by Yuu Tanaka
Okay, what’s it for?
“I’ve been thinking about it, and how would you like to go to the Beastman Nation? You’ll be able to complete the guild’s immigration inspection as you go, and you could get the support of the guild there, too.”
“What would I do when I get there?”
“Confirm the whereabouts of a missing adventurer. There are still people looking for her, and we would like to know how she’s doing.”
Dias wanted to know how Kiara was. He was really good at putting the guild to personal use.
“Uh-huh…”
That’s nice of you, Dias.
The Beastman Nation was full of fluffy ears. I would love to check it out.
“But we have an auction to go to.”
The one in the capital, right. It’s not like we have to attend, so let’s head to the Beastman Nation first.
But you could get good crystals at the auction. Fran wanted to go to the auction for my sake.
But we might not. Besides, we can get crystals just as easily in the Beastman Nation. Who knows, some of them might be interesting. Don’t worry about it.
“But…”
Dias noticed Fran’s inner conflict. “Something bothering you?”
“There’s an auction in the capital I wanted to check out. It’s in June.”
“I see. Well, you still have over a month. Going to the Beastman Nation and finishing your errands should only take about three weeks.”
There you go.
“Hm. The Beastman Nation it is.” Fran nodded happily, unable to hide her enthusiasm.
“Ha ha ha. Thank you for your cooperation. Now—”
A knock came on the door.
“I’m letting myself in. Oh, Frannie! Hey.”
“Elza.”
Elza entered the room, looking great despite Amanda’s beatdown. Her skin was bright and bouncy, and she seemed to be in a good mood.
“Hello, Elza,” said Dias. “Have you found out anything?”
“Lots. They were a lot more cooperative once I wore them down.”
“What are you talking about?” Fran asked.
“I had Elza interrogate Solus and Seldio’s accomplices.” That explained her bright smile. “They told me a lot of interesting things.”
Given their ambush in the dungeon, Seldio and Solus were definitely taking orders from someone else. This someone must’ve been crooked, judging from the strange enchanted swords in our attackers’ necks and the fact that they were able to bust Solus out of prison.
“Looks like they were working for Marquis Aschtner.”
Marquis Aschtner? Never heard of him. But it sounded like Seldio was somehow related to the man.
“Do you know why they wanted to take Fran’s sword?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Tell me.”
“It’s a really dumb reason. The marquis ordered them to look for Godswords. Seldio was a disgusting pig, but he was still an A-Rank, so he had access to all the guild’s hidden information. But you remember how crazy he was? That’s why he took everything that looked like an enchanted sword. Seldio was so far gone that he couldn’t even serve his master’s purposes. What a joke.”
“They broke their own guys?”
“Marquis Aschtner gave the order that Seldio was to be drugged to keep him in line. He looked like the leader of his own party, but the bandit and mage were the ones pulling his strings. They pushed him too far, and eventually he couldn’t tell left from right anymore.”
The drugs made him lose his mind in the end. He misinterpreted the order to find Godswords and thought any old enchanted sword would do. It was kind of funny, when you put it that way. They had only stopped by Ulmutt to get a refill, since their drug supply was running low—its primary ingredient was the venom sacs of Pandemic Leeches found in the local dungeon. Solus was gathering this material when he was captured, only adding to the comic tragedy.
Elza left to return to questioning Seldio’s accomplices. Once she was out of the room, Dias turned to us again.
“I really can’t thank you enough. You took out an entire bag of trash for the Adventurers’ Guild!”
“What do you mean?”
“Their syndicate is the cancer of Granzell’s Adventurers’ Guild, and you took care of them all in one sitting! Oh, thank you so much!”
Cancer? Folks sure hated Seldio.
“Did you get a chance to Identify Seldio?”
Yeah.
“Did you get a look at his skill list? I believe he had Sexual Attraction and Sexual Enchantment.”
Now that you mention it… They hadn’t come into play when he was fighting us, and they had no effect on Fran when he talked to her.
“One of our female Guildmasters was seduced with those skills. That was how he convinced her to promote him to A-Rank. Apparently, women bent over backwards for him.”
And that was enough to make him A-Rank?
“It was one of the reasons,” said Dias. “And the guild listened to her suggestion they admit a man forty years her junior, just because he called her pretty.”
Jeez…that easy?
“There was pressure from House Aschtner itself, of course. And bribes. Lots of bribes. He took advantage of his privileges to lobby the Guildmasters, too.”
“Is the guild okay?”
That sounds distressing. The Adventurers’ Guild was sounding more and more like your run-of-the-mill crooked corporation.
“I can only apologize. Guildmasters are human too, and some of them happen to be trash.”
I guess… Even the politicians and policemen back on Earth committed crimes. More authority brought more temptation.
“I’ve been waiting for him to slip up so I could take his rank from him.”
But I thought he shook people down on a daily basis. Isn’t that cause enough?
“As much as I hate Seldio, what he did was completely legal. He did pay the people he extorted, and no adventurer had actually filed a complaint.”
What? Why? Do they just give up on their weapons and cry themselves to sleep?
The Aschtners must have quite a collection.
“Well, you’re strong. Very strong. Strong enough to beat anyone that threatens you. But an ordinary adventurer wouldn’t dare oppose an A-Rank, let alone the son of a powerful marquis. Especially not after all the nasty rumors.”
I supposed losing your weapon was a lot more appealing than losing your life.
“What made Seldio even more dangerous was the fact that he went crazy. There is manatech that can target criminals, but the criminal needs to feel guilty for it to work.”
That item wouldn’t work against Seldio. To the bitter end, he’d been convinced he was doing the right thing.
I can’t believe that the marquis would drug his own son.
“That’s the thing with nobles, I’m afraid. Having an A-Rank adventurer as your puppet can be very convenient. A-Ranks have the authority to mobilize adventurers—a privilege denied to nobility—and the marquis could easily use Seldio to give out orders. The military power he could’ve wielded is not to be underestimated.”
Okay, but why go through the trouble of drugging him?
“Because he didn’t think Seldio would keep following orders once he became an A-Rank. Drugging him was a safer and more practical option.”
Man, these nobles didn’t play around! We should keep away from them!
“Seldio was also a bastard in the technical sense. Marquis Aschtner treated him like another disposable pawn. He probably saw it as a convenient way to clean out his family’s closet.”
Unfortunate, but I understood Dias’ point.
“I do think the Aschtners are about to get into a lot of trouble.”
“Why’s that?” Fran asked.
“Because they were looking for Godswords. Those weapons are powerful enough to take on an entire army. If word got out that the marquis was looking for them, he might be suspected of treason. His only defense would b
e if he said Seldio were looking for it of his own accord.”
“Really?”
“Any self-respecting veteran would want to get their hands on a Godsword. Call it the adventurer’s dream. It would be perfectly excusable if Seldio was looking for one.”
It was almost pedantic, but I saw the difference. There was nothing suspicious about an adventurer searching for a legendary weapon, as long as the marquis didn’t have anything to do with it. If Marquis Aschtner told him to look for one, it would be a different story.
“And what have we here…” said Dias as he casually filed through the papers Elza had left. He singled out a piece of parchment. “…is evidence the marquis was the one looking for them.”
“What’s that?”
“A list of the latest information about them, courtesy of Marquis Aschtner.”
Whoa, seriously? I wanted to see! I asked Fran to move to a better peeking location. The names of the Godswords were on it, all right. It even described their appearances and special powers. The list was slightly different from the one Lumina showed us, and I wondered which version was newer. A few weren’t on it at all: the First Godsword Alpha, Mad Sword Berserk, Land Sword Gaia, and Demon King Sword Diablos.
“Hmm…”
“What is it, Fran?”
Fran asked why the five swords weren’t listed, and Dias told her it was because they had already been found. Alpha and Berserk were in the northern continent of Brodin, split between the two great kingdoms of the north. Since each of the quarreling kingdoms had obtained a Godsword, there had been relative peace over the last two hundred years. They knew that going to war would lead to mutually assured destruction.
There was an incident where two Godsword-wielders descended on the battlefield about three hundred years ago. There was a mountain of casualties, to no one’s surprise, and the forest that had once stood there was now a desert.
Wow. What kind of powers do they have?
“Alpha’s is quite well known. It gives its user the Demigod skill.”
“What does it do?” Fran asked.
“Basically, it grants the user superhuman strength.”
“That’s it?”
I’m sure it’s powerful, but… Sounded kind of simple, too.
“Well, it increases your stats, enhances your physical capabilities, levels up your skills, stuff like that.”
Hmm. Sounds boring.
“Doesn’t sound strong,” said Fran. Certainly not strong enough to be called a superweapon.
“I suppose you’re right. You can say it’s the most straightforward out of all the Godswords. But it multiplies your stats by ten. Your vision is magnified, giving you the ability to see through any concealment. Your hearing can eavesdrop on any part of the country. To top it all off, all your skills get maxed out. How does that sound?”
Very…strong. Ten times the stats, the physical prowess of a god, and the ability to express the user’s full potential. No wonder it was a Godsword.
“Legend states that it can slay a hundred men with one swing, break through castle walls with two, and split a mountain in half with three.”
Sounds like a myth, but if we’re talking Godswords, I wouldn’t be surprised.
“Even more terrifying is Alpha’s effective duration. Its user can maintain that superhuman state for more than half a day.”
Half a day was enough for a monster of that scale to ruin an entire country. At the very least, it could polish off a capital or two.
“Berserk has similar properties. Increased stats, enhanced physical prowess, increased skills. The only difference is that it’s more powerful.”
More powerful than Alpha?
“In terms of raw strength, yes. But Berserk always sends its users into an insane frenzy, slaughtering friend and foe alike. When the effects wear off, its user dies.”
Jeez, that sounds rough. But can’t you just have an army escort Berserk’s user into battle? The Godsword was as powerful as it was inhumane, but you could treat its user like a suicide bomber.
“Ha ha. If only things were so simple. What happens after Berserk annihilates the enemy?”
Take the Godsword away, I guess.
“And how do you plan to get close enough?”
Let them go crazy and grab the sword when they’re done. Surely there was no danger in taking the Godsword away from a corpse.
“All right. But the enemy probably has the same idea, and there is no guarantee that you could recover it before them.”
I see. If they messed up, the enemy might get to the Godsword first.
“Not only that, but Berserk also lasts for over half a day. There are records of the user destroying the enemy’s capital, then turning on his own cities. The memory is still fresh, even though it happened a long time ago. You have to be ready to die alongside your enemy if you want to use Berserk.”
A continent locked in a stalemate of Godswords. Best to keep our distance. Now I understood why the five swords—Alpha, Berserk, Diablos, Gaia, and Ignis—weren’t on Aschtner’s list. No one would be eager to part with their Godsword, no matter how much money you gave them. Taking them away by force would be downright impossible.
So that’s why they’re looking for the missing ones.
“All the nations of the world are looking for them. I’m not sure how they got a hold of this information…”
The list contained more detail than Lumina’s:
War Carriage Sword Chariot
Said to have the shape of a baton. Produces golems of all shapes and sizes, along with the power to control them. Golems are made of metal, capable of flight, and can fire beams of light. According to stories from the Gallerian war, Chariot summoned a thousand golems the size of human heads and destroyed a hundred ships with a coordinated volley. Last known location: Continent of Capur.
Sword of Wisdom Cherubim
Known to be destroyed, but its fragments may prove valuable. Properties unknown. According to our research, the sword is decorated with the motif of a four-winged angel. Fragments are most likely located somewhere in the kingdom of Granzell.
Searching Godsword Explorer
Has the shape of a monocle. Said to be able to understand all information across the land. Further details about its power are unknown. Last known location: Continent of Capur.
Gaolgate Sword Hel
Details unknown. Said to have been used five hundred years ago in the continent of Chrome. Location where it was last used is now desolate and unfit for life. Said to have the power to control poison.
Cruel Dragon Sword Lindworm
Has the shape of a sword. Further details unknown.
Lunar Sword Moonlight
Said to grant its user the power to reflect myriad attacks.
Not much was known about the swords other than Chariot. And they didn’t know where any of them actually were.
“Very interesting,” said Dias. “If they’re collecting broken Godsword pieces, they might be in the early stages of research.”
What can they do with that research?
“Who knows? They probably think it’s worth it. Still, keeping this kind of stuff a secret from the government is a major faux pas.”
House Aschtner might be suspected of treason, even if what they were doing wasn’t illegal.
“Excellent evidence,” said Dias. An evil grin flashed over his lips. Not something I wanted Fran to imitate.
Well, it looks like Dias has a long day ahead. We should get going, Fran.
“Sure.”
“Sorry to keep you so long. I’ll call if I find anything new.”
“Hm.”
We said our goodbyes and left. Almost right away, a group of suspicious individuals approached, as if they had been waiting for Fran. It was almost like an ambush. The four figures couldn’t look any more suspicious if they tried—their faces were covered by their gray, hooded robes. They looked like mages with the sticks they held in their hands. In fact, they looked like they just
stepped out of a fairy tale.
“What?”
Fran put her guard up. The four mages split up and pointed their sticks at the sky. A man came through this four-staff salute. He wore a gold-hemmed purple robe, unlike his plainly dressed associates, and the point of his staff was decorated with a beautiful jewel. His hood was down, exposing an arrogant, although admittedly handsome face. The blue-haired man looked like he was up to no good. Not that I thought all good-looking men were bad people. Honest.
“We have been waiting for you, Lady Fran!”
“Hm? Who are you?”
“My name is Glackmar. The head of the Eiworth Mage Guild.”
Glackmar bowed gracefully, like he was in a play. Admittedly, it made for a nice picture. I’d never heard of a Mage Guild before. I guess it was founded for mages to do their thing.
“You have exhibited your amazing talents in combat.”
“Hm.”
“Most impressive, however, was your control over the many magicks! I, Glackmar, was moved to tears by the display!”
Our fights would certainly be of interest to mages, if only because of the sheer number of high-level spells. I must’ve made it look like Fran fired Kanna Kamuy without a single word. However, Glackmar’s thick praise couldn’t hide his intentions. All his acting did nothing to cover his hostility and malintent.
“Now then, Archmage Fran.”
“What? I’m not a mage.”
Archmage sounded more like a title than an actual Class. Although, Fran might’ve unlocked a lot more options since the last time she changed Classes—it had been a while. Glackmar ignored Fran’s retort and took a small box from his breast pocket. He opened it, and dropped to one knee while showing her its contents. Following his gesture, the four gray-robed mages pointed their sticks forward and surrounded us. Their formation looked like the beginnings of a strange ritual. I hadn’t sensed any mana so far, but I was ready with Telekinesis should one of them make any sudden moves. The box contained a medal emitting powerful mana. It looked ominous enough to be cursed.
“Please.”
“What’s this?”
“We, of the Eiworth Mage Guild, present you, Archmage Fran, with the Medallion of the First. Please, wear it.”