Episode 65: Some Sketchy Characters
The Drow who called himself an informant turned a sharp gaze into the distance.
“Look, that clergywoman over there.”
“Hmm, that is…?”
At the end of the Drow’s pointed finger was a young woman in a nun’s habit with a glamorous figure.
Zoan recognized the woman.
She was the woman who had come to Bangwall Fort in the same caravan.
He had been warned by the guards that she was a Magic User and told to stay away.
“Everyone, there is no need to lend your ears any further to the past ravings of the Destructionists. This Ortenos is the promised sanctuary, the only blessed land on this Atra Continent that has overcome the prophecy. Now, everyone, let us offer our prayers together to Saint Sharka-sama…!”
The nun preached eloquently to the people, offering her prayers towards the Home Castle of Bangwall Fort.
“Oh, Lord Sharka-sama!”
“Please guide us!”
Many of the people, as if moved, put their hands together and shouted towards the Home Castle.
Everyone’s expression was serious, like that of devout believers.
“That’s a sister of the Eastern Star Church. The scales and mallet emblem are proof of the legalistic ‘Ballista’ faction.”
“Ballista?”
“Yeah, one of the three factions of the Eastern Star Church. Apparently, they lost the power struggle with the doctrinal faction and are now scattered across the continent.”
“What is that sister doing here?”
“Who knows what they’re thinking? But there’s no doubt they’re up to something.”
Zoan himself was not a follower of the Eastern Star Sect, but there were many followers of the Eastern Star Church in the Azalash city-state, Zoan’s home country.
They had a somewhat decadent atmosphere, and all of them positively embraced the prophecies.
The sister who was negative about the prophecies was probably different from them.
Zoan figured she was probably from a minority faction.
“Next is that group. Those are the People of the Grasslands from the northern part of the Empire.”
The Drow pointed to a group of tents with a unique shape.
In front of the tents were two men.
Their clothes were peculiar, wearing loose-fitting clothes that covered all their skin, even though it was summer.
“Speaking of the People of the Grasslands, aren’t they from the Rosham region? That’s quite a distance from here, isn’t it?”
From Bangwall to the Rosham region was more than six times the distance from Ortenatris to Bangwall.
Even Zoan and the others had taken several days to get from Ortenatris to Bangwall.
Zoan wondered how they had managed to get here.
“They probably flew here with Maten. The People of the Grasslands are a clan that lives by the way of the warrior, so it wouldn’t be surprising if they could do something like that.”
“Hmm, is that a technique used by Magic Users? But what reason would the People of the Grasslands have to worry about the fall of Bangwall?”
“…Hmm, I have a slight idea, but I wonder… No, that would be bad.”
“Yeah, if it’s bad, you don’t have to say it… I don’t want to get too involved with nobles.”
The Drow was hesitant, as if wondering whether to say it or not.
It was probably information that shouldn’t be revealed.
For Zoan, who had fled from the strife between nobles, he didn’t want to hear anything extra and worry about it.
But the Drow had an expression as if he had made up his mind.
“No! I’ll tell you because you’re my benefactor! Zoan, please keep this strictly off the record, okay?”
“Wait a minute! I don’t really want to hear it…”
“Gahaha! What, there’s no need to be shy. Actually, until recently, there were talks going on behind the scenes about an engagement between Lord Sharka-sama and a certain young lady from House Rosham. But for some reason, House Rosham seems to have called off the engagement.”
The Drow casually revealed what seemed to be top-secret information.
Zoan was forced to hear information he didn’t want to know, and his stomach churned.
“Hey! I told you I didn’t want to hear it!”
“I don’t know the reason why. But after that, as you know, Lord Sharka-sama made that big fuss over Naia, right? House Rosham must have felt like they let a big fish get away.”
The Drow continued to talk, ignoring Zoan’s heartfelt cry.
“Hey, don’t just keep going!”
“…Those guys don’t seem to be in an apologetic mood.”
The Drow said, looking at the People of the Grasslands outside the tent.
The People of the Grasslands seemed to be maintaining their weapons.
“…D-Don’t tell me they’re going to cause trouble?”
“Cause trouble? It’s possible. There are actually some guys who seem to specialize in that—like that guy over there.”
At the end of Zoan’s gaze was a man huddled on the ground wearing a black cloak.
Was he a vagrant?
Certainly, he had started to see them here and there, but it was a common sight even in the slums, so he hadn’t paid any attention to them.
“That guy? He just looks like he’s lost, though…”
“Well, that’s how he looks normally. But that feeling of unease you get at first glance isn’t something you can easily shake off… That’s an assassin.”
“A-An assassin?!”
“Gahaha, I don’t know which organization he belongs to, but he might be planning something in this Bangwall. Don’t look at him too much.”
“…”
Zoan swallowed hard.
Looking at the Drow laughing heartily while calling him an assassin, Zoan doubted his sanity.
“Well, the thing we need to be most careful about right now is, of course, the Ortenos Court of Justice.”
“Huh? The Court of Justice? This is Lord Sharka-sama’s territory. The Ortenos Court of Justice shouldn’t be able to reach here!”
—About five years ago, Sharka had clashed with the Court of Justice over a certain incident.
It was an incident in which the Court of Justice tried to massacre the refugees and immigrants who had gathered in the blessed land of Ortenatris.
First, the Beastmen were gathered, and when a noble of the Court of Justice was about to cast a spell, Sharka shielded them with his body.
The sight at that time was still burned into his eyes.
“Gahaha, unfortunately, the Court of Justice is already here, you know?”
“Haha, you’re kidding, right?”
“No, it’s true.”
The Drow’s face didn’t seem to be lying.
Cold sweat ran down Zoan’s spine.
“W-Why?”
“Well, in the short term, it’s probably to interfere with the Ceasefire Talks. In the long term, it’s to target this land of Bangwall.”
The Court of Justice was trying to steal Sharka’s Military Achievement from the side.
What welled up inside Zoan was anger.
The Court of Justice’s methods were wrong no matter how you looked at it, it was too unreasonable.
“That’s ridiculous…”
“Well, the Court of Justice can’t ignore Lord Sharka-sama’s achievements anymore.”
“…Don’t tell me the Court of Justice is planning to clash with Lord Sharka-sama again?”
Conflicts between nobles were equivalent to disasters for the common people.
In the conflict between Sharka and the Court of Justice five years ago, those who were in the middle of it, including Zoan, were knocked unconscious by the Intimidation of the nobles of the Court of Justice.
Those who were barely conscious saw Sharka forcefully stopping the tyranny of the nobles of the Court of Justice, and later said that it was like the legend of the hero Seymour.
However, the aftermath of the destruction was terrible.
“Yeah, depending on the situation, this place might become a battlefield too.”
At that moment, there was an explosion in the distance, and screams rose.
When he turned to look in the direction of the sound, black smoke was rising from the tents.
Evil was slowly approaching—that was the feeling he got.