Chapter 158: Little Cat Green Beans (Patreon)

"Just as I thought..." Laqeramaline's expression turned wistful. After that great war, many familiar faces had left Kazdel. She herself hadn't left, but at a friend's urging, she had come to this valley.

"Are they doing well now?"

"Not exactly well, I'd say."

Saito's answer was somewhat tactful. Taken purely in terms of the Wendigo's life now, it was undoubtedly a good one — compared to all the hardships Bozkasti had endured before, his time in Endfield had been nothing short of contented.

But of the Wendigo who had left Kazdel back then, in the end only he remained — he might well be the last Wendigo left in this world.

"I see..."

Laqeramaline let out a soft sigh. The clan that had once left Kazdel out of weariness with war had ended up dragged into another battlefield all the same. Sometimes she genuinely found herself wondering whether some being in this world had cursed the race called Sarkaz — otherwise, why would they keep meeting such fates?

"At least he's content now."

Laqeramaline seemed to be lamenting for someone else and comforting herself at once. Her slender fingers picked up a bone quill and touched it to the fragment. A faint blue light flickered on and off, and some strange power settled onto the bone, forming a handful of odd characters.

"If it's possible, please pass this along to Bozkasti. I once had some dealings with the Wendigo clan — call it repaying an old debt."

"All right." Saito nodded and took the bone fragment, tucking it away in his pocket.

"So this is the only reason you stopped us?"

"You could say that."

Laqeramaline nodded lightly. In truth, she was quite curious about both people before her, but since they were friends of an old acquaintance, she had no intention of scheming against them herself.

Still, some things were best asked clearly first.

"That said, Kazdel is in the middle of a civil war right now. The conflict between the Military Commission of Kazdel and the King of Sarkaz can't be settled easily."

"Why have the two of you suddenly come to Kazdel at a time like this?"

Behind the black veil, her gaze gradually sharpened. Though the banshees took no part in the civil war, they were still Sarkaz — she wouldn't change her own stance simply because Bozkasti existed.

"We... came here to meet with Her Majesty the King of Sarkaz."

"You want to see Theresa? Why?"

Laqeramaline pressed on, faintly puzzled. Neither of the two before her was Sarkaz — what business could they possibly have with the King of Sarkaz?

"We're looking for something very important. Her Majesty Theresa might know some clue to it."

"Once we've met with Her Majesty, we'll leave. We don't want any part in the Sarkaz civil war."

Saito made no secret of their purpose. According to the Administrator's memory, at this point in time on Terra, Theresa was the one most likely to know where the Primordial Originium lay — such information was most likely bound up with the survival of civilization itself.

"I see..."

Laqeramaline nodded, seeming to accept their explanation.

"But I wouldn't advise you to set out just yet."

"Why not?"

"An old friend of mine has been giving Babel trouble lately. By my reckoning, he should be somewhere nearby right now."

The banshees might not take part in the war, but that didn't mean they were deaf to the world beyond — at the very least, she herself would never stop keeping track of outside affairs; that would be no different from curling up and waiting to die.

And as the ruler of a Royal Court, no one on this land was foolish enough to make an outright enemy of her. So as long as she didn't actively involve herself in the war, both sides would tacitly leave her be.

After all, if either side rashly provoked her and pushed Laqeramaline into the enemy's camp, that would cost them far more than it was worth.

But just because she and the banshees could afford such ease didn't mean Saito and the Administrator could ignore the danger — most Sarkaz on this land lived up to their reputation all too well, and not everyone was as kind as she was.

Of course, even her kindness depended on who she was dealing with.

"That one isn't easy to deal with. I'd suggest you find somewhere to lie low for a while."

The person Laqeramaline spoke of was another Royal Court ruler of standing equal to her own — master of the Crimson Court, known as the Sanguinarch, Duq'arael.

Compared to the more neutral banshees, the Vampires under Duq'arael were bloodthirsty and merciless through and through. Duq'arael himself was worse still — to him, non-Sarkaz were no different from livestock, and even half-blood Sarkaz drew his contempt. He was the extremist among extremists; even Regent Theresis had to endure his arrogance.

"Duq'arael..."

Saito repeated the name. If at all possible, they had no wish to clash with a Royal Court ruler — especially right after crossing paths with Laqeramaline.

Though neither side had shown its full hand, fighting to mutual ruin wasn't what Saito and the others wanted — and whether they could even win was far from certain besides.

The power Laqeramaline had shown along the way had genuinely exceeded what he thought possible.

Next to this ruler of the Elegiac Court, the Casters he'd once encountered seemed as frail and helpless as mayflies. Even the black-haired girl beside him — purely in terms of knowledge of spellcraft — might not necessarily surpass the banshee ruler before them.

"Thank you for the warning."

Saito thanked her in earnest. Their first meeting might have gotten off to a rocky start, but Lady Laqeramaline had truly done them a great favor.

Laqeramaline nodded lightly and spoke again.

"If you have nowhere else to go for now, why not stay in the valley a few days? Once Duq'arael and his party have moved on, it won't be too late to leave the valley and continue your journey."

"Well..."

Saito looked at Laqeramaline, hesitant. Wouldn't this be putting them to trouble? By rights, neither of them should have set foot in the valley at all.

"It's no trouble. As it happens, there are a few empty rooms in the valley where you can rest. Most of my people still hold some curiosity about the world outside — I doubt they'd mind your company."

"If it really weighs on your conscience, you can do me a small favor later."

"What favor?"

Laqeramaline waved a hand, and a letter drifted out from the cabinet nearby. She placed it into Saito's hands.

"My child has stayed at Her Majesty Theresa's side these past years. If you happen to meet him, just give him this letter."

"No problem."

If that was all there was to it, it was no trouble at all — though it seemed this Lady Laqeramaline wasn't quite as impartial as she let on, after all...