Chapter 2

Chapter 2

“RUMOR HAS IT the Daemon Killer was here in this village,” Sedam said, sharing a tasty morsel of information he’d obtained from the villagers.

“Really?”

From what I’d heard before, the Daemon Killer was a “heroic-ranked” warrior who traveled the land single-handedly slaying daemons. If memory served correctly, his name was Lade.

“That’s amazing!” Ted paused, and then wondered, “But if he was here, where did he go…?”

“He repelled the daemons in the first wave on his own,” Sedam explained. “This morning he claimed that he was going to attack their lair and set out.”

In other words, the group of daemons that attacked the village must have come shortly after he’d left.

Djirk was aghast. “Is that true?! If it is, isn’t he biting off more than he can chew?”

Sedam shook his head. “It was ages ago, but I’ve actually seen

the Daemon Killer fight, even if it was from a distance. I’ll have you know that the man cut down a fiend right before my eyes.”

I still hadn’t seen any warrior—let alone single-handedly—defeat a fiend on the battlefield. If that was true, he would make an incredible ally…

“For there to be so many daemons, do you think a nest is somewhere in the area? No matter how impressive he is, that would be a bit much for anyone to handle alone…”

The presence of a nest weighed heavily on me. Memories of the fierce battle fought a month ago flashed across my mind. Together with Sedam’s party and the Calbanera Knights, I’d descended into the center of the nest, where a strange orb gave birth to the daemons. A jet-black, spherical mass, it was powerful enough to defeat the small red dragon I’d summoned in a single strike.

“I think he stands a fair chance, but we should go lend him a hand.” Sedam leaped at the chance for more adventure without the least bit of hesitation.

“I second that—Ah!” In the midst of agreeing with Sedam, a thought suddenly occurred to me.

“What’s wrong?”

“It just hit me, but you and the others aren’t getting paid for this, are you? I’m sorry it didn’t occur to me sooner. I’ll cover your fees,” I offered apologetically.

I’d already sworn to myself that I’d use the vast powers I’d been given in this world for good. I felt certain that the greatest good I could do was thwart the daemonic threat. But regardless of my personal oath, Clara, Sedam, and the others were professional adventurers who fought on commission. Emergency or not, it was inappropriate to drag them out here and expect them to fight without discussing fees first.

“It’s not like this is a first for you,” Clara pointed out.

“True enough! You had every intention of bringing us along when you heard what was happening here,” Djirk pitched in, “fee or no fee.”

“Ouch! Y-you got me there…”

Clara and Djirk were absolutely right. I found myself rubbing the back of my head in embarrassment. This was about as far from the image of a “great magic user” as I could possibly get.

“Don’t worry about it. Exterminating daemons is a top priority for us adventurers, too. If we make sure to file the paperwork, we should receive back pay from Relis.” While Sedam explained, Djirk and the others nodded in agreement.

“R-really? I’m glad to hear it.”

Naturally, I knew that it was just as Sedam said; they hadn’t come simply to line their pockets. Yet at the same time, it was reassuring to hear them confirm that they found protecting folk from daemons a noble calling in and of itself.

Truthfully, the mere existence of a bounty system proved just how close to home the daemon threat was to the people of Sedia.

“My duties as a noble and sorceress take precedence over those of an adventurer. Regardless of whether I am compensated or not, it is my obligation to protect the people from daemons.” Clara spoke with practiced hauteur, her ample chest puffed up proudly.

***

“…I’m impressed,” Djirk whispered.

“Whoa!” Ted shaded his eyes, looking ahead. “Do you suppose the Daemon Killer did this all on his own?”

Thanks to Sedam and Fijika’s amazing tracking skills, following the Daemon Killer’s trail was a breeze. After a certain point, we basically just had to follow the trail of hacked daemon corpses left in his wake. Within a few hours of climbing through mountain bush, we came to the gaping mouth of a cave. There were even more daemon corpses littering the ground outside.

Ted knelt to check one of the bodies. “He cut each and every one in half with a single slash.”

“He’d need to throw a great deal of momentum behind a truly monstrous sword to halve them cleanly like this,” Djirk said, analyzing another.

“As I recall, the Daemon Killer’s weapon of choice is indeed a greatsword,” confirmed Torrad.

The warriors in our party sounded like they were in a period drama or old police procedural. They pointedly ignored my struggle not to let the vile stench and grotesque sight of gore upend the contents of my stomach. It was just as they’d said; the majority of the daemons were, in fact, cleaved through. It was merely a question of whether they’d been bisected horizontally or vertically. Why, there was even a fiend cut clean across the waist. Clearly, this “Daemon Killer” was an abnormally powerful warrior here in Sedia.

***

To make a long story short, we ultimately failed to find the Daemon Killer. The depths of the cave held nothing but a mess of daemon corpses. There wasn’t any indication a daemon nest was ever there, either.

Just to play it safe, I used a spell to conjure up some monsters with high intelligence and maneuverability, then ordered them to search the area. They didn’t come across any more daemons, or anything resembling a nest. So far as we could tell, this was just a splinter group.

***

By the time we returned to the village, the Soleri troops had finally arrived. Boasting nearly a hundred heavily armed soldiers, they appeared…reasonably strong. The soldiers devoted themselves to healing the injured and aiding with reconstruction of damaged homes, but fear crossed their faces whenever their eyes fell upon the ogres I’d left to guard the village, or upon the remnants of the daemons I’d defeated with my spell. On the other extreme, the villagers prostrated themselves upon the ground the moment they noticed me.

At any rate, the captain of the troops soon sought to treat with me. “Would you be the Great Sorcerer, Lord Geo Margilus?” he asked.

“…If you mean the great wizard Margilus, then yes, I am he.” I wore a stern expression, striving to play my role to the utmost. A great magic user ought to emanate power and dignity.

News of how I’d collaborated with the Calbanera Knights to destroy a daemon nest should have reached Soler by now, not to mention how I’d defeated a daemonist in Relis. Yet despite his knowledge of my great feats, the captain came across oddly cold.

“Oh? Well, at any rate, you have my gratitude for coming to this village in its time of need. I see your power is as incredible as the rumors claim. But I never dreamed…er…”

“Do go on,” I prodded.

“I never dreamed you could control daemons! And fiends, at that…”

“No. I cannot do anything of the kind. You’ve entirely the wrong idea.”

To be fair, fiends and ogres looked remarkably similar. Then again, anything under the category of “large humanoid monster” was bound to share some similarities. Come to think of it, didn’t Mora warn me to be careful about summoning monsters for this very reason?

“I-Is that a fact? There is another matter I must discuss with you. As much as it pains me to say this, I’m afraid…” The captain hesitated.

“Yes?”

He apologetically explained that the Soler City Council had decided against offering me and my fellow adventurers any form of compensation for our work exterminating the daemons here. The basis for their decision was that we had not been commissioned by the city. I don’t really care about the money, but that doesn’t seem right…

I eyed the captain. “I’m sure this isn’t the case…but do tell me. Your late arrival didn’t have anything to do with the council bickering over how to deal with me, did it?”

“Ugh…! I’d be lying if I claimed that didn’t contribute to the delay,” he answered reluctantly.

When Ild had sent the message to me, he’d also informed the Soler City Council that “the great wizard Margilus will probably go to assist the village.” That level of correspondence fell into the realm of common courtesy. There was no way of knowing it would become the source of such tumult.

“None of the people in positions of authority know you well in Soler. They were suspicious of your motives and second-guessed you. On top of that, the typical power struggles between factions in the city council were undoubtedly at play.” Clara sounded sympathetic as she explained the politics of it all.

The captain, for his part, seemed genuinely apologetic. “…I’m afraid it’s exactly as she says. Some members of the council even believe relying on you will put us in debt with Relis City…”

For these city-states, dispatching their troops was a matter of grave consequence. It was not the sort of thing one or two big shots could decide on a whim. It was asking for too much to expect them to bend the rules for an anomaly like me. Even so, they’re being ridiculous!

“…Please don’t worry about the compensation,” I said. “But when you return, I would appreciate it if you relayed a message to the people of Soler on my behalf. Tell them the wizard Geo Margilus is an ally to all who fight against the daemons.”

“Certainly! I swear to deliver your message, just as you’ve spoken it.”

By the time our conversation drew to a close, the captain’s expression was somewhat softer than when we’d first met. At least to some degree, I had managed to earn his trust and respect. He even went so far as to promise that he’d personally inform me the next time he received word of a daemon attack. If I’d taken the time to forge relationships like this in Soler earlier, the city council might have been quicker to dispatch the troops.

There was great fanfare as the adventurers and I left the village. The soldiers stood at attention and saluted while the villagers once again prostrated themselves. Parts of this escapade weighed heavily on me, but there were several important lessons for me to take home. I need to figure out how to make the most of what I’ve learned here.

***

Several days passed after the incident at the village. I was still a guest at Ild’s home in Relis. The Calbanera Knights might have bequeathed me a castle, but in the meantime, I needed to gather all the things that would make the place livable, from furniture to staff.

“Okay!” Mora held up a fist. “So, next on the agenda is buying ingredients for Mister Geo’s dinner!”

“Very good, Lady Mora!”

“We’re going to include a fresh vegetable salad today,” Mora went on, “and Mister Geo won’t eat his salad without dressing, so we’ll have to visit several spice vendors!”

“Understood, Lady Mora!”

Ild’s home was an impressive three-story mansion with a front yard. Standing in the entryway was a girl with chestnut hair, busy shouting orders at four young ladies in maid dresses, like some kind of drill sergeant.

The girl with chestnut hair was Mora, the only daughter born to Ild, the master of this fine home. Her adorable face radiated cheer, even now, when it was scrunched up in fierce determination. Not only was she the first person I’d had any real interaction with upon arriving in Sedia, Mora was also the first person to trust me.

The line of young maids stood perfectly still, all of them showing the dark brown, nearly black skin unique to dark elves. I liked to call them the “Four Dark Elf Sisters.” The oldest was the good-natured Argha, with her shoulder-length hair. The second oldest was the strict Racil, who always wore braided pigtails. The third sister was the taciturn Gilma, sporting a pixie cut. And the youngest was the bubbly Sasara, whose hair was cut short. Truth be told, they weren’t actually sisters. Yet as women raised in the same tribe, the bonds they shared were as strong as any true-blooded siblings.

There was a time they’d been forced to commit heinous deeds under the control of the daemonist Baron Corbal. Released from his brainwashing, thanks to one of my spells, and proclaimed innocent in their subsequent trial, they were by all rights free women. Yet for some odd reason, they adamantly insisted on referring to me as their “Olry” and serving as my “Si.”

Seeing as I was the one responsible for making them think of me as their Olry, I couldn’t just cast them away. As a result, I officially allowed the four sisters to work under me as my servants along with Reyhanalka Haiklus Si—or Reyha for short. Reyha had become my Si shortly before them. Technically, they were servants, but I personally liked to think of them more as my five dependents.

It seemed like all of the issues had been ironed out, but in reality, I didn’t have any tasks at the moment that required the skills of highly trained assassins. Still, I couldn’t very well allow five more people (dark elves, whatever!) to play all day when I was already a guest in another man’s abode. Bearing that in mind, I’d decided to have them work as maids for the duration of our stay at Ild’s home.

Born to the Haiklus tribe that specialized in sabotage, these dark elves had learned basic housecleaning as part of their training. But they were no match for Mora, who’d run the whole household ever since Ild’s wife died several years ago. Not only was Mora a master of housework, it was painfully obvious that I doted on the young lady. Seeing this, they’d started to refer to her as “Lady” Mora.

And the newly minted lady was in her element. “I want Argha and Gilma to go to the market! You’re in charge of getting the vegetables, cured pork, and red wine vinegar for the salad!”

“Okay,” Argha replied languidly.

“Yes, milady!” Gilma answered crisply.

“Racil, search the port venders for ingredients to go in the soup.

If they have Ryuse shrimp or black abalone, get it!”

“Understood.”

“Sasara, search the spice vendors with me!”

“Okay, sure!”

Mora did a fantastic job taking the four sisters’ personalities and relationships into consideration when delegating their tasks. My influence alone isn’t enough to make a pack of extremely deadly assassin-elves happily obey an ordinary girl’s orders. Mora did this all on her own.

As for Reyha, the leader of the four sisters, she constantly took a position either behind me or somewhere out of sight, under the pretext that she was “guarding” me. She is standing guard, isn’t she? Doubt suddenly getting the best of me, I quickly spun around.

“Do you have need of my services, Master?” Reyha knelt, head lowered. I hadn’t even heard her move into position, let alone sensed she was there!

“No, all is well. But, uh, I wanted to make sure you know it’s all right to take some breaks,” I said. “Don’t push yourself too hard, okay?”

“S-such benevolence…! I am most grateful! But as your loyal Si, all I desire is to serve you, Master, and follow your orders. I dare not take a moment for myself.”

“R-really? W-well, just be careful not to push yourself too hard…”

Reyha had nearly black skin, pointed ears, and purple hair. She was a beautiful woman with alluring eyes as sharp as daggers. Her horribly revealing black leather armor, which somewhat resembled a bondage suit, was regrettably flattering on her marvelous figure.

This dark elf was more than just eye candy. I could use the spell Sense of Adept to roughly convert the abilities of Sedians to the system used in D&B. According to the spell, Reyha’s abilities were equivalent to a Level 20 rogue. Seeing as someone who was only a Level 6 rogue was considered a skilled scout at the Adventurers’ Guild, it was safe to say she could be classified as “heroic-ranked.” (For the record, the four sisters were right around Level 10, give or take a level or two).

To think such an amazing woman totally hangs on my every word! What man wouldn’t enjoy that? And if I said I didn’t have a few inappropriate fantasies about her, I’d be lying. But honestly…it’s not as if she loves me for my own merits, or my personality…

***

With a belly full of bouillabaisse loaded with fish and shellfish, plus a salad topped with thick dressing, I welcomed the following day. I paid a visit to the chairman of the Relis City Council, Zatow Brauze, at his mansion of a home. He was just the man to speak with regarding the recent fiasco at the village. We needed to figure out the best way to handle anti-daemon countermeasures going forward.

“First, I wish to thank you for protecting the people of Ryuse.” The very first thing out of Brauze’s mouth upon hearing me recount the village incident was respectful gratitude. Since he represented Relis, what transpired in a village under Soler’s jurisdiction was technically none of his concern. For him to nevertheless show such earnest appreciation spoke volumes about his upright character. And the fact that he didn’t go so far as to offer any compensation showed that he was also a realist with his feet firmly planted on the ground.

Throughout my various dealings with Brauze, I’d learned he was a wise politician and a seasoned merchant. That was precisely why his assistance was absolutely necessary.

“I only did what any magician would… But that having been said, it has become evident to me while fighting the daemons that there are some issues that need to be addressed.”

“I can see that,” agreed Brauze. The sight of the stately chairman nodding gravely in agreement with my fumbling attempt at sounding collected made a knot form in the pit of my stomach. Speaking with talented individuals in positions of power always wore me out. It was still difficult for me to assume the mask of the “great magic user.”

“If possible, I would like to receive any information on daemon sightings straightaway.”

“Uh-huh…”

There were bound to be more daemon raids in the future. If word of the attack was delayed each time, lives that could have been saved would be lost. I hoped to draw on the trust of the people in the Ryuse Alliance to create an information network with me at the center, but it might be trickier than I’d expected…

“I am naturally in favor of this proposal for Relis. I can advise the other city-states to accept as well, but…” Brauze hesitated.

“Do you foresee a problem?”

“Yes. Several.”

Truthfully, I’d somewhat expected this after my conversation with the captain in that village. Brauze’s explanation proved my fears were well-founded.

“You may have already noticed, but opinions about you in the cities of Lake Ryuse run the gamut… On one extreme, some towns consider you a great hero, but on the other…well, they think you’re a fraud.”

“A fraud…? Uh, well, those views certainly are polar opposites,” I agreed.

It wasn’t as if Sedia possessed any method of mass communication like the internet, television, or radio. Nearly all of the information people received was passed on by travelers, especially merchants and entertainers. (And as inefficient as it seemed, I’d heard that news actually spread quicker in the Ryuse Alliance than it did elsewhere, thanks to its burgeoning water trade.)

In a world with such limited communication, hardly anyone with half a brain would believe stories along the lines of “a great magic user summoned down meteors on a daemon nest” or “a mighty wizard mobilized a small army to find and defeat a daemonist.” After all, they hadn’t even heard of “wizards” before, let alone the kind of magic I possessed.

“That certainly complicates matters,” I muttered.

“I’m currently discussing this with some prominent figures in the other states with whom I am personally close. While there are some who are leaning toward forming an alliance with you, it’s hard to say in which direction their city will ultimately swing.”

The chairman’s explanation made me want to pull out my hair in frustration. Well, at least not everyone is calling me a fraud. Apparently, some hail me as a “great hero,” so there’s still hope.

“That is not all, master wizard. There is concern among some of the cities that…backed by your power…Relis City intends to expand its influence…”

Thinking back, the captain had implied something along those lines as well. Looking at it from their perspective, I could certainly see how other cities might come to that conclusion. Those who don’t believe I’m a great magic user will assume I’m a fraud. And on the off-chance they do believe in my magic, I would be nothing short of terrifying if they didn’t trust me personally.

“As much as it pains me to say this, there are people here in Relis who have grave misgivings about you as well. In fact, there are cases of your name being used during negotiations to coerce unfair trade deals.”

“They what?!” I croaked, glaring up at the ceiling in dismay. I swear, that’s low! Anger and disgust welled within me, but at the same time, part of me wasn’t surprised. Fantasy setting or not, this was still a world populated by living, breathing people.

“Naturally, I made sure anyone caught doing that will be strictly reprimanded,” Brauze assured me.

“I appreciate it…”

Going by Brauze’s frigid tone, I suspected the “reprimand” would be particularly harsh.

“And here all I want is to deal with the daemons,” I grumbled, the words slipping out before I could catch myself.

“Lord Margilus, I realize this is inappropriate to say to Relis City’s great benefactor,” Brauze began somberly, “but if you truly wish to devote yourself to protecting all of Ryuse—no, humanity—from the daemons, it would be best if you lived in your own castle.”

“My own castle?”

“In other words, you should establish your own independent dominion rather than tethering yourself to Relis, the Ryuse Alliance, or any single power in Sedia,” Brauze elaborated, his voice carrying a certain persuasive edge.

My own dominion, huh? I can see what he’s getting at. As things stood, I was like a single rogue individual carrying around a portable nuke. But if I became the lord of a castle…perhaps the masses would view me in a different light.

“Didn’t you have plans to move into the castle that the Calbanera Knights gave you? I believe settling down there and working to earn the trust of the nearby cities may ultimately prove the quickest way of achieving your goal.”

“Hmm… I appreciate your advice,” I mumbled.

When I first decided to fight for the sake of Sedia’s people, I came up with two approaches to handle the extermination of daemons. One was to form an anti-daemon military alliance, and the other was to build an independent anti-daemon force. Forming a military alliance would require the trust of all the different countries. In order to earn that trust, I needed to build my own independent organization first.

It goes to show I still haven’t let go of how I viewed things when I lived in Japan. It never even occurred to me that I’d need a “stronghold” to build my organization. I guess a rental office around the corner won’t cut it, huh? If I can’t rent an office…that castle, Castle Getaeus, is just what I need.

I thanked the chairman for his time and left his mansion. Still unaccustomed to the idea of calling for a carriage, I wound up walking back to Ild’s mansion. Along the way, I heard countless voices call out “Protector of Relis!” and “Lord Wizard!” With those voices came smiles filled with great respect. On the other hand, there were a considerable number of people who scurried away or openly glared at me with contempt.

Well, jeez! I guess maybe magic users really aren’t meant to live in cities or towns, after all.