Chapter 24: Memories of the Underground Passage
ㅤ”That magician is my wife!?”
ㅤ”Indeed.”
ㅤ
ㅤAh, so it really is my wife…… No, well, yes. M-My eyes were right after all!
ㅤ
ㅤ”Did you know she was such a skilled magician!?”
ㅤ”I was aware.”
ㅤ
ㅤAh, he knew…… I wanted to be surprised together. Or rather, couldn’t you have told me!?
ㅤ
ㅤIt was the Military Captain who came to rescue me with my wife who asked.
ㅤ
ㅤ”I told you that the previous capture of the Chimera was possible thanks to Lady Tempest’s efforts.”
ㅤ
ㅤH-How can you say that so nonchalantly!? Is this my fault!?
ㅤ
ㅤ”The story was that it was the adventurer Tempest!?”
ㅤ”……”
ㅤ
ㅤ’Why are you silent!?’
ㅤ
ㅤWhat kind of emotion is that expression on your face!?
ㅤ
ㅤ”Lord Duke! The evacuation of the townspeople is complete!”
ㅤ
ㅤSoldiers rushed back in from outside.
ㅤ
ㅤ”Thanks to the adventurer who suddenly appeared, the attacks from the sky have stopped!”
ㅤ”What are your orders!?”
ㅤ
ㅤThat’s right. I have something I need to do now. For my wife, who risked her life to protect this town, I have to be strong!
ㅤ
ㅤ”First, lives! Have the soldiers retreat as well!”
ㅤ”Yes, sir!”
ㅤ
ㅤIf they die, there’s nothing more we can do. But if they live, we can try again any number of times.
ㅤ
ㅤ”Then, Lord Duke, you too……”
ㅤ
ㅤThe Military Captain urges me. But I still have something to do……
ㅤ
ㅤ”Lady Tempest is waiting for you as well.”
ㅤ”!!!”
ㅤ
ㅤThat’s right! She went all the way to rescue me!
ㅤ
ㅤ’Ah, that makes me happier than anything!’
ㅤ
ㅤ”I have to praise my wife!”
ㅤ
ㅤShe’ll surely be overjoyed to tears! This will definitely give her the will to return.
ㅤHuh? What? You’re making that face again! What kind of emotion is hidden in that expression, Military Captain!? Why do you look so troubled, Military Captain!!?
ㅤ
ㅤ”Preparations for the retreat will be ready soon. Please hurry.”
ㅤ”Understood.”
ㅤ”I will assist you.”
ㅤ
ㅤI hurriedly gather the blueprints, budget proposals, and the map of the underground passage for the reconstruction. And then……
ㅤ
ㅤ”My wife is amazing!”
ㅤ”Yes. She is a brave person.”
ㅤ”Of course she is! Did you see that magic!? You wouldn’t even see magic like that on a battlefield!”
ㅤ
ㅤAh. I want to see my wife soon. I want to see her and have a proper conversation with her this time.
ㅤ
ㅤ”Even though we’ve been married for a year, I…… don’t know anything about my wife.”
ㅤ
ㅤI know her favorite color and her favorite flower, but to not know something this important……
ㅤ
ㅤ”The more I learn, the more I realize how wonderful my wife is!”
ㅤ”Indeed.”
ㅤ
ㅤIt’s actually a little irritating that the Military Captain knew about my wife’s amazing abilities before me.
ㅤ
ㅤ(No! But I’m the one who’s married to her! What is there to be regretful about!)
ㅤ”I have to live up to my wife’s efforts.”
ㅤ
ㅤIf I work hard now, I feel like I can finally look Tempest in the eye and talk to her.
ㅤ
◇◇◇
ㅤ
ㅤ”One after another……!”
ㅤ
ㅤI had shot down the monsters around the city walls all at once. But without any time to breathe, the monsters keep coming towards us endlessly.
ㅤ
ㅤ”What the heck!?”
ㅤ
ㅤThe monsters’ movements are clearly strange. This won’t do if we don’t address the root cause!?
ㅤ
ㅤ”My Lady~!”
ㅤ”Who’s ‘My Lady’!”
ㅤ
ㅤI can’t…… I just went full Adventurer Tempest mode. But the Military Captain running towards me doesn’t seem to mind that at all anymore.
ㅤ
ㅤ”The evacuation of the residents is complete! We will now retreat with the soldiers.”
ㅤ”Huh!? What about this town!?”
ㅤ”……Lord Duke has decided to abandon it.”
ㅤ”Whaaaaaaaaaaat!?”
ㅤ
ㅤWhat are you saying, Danna-sama! Are you going to make the people of this town make that face again twice!?
ㅤ
ㅤ”Reinforcements will be here soon, right!?”
ㅤ
ㅤThe adventurers should be heading here too.
ㅤ
ㅤ”There’s no guarantee we can hold out until then!”
ㅤ”I’m here!!!”
ㅤ
ㅤI’ll wipe out the monsters as many times as it takes!
ㅤ
ㅤ”As you predicted, My Lady, there were unprocessed magic stones in this town! ……And a considerable amount, too.”
ㅤ”Whoa! Why were they brought into a human settlement!?”
ㅤ
ㅤSo my prediction was right after all. Just when I thought the Chimera that repels monsters appeared, a large quantity of magic stones that attract monsters shows up……
ㅤ
ㅤ”It’s unheard of for unprocessed magic stones to appear these days. The fact that they attract monsters isn’t even common knowledge.”
ㅤ”Is that so!?”
ㅤ
ㅤI didn’t know that. Certainly, if magic stones can be obtained now, it would only be in dungeons, and the only ones who need that knowledge are adventurers and material buyers.
ㅤ
ㅤ’Frustrating, frustrating, frustrating, frustrating~! I’m so angry!’
ㅤ
ㅤIn my anger, I wipe out the monsters that have stuck to the protective barrier with lightning again.
ㅤ
ㅤ”Gugaaaaa!!!”
ㅤ
ㅤWith death throes and smoke, the protective barrier becomes sparkling clean.
ㅤ
ㅤIt’s no use being selfish here. I don’t have the authority to stop it.
ㅤ’Then I’ll deal with it with the only fighting power I have.’
ㅤ
ㅤ”Alright! I’ll take the magic stones and move to a deserted area!”
ㅤ
ㅤIf it’s come to this, I’ll do it thoroughly!
ㅤ
ㅤ”Then allow me to accompany you. I will use a horse, so……”
ㅤ”It’s dangerous!”
ㅤ
ㅤI never thought I would be saying this to the Military Captain instead of the other way around.
ㅤ
ㅤ”You are not familiar with the geography around here, My Lady. You will need someone to guide you to a place where there are no houses or people.”
ㅤ”……That’s true!”
ㅤ
ㅤIt seems we’re both prepared. Let’s stick together as partners in fate until the end.
ㅤ
ㅤ”I’ll be counting on you!”
ㅤ
ㅤWe’re headed to the lake in the mountainous area. Since it’s deep, if we throw them in, we should be able to buy some time.
ㅤ
ㅤFirst, we need to hurry and get the magic stones. They’re apparently kept in the government office facing the central square of the town.
ㅤWhile jumping from rooftop to rooftop carrying the Military Captain, he told me about Danna-sama’s situation.
ㅤ
ㅤ”He was surprised by your magic at first, My Lady, but in the end, he was captivated.”
ㅤ”Ha! Of course he was!”
ㅤ
ㅤHeave-ho! I lightly hop on the roof under construction. Flight magic consumes a lot of magic power, so to conserve it, I’m making my way straight to my destination by making short flights and landing on rooftops.
ㅤ
ㅤ”So, in the end, did he realize that his wife and the adventurer were the same person?”
ㅤ”No! He was delighted to learn a new side of his wife.”
ㅤ”Ehhh!? Even after all this!?”
ㅤ
ㅤIsn’t he being too stubborn!?
ㅤHe’s clinging to the alternate personality too much. Just admit that your perception was wrong!
ㅤ
ㅤ”He was fired up, saying he had to live up to his wife’s efforts.”
ㅤ
ㅤ’That’s not the reaction I was hoping for at all!’
ㅤ
ㅤMy legs involuntarily lost their strength.
ㅤ
ㅤ”Maybe I should have used the same magic as when I was escorting him~”
ㅤ”From our perspective, it’s better than being strangely confused and acting strangely.”
ㅤ
ㅤThat’s true. After all, we have to bring Lord Duke back no matter what.
ㅤIt seems Danna-sama finally decided to leave the town, thinking he had to survive and praise his wife’s achievements.
ㅤ
ㅤ”But he ordered me, the Military Captain, to go and get you myself. So I had no choice but to give in.”
ㅤ”He really doesn’t consider his position……”
ㅤ”Eh!?”
ㅤ
ㅤHe looked at me with a “You’re saying that, My Lady?” expression.
ㅤThat’s right! I’m sorry!
ㅤ
ㅤ”Military Captain~!!!”
ㅤ
ㅤWhen we arrived at the government office, a half-crying soldier came running up to us.
ㅤ
ㅤ”Lord Duke is……!”
ㅤ”What happened!? Has he already escaped!?”
ㅤ”Lord Duke is…… Lord Duke is…… He took the magic stones and went somewhere alone……”
ㅤ”Whaaaaaaaaaaat!?”
ㅤ
ㅤWhat is he doing!!?
ㅤThe Military Captain is also pale.
ㅤ
ㅤ”You fool! Why did you leave his side!!!”
ㅤ”I’m so sorry!”
ㅤ”Now, now, now, now!!!”
ㅤ
ㅤCalm down, Military Captain! We don’t have time to blame these soldiers who look like they’re about to commit seppuku out of responsibility. The Military Captain was skillfully tricked into coming to me too.
ㅤApparently, Danna-sama evaded the escorting soldiers, took the magic stones in an instant through a hidden passage, and disappeared.
ㅤ
ㅤ『I’m sorry! My wife is risking her life, I can’t just sit around and relax!』
ㅤ
ㅤHe said something like that, apparently.
ㅤHe’s strangely confused and acting strangely!
ㅤ
ㅤ(Your life belongs to everyone! We’d be in trouble if you died on your own!)
ㅤ
ㅤ”Monsters! The monsters are moving somewhere……!”
ㅤA lookout soldier raises his voice. The monsters, who were so eager to enter Neville, are moving in droves as if they’ve found their next destination.
ㅤ
ㅤWith this, the reconstruction of Neville can continue. Well, if Danna-sama dies, that might not be the case.
ㅤ
ㅤ’You’re thinking about that kind of thing!?’
ㅤ
ㅤ”Since the lookout soldier didn’t see Danna-sama, he must be using the underground passage created by the Chimera.”
ㅤ”We’ll know where he’s going soon.”
ㅤ
ㅤAh, that’s right.
ㅤ
ㅤ”Is he in the same direction as the monsters that are moving?”
ㅤ
ㅤWe’ll find him soon.
ㅤThe Military Captain predicts he’s heading towards the lake where he was planning to guide me.
ㅤ
ㅤ”Lord Duke was instructing us to investigate the underground passage created by the Chimera. It seems he was exploring routes that could be used in the future.”
ㅤ
ㅤIt seems he’s become quite knowledgeable after staying in this town for so long.
ㅤ
ㅤ”Why would he do it himself~?”
ㅤ
ㅤHe’s the one person who shouldn’t be doing that.
ㅤ
ㅤ”Lord Duke has taken on everything himself……!”
ㅤ
ㅤOne of the soldiers retorts, biting his lip.
ㅤ
ㅤ”No, that’s why we’re in this big mess now. We’re going to go rescue him after all.”
ㅤ”My Lady……!”
ㅤ
ㅤWhy are you looking at me with such an impressed expression!? Of course I’ll save him!? Because he’s Lord Duke! If he dies now, the Blood Territory will be in chaos for sure!? As his wife, I’ll definitely be caught up in the trouble too!?
ㅤ
ㅤ”It’s not because of love or anything like that!!?”
ㅤ
ㅤI strongly deny it out of frustration, but those soldiers’ faces! They’re looking at me like I’m just being tsundere! Stop it!!!
ㅤ
ㅤ’Humiliation!!! What humiliation!!!’
ㅤ
ㅤThis is all because of that damn husband of mine~!
ㅤ
◇◇◇
ㅤ
ㅤI ride my horse at full speed with the magic stones. The Chimera attack was a major blow, but the creation of the underground passage was a blessing in disguise. Since there are no subterranean monsters living around here yet, we can move faster and safer underground than above ground.
ㅤ
ㅤ’I wonder if there are already monsters right above me.’
ㅤ
ㅤThe entrance is the key. If monsters are lying in wait, we’ll be done for. I can’t help but feel nervous.
ㅤ
ㅤBut right now, I’m feeling like the adventurer I’ve always admired. I bravely led the monsters away and protected the town of Neville, just like in the tales of legendary adventurers I read long ago.
ㅤ
ㅤ’Come to think of it, in that story, there was another magician who fought alongside the protagonist.’
ㅤ
ㅤThe image that popped into my head was the white-haired adventurer, Tempest.
ㅤ
ㅤ’Huh?’
ㅤ
ㅤThe face I remembered overlapped with my wife’s.
ㅤ’Huh!?’
ㅤ
ㅤNo, no, that can’t be.
ㅤ
ㅤI close my eyes and try to remember. Adventurer Tempest’s voice, the color of her eyes, her height, and the way she moved her body when using that magic……
ㅤ
ㅤ”Eh!? Is that what it is!!?”