STGB Episode 447
Party (4)
We had no idea what to expect from the Rose Knights’ secret subspace, so we decided to open them one by one.
And the first to go was Lyris Marone, the mage from the military.
“It’s a box…?”
What came from her subspace was a little wooden box, barely big enough to hold one or two books.
“There are no magical protection on it. We can just open it.”
With Vercil’s consent, she opened the box right away.
And then…
“Uh…”
“This is…”
Everyone who checked inside the wooden box exclaimed in an awkward way.
It was so far from what they were expecting.
“Just some cash, a few fake IDs, and a portrait…”
“Whose portrait is it? A family member?”
“Seems like it. It looks well-handled.”
What is this…
“Let’s move on! Open the next one!”
Although the situation was depressing, none of the members, including myself, lost hope and continued with the opening ceremony.
“Again, cash and IDs… and here’s some strange pills?”
The pills from the second box were all too familiar to Amelia and me.
“It’s a potion called the ‘Blessing of Lethe.'”
“Do you know this item, Miss Raines?”
“Yes, it erases the memories of those who take it. It’s a potion made by the alchemists of Noarark, though it seems the royal family has somehow learned how to make it.”
“This could be useful someday. How much memory can it erase?”
“Well, it’s been improved a bit since I last knew it, so the form has changed slightly.”
The third, fourth, fifth…
The opening ceremony continued and quickly came to an end.
“Is it another ‘Blessing of Lethe’ or something?”
“There’s some kind of poison here too.”
“It’s a strong acid solution. Seems like it was used for erasing something… like a corpse, for example.”
What was thought to be a treasure chest turned out to be disappointing, though not completely useless besides the Blessing of Lethe.
“Sir Kaislan, could you look at this notebook?”
It was an item from the sixth sub space.
“This seems to be a list of names deployed by the royal family.”
A register of the royal family’s spies infiltrating various organizations under disguise.
It was a reminder of the royal family’s far-reaching power.
“Judging by the volume, this must be just a fraction of all their operatives.”
“So many, and it’s only a fraction?”
“Look. Most of the spies are concentrated in a specific noble house. Maybe the owner of this sub space was on a personal mission related to that noble house.”
“This list… is it just for that one mission?”
“Of course, that’s just my guess.”
Kaislan ended his explanation, but no other possibilities came to my mind.
“The eyes and ears of the royal family are everywhere, more than I imagined…”
With that, a heavy silence fell.
All members felt it, at least indirectly.
The real power of the royal family we would have to face in the future.
“Anyway, good job.”
I deliberately broke the silence, acting as though nothing was wrong.
“Vercil, I’ll take this list. It might be useful someday.”
With that, I tucked the ledger away, and that was the end of the matter.
“So, this is the last one.”
The members’ eyes lit up.
Although their inflated expectations had dwindled, they hoped this time might be different.
“…That subspace belonged to that woman, correct?”
The sixth member of the Rose Knights.
We didn’t know if she was a commander, vice commander, or just a regular knight, but one thing was certain:
That day, she served as the commander.
However…
“…it’s a wooden box again.”
The contents of the last box were also underwhelming.
Cash.
Identification cards.
The blessing of Lethe.
And…
A single sheet of paper tucked into an unsealed envelope.
“This is…”
It was an order from the royal family.
A directive that if the expedition party returned alive, we were to be exterminated at Icerock.
“This could be useful.”
Not a bad haul.
***
After the subspace opening ceremony was over
I was handed all the equipment we’d brought back from the Labyrinth.
“What will we do with this equipment?”
“First, we will take our time and dispose of the equipment we acquired from the Noark bastards. And the money will be used as our military funds in the future.”
“I see…”
It was virtually as if I had been given ownership of most of the spoils of the expedition, though surprisingly no one complained.
I was grateful for their trust, but also a bit worried by their attitude.
‘Seriously, they’re just asking to be swindled.’
If someone less upright and responsible than I had been sitting in the captain’s seat, who knows what could have happened?
“Jandel, what do you plan to do with the Rose Knights’ equipment, by the way? If you try to sell it as is, it’s bound to catch the royal family’s attention.”
“Ah, well, I plan to find a suitable forge and have each piece reworked. It’s dangerous to sell it outright, but the materials are valuable enough that it would be a waste not to make use of them.”
Mistium, a metal of the same caliber as Arc metal, would be melted down, and the Level-five Ogre leather would be cut right off the seam for other equipment manufacturing.
Of course, even after all this, the quantity wouldn’t be much.
Melting down the daggers wouldn’t yield enough Mistium to make even one suit of armor, and there’d be considerable loss in reworking the leather.
“I’ll let everyone decide later on what to make with the gathered materials. If anyone wants to claim the materials for themselves, they’ll need a good reason that satisfies everyone.”
A Mistium shield seems perfect for me, but as a leader, I shouldn’t pursue personal gain.
Public funds must be spent fairly, for the good of the group only.
Well, they didn’t seem particularly interested anyway.
“Rather than that, I’d like to bring something up. You said you created a clan a few days ago… When can we join?”
“Ah. Versil has put together a rough schedule for that”
“When can I join?”
“Miss Marone, about three months from now. Retiring due to conflicts with a superior seems cleanest, but if you think of a better reason, let me know in advance.”
“Oh, then when might I join?”
“Sir Kaislan, you’re… the last among us. Given your position, it would be most natural to join us when our group garners less attention… at least a year.”
“I see…”
“James Carla, you were discharged from the clan recently, right? Take a couple of months off then try to join another clan. There’s unlikely to be one that will accept you, though.”
“…”
“…”
“After looking for a new nest but failing to find one, you join Jandel’s clan through your connection from the expedition. It’s far less suspicious that way, right?”
“What if a clan does accept me?”
“Then ask them to recognize your previous vice-captain experience and demand a high position. I guarantee they’ll tell you to get lost.Trust me; I’ve done HR work.”
With that, James Cala was left speechless.
“Ah, and about Parab…”
Vercil’s orderly briefing continued for some time.
It was quite impressive.
Maybe it’s the combination of a mage’s qualities, a former clan vice-captain’s experience, and knowledge from a modern-world background… but she was precise and methodical.
‘I wonder what she used to do on Earth?’
Anyway, time passed, and once Vercil’s briefing was over, the questions came my way.
“Aynar Pheneline, the Explosive blade, how much does she know about us?”
“Nothing. So, keep your mouths shut when you meet her.”
“I see…”
“We already have two members of the ‘Seven Pillars’, and now if we get involved, too… we’ll draw attention whether we want to or not. Heh heh heh.”
“Hmm, Parab, you think you’re at that level?”
“…What, aren’t I? Well, maybe my fame isn’t quite on that level, but… uh…”
“I’m curious about a member named Auyen Roklov. I’ve never heard that name before. Can he be trusted?”
This time, Amelia answered for our sailor instead of me.
“He can be trusted. I’ll vouch for him.”
After several similar questions, the topic shifted again.
We discussed the incidents at the victory ceremony and my plan to enter Melbes, which naturally led to discussing our next moves.
But since I couldn’t explain everything here, I summarized our vision.
“We have many enemies, but so do our enemies.”
“…”
“And the enemy of our enemy is a friend.”
Building a clan, establishing a house, and diligently fortifying our defenses while expanding our circle of allies.
That was the core of my plan.
To fuck the bastards who put us in that hellhole.
***
After the serious talk, the conversation turned lighter and more casual.
“Sir Kaislan, have there been any interrogations since you returned from the expedition?”
“There were, but it was more of an inquiry than an interrogation. No verification magic was used.”
We exchanged updates.
“Miss Gowland, do you happen to have something that helps with sleep?”
“Yes. I can give you some if you need it.”
“You’re not asking why.”
“I have trouble sleeping myself since that day.”
While some sought assistance,
“You said your name was Marone… What’s that painted on your nails?”
“Ah, this? Isn’t it pretty? It’s quite trendy among mages these days. Would you like to try it, Ms. Tercia?”
Several others chatted about hobbies for a while.
It was quite curious.
Just a month ago, before entering the labyrinth, we were complete strangers.
“…”
I sat alone on a sofa in the corner and looked around.
Unlike the victory banquet, there were no fancy court dishes or expensive wines here. e had only rented out an empty building whose tenants had just moved out, and there we talked.
Yet even so, I thought:
This sort of gathering feels much more enjoyable to me.
“Well, I’ll be off now.”
As always, the enjoyable time flew by quickly.
As the evening wore on, one by one the guests left, effectively ending the after-party of our expedition and I, along with Erwin and Amelia, headed home.
And two days later.
“Going to the library this morning?”
I left the house early in the morning, receiving puzzled looks from Amelia and Erwin.
To be fair, I only realized this later myself:
[I will be waiting for you at the place we first met, three days from now.]
The note did not specify a time.
Ragna, she doesn’t seem like it, but she really is scatterbrained.
“Sigh…”
Walking through the familiar streets of District 7, I soon spotted my destination.
[Ravigion National Library]
The very place where I had practically lived, like a home, when I first woke up in this barbarian body.
However, as soon as I arrived, I stiffened.
There was a sign on the library door stating it was closed for the day.
‘I hadn’t considered this scenario.’
What should I do? Just wait here? Yes, that way at least we won’t miss each other.
That’s what I was thinking.
Click, click.
A woman in high heels walked up to me, stopping near the entrance where I was lingering.
The moment our eyes met, I felt my body tense.
“Greetings, Baron Jandel.”
Black hair, black eyes, even a black skirt.
Apart from her white blouse, everything she wore was black.
“This way, please. The Countess is waiting—”
“That’s not right.”
“…Pardon?”
I looked at the unfamiliar woman and cut her off sharply.
“Today, I am not a baron, but a clan leader.”
“…”
“Recently formed, the ‘Anabada’ clan.”
Despite the suddenness of my declaration, the woman showed no significant change in expression.
She simply responded with a businesslike smile.
“Thank you. I just felt like it today.”
“I see. From now on, I’ll be careful how I address you… Clan Leader Jandel.”
“Thanks. I’m just in that kind of mood today.”
“That kind of… mood, you say?”
“Ah, you know, doesn’t ‘commander’ sound stronger than ‘baron’?”
“…Yes, I suppose it does.”
She nodded as if in agreement, even though she probably had no idea what the difference was supposed to be.
I casually posed a question:
“Do you happen to know what ‘Anabada’ means?”
Her answer came immediately:
“I believe it’s an ancient word meaning ‘a pack of beasts.’”
“Oh… r-right, yes… You knew that, huh?”
I looked dejected, like a barbarian who had lost a chance to show off his knowledge.
The woman pretended not to notice and opened the locked door of the library.
“Please, this way. The Countess is waiting.”
She walked ahead, and I followed her, licking my lips.
Click-clack, click-clack.
Sigh, no matter how I look at her, she’s Hyun-byeol.