"Here's a delicious skewer! It tastes better than the Brotherhood Skewers, I bet!
"Hyung, there, take a look at that puppet show! Can you feel the gaze of the ladies?"
"Oh, look at the decorated flowers over there. It's a dragon! How did they even make it?"
The dungeon festival had already advanced to the fourth day. Stalls and small events were scattered everywhere. All the people attending the festival in the dungeon city radiated energy and were united regardless of their status.
"Will we be seeing Master Eric today? He's grown at least a few feet from the last time we saw him."
"Isn't he going to stand in public today? How the hell did he get so tall?"
Yesterday, there was an event led by the battle guilds, and today, Eric D. Sherden, the successor of the Marquis of Sherden, was expected to appear in public.
Tomorrow, with the closing ceremony, the grandest event was going to be held. Everyone wished that the festival would never end, but they also eagerly waited for the final event.
"But why are soldiers roaming around like that? Are they being punished?"
"There are some jerks who get crazier during festivals. At times like these, the probability of crime is higher. There must be a lot of people and money exchanging, isn't it a more ecstatic environment than before?"
"Then there are things where we can't predict anyway."
Contrary to the people enjoying the festival, Sherden's knights and soldiers were in a state of emergency.
The security around the city's boundaries had been doubled, and in some places, even tripled.
Security was strict everywhere, and during the festival period, it became more difficult to judge people who come and go through the city. Drugs distributed by Bernard were placed at checkpoints everywhere, a drug that responded to the Mahwa variant.
"Kha, are you still on guard today? When will you come back off duty?"
"At the end of this festival. The Marquis said that they were recruiting largely. It is said that he has already received approval from His Majesty, the King, so please be patient until then."
"Recruitment? Is the Marquis trying to wage a war on someone?"
"It would be better if it was a war with humans… There are rumours that we may encounter a new monster enemy."
"Monsters?"
No matter how high the crime rate was during the festival, the soldiers wondered why the workload had increased abnormally this year.
Fact-based speculations and myths of all sorts arose from them, but what they could do was do their work and pretend as if they were happy doing it.
"Well, isn't the woman who came through the door very pretty?"
"Oh oh oh! She is!"
"You guys. Check her, check her out."
It was to the extent that the people around the city were secretly enjoying her looks. The senior soldier lightly beat those soldiers' helmets and angered them, but they could do nothing but grumble.
"She looks like a lady from a noble family. If you bother her and get caught…"
"Tsu, is that more terrifying than the sin of not following your Lord's orders? Pathetic things, keep watching here."
The senior soldier went over and politely bowed his head to the beautiful red-haired woman who was walking with many servants behind him.
"Welcome to the dungeon city of Sherden, my lady. Can you please tell me your identity and name?"
"This is the Lakers family of Mana Road, soldier. You probably don't know."𝙛𝙧𝙚𝙚𝒘𝒆𝒃𝒏𝒐𝙫𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎
The Lakers family weren't famous noblemen, and it wasn't unusual for the soldier to not know them.
"Are you a blood relative of the Lakers family? It is an honour to meet someone who walks the path of the great earthly magicians. Can I ask for a name if it isn't rude? The Lord commanded me to record the names of everyone who enters and exits…"
"I didn't know I would meet with a soldier who knew our family! I am very happy!" The Lady clapped joyfully.
It was at that moment that a man in a servant's uniform standing behind her glanced at the soldier, and a strange light struck the soldier's eyes.
The soldier immediately bowed his head to her.
"You are Michelle von Lakers. You changed your appearance so much that I couldn't recognize it at first. It's an honour to meet someone from a direct blood relative."
"Oh, if I've met you, it's even more sad. I want to show you a way to apologize to me… Will you accept?"
"Of course. I am not a knight, but I cannot reject the Lady's request."
The woman called Michelle von Lakers laughed happily and asked the soldier.
"I heard rumours that there is an excellent pharmacist in this city. He's an old man, but I'm forgetting his name right now…"
"You are referring to Sir Bernard Garcia. He is a great man, a humble person who doesn't want big rewards, even though he has made great efforts to stop the plague… But what does the Lady want with him?"
After various events in the past, the knights and soldiers of the Marquis had come to respect him by attaching the title of 'Sir' after Bernard's name, who previously had none.
Of course, it was even more so because it was known that Bernard was acting as Evan's mentor.
"The plague… I'm sure, that's him. I have something I want to ask him personally… Could you please tell me where I can meet him?"
"I'm willing to do that. You may be able to find Sir Bernard right… here."
The soldier was kind and gave her a map of the private quarters where Bernard was staying.
"It's a remote place. He likes solitude."
"Oh my God, it suits his image… It suits him. Okay, can I go there?"
"Yes. Originally, he was working at a place called Brotherhood Pharmacy, but now he lives in those quarters. And if you go there, you will surely be able to meet them."
"Thank you very much, wonderful soldier."
Michelle von Lakers smiled happily, thanked the soldier, and turned around.
"Of course. Then I hope you have a wonderful meeting!"
The soldier flashed her a bright smile and ran back to the checkpoint. A loud noise arose from there, but she stopped looking at him. She thought they were probably making perverted jokes.
As the servants escorted her, they lined up on both sides. Buried in the crowds, she walked with a fishy smile on her lips.
"Bernard Garcia… Was he hiding under that name? I thought I might have to search for a while, but I didn't know the security would tell me right away."
"Your Majesty, they are only inferior human beings. There is no way they can resist the magic of our Mahwa tribe."
The man who was closest to her bowed and said politely.
In reality, it wasn't Michelle von Lakers, but Queen Rose, the ruler of the Mahwa tribe, who laughed at his words.
"At one time, I thought so too. However, you can never underestimate the potential of humans. They can be scary too, sometimes."
In the countless decades in the past, there was an extremely rare presence that radiated a brilliant light, and the humans had always been able to stop them. If the Queen hadn't saved any seeds, their Mahwa tribe's history would have been wiped off the pages of history…
"But we are stronger and better than we were in the past. If we call out our forces like this, we will surely be able to wipe out all humans without difficulty. But why did the Queen insist on moving herself to this dangerous place…?"
"It's none of your business."
The Queen dismissed the words she had heard many times on her way to this place.
"We can't give that damn alchemist any more time. He's already making something to stop us. He's such a terrible guy. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that our success depends on how quickly we kill him."
"…The Queen is obsessed with that man."
On behalf of the man wondering what to say, this time, the female surgeon of the Mahwa tribe spoke. The Queen nodded without hesitation.
"It was that man who almost killed us. A guy with an empty head like Leo Arpeta, is not a threat. As long as there is that alchemist, we will surely be defeated by mankind, but if we get a hold of him, we will surely win."
"What would you like to use him for?"
"I will make him a part of the Mahwa tribe. I will plant my seeds in him."
It was known that humans who were possessed by the seeds of the Mahwa tribe would die eventually. However, there were unusual cases too.
Depending on the concentration and type of power in the seeds, there were cases where individuals died, deteriorated, or remained whole.
The Queen, amazed by Bernard Garcia's ability, admired him a lot and thought it was a waste to kill him. The Queen firmly believed in this.
"I see. If that person became a part of the Mahwa tribe, then there was nothing to be afraid of."
"And it will also be the moment when I conquer the individual Bernard Garcia. That would be pleasant. I'm looking forward to it."
"…Her Majesty has learned human emotions."
The Mahwa were demons. They moved to different places and thought differently from humans, and of course, their feelings also differed from theirs in many ways.
However, the Queen's true aim was left incomplete in fighting Bernard and other warriors, where she had once lost her body. But then she sprouted new from the seed.
Having promised allegiance towards the Demon King, a vengeance towards humans and Bernard burned inside her.
Leaving a more efficient path and choosing an uncomfortable path was an action only taken by humans.
"Because they are strong. The demons must learn what is lacking and make themselves stronger."
"Sure… That's right. Her Majesty's judgment is correct."
The Mahwa woman bowed her head, affirming the Queen's words. The Queen then continued.
"I have a complete picture of where he is, and I will ambush him immediately at night. Do not let anyone intervene while I attack Bernard Garcia and take him."
"We shall follow your orders, Your Majesty."
"Everything will be according to your will, Your Dear Majesty."
The Mahwa were extremely polite to the Queen. From the outsiders' perspective, the servants must have struggled to be in the Queen's good graces constantly.
The Rose Queen, in the past, had been indeed a terrible monster. She was an intelligent enemy who knew how to dig into human weaknesses and move a group.
Fortunately, however, Bernard was a little bit better than her men. Bernard was always able to surpass the Queen, and Bernard's wit always saved the humans even when they were weaker than their enemies.
And he finally protected humanity from the Mahwa tribe's threat and led the warriors to the final battlefield.
'Join me, human. Then I shall give you half of the treasures of the entire world. The Demon King now reigns, but if we both rise against him, we shall taste the sweetest of victories.'
Queen Rose, who had met Bernard in the ruined Escarotti, had offered him menacingly.
Bernard shone brighter than any other flower, and she wanted to have it.
'You really are cheap… Damn it, why am I not popular with human women and only among these monstrous bastards? Is it because of the smell of this herb on my body?' Bernard had replied.
'So, what are you going to do, Dane? Will you be the new King of half of the world and betray them?'
'You're being ridiculous. Do you think I want half the world? Oh, but if you bring me everything, then I shall think about it, at least a little.'
'… You are really a foolish human being,' she had said. The Queen had barely survived.
She then fled, and Bernard finally saved the humans.
He had fought for the same humans that the Queen had declared to be "not even worth protecting."
"But there were guys like Evan among us, so my choice wasn't wrong at that time."
Bernard awakened from his trance and muttered with a bloody smile. It was really strange for him to smile while remembering those days.
Then he got up.
He gathered the items he had on the shelf, filled the contents into syringes, and loaded them into his gun.
It was a gun made to shoot syringes and then inject their contents into the enemy.
"Wow, I'm seeing Bernard with a gun after a long time… That's really cool. I remember those days."
Illoin muttered in admiration when she saw Bernard smiling as he checked the condition of the rifle.
Bernard looked up and looked at Illoin with anxious eyes.
"Well? Is there something in my eyes, Illoin? Or if you have a disease, I can look at it."
"…"
"Hey everyone, get ready!"
Leo, wearing his greatsword, burst open the door and yelled excitedly as he entered.
"The latest report came from the checkpoint. We have successfully attracted the Queen! If we take care of everything here, you don't even need to develop drugs, right?"
"Well, it's been a long time since the Queen came to this place, and it might make things a lot easier… Even if we kill the Queen, there will be quite a few of her subjects alive. Well, no worries though."
Bernard responded leisurely and laughed.
"Actually, the drug development was completed this morning. Previously, it was only me, but this time there's Evan too. It's wonderful to be able to point out each other's errors and come up with new ideas… So Leo, this time, humanity will be able to beat them quite easily."
"…That's great to hear!"
"Oh, Illoin! Wake up!"
One of the party members was in danger of instant death, but they left anyway after doing some preparations for battle.