Chapter 71: Chapter 71
The creatures that had burst out of the river this time were monsters commonly found near bodies of water.
Things like water ghosts, kelpies, giant poisonous toads, and lizardmen.
Casualties resulting from the sudden appearance of the monsters totaled sixteen people.
That the sacrifices were relatively small was thanks to the recent completion of the water supply system project.
Originally, quite a few people visited the vicinity of the Tesen River to bathe or draw water, but once tap water was piped close to their homes, there was no need to venture all the way to the river.
Had that not been the case, several times more people would have died.
“Mmm…”
Cheryn, who had come out directly to the riverbank in a carriage on an inspection tour, grimaced as she looked at the dead monsters lying scattered about.
An invasion of monsters via the river: this was a truly ominous sign.
After all, the greatest competitive advantage that set Palles apart from other regions was that it was a land safe from monsters.
Unlike other regions that had to establish farmland and villages inside wooden palisades, being able to spread vast fields across the plains was a truly enormous advantage.
On top of that, there was no need to carry weapons to fight whenever going into the woods to chop firewood or traveling between villages and cities.
The moment all of that was lost, this land would fall from a paradise on earth to just another somewhat prosperous territory in Pendia.
For her, who had to rule all of Pendia using this place as a foundation in the future, such a thing could not be allowed to happen.
‘Erecting fences along the entire river and deploying guard troops… No, that’s absurd.’
The Tesen River was far too long to defend in such a manner.
It would probably require tens of thousands of soldiers alone, and half the trees in Palles would have to be cut down to build palisades.
If so, there was only one way.
To identify and eliminate the cause behind why a phenomenon that originally never occurred had suddenly taken place.
To that end, Cheryn returned to the Count’s castle and summoned all the key officials of the territory.
“Thank you all for gathering so quickly. I assume you have all heard about what happened this time?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Gloom was clearly evident on the faces Count of Palles and the others as well.
Since they were not fools either, they understood full well what this event signified.
If this situation could not be resolved somehow, Palles would undoubtedly meet its downfall.
Though the standard for that downfall was merely becoming like the ordinary fiefs across the river, even that was a terrifying prospect to them.
“First of all, we must analyze the cause.”
“Forgive me, Your Highness, but as one who has mastered the principles of all things, in my view, the cause seems to be related to the wastewater sent downriver through the sewerage.”
Court Count Tenon, Orum spoke in his characteristic boastful tone.
“Is that so?”
“Yes. In the past, the location where magic tools were produced was far from the river, so waste was disposed of nearby, but ever since the sewer system was established, most waste has been sent down that way. There is a high probability that it had some impact on the monsters beyond the lower reaches.”
Petty household trash and ordinary waste had long been dumped by residents near the river, so it would hardly exert any new influence; that was the only major change that had occurred recently.
Because it was a plausible argument, the others nodded as well.
“Then we must ensure that the magic tool workshops stop dumping waste from now on.”
“I do not believe this problem can be solved by that alone.”
Cheryn shook her head at the magistrate’s words.
“The Court Count’s opinion just now is merely a hypothesis. We need to head downriver ourselves to determine the precise cause. More accurately, it is time to thoroughly analyze and uncover why monsters had never entered through the river in the first place.”
Until now, no one had questioned why monsters never flowed in through the Tesen River.
Because it had naturally been that way since ancient times.
But now that what was once taken for granted was no longer so, it was necessary to properly analyze, confirm the cause, and prevent a recurrence.
“I will dispatch an investigation team to explore the lower reaches of the river, along with a hundred soldiers to escort them.”
The people nodded at Cheryn’s declaration.
By nature, an army was a group that consumed money even when stationary, but devoured even more when on the move.
There was no reason to needlessly mobilize a large force.
However, their nodding heads ground to a halt at her next words.
“And I, too, will join the investigation team.”
“Pardon?”
“How could Princess take on such a perilous task yourself…”
“It is dangerous! What if something goes wrong…”
“The most outstanding mage in this land is me. The president of the society is no less skilled, but considering his age, traveling a long distance would be difficult for him.”
Cheryn crushed the ensuing objections with the words, ‘Then bring forth a mage more capable than me.’
“That is entirely correct, Princess.”
Perhaps truly unwilling to leave the comfortable city of Palles, Orum nodded with a smile.
At that moment, her maternal uncle, Count of Palles, spoke up.
“I do not dare to object to Your Highness’s decision, but would it not be better to send a few capable mages in your place instead? Princess is an indispensable presence in Palles.”
Hearing the exact same words that had been said to Shan just a short while ago, Cheryn bit her lip in embarrassment.
After choosing her words for a moment, she spoke in a polite tone.
“Thank you for your concern, Uncle. But this is something I must step forward to handle. If we do not resolve this quickly, our territory will collapse.”
To prepare for subsequent monster attacks, most of the Palles territory’s military forces were currently patrolling the riverbank.
Even this was full of gaps here and there due to a lack of manpower, so things could not continue to be resolved this way indefinitely.
At Cheryn’s words that prolonged delays at a time when they needed to grow as fast as possible would mean their end, the count let out a soft sigh and nodded.
“…I see. If so, then it cannot be helped.”
As could be seen from how he had supported all of Cheryn’s policies from behind the scenes, the count had no intention of opposing Cheryn to undermine her authority.
He had merely stepped forward out of concern for his only niece as her maternal uncle.
If she personally stepped up even while taking risks, he could only obey.
Because before being Cheryn’s uncle, the count was her subject.
*
As no one knew when monsters might appear again, the investigation team was organized in an instant.
The members of the investigation team consisted of Cheryn, a few maids to attend to her, mages with outstanding knowledge in various fields, old fishermen who had caught fish in the river since long ago, and priests versed in ancient scriptures.
Added to this was a mixed force of about a hundred men, comprising the Altoan mercenary band and armed soldiers directly under the count, who provided escort.
Lord Protector Shan Barendil was to command this force, but in reality, anyone who knew anything was aware that his chief squire, Roden, was the de facto commander.
Since it was known that this chief squire was actually like a brother to Shan, not only the knights but even the nobles did not dare treat him recklessly just because he was a mere squire and a merchant’s son.
Two days after the meeting, a force left Palles Castle and headed downriver toward the southeast along the river.
As they traveled by boat along the river’s current, their speed was incomparably faster than moving overland.
Under the command of the elderly captain, the boatmen rowed back and forth, navigating past reefs scattered here and there.
Standing at the bow and taking in the cool autumn breeze, Shan’s gaze landed on Cheryn walking up from behind.
“It seems your motion sickness has improved a bit.”
“Fortunately, yes. It seems the medicine is taking effect.”
Ten-odd minutes after heading downriver by boat, Cheryn had shown symptoms of motion sickness before long.
She had not been like that when crossing the river before, but the cause seemed to be the increased speed from moving along the current from upriver to downriver.
Shan warned Cheryn as she approached him.
“Be careful. It sways much more the further forward you come.”
“Do not worry. Even so, this much is… Woah.”
As Cheryn, who had been walking with a shrug of her shoulders, stumbled, Shan instantly narrowed the distance of a few steps and held her shoulder to support her.
Then, the moment Cheryn regained her balance, he quickly widened the distance between them.
After all, getting too close in a place where others were watching could lead to uncomfortable misunderstandings.
Just as had happened in the capital Hasra in the past, namely, rumors that the two shared an inappropriate relationship.
In truth, that misunderstanding born in the capital in days past had already spread throughout Pendia.
This was because the story of Shan personally invading the capital to rescue Cheryn had become widely known.
Because of this, her enemies (the forces of Conrad and Elvin) maliciously spread rumors that the princess had dragged a lowly Altoan knight into her bed and used him as she pleased.
Claiming that even if she married a proper noble later on, she would give birth to a horned Altoan child.
Of course, within Palles, this was a story no one dared bring up openly.
For no matter how powerful a knight Shan was to have gained the title of Lord Protector, a union between a princess of Pendia, a descendant of Great Emperor Baren, and an Altoan knight was something that could never be permitted.
“More importantly, are you managing alright with your administrative duties now?”
“As I told you before, I have quite a bit of leeway now. Callion will probably handle most of it.”
Roden’s father, Callion, had demonstrated outstanding achievements as an official directly under Cheryn after arriving in Palles.
This was natural, as the leadership and administrative abilities that had once directed the merchants of the capital had not gone anywhere.
Because of this, he had recently even been promoted to magistrate and granted the title of squire.
“That is a relief.”
Shan felt immense pride in the fact that Callion, who had been his benefactor, was recognized for his abilities.
If Callion were to regret having sponsored him, it would be truly heartbreaking.
Indeed, Callion had spoken to Shan of such things at a small gathering held recently to celebrate his promotion.
‘Even thinking back on it, deciding to sponsor Sir Shan was truly the best choice of my life.’
‘Is that so?’
‘Even without Sir Shan, I would have been living as a jeweler in Hasra all the same. Naturally, I would have been attacked by bandits during the Rebellion of the Princes… and there probably would have been no one to save me and find a mage and priest capable of performing surgery on me. I would have met a lonely death in a ruined mansion.’
Thus, saying that his current life was no different from a second life earned thanks to having sponsored Shan, Callion had expressed his gratitude to Shan with a broad smile across his wrinkled face.
Merely recalling this again filled Shan with a deep sense of satisfaction that permeated his mind and body.
He wished that everyone who cared for him would be happier.
Ever since he had first yearned for a better future through Roden, Shan’s wish had never strayed from that.
Starting with Roden, to the Altoan acrobats who had tried to accept him as one of their kin, Callion and the people of Weavers Manor, his companions from the Green Eyes Exploration Team, Cheryn, and even the people of Palles who revered her and held him in awe.
The boy’s once tiny enclosure grew larger little by little, and each time, the goals he had to achieve grew greater still.
Fortunately, his once small body was also growing larger, and the power to accomplish those goals was becoming stronger as well.
Even at this very moment.
*
“Mmm, the smell…”
After advancing for several hours while occasionally sharing small talk and eating food.
Cheryn muttered while lightly covering her nose.
Upon arriving at the lower reached of the river, parts of the once crystal-blue river turned murky and gave off a foul stench.
This was only natural, given that it was the place where all kinds of waste produced by over one hundred thousand people of Palles were dumped.
Fortunately, as the Tesen River was so vast, the smell was not terribly severe.
“If we are to begin the investigation, it would probably be best to start here.”
“Then let us all disembark. Since night is gradually falling anyway, it will be better to sleep near here tonight and investigate starting tomorrow.”
At a mage’s suggestion, Cheryn nodded and ordered the disembarkation.
The investigation team landed from the boat anchored at the riverbank and stayed at a large nearby village.
The villagers jumped in shock upon learning that the niece Count of Palles and the actual ruler of this land had visited their village.
“Th-This… we have no proper place to accommodate such an honored personage, whatever shall we do…”
“That is fine. A place to lay my body down is enough.”
Fortunately, though the village chief’s bed was a crude item made merely of cloth draped over a pile of hay, it was not teeming with fleas or lice.
This was thanks to the village being located near the river originally, giving it abundant water resources, and recently being able to use plenty of water flowing from the water supply system.
“Squad 5 will stay here. Make sure not to cause any inconvenience to the residents.”
“Understood!”
Roden checked the control of the soldiers with fire in his eyes.
Knowing full well how thorough and strict he was, the soldiers did not dare step out of line and proceeded to eat and sleep while maintaining order.
That night, Shan sat up abruptly from his bed at a sharp scream.
“Monsters-!”
Running toward the direction of the night watchman’s shout, he saw a giant mass of water in a human shape standing about three meters tall.
Inside the creature’s belly, several soldiers were thrashing about with pained expressions.
“Ugh!”
“Watch out!”
As the mass of water swung its arm toward the soldiers, spray burst over their shields along with a splashing sound.
Shan realized that the true identity of that thing was a river spirit.
A spiritual-type monster that could not be eliminated through physical attacks…
Along with the flash of a green light cutting through the dark night, Shan rushed in an instant and swung his sword.
Powered by Fighting Spirit attempting to capture a non-existent entity (something that should originally have been impossible to cleave) the Guardian of the East sliced through the spirit’s body.
As a massive quantity of water poured out from the creature’s belly, several thrashing soldiers tumbled out.
“Ack, cough, ugh.”
“Pull them out!”
At Shan’s order, the soldiers behind them quickly grabbed and dragged away the coughing men.
Perhaps resentful that the prey inside its body had been stolen, the spirit uttered a strange, echoing groan and raised its arm to strike down.
Of course, there was no way he would be harmed by such an attack that could not even kill armored soldiers in a single strike.
Stepping lightly to dodge, Shan swung his sword as he was, cleaving the creature’s body in all directions.
After severing its two legs to lower its height, he severed its upper and lower torso, chopped off both arms, and even severed its neck; only then did the thrashing spirit completely disperse, soaking the ground wet.
‘It’s over.’
When Shan sheathed his sword, the soldiers finally seemed to realize the situation and muttered among themselves.
“What, it’s dead already?”
“As expected of the Lord Protector…”
“I couldn’t even see him swinging his sword.”
It seemed the sight of him effortlessly dispatching the spirit that had left ordinary soldiers helpless was quite impressive.
In truth, it was merely that spirit-type monsters were exceptionally bad matchups for regular soldiers.
A moment later, Cheryn, who had emerged from her bedroom, grimaced upon hearing the details and extracted ectoplasm from the water that the spirit had inhabited using a spell.
“It is fortunate that we happened to stay in this village. Otherwise, an entire village where hundreds of people live would have been wiped out.”
“It probably was no coincidence.”
“Pardon? Ah…”
“Indeed. The stronger a monster is, the more it tends to be attracted to powerful magic tools.”
Shan recalled a hypothesis he had heard in the past from Zerpo, an explorer of Green Eyes.
Though others who heard those words would have thought of the Guardian of the East, Shan and Roden knew that it referred to ‘Thousand Shapes,’ which he still wore around his upper body.
“That aside, we really must find the cause quickly. The monsters are continuously coming back up the river.”
Considering that none of the monsters that had appeared so far were suited for land activity, overland routes were not something to consider.
Saying that they must quickly patrol downriver to uncover the cause, Cheryn spoke with an anxious expression.
*
The next morning, the investigation team departed from the village and headed straight downriver along the Tesen River.
There, Cheryn and several mages babbled incomprehensible words and cast spells toward the river repeatedly.
They seemed to be utilizing various means, ranging from spells analyzing the components of the river water to spells detecting living organisms.
However, after spending a long time, the conclusion was reached that there was not much that could be determined from this place.
The investigation team boarded their anchored boat and continued further downriver.
Before long, what blocked their path was the Blade Mountain Range, which blocked off the north and east of Palles.
The Tesen River, which had maintained its main stem despite several tributaries flowing out along the way, split into dozens of tributaries as it collided with the mountain range.
“Most of the river branches split here become large and small lakes, but some flow into the interior of the Blade Mountain Range and emerge on the other side to form swamps.”
At the old captain’s words, Cheryn pondered for a moment before asking.
“Among the streams flowing into the mountain range, are there caves leading to the other side of the mountains?”
“My apologies, as for that…”
“We shall search for them. Under the circumstances, the monsters undoubtedly came from the swamps on the other side. If a problem occurred, it is probably somewhere in between.”
Among the monsters that had appeared, there were ones that could not live completely underwater, but lived by the water while needing to breathe and step on land.
If only passages completely filled with river water existed, it would be impossible for such creatures to cross over.
Afterwards, Cheryn divided the investigation team into several groups to investigate the river tributaries flowing into the interior of the mountain range.
Before long, one group discovered a passage large enough for a person to enter.
Though he did not know the details, it seemed they had found the route the creatures frequently traveled using some magic that tracked the traces of monsters.
“It is here.”
The cave, with a river flowing right beside it, appeared to be thirty meters wide with a ceiling height of about six meters.
It seemed to be a natural cave formed as the river’s flow decreased over time due to terrain shifts, though more water had likely flowed through in ancient times.
After waiting and observing for several hours, the investigation team learned that the place where the monsters mainly emerged was precisely the tributary entering that cave.
“It seems the current in other tributaries is too fast for them to climb back up, but only this side has a relatively slow flow, allowing the monsters to come up along it.”
“Then does that mean we simply need to block off this passage…”
Cheryn nodded and muttered at the mage’s report.
Having figured out a solution for now was quite encouraging.
However, instead of stopping there, she instructed them to conduct a full-scale investigation inside the cave.
This was because they still did not know the reason why monsters had suddenly started bursting forth after not appearing for all this time.
Fortunately, prepared for various situations, the investigation team also possessed equipment suitable for exploring the interior of the cave.
Preparing several lantern magic tools, they posted fifteen soldiers and one knight outside to guard the horses they had ridden.
“Wait just a little, Arwin. I’ll be back soon.”
At Shan’s comforting words, Arwin shook her head discontentedly, but did not throw a severe tantrum.
Still, rather than being left completely alone like before, there were servants nearby to attend to him, so he seemed to consider it tolerable.
Leaving a portion outside, the investigation team held lanterns and stepped inside.
On the dark cave ceiling, human shadows flickered bizarrely like those of monsters.
“It is dark…”
Unlike the others who showed signs of discomfort, Shan’s expression was calm.
For his glowing pair of green eyes could perfectly pierce through the darkness before him.
With Shan leading the way, the investigation team walked inside for about an hour with the river tributary right beside them.
Hunting the monsters that occasionally leaped out of the river was a bonus.
Their steps came to a stop after they encountered a sizable open space.
“What is this…?”
A soldier muttered in a trembling voice as he looked at the sight unfolding before his eyes.
There stood a truly colossal mound of bones, whose time of accumulation could not even be guessed.