Chapter 97

Update! ('ω')!

Leaving Mori in the guild as she had some business to attend to, I walked down the main street of Duna.

"Yuek, your frown."

"Gr."

Walking beside me, Rain pointed out my frown, and I tried to relax my forehead.

Although we are gradually making progress towards a resolution, there are still many issues.

Most of all, I am worried about the mental strain on my companions due to the reality of the labyrinth becoming clear.

I am fine.

I might be called cold-hearted, but even if those monsters were originally human, I don’t have much aversion to killing them.

Since they are part of the "culling" that bears the "Twilight," I can rationalize their elimination as necessary for our goal.

But what about my companions, who are still young and sensitive?

Even if they look different, they might still feel stress from killing what are essentially humans.

Especially Marina and Nene, who often fight on the front lines and wield weapons directly.

As their leader and former instructor, I don’t like this situation.

"Yuek, I understand your worries."

"You’re showing it on your face..."

"Yeah. But don’t be overprotective of us. We understand."

We always share information.

The content we discussed in the meeting room has already been shared with each of the raid parties.

"I’m okay. Maybe because they don’t look human."

"Good to hear."

"Yeah. Let’s head back to the inn. Remember, ‘take a good rest when you can’?"

That’s what I always told them during their adventurer training.

Don’t rely on adrenaline; it’s more important to rest well to maintain good performance.

I say this, but I’m not very good at following my own advice.

"Hmm...?"

We turned off the main street, almost reaching the "Singing Fawn" inn, when a black carriage approached from behind.

It was a luxurious box carriage, pulled by four horses with sturdy iron wheels.

It stopped after passing us slightly.

"I’ve been looking for you."

A short, elderly man in an expensive suit got out of the carriage with his guards.

He had a mustache and a receding hairline, and he approached us with a frown.

"...Who are you?"

Rain looked up at me.

I tilted my head, and the short man spoke again.

"You’re Rain’s uncle. Rainis. Your father sent a letter, didn’t he?"

With that, his identity became clear.

If he’s Rain’s uncle, he’s probably Bran Crowda, her father’s brother.

Thanks to Nene and Mamar, we have almost all the information about Rain and the Crowda family.

"Fine. Come over here quickly."

Unable to bear our silence, he reached out to Rain.

I shielded Rain and gently moved away from his hand.

"Excuse me, but are you mistaken? Who are you?"

"You... You’re Yuek Ferdio, right? That girl is the young lady of our house. I want you to hand her over."

"From what I understand, she’s an orphan, isn’t she?"

I didn’t reveal my name, and I wouldn’t let such a rude person touch Rain.

"Enough, grab her. It’s fine if you hurt her a bit."

Bran Crowda nodded, and his guards closed in on us... but both of them fell to the ground.

If they can’t handle a simple trip, they’re not very skilled.

I cast a "Sleeping Mist" spell on the two guards as they tried to get up, rendering them powerless.

"What...?"

I glared at the surprised Bran Crowda.

"I am the representative of the Crowda family, Bran Crowda! The girl there is the current head, Dimit’s daughter! Hand her over."

"I refuse."

Bran Crowda looked surprised again at my words.

"A letter should have been sent. Rainis is betrothed to the Salmteria royal family."

"I haven’t heard of it, and I don’t recognize it."

I deliberately broke the polite tone and glared at him, trying to intimidate him.

I had anticipated that something like this might happen and had gathered information accordingly.

"First, there’s no proof that Rain is the young lady Rainis. What evidence do you have?"

There were apparently a few pieces of evidence, but I had Mamar carefully destroy them.

Now, the only evidence is that they are from the same hometown.

"Second, if a noble marries someone from another country, they need permission, which you don’t have, right?"

This information was gathered by Mamar, Manuela, and Benwood.

Marriage to a foreign royal family involves political issues.

It could be seen as treason or a threat to national security, so approval from the royal council, where the king is present, is required.

There’s no record of such approval for Rain.

Now, the "Clover" party is a special A-rank team handling national requests.

If one of its members, who is a noble, were to marry into a foreign royal family, it would have been a topic of discussion somewhere.

"Gr... You...!"

"In other words, you’re trying to kidnap Rain, who might be your blood relative, and sell her to Salmteria, and without permission, you’re trying to gain connections and benefits because she’s a commoner or an adventurer, right?"

"What’s wrong with that! Thanks to the Crowda blood, she can become a queen! The one who hasn’t been useful to the family will finally be of use!"

Bran Crowda, with bloodshot eyes, spat out his words.

It seems the Crowda family is in financial trouble.

This offer from the Salmteria royal family must have been a godsend for them.

"Rainis, come here. Your father wants to see you."

"I don’t want to see him."

Rain pointed her staff at Bran Crowda, a light of an offensive spell glowing at its tip.

The cold, murderous aura she emitted showed that she wasn’t wavering.

I felt a bit relieved.

"You can become a queen!"

"I’m not interested."

A "Magic Arrow" grazed Bran Crowda’s cheek and pierced the carriage.

"Go back. I’m Rain of the ‘Clover.’ I’m not Rainis."

How was it? ('ω')

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