Ch.388Chapter 388 – A Kingdom Without a King (2)

After loading the spoils of armor and weapons from the bear, tiger, and wolf beastmen onto our carriage,

It wasn’t long before more bandits attacked us several times.

The next group to charge at us was a band of rabbit beastmen with multiple scars on their faces.

“Are there no elves or dwarves?”

“Let’s at least capture some humans instead!”

About seven rabbit beastmen shouted as they tried to climb onto our carriage.

They probably thought they could easily board a moving carriage.

And truthfully, with their speed, it seemed possible.

“But did they think we’d just sit back and watch?”

The rabbit beastmen were knocked away by Beatrice’s magic before they could even get a running start.

We collected the spoils from the fallen attackers and continued on our way.

And shortly after, rat beastmen appeared.

“Look at all these pretty women…! We can sell them at a high price to human collectors!”

“They’re few in number! Overwhelm them with our numbers!!”

True to their nature as rats, they were quite numerous.

Though they ended up fighting among themselves so only two could actually attack us at once, considering that the bears, tigers, and wolves we met earlier totaled nearly twenty, these rats seemed to number around thirty.

For our small group, being outnumbered was certainly a valid concern.

But that’s assuming they could withstand our firepower.

“If only they had come scattered instead.”

Seeing the enemies clustering together, Sera threw what looked like a bomb from inside the carriage, and the grouped enemies were caught in the explosion and wiped out instantly.

Of course, we collected the spoils.

After that, beastmen with pig faces appeared.

“What a fine man…! Perfect as a soldier!”

“Capture the men and kill the women!”

“Helmet.”

“I’ll handle these crazy pig-heads myself.”

Beatrice disposed of them personally, ignoring any attempts to stop her.

This time, I just let her be.

I couldn’t help but think that I never wanted to get involved with those creatures again.

After that, various animal-faced attackers came at us—hedgehog-like ones, crocodile-faced ones, cows, sheep, and more—and we quickly dispatched them and collected their spoils.

Finally, when the attacks seemed to have subsided, I lamented:

“How is it that among all these beastmen, not a single one approached us with friendly intentions?”

“Well, there was that fox, right? At least he approached offering us a drink.”

Eve, who had replaced Beatrice at the driver’s seat, shrugged her shoulders while holding the reins.

It wasn’t time for Beatrice to switch yet, but with so many attacks, we decided it was better to have Beatrice focus on defending the carriage, so Eve took over early.

“Should we consider someone who approached with sleeping powder in our drinks as friendly?”

“Of course not.”

Eve replied lightly.

So it was just a joke after all.

Looking at her, I quietly said:

“Now I understand why this area is so dangerous.”

“With beastmen rushing at us from all directions trying to make us slaves, it’s pretty clear.”

I could see no future for ordinary people who came here except fighting off the constantly attacking beastmen until eventually being dragged away.

“I didn’t expect the security to be this bad in a border region.”

We were near the border of Bestia.

Usually, any country would try to maintain some level of security even in border regions to protect merchants and adventurers coming to their land.

Of course, if the situation was dire, that might be impossible, but border adventurers and merchants were likely to be visitors to their country, so they’d typically care about them as potential sources of income.

But Bestia seemed different.

“So weak merchants and adventurers aren’t considered guests?”

“…Since there are occasionally merchants and adventurers who trade with Bestia, I suppose they don’t reject all visitors outright…”

Eve muttered that this place was more absurd than she’d expected, now that we were experiencing it firsthand.

“And about those bandits—with that level of equipment and numbers, they must be professionals. They’re not mere bandits but slave hunters.”

“So this place is a hunting ground for slave hunters. Neighboring countries are surprisingly tolerant of this situation.”

I’d think they’d be furious if their merchants or adventurers were unlucky enough to be enslaved by Bestia’s beastmen.

“I suppose the slave hunters avoid operating outside their designated areas, especially near other countries. And…”

Eve narrowed her eyes and continued:

“If someone came to Bestia’s border intending to deal with the slave hunters, they’d turn the beastmen into enemies and potentially start a war. Starting a war wastes national power, and the beastmen’s combat abilities shouldn’t be underestimated—even if you win, the damage would be severe, so you can’t just rush in. And…”

“Even if a country somehow defeated Bestia, neighboring countries would seize the opportunity to target both territories at once.”

The bear, tiger, and wolf beastmen from earlier were a good example.

“…And perhaps the beastmen of Bestia use some strategy to prevent neighboring countries from forming an alliance? If they see signs of an alliance forming, they might avoid capturing merchants and adventurers from one country while targeting those from another, adjusting the level of damage to prevent unity, or even proposing to help attack an allied country.”

“That’s essentially correct, Kay, though the reality is more complex.”

Eve smiled as she spoke, then glanced at the carriage and added:

“Ironically, we’re all skilled in combat, so we end up repelling them and taking their spoils instead.”

“Thanks to Beatrice.”

No matter how numerous or well-equipped, without proper countermeasures against magic, a mage like Beatrice represented an asymmetric force that could neutralize many troops single-handedly.

And Beatrice wasn’t just any mage—she was battle-hardened enough to fight physically when needed.

Close-range surprise attacks barely worked on her.

To be honest, even Sia and I would partially abandon the standard approach of taking out a mage before they could cast if we faced Beatrice.

I could probably manage it by drawing on the dragon’s power, and Sia with the demon lord’s power, but those are special cases not worth mentioning.

With someone like Beatrice in our party, it was no wonder bandits couldn’t touch us even with superior numbers.

“By the way, I wonder how much all this equipment, armor, and money we’ve collected is worth.”

Most of it was good quality, not worn out.

The attackers were all well-equipped, and considering their numbers—dozens by now—we’d accumulated a significant amount.

It seemed like enough to cover any expenses we might have in Bestia.

“We should probably sell most of the equipment and armor, keeping just a little for emergencies, but I’m not sure if we should sell it in Bestia.”

“You’re right, it’s probably best to avoid selling this equipment in Bestia.”

According to Beatrice, these tribes seemed to have strong unity.

If we tried to sell items taken from beastmen we’d killed, word might spread among them, and they’d attack us for daring to harm their tribesmen.

In fact, the slave hunters seemed more interested in using captives as slaves for their own tribes rather than selling them for profit.

As Eve said, if slave hunting was considered a profession, they might be selecting elites from their tribes for the job.

“I hope the interior of Bestia is different from the border region, but…”

“That’s probably too much to hope for, isn’t it?”

Eve nodded at my words.

“When people interpret ‘might makes right’ as ‘the strong can do whatever they want,’ this is what happens.”

Still, as Eve hoped, things might be somewhat better inland, but we couldn’t rule out encountering troublemakers.

I was worried about those who might become fixated on us unnecessarily.

We should raise our guard just in case.

“Looks like we’re in for a rough time until we reach the place Chris mentioned.”

“…And if we’re heading to the northernmost part of Bestia, we should prepare even more…”

Eve’s soft voice reached my ears.

The carriage continued moving forward.

Perhaps because the surroundings had been quiet for a while, Eve spoke up:

“Kay, how are you feeling?”

“I’m fine.”

I smiled at Eve.

“Thanks to Beatrice and Sera adjusting the equipment we brought from the laboratory, I’ve been sleeping well and waking up refreshed lately.”

The equipment we’d taken from the laboratory was now loaded in our carriage.

Beatrice had lightened its weight and modified the carriage structure to create a room where we installed the equipment.

According to Beatrice and Sera, they’d used the laboratory equipment to somewhat stabilize my deteriorating body.

It was a temporary measure, but they said I could live a bit longer if I didn’t overexert myself.

And of course, that wasn’t the only temporary measure for my life.

“Christina has also been casting healing spells on Kay regularly, right?”

“Yes. Though Sera always comes along since the first time.”

Chris has been quite disappointed about that.

Actually, Sera didn’t have any ill intentions toward Chris—she was just trying to analyze the holy magic to apply it to alchemy and create medicines that could help me.

She felt quite sorry about it, so her intentions were clearly good.

Still, Chris would look at Sera with disappointment, wishing she wasn’t there.

Chris wanted to be alone with me, but Sera’s presence prevented that.

“Speaking of which, I’m glad Chris seems to be doing okay.”

“…What happened at the laboratory was horrific.”

Chris had been struggling for a while because of her mother’s tragic end, but fortunately, she seemed better now.

I could see her smiling and chatting with Sera, despite being disappointed that they weren’t alone.

But we shouldn’t let our guard down.

While I was thinking this, Eve spoke up:

“Still, she’s only okay on the surface—we don’t know when she might be triggered again. We should keep watching over her carefully.”

“Right.”

I was planning to do that anyway.

Eve must be quite concerned about Chris too.

Soon, Eve smiled and said:

“But I’m sure she’ll be fine with Kay looking after her.”

“Why?”

“Christina told Sera that she feels calm and at ease when she’s with Kay. Having you nearby must be good for her.”

Does she rely on me that much?

As I felt a bit happy about that thought, Eve added with a hint of regret:

“To be honest, I’m extremely jealous of Christina because when she tries to stick close to Kay, Kay tries to get even closer.”

“Huh? Do I really cling to her that obviously?”

I was just trying to be more attentive to Chris in case she was struggling with her mother’s situation—was I overdoing it?

Eve narrowed her eyes and smiled.

“What do you think?”

“Eve.”

“…If you let me lean on your shoulder right now, I’ll tell you.”

I laughed at Eve’s words.

She’s incorrigible.

Soon, Eve pressed herself against my shoulder while still holding the reins.

“This is why I like the driver’s seat.”

Eve narrowed her eyes like a cat and said that even if she clung to me, no one would see us here.

Instead of pushing her away, I moved closer, and Eve pressed herself even more firmly against me.

As I felt her warm body heat spreading to mine, Eve quietly said:

“Considering various circumstances, the Philosopher’s Stone is likely hidden in Evgenia’s final seal.”

“More precisely, there’s nowhere else it could be hidden.”

Unless it was inside the seal that Evgenia had created with utmost caution to hide from Emiris, there was no reason Emiris wouldn’t have found the Philosopher’s Stone by now.

While there was no guarantee it was there, there was no other place where the stone could be hidden from Emiris.

Eve nodded and said:

“Even if it’s not guaranteed to be there, I hope it is.”

“…”

“So we can save Kay, and then…”

Eve looked up at me slightly.

In her current position, she was pressed against me while pulling the reins to her abdomen.

Looking at Eve’s subtle gaze, I could understand what she was trying to say.

I quietly nodded and said:

“It’s not like I want to die, Eve.”

“I’m sure you don’t.”

“…Let’s talk about what comes after once we survive.”

“…Let’s do that.”

Eve smiled and said:

“Besides, this isn’t something just the two of us can decide by whispering to each other. There are others who should be part of this decision, right?”

I flinched slightly at Eve’s words.

I knew exactly what she meant.

Averting my eyes slightly, I quietly said:

“How did I end up in this situation?”

“I never thought things would turn out this way. What a shame.”

Eve said with a smile.

And then.

She suddenly narrowed her eyes sharply and said:

“…Just when we were having a nice moment. We should prepare.”

At Eve’s words, I immediately became alert and signaled to those inside the carriage.

Then I quickly asked:

“What did you see?”

“Two groups of beastmen are about to clash, with us at the center. There’s going to be a battle in this area.”

It seemed we weren’t the target, but unfortunately, the beastmen were going to fight in this vicinity.

“Can’t we avoid it?”

“Considering the carriage’s speed… If we continue this way, we won’t get caught in the main battle, but we don’t have time to avoid meeting the vanguards of both sides.”

Eve regretfully said that if she had seen this an hour earlier, we could have taken a detour.

Even with her ability to see the future, she couldn’t choose when or what to see, so sometimes we ended up in situations like this where we couldn’t avoid problems.

“They’ll mostly fight each other, but they might attack us thinking we’re affiliated with the other side.”

“So we’re just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

I nodded at her words.

But according to Eve, we’d only encounter the vanguards, so we just needed to deal with them.

Still, it’s better to be prepared for contingencies.

“I should ask Beatrice and Sia to come out.”

“I’ll keep driving the carriage.”

Eve nodded and gripped the reins.

As if in response to her words, voices came from behind:

“Then I’ll intercept from the top of the carriage.”

“And I’ll be ready to sweep through if needed.”

Having received our signal, Beatrice was already skillfully opening the carriage door and climbing to the roof.

Sera was holding the door, and after Beatrice used chains to pull herself up to the carriage roof, Sera lifted Sia with her greatsword up to the roof with one hand.

Then Chris, who was firmly holding Sera’s waist to keep her stable, called out:

“Everyone, please be careful not to get hurt!”

“I’ll support from inside if I can!”

Everyone nodded at Sera and Chris’s voices.

As the carriage door closed, Eve said:

“Please get ready.”

Everyone silently prepared for battle.

And a little later.

War cries erupted from both sides.

“Today we’ll finally crush the lizards’ heads!”

“It’s time to bury those buffalo upside down in the snow pits!!”

The enemies Eve had described as vanguards appeared on both sides.

Buffalo on one side.

Lizards on the other.

“…Lizards living in a cold place?”

“I heard beastmen of all species can maintain their body temperature to some extent.”

Beatrice said briefly.

Then the beastmen, growling at each other, shouted:

“Are they using human slaves to transport goods? Kill them and take their cargo!”

“We’ll take their human slaves too!!”

Arbitrarily deciding we were slaves transporting goods, the two groups began charging at us from both sides.

With just a little thought, they could have realized we were unrelated and fought among themselves, but they were charging ahead anyway.

“Judging by that killing intent and heat, they seem too excited to think clearly even before the fight begins.”

“Let’s not bother sugar-coating the fact that these beastmen aren’t very bright, Sia.”

Sia watched the buffalo side while I kept an eye on the lizards.

Then a buffalo-headed beastman shouted:

“Crush the heads of those disrespectful lizards who invaded our territory and kidnapped our slaves and kin!!”

‘So the lizards were the bad ones.’

I quietly agreed that the buffaloes had reason to be angry.

Meanwhile, an excited lizard shouted loudly:

“Roaaaarrrr!!! Surrender, you buffalo fools! Crush them, descendants of dragons! We are the rightful rulers of Bestia!”

The apparent leader of the lizards roared once, then encouraged his troops while waving a flag attached to the end of a long spear.

The white image engraved on the flag caught my eye.

‘…A white dragon?’

As I felt an inexplicable unease seeing the image of a white, winged, fire-breathing dragon, the lizard shouted:

“The White Dragon watches over us! His blessing is upon us! In the name of the White Dragon, crush them!!!”

“What did that guy just say?”

Beatrice’s incredulous voice could be heard.