Chapter 23

The evil princess, Camilla Lizenburg, was in the commander's office at the Lastock garrison.

Almost simultaneously with our arrival at the commander's office, three knights entered.

I recognized one of them; he was the knight who had beaten Funayama yesterday.

The three of them lined up in front of Camilla, who was facing the desk, and reported while standing at attention.

"We have completed the disposal of the bodies as instructed!"

"Hmm, well done..."

The disposal of the bodies must refer to Funayama.

"Did you confirm it yourself?"

"Yes, without a doubt, they are in the bellies of the goblins..."

"Good, that's fine."

Without thinking, I was about to jump out from the shadows, but Reinhardt held me down.

"Let me go! Let me go, Reinhardt, I'll kill that bitch!"

"No, my lord Kent, not now, you must endure for now..."

"Grrrrrrrrr..."

I clenched my teeth so hard they almost cracked, glaring at Camilla from the shadows.

I will not forgive this woman; I will definitely kill her someday.

After finishing their report on the body disposal, the three of them bowed their heads in unison and apologized.

"Milady Camilla, I apologize."

"What are you apologizing for?"

"Yes, we failed to follow your instructions to hurt them enough to serve as a warning without killing them."

"Hmph, it seems you misunderstand."

"D-do we misunderstand?"

"Yes, what is there to lament over the death of a mere monkey? What is there to reflect on? It's a trivial matter, not worth considering."

"Is that so...?"

Faced with the three confused expressions, Camilla stood up from her chair with a composed demeanor and said,

"Your priority should be the benefit of the Lizenburg Kingdom. If a monkey dies, use that fact to your maximum advantage. If a warning is needed, use another monkey. I have no intention of punishing you for such a trivial matter!"

"Thank you, Milady!"

"Hmph, don't be so tense. The important thing is what comes next..."

Facing the three who bowed in unison, Camilla even showed a smile.

"Understand this: if that monkey's death spreads dissent among the monkeys, never show any weakness. Tell the monkeys who slack off in training that if they dislike training, they can be sent to the实战 in the Demon Forest to be eaten alive by monsters. Imagine it..."

"Understood!"

"Yes, if they still resist, send them all to the Demon Forest for real combat. Once they lose a limb, they'll come to their senses."

"Understood, sir!"

"Good, return to your posts. Think carefully about what you should do for Lizenburg, and act accordingly. I expect great things from you."

"Understood, sir!"

Camilla watched the three leave with a satisfied expression.

At that moment, a woman who seemed to be the caretaker of the committee chair appeared.

"Excuse me, Milady Camilla, the Holy Maiden has fainted."

"I see... Let her rest and then resume treatment."

"Milady Camilla, the current situation is too harsh, even for her."

"Hmm, she's hopeless. Elna, I've always told you not to show mercy."

"But..."

The caretaker's name seems to be Elna.

Camilla waved her hand as if to cut off Elna's pleading words.

"Understand this: the Holy Maiden and the Hero do indeed have excellent qualities. They do, but they are still slaves, merely convenient tools. It's necessary to maintain them so they can perform their duties, but if they are useless, they should be disposed of. Make her understand that."

"B-but, Milady Camilla..."

"Understand this: if the Holy Maiden throws a tantrum, tell her that you will send all those who resist, like her, to real combat. If she doesn't improve her healing skills, many will die. Tell her that."

"That's...!"

"Don't misunderstand... The priority is the benefit of the Lizenburg Kingdom. Don't show affection to slaves."

"I understand..."

Elna, though not entirely convinced, seemed to realize that further discussion was futile and bowed before leaving.

After seeing her off, Camilla moved to the map on the wall.

"We must hurry..."

Murmuring to herself, Camilla pressed her left fist against the western side of the Lizenburg Kingdom on the map.

Even from the shadows, it seemed she was focusing on the area where her fist was placed.

"Reinhardt, what kind of country is to the west of Lizenburg?"

"When we were alive, the Balshania Empire was on the other side of the desert."

"Desert? There's a desert?"

"Yes, it's called the Dabira Desert, a barren land of rocks and sand where almost nothing grows."

"Is it quite large?"

"Yes, there is a road that carriages can travel, but even if everything goes smoothly, it takes four days. If you encounter a sandstorm, it can take over a week, and many get lost."

Camilla stared at the map for a while, then returned to her desk and resumed her work as if nothing had happened.

Despite Funayama's death, Camilla acted as if nothing had happened, which made my anger rise again.

I want to take revenge, but for that, I need to find her weakness.

Looking at the map again, I noticed something.

"Could this be it...?"

"What is it, my lord Kent?"

"Reinhardt, have you seen the map of Lizenburg before you were alive?"

"Yes, but what about it?"

"Look at the map. Was the border of the Dabira Desert shaped like this? Which line was it?"

"Oh! No, my lord Kent, when we were alive, the border was further west."

"The desertification has advanced from the west..."

The line indicating the border with the Dabira Desert on the map Camilla was looking at had multiple lines drawn on it.

This was probably to show the new border as the desert expanded.

"So, this town of Lastock didn't exist when you were alive, right?"

"Yes, this area was a wasteland where monsters appeared."

"Hey, is the west of Lizenburg a granary?"

"Yes, fields of wheat and potatoes spread there."

"The western desertification has advanced, so they cultivated the eastern side, and then, as the desertification progressed again..."

"This time, they plan to clear the Demon Forest, right?"

"Probably... We were brought here as labor for that purpose."

If clearing the Demon Forest is Camilla's goal, the probability of Volzard being attacked is low.

However, that also means we won't get help from Volzard in rescuing our classmates.

Even if we understand Camilla's goal, it's unclear how to use that information.

"Hmm... I still feel like we don't have enough information. Hey, Reinhardt, have you been to the capital of Lizenburg?"

"Yes, we three have been to the capital and the area around the Dabira Desert many times."

"Good, Bastian, can you go and see the current situation in Lizenburg? The progress of desertification, and if possible, the situation of the royal family and nobles..."

"I'll do it. Now that I can hide in the shadows, I can even peek into the inner parts of the castle."

"Fred, continue monitoring here, and Reinhardt, continue guarding."

"Understood."

"Leave it to me... Let me know if anything happens..."

Since there's nothing I can do here, I decided to return to Volzard.

On the way, I peeked at the training ground, but I didn't feel any difference from before. However, the words of the scolding knight had changed.

"Hey! Don't dawdle! If you dislike training, real combat is fine too. With your current skills, you'll definitely be monster fodder! Do you want to be eaten alive?"

"Run, run! If you're useless, you'll be disposed of! We can always find replacements for you!"

I was also concerned about the committee chair, but since the treatment was already done, I asked Fred to keep an eye on her.

Then, I decided to take care of one more thing.

I headed to the entrance of the Demon Forest on the Lizenburg side.

After checking the surroundings, Reinhardt and I emerged from the shadow world.

"It's a forest like this... It was pitch dark when we came..."

"My lord Kent, you thought it was just a forest, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I never imagined monsters would appear."

Looking closely, I could see the tracks of carriages and fresh hoof prints, as well as the footprints of several people leading into the forest.

Following the footprints, we walked about fifty meters into the forest, where the footprints disappeared, and the grass on the side of the path was trampled.

Following that, we walked another twenty meters and found a pool of blood and pieces of flesh.

"Goblins are dirty, so they take the bones with them," Reinhardt said.

I knelt and clasped my hands together.

Even though he was such a nasty person, tears overflowed and wouldn't stop.

If I hadn't been blessed with both dark and light attributes, I would have met the same fate.

And if I had healed Funayama yesterday, this wouldn't have happened.

"I will definitely avenge you, and I will definitely save everyone. So, so... rest in peace..."

After offering a moment of silence for Funayama, I shadow-traveled to the Demon Forest training ground.

"My lord Kent, are you going to rest today...?"

"Yeah, I was planning to, but I don't have that luxury anymore..."

I was about to take out my armor from the shadow storage when I had an idea.

"Right... the Dark Shield..."

I imagined connecting the shadow storage, which I usually accessed through my own shadow or the shadow of buildings, to an empty space in front of me.

I visualized a round hole opening and connecting to the storage, and when I extended my right hand, a black hole appeared.

It was connected to the space where I had placed the armor.

Yes, this way, I can probably create a shield and maybe even more.

But I'll practice that another time; right now, I need to move my body or I'll go crazy.

I put on my armor and faced Reinhardt.

"Reinhardt, please take care of me."

"My lord Kent, if you let your anger control you, you won't become stronger."

"Yeah, I understand. I'm not sure how much I can apply in practice, but I understand what you're trying to say."

"Good, then I have nothing more to say... Let's begin."

"Yaaaaaah!"

I raised my wooden sword and charged forward with all my might.

The training continued until evening, with a break at noon.

When my mental, physical, and magical energy for self-healing were almost depleted, I stopped.

Lying on the ground in the training ground, I looked up at the sky dyed by the sunset and asked Reinhardt.

"Haa... haa... Hey, Reinhardt, how long will it take to train to the point where I can defeat Lizenburg's knights?"

"That's a difficult question... Your current skills are just a bit above a novice adventurer. You've made considerable progress in less than two weeks, but even if you continue training, your skills may not improve steadily."

"Does that mean I might hit a plateau or reach a limit?"

"Yes, sometimes you can improve quickly, and other times, no matter how hard you try, you hit a wall."

"Then, if my talent is average, how long would it take?"

"As I mentioned before, it takes about three years to become a useful soldier. Even with hard work, it would take two years, and with full use of self-healing, at least one year."

"That's to become a regular soldier, right? If so, to defeat a strong knight, it would probably take at least three years of training, right?"

"Yes, at least that much is necessary."

Thanks to the intense training with Reinhardt, I felt much calmer.

I was reminded that Camilla doesn't consider us human but as monkeys or tools, which made me feel sick.

I also realized that if I lost my composure and acted on my anger, I wouldn't be able to defeat her.

"Camilla Lizenburg's weakness...?"

"From her words and actions, it seems that the kingdom's disadvantage is her weakness."

"Yeah, that's probably true... But I don't want to involve innocent citizens in this."

"To us, you and your friends are like those innocent citizens."

"Yeah, that's true, but if we retaliate at the same level as what she did, it might turn into an endless cycle of killing."

"Yes, the easiest way would be to kill that princess, but since you and your friends are in her hands, that's not possible."

"That's true... But if everyone who came with me decides they don't want to return, I would kill Camilla without hesitation..."

Everything that has happened to me, the treatment of Funayama, and the current situation of our classmates is all Camilla's responsibility, and I will make sure she pays for it.

"My lord Kent, have you ever killed anyone?"

"What? No, of course not. The country we lived in was so peaceful that we even had a word for it: 'peace-rot'."

"Then, let me take the task of killing that princess."

"Thank you, Reinhardt, but no. I plan to have the goblins do it."

"I see... Well, we'll see when the time comes."

I think Reinhardt is trying to prevent me from falling into the dark side, but when it comes to Camilla, even after cooling my head, I can't forgive her.

After finishing the training, I took a bath, changed clothes, and returned to the boarding house.

After dinner, I told Amanda I would go to bed early and retreated to my room.

I asked Reinhardt to keep watch and shadow-traveled to the Lastock garrison to meet Fred.

I went to the clinic to check on the committee chair.

The committee chair was treating classmates who were injured during training.

"Are you okay? Do you have any other injuries or discomfort?"

"Thank you, I just have some bruises, so I'm fine. You shouldn't overexert yourself, Asakawa."

"Thanks, I'll definitely come back alive."

"Okay, okay..."

The committee chair, who had a stoic expression during the day, was hugging and crying with a female classmate.

She continued to treat each one carefully, calling out to them.

From what I could see, her complexion was good, and she seemed mentally stable, but there was a sense of fragility about her.

The moment she finished treating the last person, the expression on her face disappeared.

"Good work, Holy Maiden."

When Elna called out to her, the committee chair didn't respond, not even looking at her.

Elna's expression darkened as she watched the committee chair silently clean up.

It seemed she was caught between Camilla and the committee chair, unsure of what to do.

"Holy Maiden... Yuka, listen, I..."

When Elna tried to say something, the committee chair gave her a chilling glance and left the examination room.

Elna, left behind, covered her face with her hands and began to sob.

Elna seemed to be one of the few with a clear head among the people in the garrison, but she couldn't disobey Camilla's orders.

When I scouted the area last week, it seemed she had built a good relationship with the committee chair, but Funayama's death had created a decisive rift between them.

After leaving the examination room, I decided to peek into the dormitory where the classmates were staying.

The dormitory was filled with a heavy atmosphere.

I thought that if it were a school trip or study time, the same age group would be more lively, but with the incident with Funayama, only muffled voices could be heard.

"Can we even survive against goblins with our current skills?"

"I don't know, but we have no choice but to try, right?"

"Can we escape somehow...?"

"Idiot, where would you go?"

"Huh? Become an adventurer...?"

"Idiot, we were told we can't register as adventurers with these bracelets on."

"Ah... Can we take them off?"

"Even trying to break them will paralyze you. How would you take them off? Cut off your arm?"

"Don't joke, I'm left-handed. I can't lose my dominant hand."

"Hey... Can we really go back?"

"It feels impossible..."

"Damn... If I had a rare ability like Shu