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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: The Source of the Monsters
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Walking while half-asleep, I bumped my nose right into Menelik's back.
Huh? Are we here?
"...We probably should have just let the young lady sleep. She's at an age where she needs to grow."
A hint of guilt laced Emil's voice, which I hadn't heard in a while.
I rubbed my eyes and scanned my surroundings.
Two men were slumped unconscious in a corner.
Ah, they were the men from the garden.
It seemed their escape attempt had failed.
"Don't mind them."
Emil waved his hand dismissively.
What happened while I was asleep...?
First, I asked the most important question.
"Where are we?"
It looks too clean to be a warehouse.
"This is an underground passage in the marquis's castle. The entrance was in the garden."
I stared intently at the men who had likely spilled the beans about the entrance's location.
Which one of them called Kivrin a monster?
The odds were fifty-fifty.
Unable to hide my curiosity, Emil took off his cloak and covered the men with it.
"Looking at such filth will spoil your eyes, Young Lady."
Thanks to Emil's movement, a small magic circle floating in mid-air came into my view.
The magic circle ensnared a crimson magic stone that looked as if it were soaked in blood.
It had a triple-layered structure and was only about the size of my head.
A breeze generated by the circle gently rustled my hair.
As if drawn by that breeze, thin, shimmering threads appeared from the ceiling, the floor, and every crack.
They were helplessly sucked into the magic circle.
Emil began to speak.
"That magic stone looks incredibly suspicious, doesn't it? But it's just a distraction. In reality, it's not drawing on the stone's energy but the life force of this territory to lure monsters to another location."
"...Is that other location the ducal territory?"
"Yes. I knew something was strange. Since this time last year, an excessive number of monsters have been approaching the duchy, even though it wasn't subjugation season and the Duke was away. It got so bad that even some fool who couldn't wield a sword managed to stumble upon a low-level monster. I heard you met him, Young Lady... Was his name Dewey Rest?"
Daniel's friend?
I recalled my visit to Baron Dawson's estate with Rose.
I remember thinking he wasn't all that bad since he'd protected me by moving the monster elsewhere.
Emil added an explanation.
"Ah, as for what the Duke has to do with monsters... It's still a hypothesis, but it seems Sword Masters have a constitution that attracts certain types of monsters."
Kivrin had told me something similar before.
—"So-some monsters... react to Father. The a-aura of a transcendent being... like Father... it attracts monsters with a certain level of intelligence."
Emil rubbed the sunken skin beneath his eyes.
"So, when the Duke is away from the territory, the number of approaching monsters should decrease. But this year, it's been chaotic, and funnily enough, the neighboring marquisate has been quiet. It's not as if the monsters suddenly developed the intelligence to distinguish between the ducal and marquis territories."
"..."
I wrinkled my nose.
The time Menelik was away from the ducal lands coincided with the time Kivrin was trapped in the Snake Pit.
It was certainly strange that only the ducal territory was in an uproar while the nearby marquisate remained peaceful.
"One more suspicious thing. Today, they assigned every available servant to watch us, probably worried we'd poke around the castle. Yet they were neglectful of you, Young Lady, despite your youth."
That's right! I was completely invisible to them!
It was the first time I'd been so thoroughly ignored as the Young Lord's wife.
As I nodded vigorously, Menelik let out a soft chuckle.
"Why would they do this? Did they really think they wouldn't get caught?"
"They probably thought we'd be too busy dealing with the influx of monsters to grow suspicious. And in fact, that was the case until the Duke returned."
Emil snapped his fingers.
A silver-gray mana appeared in the air and began to form an image.
Meanwhile, Emil continued his explanation.
"As for why... Well, I suppose it was their dim-witted attempt to ensure their own safety. I heard the marquis's daughter was nearly attacked by a monster once. But they can no longer receive the duke's protection, and they've spent so lavishly that they have no money left. They probably thought it was a fair trade: collude with those thugs over there, sacrifice half the territory, and in return, gain safety from the monsters."
"..."
"The marquis probably didn't even notice the damage. The grain-producing region on the other side is perfectly fine. This area would have just looked like the grass and trees had withered a bit. Even now, he likely believes that removing the magic circle will allow everything to recover quickly, muttering something like, 'Nature is magnificent.'"
I thought of the animal friends who had asked Kivrin for help.
If recovery were that simple, the animals wouldn't have flocked to him like that.
Soon, the silver-gray mana finished forming a simple map of the marquisate.
Half of the marquisate was transparent, while the other half was painted pitch-black with several layers of mana.
The blackened half seemed to be the area affected by the magic circle.
"They must have started their work as soon as the Duchess and the Duke were tied up in the capital, never imagining the Young Lord would escape the Snake Pit in less than a year or that the contract with the Temple would be broken."
As the main culprit behind Kivrin's escape from the Snake Pit and the breaking of the contract between the ducal family and the Temple, I averted my gaze.
Soon, Emil's thoughts seemed to catch up, and he remarked in admiration.
"If it weren't for you, Young Lady, it would have taken us a considerable amount of time to figure this out. Without the Duke, we would have been stuck just subjugating monsters, with no time for any investigation."
It was fascinating to see the butterfly effect already taking place just because I had acted differently from the Cheria in .
I hope this path leads to Winter and Menelik living long, healthy lives.
"I really do have a fine daughter-in-law."
Menelik pressed down on my head firmly.
It felt like a touch that could stunt my growth.
Having become sensitive about my height thanks to Sabrina, who was a good two hands taller than me, I defended myself with both hands.
At that, Menelik's eyebrow twitched.
"Oh? Are you rejecting my praise?"
"Ah, I just don't think it's time for praise yet! Right, Emil?"
I shot a pleading look at Emil.
Emil, caught off guard, chimed in.
"Y-yes, well... there is still work to be done. These kinds of magic circles usually form a larger one, so we need to find the rest. They're probably somewhere around here."
At Emil's gesture, half of the marquisate map vanished.
Seeing only the blackened portion remain, I blurted out.
"That's not it."
Emil tilted his head.
"...Pardon?"
"...Huh?"
I was just as surprised as Emil.
Wh-why did my mouth suddenly say that?!
Menelik also cast a curious glance my way.
I tried to brush it off with an awkward laugh.
"I... I must still be half-asleep. It's nothing."
Fortunately, a strange noise starting to emanate from the magic circle diverted their attention.
I followed Emil's gaze and watched the magic circle.
Suddenly, a small symbol engraved on the circle bothered me, and I felt an urge to erase it.
For some reason, I felt like if I erased it, finding the other magic circles would be easier.
As I unconsciously stepped closer, Menelik spoke.
"Don't get too close."
Emil agreed.
"The analysis isn't finished yet. It's better to be safe than sorry."
I-I want to be careful, but I just don't feel like it...
It felt like I was looking at a soap bubble that would pop with a single poke. It even seemed pathetic.
I fidgeted on my heels, trying to stop myself from stepping forward.
"If we destroy the magic circle, will nature recover, even if it takes a long time?"
"Hmm, I don't know. Honestly, it's not very hopeful. Well, the marquis wouldn't have known that when he let those guys have their way with his land. Not that it's my concern."
Emil's reaction showed he didn't care as long as the ducal territory wasn't harmed.
I examined the magic circle again from various angles.
I couldn't explain it theoretically, but its structure was plain to see.
Just as I thought, if I erase that part...!
"Cheria."
I had been stealthily inching forward, but Menelik caught me.
Menelik clicked his tongue and casually lifted me up.
Ugh. Feeling frustrated, I imagined myself saying, 'In my past life, I was the strongest being in the world. Can I mess with that magic circle a little?'
...Better to just stay quiet.
Even when I told them I was the second snake, my parents-in-law just laughed it off.
There was a very high chance they'd think I was just a child lying because she wanted to play with a magic circle she'd never seen before.
The number of words I had to swallow was steadily increasing.
The cloak covering the unconscious men rustled.
"Ugh..."
As the first one to wake up twisted his body, the cloak slipped off.
Emil began to remove the accessories he wore on his hands, one by one.
