Chapter 3: Never Say Die. ②
The problem came to light the following day, during the afternoon of the fifth day. A certain party, while patrolling their route, noticed an unusually high number of Fog. The sheer abnormality of their numbers prompted an immediate report to the higher-ups. Convinced that there must be a reason behind this change in circumstances, four parties were promptly dispatched to the affected area.
As they approached the reported location, they began to grasp the gravity of the situation. There was an overwhelming density of Fog, which only increased as they neared their destination.
The dispatched parties arrived at the problem area, and within an hour, they realized that continuing their previous search-and-destroy tactics against the Fog was no longer feasible.
The number of Fog was simply too great.
Before their eyes, amorphous monsters, Bone Warriors, and Corpse Persons (Ghouls) writhed everywhere.
A healer from one of the parties let out a scream at the sight.
To make matters worse, some of the Fog had already reached the Generator through the tokens that Sensei and Ichiro had mentioned. The leaders of the multiple parties recognized the urgency of the situation and instructed the most agile member, a scout girl, to convey the seriousness of the situation to the higher-ups, emphasizing that they needed more than five times the current forces to eradicate the Fog. She was sent off immediately, while the remaining members steeled themselves to confront the overwhelming number of monsters.
Upon receiving the scout girl’s report, the upper echelons of the Virtuous Front, including Pulmy, displayed a range of reactions.
Pulmy, seemingly half-expecting this outcome, rested her chin on her hand and fell into deep thought. Nelly Virtuous, a Holy Knight, wrapped her arms around herself, feeling the childhood nightmares she had been told about inching closer to reality. Some looked up to the sky and sighed heavily, while others frantically tried to pinpoint the cause of the situation.
They could not ignore the reports and requests from the multiple parties they had confidently dispatched.
“If we skimp on our forces here and send them in piecemeal, we’ll be repeating the mistakes of the last time,” Pulmy conveyed to everyone. The noble faction attempted to interject, but Pulmy and her allies paid them no mind. They immediately began listing reliable parties with available members, knowing that time was of the essence, and sent in forces exceeding the requested amount to the problem area.
With a significant number of personnel dispatched in response to the report, those patrolling the usual routes faced even greater burdens. The worst-case scenario of the situation worsening crossed Pulmy’s mind, but she also thought that if the dispatched personnel could bring the Fog under control, things might return to normal. It was an optimistic thought for Pulmy, but she had to think that way to keep her sanity intact. She had entrusted the leadership of the Virtuous Front to someone trustworthy and was also engaged in the eradication of the Fog herself. At this stage, there was no surplus of personnel within the Virtuous Front.
After finishing her share of the eradication, Pulmy returned to Skruld’s Guild and heard the sounds of people running around and angry shouts echoing through the air.
Upon inquiry, she learned that those who had been patrolling the reported area had been slacking off until now. Pulmy had suspected something was off. The patrol routes were designed so that if one party overlooked any Fog, others could cover for them. If they had continued their extermination efforts as usual, they wouldn’t have found themselves in such a dire situation. Yet, in just one night, the Fog had undergone an unexpectedly abnormal proliferation.
Whether the cause lay with the Fog itself or with the patrolling parties’ negligence, the higher-ups suspected it was likely the latter.
At this point, the solution was simple: they just needed to hear from all the parties responsible for the problematic route. Those with guilty consciences scrambled to cover their tracks, but their efforts were futile against the seasoned leaders of renowned clans.
As the inquiries continued, it became clear that several parties had indeed been slacking off, and it was revealed that the instigator was none other than Ambish and the other members of the Magic Nobility. Among them, Klein, a promising member of Ambish, was particularly egregious.
If Ichiro Yamada, the transfer student from Japan, had witnessed this, he would have struck a pose reminiscent of flipping his long hair and exclaimed,
“Haai! We must remove the rotten oranges!”
“Why the hell do I have to waste my time hunting these weaklings?”
A boy, around sixteen or seventeen, sulked in response. He leaned heavily against the sofa, his entire weight resting on it, in front of the upper echelons.
“I came all this way because you said you needed my strength for a monster! Day in and day out, it’s just weakling hunting. Seriously, enough already!”
He muttered “so boring” as he propped his feet up on the table.
“I came all this way because you said there was a monster that needed my power! You think I’m the one who should be angry? It’s you guys who should be!”
The boy showed no signs of remorse, and as expected, he was none other than Klein Ambish, the poster child of the pure nobility faction.
“Who do you think I am?” he sneered.
Pulmy and the others let out deep sighs at his attitude.
In the end, there was no sign of reflection from Klein. Moreover, he was not alone in this. The inquiries continued, revealing other dangerous elements within the organization besides Klein. Those listed were similarly rigid in their thoughts and principles, all adamantly denying any wrongdoing.
At this point, there was a suggestion to send everyone who had caused this incident back home, but the shortage of personnel made that impossible.
Ultimately, they had to utilize them as forces, but how to manage those who showed no signs of reform or willingness to listen? The answer, derived by the seasoned warriors, was surprisingly simple.
They would simply suppress them by force.
Thus, for some reason, a large party composed of these problem children, with Pulmy as the leader, was formed.
From this point onward, the burden on Pulmy, who was already shouldering a significant responsibility, would only become more overwhelming.