episode_0146

Of course, I didn’t just go into the information guild headquarters.

Since it actually exists in the world, it is highly likely that it existed in the novels I read and the original work Amelia read, but we both only learned of its identity after experiencing it here for the first time. So, we don’t know the extent of its power.

It was only a very, very fleeting moment, but I thought about calling the magic tower lord.

If you were the magic tower lord who was able to defeat that old man in one go, you could easily win even if all the members of the Information Guild were Auric Lions. But that thought was literally just a thought.

I’m sure they’ll ask for something in return after helping me.

“The wolves were all spread out. Of course, there were at least two of them at a time. Don’t spread them too far apart… … .Is there an exit somewhere else?”

I continued to maintain a respectful tone because I was speaking not only to Amelia, but also to Diane and Adele.

“If we dug the ground and made a tunnel, there might be another entrance that we can’t find. I was short-thinking. I should have sent another child instead of Alexander… … .”

Alexander has now flown to deliver a letter to Brother Harvey.

This is because I decided that if the situation escalated, it would be better to use a strong warrior called my brother as a backup.

The idea itself was good, but the problem was that the eagle owl was not on our side.

Now the sun has almost set. I couldn’t use the light source carelessly if I thought it would be visible to others.

Getting on the road wasn’t a big problem if we were on the backs of wolves, but now the vision we can see with our eyes is slowly becoming limited.

The place where we are gathered now is quite far from the entrance of a cave. We haven’t found any other ninjas guarding the surroundings yet. They all went inside after seeing the guy running away, or maybe they saw us from a little distance away. Is there one?

Since wolves can’t find them by scent, at least they aren’t ‘nearby’. People who lived in the same place would have a similar smell, but wolves haven’t been able to find those people yet.

There was a reason why the wolves could not find the way here. The place where we came to camp was quite far north from where we usually visited. The reason was obvious; it was basically because the places where the carriage could go were limited.

Even if the carriage was built with the assumption that it would run off the road, the problem could become serious if it went too far and broke down. That’s why the place where Ma Top chose to camp was also relatively close to the road.

On the other hand, the place where I released the wolves is quite far away. If a wolf runs out on the road leading into the forest, unsuspecting people may try to hunt it.

To prevent such a situation, the wolves were instructed to roam only ‘as far away from the road as possible.’

The cave was surprisingly close to the road, making me wonder how it was not discovered.

“If nobles also use the information guild, then of course there has to be a headquarters near the road. There is no way nobles would like to walk in a forest with no roads.”

Diane gave a cool answer to that question.

“But, if you don’t want to come, can’t you just send someone over?”

Diane shrugged her shoulders at Adele who asked that question.

“It may be information that others should not see. No noble can be trusted 100%, no matter how long they have served.”

“… … What kind of information is that important? … .”

“I know what you’re imagining, but surprisingly, it won’t be a murder or a conspiracy. Rather, it will be much more personal. It’s too personal for others to know… … Information that cannot be shared.”

Diane’s face also became a little blurry as she answered Adele’s words.

Is it because the count’s family also has information that needs to be hidden?

“And because it is such information, it can also be a weakness. Nobles must pay considerable attention to their external appearance.”

After saying that and ending the story, Diane looked at Amelia and said.

“Don’t worry about another exit. Even if you don’t have Alexander, you have Ulysses. Amelia has four birds, too. They probably don’t even think they’re watching you.”

To be precise, they might know that we are dealing with birds, if only they had observed us without being caught every time we came to the forest, just as they were caught observing us during this camping trip.

But whether you can find those birds is a very different story.

How many sparrows are there in this forest? Just by raising my hand for a moment, five sparrows and one eagle owl flew in. Unless you kill all the sparrows around, it’s probably hard to find them.

And if you really do that, your location will be found out right away.

“… … Diane, you look smart today.”

And when Adele saw Diane like that, she couldn’t bear it and said that.

“… … I’ve always been smart. Can you even say that in a situation like this?”

Of course Diane reacted as usual.

Thanks to those two, I relaxed a little.

Actually, I wasn’t too worried. It is said that Adele’s swordsmanship skills are not at the level of a complete knight, but there was no trial in the story that Adele could not overcome with swordsmanship. But with me next to her, there was no more danger.

Diane was more accomplished as a swordsman than Adele. Her physical strength was much better than she looked, so she was not inferior in skill.

and… … .

Of course, the same goes for Amelia. Battle scenes were rare in the story, but every time, Amelia was able to overcome them with her own talent. Although her skills in swordsmanship itself were still a bit lacking, she was full of talent in magic itself.

Come to think of it, they said in the original that they used magic when tormenting Adele. They actually tried to burn her… … I heard he was a person who wasted his true talent.

“… … Wait.”

Amelia stopped the two people who were fighting in quiet voices.

Amelia’s gaze was directed forward. At the entrance to the cave in the distance.

And from that cave, a faint wisp of smoke was coming out.

“That?”

“… … I think I should go there soon.”

As I muttered, Amelia got up.

“That must be smoke incinerating information. It must be moving extremely quickly inside right now.”

A little time had passed since the man entered, so it was quite possible.

“You both know how to use magic to manipulate water, right?”

Amelia spoke while looking at Diane and Adele, and they both nodded with serious expressions and showed cold water bottles at their waists.

Of course, I also had a cold water bottle. I had packed a lot of luggage with survival in mind. I didn’t want to spoil the somewhat excessive preparation, so I deliberately packed a few when I entered the forest earlier.

I didn’t know that would help.

“The cave looks large, but be prepared to use the Mornion Genava magic just in case. You may have to escape by putting out the fire… … Elsie.”

“I know.”

I immediately pulled out my sword.

There are three people in charge of magic, so if it takes effort, I have to do it.

“If it seems even the slightest bit dangerous, escape outside immediately.”

Before leaving, Amelia said that.

We all nodded seriously.

*

In modern society, information refers to data stored in computers.

Of course, handwriting has not completely disappeared, nor is the information no longer printed and stored, but in fact, there is a high possibility that even such materials exist at the same time as ‘data’, as they first start with creating files on a computer.

So, what is information in this world?

It was parchment.

It is not that there is no paper imported from the East. It is very thin, light, has a consistent size, and is easy to store, but it is basically very expensive.

That’s right. If all the information, all the vast information collected by the information guild, were really written down on paper, it wouldn’t be profitable. The reason the information guild collected information was to buy and sell, and of course, in order to make a living, they really needed all kinds of trivial information. I had to gather it all and hold on to it.

So, even though it was systematically organized, most of the information was written on parchment, rolled up, and piled up.

… … Thanks to this, it took a long time to process the information.

If it were paper, it would burn as soon as it touches the fire, but parchment is ‘leather’.

It takes much longer to burn, and it even produces thick smoke. However, if you try to burn too many things at once, the humans in this cave will suffocate from the smoke before they can escape.

It’s truly a quandary.

Because something happened that I could never have imagined… … No, the problem is that I was not prepared because I had been working comfortably for so long.

“I never thought humans would invade Delkisi… … !”

The guild leader held his head and shouted.

The information guild, where all combatants were Aurors, was naturally safe from most attacks. The humans who heard that ‘strong humans have gathered’ did not even think about attacking the information guild from the beginning.

The nobles who bought and sold information were afraid that their information would be leaked out in revenge.

That’s why this place, which was treated as a kind of ‘necessary evil’, was attacked by unexpected people.

“Guild leader!”

One of his subordinates came running into his office in a huff.

“In the end, we came here, what should we do!? As expected, they attacked… … !”

“You crazy bastard!”

The guild leader screamed.

“Are you planning to attack the Grand Duchess and the Countess!? And that too in front of the eyes of the Delkisi humans? If you even send reinforcements from the Delkisi territory, we will be finished!”

“But then how—”

“Run away. Run away. The thing that was burning… … Damn it, I have no choice. I have to somehow gather the essential information, run away, and try to join a guild in another area.”

“Qu… … !”

After all, it was not okay to touch a person who was not touched in the first place.

Grand Duchy of Grattenmount… … Although it was a far away place, I received the request thinking that if I obtained the information this time, I would be able to use it someday, but my judgment was wrong.

bang!

It sounded like something exploded.

I wonder if it’s the sound of a door breaking… … ?

“What are you doing? I told you to hurry up!”

Even though he normally lifts weights, he didn’t have the spirit to do so at this time.

First of all, you have to survive at least—