121 – 121. Winds of Plague (3)
─Heh heh, you. Are the corners of your lips going to ascend?
─That’s the only way to do it, right? When I go back, my beloved wife and beautiful daughter will welcome me.
─Daughter? Where’s your daughter… Wait. No way…!
─I was pregnant on the day of the departure, so please come back safely. Thanks to that, I thought I’d go back with energy.
─Hey, congratulations. It’s a ramp!
It’s strange.
─What are you going to do with the subjugation reward when you go back?
─Well. Apparently, I’ll take care of the people who fought together first. There were times when it was dangerous.
─Whoops, it’s perfect for a life-and-death moment for one outstanding member! And showed up take care of that person
─…It was dangerous, but I never had a life-and-death situation. Are you saying that this outstanding member of staff wanted to be praised on purpose?
─hahahaha. Caught?
─I’d appreciate the step forward, but that kind of self-confidence isn’t popular with women.
Really, really strange.
─People who want to eat, come quickly!
─Isn’t it okay to eat it later?
—Huh… You think so, don’t you? Can you even look at this!
—Oh…! This, this…
─It was caught in the mountains today, so it’s very fresh. If you don’t eat it quickly, the meat will all disappear later. Think carefully.
I can’t shake the strange feeling even after looking around to see what the hell is going on.
It was almost absurd to see that the subjugation was almost at the end, and he was even looking for some time to spare with victory on the verge of victory.
“Sunbae-ah! Seriously, let’s go together.”
“…”
“Why are you running in such a hurry? Oh, no, it’s because you’re hungry too?!”
I always said it with a face that would make fun of someone, but it didn’t reach Rhenias.
‘No. No.’
As Rhenias said, not a single person in the subjugation party panicked.
That’s why it’s more serious.
“Now, I’m kidding, senpai. Why are you making such a scary face…”
Surely, at this time, Senia would have drawn the body structure of a rat to Prof. Meuniher and proved the connection with Lemtert Plague.
Then the official name of the devourer, not the Scourge, would be known, and we had to keep a close eye on it.
Despite the drop in morale of the soldiers, Professor Meuniher informs them of this so as not to let go of the tension.
Symptoms of the Lemteert Plague that will soon come upon them as well.
Recognizing that this is not over yet, a spirit with a strong spirit and a disciplined spirit.
Even the humble attitude of being prepared for the worst is death.
That was the scene that those who experienced the past remember, and now it is the scene that should be reflected in those black eyes.
But… It was unknown. To all of them.
Only one person can hide this fact. A person who sees instructions and is in a position to oversee everything, including judgment.
The only person who can receive the news first and relay it to everyone is the commander of the punitive force.
‘Professor Meuniher… Why?’
Even though Tembris has defeated Shanberesh, he has not completely wiped it out yet, so he will inevitably encounter the remnants of the plague.
As the battle continues, the route of infection continues to be exposed to soldiers, and the symptoms naturally accelerate.
It was already late when he arrived in the duchy, and the commander of the punitive force must have seen the future in which the symptoms of the Lem Tert Plague, which he had seen many times, were eating away at his soldiers.
The route of infection is the bodily fluids of the debaucher, which spread by self-destruction.
I’m trying to break through with physical attacks, being as conscious of this infection route as possible, but could I have dealt with these rats with just that?
Before regression. Cutting off the central nervous system so that the blood of the devourer holding the baby would not splatter and kill them instantly was not suitable for those who had fought only with magic, so they couldn’t even choose the option to pick up a weapon.
Then the only option left is technology.
Professor Meuniher has created a technique to deal with these debowlers in this short period of time.
A technique developed based on the hypothesis that if it gnaws at humans’ mana and destroys their magic circuits, conversely, it will destroy the rats’ magic circuits so they don’t even have to start.
That was Anti-Cast.
Few people could adapt and use this hastily created technology, but that alone was enough to set foot on the principality’s borders.
For that reason, this time should have been the time to learn Anti-Cast. Both for them and for the future of the principality.
But why was this decision made this time?
If there is anything that changes with this judgment of not injecting anti-cast, what would it be?
After the truth of the Lemtert Plague was exposed due to previous failures, I was even prepared to receive the rods of resentment…
It’s strange.
Obviously something was going wrong.
“Um… Senior?”
“…Sorry, Rhenias. I need to go see the professor. Can I talk to you later?”
There is no other way than to ask directly.
***
All members of Thembris learned about the relationship between the Lemteert Plague and the Scourge by Senia, who had the magical eye.
But for some reason, this fact was not known to the subjugation party.
-‘Please keep quiet about this fact. If I say it recklessly, it can lower the morale of the soldiers.’
Professor Meuniher, the commander of the punitive force, said so and ordered all members of Thembris to keep quiet.
From noble mtl dot com
But there are people who are restless because of my personality.
‘At least one person… Will be fine. Because that guy has a heavy mouth.’
He chews his fingernails on his own.
My personality is also my personality, but I couldn’t just go over it without saying it to Aris, who had a heavy burden on her heart from Junon.
-‘I don’t know why the command came to me when I couldn’t do anything. However, in my judgment, it was a situation where dozens or hundreds of people died ridiculously.’
-‘As you know, I am a body that was no more than a piece of luggage. By the way, do you know my position that I had to watch people die on the spot? Do you know the guilt of not being able to do anything, just having to ask others to fight for me, who lost my strength?’
When I still think of that time, my hands get tense and my collar crumples.
The one who couldn’t remember and the one who remembered everything and fully took on the burden. The difference between the two positions is so huge.
Among them, the one that pierced Aris’ heart the most was,
-‘But what should I do? All I know is things that are incomparably worse and darker than this story.’
It was said that the end of Junon was never good. No matter what happened afterwards, only the worst and the worst would remain for him, and for this reason, Aris was still afraid of meeting Junon.
But we have to meet.
If you go to him right away, you have to tell him even if you don’t know what kind of bitter words he will hear.
Senia guessed that most of this subjugation party had already been infected with the Remteert Plague.
If that’s the case, no matter how far behind you are, there’s definitely no exception there. As soon as you return to the principality, you can extend Junon’s time if you tell him to take the magic neutralizer that Senia mentioned to alleviate the symptoms.
‘I think it was somewhere…’
Looking for Junon’s barracks, Aris wandered around inconspicuously, checking the name tag.
Thinking it wasn’t this way, he stepped towards the corner when someone bumped into him and knocked him on the butt.
“Ouch… Sorry… Huh?”
“Okay… Huh?”
Although they collided equally, the reason why only one of them landed on the butt was because of the difference in physique.
“Charlotte?”
“Aris sister?”
The two checked each other and recognized who the other was, but at the moment both of them shook their heads in shock.
‘Why is Aris-sister here? Ugh… Why did you say something like that…!’
‘Is Charlotte here…? It’s dangerous…’
But why would a familiar face appear here? Aris wasn’t the only one who came to Junon to tell him about the Lemtert Plague.
Of course, since both of them made excuses to the members saying they had something to do, they lied to each other.
“Charlotte…? What… Did you get here for? This isn’t a lumber shed…”
“What about that older sister…?”
“I, it’s me… Someone I know was in the same unit as Junon… What about you?”
“I also wanted to see if there was someone in the… Upper ranks to scout out…”
I made excuses here and there, but it was clearly revealed that Charlotte and Aris were making excuses because the direction was completely different from what I first talked about.
They couldn’t help but disobey the order given to the entire team to keep silent, so the two continued to roll their heads.
The agony of the two panicked people stopped when they heard the voice of a beautiful silver-haired girl approaching the target.
“Sunbae-ah! Seriously, let’s go together.”
“…”
“Why are you running in such a hurry? Oh, no, it’s because you’re hungry too?!”
Around the corner, Aris and Charlotte kept their eyes fixed on each other and involuntarily let out exclamations.
It’s not like I’m familiar with either of them, so it’s the first time I’ve seen them in person.
Of course, I was able to guess who the target was just from the rumors I heard and the beautiful appearance that seemed to attract all men and women.
“That girl is her…? Of the Lantana duchy…”
“Uh… Yes. Rhenias Posterior von Lantana, one of the only two members of the Arkab party…”
Either Aris or Charlotte are voicing their stupid voices, but they are not conscious.
It is said that Aris, who is usually not surprised, and Charlotte, who has the temperament of a merchant, had such a voice.
From head to toe, all the nearby light converges, and a radiance that makes you wonder if it’s trying to illuminate only one person surrounds that silver-white girl even in this dreary weather.
The heroine in a fairy tale seems to have jumped out of her eyes for a while, but at the same time, she shuts her mouth and regains consciousness.
“…Sorry, Rhenias. I need to go see the professor. Can I talk to you later?”
“”…!””
The two finally realized what they were here for at the sound of Junon’s voice.
Aris and Charlotte’s pricked ears, slightly open mouth, and bewildered gaze also found their place.
The two of them, who had been thinking about what to say to the person in front of them until just now, got rid of any signs of doing so and began to eavesdrop on the conversation while hiding from the corner of the wall, paying attention to the other side.
“Yeah… Well, but… Earlier…”
“Sorry. I spilled it earlier because I was thinking about something else. I’ll apologize for that later.”
“Uh, eh? Sunbae! Again like this… No, I’m glad you’re not angry…? Maybe it’s because you’re joking around too much… Huh…”
So Junon quickly moved and disappeared.
I can’t follow him because he’s gone so quickly, but I’m sure he said he’s going to see the professor.
Perhaps he went to see Professor Meuniher.
After the destination has been decided, Charlotte and Aris hesitantly turn their heads and look at each other.
At this point, you should have noticed who each other was looking for.
Since we were looking for the same goal, the only thing left to do is discuss.
“…Will you go with me?”
“Yes…”
The tacit agreement to tolerate each other’s lies and move on also ended quickly.
***
Behind Meuniher, who gazes at the distant mountains, the sound of footsteps approaches.
‘Are you here?’
I can’t even turn my head. Meuniher is just looking at the distant mountains with his hands behind his back.
When the footsteps stopped, I exhaled lightly and turned around.
“What’s the matter, Junon?”
I already guessed who would come.