The knight order of the satellite city-state of Alto was not a particularly large force.
Of course, compared to the great sin city-states, the satellite city-states were smaller in both scale and population, and so the size of their knight orders was proportionate. Naturally, the threat of monsters existed regardless of the city’s size, but the larger, more dangerous monsters often headed toward the more populous great sin city-states.
Mostly, the knights were occupied with maintaining order due to the influx of people and goods at the mobile fortress’s docking port. Whether it was human-caused disasters or monster-related ones, the Alto knight order had managed to survive this era of labyrinth proliferation without suffering major losses──until today.
“The familiars sent out for reconnaissance were destroyed. It seems there’s a rather elaborate interference spell in place……”
“Then prepare new ones! Hurry!”
“If we don’t have enough mages, request assistance from the mage guild! Don’t worry about pride!”
Currently, the Alto knight order headquarters, having suffered the humiliation of being attacked by a mobile fortress right under their noses, was filled with killing intent as they worked on their response.
And at the center of it all was,
“Lady Diz, we’ve received word from the mages tracking the undead soldiers.”
“Got it.”
The golden-haired girl, Diz, was there. She was intently staring at the documents and maps the Alto knight order had gathered. Her attendant, Jena, spoke to her.
“They’re certain it’s near the foothills of the Alpas Mountains. But beyond that, they’re still……”
“Is there any kind of facility in that area?”
She glanced at the knight captain in charge of the situation. The man, who was supposed to be the top authority here, shook his head with a slightly tense expression.
“No… as far as I know, there’s only ruins in that area.”
“Then, I’d like to see any historical records about that area. From around the time of the labyrinth proliferation.”
“Understood. I’ll have them look for it. And also……”
He nodded, then bowed his head to Diz with a pained expression.
“I’m terribly sorry, Lady Diz. But the Alto knight order still can’t move immediately……!”
In response to his deeply troubled expression, Diz returned a light smile and said, “I understand.”
“You were shown the undead soldiers right next to the country. You can’t make any large-scale moves now.”
After being hit with necromancy on such a scale, the knight order had no choice but to divert their forces to defend Alto. Considering their primary role as protectors of the country, it was only natural.
But in turn, that meant the enemy had succeeded in tying down the knight order’s movements.
“Then, let’s keep the knight order here and make them think [the plan succeeded].”
“And in the meantime, you’ll go alone, Lady Diz……? If we limit the numbers, we can send some knights with you.”
“I can only take one or two. Can they coordinate with me as they’ve been trained?”
“……I’m ashamed to say it, but it would be difficult. The knights of Alto have little experience in such rough affairs.”
“I thought so. Then I can’t expect much from the adventurers either…………”
As she said this, Diz turned her gaze toward the knight captain, and the next moment, the door to the conference room opened. A woman dressed in the uniform of the adventurer’s guild entered.
“I’m Myanmin from the Alto branch of the adventurer’s guild. I’ve brought the documents you requested.”
She seemed tense, feeling the pressure of the intense atmosphere, but she handed over the documents she had brought with her fellow guild members. They were records of the quests the adventurer’s guild had accepted. Diz nodded as she received them.
“Alright, thank you.”
“Yes! ……And there’s something else I’d like to report.”
“Go ahead.”
Prompted, the adventurer’s guild employee named Myanmin nodded with a nervous expression.
“In the past few days, there have been sightings of undead soldiers outside Alto in the northern region. Since it was outside the city-state, I thought it might not have reached the knight order.”
“What!?”
Tension ran through the knights. Diz, who had been listening intently, nodded and urged her to continue.
“Just yesterday, there was also an attack on a merchant caravan, and two white-clad adventurers were kidnapped. Since it was a kidnapping rather than a killing, there’s a possibility it was a human-led robbery.”
“Right after that, huh……”
There was no doubt that the two incidents were connected. Necromancy itself was already a dangerous form of magic, and it was unlikely that two different practitioners would use it for evil purposes around the same time.
“Were the kidnapped adventurers women?”
Amidst the restless knights, Diz posed a question. It was a somewhat peculiar question to ask in this situation, but her expression was serious.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.PAGES.DEV
“Uh, y-yes! That’s right! Nina and Laura, they’re called.”
“So it’s about the conditions for the ritual… Hmm, thank you. You can step back now.”
Seemingly satisfied with the answer, Diz nodded. However, even though she had finished her necessary tasks, she still didn’t leave the room.
“And one more thing. About the collaborators we were asked to recruit…”
“You found someone capable of moving?”
The knight captain sounded surprised. He had a rough idea of the adventurers under Alto’s jurisdiction. They were mostly unremarkable, lacking notable achievements or the drive to dive into danger. As if confirming his thoughts, Diz nodded slightly, looking somewhat awkward.
“Most of Alto’s adventurers are chalk-rank, and even the bronze-rank ones are mostly elderly… But, a newly promoted bronze-rank adventurer happened to be here.”
The moment she said this, Diz frowned suspiciously. Then, as she saw the two who entered through the door, her suspicion turned into certainty.
[Nii-tan, Shizuku.]
Akane, hidden within her clothes to avoid the knights’ eyes, whispered quietly. A gray-haired boy and a beautiful silver-haired girl confidently walked in and headed straight for Diz. Under Diz’s sharp, reproachful gaze, Ur shrugged.
“Taking on a guild request during our free time as guards. Just as we discussed.”
“And the request you chose is this? Let me remind you, a necromancer is—”
She was about to say, “You guys can’t handle it,” but Ur, as if anticipating this, shook his head.
“I’m not planning to overstep my bounds.”
“We’ll do our best to ensure Lady Diz can deal with the necromancer, the greatest threat, without any distractions.”
“And if we do that, we’ll earn some goodwill from the adventurer’s guild. Might even get some leftovers.”
As Ur said this, he glanced at Myanmin, who quickly nodded in agreement.
“Ah, yes! The reward for assisting in repelling the perpetrators of the Island Devouring Turtle attack has been set at twenty gold coins.”
“It’s a risky job, but a lucrative one. Considering our current objectives, it’s just right.”
“──…………”
Diz was troubled.
Not because the two were saying something reckless—
Their reasoning was sound, and there was no reason to refuse. That’s what troubled her.
[Nii-tan, at this point, just go with it?]
Akane quietly added. Diz remained silent for a while longer, then, as if testing or threatening them, she said,
“This is a dangerous job. You might die.”
“Isn’t that exactly what you want, Diz?”
Ur snorted and replied.
“You’re the one who said it. That it’s entertainment.”
“──That’s right. Completely my own fault, huh?”
She had been outmaneuvered. Diz let out a sigh and shrugged.
“Fine, then. I’ll expect you to be useful, even if it kills you. bronze-rank adventurer.”
“I’ll do whatever it takes, even if it means cleaning sewers.”
Request Issued
[Rescue Request – Rescue the Kidnapped Adventurer]
Reward: 1 Gold Coin
[Bounty – Annihilation of the Perpetrators of the Island Devouring Turtle Attack, Necromancer]
Reward: 20 Gold Coins (Provisional)
※Warning: A suspected silver-rank sage-spellcaster has been identified. Extreme caution is advised.
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