──The day before Lyle and co departed to the dungeon.
Shannon got entrusted to a hospital in Arumsaas by Miranda. The two sisters were alone inside a private room of the hospital.
As expected Shannon couldn't be left alone in the house that didn't even have a single servant and she would have to spend time for a while in the hospital. They also had no acquaintance at Arumsaas who could be entrusted with Shannon. Because she couldn't be entrusted to any random people, the choice was the hospital.
「Shannon, it will be a while but, I will surely return so don't worry and wait here. Also, if I don't return even after two weeks pa.s.sed, tell the hospital's staff and ask them to contact Circry House.」
Miranda who was placing luggage inside the room for Shannon's sake also talked about what she should do if she didn't return. Shannon was staring at Miranda and told her with a low voice.
「Onee-sama, do you remember your promise?」
Miranda's body instantly twitched as though electricity ran through her, then she turned toward Shannon. There was no light in her eyes, and then her face was expressionless. Miranda slowly answered Shannon's question.
「Inside the dungeon Lyle and others will……but」
She had succeeded until Miranda now was acting mostly like she wished, but she felt that Miranda was still resisting. Shannon made a dissatisfied face.
(Will it be better to adjust her a bit stronger? That's right, then rather──)
「You have prepared until now for that right? Then you have to do it properly.」
Shannon manipulated the magic power drifting around Miranda and exerted influence on her emotion. The human emotions of joy, anger, pathos, humor──Shannon particularly influenced Miranda's anger and pathos.
Miranda's expression suddenly changed into sadness and she fell on her knees and covered her face with both her hands.
「……Hate. I hate that man. I hate Lyle. I hate that guy who betrayed my feelinggg!」
Her hatred was swelling.
Shannon also felt pained seeing the sight of Miranda crying and raging, but she was also having fun because it was her payback to Miranda who betrayed her before. It was a complicated feeling that was a mix of love and hatred.
「Ahaha, really Onee-sama, you finally become honest. That's right. You hate Lyle aren't you? Then……do it.」
Shannon stood in front of Miranda and looked down on her while laughing.
「I'll experiment using Lyle and his group. If it succeeded next would be Circry House……Otou-sama and also Doris-neesama. Then at the end it will be that Celes too……. You will help me won't you, Onee-sama?」
When Shannon peered into Miranda's face, she had stopped crying before she noticed. She was smiling faintly and nodded in agreement at Shannon's question.
Shannon made the ugliest smile she ever made inside the hospital room──.
The hospital where Shannon was entrusted.
I narrowed my eyes on the rooftop of a building that was quite far away from there while looking at her room.
It was barely. The distance was really barely enough. I was detecting the movement of the two within the range of the Second's Art while also using the Arts of the Fifth and the Sixth to observe the two.
The result was in the category of the worst within my imagination.
「……Guilty huh.」
Strong wind was blowing at the rooftop where there was no one else. The heat of the sun pierced my skin, but I forgot such stimulation from the result before me.
The Fifth muttered in frustration.
『Stupid girl.』
I heard that the Fifth was apathetic toward his own children and acted affectionate to animal instead. However, was that really the case?
He was taking interest at Milleisan's two great-grandchildren that couldn't be considered as normal.
The Sixth was also speaking in disappointment.
『So she doesn't inherit Milleia's heart. To think that she is trying to make her own biological sister as puppet……what now? There is also a choice to beat her personality into shape though?』
The Fifth thought for a while, and then he spoke with a cold tone.
『No, she is still unable to use her ability well seeing that she isn't detecting us over here. From our investigation, it seems she is also being treated really coldly. I don't think that she will be able to give up her revenge that easily. We're doing it. Destroying those eyes will be for the sake of that girl and her surrounding.』
I crouched on that place and looked down.
「……Honestly, this is heavy. If possible I don't want to do it.」
The Second also said something similar.
『As expected being told to take away the sight of a girl that age is……besides, surprisingly she might be a good kid you know?』
The atmosphere inside the Jewel was also heavy. Even I didn't want to do something like destroying a person's eyes by choice.
The Fourth summarized the opinion of the hesitating us.
『Either way, it's impossible to do it right now. She is also in a hospital. You will become unable to enter the dungeon if you cause a commotion at this stage.』
The Third sighed.
『You will need to be careful toward Mirandchan too inside the dungeon. Even so, does Lyle really have to hurt a pitiful and sad girl who is treated coldly by her family even more than this with his own hand?』
I recalled the information about Shannon-chan that I heard from Arisan and Sophisan.
She was in a similar situation with me.
She was shunned by her family and lived in a terribly confined world until now.
If there was something that was dissimilar with me, it would be her kind big sister. I also didn't want little sister, so I wanted a kind big sister like Mirandsan.
……I thought.
Wasn't there any good way that could solve this problem somehow without crus.h.i.+ng her eyes?
If I couldn't find a way to rehabilitate Shannon-chan before we returned, I would have to crush her eyes just like the ancestors told me. I didn't want to do that.
──Arumsaas's underground dungeon.
An adventurer holding a lantern with one hand frowned and covered his mouth with his other hand.
「What the h.e.l.l is this?」
Over there the figures of monsters in atrocious state just from looking at them were lying around. There was also a figure of monster with a face of despair among them. The monsters that were hacked into pieces didn't have their material or magic stone collected. It was like the monsters were tormented for fun.
One veteran adventurer kneeled and looked at the wounds of the monsters.
「Even though there are many parts that are torn off, what's with this clean cut? It doesn't seem to be magic.」
The adventurer holding the lantern looked around with a disturbed face.
「This happen a lot recently. Is it that? There is a rumor that spoiled n.o.ble brats are doing something like this to clear up their stress……they aren't going to change their target to human at this rate right?」
The veteran adventurer put his hand on his chin and groaned.
「That's certainly possible but, I haven't heard of any student in the academy who can go this far. Could it be something else is──」
「Oi, stop it! Hey, let's go back already.」
The adventurer with lantern was really scared. Seeing that the veteran adventurer collected the material that looked like they could still be sold and then they left from that place.
The place that they had just left. A creature squirming at the ceiling was eight legged. It slowly used string to descend from the ceiling and showed its ominous figure.
A mouth that was distorted like a crescent moon.
Something like human's upper body was growing from a torso that looked like spider. The ominous existence was grinning while running on the dungeon's wall with its eight legs.
It found monster and attacked. It was wielding an overwhelming violence and laughing.
Something was inside the underground dungeon of Arumsaas──.
The day of departure. At the early morning when it was still dark.
We submitted the paperwork at the guild and waited for Professor Damian and Mirandsan near the building's entrance. Originally I thought that it would be good to wait at the dungeon's entrance, but Mirandsan said that this place was more convenient so we followed her advice.
The supplies we received from the shops and our baggage were placed on a cart we rented. Sophisan would be the one pulling the cart. The reason the task was given to her was because her Art was an ability to change an object's weight.
The cart that looked heavy could be pulled really easily. Clarsan had already arrived ahead of us when we arrived. She was reading book in front of the guild even now. Because the gate still hadn't been opened, the ground that was damp with morning dew also didn't give off any flying dust.
A lot of adventurers who were coming and going from the guild since early morning were looking at us. But, they immediately went back to their own work. Arisan was looking sleepy while yawning with her mouth opened wide. She also stretched her back with her hands lifted up.
「Haa~, I wanted to sleep a bit longer.」
Sophisan spoke criticizingly toward such Arisan.
「Were you staying awake even after I have warned you last night?」
Arisan made a troubled face.
「No, you know, the show at the theatre we went to was interesting wasn't it? That was why I was excited.」
It seemed they had opened their heart to Mirandsan and she showed them to place for having fun at Arumsaas.
「Certainly it was interesting, I recognize that but……」
It seemed Sophisan also watched the show together with Arisan. She agreed that it was interesting.
Novem looked at the two of them who were like that and let out a small sigh.
「They are too relaxed. It will be great if they don't get injured. But, I wish that they will focus before entering the dungeon.」
The Second also had the same opinion like Novem. Since the beginning the Second was holding a strict a.s.sessment toward the two, but it seemed this time it was more than that.
『They are lacking tension. Even though just a little while ago there will still be seriousness that can be felt from them. But it doesn't seem like they are getting carried away after earning a lot of money just some time ago. It's concerning but, perhaps this is a good chance for these two idiots to meet a slightly painful experience……』
We were able to earn a lot of money from the dungeon subjugation at Dalien. We fought the boss at the deepest room and succeeded in defeating it as well as obtaining the treasure.
Perhaps their confidence grew into conceit after the great success. But, something else seemed to weight the mind of the Second very much. He was thinking that there was something else to this.
Inside the Jewel, it seemed the ancestors were also having a lot of thought in their mind. This time they weren't talking much.
The matter of the dungeon.
The matter of Shannon-chan and Mirandsan.
The matter of Arisan and Sophisan.
My mind was also weighted about Shannon-chan.
Novem turned her gaze from the two who were conversing to another direction. Clarsan also closed the book she read, put her book into her rucksack, and stood up with it on her back. She was looking at the same direction like Novem.
「It seems they have come. Even so, Professor Damian's puppets are conspicuous.」
The sound of sc.r.a.ping metal. The sound of stepping on the ground. When I looked at the direction those sounds came from, the adventurers at the surrounding were also making a ruckus. There were four large knights in full armor with height of more than two meter. The knights were carrying luggage on their back and also things like weapon while walking to this way.
There was a cus.h.i.+on placed on the shoulder of one of them. The man who was sitting on it──Professor Damian noticed us and waved a staff that was taller than himself.
The full armored knights seemed to be puppet.
The Fifth was showing interest before I noticed.
『Lyle, can you check the inside with Art?』
Hearing that I checked the inside with the Second's Art──Field, and certainly there wasn't any human wearing the armor inside. The inside was stuffed with metal parts.
But, the movement of the full armored puppets were really close to human.
They were walking easily while carrying heavy luggage and weapon.
The Fourth muttered.
『I want that thing.』
There was also Mirandsan near the puppets of Professor Damian. She seemed energetic seeing how she was waving her hand at the early morning. She was also wearing outfit that looked easy to move in compared to usual.
I thought she was a n.o.ble young lady, but that appearance was unexpectedly suitable for her.
Novem also seemed to be in agreement. She was admiring Mirandsan's equipment.
「There are short sword and knife hanging on her waist. Does that mean she isn't only using magic?」
It was curious how she would fight, but right now there was more important thing. I had to tell something to Professor Damian and everyone.
Professor Damian looked down at us from the puppet's shoulder and yawned while speaking.
「Now then, let's enter into the dungeon quickly. Or rather, why did we have to expressly come here to pick up you guys?」
Professor Damian also didn't know the circ.u.mstance behind it. Mirandsan made a troubled face seeing that Professor Damian didn't understand.
「It's because they will be in trouble without us, professor. Even so, it looks like everyone's luggage is a lot. Will it be alright?」
Mirandsan was concerned seeing that our luggage was more than she antic.i.p.ated.
I spoke to the anxious Mirandsan.
「For now, let's walk until a place inside a dungeon where there's no one else. We will talk there.」
The dungeon located at the center of Arumsaas.
Speaking about the beginning, a really rare dungeon was discovered in a wasteland where there was nothing. Because of that people settled down there and developed the area into a city. We were walking from the outer wall toward the center of the city. The citizens of Arumsaas were avoiding us because they got scared seeing us carrying a lot of luggage and weapon.
The sky was getting bright and the number of people outside was also increasing. Clarsan explained to us.
「Normally adventurers will head to the dungeon when it's still darker. They are avoiding the time when a lot of people are out. Although, the academy students are unconcerned about such thing.」
Mirandsan also laughed slightly.
「As expected there is no way they will be up and about when it's still dark. Ah, look it comes.」
While we were making such talk, an armed duo approached us. They told us to stop, so everyone stopped walking. Then the two were looking at us with suspicion.
The duo seemed to be Arumsaas's soldier.
「You guys, are you going to go to the dungeon? Despite that I've never seen you guys before. You guys are carrying permission aren't you? We will check it out with the academy so wait here.」
Arisan got irritated with the soldier's att.i.tude and talked back.
「From now? We have the permission here so just let us pa.s.s.」
The duo looked at each other's face. Then they grinned and held out their hand.
「If you want us to do that then give us what you owe. You might have to wait until afternoon for the academy's confirmation you know? Do you want to wait until then? You've got to be smarter yeah, missy.」
Mirandsan sighed and showed her own permission. When the two soldiers saw the permission, their complexion quickly turned worse.
「A, a person from a house of count! Pa, pardon us! Ple, please pa.s.s through.」
But Mirandsan pointed at Professor Damian who was sitting above a puppet's shoulder after she received her permission back.
「I don't have any intention to say anything to what you two are doing but, do it after checking who is it you are facing more carefully. Also, this matter is──」
Professor Damian was irritated. He was looking at the two soldiers while frowning. He interrupted Mirandsan's words.
「What's with you two? What do you want by taking away my precious time? Hey, could it be I had to go as far until the guild for something like this?」
Mirandsan shrugged at the displeased Professor Damian and nodded.
「That's right, Professor Damian. After all I was worried that perhaps there would even be soldier who cause problem even with my permission.」
The two soldiers not only went pale hearing the name Professor Damian, they were also starting to shake.
「Our apologies! We never thought that this is a group of a professor──ho, however, this too is our duty」
Professor Damian coldly spoke to the two soldiers who were trying to make excuse.
「I don't care. You two better prepare yourself after hindering me like this. Or rather, I cannot remember your face or your name, so for the time being I'll tell the headmaster to make all the soldiers take responsibility. Good grief, even though there are already various troublesome matters like the guild and other things, for even the soldiers are also becoming a nuisance──」
Professor Damian kept complaining in low voice like that. The soldiers were looking like they were going to cry. They were showing pleading att.i.tude at Mirandsan if perhaps she could do something.
However, Mirandsan shook her head and walked away.
「Now, let's go. I wonder how many times we will be stopped like this.」
It didn't sound like she was joking.
Clarsan also spoke in agreement with Mirandsan.
「Normally it will be two or three times. However, it's surprising that there would be soldier who stop us even after seeing Professor Damian's puppet. As expected I don't think there will be anymore reckless person like that.」
Mirandsan was laughing.
「Their quality is low even if you call them soldier. Their training is also the minimum. Their salary is also cheap and their morale low. Well, I wish they will have more self-awareness after this though.」
Sophisan who was pulling the cart looked at the two soldiers who left like they were running away in exasperation.
「Is this alright for Arumsaas itself? I think that adventurers challenging dungeon are important existence though?」
Adventurers were important fighting power for Arumsaas that was in possession of dungeon. I was thinking that but Clarsan shook her head.
「The academy possess a battle group of their own for managing the dungeon. The adventurers in the end are just spare. There won't be any big effect whether they are here or not. The soldiers also know that, that's why they are seeking bribe like this from the adventurer. Well, it can be resolved with several silver coins, so the majority of adventurer would pay.」
Arisan's shoulder dropped hearing that.
「Somehow, it's far different from the Arumsaas in my imagination. I thought this is a more honest place.」
Certainly. In contrast with the name of academy city, the actual condition was horrible.
After that we used Professor Damian to threaten the soldiers who came to stop us and arrived at the entrance of the dungeon. The entrance was surrounded by wall with the figure of soldiers around it. In addition, the adventurers who would enter were forming a line, waiting for their turn to come. Novem was a bit surprised seeing the number.
「There are a lot of people here. I didn't think that there would be this many adventurers.」
Clarsan calculated the waiting time and sat down on the spot to start reading book. She answered Novem while doing that.
「I heard that there will always be thirty party inside the dungeon. When it's busy I think there will be fifty or sixty?」
Arisan looked at the adventurers around us and looked convinced.
「Certainly there might be that many inside if there are this many outside. I wonder how many party there is just at this place?」
Clarsan raised her face and then looked at Arisan's face.
「Wha, what?」
「No, as I thought we have different impression. Our party is in the category of extremely small. It looks like there are a lot of people here but, the number of the party here at most is only five.」
「Lies-!」
I looked around in surprise. No matter how I looked, the number of adventurer here was more than a hundred but……. Clarsan returned her gaze to her book.
「Well, most of them are support to carry the luggage. Those in charge of battle is around ten-odd people with around the same or a bit less number of support accompanying them. That's Arumsaas.」
I looked at Clarsan. Was this person who was said to be an excellent supporter in this Arumsaas who had this many supporter actually someone great?
Our turn arrived while I was thinking and we finally could enter into the dungeon.
