to answer her.
We were in a cafeteria catering to adventurers, moderately noisy with adventurers finished with their work – just right for discussing the Demon Realm Church.
“Even digging through the archives didn’t tell us anything about the current state of the Demon Realm.”
If we wanted to complete this request properly, we’d have to start by taking the time to gather information about the Demon Realm ourselves.
Normally, we’d want several months just to prepare for heading to the Demon Realm Church.
But the Church probably wouldn’t allow that.
They’d surely come up with some reason or another to rush us.
“That’s right. Given the situation, we should take our time gathering information about the Demon Realm with our own eyes and proceed with preparations slowly.”
See, she’s rushing us… huh?
I stared at Shara in surprise as she said something perfectly reasonable.
Shara tilted her head.
“What is it?”
“No… I just thought for sure you’d say we should move to reclaim it as soon as possible.”
“Even I wouldn’t think this request could be finished easily. We should probably spend several months just on investigation.”
I found myself staring intently at Shara, who was stating the obvious as if it were perfectly natural.
What was she thinking? Did the Church have some reason to want us to take our time? I didn’t get it.
But still, I should probably see this as convenient.
I didn’t know the Church’s aim, but maybe I should just go along with it.
It was the moment I thought that and was about to voice my agreement.
“What are you talking about?”
I heard Erika’s voice, a familiar tone.
A bad feeling welled up inside me.
This tone was that one.
It was the tone Erika used when she was consulted by underclassmen or classmates at the academy.
“Even if we spend tomorrow preparing, we’re entering the Demon Realm the day after, aren’t we?”
–Eh?
Shara made a sound like she’d just heard a bad joke. She started to open her mouth, then hastily shut it. I wondered if the words about to escape were ‘Are you serious?’, but stopping them before they came out was wise.
Erika Solntsalri has this side to her.
She sometimes becomes oblivious to the fact that she’s something of a genius.
This manifests in various ways, like unconsciously expecting others to have the same level of understanding as her, or evaluating magical or Swordsmanship abilities based on her own standards.
What’s generally common is that Erika becomes like this when she holds the person she’s interacting with in high regard.
In this case, it was probably because our recent Subjugations and such had coincidentally gone well one after another.
But that was a misunderstanding.
Whether it was the Golden Ogre, the Forest Dragon, or that Assassin who turned into a Majin.
The only reason we came out unscathed was because Erika was there.
Her high evaluation didn’t take that into account, which likely resulted in this statement from Erika.
But denying that high evaluation here would be a bad move.
I wanted to ask why, really, why, but when Erika gets into this state, she doesn’t easily change her assessment.
As a result, I saw people at the academy crushed by the expectations that came with her high evaluation many times.
As far as I knew, the only one who ever withstood this ‘high evaluation attack’ from Erika was the Maiden of Light.
This was the greatest barrier between her and the Maiden, commonly known as ‘Erika’s Wall’.
However, this time, the opponents were Monsters from the Demon Realm. It wasn’t like someone just happened to get good test scores, or their magic or sword technique was exceptionally brilliant.
With a mistaken assessment, while Erika’s presence meant nothing too disastrous was likely to happen, it was still dangerous nonetheless.
I had to clear up this misunderstanding here–
“After all, Shin is with us, isn’t he?”
I closed my mouth.
“I consider myself reasonably capable as well. For us, the middle layers of the Demon Realm are nothing to fear.”
Isn’t that right?
Smiling at me as she said that, I silently nodded back to Erika.
…Look, I’m a guy too, you know.
I want to show off a little to the girl I like, don’t I?
I gently averted my gaze from Shara, who was frozen with a look of despair on her face.