Chapter 169: Chaos Submerges Deeply and Quietly 2
*
In most towns, the Adventurers Guild is built on the outskirts.
This is mainly for convenience; considering the merchants who request escorts, it’s often built near the entrance with the most foot traffic.
Hecate was no exception, with its Guild located near the southern edge of the town.
Due to the town’s expansion, it’s now slightly more inland, but still far from the second Barrier protecting the town center.
Therefore, in terms of distance, fleeing outside the town is closer than fleeing further inside.
Swept up by the movement of people, they had begun evacuating inwards, but perhaps this was a mistake.
Lana, an Adventurers Guild staff member, thought this as she shouted encouragement to the surrounding adventurers.
It was certainly dangerous outside the Barrier, but numerous Monster Wards were also installed around the town.
It might have been safer than moving through areas where Majin could be hiding in corners, burdened with evacuees and the injured.
The path secured by Baldo Barrel (the Guild Master) led towards the second Barrier, so she had followed it, but perhaps she had misjudged.
There was no way that Baldo Barrel could think about difficult things; was it foolish to trust him?
Just as Lana began to regret her decision, an adventurer called out to her.
It was Ezz.
“Lana-san, ten more added!”
More residents who had been delayed in escaping were added.
While shouting encouragement to the adventurers, she had somehow ended up taking command of the entire group.
Even the older Guild staff members were inexplicably following her orders obediently; honestly, she didn’t understand why.
“Ezz-sama, reporting the numbers isn’t necessary anymore. Instead, please act as a messenger. Pick about five adventurers from the central group who have some guts and send them to the rear.”
Ezz replied energetically and disappeared into the crowd.
He’s a good kid.
Complaints flew from the surrounding adventurers: Aren’t you treating him differently from us?
Replying to the complaints with, “Say that after you’ve dealt with Longdagger,” Lana thought.
This is bad. No matter how you look at it, this is bad.
The number of people completely exceeded what they could protect with the personnel they had on hand.
There were many injured among the adventurers as well.
Still, she had the adventurers search for stranded residents because she couldn’t bring herself to abandon those who could be saved.
The Adventurers Guild exists for the weak who lack the power to fight.
Though both Guild staff and adventurers would affirm this with a half-smile, saying, “Yeah, that’s the Guild’s official stance.”
If an outsider were to mock it, they would become furious.
It’s too trivial to risk one’s life for with a straight face.
It’s too noble to stake one’s pride on with an exhausted expression.
If you turn your back on it out of self-preservation, you can’t be yourself anymore.
You wouldn’t be able to face those adventurers (them) who you’d never see again after a simple greeting.
That’s why, even when faced with the abnormality of humans turning into Majin, they continue to accept evacuating residents.
Don’t falter. I’m not exhausted enough yet to wear a tired face.
But reality is harsh.
This clearly exceeds their capabilities.
Since they were conducting rescue and search operations simultaneously, even though they were proceeding down the main street, there was already no one ahead of them.
In other words, they were the rearguard.
As a group burdened with many injured, they couldn’t rush even if they wanted to.
For a moment, she thought, If only Baldo Barrel were here, but Lana shook her head.
That Baldo Barrel is probably off helping people somewhere else; that’s the kind of person he is.
Irresponsible, flighty, careless in a bad way, a challenger to the very concept of diligence.
But still, he is an adventurer.
Enough! Don’t strategize with cards you don’t have!
Lana judged that thought as weakness.
Positioned in the center of the group, Lana considered.
The vanguard consisted of reasonably gutsy individuals, and she had reinforced the rearguard.
She kept a reserve force of those with sufficient guts and skill on hand, but if they were attacked by Majin in multiple locations, they probably couldn’t hold.
Adding guts to idiots solves eighty percent of problems, but this falls into the other twenty percent that can’t be solved.
In the worst case, the resolve to abandon some might be necessary.
Could she do it? Could she?
Could she, who became a Guild staff member wanting to help those adventurers (guys) abandoned by towns and villages, do such a thing?
Before Lana could answer her own question, a colleague acting as a liaison with the front arrived.
“Report from the adventurers searching for stragglers! It seems Margrave-sama has set up a position at the Fountain Plaza ahead!”
Lana suppressed the smile threatening to escape.
She wanted to praise herself for pushing herself to allocate forces for the search.
Principles are important! It was good to believe in the Adventurers Guild’s principles!
Lana asked her colleague to tell the vanguard to head towards the Fountain Plaza, then took a deep breath.
She raised her voice so it could be heard even at the rear.
“Rejoice! Margrave-sama himself is here to greet us! Show some guts! Go boast with a smug look that you protected the residents of his town!”
The spirited shouts of idiots echoing back felt comforting.
Lana failed to notice that the entrance to Chaos can sometimes appear orderly.
*
Margrave Makikomarkrow, Comsas Dortwil, was generally satisfied.
The Fountain Plaza—once a facility for checking the water quality of the sewage purification system—was spacious enough to deploy his troops.
Comsas centered his forces there, directing the rescue efforts and the Subjugation of the Majin.
Among the residents guided by the Knights, although fear was present, order was maintained.
Comsas felt truly pleased.
This was the fruit of his long years of governance.
The town-wide evacuation drill held once a year—this was precisely its result.
If a certain degree of order is maintained within a group, minor Chaos can be swept away.
Order! Order is supreme!
Comsas nodded contentedly while listening to reports from his subordinates.
But still, there were concerns.
The movements of the Majin.
Comsas knew of the existence of Majin as knowledge.
They were different from Monsters, and even if they died, they did not turn into Magic Stones.
The Church called Majin the “blessingless,” and it was said that humans invariably felt intense revulsion upon seeing them.
He had never heard of humans turning into Majin, but otherwise, Comsas had thought they weren’t much different from Monsters.
Setting aside the truth of humans becoming Majin, he had considered them a type of Monster that attacked humans on sight.
But that seemed to be incorrect.
Comsas had to admit his mistake.
“They flee?”
His tone unintentionally became interrogative.
“Yes.”
Seeing his subordinate’s apologetic face in response to his question, Comsas made a mental note to apologize later and furrowed his brow.
The report from his subordinate was this: when the Majin realized they were at a disadvantage, they fled.
Comsas, who had thought they were like Monsters that attacked humans on sight, was surprised.
“Are they so fast that we cannot catch them?”
If so, that would be quite troublesome.
“No, we can catch them. However, given that it’s within the town and there are multiple Majin, some individuals act as decoys to allow their comrades to escape.”
The answer revealed an even more troublesome fact.
Isn’t that just like humans? The thought that arose strengthened the suspicion that these Majin might have originally been human.
What foolishness.
Comsas dismissed the thought, focusing his mind on reality.
Isn’t it as if they are trying to prolong the confusion?
He didn’t know if Majin possessed such thoughts.
He had never heard of them possessing anything that could be called Intellect.
But what if they did?
What if the Majin possessed Intellect or some kind of objective?
The answer was simple.
Interfere with them.
“Bishop Bival.”
This is the time to use him.
Comsas made his decision.
“Yes?”
Bival, whose name had been called, stepped closer.
“I wish to use the Church’s reserves.”
“Please, feel free.”
The confirmation was that simple.
Even in the Orclaugh Kingdom, the relationship between the royal family, nobility, and the Church was the same.
While they did not view each other with hostility, they maintained a delicate distance.
From the nation’s perspective, the Church, being organized, was potentially more dangerous than adventurers.
However, this was not the case in Hecate.
The existence of the Demon Realm did not permit it.
Since close cooperation with the Church could invite unwarranted suspicion from the central government, it wasn’t overt, but successive Margraves of Makikomarkrow had maintained strong ties with the Church.
This manifested in forms such as the Orphanage located inside the second Barrier, and the collection in the Adventurers Guild Library, which was more substantial compared to other countries and territories.
Furthermore, the current Bishop and Comsas were old acquaintances.
They had survived no small number of deadly situations in the same party; there was no problem with coordination.
Well, admittedly, most of those deadly situations had been the fault of this Bishop.
“Divide the main camp forces into three units. Leave one unit here, and have the others join with the church personnel to exterminate the Majin.”
Comsas issued the order to his subordinate.
Won’t that leave the main camp too thinly defended? His subordinate’s eyes seemed to say as much, but Comsas ignored them.
Overwhelm them with ordered numbers.
That was precisely the rational way to bring this situation under control quickly.
Basically, surround and crush them, and it’ll be okay.
Comsas thought firmly as he watched the back of his subordinate, who had begun reorganizing the units.
While perhaps not on the level of Faltar’s famed Knights Order, our Knights Order are also elites entrusted with the front lines of the Demon Realm.
We will crush Chaos with the order of our Knights Order.
With our Knights Order, it is possible.
Hecate had to start over from scratch due to the monster disaster sixty years ago.
That was true for adventurers, and for the Knights Order as well.
Ever since he could remember, the Makikomarkrow Knights Order had struggled to rebuild.
Lacking this, lacking that.
They had sought out, polished, and honed those things with their own hands.
Having seen that since childhood, Comsas knew his subordinates wouldn’t fall behind the likes of mere Majin.
Indeed, order!
Order solves everything!
Comsas was convinced as he watched his subordinates move with discipline.
A sense of ease came into his eyes as he watched the backs of his subordinates departing the camp.
“My Lord.”
That’s why, precisely why, when the Butler called out to him, Comsas felt a bad premonition.
It was always like this. It was always a word from this man that startled him just when he felt completely at ease.
The bad feeling intensified when he saw the Butler raising the halberd he had been holding lowered.
“What is it?”
Comsas asked back, as calmly and quietly as possible.
“Something is coming.”
Hearing the Butler’s concise answer, Comsas reflexively shouted.
“On alert!”
For this Butler to speak so concisely meant exactly that.
What timing!
Just after sending out two-thirds of the forces at hand, this happens?
Comsas ground his teeth as he looked at the main camp, its numbers now significantly reduced compared to before.
As tension suddenly ran through the Fountain Plaza, the Butler’s quiet voice leaked out.
“Above?”
Comsas’s gaze, drawn upward as if pulled, caught sight of them.
The figures of Erica Longdagger and her companions, leaping across the rooftops and rushing towards them.
“Gyaaaaaah!”
The Margrave screamed at the Chaos flying towards him like an arrow.
Afterword
You can never make the Margrave scream too much.
Barbarian Mountain Territory