Chapter 19: The One Who Governs the “Kin of Twilight” 13
The next day, I conducted a verification of the “Vessel of the Commander” Skill, as requested by Lady Dorozitte.
The location was a plain north of the capital.
For the “Soul’s Guidance” verification, Freinir, Mariane, and Sakurahime participated, as well as Marquis Zanzagir, who had just arrived at the scene.
Other participants included the “Polar Drake” party led by Jaze, the “Water Lily Lion” party led by Lady Somyule, about 30 other A and B-Rank parties, and another 30 or so parties from various territories, including Marquis Zanzagir.
Naturally, about 1,000 soldiers from the Imperial Army also participated, making it a much bigger deal than I had anticipated.
However, when I mentioned this, Lady Dorozitte told me,
“No adventurer or soldier would neglect preparations for war. This is actually a reduced number. If too many people move around, the citizens will be alarmed.”
As for the verification, I stood at the front in the center, glaring ahead at the plain, while the other adventurers and soldiers moved around and performed their own self-assessments.
The result was that everyone agreed that their abilities had “clearly improved.”
If there was a 30% improvement, it would be obvious even with normal movement, so it couldn’t be a placebo effect. In fact, Princess Marishielle was excitedly saying things like, “I can tell it’s improved even more clearly than in the arena!” surprising the members of the “Water Lily Lion.”
The verification ended successfully, and the atmosphere was quite good when everyone dispersed.
However, while the “Vessel of the Commander” Skill might be seen by adventurers and ordinary soldiers as just “an amazing Skill,” it was not something that could be taken lightly by His Imperial Majesty and other high-ranking officials. I hope that my treatment won’t change now, but conversely, it might put a considerable burden on their stomachs.
Anyway, as I was about to return to the inn, Lady Dorozitte called out to me.
“I’m sorry, Sir Soushi, but could you come to the guild for a moment? Actually, some concerning information came in this morning.”
“Understood. Is the information related to the ‘Kin of Twilight’?”
When I asked, Lady Dorozitte gave a meaningful smile.
“Well, it seems that a new Dungeon has appeared nearby. I think you and your party would find that very relevant, wouldn’t you?”
After hearing the details at the guild, I returned to the inn and gathered everyone.
“A ‘Wandering Dungeon,’ huh? It feels like it’s been a while. The last time was when I met Sakurahime near the Elf Village,” Larni said, putting her hands behind her head.
In the end, the information I heard from Lady Dorozitte at the guild was that “a Dungeon suddenly appeared west of the capital” and “the party that found it entered and encountered D-Rank Undead on the first floor and C-Rank Undead on the second floor.” But for us, that was enough information.
While the other members nodded, Geshura, who had no experience with it, looked puzzled.
“Forgive me, but what is this ‘Wandering Dungeon’? This is the first time I’ve heard of it.”
“Ah, that’s right. You met us after that, Geshura. A ‘Wandering Dungeon’ is…”
As Larni explained, Geshura nodded repeatedly with interest, tapping the floor with her tail.
“I would certainly like to enter it. I’m also interested in the vampire Lyra Nora. I would very much like to speak with her.”
“I, too, would like to fight Lady Lyra Nora again. There are few as skilled as she,” Sakurahime agreed from a different perspective. Karma looked at me with a slightly exasperated expression.
“But to think it would appear at this timing. Is this also thanks to your ‘Divine Fortune,’ Sir Soushi?”
“I suppose that’s probably the case. But this time the timing is a bit too bad. I was planning to ask Lyra Nora about various things, but with a big battle coming up, I can’t really do that.”
“But isn’t it important to gain strong Skills before a battle? You can talk to her later, right?”
“Larni’s point may be valid. If Sir Soushi’s ‘Divine Fortune’ is at work, shouldn’t we enter it before the battle with the ‘Kin of Twilight’?”
Faced with Larni and Sfenia’s opinions, I had no choice but to agree.
“Besides, Sir Soushi, there’s no guarantee that the ‘Wandering Dungeon’ will remain open until the end of the battle. If it’s a Dungeon that can be cleared in a day, I think we should enter it.”
“Frei is right. Even if the ‘Kin of Twilight’ land, they won’t reach here in a day or two. It’s better to go and get the Skills quickly,” Freinir and Shizuna added, making it feel like the decision for “Soul’s Guidance” had been made.
“Understood. We’ll enter the ‘Wandering Dungeon’ tomorrow. Our goal is to acquire Skills, and we’ll keep our conversation with Lyra Nora to a minimum.”
“Sounds good! I’m excited to see what kind of Skills we’ll get!”
“If Sir Soushi becomes even stronger, there will be nothing to fear.”
“It’s frightening how we already assume victory,”
Just as we were about to disband, an inn employee came to announce a visitor.
The employee was unusually flustered, which caught my attention. The visitors were Lady Dorozitte and, surprisingly, Princess Marishielle.
“Hello, sorry for the intrusion. I thought you’d be reaching a conclusion soon, so I came to check. Is it okay if you enter tomorrow?”
Mariane looked exasperated at Lady Dorozitte’s opening statement.
I answered with a wry smile.
“Yes, that’s what we decided. It’s before a big battle, but we concluded that it would be better to gain Skills.”
“I think that’s the obvious choice. So, Sir Soushi, I wanted to ask, is there any room left in your ‘Vessel of the Commander’ Skill?”
“Room…?”
“I already consider myself a member of ‘Soul’s Guidance,’ so I believe there is,” Princess Marishielle said with an excited look. I understood what she meant.
“…So that’s what you meant. Indeed, I feel like I can accept two more people.”
It seemed that the “Vessel of the Commander” Skill had leveled up after the battle in the arena. Thanks to that, the idea of Princess Marishielle joining “Soul’s Guidance” was easily accepted, but I didn’t expect the other slot to be used like this.
“Then there’s no problem. I and Princess Marishielle will also accompany you to the ‘Wandering Dungeon.’ Of course, we’ll follow Sir Soushi as members of ‘Soul’s Guidance,’ so please take care of us.”
“I also wanted to gain experience fighting alongside Sir Soushi before the big battle. I look forward to working with you.”
And so, “Soul’s Guidance” had finally become an 11-member team.
No, Lady Dorozitte would probably only be a temporary participant this time.
Or so I wanted to think, but her meaningful smile made me feel like that was wishful thinking.
Well, for now, it’s the “Wandering Dungeon.” Lyra Nora will probably be stronger than before, so we can’t let our guard down. I’ll tighten my helmet straps and face the challenge.