Chapter 199 - From Preparation to Departure (2/2)

Aus was being evasive, but from the slackness of his mouth, Loren suspected that was indeed the case.

“Judie believes that having someone powerful accompany you, even just as a support, might unnecessarily irritate the dragon. By the way, these eggs can also be used to offset magic, so you should try out their various uses. You can keep the surplus as an extra reward, but please don’t sell it on the human market.”

Even if they couldn’t be exchanged for money, Loren thought that they were very powerful magic items. If you used them well, they could save your life, and since there were a good number of eggs in the wagon, he believed he would really appreciate being able to use them.

If possible, he would like to have someone who could fight accompany them, but if the Demon King had made that decision, it would be better to follow it.

“Where’s Gula?”

The last time Loren saw her was in Judie’s room, and he was told later that she was abducted by the maids. He asked Aus just because he thought the man might know something, but Aus simply pointed with his chin toward the wagon:

“Our maids were loading her earlier, didn’t you see?”

“Please don’t tease her too much. I know she’s unusual, but…”

Gula had completely turned into a toy for the maids of the Demon King’s Castle. She had been ‘loaded’ meant that she had probably been brought in unconscious, and Loren couldn’t help but be somewhat curious about what the maids had done to make her so.

“You’ve done a lot of research, right? What did you find out?”

“About Evil Gods, you mean? To be honest, we don’t have much interest in them, so we don’t know much.”

Aus mentioned Gula’s true identity so nonchalantly that Loren had almost missed it, but Lapis’ tightened hands on his shoulders made him listen more carefully.

“I know they were created by the ancient kingdom. There are various rumors that they were researching about making demons submit to humans or turning humans into demons, but the truth is unknown. I’m sure the Evil Gods themselves don’t know everything either.”

“Even so, it’s still a pity you don’t know more.”

“I know how you feel. Well, you can either take it easy or forget about it altogether.”

Loren lightly clucked his tongue at Aus’ words as if to say that it was someone else’s problem, not his, then asked more questions:

“Can’t you tell me where Lapis’ eyes and legs are?”

“It’s a secret. I’m sure Lapis will agree. Don’t you, Lapis?”

Lapis nodded in response as if to confirm Aus’ words. Loren was somewhat dissatisfied, but he convinced himself that if Lapis, the person in question, was fine with it, then there was no need to pry any further.

“You can keep the wagon and horses at Lapis’ base in the area. The wagon is infused with numerous technologies of ours, so it’s best to not sell it on humans’ market.”

“Can it cross the mountains?”

“It can, on a specific route… But if it’s too much trouble, you can just sell it off to the dwarves.”

Aus seemed to consider the wagon as an additional reward, and Loren was impressed by his generosity.

“I don’t think it will be too dangerous on the road, but you should leave it to Lapis to deal with the demons. If you leave now, we can spend one night on the road and reach the mountain by noon tomorrow. I’m praying for your safety. And, well… Take care of my daughter.”

Aus said, still smiling. Before Loren knew it, the maids had finished their work, and all that was left to do was to board and leave.

Lapis took her hands off Loren’s shoulders and climbed onto the driver’s bench. Loren followed her, thinking that Aus’ request to ‘take care of my daughter’ was pregnant with hidden meaning. Feeling a bit mean, he asked Aus, who was seeing them off:

“Are you that worried? Why did you take away her limbs and eyes then?”

“Because we think a sheltered girl has no worth. That was necessary to give her experiences in the human realm. Still, as her parents, we’re worried about her. Is it that strange?”

Loren couldn’t answer that question. After all, he had never been a parent, and he had never known his own parents. If he had to, he could say that the leader of his mercenary company was his parent, but he had no idea if said leader felt the same towards him as Aus towards Lapis.

Aus didn’t seem to be expecting an answer from Loren either; he didn’t look disappointed about Loren’s silence but simply looked up at them. As Aus opened his mouth to say something, one of the maids quietly approached him and whispered something in his ear, causing his face to cloud over for the first time.

“I’m sorry that you have to hear this right before leaving, but I have some bad news.”

“I don’t want to hear such things while I’m just about to depart…”

“You might want to hear this thought. It seems the shield has been stolen.”

The man named Magna already possessed the sword and armor, and the two items he hadn’t stolen yet were the shield and the helmet that Loren was carrying. If the shield had also been stolen, the only thing left would be the helmet, and it was almost certain that Magna would go after their party.

“You demons are unexpectedly negligent.”

“We don’t have much interest in them, so we manage them rather carelessly… I apologize for this shameful situation.”

“Well, it can’t be helped. If this helmet is destroyed, we’ll be able to handle the situation somehow.”

The helmet had been loaded into the wagon along with the other supplies. It was wrapped in a packing that had been treated to make it difficult for magic to probe it, but Aus explained that it would not be very effective against Magna, who already had three of the set.

“If you successfully carry out this commission, you will have the free pass to enter and leave the region under Demon King Judie’s control. Do your best.”

“It doesn’t sound like a very nice reward, but it’s a commission from the parent of my comrade. I’ll even get paid, so I’ll do it.”

“Take care of my daughter. With all my heart, I ask you, take good care of my daughter.”

“Damn it, if you’re that worried about her, you should have kept her sheltered in the first place!”

Loren was dumbfounded. Next to him, Lapis silently whipped the horse with a bright red face. Loren thought she was too embarrassed to let Aus continued talking, but when he noticed her glancing over her shoulder at Aus and the maids, he leaned into her ears and said:

“You can drop by on the way back, if you want. Since we don’t have to worry about Ritz’ party anymore.”

“…I’ll think about it.”

Lapis answered with an even redder face, and Loren was made to understand that some feelings were the same whether you were a human or a demon. He would suggest Lapis drop by Judie’s castle on the way back.