CH 163

Chapter 163

When Peaceful Times Cease To Exist : To The Swamp, Part 1 — Desertion

Translated by KaiesV

Edited by KaiesV

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Here was Alfiris and her group. They concluded that the first priority was to heal Nia as soon as possible, and Aerial, with Euthy leading the way, drove his beloved horse, Sylphide, ahead of them to Euthy’s village. Later on, Alfiris, Miranda, Lisa, and even the Kunoichi remain. They are now at a slightly larger tree that serves as a landmark, waiting for Kaede to join them.

「After all, this is the face of the company. Miranda.」

「Nhn? Ahh, that’s right.」

「It’s the first time I can say that, but considering that we were traveling with that large group of people, I’m going to miss them.」

「…」

「I hope Nia is alright. I’m not comfortable here either and would like to get away as soon as possible. I think we should have already decided what to do after that. I’d like to hear your thoughts, Miranda? Are you okay?」

「No, I’ve been doing some thinking.」

Lisa was talking more than usual, probably due to anxiety, and was trying her best to talk to Miranda, but Miranda was somewhat absent-minded as she was thinking. When it came to Alfiris, she went away by herself earlier saying she was going to the watering hole. Lisa’s sensor abilities are firmly confirming her safety, so there is no problem at the moment.

「Thinking. About what?」

「Yeah, I just thought we were completely out of touch.」

「…That’s what Lisa felt too. Maybe he didn’t want to kill us all along.」

「Do you think so too, Lisa?」

Miranda’s blue eyes meet Lisa’s gaze. Although Lisa’s eyes are blind, the way she turns her head is no different from that of a normal human being, so she looks in the direction of the other person’s eyes when they are talking to each other. A mere blind person would only see somewhat, but Lisa, the sensor, knows exactly where the other person’s eyes are, so her behavior is almost the same as that of a healthy person. The lack of light in the eyes is such that the expression of emotion through the eyes is a little scarce. But then there was Lisa, with confusion, anger, and anxiety in her eyes. Miranda could see the ups and downs of various emotions.

「Yes. If he was going to kill us, the first surprise blow would have been enough. Fenna’s allies were done in one blow, after all. And if he was that capable, he should’ve been able to annihilate us a hundred times over. In addition, it seemed that Lifeless still had a lot of energy left in him.」

「…Wasn’t that all the power he could muster?」

「It’s frightening, though. He was too strong for me to know the details as far as I could detect, but I’m sure he wasn’t at full strength. There was still plenty of magic power left in him.」

「And immortal… what a surprise. If that thing becomes an enemy of ours, or rather, of humans…」

Without a doubt, the human race will be destroyed, Miranda didn’t say, but she did consider the possibility. If they are stronger than Miliazar, I wonder if the Church of Arnelia can do anything about it. Miranda didn’t know everything that was going on in the Church of Arnelia, and the dimension of the battle was so far above the clouds that she was unable to grasp the whole picture.

In this situation, Miranda felt bitter at herself for having lived her life in desperation. She wondered why she hadn’t used this immortal life with a clearer goal in mind, but it was already too late. And even though she knew she was immortal, her found herself somewhat relieved in her heart the moment Alfiris tried to release the second Curse Mark. This would save her life. That was unacceptable to Miranda. She thought she swore that she would never sacrifice others for herself after losing her lover because of her. That’s what her body was supposed to be for.

「（I guess my nature hasn’t changed after all… I’m still a cunning and petty person. Strong… I want to be strong.）」

Perhaps catching a glimpse of Miranda’s inner thoughts, Lisa came up to her with concern.

「Miranda, are you sure you are okay? You seem quite depressed.」

「Mhm. Honestly, I’m depressed.」

「That’s not unreasonable. But if you can talk your way out of it, you’ll still be okay…」

「Sorry to interrupt, but Kaede is back.」

Mouthless interrupted the conversation and called out to them. All three Kunoichi were down on one knee, looking very formal.

「I told you, I don’t like that kind of thing.」

「We apologize. This is all we know.」

「…Oh well. I’m amazed you managed to escape. Errm, was it Kaede?」

「This is an excessive amount of words. I was so busy running away that it was shameful. In addition, a large number of Seekers entered the village, and we ran away to avoid detection, and we apologize for the delay in joining you.」

Kaede lowers her face even deeper. Failure to perform the mission means death. Miranda had been told that this was the way it was, and in fact, Azusa had advised her to abandon Kaede and run away. But Miranda wasn’t convinced, and she had her own ideas.

「It doesn’t matter, because there’s life, right? What about the pursuit of the enemy?」

「No, that man disappeared after that. The same goes for his skeleton subordinate. The Seekers are looking for them with all their blood, but they are no longer in the vicinity.」

「Well, that’s a relief. But there is something else I want you guys to do.」

「Hah, we are at your service」

Azusa answered.

「First of all, I want one messenger to stand up to the Master Bishop. I want you to tell her everything that happened here. I want to take care of that enemy as soon as possible. I’ll draft the letter now and make sure it gets to her.」

「Yes.」

「Next, I need another person to find Fenna and Kazas. If they are alive, the Seekers is probably rescuing them, but I want you to see to it that they are alive and dead as well. They are my precious friends. So, if they’re alive, tell Fenna to come visit Arnelia. I would like to see Fenna herself try this, and I hope that whoever stands as the messenger will act as an intermediary between Fenna and the Church. In some cases, we are considering taking the Seekers under the protection of the Arnelian Church.」

「…Understood.」

This time, Azusa’s answer was a bit dull, but that was to be expected, given the circumstances. If Church Of Arnelia were to accept large numbers of Seekers, who are perceived by the public as dark elves, it would cause a huge social uproar. Azusa was convinced that this was a mission because Miranda was the first pilgrim, but otherwise it was clear that even Azusa, who was ordered by Miliazar to listen to Miranda’s instructions, couldn’t agree that she could do such a thing on her own.

Miranda continued.

「And you’re still going to keep an eye on me, aren’t you?」

「Yes, with all due respect.」

「Then I’ll leave it up to Azusa to decide what kind of people to choose. I will now write a letter to the master.」

Miranda then quickly took out paper and a pen from her luggage. Anything that could be substituted for ink could be made into a substitute with Miranda’s signature concoction. Moreover, she carefully crafted the letters in a special way so that they wouldn’t float. Only Miliazar knew how to read this letter, and Miranda had suggested it to Miliazar long ago, in case of an emergency.

The others waited patiently for her to finish her letter, but when she was about to finish it, Azusa suddenly opened her mouth.

「Miranda-sama, may I have one from you as well?」

「What is it?」

「What are you going to do after you heal Nia-dono?」

「I know what you mean. For my part, I’m thinking that since we’re north of the prairie, we might as well go through the swamp.」

「But isn’t that place called『The Swamp Of No Return?』」

Lisa interjected. That’s as it should be. Why are there no people coming into the prairie from the north? For one thing, of the three major roads, the northern road is deserted, and there are few people passing through itself. Also, to enter the prairie, one has to go far away from the road.

In addition, there is『The Swamp Of No Return』near the center of the Prairie to the north. The『Lost Forest』extends to the east and the『Valley Of Sorrow』to the west, making it virtually impossible to enter only from the south. There is a loophole, but there is no way for the average adventurer to know about it, and it remains a very dangerous road.

However, Miranda was not so confident, but she was very clear about it.

「There is a way through the swamp… I know it.」

「I see, so the rumors were true.」

Azusa seemed to have an idea and was convinced. But Lisa had no idea what she was talking about.

「Rumors?」

「Oh, actually, the Church of Arnelia would be a great place to start——」

「Wait a second!」

Lisa suddenly interrupted Miranda. Tension flashed across her face.