Chapter 115 : Chapter 115
Chapter 115
“…….”
“…….”
At the sudden scream, the three standing in a circle froze.
Porzelin instantly furrowed her brow and gripped the hilt of her sword.
“Has there been an attack on their side? If it is a dangerous situation—”
However, despite her whisper, the expressions of the other two were rather subtle.
To begin with, that scream had not been Ianpel’s voice……
[U-Urgh…… I-I do not know anyth—!]
[Shh. Could you be quiet for a moment?]
If anything, it was Ianpel who was gently warning someone.
Heinen, startled, stared at the brilliantly glowing blue mana stone with dawning realization.
Aquila, too, could easily guess what was happening beyond the communicator.
He frowned slightly.
“……Did you answer my call in the middle of an interrogation?”
[Ah. I see. It truly is the third blood of Reschenhardt, then? This is not a mistaken connection?]
Ianpel murmured in surprise.
[Hmm. As expected…… I had a feeling you would contact me first. It seems my intuition is still of some use.]
His tone gradually returned to normal, soft and almost lyrical.
“Yes, well. More importantly—”
[Ah. Just a moment, please. It will only take a short while.]
Ianpel cut him off.
The sound of him speaking to someone else followed, though the words were indistinct.
Porzelin awkwardly released her grip on her sword.
Not long after, a door opened and closed somewhere on the other end, and the surroundings grew quiet.
It seemed he had moved to another location.
Ianpel’s voice resonated clearly once more.
[Good. Where are you now? Is the Second Commander beside you as well?]
“One question at a time. Lord Heinen is here with me. I have activated the sound so others may hear as well, so they can hear everything you are saying.”
[Oh my. I must have startled them unintentionally. Now then, where are you?]
The saint replied smoothly.
It seemed he had no intention of revisiting the earlier scream unless Aquila pressed the matter.
Aquila clicked his tongue softly.
He had intended to explain anyway, so he chose his words carefully.
“……We are in the east.”
He briefly recounted everything that had happened since being forcibly transported there.
He also mentioned that he had already informed Shen and Yujelia, who possessed Lexenbert’s Communication Bracelet, and that they were preparing to travel east to escort him.
[You truly are always swept into some affair. Even now, to be forcibly transported into the very center of chaos where a dungeon has been temporarily sealed…….]
Ianpel murmured with interest.
From the Venomous Curse incident to the events in Portplum, Denimarad, and now the east—
Aquila Reschenhardt had stood at the center of every one of them.
Not a single incident had been ordinary.
[It is as though some grand fate awaits you.]
“Let us call it misfortune. Though I agree that both are equally troublesome.”
Aquila answered dryly.
Before Ianpel could elaborate further, he shifted the topic.
“I heard that Labyrinth City, Labyrinth has been half-destroyed. The scream earlier—was that someone captured during that process?”
[You said this was your second call, yet you are quite well informed.]
Ianpel replied, undoubtedly smiling.
[Let us say that is correct. Ah, and before you ask—no meaningful answers have been obtained yet. It does not seem important enough for me to personally peer inside his mind.]
Which meant the captive was not someone of sufficient rank to warrant the use of Invasion.
Of course, if the individual held a significant position within the Guild of Darkness, there was a high likelihood that something would block Ianpel’s skill, much like with Gilesha.
“I trust you to handle information gathering. More importantly, is Father not nearby?”
[Ah. If you mean the master of Igrail, he is currently—]
Clack!
Just as Ianpel was about to answer, an abrupt noise cut in.
The source was not the communicator—but the door of the magic tool shop.
Someone was attempting to enter, but it was firmly locked. The handle rattled uselessly.
“There is light inside, but the door is locked. Did he step out?”
“The horse is here. He might be inside.”
“Then let us wait until he opens it……”
Soft conversation drifted in from outside.
It appeared customers had come to Merdin’s shop.
Even before the voices were heard, Heinen and Porzelin had sensed the presence and turned toward the door. They now cast glances toward the workshop.
“It seems to be customers. Shall we wait like this, or shall I call Lord Merdin from the workshop—”
Before Heinen could finish—
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Someone pounded violently on the shop door.
“W-Wait a moment! Who knocks like that without warning?”
“There is movement inside. Why should we wait? This is faster.”
The attempt to restrain the man failed.
Thud! Thud!
The heavy blows suggested he wore gauntlets.
“Hey! Open the door!”
Thud! Thud!
The pounding continued relentlessly.
Aquila frowned.
It would be impossible to continue the conversation with Ianpel at this rate.
[……Is something the matter? You said you were in Banahan, did you not?]
Ianpel asked quietly.
“Yes, but it is not a dangerous situation. Someone is just—”
“We know you are in there! Open up!”
Bang! Thud!
“……I will fetch Lord Merdin.”
Heinen moved toward the workshop.
But Merdin emerged first.
Creeeak.
Wearing his gemstone-lensed spectacles, he strode out with a deep scowl.
“I was in the middle of something pleasant. Who dares make such a racket in front of my shop……?”
He muttered irritably.
The noise must have reached the workshop.
“Ahem! Just a moment! I will deal with this shortly.”
Spotting Aquila’s group gathered in the corner, Merdin wrinkled his nose before scowling again.
Bang!
He flung the door open.
“What is the meaning of this disturbance in front of my shop?”
He surveyed the figures gathered outside.
“……Finally. I knew there was someone inside.”
Yet the irritation in the other man’s voice rivaled Merdin’s own.
“You are the one who sold this, correct?”
“Hm? That is a lamp ignited by a mana stone. Yes, I made it. Why?”
Merdin tilted his head.
“Why? You ask why? You sold us defective goods!”
“Defective?”
“Yes! This lamp does not light at all!”
It seemed they had come to complain.
[Reschenhar—]
“Shh. I will contact you again later. Please inform Father that I reached out.”
Aquila cut Ianpel off swiftly.
Even if their voices were unlikely to carry over the argument, caution cost nothing.
[……Very well. It does not appear dangerous. Contact me again once this is resolved.]
Ianpel replied softly.
The golden ring around Aquila’s wrist faded as he ended the call.
Meanwhile, the dispute escalated.
“We were left helpless in total darkness!”
The man shouted furiously.
“There are no cracks, and the formulas are intact. There are signs it was thrown, but that must have been your doing……”
Merdin examined the lamp calmly.
“Absurd! If it were functioning properly, would it not produce light? How do you intend to compensate us? Do you even know how long we waited to enter that dungeon?”
Regardless, the man only grew angrier.
Aquila glanced toward the doorway.
Beyond Merdin’s back, he caught sight of three figures.
The one shouting sounded young. The others were likely similar in age.
“What shall we do? This does not seem likely to end peacefully.”
Heinen and Porzelin, who had been watching closely in case something happened, turned to Aquila.
They could not interfere in a dispute between merchant and customer.
But neither could they stand idle forever.
“Should we return to the workshop? Or exit through the back?”
“Well, perhaps we should relocate for now—”
“Ah! I see! You have no mage in your party, do you? I distinctly told you to recharge the mana stone! If you did not, how could it possibly be light?”
Merdin finally seemed to understand and shouted.
“Tsk! Yet another inexperienced dungeon explorer who fails to heed instructions and then blames the item?”
“What did you just call me?”
“Inexperienced. I clearly—”
Thud! Crash!
Before he could finish, the man’s fist smashed into Merdin’s face.
With a heavy impact, Merdin fell to the floor along with the lamp.
“Lord Merdin!”
Heinen rushed forward.
The man’s gauntleted blow had crushed Merdin’s face severely. Blood streamed from a torn wound and his nose.
“Ha? An elf? Move!”
One of the attacker’s companions grabbed him in alarm.
“What are you doing?!”
“Let go! He dares insult me? Do you know who I am—!”
He shook off his companion and lunged again.
Porzelin stepped forward instantly, raising her sheathed sword.
“To strike an unguarded man is shameful.”
“And who are you? Another filthy half-breed siding with him—!”
“In the east, insulting another race carries punishment.”
Aquila picked up the lamp from the floor.
Even to his eye, it was well-crafted.
Golden light shimmered at his fingertips.
Fwoosh!
A crimson flame flared within the glass, and the lamp illuminated the shop brighter than the overhead lights.
“Injuring an innocent man is punishable as well. The maximum penalty is death.”
The man’s face reddened more than the lamp’s glow.
“You—!”
“Let us go! Please!”
His companion pulled him back urgently, having sensed the killing intent radiating from Porzelin.
Realizing it as well, the man glared murderously at Aquila before turning sharply away.
His two companions followed in silence.
“What absurd fools.”
“Indeed. Had this been Igrail, I would have simply beaten him senseless.”
Porzelin approached Merdin calmly despite her furrowed brow.
Heinen was already treating him, but the blow had been severe enough to leave him unconscious.
“We must move Lord Merdin somewhere safer. We should find a place for him to rest—”
Suddenly, hurried footsteps approached.
The door burst open once more.
“You—what are you doing?!”