Your Majesty, Dinner Is Ready. - Chapter 87

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 87 — What’s the Problem?
6th District slum.
A canine explorer walked through the shabby streets, reeking of helplessness and filth as always.
A Hand Axe emanating black energy hung loosely at his waist.
Blood caked both his shirt and trousers.
The atmosphere alone was unsettling enough that the quick-witted slum residents cleared the streets before he even drew near.
“What is that thing?”
“Is he a Socialite?”
“Hey, don’t stare. You’ll end up a Living Sacrifice if you’re not careful.”
While the poor muttered and scattered, the explorer continued to observe the shabby neighborhood.
Presently, he approached some figures sprawled drunk in an alley.
“I’d like to ask just one thing. How long has it been since the Black Sword Guild disappeared?”
“The Black Sword?”
A drunk nearby grinned and answered.
“Been dead for a good while now! Honestly, I’m relieved as hell about it.”
“Yeah. Those bastards were always bullying people, squeezing us for protection money. Except for a few guild members, they were all trash.”
“Especially their guild master Maken — he was the worst! Once he was gone, life became so much more peaceful.”
The Black Sword Guild’s reputation was poor even in the slums.
Robbing fellow paupers was nothing remarkable, but their constant bragging and violence had earned them real resentment.
The explorer casually withdrew a bottle from his possession and offered it, his question slipping out naturally.
“I heard there’s a rumor — that a half-elf Socialite of the Twisted Truth Cult took all the Black Sword Guild members and sacrificed them as Living Sacrifices. What’s your take on that?”
“A half-elf Socialite? You mean that Kar fellow whose name’s been floating around lately?”
“I don’t think so!”
A second drunk, snickering as he accepted the bottle, wagged his finger.
“If he’d conducted an unauthorized mass ritual, the Harmony Sect wouldn’t have given him any trust!”
“Ha, you’ve got a sharp eye there!”
“I do, don’t I!”
The stench of alcohol was overwhelming.
Still, they’d been helpful enough that the explorer bowed respectfully to both men.
“Learn anything?”
As he exited the alley, a large feline humanoid with one eye covered by a patch approached with long strides, asking the question.
The explorer habitually fingered the handle of his Hand Axe as he replied.
“By all appearances, the one who dealt with the Black Sword Guild directly doesn’t seem to be the half-elf Kar. He’s been enjoying considerable favor from the Harmony Sect lately, after all.”
“Hmm, I figured as much.”
“However, we can’t yet rule out Kar’s involvement in the guild’s downfall. An anonymous informant spoke with certainty about it, or so I’m told.”
“The situation’s getting murkier.”
The patched feline swished his tail as he pondered, then spoke again.
“The half-elf Kar supposedly has a capable assassin colleague — could it be his work? He’s been frequenting the second son of House Bretes lately, haven’t he?”
“A plausible theory. But if it truly were the work of an assassin from House Bretes, they’d have left no evidence whatsoever. The situation wouldn’t change.”
“Argh, this is infuriating!”
Karsha, the guild master of the Hyena Guild under the Silent Alliance, irritably scratched at her head.
She’d been ordered to investigate the truth behind the Black Sword Guild’s collapse, and for days now there’d been no progress — it was enough to drive her mad.
“Compose yourself, Guild Master.”
Pierre, the subordinate guild member who kept fingering the Hand Axe’s haft, offered a subtle smile.
“Let me make contact with the half-elf Kar. In the manner of an explorer.”
***
“Air can be delicious, can’t it…!”
Merlin’s feet pattered along rapidly.
Beside him, Abel held back his tail with both hands, his face serene despite how desperately it wanted to wag.
Both of them looked pleased.
I wasn’t faring badly myself.
“Kids, wasn’t it good that we came here?”
The siblings nodded in turn.
“We were curious because someone said the 5th District was a great place for beast-folk and elves to live, but I never thought it would be like this!”
We were now in the adjacent 5th District.
A district managed by the Non-Human Race Association, which worked to advance the rights of all sentient beings except humans.
The most striking feature was the presence of a vast ecological park that reproduced the landscape of the Eastern Continent, untouched by technology and capital.
“Benefactor, you said the majority of the 5th District’s land is this ecological park, correct?”
Abel, whose tail had finally begun to wag despite himself, ventured a thought.
“Doesn’t that mean the residential area is rather cramped?”
“Within the association headquarters, there’s a pocket dimension where you can live in harmony with nature. Many of our people camp out there permanently.”
“If you have elven blood, that’s hardly a problem. I read that ancient elves once treated nature itself as home and slept anywhere without care. There are supposedly hundreds of words in Old Elvish just for ‘sleeping rough’ and ‘camping.'”
“So you’ve been making regular trips to the library all this time.”
Unlike his sister, who inexplicably flushed and avoided my gaze, Abel’s scholarly enthusiasm burned bright.
I tilted Merlin’s wide-brimmed hat askew as I spoke.
“But I’ve been cursed by Meterd, so even beautiful natural scenery isn’t exactly comfortable for me.”
The moment we entered the pristine, clean air of the district, the curse bestowed directly by nature’s parent began to throb—a festering ache spreading across my chest.
“…Yet you still came to the 5th District for our sake?”
“No. I rather enjoy being uncomfortable. Don’t you know why?”
“I’d rather not know….”
“Why do you give up on me? Please, keep arguing back.”
“I won’t.”
I rested my hand atop Merlin’s head as he shook it side to side.
“Shall we take a walk and enjoy the scenery for a bit?”
We strolled at a leisurely pace, swept by the fresh breeze.
Moving slowly, we found our destination without taking a single wrong turn.
“Kar, that’s it, right?”
An open field where a stream babbled gently.
The lush grass in the middle of the meadow was stained the color of melted chocolate.
《Entrance to Cherry Hill》
“Let’s wait here a little while.”
We’d arranged to meet the remaining party members at the Dungeon entrance.
“I’ll spread out the mat.”
Lucius, who had followed us wordlessly, unrolled the mat beneath a tree with a good view of the lake.
A cute Level 1 baby mascot monster—a little creature made entirely of eyes with its tiny hands raised—adorned the mat.
The siblings, about to thank the kindly priest, stiffened.
“…Father, do you perhaps find that creature adorable? Or magnificent? Or have you always wanted to keep one at home?”
“Pardon?”
The unexpected question left Lucius blinking in confusion.
“Not at all. I visited the exploration supplies shop, and this was the last item in stock, so I had no choice but to purchase it. I apologize for not procuring something more appealing.”
“…….”
Merlin murmured softly after receiving the priest’s formal apology.
“That’s strange. Kar recruited you without a moment’s hesitation.”
“What do you mean? The priest went out of his way to bring us this adorable little bear mat.”
“…Just sit down already!”
Merlin grabbed my clothes and yanked hard, forcing me down onto the mat.
“I’m here-!”
We were all sharing the pastries Merlin had pulled from her leather bag when it happened.
A demon of innocent appearance—her entire upper body, face and all, wrapped meticulously in bandages—came rushing over and promptly collapsed onto my parched thigh.
“Mom, I got cursed!”
“Well done, daughter.”
Both Merlin and Abel hung their heads deeply in unison.
“…Please don’t use that form of address in public.”
“And please don’t speak so casually about curses. People are already staring at us with strange looks….”
The picnickers around us were indeed whispering and casting our way.
I waved at the onlookers.
The startled crowd only gossiped louder and widened their distance.
What’s the problem?
“…….”
As I tidied the demon’s hair—she’d fallen asleep instantly thanks to Sudden Nightmare—a red assassin rose from the tree’s shadow.
“Greetings, sister.”
Rosalia, who had gone to escort Odillon in the 3rd District and returned alone, settled quietly beside the siblings.
She even nodded to the children.
“What keeps the young master in the 3rd District all by himself?”
“…Business.”
“Still discussing the guild competition, I take it.”
He was likely locked in a battle of wills with Elvira, Targon’s secretary.
Since both despised losing even slightly, it was bound to be a close match.
“Do you know when he’ll be finished?”
I shook my head.
“Still, I suppose Rosalia’s protection isn’t strictly necessary. After all, you’ll be staying with Plethica’s greatest warrior.”
I spent the time patting Barthimir’s whimpering head.
Merlin, who had nearly finished the snacks, opened her mouth with a contented expression.
“All that’s left is for Pendrick and Astrímia to arrive.”
“They won’t be coming.”
“Why not?”
“Astrímia dislikes expedition leave that much. So I made a small consideration for her.”
It wasn’t as though I’d hastily decided to attach my master to an outing mere days away.
“Going to the Dungeon for leisure isn’t something Abel and I particularly enjoy either….”
“Ah, there comes someone now.”
Merlin’s head snapped toward the direction I’d indicated before she looked back at me, her eyes posed a silent question.
From the direction of the Non-Human Race Association Headquarters, an explorer was walking toward us.
Not the tall Pendrick, but a short goblin.
“Kar!”
The goblin waved his hand as he drew near.
It was someone I knew.
《The meddlesome goblin Mech—his tongue as loose as his conscience (goblin, age 25). Ugly as ever.》
“A pleasure to see you again, Mech. How have you been?”
“Me? Hardly well, if you must ask. When’s the last time you saw a goblin living in peace?”
Mech chuckled and produced a cigar from his pocket, then caught sight of the young siblings and tucked it away again.
“What brings you here?”
“Hystis sent me. Because of your examination.”
When I pressed a sweet—relatively gentler on the body than tobacco—into his hand, the goblin grinned and spoke.
“It’s not some grave crisis. Hystis has just been running that handsome friend of yours quite ragged.”
“I see.”
“Did you really say something like ‘I’m terribly weak and it vexes me’ in front of Hystis? That’s practically an invitation to be devoured!”
Zrrzzzt, zzrrrzzzt!
Hystis was passionately expounding upon how our charming one doesn’t so much actively seduce as subtly beguile others through gentle eyes and a meek demeanor—a tenderness that works its magic without his even realizing it.
I could sympathize with the sentiment well enough, but the lightning crackling about was rather excessive.
“Are you certain the electrical discharge around your collarbone isn’t a problem?”
“It happens often enough. So the message is simply that Pendrick can’t come?”
“Right. He’s going to teach the breathing method from the Eastern Continent. Qi something-or-other breathing—”
“Qi Circulation Breathing, most likely.”
By the setting’s logic, a breathing method developed solely on the Eastern Continent, where natural mana was most abundant.
Through breathing, one could accumulate “Inner Strength”—mana purified of impurities through the Dantian—which could then be channeled in combat.
While it was the martial Secret Art most suited to warriors, even other Warrior Classes found it useful to learn.
“Well, anyway. That’s what he’s teaching. He’s busy learning, so he had that pretty-faced swordsman pass the message along.”
“I understand. Thank you for taking the trouble to come all this way.”
“No, no. I’ve been cooped up indoors far too long. My body’s gone stiff.”
Mech made a show of rubbing his shoulders, then suddenly leaned in close and lowered his voice.
“Word is a certain Socialite explorer recently uncovered a Hidden Piece in the Sanctuary of Purification, and the Harmony Sect’s in an uproar over it. That was you, wasn’t it?”
So the rumor had already spread as far as the 5th District.
There seemed little reason to deny it, so I nodded.
“…So I’ve become close with quite the legendary explorer.”
Mech raised his eyebrows and gave my arm a friendly tap.
“Kar, I was wondering if perhaps later on—”
“I understand.”
“…But I haven’t asked you anything yet?”
“Ridny knows all things. Isn’t it because of the ‘Invincible Father’?”
……
The goblin’s eyes widened as he stared at me, then he rubbed the back of his neck.
“…Is it really impossible to hide one’s true thoughts from a Socialite like you?”
“Of course not. I already know what troubles you.”
《Heh, this time even I knew. A bit of pride restored! :D》
“Should the atmosphere become dire, come find me. I’ll leap from my bath naked if I must.”
“…At least put some clothes on, will you? Anyway, thanks, Kar!”
Mech departed with an air of relief.
I watched the goblin’s receding figure, his step now noticeably lighter, then rose to my feet.
“Since Pendrick can’t join us, that completes our group for the resort. Shall we depart?”
Merlin’s tail flicked against my waist.
“Isn’t this supposed to be an expedition anyway? So what’s the real goal besides sightseeing?”
“…Ah, well, it’s so our Moon Expedition Party can become a bit closer-knit.”
“I see—so there’s a Secret Art Tome that connects the members through some method? With such a useful Secret Art, the expedition’s coordination will definitely improve. Everyone listening? Let’s give it our all!”
Playing the part of leader, Merlin raised his arm with a sharp gesture.
At that, the taciturn assassin, the calamity-collecting demon, and the steadfast priest all smiled softly, each responding in their own way.
“Then let’s move quickly.”
“Patron, let’s head into the Dungeon.”
“…Very well.”
I walked forward, pushed along by the hands of the siblings at my back, muttering quietly to myself.
“We’re really just going sightseeing…”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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