Chapter 43
"Then I'll be off."
"Yeah. Take care."
With that, I said goodbye to Leo.
King Rondine had the fleet ready by the next day. That's fast. You could say the difference in efficiency is reflected in the current state of the southern territories.
This time, King Rondine himself was setting out to forge a formal alliance with the Principality of Albatross. More importantly, though, he would have to deal with the Sea Dragon that was presumably in Albatross waters.
"Al, are you going to be all right on your own?"
Elna asked, looking somewhat worried. Her gaze stubbornly avoided the sea. It seemed she was already afraid of it.
Marc was on Leo's side this time, too. Only a limited number of people were staying by my side.
But I didn't need capable people around me while I remained in Rondine.
"Now that the Sea Dragon has returned to the waters of the Principality of Albatross, that country is its target. Rondine should be safe for a while. If anything, I'm more worried about whether you'll be all right. Here, take a look. The sea is beautiful, isn't it?"
"I-I-I'll be fine! W-when it comes to a battle... I-I can handle that. A-and just like you said... i-it is beautiful... It's almost like I've jumped right into a painting..."
Looking out at the sea from the port, Elna said that with a pale face. Her eyes were already completely dead as she stared at the water.
She almost certainly wouldn't be of any use even if a battle broke out.
It would be better to have Elna fight on land. Well, Leo wouldn't need me to tell him that.
"The rest is up to you. Look after Elna, too."
"Yeah, leave it to me. Just wait patiently for us, Big Brother."
"Right. I'll leave the fighting to you two. Somehow see it through and come back. We can't easily return to the Empire with the Sea Dragon out there."
I saw the two of them off like that.
Once the fleet disappeared from view, I returned to the castle and shut myself away in the room assigned to me. I wanted to sleep the whole time, but unfortunately, I couldn't do that.
I cast an illusion that made it look as though I were lying in bed, then left the room through the window.
My destination was the Adventurers' Guild branch in Rondine.
Of course, I wasn't going there as Arnold. I used an illusion to take on Silver's appearance before heading there.
If ordinary adventurers learned that Silver was here, it would cause a commotion, so I put them to sleep with a sleep spell before entering the branch.
Once everyone was asleep, I entered the branch.
The receptionist, whom I hadn't put to sleep, was awake, but she was panicking at the disturbance.
"W-who might you be...?"
"I'm Silver, an SS-rank adventurer affiliated with the Imperial Capital branch. I put the other adventurers to sleep because I didn't want to cause a commotion. Sorry for frightening you."
"S-Silver? The famous one?"
"I don't know whether I'm famous or not."
With that, I showed the receptionist my adventurer card.
The receptionist took it from me hesitantly, then let out a cry of astonishment when she saw what was written on it.
"The real thing?!"
"That's what I said. Sorry, but I'd like to use the long-distance communication room."
Every branch of the Adventurers' Guild had a long-distance communication room.
It was a room protected by a special barrier. The crystal placed in its center could connect to the crystals in the long-distance communication rooms at headquarters and other branches.
It was a secret Guild technique, necessary for an organization with branches across the continent to respond swiftly to monsters.
"I-I understand! This way, please!"
Only guild staff and adventurers ranked S or higher could use a branch's long-distance communication room.
Adventurers ranked S or higher, who could handle high-rank monsters on their own, were treated as a class apart even within the guild.
After being shown to the long-distance communication room, I immediately connected to headquarters.
And then.
"I'm Silver, SS-rank. Call the vice guildmaster."
'Certainly.'
As expected, the headquarters staff were used to this.
They responded calmly without even showing surprise.
After I waited for a while, the face of a bearded middle-aged man appeared in the crystal.
With black hair and blue eyes, he was the very image of a handsome middle-aged man. His name was Clyde.
He had once been a formidable S-rank adventurer who traveled all over the continent. Now retired, he served as the vice guildmaster at headquarters.
'Why are you making a long-distance call from a branch in the south?'
"I'm here to see an acquaintance."
'An acquaintance, huh? I didn't know you had anyone like that.'
"I'm human, so of course I have a few acquaintances. Anyway, I heard a strange rumor. Is it true?"
'There's no point hiding it... It's true. The Principality of Albatross has officially requested the subjugation of a Sea Dragon. Headquarters is in complete uproar right now.'
"I figured. What rank has headquarters assigned it?"
'It's slated to be S-rank. However, depending on the destruction it causes from here on, it could be raised to SS-rank. If that happens, it will become a top-level subjugation quest requiring multiple SS-rank adventurers.'
"Don't do it. Even if you defeat the Sea Dragon, the Principality of Albatross will be left in ruins."
Multiple SS-rank adventurers besides me would gather.
That was certainly a situation the Adventurers' Guild would want to avoid. Every one of them possessed monstrous strength, but none of them had any common sense.
If they all gathered, the damage could be severe enough to kill every creature in the sea in exchange for the Sea Dragon, or render a port town beyond recovery.
'I don't want to summon them either. But since you're conveniently there, could you take care of it?'
"Don't make it sound like an errand. I'm returning to the Imperial Capital on business after this. If you can wait until then, I'll take it on."
'I see... I'd like you to do it sooner, though.'
"Has some problem come up?"
'...It was top-secret information, but somehow it leaked to the Empire. Apparently, they're discussing sending aid.'
"If they intervene successfully, they could put the south deeply in their debt. But... there's also a chance they'll increase the secondary damage."
Actually, they definitely would.
Even if the Empire sent a fleet, it would only be sunk by a storm.
The Empire could send its elite forces, but it would be better to leave things to Elna, who was already there, than to do that.
Father was probably considering whether he should have Elna use the Holy Sword.
'Exactly. The Adventurers' Guild wants to settle this before the Empire intervenes and causes even more chaos.'
"I understand how you feel, but I'm not willing to keep waiting in the south for a Sea Dragon whose time and place of appearance are unknown. If it appears, I'll head there immediately. How about that?"
'We'll have to settle for that. I'll smooth things over on my end. The Empire's succession struggle has made things troublesome lately. If possible, I don't want to let them intervene. Head there as soon as we receive a report of its appearance.'
"I'll do what I can."
With that answer, I ended the long-distance call.
The Adventurers' Guild's top-secret information had leaked... I had a bad feeling about this.
I had a feeling someone was trying to use this opportunity to make a name for themselves.
If I didn't stop them properly, the situation could descend into chaos.
I should return to the Imperial Capital after all.
"Thank you. I'll be going now."
"Y-yes!"
After thanking the receptionist, I left the Rondine branch.
"Should I fly to the Imperial Capital tomorrow?"
I would check on Fiene and the others, as well as see how far the Empire had gone with its intervention.
If the Empire was seriously moving toward intervention, crushing its plans would affect my position as Silver, so it wouldn't be wise.
The ideal outcome would be to resolve this while allowing both the Empire and the Adventurers' Guild to save face.
"Well, I suppose I'll see what happens after I return."
After dispelling the illusion and returning to Arnold, I muttered that.
At worst, Fiene and the others might be in such dire straits that I wouldn't have the leeway to deal with this. I wouldn't know until I went back.
"Anyway, I hope they aren't doing anything reckless."
Fiene was reckless despite how she looked.
When she fought a vampire, she climbed a clock tower without hesitation, and even while falling, she prioritized the flute over her own safety.
She had a tendency to take her own life lightly.
I just hoped that side of her hadn't surfaced.
With those worries on my mind, I returned to the castle.