[Vol. 8] Chapter 175: A Business Opportunity That Came Knocking
Bringing these little ones along under the excuse of “training” to help deal with small-time enemies turned out to be a smart decision. As expected, the Theo Province really wasn’t peaceful at all.
Zachary, the young man with bright red hair and fiery wings, was strong, but since he was a bit slow to act, he usually ended up cleaning up after everyone else. He gave a helpless smile.
“You say that… but we’ve done this so many times already. How could we not be good at it by now…”
In fact, this was only their third day after leaving the caravan, but they had already run into their seventh group of bandits.
There were a lot of bandits in Theo Province, especially in the mountains, and they came in all kinds. Some worked alone, while others had groups of ten, twenty, or even more. Their strength varied a lot, too. Though none were strong enough to threaten a team led by the Heaven Hero, this situation clearly showed the chaotic state of the region.
Although Elunie was a chosen hero, she was still new to the job and came from a humble background. There were many things she was still learning. Interestingly, it was the tiger-man scholar Kunnir who was the first to notice something unusual after this battle.
“It looks like the war in the buffer zone is having a bigger and bigger impact. Normally, even though the Theo Province is known for its poor security, it wouldn’t be this bad. Based on what some of the bandits we caught these past days said, most of them fled here from the East because of the war. They didn’t want to become bandits, but they had no other choice. Some of their clothing even matches the cultural style of a kingdom from the buffer zone. I remember reading about it in a book once.”
Chloe, the young mage holding a staff, looked at Kunnir with a strange expression.
“Wait… seriously? You even know that kind of stuff? I’ve been meaning to say, aren’t tigerfolk supposed to be big, strong, and kinda simple-minded fighters? Isn’t it the foxes who are supposed to be the smart ones? Are you and Mevis maybe in the wrong roles or something?”
Dragged into the conversation, the little fox Mevis turned her head to glance at her. Although her Human and Holy Empire language weren’t very good, she clearly understood the main point.
“Are you… calling me… dumb?”
“Cough cough! N-No, I just meant, um, it was just a figure of speech! Mevis, you’re super smart and adorable, of course you’re not dumb!”
...It felt like if Chloe said anything more, the “Death Omen Star” would literally appear above her head…
Sensing the awkward moment, Elunie, who was the leader and more sensitive than anyone in some ways, quickly changed the topic.
“Sister Violet, we should be less than half a day’s journey from the Chaos Magic Valley now, right? If we cross the next two mountains, we should be able to arrive before nightfall... um, I mean, what should we do with these bandits? Same as before?”
...Okay, looks like our brave hero still needs to work on her topic-changing skills.
Understanding her intent, Violet didn’t point it out. She just smiled and shook her head.
“Elunie, you are the chosen hero and the Heaven Hero. I’m just an ordinary person who isn’t fit to give important orders. There’s no need to ask me about every small thing. Deciding whether they’re guilty or how they should be handled. These kinds of decisions are something you’ll face often in the future. You need to learn to make your own judgments.”
Then she suddenly changed her tone.
“But this time… it’s a bit different. Bring the bandit leader over. I have something I want to ask him.”
“Okay.”
After traveling together for this long, the hero team had already gotten used to Violet's odd and unpredictable behavior. Elunie didn’t ask further and simply agreed. Kunnir then went over to bring the bandit leader, who had been tied up with the rest. He lifted the man like a sack of potatoes and dragged him over.
With the hero team’s strength, dealing with these low-level bandits, who were only around the level of mithril fighters, was easy. Kunnir might not have reached legendary level yet, but after years of experience and the benefits he got from the chosen hero trials, he wasn’t far from it anymore.
Even though Kunnir preferred studying books and knowledge, his natural talent for combat was actually quite high. If he had focused fully on training, his strength might’ve been even greater by now.
Since the difference in strength was so big, Kunnir had been careful not to hurt the bandit leader too badly. He just knocked him out. Under the tiger-man’s strong grip, the man soon woke up.
He looked about 30 years old, with messy blond hair, the most common color in the Holy Empire. It was clear he hadn’t taken care of himself since becoming a bandit. He wore worn-out leather armor and had a big build, but aside from that, there was nothing special about him. His face was also very average, the kind of person who would completely disappear in a crowd.
Before the dazed man could even say anything, the priestess looked at him and got straight to the point.
“I don’t have time to waste playing games with you. I’ll only ask my questions once. If you answer honestly, and if your group hasn’t done too many terrible things, then at most, you’ll just spend a few years in a city prison nearby. But if you try to lie to me… you know what the consequences will be.”
The bandit leader was stunned for a moment.
After the one-sided battle just now, he clearly understood that they had picked the wrong target. At first, seeing that the group was mostly young people, mostly women, he had thought they were just some noble lady and her bodyguards. With more people on his side and knowing the area well, he figured it was a good chance to strike.
Now, all he could do was silently curse his bad luck. But he also understood the threat behind the priestess's words. With the tiger-man’s huge hand pressing him down to his knees, hands strong enough to crush his skull at any moment, he quickly nodded respectfully and replied in broken Holy Empire language:
“Y-Yes, miss! Ask anything you want, I’ll tell you everything I know!”
Violet gave him a flat look.
“Speak in [Veir Language], the language you’re more comfortable with. I can understand it.”
“What?! How do you know—”
Shocked by her sudden use of his native language, the bandit leader's face changed slightly. He blurted out the question before realizing his mistake, then quickly shut his mouth and looked away, clearly nervous.
Her guess confirmed, Violet, who had purposely used [Veir Language] to test him, gave a slight smile, though it wasn’t a friendly one.
“I don’t need to explain that to you. And stop pretending. Don’t you realize how awkward your Holy Empire language sounds? Now, first question, when did your group arrive here?”
“Uh...”
Oddly enough, even though it was a simple question, the man hesitated. Under Violet’s silver-blue eyes that felt like they could see through him, he finally answered carefully.
“N-Not long ago. Maybe about a week ago…”
“Oh really~”
Violet gave a calm smile. She didn’t need to say anything, Kunnir understood her at once. He suddenly pressed down hard with his tiger-sized palm on the man’s head.
“OW OW OW! Stop! Please stop! You’ll crush my skull!!! I’ll talk, I’ll talk! It was a month ago! We came here about a month ago! That’s the truth!”
Hearing this, the others, who had been watching the priestess interrogate him, looked surprised. They exchanged glances, finally sensing that something wasn’t right.
Lately, the number of bandits in the Theo Province had risen sharply. This was mainly because of the war that broke out in the buffer zone between the two empires in the East. Many people’s homes had been destroyed, and with no way to survive, they fled toward the safer lands of the Holy Empire.
But that war had only officially begun about ten days ago, right after the trials for the Chosen Heroes had ended. If this man and his group had arrived here a week ago, that would make sense. But arriving a whole month ago? That didn’t add up.
Unless… he hadn’t come here as a refugee because of the war, but for another reason entirely.
“That was just a warning, if you lie again, there won’t be a second chance to beg for mercy~”
With that sharp and well-timed warning, she nodded and motioned for Kunnir to release the man. Not giving him any time to think, she immediately asked her next question.
“Second question: What part of the Austre Empire’s army are you from, and who is the officer in charge of this mission?”
“W-What?!”
This time, her short and direct question completely shattered the bandit leader’s calm. His face clearly showed panic.
He looked like he wanted to play dumb, but Violet’s earlier warning about “no second chances” left him frozen, stuck in hesitation. After a long silence, all he could do was stammer out one sentence in disbelief.
“W-Who… are you? How do you know all this?!”
“Heh~”
This time, Violet didn’t avoid answering. She just smiled calmly and said,
“I not only know that you were sent by the Austre Empire, pretending to be bandits to carry out missions inside the Holy Empire… I also know that you’re following a secret order from Emperor Leonis Frederick himself, and that your actions are being coordinated by the Austre Empire’s Intelligence Bureau.”
“Since the Intelligence Bureau purposely picked soldiers like you, who look similar to people from the Holy Empire, and smuggled you into the country to gather wandering criminals, disguise as common bandits, and secretly collect information around here, that means what you’re really doing is called… being a spy.”
“Now that war has broken out between the Holy Empire and the Austre Empire, you should know what happens to enemy spies who get caught inside the country… I don’t need to explain that to you, right?”
As soon as she said that, the bandit leader's face turned pale. But maybe because he realized he’d already been fully exposed, he suddenly looked calm and fearless. He shut his eyes tightly.
“Since you’ve already found out the truth, I’ve got nothing to say. Austre soldiers are no cowards, we’ll never betray our country. Just kill me.”
“Oh~ So you’re a tough guy, huh?”
The priestess didn’t look angry at all. Honestly, she had seen many soldiers from the Austre Empire before. If someone wasn’t truly loyal to their country, they wouldn’t be sent on a deep-cover mission like this in enemy territory. So this kind of reaction was exactly what she expected.
For someone this mentally strong, who wouldn’t talk no matter how hard or soft she pushed, Miss Violet had another method.
She turned to a pink-haired little girl beside her.
“Little Eudora, it’s your turn.”
Everyone looked surprised. The little girl blinked, then quickly nodded like she understood.
“O-Okay!”
She stepped forward nervously and looked at the bandit leader. But before he could say anything in return, the pink heart-shaped crystal pendant on Eudora’s chest began to glow softly.
That glow also appeared faintly in the depths of her deep purple eyes. As if realizing something, the bandit leader quickly shut his eyes again to avoid eye contact, but…
“I saw it, Sister Violet. Hmm… this uncle’s name is Skett. He’s a ‘Panther-level’ officer in the Eastern Border Army of the Austre Empire. He has parents, a wife, and a six- or seven-year-old daughter back home. Just now, he was thinking that if he dies here in the Holy Empire, his family might receive about…”
“!?”
“Wait, wait, wait! Ahem—how about we just focus on the important stuff?”
Seeing that little Eudora was spilling everything like some census worker, the priestess rubbed her forehead and gave a dry cough. She didn’t even bother reacting to the look of pure horror in Skett’s eyes. Just waved her hand and knocked him unconscious from a distance again.
Eudora's artifact, the [Heart Chime Pendant], was a sacred tool of the Spirit Hero. Its resonance ability was kind of like mind reading, but even more powerful and versatile. It didn’t just let the user sense thoughts. It could even scan most of a person’s memories in an instant.
Of course, how much she could see depended on the strength of both people’s minds, and it used up a lot of energy, so she couldn’t keep it active all the time. But Eudora was a succubus, trained in mind and spirit techniques. Even though she was still young, someone like Skett, a regular soldier, had no chance of resisting.
“Umm… alright then.”
The soft pink light faded from her eyes. Eudora nodded sweetly, still looking harmless. Under everyone’s amazed stares, she started explaining what she saw.
That said, this spy disguised as a bandit actually didn’t know that much. About a month ago, he was secretly summoned by a superior officer who told him he had been selected for a special mission because of his looks. He was going to be part of a secret squad that would be smuggled into the Holy Empire.
At the time, the war hadn’t started yet, things were tense between the two nations, but still peaceful on the surface. And since the order supposedly came from the Emperor himself, Skett didn’t hesitate and followed the squad into the Holy Empire.
That squad had over a hundred people, all "Panther-level" officers from the army like Skett, chosen specifically because they looked like Holy Empire citizens. Their task was to follow their commander’s orders and quietly spread out around the area near the Chaos Magic Valley, secretly watching and gathering intelligence.
Some disguised themselves as regular citizens. Others, like Skett, pretended to be bandits and roamed around using the local chaos and poor law enforcement as cover. That way, even if some of them got caught by the Holy Knights and thrown in jail, as long as their real identity stayed hidden, it didn’t matter much. They’d just be serving time as normal criminals, not enemy spies.