''---And that's it for the report, your majesty.''
Melty leaned back on her golden and carefully built throne, tapping her fingers on the armrests as she listened to the report from her butler, Varas. Her brows creased in frustration, she might have won the war, but she most definitely lost the battle in this case.
She couldn't help but grow frustrated at how much manpower she lost in comparison to their rival, Sacrada.
She swore to pay it back in blood in her mind.
''I see, thank you, Varas.''
She looked at the butler. Though the man was not one to show too many emotions, he had a slightly uneasy expression on his face. She assumed that it was due to her own uneasy and agitated expression.
The butler straightened himself and spoke with confidence:
''Do not worry, your majesty, the deaths of all these men have not been in vain.''
She huffed and crossed her legs to the other side, swinging the one on top back and forth.
''I suppose. Do you have anything else to report?''
The man clasped his hands together at his back and cleared his throat.
''I do, actually. It's about a certain rumor that piqued my interest.''
''Oh? To have piqued your interest, it better be something interesting.''
''I believe so, Your Majesty. It's about a certain man who managed to take down a beastman all on his own.''
Melty's eyes widened just slightly at the man's words. If his words held just a bit of truth, then that would mean that there was a secret golden egg sitting in the dirt of the barracks, unable to properly grow.
But of course, it could also be just a baseless rumor.
''And? Do you know who exactly this man is and if the rumors are true?''
''I wouldn't be reporting this if I didn't.''
The man had a professional and elegant smile plastered on his face as he spoke:
''Considering the consistency of the reports of the knights who saw the fight, it's fair to assume that they are not mere rumors. The man was wearing a helmet according to the knights, so it was hard to find out, but after approaching and questioning every knight in the unit he was in, I was able to roughly find out who he was.''
Melty leaned forward, her face hardening as she looked down at the butler.
''And?''
''Isaac Brenton, an 18-year-old foot soldier who has been serving the country for two years. In the time he has served, he hasn't been involved in any particularly important event, besides being part of the unit ambushed by Sacrada last month.''
Melty raised her brow in confusion, surprised at the man's rank and status.
''A mere foot soldier taking down a beastman? That's certainly unexpected.''
''...Your Majesty, beastmen aren't anything to scoff at. To take one down would mean that his skill and strength may even rival that of A-Ranked adventurers.''
Her eyes narrowed at his words and she leaned back on her throne once again. She considered Varas' words again and again in her head.
''...I see. Then, if he truly is as skilled as you say, we can't let him slip through our fingers now, can we?''
''I believe so, Your Majesty.''
Melty looked at the man, her expression unreadable to Varas.
''Keep an eye on this Isaac Brenton, find out everything you can about him, and report back to me. If you can't do it yourself, hire somebody else who will.''
''Do not worry, I've already dispatched two trustworthy agents who will do so.''
"Of course.''
The woman clasped her hands tightly together, a glimmer of curiosity in her eyes as she tilted her head back.
"...Nonetheless, we have more important things to worry about. Has there been any news regarding the hero and the Golden Faith? Are they still alive?"
The butler's face remained stoic and his tone professional as he answered.
"I'm afraid not, Your Majesty. We've received no indication of their survival."
Melty's expression fell, before waving her hand dismissively.
''You may go now, Varas. Thank you for your efforts.''
Varas didn't answer, instead, he bowed his head and turned on his heel, making his way out of the throne room. Melty watched as he disappeared through the large wooden doors.
''...Tsk,''
In the vast and empty throne room, the click of her tongue echoed.
----------------------------------------------------
''Eberneus Textrices...''
I scratched my head while looking at the book. This wasn't anything like the Latvarian I learned.
I indulged deeper into the book titled "Understanding Monsters and Their Anatomy," until my focus was suddenly interrupted by the sound of my brothers laughing and snickering. It was a book I had found gathering dust at the library, and even the guy at the desk seemed to not know anything about it.
It looked interesting, so I brought it with me, along with the one Elisa gave me.
Now that I think about it, where's the book Elisa gave me?
I turned my head around and saw my younger brothers hovering over a thick and heavy book, excitedly scribbling away with their crayons.
"Ah, stop! It's not a coloring book!"
I stood up and scolded them, feeling a sense of frustration rise within me. These kids are way too chaotic for me to handle.
"But we want to use the crayons!"
My youngest brother whined as I grabbed the book, pouting his lips in protest.
"Nuh-uh, go outside and paint the walls or something."
I retorted, trying to keep my cool. But as soon as the words left my mouth I regretted it.
My brothers' eyes lit up with excitement and they sprinted out of the room. I let out a resigned sigh, knowing that I just gave them permission to wreak havoc throughout the house. Well, it's my fault for buying them the crayons, I guess.
I returned my attention to the book. 'Dungeon for Dummies'' was the book they had been coloring, another important guide that helps adventurers to not get lost inside these confusing mazes, and according to Elisa, it was a ook I should urgently read before anything.
I returned to the desk and put ''Dungeon for Dummies'' down on the desk, returning to reading the first book.
"Ha, would you look at that. It's actually Eburneus, not Eberneus, which means it's an 'Ivory Spider' and not a 'Boar Nose Spider.' No wonder it sounded so strange, I was reading it wrong..."
I talked to myself. The illustration of the black spider covered in white fur stared right back at me.
I frowned remembering my brothers, I wonder if just water and soap are enough to wash the crayons off the walls.
As I flipped through the pages of the book, I couldn't help but ask myself if this book was made by an adventurer himself. Most of what is written here seems to come from experience and observation rather than scientific facts.
My eyes scanned over the rough sketches and descriptions of the monsters.
''Haha...''
I couldn't help but sometimes chuckle at some of the illustrations in the book. It became increasingly clear that this was written by an adventurer and not by a scientist. The lack of proper grammar and constant use of slang made that very clear. And to top it off, the author didn't even put his name on the cover of the book.
But despite the lack of professionalism, the information was exactly what I wanted. After all, adventurers need to know about who they're fighting!
I continued to read. Eventually, the sunset had died down, and my brothers came back to the room and lay down on the bed. As for me, I decided to keep reading.
I grabbed a candle from the living room and took it to my desk, and resumed my reading.
That was a bad idea, as the coziness and warmth of the candle were extremely soothing, and eventually, I found myself forced to put the candle out and close the book.
I climbed on top of the bed and somehow managed to lie down beside my siblings, who, just like they do every night, decided to sleep in terribly inconvenient positions.
---And even though it was probably my imagination, I had the eerie sensation that I was being watched, and a terrible gut feeling that made my stomach churn.
------------------------------------
Far away from Belica's capital city, something was happening.
''[Dimensional Storage]''
A man inside a dark room extended his hand forward. His face was unrecognizable, beaten to a pulp and every bone under the skin cracked.
From seemingly out of nowhere, the man shakily pulled and grabbed a white scroll, and rolled it open.
[ Blood Scroll - S Rank - Send a message to anyone, anywhere at any time. Requires blood to activate. ]
As he read the words on the blue screen that had suddenly appeared in front of him, his cracked teeth and swollen tongue couldn't help but form a bitter smile and a despairing chuckle. He had been granted such a powerful skill, yet even with it, he couldn't do a single thing against 'that' monster.
Ignoring his doubts and frustrations, he pressed his thumb onto his middle finger, drawing out a small bead of blood. With the blood, he wrote a short message on the scroll, focusing his thoughts on who he wished to send it to.
''Subter Erilis latet'' Those were the words that were written upon the scroll.
As soon as he finished writing, the scroll glowed with a bright white light before disappearing from his grasp.
He let out a deep sigh, and his body collapsed heavily to the ground
---And Lucas Lundberg, Belica's Hero, drew his last breath, in a dark room somewhere below Erilis.