The day after we held our meeting with the adventurers who had gone ahead to the location.
A pair of adventurers pretending to be unaffiliated were staying in the room next to ours at the inn, keeping watch on us.
I was dumbfounded by the thoroughness of their surveillance.
"Would they really go this far?"
Maxim, hand resting on his chin, looked at me.
"It just means they're evaluating us that highly. I hear they're a top-tier adventurer party that's cleared sixty floors of the Dungeon, so they probably aren't cutting any corners with their preparations."
Our voices inside the room couldn't be heard.
We had no intention of using that room, and the adventurers had apparently barged in after we arrived at the inn without having properly prepared either.
You could call it sloppy, but at least they weren't letting us out of their sight.
Damian sat hunched forward in his chair, cradling his staff. Whether he was tired or not, he yawned.
"Still, it's impressive they could claim the queen was being held in a cave some distance from the city rather than in the castle's underground. At worst, it sounds like they'd bury us alive."
There was a forest with a cave, and it seemed they were trying to lure us there. The adventurers who had gone ahead were putting on a show for us — acting as though they were stalling because they were having trouble searching and had decided to rest for a while.
As expected, this was way out of their league. They had surrounded us while claiming they were counting on the Eastern Branch's adventurers, then cheerfully started throwing a banquet — a real slippery bunch.
I picked up my notes.
"According to Rauno's intel, the queen is being held in the castle's underground prison. She's definitely there, but it seems every woman from the Guild and the castle is under the influence of Ralk's Skill. I had the feeling we were being watched throughout the city too — they're probably keeping tabs on outsiders."
As I said that, Maxim laughed.
"We rescue the queen, accomplish our original objective, and then we'll want to get out fast. Just by the numbers, we're looking at nearly a hundred of them. Their main force and their reserves... the real deal."
Power honed through the Dungeon. And an adventurer party that had kept fighting and growing, planning to ambush us — they were going to be trouble.
And then, the Fifth Generation offered me some advice.
'...Lyle, they're certainly troublesome, but they're pros who specialize in dealing with Dungeon Monsters. They're not pros at fighting people.'
Hearing that, I rolled the Jewel between my fingertips to signal my disagreement.
Inside Dungeons, fights between adventurers are common too. I thought those who had been through that many encounters shouldn't be underestimated.
However, the Third Generation also agreed with the Fifth Generation's opinion.
'To put it to extremes, their experience is lopsided. You saw Marianne's file, right? She reached top-tier status a few years ago specializing in Dungeons, but she got virtually all her experience from Dungeons alone. It does still make you strong, though.'
The Seventh Generation offered me some advice as well.
'Think carefully, Lyle. Sure, defeating Monsters and building up experience is important. But think about the current state of the continent — it's not dominated by adventurers. A small group being strong alone doesn't mean anything. There are plenty of ways to go about this.'
I took out Marianne's file and looked through it again. This could serve as our trump card, and it would become necessary. Not just as information.
These were files on adventurers managed by the Guild. I couldn't afford to misuse them.
"Me and Damian, plus Maxim. Then three Automatons and four of Damian's Golems. Erhard and the others we're escorting make five. Combat-wise, it's tight."
Looking only at our own fighting force, I judged we were clearly at a disadvantage. If we fought head-on, defeat was certain.
I carefully tucked the files away into my bag.
"Let's put our faith in Rauno. Either way, there's no point in making a move right now."
Maxim's shoulders slumped.
"Sigh... I wonder when it'll be that I can reunite with the young lady."
That's what he said, looking dejected.
——The staging area prepared for the Dungeon subjugation.
At the base, Novem and the others had finished their preparations. They had erected walls like a makeshift fortress and set traps throughout the surrounding forest.
Novem was comparing the files Lyle had obtained with the files Rauno had gathered. Nearby, Innis — Rauno's housemate — was there, and Clara had lit a light on her staff.
Flipping through the files, Novem discovered several discrepancies.
Around them, the Valkyries had taken up watch, lighting fires to secure the outpost hidden deep in the forest.
The atmosphere was tense, but Innis remained unfazed.
"...I see some discrepancies regarding the Skills. The perspective from outside might differ from the inside. Or perhaps false reports were deliberately made?"
Innis was focused on that point.
"The information Rauno gathered is accurate. Moreover, the results achieved by the Skills are the same."
Novem denied Innis's assumption.
"That's not correct. A small mistake can be fatal. However, as I thought, there are quite a few Skill holders. Dungeon-specialist adventurers might be dangerous. This way..."
Before Novem could finish, Innis spoke up.
"...May I ask one thing?"
Novem replied while checking the documents. She had reviewed the files several times before, but she was checking now to keep her hands occupied. The documents were precious to Novem, and having them at hand made verification easy.
"Please go ahead."
"Aren't you afraid of the Guild? In Baim, the Guild is a massive monolith of power for adventurers. They usually provide kind support, but if you become their enemy, they'll crush you using any means necessary. In fact, even famous adventurers don't defy the Guild. I hear that in other places, the relationship between adventurers and the Guild differs, but aren't you underestimating Baim?"
It was Clara, reading a book under the light, who answered Innis's question. Having apparently finished, she closed the book and placed it on the wooden crate she was sitting on.
"That's true. The relationship does vary in other cities and towns. Where I came from, the Guild was cold towards adventurers. It was an academy-centric city, you see."
Hearing that, Innis guessed Clara's hometown.
"Aramsass. I've heard its library is famous. Certainly, Aramsass is a large city, but Baim is on another level. No, it's incomparable. I've been wondering for a while, but aren't Lyle and the others afraid of the Guild?"
Novem neatly organized the documents, tucked them carefully into her bag, and turned her body toward Innis. However, her expression felt colder than usual.
"I know the Guild is colluding with the merchants, and that merchants are frightening. This Guild has money, and their support is extensive, so there must be Sweepers too. But—"
"But?"
Innis looked at Novem and tilted her head.
"We have no intention of beating Baim. We can't win, after all. Even Lord Raierel understands that. What matters is what comes after."
Clara was reaching for the next book, and despite saying they couldn't win, Novem appeared perfectly composed.
—Cartaphus.
Inside Dingo's house, Rauno recalled Innis's prediction.
Skills—Information—divines the future from gathered intelligence. When applied to gambling, however, the skill failed to produce much in the way of useful results.
It only told him the dreamless certainty that Rauno would end up losing more than he won.
And yet, the higher the precision of the gathered information, the more accurately the skill could pinpoint the future.
Resting his chin on the back of the chair and sitting facing the wrong way, Rauno remembered Innis's words.
"...This time, the Guild will crush Lord Raierel and his people by any means necessary. Even if the attack fails, they'll use the resulting damage to corner Lord Raierel and his group. Lord Raierel and his people will be expelled from Baim. The purpose is to draw the attention of Ceres of Banseim, Baim's future trading partner. However—"
When weighing Raierel against Ceres, it was only natural for Baim to choose Ceres, who offered far more value, no matter how heroic Raierel might be.
Furthermore, Raierel was the one orchestrating the formation of the Four-Nation Alliance behind the scenes. If he disappeared, there was a high probability that the entire plan would collapse.
The negotiations had barely begun, and they weren't entirely beneficial either. This went without saying, but where there were advantages, disadvantages existed as well.
It was within this web of relationships that the Four-Nation Alliance was taking shape, for better or worse, through the efforts of a single man named Raierel.
If that happened, then like before, petty skirmishes would increase the mercenary company's work. For Baim, having a war nearby was a significant matter—though that came with the caveat of maintaining a safe distance so as not to get dragged in too deep.
(This is Innis's prediction. It's unlikely to be far off the mark, but... still, why is it that predictions about Raierel and his people always end up so vague?)
Something decisive was missing. That was how it felt to Rauno.
Even Innis's skill had been struggling to make a firm judgment.
"However, Lord Raierel is deliberately provoking this situation. He may have predicted that Banseim would launch an invasion against Baim, and there's even a possibility he's concluded that it wouldn't be a problem if Baim and Banseim ended up joining forces. But in the end, the victor will undoubtedly be Baim."
Rauno couldn't help but superimpose the image of a cunning old man onto Raierel, who, despite his youth, resorted to underhanded tactics without batting an eye.
(The possibility that he's a reincarnator with memories of a past life... no, that's unlikely.)
While I was laughing bitterly at my own foolish thoughts, Dingo came to visit Rauno.
"Hey, did you hear? There's this suspicious-looking group at the port... Rauno, are you laughing?"
Caught laughing by Dingo, Rauno cleared his throat and decided to ask about what she had mentioned earlier.
"No, it's nothing. More importantly, what happened at the port?"
"So, a ship belonging to a major trading house came back in a surprisingly short time. And then, these burly men carrying weapons and whatnot disembarked, apparently. Even when the soldiers tried to verify, they insisted it was all merchandise, and they even had documents ready, so it got approved. Honestly, they're stubborn to the end."
Rauno already knew the circumstances—it was Rauno himself who had sent a bribe to the person in charge—so he simply nodded along.
"Well, it's always been a country where you can't bend the rules. The strange parts haven't changed at all."
Dingo looked at Rauno with a forlorn expression.
"You got stuck with dirty work too, you know, because they said your Skill wasn't fit for a knight. Even though it was actually useful for scouting and intelligence work. And then you got pushed out... You could have protested more, you know."
"That's all in the past. Besides, I have no intention of going back to being a knight. I don't have to do dirty work anymore, and I've come to enjoy squeezing out profit by finding people's weaknesses—bit by bit, but it suits me."
Rauno had once been a knight of Kartafus. In his youth he had been full of passion, but when the Skill he manifested was deemed unnecessary for a knight, he was saddled with one dirty job after another.
Dingo let out a sigh.
"If Rauno is fine with it, then that's that. Even so, things have been pretty turbulent lately. Maybe it's because of that rumor—the queen will marry the person who saved her? Or rather, how did such a rumor even get out in the first place?"
Watching Dingo fidget and squirm, Rauno—who happened to know all the inside details—was desperately trying not to laugh.
A few nights later.
I stood before the Galleria soldiers who had arrived.
"Was the sea voyage satisfying for everyone? My, Lord Leorld has been extraordinarily generous. So these are the elite soldiers of Galleria he sent us?"
The soldiers belonging to the Galleria ducal house.
Five hundred of them in total, transported aboard the Vera Trace.
Maxim looked at the number and wore a rather complicated expression.
"You're really okay with inviting this many foreign soldiers into your own country? I'd shut it down immediately. Honestly, I'm amazed you let them through for such a pittance."
Maxim was grimacing. He'd heard the reputation that the people of Kartafus were scrupulously honest about agreements once they were made.
I shrugged.
"Well, we smuggled them in among the crew. In reality, it felt like around twenty young men eager to make a name for themselves entering the country."
Damian had his staff slung over his shoulder and was gazing at the castle visible nearby.
"But there's no way five hundred men could take this fortified castle, right? You haven't got some secret weapon stashed away, have you?"
At Damian's words, I nodded — but it wasn't true that I had no options.
"First, we need to deal with our side of things; otherwise they won't feel any urgency. Besides, nobody would deliberately pick a fight against more than double the enemy lying in wait with just a small force. If someone actually would, I'd love to see their face."
Maxim looked at me with an exasperated expression.
"My lord Laiel, the current situation is worse than taking on an adventurer party. Challenging a castle with only five hundred men — the difficulty has gone through the roof. Shall I prepare a mirror for you?"
I'd grown quite comfortable with Maxim by now.
But it wasn't as though the castle was always prepared for war. And precisely because it was such a well-fortified castle, there were certain methods that could work.
"Well, there are various ways to handle that. Besides, I had Rauno prepare a map of the castle, so we'll be fine. It's a straight shot all the way to the underground dungeon."
At that moment, Erhard and the others — having been rudely shaken awake — were looking around in bewilderment.
"...Hey."
"Now then, I'll be entrusting three hundred men to Maxim, so—"
"Hey!"
"No interrupting while I'm explaining... Well, fine. Yes, Erhard?"
When I called on him, Erhard pointed in every direction around us.
"What the hell is this situation?! And what happened to rescuing the queen?! Why are we suddenly talking about storming a castle?!"
I shook my head.
"No, the thing is, the queen is locked in the dungeon beneath the castle. Besides, Erhard... numbers matter in battle."
Erhard raked both hands through his hair.
"You expect me to accept that?! The problem is that assembling that many people isn't easy!"
The Fifth Generation murmured from the Jewel.
"Well, gathering numbers is more our forte as lords than it is for adventurers. We're only borrowing them this time, though."
Once they'd agreed to lead five hundred—knights, soldiers, and other elite fighters—the Seventh Generation was practically bouncing with excitement.
"Heh heh heh, it reminds me of the night we took back the fortress Fonbeau had lost. It was a quiet night just like this one. We snuck into the worn-out defenders' sturdy fortress and beat them black and blue. I've captured quite a few fortresses and castles in my time!"
Just as the Fifth Generation excelled in defensive warfare, the Seventh Generation was formidable in siege battles.
Mireia said.
"Lord Broad, don't make such a fuss just because it's your specialty. Well, once we reach the dungeon, the rest should be fine. Still, I wonder what those adventurers will do when they learn we've rescued the queen? I can't wait to find out. Right about now, those two lookouts are probably scrambling to free themselves from their ropes."
She really never changes. We'd ambushed the two adventurers on lookout duty and tied them up. We'd knocked them unconscious, but for all we knew, they might have already reported to their leader by now.
Well, it would probably be over by the time we got there. Preparing that many people would take time. Besides, they were the cautious type, so they might gather information first and then decide not to move at all.
The Third Generation said with a grin.
"They wouldn't be foolish enough to walk right into a place we've set traps for. Actually, rather than running away, I'd love to see them show enough backbone to assault Raillan. I'm really looking forward to this!"
The Fifth Generation, exasperated, spoke on my behalf.
"...You people really are something else."
Mireia said with a smile.
"Please don't compliment us, Father."
The Third Generation also understood the Fifth Generation's sarcasm, but...
"Even so, I still think of myself as a hardworking and sincere person, you know!"
I thought to myself. "No, you're not."