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nAfter the discussion with Queen Fraal at one of the city-states of the Demon Continent, the Queen’s close aide, Ryuka, was invited into our base. This was because we made promises to periodically share information with each other at either Accuros or our base.

nWhen we sensed that Ryuka and her escorting knights riding dinosaur raptor-like monsters were nearing the base, we defeated monsters in the surroundings as we went to greet them.

nThen when Ryuka-san finally reached the forest where our base was located, she was so dumbfounded, her mouth was hanging.

n「Wha!! You use high ranking monsters?!」

nWhat Ryuka-san witnessed were the Thunder Eagle Gloam dropping down lightning, Luna Wolf Ferryl running past them swiftly with its huge body, and Serval Seru slashing its claws.

nWatching the familiars by Sophia, Akane, and Laeva’s side exterminate the monsters surrounding the base, Ryuka-san’s face stiffened in surprise and fear.

nThe finisher was Kaede who appeared soundlessly.

n「A- a- an Arachne……」

n「Ah! Ryuka-san! Are you alright?!」

nRyuka-san and the escorting knights who saw Kaede frothed in the mouth and collapsed. We hurriedly picked up, teleported, and laid them on beds, then got stuck with nursing them.

n「What’s wrong? Are they sick?」

nKaede tilted her head, seemingly puzzled.

n◇

nServing as the close aide of Queen Fraal of Accuros, I had taken several guards and arrived at the designated place.

nWe came to the base built by the young human man Iruma-dono who had a discussion with Her Majesty in Accuros several days ago.

nIt had been decided that we would alternate using Accuros and Iruma-dono’s base in order to share information, and this was our first visit to the base.

n「Three days from Accuros, I see…… I never would have thought there was a location here where a base could be built……」

n「Ryuka-sama, it would be difficult having to travel three days each way often, isn’t it?」

n「Isn’t this preferable compared to an expedition to cull monsters?」

nAs the escorting soldiers chatted, the Sprint Lizards we were mounting dashed on the ground with their thick legs so we could reach our destination sooner,

nSprint Lizards were monsters that run at high speeds with their two legs, and were equivalent to the Demon Horse of the northern continent. Its monster rank was one level higher than the Demon Horse.

n「Ryuka-sama, it’s that forest, isn’t it?」

n「A base in a place like that? Are we being taken for a ride?」

n「Ryuka-sama! Over there!」

nWhat the soldier pointed to were Iruma-dono, the Elven woman we met as an attendant the other day, as well as other women. Still, the women there were fine. The problem was the monsters used by the women to defeat the monsters in the surroundings. What was frightening were the statuses of those monsters. They commanded a class of monsters that frightened our Sprint Lizards enough to make them stop.

n「Wha!! You use high ranking monsters?! 」

nIruma-dono waved and smiled as he approached. It was then, something appeared before us without a sound.

n「A- a- an Arachne……」

n「Ah! Ryuka-san! Are you alright?!」

nArachne…… a calamity class monster sung in legends never before seen in this continent. My consciousness only held on till that point.

n「……u, uuugh.」

n「Are you alright, Ryuka-sama?」

n「Ah, w-where is this?」

n「It’s alright. This is our base.」

nI awoke to find myself lying on a soft bed and a Rabbitkin woman attending to me.

nWhat happened after was a series of surprises.

n「Huh?!」

nA fortress built on a small island in the middle of a lake. The base which they were taken to was even more surprising.

n「Since when did……」

nI, along with the soldiers, seem to have been sheltered by this fortress. The scenery she could see from the window was completely unrealistic.

nWe knew the terrain in this area. There shouldn’t have been a lake or an island, much less a fortress, here.

n「Ha! Right! An Arachne… An Arachne has shown up!」

n「Ryuka-sama, please calm down. That child is Master (Husband)’s familiar. There is no need to be frightened.」

n「What?! He employs a calamity class monster……?」

n「Kaede-chan has been with Master (Husband) the longest, after all.」

nIs something wrong with their heads? The monsters that Sophia-dono and everyone else uses were a class of monsters encountered deep within the monster nests in the continent. For there to be an Arachne, just how will I report it to Her Majesty.

nAfter we have gotten some rest, we will begin the meeting to decide on future arrangements.

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nToday is the day of the meeting with Ryuka-san from Accuros to decide on the arrangements for the Demon Continent investigation.

nI had been in a hurry to build a ship since morning.

n「Oh crap, oh crap. No one can come to the base if they don’t fly or teleport.」

nIf it was just us, it would have been fine, but visitors would need normal method to cross the lake if they come.

n「Transmute!」

nThe materials taken from my Item Box were wrapped in the light of the transmutation circle, then a shallow draft ship appeared.

nCompared to the airship, a boat of this size could be completed in one transmutation.

nToday, at the outer edge of the forest, the girls were leveling their familiars by exterminating the monsters in areas that were not purified. Meanwhile, I took Maria and Marnie along. We crossed over to the other side of the shore using the boat that I had just finished so we could meet with Ryuka-san and her group.

nThen what we saw there was Ryuka-san’s group, who came mounted on raptors, fainting, and falling off their mounts.

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