PMZ 107 -★The Duke

It was a moonlit night, the night had almost come to a close, and even though I don’t want to bother Duke at this hour, this has to be done.

In the reception room of the Duke’s residence, a debriefing session was held between me, Pete, and the Duke.

“—and t why this thing -Morion- is dangerous, Viscount Ridill was merely dragged into it. He took on a request that no one else could have handled, and this is what happened.”

On the side, Pete is trying his best to explain this matter to the Duke. He’s drenched in sweat. I guess He’s nervous after all. But even in that state, Pete’s word of choice was so carefully arranged that it was clear that he wants to protect me no matter what; I realized once again how lucky I was to born in this environment.

“…Thank you, Pete.”

“No… It’s the truth. You know you don’t have to feel more responsible than you have to. If one day someone is killed by a mutated monster, it will be the work of the monster or Morion, not by your will. Isn’t that right?”

“Yes…”

It’s not that easy to split the difference. One of the reasons why I readily accept the Goddess’s words is because I couldn’t bear the thought that someone might be sacrificed just because I existed.

“So please… don’t look so resigned. There’s still time. Let’s figure out a way to save ourselves together. Okay?”

“……n.”

A way to save ourselves…

Maybe, if we look hard enough, there is a loophole that even the Goddess doesn’t know about. But there is too little time to find it.

In the next six days, I want to create a perfect ecosystem so that there are no casualties. To do that, I need the Duke’s help.

The Duke relaxed his legs and heavily opened his mouth.

“I understand what you’re saying. If that’s what the Goddess said, then I have no choice but to believe her. To be honest, it’s a bit too sudden for me to keep up with. At any rate… I know that the situation is grim.”

“… Yes.”

“Guild leader, thank you for your help. I’m glad you were able to say so much for my family. Thank you.”

“Uh?”

Pete bowed his head and then drank the lukewarm tea in one gulp.

“I’ve told you everything I can tell you, so I’ll leave the rest to you at ……. –See you later, Hayato. Come see me at the guild tomorrow.”

“Okay. Good night, Pete.”

“[Good night] huh…, How can I sleep in this situation?”

He mumbled and left the room, leaving me and the Duke alone.

The Duke stared silently at the air for a moment, then sighed and muttered.

“I’m glad Alice is asleep. I can’t let her this without preparation.”

“… I’m sorry it had to come to this.”

“It’s okay. No one could have known. What are you going to do about it? Do you just accept it?”

“Given that there’s nothing else we can do, that’s what I’m planning to do.”

“That is… No, I guess you’re right. I think even I would do that. But it’s still too early to give up, you know? As the guild leader said, let’s think of a way to save ourselves.”

“Yes. But before that… I have a favor to ask. Can you lend me the power of your magic tools?”

“No problem. What do you need?”

“First of all, I want something that will stop someone from encountering monsters. I want to make it so that people who can’t fight can get out of the city safely.”

“Yeah, that… That’t right, there was an earring that Alice made once that increased the encounter rate, but I think it can be remodeled immediately. We can start the mass production tonight.”

Yes, just as the Duke says, I want to utilize the thing Alice had made.

The shape doesn’t have to be earrings. It can be anything. I want to make sure that it gets into the hands of people who need it, young and old, men and women, even those who don’t have much money. 

“Thank you very much. I don’t know what kind of materials would be best, but I can offer you some.”

“What do you have?”

“A lot of various things. Do you mind if I pull them out here?”

“Sure. I’m very interested in what you’ve collected so far.”

I’ve acquired a lot of stuff. Some I sold, some I kept in the shadow storage, and before I knew it, I had amassed quite a variety and quantity.

I was saving them for when I retire from adventuring, but I never thought they would come handy in this way.

Although I was a little afraid of using the dark attribute, I put my faith in the blessings of the Goddess and opened the world of shadows.

I will give everything I had to the Duke. I pull them out and put them on the floor.

“This is amazing… It’s like I’m getting a glimpse of the life path you’ve been on.”

It started with various medicinal herbs and restorative medicines, magical plants such as Mandragora, drops from relatively low-rank monsters, such as Orc’s Axe, and other items obtained during the N rank period.

Then I shared cockatrice eggs, vampire cloaks, unicorn horns, phoenix feathers, etc. I acquired this during the time with my childhood friends while I was still in a party.

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen these things. It’s brought a vivid, nostalgic memory.

There are also gold, silver, platinum ingots, mithril ingots, precious stones, and rare seashells.

I also have a dragon body, but I remembered promised Pete I’d sell it to him first.

I’ll save that one.

 –I wonder how much money I’ll get if I give the dragon to the guild and they sell it.

Suddenly, I imagined placing a gold ingot on the palm of my hand, and the thing was produced from thin air, and it felt very heavy in my hand. It was the same as the black sword. I’m able to create matter.

“Hayato, that was…”

“Yes. It seems to be able to create matter now.”

“That’s the power of the gods? That’s cheating…”

“It’s scary. This horrified me. This is not an ability that people should have.”

I keep generated it and stacking the material while talking with the Duke.

“We could use this to make magic tools; this is no time to be scared.”

“Is it okay to use so much power? Won’t Morion be angry?”

“Does he have any rights to be angry? I feel like I should be using him since he’s using me for his own nefarious purposes.”

The Duke chuckled.

“You’re right. You’re absolutely right.”

“What else is easy to use for making magic tools?”

“Any stone or precious metal is easy to use. Mithril is the best, but crystal is also quite good.”

“I understand.”

To think of it, they use crystal to regulate the flow of magic power around the city. Okay, then It’s better to have a lot of them.

The first thing I did is generating a lot of crystals, then next. I create a lot of mithril ingots.

The reception room was quickly filled with a lot of stuff.

“The supply of mithril unstable because there was no way to obtain it except through drops, but with you, it will be cheaper than iron.”

“If that’s what it takes to protect everyone, so be it.”

“Everyone… Everyone, huh? I’d like to ask you, how much should I tell this story to everyone? For that part, I also don’t think I should tell Lav just yet.”

“Yes, that’s right, I feel the same.”

She is in a period where not only his physical health but also her mental stability is important. It’s not a good idea to burden her by saying unnecessary things.

“and how about Alice?”

My hand came to a halt.

I have been thinking about it for a long time. But there was still no answer for this.

“…I don’t know. I just want to choose the best way for her to live the rest of her life.”

“The best way. … If she finds out, she won’t be able to keep quiet. I’m sure she will say something about being together even in death.”

“She can’t do that.”

 I reflexively rejected the idea.

 I see.

 That’s the answer.

“So you’ll fake it?”

“………… I feel like that’s the best way.”

“Yeah… Yes, it is.”

I hate to lie, It doesn’t matter if it’s a small lie; lying about something important has never worked out.

But still, there are some things that need to be hidden, I guess.

“Then I’ll have to think of a reason for your sudden disappearance. No, I don’t think you’re going to die, but just in case. …and If you manage to save yourself, you can just come back with an indifferent face.”

“understood.”

After consulting with the Duke, I decided to tell Lav and Alice that I was going to defeat a demon king-like figure that had appeared.

It’s not that wrong, and it’s not a lie.

It’s just… the demon king is myself.

“Duke… May I be so bold as to say one thing?”

“What is it?”

“I want to go see Ridill for the last time.”

The Duke looked surprised.

“Why? It’s not close, and you don’t have much of an attachment to it.”

“No, it’s not that. In the short time I was here. I learned a lot about Ridill. I had a lot of fun imagining what it would be like to live there with Alice… For me, that place is a symbol of hope.”

Besides, it’s had a deep forest. I don’t like the idea of dying in a place where people can easily see me.

Then the Duke’s eyes moistened a little.

“That is fine…, but then you probably should have to leave in about three days. It will take some time to get there, even if you use a vehicle.”

“Yes. But I’d like to take a detour along the way and watch the flow of magic power and place the crystal as I go. Hopefully, I can create a path where monsters don’t appear like in the city.”

Now that there is no limit to the number of crystals we can use, I’m sure we can do it.

Truthfully, I want to travel around the world while doing that, but I don’t have enough time.

“…I understand. Then, I will prepare it faster. And don’t worry about the capital city, leave it safety to us, just go with a piece of mind.

We can do more than the other nobles, and I’m sure the Goddess gave us the power for times like this. 

Therefore, can I ask you to bring me the cookies made by the Village chief’s wife? It will be the best souvenir for me.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

I know why he made that sudden change of topic. He told me to come back alive.

When I laughed at his choice of words and his forceful change of subject, the Duke muttered to himself.

“I’m sorry to ask this at a time like this, but … “

“Yes?”

“What was the goddess looks like?”

There we go again.

Why do uncles have the same concern? Even the way they start is the same.

“Oh, …Yes, pure white, very beautiful.”

“Oh, ……!”

“She was a beautiful owl.”

“owl?”

“Yes, an owl.”

“Oh…. A beautiful, white …… owl ……”

They even had the same reaction. The Duke also looked disappointed.