Chapter 73 - Mother’s Wrath
At the dinner table, my father speaks to my mother. It seems there have been various discussions with neighboring knightly houses. The reason is that the casualty rates among soldiers entering the forest have started to show a noticeable difference between our house and the others. There’s a reason for this, of course. It’s due to the unique circumstances of our knightly house and the magitech tools we possess, which other houses do not.
“...What do you think? Could we consider lending or selling the scouting magitech tools for use against monsters and magical beasts and for monitoring the Shallow Forest?”
“Dear... It’s still too early for that. Do you have any idea how much effort we’ve put into keeping that a secret?”
“I know. I know, but the others aren’t fools. During the recent campaign, it became common knowledge among the houses that participated in the expedition that our second son easily traversed the Shallow Forest and attacked the enemy’s flank. The only thing they don’t know is how it was done. Everyone wants to know the secret. Or rather, they’ve already started to suspect.”
I nearly spit out my dinner. Wait, I’ve already shown the scouting magitech tools to the Prime Minister and the Royal Guard Staff Officer. The Royal Guard Staff Officer, in particular, was very interested. Wait, no... I should have handled this dangerous topic earlier. I wiped my mouth with a napkin, took a sip of water, and calmly addressed my mother.
“Mother, unfortunately, keeping this information secret is proving difficult.”
“What do you mean?”
“Yes. When you, Father, and Second Brother visited the high countess’s residence, the prime minister and the royal guard staff officer came to the Fortress where I was stationed. You’re aware of that, right?”
“Yes, I heard from the heir. And... I also heard what happened. You’re reckless.”
“Truly... If something had gone wrong, the entire knightly house would have undoubtedly lost their heads. It still sends a chill down my spine. But what about it?”
“The prime minister has some knowledge about the Guerilla Unit’s ‘black uniforms.’ Furthermore, the royal guard staff officer was deeply intrigued by the ‘scouting magitech tools.’ Additionally, when I was asked for assistance in searching for my friend from the Minister of Magic’s family, I provided five old-model ‘scouting magitech tools’ used by ordinary soldiers, along with some ideas. The existence of these tools is already known to a select few.”
“What?! Why didn’t you say so sooner! How could you keep something so important to yourself?!”
“I’m sorry... I didn’t realize it was such a big deal...”
“Honestly... Listen, those tools make it easier to enter the Demonic Forest. Once people get a taste of it, they’ll flock to the forest in droves. The ecosystem in the shallow layer will undoubtedly collapse. While things are calm now, the balance is precarious, and you know that, don’t you? If we hunt down too many small and medium-sized magical beasts, the small-sized monsters will lose their food source and go on a rampage. Once that happens, no one will be able to stop it. In our territory, only registered hunters from the Hunter Guild are allowed to hunt in the Shallow Forest. There are also limits on the number of prey that can be hunted. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten that.”
“Yes... You’re absolutely right. I had forgotten. My apologies.”
“You need to take some measures. I’ll also seek the frontier countess’s assistance.”
“As a limited-use measure…”
“It’s a last resort. We’ll lend them, not sell them, and widespread distribution to the public is out of the question. Understood?”
“Yes... I’m truly sorry.”
It was a stern rebuke. My mother’s words were entirely justified. I hadn’t forgotten why the Hunter Guild was established—to manage the forest’s resources and prevent excessive hunting of magical beasts. Her words weighed heavily on my heart. I need to send a letter to the Royal Guard Staff Officer immediately. The widespread use of scouting magitech tools would spell disaster for the villages at the forest’s edge and the frontier regions. I can only hope it hasn’t spread too far already.
――――
I must act quickly to calm the situation. Shortly after the last one, I wrote two more letters. One was the promised report to the Prime Minister on the latest exploration of the Demonic Forest. The other was a plea to the Royal Guard Staff Officer.
The letter to the Prime Minister was simply a list of facts. I emphasized that we must focus on establishing a thorough surveillance system and maintaining the paths to prevent anyone from risking their lives to traverse the Shallow Forest. In fact, we’ve successfully cleared the main paths in the eastern shallow layer region of the Demonic Forest of our territory, and key paths in the western region already have huts and communication magitech tools in place. Occasionally, I head to the hut above the waterfall to meet with the Estarian girl.
Though, to be precise, she senses my arrival and comes to meet me. We’ve started a sort of trade, exchanging lists of items we need and bringing them the next time we meet. Since using fire is strictly prohibited in her area, she often requests magitech tools that produce warm air, pots, and flameless heaters. Naturally, this includes the accompanying magic batteries. What’s commonplace for us is a precious magitech tool for them. In return, she provides materials from monsters I’ve never seen before.
When I return to the Fortress, it’s my job to examine these traded items. There are often bizarre materials from monsters not even found in the middle layer. Of course, these aren’t recorded in the Monster Compendium, so identifying their species and characteristics is a challenging task. Systematically analyzing them is essential for future expeditions deeper into the forest than the middle layer. I proceeded with the utmost caution.
I included these details in the report to the Prime Minister. I hope he’ll be pleased, though it’s likely not the kind of information he’d find particularly enjoyable. After all, it’s evidence of unimaginably powerful monsters residing deep within the forest.
For example, there’s a hook-shaped claw the size of a human fist.
Its large, coiled shape closely resembles the claws of the Glide Cats commonly seen in the Shallow Forest. However, it’s fifty times larger. This suggests the creature itself is fifty times the size of a Glide Cat. If it retains their agility, defeating it won’t be easy. In fact, surviving an encounter with it is far from certain. Imagining a giant monster of the magical cat family makes my stomach churn.
I’m sure the Prime Minister will feel the same. Whether to make this information public is up to him, but I think it’s best to keep it under wraps for now. If word gets out, some fool might try to hunt it for a quick fortune. The forest would be ravaged, and if a distress signal were sent from the depths of the Demonic Forest, deeper than the middle layer, it would be a disaster.
All I can do is pray the Prime Minister makes a wise decision.
The second letter, addressed to the Royal Guard Staff Officer, honestly conveyed my mother’s concerns. The peace of the Demonic Forest is directly tied to the peace of our frontier homeland. The thought of the scouting magitech tools being widely used terrifies me more than anything. Uncharacteristically, I passionately emphasized the dangers.
The knightly house’s territory must never be allowed to sink into the forest.
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