Ossan Saikyō Chapter 5 Part 04
After collecting the mana stones along with the Terror Knights’ weapons and armor, the three of us pressed further ahead.
The uneasy feeling hadn’t gone away, and both Freynil and Rani were insisting there was still something more.
As we reached the area where the Terror Knights had suddenly appeared, my vision abruptly warped. Freynil and Rani, however, didn’t seem to notice anything unusual.
I blinked a few times and looked toward the forest. At first, my focus wouldn’t settle, but gradually the scenery came into clear view.
That said, what I saw was still the forest, that hadn’t changed, but…
“What the hell is that… a castle?”
Deep within the forest, I could see a massive structure with several spires. Only the upper portion was visible, but it looked like a Western-style castle.
“Soushi-sama, did something happen?”
“No, there’s something like a castle deep in the forest, right?”
“No, I don’t see anything like that.”
“There’s no castle.”
“What…?”
I can clearly see it, but… is it an illusion?
…No, that’s it! An illusion. I had【Illusion Resistance】, but the other two didn’t.
Which meant, if I could see it and they couldn’t, then some kind of illusion spell was covering the entire area to hide that castle.
“Alright, let’s pull back for now. This place is dangerous.”
“Eh? But it feels like there’s still something deeper inside.”
“I’ll explain later. First, we return to the village.”
A creepy castle hidden in the forest, concealed by a large-scale illusion spell; there was no way this was something an E-rank party could handle alone.
As I hurried Rani along, she kept glancing back. I couldn’t shake the feeling that another large-scale subjugation mission was about to drop on us.
We returned to the village, reported to the village chief that the Terror Knights had been dealt with, and warned him to absolutely stay away from the forest. Then we headed back to Euron.
After explaining everything in detail to the receptionist Mariane, it turned into exactly what I expected, a case that required direct reporting to the Guildmaster.
In the Guildmaster's office we were shown to, the three of us sat facing him. Mariane was also there, seated on one of the chairs in the reception area.
“Hm… a castle in the forest, you say. Withdrawing at that point was the right call.”
The Guildmaster in front of us looked like an elite office worker, with neatly parted blond hair. He wore a well-fitted suit, but underneath, his body seemed well-trained.
Judging from his presence, he was probably a former adventurer.
“I understand the report. We’ll consider the subjugation request completed and add a bonus to your reward. In exchange, we may need to ask for further details later. For now, do you plan to remain active in Euron for a while?”
“That’s the plan. Though if possible, I’d like to visit nearby towns with E and F-class dungeons.”
“You’re quite diligent. Just inform Mariane of your destination before you leave.”
“Understood, I’ll do that.”
With that, the report concluded without issue. Still, just like before, the Guildmaster gave Freynil a somewhat meaningful look.
It was basically confirmed at this point that she had some kind of background, so I decided to mentally prepare myself not to be too surprised when the time came.
More importantly, I needed to get stronger before whatever the Guildmaster hinted at actually happened. Just like with the King before, my【Bad Luck】skill was bound to stir something up again.
“Soushi-sama, do you think something will happen because of that incident?”
While we were having dinner in the inn’s dining hall, Freynil asked with a slightly worried expression.
“Yeah. Back when I was in Tolson, there was a large-scale subjugation for goblins. This might turn into something similar.”
“So that means a large-scale subjugation mission is coming?”
Rani asked with a hint of excitement, and I nodded.
“Probably.”
A castle appearing within the territory without permission; that alone was something Viscount Barius couldn’t ignore. And if it was probably an undead castle, even more so.
Before that, though, the idea that a castle could be built without anyone noticing was terrifying in itself. Maybe some kind of fantasy mechanic allowed for overnight construction.
“If a mission is issued, we’ll be fighting too, right?”
“We’re all E-rank now, so yeah, that’s a given.”
“Then we need to get even stronger.”
At Freynil’s words, Rani’s ears twitched.
“Yeah. If you’re an adventurer, you have to get stronger. It’s necessary just to survive. Soushi, you’ve been thinking about how to do that, right?”
“I’m not thinking about anything complicated. Train, dive into dungeons, and pick up as many skills as possible, that’s it. And I’d like to build experience through subjugation missions too.”
“That’s important. Oh, but we should also upgrade our equipment.”
“Yeah, true. Rani, is it about time you replaced your sword?”
“Hm… maybe. I’ll keep using it a bit longer and see when it starts to feel lacking.”
“Freynil’s staff should be fine… but how about your armor?”
“Yes, no problems there. Though we might want to restock potions.”
“Good point. Rani, given your fighting style, you probably get injured a lot, right?”
“Yeah, it’s hard to come out unscathed. Actually, using too many potions was one of the reasons I got kicked out of my party…”
Rani’s expression dimmed slightly. The way she looked up at me made it seem like she was worried about being kicked out again.
“Then we’ll stock up more. We got a bonus on this job anyway. Even small injuries can lead to big problems, so our party won’t skimp on that.”
When I said that, Rani seemed relieved and nodded.
“Tomorrow, we’ll head to an E-class dungeon near Euron. After that, we’ll clear out all nearby F and E-class ones, though there aren’t that many.”
“I agree with collecting as many skills as possible.”
“Same here. It’ll make fighting easier.”
Both girls in my party were motivated, which was reassuring. I’d better do my part as the uncle and make sure I can act as their shield.
——————
E/N:
More skills! Keep it coming!
Stay tuned!
——————
——————————
Check out my other translations -
——————————
Comments