Take 1. Ruins of the Old Castle in the Vernis Mountains (Day/Outside).
Leonardo's squad, having completed all preparations, heads towards the Dragon's Tail in the northern part of the mountains.
At the point of moving away from the shadow of the old castle ruins, Raul draped a mottled cloak over himself and covered his face with a mask.
"Then I'll be going," he said.
To the knights of the expeditionary force who were curious about the whereabouts of the technical advisor, Raul could say that he had stayed at the central outpost because he was suffering from illness. After all, Raul had often shown unpredictable behaviour, and since entering the Vernis Mountain Range, he had spent a long time lying in the cargo compartment of the wagon to hide his face.
If we only consider strength, he would be on par with Leonardo. However, because he often faints, jumps up suddenly, and collapses, Raul's image within the hunting squad has become quite strange. Thanks to that, it was convenient in this situation.
As Vittorio hurriedly gathered the basket filled with dried fish and jerky, Raul ruffled the child's hair vigorously. Leonardo nodded, and I waved my hand as well.
"Be careful and come back. I'll check in often."
"How are you going to check me, huh… Fine. Go ahead and monitor me, monitor me! Peek whenever you're bored."
Despairing, Raul grumbled and raised his hand. Soon, as they entered a densely forested area, he leaped onto the wagon with a nimble motion. Then, at a speed difficult to follow with the eyes, he jumped onto the high branches of the tree, repeating this several times before suddenly disappearing.
[Troop List – Spearman Raul: (Complaining about the cold while moving south...)]
The promise to check frequently is not just a formality. This is because the personnel management list system that was opened in El Dante before is still being maintained.
'Since I have access, I should take a look from time to time.'
Just checking his condition alone wouldn't make it easy to help him immediately, but it would still be helpful to understand the situation.
After quite some time had passed since leaving the old fortress, Duke Marchez approached us.
"Lord Ertinez, it seems the Duke has matters to discuss with you."
With that, we moved to the front of the line with Marchez and secured a space to talk. Duke Marchez spoke directly.
"This dragonbone sword, you see. It's quite intriguing, so I spent all night studying it."
His eyes were quite dark under his eyes. Even Leonardo, who had reasons not to sleep, had enjoyed quality sleep, but it seemed Duke Marchez couldn't sleep for another reason. The Duke's aide sighed silently, as if exhausted. It seemed they had failed to stop the Duke from indulging. For some reason, I felt the aide's unspoken sorrow.
"It's a rare specimen, so I had to handle it with care, but…"
The Duke muttered as if regretting not being able to bite, tear, and taste it in a more aggressive manner, greedily staring at the dragonbone sword Leonardo held, then adjusted his glasses.
"As you know, the poison of the evil dragon is not easily purified. Even though it happened hundreds of years ago, the monster horde is still affected by the evil dragon's poison. That's also why we sealed the evil dragon in its living state instead of killing it outright."
Certainly, as it is set as an enemy of humanity in the original work, it seems like a formidable presence. Listening attentively, the duke carefully lifted the dragonbone sword with his gloved hand.
"Especially the royal sword is the result of being immersed in the divine vein for years to purify and being consecrated day and night by the priests. This means that the poison contained in the evil dragon's body cannot be purified in a short period."
The Duke of Marchez, who had been speaking calmly, gradually infused his voice with passionate excitement, and it grew louder and louder.
"Of course, at that time, it was right after the seal of the evil dragon, so it is presumed that the poison was quite powerful. In fact, there is a theory that the royal family's treasured sword is not made of bone but of teeth, specifically canines."
When the fake duke cleared his throat and tried to intervene, Duke Marchez belatedly regained his composure. Leonardo, who had been quietly listening, left a brief impression through
「He's the type who would explode if he was paired with Natalie.」
'Haha… is that a metaphor?'
「…」
Leonardo mumbled his answer with an ominous silence. What is it? What is it?
"Well. So, I plan to conduct a few experiments. One of the main issues is the stability of this dragon bone sword. The king personally demonstrated its effectiveness against monsters, but it was only for a short time."
Indeed, Godric had briefly held the mass-produced dragon bone sword before quickly putting it down.
"It has not been proven whether a weapon mass-produced in such a short period can be used safely over a long time."
'That's a valid point.'
While I can't believe everything Godric said is true, he did announce that he found dragon remains after this summer's monsoon. And the point at which the First Field Army was deployed to gather the remains would have been after the news of Leovald's death spread throughout the kingdom. That means it was only a few months. This implies that they produced nearly hundreds of dragon bone swords within that period.
Moreover, Godric chose dragon bones as the weapon to kill Leonardo, and he is not the type to care about the lives of the characters. If he discovers that this poison harms the human body in any way, 'I might be able to shake Godric's position.'
Several useful scenarios came to mind. A way to fill the gaps that cannot be covered by the alliance led by Duke Marchez.
"However, there is something I need for my research." Duke Marchez said, looking beyond the distant peaks.
"The tools I use mainly rely on the byproducts of the monsters, and quite a few of them were used up last night. Conveniently, this is the main hunting ground, isn't it?" He paused.
It seemed like the distant sounds of monsters roaring fiercely could be heard. I didn't particularly intend to earn the honour of the leap year great hunt, but it looks like I have no choice but to get fired up for the hunt. I exchanged glances with Leonardo. The time attack missions to lure the duke to the Vernis Mountains were experience points in this way.
[You have encountered the designated target, triggering a sub-quest!]
Main Objective: Hunt Monsters (0/50)
Sub-Objective: Obtain suitable byproducts for the research of the Dragonbone Sword (Current Progress 0%)
Explore Dragon's Tail (Current Progress 1%)
Research Tasks: Remove Abrasive (0/1), Study Toxicity (0/1), 'Experiment' (0/1)
Achievement level:
High achievement, 3 major research projects completed (90% research progress)
Medium achievement, 2 major research projects were completed (research progress 60%)
Low achievement, 1 major research project completed (30% research progress)
The hunting counts of all participants will be summed up and processed.
Quest participants: Leonardo, Isaac, Vittorio, the expedition team (including the Duke of Marchez' troops)
Time limit: 236 hours, 30 minutes, 15 seconds
It's been a while since I've seen the sub-quest window. It reminds me of the experiences from the early stages. Compared to the first quest I received, which was to catch a chicken that had escaped from its coop, the difficulty seems to have increased too harshly.
Although Leonardo has regained his skills, having moved beyond the level of just creaking inside the young master's body. Still, it bothers me that even after achieving all the goals, the research progress is only at 90% instead of 100%.
Is there a hidden condition like in a real game? Or are there stage laws or author interventions that can't be explained by the characters in the scenario?
Well, I guess I'll find out gradually.
As I moved north, the terrain began to gradually change. The dragon's tail was a steep ridge lined with small, closely spaced peaks.
The trees had barely grown, and the rocks stood tall, with solid bedrock being the main surface to tread upon. The overall scene was desolate, even including the occasional greyish dead grass.
As they held their breath at the landscape that looked like a sea of fog, Vittorio, Leonardo and the Duke, quickly lifted their heads. They squinted at the sky, which was thick with clouds, and faint sunlight shone through the thinly veiled clouds.
And then – something was seen. Like a sunspot. The small, round dot gradually elongated, taking the shape of a migratory bird.
Leonardo shouted, "All troops, take cover!"
It was a command more suited for a legion than a hunting squad, but the knights, trained in a proficient command system, reflexively hid behind the high rocks.
Meanwhile, a quickly approaching black shadow revealed a prominent figure. Its body was covered in feathers that gleamed like metal, with an alien upper body attached to the bird's legs and torso. As the three-headed monster opened its beak, the interior was filled with small, saw-like teeth.
Shriek!
A creature, letting out a terrible scream, claws at the rock. Just as I try to use my insight to scan for weaknesses, another scream erupts from above. Looking up at the sky, I see not one but multiple black spots.
"How many of them are there?!" one of the knights screams.
Despite all this chaos, Leonardo whispers in a clear voice that only I can hear.
「These monsters didn't come here to find us. Our reaction was a step too late.」
'I see…'
「They were lured here by something. Judging by their frightened appearance, it seems they fled from something.」
Fleeing.
Hearing that word, a scene immediately comes to mind.
Godric, wielding the dragonbone sword, approached, and the creature, terrified, retreated inside the cage.
[Sub-writer 1: This is what it's like to fight on a stage meticulously designed by the author.]
It was just a representation of text without any voice, but it felt as if a hand was placed on my shoulder and someone was whispering right next to my ear. The chilling sensation of a cool hand running down my spine.
Shrieeek!
Such a trivial feeling was completely overshadowed by the monstrous scream that shook the mountains.