49. War of the Stars
I followed Becky into her office, sat on the soft sofa, and waited for Becky to open her mouth.
The other party also followed me, but Becky wanted to meet me alone.
Becky, sitting cross-legged on the sofa across from her, sipped her tea and remained silent for a while before finally speaking.
“So, what is the business?”
“Are you asking a friend you haven’t seen in a while? I’m sorry.”
“Give me a reason now… Austin, why I shouldn’t throw you… Into the back alley dog food…”
The murderous blood dripping from Becky’s eyes as she glared at me made her shoulders tremble involuntarily.
“Are you still mad about that? No, it’s ridiculous when you think about it. After all, it was your fault. It was you, Becky, who didn’t tell me the password back then.”
“Stop…”
“If only you had given me the passphrase, I could have informed you in time that the garrison was coming, and then you wouldn’t have been caught by the garrison. It was you who didn’t trust me and gave me a false password, Becky.”
“That mouth…!”
I tried my best to answer, and Becky threw the teacup at me and jumped to her feet.
– Clink!
Thanks to the fact that I turned my head right before it hit my face, the teacup that was aiming for my face flew right past my face.
Becky, clenching his fists tightly, let out his heavy sigh and took several deep breaths, then sat down on his sofa.
“…Shut up that mouth. You did something suspicious in the first place.”
“…Yes, sister.”
“Don’t call me sister. It’s about to throw up.”
“Bitter… I told you to call me sister in the past. Can’t you anymore?”
“You… If you keep fussing like that, you could really kill me. Hurry up and say your business and leave.”
I felt like I would really kill him if I teased him any more, so I hurriedly got to the point.
“No… No, Becky. I have a warning.”
“…Warning?”
When I opened my mouth with a rather serious expression on my face, Becky corrected her posture and sat down, tensed by the seriousness oozing from my face.
“Yes, warning. It is a very important story.”
“I hope it doesn’t sound silly.”
“The fate of your business depends on it…”
Before I had finished speaking, Becky jumped at me as soon as the business came out of my mouth.
At the cool sensation of the dagger piercing my throat, my saliva went down without my knowledge.
I could have avoided it, but I didn’t come all the way here to fight Becky.
“…It depends on the fate of your workplace. No, maybe this whole city.”
“You…”
Becky, who had been pushed off the sofa and crushed me to the floor, bared his teeth and growled and gnashed his teeth.
“…You know what group of people I hate the most, but you say that?”
“A foolish bastard, a lying bastard, a bastard who says what not to do.”
“I know that. I guess you haven’t forgotten yet?”
“Sure. I told a lie once, and was beaten until my bones were broken by some crazy b*tch. I can’t forget if I want to forget.”
“But if, from now on, every word that comes out of your mouth is mixed with even a hint of a lie, then…”
Becky’s hand gripping my wrist strained, and Becky whispered to me in a lively tone as I clenched my teeth and endured it.
“I will sever all the tendons from your limbs, and make you my slave… you better be prepared.”
“That is scary.”
“You should be scared. Because I will use it until I get wrecked.”
I shuddered at the sound of Becky’s breath blowing into my ears.
I’m not lying, it’s really scary. She’s glaring at me with blood in her eyes, because that’s what she’s supposed to be.
She values the business she built with her own hands more than her life. I knew her temper, so I deliberately touched the workplace.
“So, where should I listen to the warning?”
“…Would you like to sit down and listen?”
“I hate it. Tell me as you are now.”
This crazy idiot sadistic guy seemed to want to talk while crushing people.
“Do you know a guy named Galan?”
“…Galran?”
“You should know that I was a member of the hero’s party.”
“You were a member, la… Did you come out to the party?”
“Yes. You have nothing to hide.”
As I raised my palm and gestured that I wasn’t lying, Becky, who had been glaring at me suspiciously, thrust her dagger into her bosom.
“Go ahead.”
“Among the Demon King’s subordinates, there is a guy named Galan. He is in charge of the corps commander.”
“If it’s Galan, the commander of the Demon King’s army, I’ve heard some information. He’s pretty crazy. But, why is he?”
“He’s on his way here right now.”
“…What?”
As if time had stopped for a moment, we looked at each other like that and froze.
Becky’s eyes, looking at me, were trembling a little uncharacteristically.
“…What do you mean by that? Please explain properly.”
“You know about the rock locust disaster in Bellion not too long ago, right?”
“I was about to go out today because of that problem. All in all, the drug distribution book was caught and thrown away… Tsk.”
“That, too, was done by Galan.”
As if I couldn’t find any lies in my words, Becky stared at me for a while, then got down from me and sat down on the sofa.
“Sit down. Keep talking.”
“Thank you. Anyway, Galan, who did a great job in Bellion, is coming this way now. Maybe he’s already gone into hiding.”
I slumped down on the sofa, leaned over slightly, and looked at the tea leaves floating on top of the teacup.
“It has one purpose. It should be seen as a kind of experiment in which a monster is strongly remodeled and thrown into a place where there are many people.”
“…What experiment?”
“Lethal force test. I don’t know the exact reason either. He’s a proper madman in the first place, so it’s hard to figure out his intentions. I wonder if it’s probably because of the devil’s orders. No matter what, he belongs to the Demon King’s Army, and the Demon King is helping him with his experiments. ”
“So, if Galan comes here…”
Becky’s complexion gradually darkened as if the future after that was drawn in his head.
“Yes. Of course, the place with the most floating population in this city is no place like your gambling house. So, I have come to warn you.”
“…A bit embarrassed. Even if all of a sudden…”
“When I see you, you are the most embarrassing, Becky. From your point of view, you can’t even call the garrison. You probably don’t want to go into debt with the garrison commander, and there won’t be any place in your business that hasn’t gone bad in the first place.”
“It’s embarrassing, but it’s true. It will be difficult to get help from the garrison.”
After that, there was silence for a while.
As if looking for a countermeasure against Galan, Becky frowned and covered her mouth with her hand as she thought.
I drank the remaining tea on the spot and got up from the sofa.
“Anyway, did I warn you clearly? Of course, if Galan shows up here, we’ll come to help, but just in case, it’s better to come up with a contingency plan, such as calling in the Dalgans to stop them, giving the garrison a candy to help the garrison, or even hiring adventurers. “
“…Yes. Thank you.”
Just as I was about to leave Becky, who had answered roughly and thought again, I turned around and opened my mouth again.
“Right, Becky. I want you to build a bridge with the head of the Merchant Guild.”
“The head of the Merchant Guild? Why is that old woman?”
“We should warn the mayor. Still, you can ask the garrison for help.”
“…I don’t like it.”
Even as he said that, Becky obediently nodded.
* * *
“Meryl raised the price of ale. It’s said that two fairy tales have risen.”
“Damn it… But I can’t stop going anymore. Meryl’s ale must be so refreshing.”
“That’s what I mean. Sheesh… Didn’t you say that you distribute beer to soldiers on the front line?”
“Well, I can’t help it. If there’s no beer, you won’t have the strength to fight. Chuckle…”
Late in the evening, Martin and Bill, garrison soldiers who had eaten their fill of dinner, stood guard in front of the gate, chatting as usual.
“There are exceptionally many stars today. It is like ears of barley.”
“For what you said, it’s very literary.”
“This bastard… Even at the academy I was a literature major.”
“I know. I am actually the lord’s hidden son. Call me Bastard Bill Borman.”
“Ac. This bastard said a friend… um?”
Martin suddenly stopped talking, and Bill turned his head toward him with a puzzled look on his face.
Seeing Martin blankly staring at the sky, Bill approached him and tapped him on the shoulder to continue talking..
“Hey. What’s the matter?”
“…Uh, no… There’s a shooting star falling over there.”
“Huh?”
Looking up at Martin’s fingers, I see. I saw a small star twinkling with exceptional intensity, falling from a close distance for a shooting star.
“Hey… It’s been a while since I’ve seen a shooting star fall. I saw it once when I was young and never saw it.”
“It reminds me of my daughter. The last time I saw a shooting star, I cried and cried a lot and said I wanted to see it again…”
However, Martin’s words did not follow.
“Hey, hey… That looks like it’s falling this way…?”
“What the f*ck is that… Hey, wait! Where!”
“Hey you idiot! Dodge quickly too! Ugh, ugh!”
– Kwaaang—!!!
An unidentified object approaching at great speed landed far away, scratched the floor, and slid in front of them.
Bill and Martin, who quietly opened their tightly closed eyes, poked their heads out into the pit where the heat and dust were rising.
“…A sword?”
A black and translucent sword like the night sky was embedded in the ground, revealing a mysterious beauty.
At the same time, the intense starlight emitted from the instant sword hit Martin and Bill’s eyes.
“Keuuugh…! What!”
The intense light faded in an instant, before long before their eyes.
“What… Everything, who are you…”
“…Are you here?”
Seeing the appearance of a knight in jet-black armor that appeared out of nowhere, Martin and Bill hurriedly raised their spears and aimed them at the knight.
“Hey, unknown soldier. Where do you belong?”
“Ooh, we’re Harman’s garrison! Obediently cow, raise your hand and reveal your identity!”
“Good knight! Cow, please reveal your affiliation!”
At the voices of the two trembling in fear, the knight replied by inserting his sword into the scabbard.
“I would appreciate it if you could tell the garrison commander. A star knight has come.”