Side Stories: Chapter 5

“Honestly, if it wasn’t for you Sir Zich, we would’ve still been talking to the people from those countries.”

“It sounds like you aren’t very pleased to meet these people.”

“Yes, very, very much,” Lubella said and then furtively glanced at him. “You aren’t going to spread what I just said, right?”

“I plan to forget everything I heard here as soon as we leave this room. What about you, Lyla?”

“That won’t be an easy task with my brilliant head. I would need to make a separate space in my head and store the memory there. If I keep it locked with 200 locks on the door, it’ll certainly be secure.”

“What will the locks and walls be made out of?”

“Materials about ten thousand times tougher than orichalcum.”

“Then, I suppose I won’t have to worry about you too, Lady Lyla,” Lubella said and turned back to Zich.

“That’s what she says, Saintess.”

“Yes, I can put my heart at ease now.” Although Lyla made a promise to Lubella like how children would, Lubella was satisfied. In the first place, she didn’t think those two would be the type to gossip.

Lubella then asked, “Do you know a kingdom named Miftil?”

Lyla answered, “Yes. Isn’t it a kingdom located in the west?” Even though it wasn’t as big as an empire, the nation still boasted large territories and a powerful military. “If they had been closer to us, we could’ve received considerable aid from them.”

“Lyla, it’s best to avoid getting any sort of help from them,” Zich remarked.

“What do…ah!” Lyla shuffled through her head and studied the memories about Miftil a bit more carefully. She couldn’t help but agree with him.

“Just because they have a formidable army, they pick fights with neighboring nations at the drop of a hat. They have an even worse reputation than the Brodstock Empire. If they supported us in any way during our fight with the Bellids, they would’ve used it to make all sorts of outlandish claims.”

“I’m not sure if it’s right for me to say this as a knight who serves God Karuna, but I agree with Sir Zich. Those Miftil people are really troublesome fellows.”

“The Miftils are one of the groups helping us organize this festival.” Lubella and Weig sighed simultaneously, and Lubella added, “They are being pretty quiet now since there are others collaborating with them, and they have much to lose if they miss this opportunity.”

“There’s no way those people would sit still and do nothing.”

“I think so too.”

“The eastern nations are heavily eyeing each other’s movements over the fallen countries’ territories. As for the western nations who didn’t participate in the war against the Bellids like the Miftil Kingdom, they are trying to gain something from this somehow. It’s easy to imagine how much stress this situation is putting on you both, although it doesn’t have anything to do with us.”

“Can I just hit you once, Sir Zich?” Lubella asked.

“How could I refuse a request from our esteemed Saintess? Please tell me the area you would like to hit, and I will prepare myself.”

Lubella’s sighs and Zich’s annoying chuckles sounded at the same time.

“Anyway, does that mean you both were going to meet people from the Miftil Kingdom if we hadn’t come?”

“To be exact, we were going to meet the son of the Miftil Kingdom’s duke.”

“Duke Grashane’s son? If he came all this way, he must be the heir. Wasn’t his name Wesker or something?” Zich asked.

“You know him, sir?”

“A bit. Don’t you also know of him, Lyla?”

“He is that complete trash…!” Lyla blurted before she shut her mouth. She exchanged glances with Lubella.

“Don’t worry. I plan to completely seal everything we talk about in this room,” Lubella said while winking. Lyla also loosened up again.

“Hehe, that’s right. Everything that was said here must not leave this room.”

“Yes, and why would you stop in the middle of speaking? What’s the problem of calling a piece of trash, trash?”

“…”

“…”

“…”

Zich nonchalantly said the words that Lyla stopped saying halfway and Lubella promised not to repeat. Zich shamelessly stared back at the three pairs of eyes staring at him.

“…It’s as you say,” Lyla responded. “Since everything said here won’t escape outside, there will be no problem with calling trash by their rightful name.”

“…Now that you word it like that, it’s true. I will call that man ‘trash’ at least in this room. I’m sure God Karuna would excuse this behavior.”

“I also had a difficult time dealing with that man, so I don’t think it matters if all of us agree on this title for him.” Weig agreed with them. They hesitated to insult Wesker because of his high status, but it seemed like everyone had the same impression of the man. With Zich as the initiator, the others followed suit to call Wesker with one name: trash.

“I know I’m the one who said there’s no problem with calling him that, but you both must have suffered tremendously to admit it so easily.”

“Well, you said you knew how that ma…that trash was.”

“He’s the perfect stereotype of a villainous noble.”

“Out of all people, the Miftil Kingdom sent him.”

“He is a top-tier noble after all.”

“That’s true.”

This world followed strict hierarchical rules where one’s status mattered more than one’s skills, and Wesker’s status as the duke’s son and heir made him a very important person.

“Regardless, I think it would’ve been better for the Miftil Kingdom to have sent someone else for such an important matter like this. It’s not as if that man is the only top-tier noble in that kingdom.”

“That’s what I’ve been saying!” Lubella lamented to Zich and Lyla, and Weig supported her by also insulting Wesker. The man made absurd and exhausting requests to try to boast about himself and his nation’s existence as much as possible, and everything he did from his speech to his little actions reeked of arrogance. It was as if the host and guest of the party had exchanged positions. Of course, Wesker was still a noble in the end, and he was able to slide between the narrow limits of overstepping the line and avoid igniting true rage from the Karuwimans and the other collaborating nations. However, that infuriated Lubella and Weig even more.

“If he really did something out of line, I would’ve been able to just chase him away.” With the right justification, Weig was ready to immediately kick him out.

“Don’t the Karuwimans have enough power to put that into action?” Zich asked.

The Bellid conquest pushed the Karuwimans’ status to unprecedented heights. No matter how strong and powerful the Miftil Kingdom was, they were not stupid enough to confront the Karuwimans right now. If the Karuwimans protested, they would have at least changed the ambassador.

“As I said earlier, Sir Grashane’s rudeness does not cross a certain line. Moreover, since the Pope is trying to appease the current global tension in the world, we can’t also expel him just because his attitude is unpleasant. Regardless of Sir Grashane’s personality, Duke Grashane is backing him up, and Duke Grashane boasts considerable influence in the Miftil Kingdom.”

“Then I guess it can’t be helped. You two, I mean, the Karuwimans, have to suffer a bit.”

“Yes, there’s no other choice.”

“Saintess, don’t be so disappointed. I’ll at least listen to your rant now,” Zich said to Lubella.

“No, I’m going to stop now. I’ve done enough so far, and if I trash talk about him anymore, I might go up and complain right in front of his face.”

“That won’t be a good idea. It’s important not to show your weakness to people like him.” Moreover, there was something that Zich wanted to ask Lubella anyway; Zich immediately changed the topic. “On second thought, I’m aware that the Karuwimans are continuing to quell the Bellids, but how has that been going? We’ve also been going around destroying their branches, but there’s a limit to our reach since it’s just the two of us.”

“It’s been going well. Most of their main forces died in the recent war, and the information about the Bellid bases that you’ve given us was all accurate. You can rest assured that most of the branches under our influence have been crushed into pieces.”

“What encouraging progress. As expected, it was worth entrusting this matter to the Karuwimans.”

“Thank you for your kind words, but it’s still not perfect.”

“There must be something bothering you.”

“We’ve missed Pyros Bulington.”

“He’s the person in charge of the Western Bellid Branch. It’s understandable that the Karuwimans failed to catch him. He’s not only as strong as a cardinal, but he’s very persistent and crafty.”

“He’s not the type to stay hidden for long. I’m sure he’ll try to make his move some way.”

“Saintess, do you think that it will be during this festival?”

“I don’t know. How can I understand the minds of crazy people who believe in an evil god like Bellu? There’s a good chance that he’ll make his move during the festival.”

“Honestly, it’s a very stupid idea for him to make a move during this festival. Since it’s a place where the eyes of the whole world are focused, the Bellids can increase their notoriety and showcase their strength if they cause a commotion here. However, if they consider the people gathering at the festival, it’ll only be a tremendous loss for them.” Unlike Lubella, Weig seemed skeptical that the Bellids would target the festival.

However, Weig hadn’t lowered his guard in case any unexpected situations arose. On the other hand, it was a festival that invited all those who made a special contribution in the last war. Every single person who was invited was extremely powerful and strong, and in that regard, Zich was a complete monster. Would the Bellids really conspire during a festival like that when they were not even in top shape but on the verge of collapse? Unless they were volunteering to commit suicide, the Bellids shouldn’t even approach the festival. Although the Bellids easily sacrificed their lives for the sake of a greater purpose, they wouldn’t sacrifice their lives so pointlessly.

“If those guys target the festival, there are only two possible explanations—they’re confident of neutralizing the strong powers gathered at the festival, or they’ve seriously misjudged the situation.”

“It might be both,” Zich said.

“If the Bellids storm into the festival, that might be better, since we can wipe out all the remaining Bellids in one go,” Weig said.

“No, Sir Weig. A lot of ordinary people are also participating in this festival. If the Bellids storm in, a lot of powerless ordinary people might die,” Lubella protested.

“Yes, that’s true. I was thoughtless for saying that, but even if those guys use all kinds of strange methods, will they cause such huge damage? Besides, all the dragon slayers will be gathering at the festival.”

“Even then, we have to make sure that the civilians remain safe.” Lubella’s will was firm, and Weig did not refute her words either. He was also a faithful believer before he was a holy knight. He wanted to save as many lives as possible—of course, except the dirty lives of the Bellids.

“Then, Saintess, we need to increase our vigilance so that no matter what happens, we can reduce as much damage as possible,” Weig said and got up from his seat. “I should start heading out. I’m very happy to see you two after a long time, but I have a business to attend to. I think the Saintess should also return to her duties.”

“I understand.” Lubella also followed Weig and got up from her seat.

“It was really nice to see you two after such a long time. Let’s meet again later when we are free.” Then Lubella pointed at the door. “Let’s go. I’ll show you two where you’ll stay.”

All four people left the room. While they were following Lubella in the hallway, Zich and Lyla heard an unfamiliar voice.

“Why, if it isn’t the Saintess.”

A slight frown appeared on Weig and Lubella’s faces. However, it was only for a moment, and they quickly fixed their expressions.

Lubella gave a slight bow, “Hello, Sir Grashane.”