Chapter 21: Armand Duchy – 10
The viscount’s mansion was located slightly south of the center of town.
It was a mansion with a rather plain appearance, lacking any extravagant gardens, more austere than robust, a building that somehow conveyed the steadfastness of the Viscount Dolmat family.
With young Nielsen leading the way, we entered the grounds through the front gate without any particular challenge.
A male servant was tending to the garden in front of the entrance, but upon seeing young Nielsen’s face, he hurriedly bowed.
“Well, if it isn’t young master Nielsen. Welcome back.”
“Good work. Is the old man in his room?”
“Yes, he is resting in his own room.”
“Understood. These are guests. We’ll be coming in together.”
“Yes, please do.”
Young Nielsen opened the entrance door and went inside, and the five of us followed.
The moment we stepped into the mansion, Freynil frowned, and Lani whispered, “Ah, the smell is strong, just as I thought.”
An elderly maid in the lobby noticed young Nielsen and approached him.
“Oh my, young master Nielsen, welcome back. I must inform the master.”
“It’s alright, Jiju. I’ll go to his room directly. These are guests, but… say, Marquis Okuno-sama, what should we do about the servants?”
“Right. I’d like them to stay as far away from the viscount’s room as possible. It would be safer if they gathered in one place.”
“Got it. Jiju, gather the servants and have them assemble here immediately. Things might get a little chaotic.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ll understand soon enough. Just do it quickly. It’s for your own safety.”
When young Nielsen said this with a serious expression, the maid called Jiju left down the hallway with a surprised look on her face.
“Well then, shall we go?”
The young man started up the stairs.
We followed, but Freynil tugged at my sleeve.
“Soushi-sama, that doll from the ‘Netherworld Candlestick’ is definitely up here.”
“I see… Is it just one?”
“Yes, just one. However, it seems there’s also something like a Summoning Stone Tablet in that room. A large one.”
“I want to avoid fighting inside the mansion. Frey, once we’re in the room, confirm the Stone Tablet’s location. If it looks like it’s about to activate, we’ll do something about it.”
As we were talking, young Nielsen turned back at the top of the stairs.
“Hey, Marquis-sama, could you let me talk to him alone at first? If my old man has been turned into a puppet, I want to know what that thing is after, right?”
“Yeah, I’d like to know that if possible. But will you be alright?”
“I’ll try to prod him a bit about that hole.”
Saying that, the young man started walking down the hallway. We followed a little behind, muffling our footsteps. If the other party had ‘Presence Detection’, they might realize we were there, but they probably wouldn’t know who we were.
The young man stopped in front of the door at the end of the hall, glanced back at us, and then knocked.
“It’s me, Dad. I’m coming in.”
“Oh, Nielsen, is it? Come in.”
The voice, seemingly that of an elderly man, was calm, reminiscent of the personality he must have had when he was alive.
I could feel a sense of helplessness and something like righteous indignation welling up inside me.
The young man opened the door and went into the room.
We stayed where we were, listening to the voices inside.
“…Nielsen, you’ve grown up to be quite respectable.”
“…Well, yeah. I’ve made it to B-Rank, after all. How’s your health, Dad?”
“…Not too good. But now that you’re here, I might hold on a little longer.”
“…Don’t go kicking the bucket so soon. Even if I’m to inherit this house, there’s a mountain of things I want you to teach me. More importantly, I heard my older brother died. What happened?”
“…There was a Plague a year ago, and he passed away from its aftereffects. I myself had been feeling unwell for some time, so I resigned from my post with the Duke-sama and returned here.”
“…I see. By the way, about our mansion in the domain capital. The Duke-sama’s messenger came and investigated it.”
“…Did something happen?”
“…There was a hole in the ground of the warehouse. They said it connects to the Duke-sama’s house. Did you make that, Dad?”
“…No, I don’t know anything about it.”
“…But it connected to the room you used in the Duke-sama’s house. You can’t just say you don’t know.”
“…I see. Then I suppose I’ll have to consider myself dead. …After all, a suitable replacement has just arrived.”
Viscount Dolmat’s tone of voice suddenly changed.
It was a different tone from both ‘Isnani’ and ‘Wahid’. Judging by the voice, it was close to that of young Momentarl from the arena. If so, it must be the one called ‘Sarasa’.
What bothered me was that it had clearly called young Nielsen a “replacement.” I couldn’t let that happen.
“Let’s go.”
I called out to Freynil and the others, opened the door, and went inside.
The first thing that caught my eye was young Nielsen’s back.
And beyond him, there was the figure of an elderly man.
The elderly man… Viscount Dolmat, who had gray hair and a beard and had likely been a refined gentleman, was trying to get up from the bed with an eerie smile on his face.
The Viscount looked at us, the intruders, his face contorting hideously as he offered a hollow smile.
“Oh my, I see. So you were the ones who found that passage. To think you possessed such power, perhaps I underestimated you.”
“Are you ‘Sarasa’?”
“Yes, that’s right. This would be our second meeting, wouldn’t it? I never imagined you would break through ‘Shadow Prison’ by force in the arena.”
“You all possess power beyond human capabilities, so why resort to such elaborate schemes?”
“Oh? Haven’t you heard from Isnani or the others? It’s because it’s our doctrine.”
“Is it that you don’t want to get your own hands dirty? He certainly blurted that out.”
“Indeed. Well, even if I say doctrine, it’s merely that lives taken directly by our own hands are impure and not very useful. It is the lives taken when humans hate and kill each other that are pure and useful to us. That’s why we go to such lengths to use various methods.”
“Useful… you say?”
Their utterly ridiculous way of speaking almost made me raise my voice, but there was no point in me getting agitated here. I composed myself and continued talking.
“…I see. So that’s why you instigated a civil war in Mekalinnan.”
“Yes, Isnani was doing quite well, you know. A war actually broke out. However, Isnani was terribly angry that almost no lives could be taken due to someone’s interference. Well, he was also pleased to have found a good body in exchange, though.”
“A good body” probably referred to me. It seems the ‘Netherworld Candlestick’ is also looking for suitable humans to turn into puppets.
But aside from that, these guys say such unpleasant things, like “lives are impure” or “useful,” that it makes me not want to hear the details. It reaffirmed that the ‘Netherworld Candlestick’ are not beings we can ever understand.
“So, what’s your objective this time? Did you steal money from the Duke’s family and try to cause chaos in the kingdom by withholding necessary information from the Duke?”
“You investigate quickly, don’t you? Well, that’s about it. Incidentally, it was the same regarding the Beastmen. Even Wahid made a sour face at how good their noses are.”
Kukuku, chuckled the Viscount—no, Sarasa.
At that moment, the matter of the freed slaves and the incident at the Beastmen Village connected in my mind.
Wahid kept the Beastmen chief in check, while on the other hand, they abducted the freed slaves and forced them to work in the mines of the Armand Duchy. At an opportune moment, they would inform the Beastmen Village about the freed slaves, heighten their resentment towards the Duke, and incite the Beastmen to revolt. It’s roundabout, but as a means to cause conflict, it’s understandable.
“I see, so you were trying to pit the Duke and the Beastmen against each other.”
“I’d say that’s a brilliant deduction. Now then, against you, this body stands no chance of winning. I shall withdraw, but as usual, allow me to do something that goes against our doctrine.”
Sarasa’s wicked smile deepened.
Young Nielsen stepped forward and grabbed him by the collar.
“Hey, wait! So you’re the one who did in my old man in the end?!”
“I suppose that would be the case. Incidentally, I am also the one who spread the Plague in this town. Therefore, it means I also killed your older brother. Kukuku.”
“Wha…!? What did you say!”
“Now, now. Thanks to that, you can inherit the peerage, and I believe this town has become easier to govern with the number of weak individuals considerably reduced. Though I imagine a fair number of healthy ones will also die from now on.”
“Damn… you!”
Young Nielsen raised his fist.
However, that trembling fist was never brought down.
“Surely you can’t bring yourself to punch your own father’s face. You may be frustrated, but losing this base is quite painful for us as well. So, shall we call it even with that? Kukuku.”
Just as I thought it uttered those mocking words like a parting shot, all emotion—and vitality—drained from Sarasa’s… from Viscount Dolmat’s face.
Before I could even think that Sarasa’s control had been released, the Viscount’s body grotesquely collapsed, spreading onto the floor as blue mud.
“Wha- Damn it! Dad…!”
Young Nielsen released the clothes he was holding and leaped back.
At the same time, a sinister Magic Circle emerged from within the blue mud on the floor.
“Soushi-sama, a malevolent force is spreading. It seems the Summoning Stone Tablet in this room is reacting. It’s a great power, but I believe it’s probably equivalent to a Dullahan. It seems five of them will appear.”
I was a little surprised at how detailed Freynil’s analysis had become, but I’m grateful to know the enemy’s strength.
However, if Dullahans are going to appear, the floor would probably collapse if even one of them appeared in this room.
“Frey, where’s the Stone Tablet?”
“It’s over there.”
What Freynil pointed to was a closet by the wall.
When I approached and opened it, a large Stone Tablet was propped up there. The Magic Circle drawn on its surface was glowing intensely, making it clear its activation was complete.
“If I destroy it, will it stop?”
“That’s dangerous. There’s a possibility the magical power will run rampant and cause an explosion.”
Sphenia answered immediately.
I see, that sounds plausible. In that case, there’s only one way.
Hoisting the Stone Tablet, I opened the room’s window.
“Sorry about this, but everyone, follow me.”
With those words, I leaped out the window.