Chapter 141
The northeastern part of Rudek. This area, comprising several noble territories, is known as the Halodel region.
The Halodel region is named after the Halodel cattle raised here. Or was it the other way around—that cattle from a place called Halodel became famous?
In any case, Halodel beef is among the finest not only in Rudek but on the Northern Continent as a whole. The meat itself, as well as processed products such as cheese, is considered a cut above ordinary beef.
It is also popular on the Southern Continent and is one of Rudek's major specialties, alongside its minerals.
The defining feature of Halodel cattle is their refined fat. Raised freely amid the pure water and gentle hills created by the mountain range that serves as a bulwark against the Empire, these cattle produce an exquisite flavor with a natural sweetness.
The finest cuts supposedly melt on your tongue... or so I've heard. Of course, I've never eaten any. It's not something that easily finds its way into the mouths of common folk.
Halodel cattle brought great prosperity to this region. One of the noble houses that grew powerful from that prosperity was the Veloza family.
Although the Veloza territory lies far from the area around the royal shrine, this region can nonetheless be called Dentacrus Veloza's turf.
The royal shrine is managed by the Obera family, a somewhat unusual noble house that owns nothing but the town near the shrine.
The house exists solely to protect the royal shrine and, according to Prince Zeland, is one of the oldest noble houses, having survived since the ritual began. It is sustained by subsidies from the royal family in return for fulfilling that role.
The royal shrine was designed so that the road from the town managed by the Obera family extends straight to the foot of the mountain where the shrine stands. Because of the difference in elevation, people can watch the royal family make their way to the shrine from the town, which is apparently quite a spectacular sight.
With Prince Zeland explaining all this along the way, we reached the shrine town after several days of travel.
The Ninth Knight Order did nothing but follow behind us the whole way. They didn't interfere, but they were no use as guards, either.
"Ah, Prince Zeland! Look how you've grown!"
The one welcoming him with both arms raised in the shrine town was Halveri Obera-sama, head of the Obera family. He was a gentle-looking man who was already approaching old age.
"Halveri-dono, it has been a long time."
"You must be tired after such a long journey. Now, please take it easy for the ten days until you go to the shrine. All of you serving as escorts are welcome to do the same."
As Halveri-sama led us into town, I looked around. I'd heard it wasn't a particularly large town, but many of the buildings were quite impressive.
Looking more closely, I saw that most of them were inns. There were also far more people than the town's size would suggest. Everyone waved at our procession and cheered.
When I commented on it, Sazaby answered me.
"This town's main purpose is to provide lodging for people connected to the shrine. Especially when a ritual is held, people gather from all around to catch even a glimpse of it."
"Then the people around here..."
"Yes. Most of them are probably tourists who gathered here for this ritual. Look, they're all paying attention to us."
I had thought it was an enthusiastic welcome, but apparently this was a spectacle.
"But rituals like this can go years without being held, or even decades in some cases, right?"
"That's right. So the royal family provides support, while the lord manages the town as an inn. You could say that the entire town is one enormous inn, and the lord is its manager, keeping all the rooms clean so the royal family can arrive at any time."
"That's... quite a lavish arrangement."
"Well, he is the king. Besides, now that the prince has arrived, even more people will be coming."
"Ah, so that's why it takes ten days before the ritual begins."
"Exactly. They want to attract as many people as possible and recover even a little of the expense."
They sure knew how to turn a profit, all things considered.
"But you're awfully well informed, Sazaby. Why? You weren't here for the previous ritual, were you?"
"I heard about it from Halveri-sama when I came for the planning meetings."
Come to think of it, Sazaby had been away for quite a while preparing for the ritual.
"By the way, Roa-dono, have you ever eaten Halodel beef?"
"No, I haven't."
"Then look forward to it. There'll be all-you-can-eat Halodel beef tonight."
I was greatly looking forward to trying Halodel beef, but in the end, I never got to taste any that day.
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Dentacrus made his move.
We had barely taken a breather after arriving in the shrine town when he
started saying, "The Empire's movements are suspicious."
A report had apparently come from the Ninth Knight Order's main force that Imperial soldiers might have infiltrated the territory.
"There are supposedly around 3,000 soldiers. We need to investigate immediately. The Ninth Knight Order under my command has 2,000. Send another 1,000 from the Tenth Knight Order. I don't trust that Roa fellow, so send the Lapiria Unit."
The rest of us and Lapiria-sama exchanged puzzled looks.
What he was saying made no sense.
For such vague information—that Imperial soldiers had supposedly infiltrated the territory—the number of soldiers was far too precise. Where had they supposedly entered from in the first place? And what had the Ninth Knight Order been doing?
Even so, Dentacrus repeated the same claim.
"If Imperial soldiers have infiltrated the area, the Ninth Knight Order can't simply stand by! Or is the Tenth Knight Order helping Imperial soldiers get in?!"
That was the absurd argument he kept making.
So that's what this is. He wants to draw Lapiria-sama's troops away from the town and leave its defenses thin. It's way too obvious. Is he an amateur?
Besides, I couldn't understand why such a small Imperial force would show up here at this particular time.
Even so, if people started shouting that Imperial soldiers had invaded, the tourists in town might panic. We couldn't simply ignore it.
Lapiria-sama asked me with a look, "Is this all right?" I answered with a nod.
"All right, then. The Lapiria Unit will go too."
"Thank you," Dentacrus said in a monotone, his face showing no gratitude whatsoever.
Thus, of the 4,000 soldiers we had brought with us, 3,000 hurriedly set out to search for the Imperial soldiers.
"It's a trap."
"It's a trap."
Wickhart and I traded the words, sounding a little exasperated.
"For now, Prince Zeland is probably their target, so keep a close watch on the area around town."
"Yes."
Some time after the troops departed, Sazaby came over to me.
"The enemy's here," he reported casually.
"Are they Imperial soldiers?" When I asked, he gave a slight wry smile.
"A group equipped with gear made to look a lot like Imperial soldiers' equipment... Judging from their bearing, they're less soldiers than a ragtag bunch of thugs."
That explained why Sazaby had reported it so leisurely.
Beside me, Nelfia let out a small sigh and said,
"Honestly... this is rather sloppy..."
Honestly, everything about this is so sloppy...