Chapter 28

"Hmm, it's over... but something's strange."

I could hear my older brother, who wasn't particularly surprised by Rauro's work, mutter softly.

"Brother, what's strange about it?"

"The number of monsters is too low. When we arrived, it seemed to be less than fifty, but there are too few corpses."

"Indeed, that's true..."

Usually, when a group of monsters comes, it's often in the hundreds.

Judging by the number of corpses, this time the group of monsters seems to be less than a hundred.

The sense of unease I felt when I first looked down was due to the number of corpses.

Is it even possible for there to be so few?

I fought at this fortress for over a year before my regression, but I don't remember a time when there were so few.

"Is this some kind of abnormal situation?"

"Yes... Should we send a reconnaissance team to the southern mountains later? But if there are many monsters, it would be too dangerous to send a small group..."

Ivan, my older brother, started to mutter about such strategies.

The monsters that come to this fortress mostly descend from the southern mountains.

Occasionally, monsters that should go to the eastern or western fortresses end up at the southern fortress, but their numbers are small.

Most of the monsters descend on the nearest fortress... hmm?

If this time, the many monsters didn't descend on the southern fortress, where did they go?

If they didn't come to the southern fortress, they must have gone to the east or west, where the fortresses are located.

If it's just a small number, it wouldn't be a problem, but this time there's a possibility that hundreds of monsters have flowed to the east or west.

I remember something like this happening about two years ago... Ah!

Wait a moment, the two years ago I just mentioned is from before my regression.

After regressing, I went back two years... which means this event is happening now!?

Yes, I remember such an event happening around this time.

Before my regression, I was preoccupied with the affair between Prince Lewis and Oline, so I had completely forgotten about the fortresses.

And since the southern fortress, which is managed by the Spencer Duke family, wasn't attacked, I didn't remember it.

I can't recall which of the eastern or western fortresses was attacked.

"The eastern fortress is managed by the Modenes Duke family, and the western fortress by the Aegis Duke family..."

I have no idea which of the two the many monsters have gone to... but I have a slight idea.

Alexis Karl Modenes, the duke's son, whom I met at a tea party before. He will become the head of the Modenes Duke family at the age of twenty-two, two years from now.

I thought he was too young, no matter how excellent he was.

He didn't become the head at the age of twenty-two because he was excellent, but because he had to.

That's probably...

"Brother, can I share my thoughts?"

"Thoughts? What is it?"

"I think the reason there were fewer monsters this time is that instead of descending on the southern fortress, many of them have gone to the east or west."

"Hmm, that makes sense... Indeed, that's a reasonable theory."

Ivan, my older brother, put his hand to his chin and started to think about it.

"Only about a hundred monsters came to the southern fortress, which means hundreds have gone to the east or west. If they had split evenly, it might not be a big problem, but it's unlikely they would split evenly."

"Yes, if hundreds of monsters suddenly went to another fortress, it could be a very bad situation."

The monsters descend in a rush once a day, but the time varies each day.

But if the time when the monsters descend on the eastern and southern fortresses coincides...

And if the monsters that were supposed to come to the southern fortress gathered at the eastern fortress...

There could be more than two thousand of them.

"The eastern Modenes family is the water element, and the western Aegis family is the wind element. Both are strong, but it's unclear if they have the power to handle such an abnormal situation."

"Brother, let's go and help."

The idea of going to help popped into my head, and I said it out loud.

The Modenes Duke family, which is one of the four great dukes, has a low offensive power, so it would be very difficult if many monsters came.

Of course, they're not weak, but the water magic of the Modenes Duke family can be used to turn water into drinking water.

Ordinary water magic can't be used for drinking water, so it's highly valued.

Their combat power is slightly lower than the other four great dukes, but their usefulness outside the battlefield is the highest among the dukes.

But what's needed now is overwhelming offensive power.

If either I or my brother goes, we can change the situation.

The fire of the Spencer Duke family is highly offensive.

"Are you serious?"

Ivan, my older brother, looked at me.

Duke families rarely help each other.

This can be interpreted as trusting each other's strength, or as not trusting the strength of others.

So, it would be unprecedented for a duke family to help another duke family, especially for a young lady or a young man like me or my brother.

"We have no reason to help other duke families' fortresses, even if the monsters that were supposed to come to the southern fortress have gone elsewhere."

"Yes, I agree."

"Even if there's a possibility that the monsters have gone elsewhere, the probability is low. If we go to help, it might be seen as the Spencer Duke family looking down on the other duke families."

You're right, the risk is very high.

Still, I want to go and help.

I thought about why... but...

"Still... it's painful to think that no one will help."

Before my regression, when I was troubled by the relationship between Prince Lewis and Oline, no one helped me.

That was the most painful period.

Just before my regression, my father tried to overturn my death sentence.

It didn't work, but the fact that someone tried to help me was a relief.

If my father hadn't tried to help me, I don't think I would have been so proactive after regressing.

Even if this event isn't happening as I remember, showing the attitude of going to help... I think it will save someone someday.

Of course, I won't help Prince Lewis and Oline.

They killed me, after all.

"...I see."

I don't know if my brother understood my feelings, but he answered briefly.

Is his reaction bad?

This way, I might not be able to persuade my brother...!

"Well, if the duke family is in trouble, we could also gain their favor... so..."

"Yes, that's true. Let's go then."

"...Huh? Are you going to help?"

Until just now, my brother seemed to be against going to help.

"Are you, Asaria, going to help?"

"Y-Yes."

"Then let's go. It's a request from my sister."

Ivan, my older brother, turned his face away slightly, as if he was embarrassed.

I was surprised to hear him say that.

"...Plus, gaining the favor of another duke family is a big advantage. The risk is small, but the benefits of helping will be greater."

I couldn't help but laugh at Ivan, who said this as if to hide his embarrassment.

"Hehe, Ivan, thank you!"

"...Yeah. But which one should we help, the east or the west?"

"That's right..."

I think the eastern fortress, the Modenes Duke family, is in danger.

But in reality, I don't know which one the monsters have gone to this time.

I don't know if the event I remember is happening now, and even if it is, there's no proof that it's the Modenes Duke family.

The ideal would be to help both.

"Should I go to the east, and you to the west?"

"Split up? But Asaria can't move at high speed, right?"

There's a technique where you use fire magic to float and propel yourself by shooting flames backward, allowing you to move at high speed.

Using this technique, it would probably take about an hour to reach the eastern fortress.

It usually takes more than half a day to get there, so it's definitely fast.

But this is a very difficult technique, and I haven't learned it from my brother... after regressing.

"No, I can."

To prove it, I fell from the wall of the fortress.

"Ah, Asaria!"

Ivan, my older brother, called out in surprise.

I didn't expect him to be so surprised, but I quickly used fire magic to float my body.

The fire created by magic is different from ordinary fire.

So by manipulating magic, I can create fire that doesn't hurt me at all.

I use this to create an explosion of fire near my body to generate thrust, pushing the air to float.

"Brother, what do you think?"

When I landed gracefully, my brother came down the same way and sighed.

"Well, if you can do that, high-speed movement should be fine."

"Yes, it's fine."

"Do you have enough magic power? Using high-speed movement for an hour will consume a lot of magic power."

"I have no problem at all."

"...I see, I didn't teach you that."

He sighed again, as if he was disappointed.

Did he suspect me for being able to do this?

But if I tell him about my regression, he'll just suspect me more, so I can't explain anything.

"Anyway, Brother, the situation is urgent, let's go quickly."

"Where are you going?"

"Ah, Rauro, when did you come behind me?"

I was surprised to be suddenly spoken to from behind, but when I turned around, there was Rauro with his usual expressionless face.

His cheek was slightly red, as if he had been splattered with blood... it's not a wound, right?

"As soon as you came down. So, where are you going?"

"Because there's a possibility that monsters have gathered at other fortresses, I'm going to the east, and Brother is going to the west to help."

"Understood. Then I will go with you, Asaria."

"That's difficult, I'll be moving at high speed with fire, so Rauro would have to run at full speed for an hour."

"That's fine, I can do it."

"...Really?"

An hour of full-speed running? It's impossible for most people, right?

No, Rauro isn't ordinary...

"Then come with me, it'll be a relief to have you there."

"Yes, of course."

Seeing Rauro nod strongly, I looked at my brother.

"Then, Brother, I'll go to the eastern fortress with Rauro."

"Alright, I'll go to the west. Don't overdo it."

"Yes, thank you."

And we started our high-speed movement to save the other fortresses.