The Aftereffects of Birthday Party
“Ugh, …… I feel so bad. …… Roka, I can’t do this anymore.”
“Well. You’ve done well. This time I will follow your wish.”
“Ooh! Does that include where I can hug you? Ugh….”
“Shut up! …., your voice echoes in my head …….”
In the middle of a class using magic guns in the drill hall, Shaula collapsed on the ground and Roka sat down and put all her weight on the wall behind her.
The poor girls are just suffering from hangovers and are moaning, and looking like they’re going to throw up.
“It seems that the rock-solid Roka can’t beat the hangover either.”
Liz, who had come to check on me with a magic gun in hand, said in an amused tone.
“Looks like it. By the way, are you okay, Liz? After all, you’ve been drinking a lot too, haven’t you?”
“It’s a bit of a headache, actually. It doesn’t feel like very much because I’m taking medicine to prevent bad headache, but the sound of a magic gun is a bit harsh!
“Ugh, Liz! Could you give me that medicine too? I’ll pay at the asking price… If it doesn’t enough, you can make up the shortfall by doing whatever you want with Shaula.”
“Roka, ……, I’m sorry, I can’t right now. ……’
Shaula was despised as usual, and while she got up with a happy face, she immediately collapsed with a loose expression.
“Too bad. This is just a preventive medicine, so it won’t work if you take it after you have a hangover.”
“Ugh, okay, …….”
“If I knew it would turn out like this, I might have prepared some for you guys, but I thought you wouldn’t like it because it’s really bitter. Sorry.”
“No, no … I’m not good at bitterness …”
Roka’s ears were drooping and her long tail did not move a muscle.
That’s why Shaula and Roka are being treated as observers.
Normally, if you take a rest at this level, you will be disqualified as a soldier, but it is useless even if you force them to move, so it can’t be helped.
Well, there’s not much need for a beastkin to use a magic gun, so it’s not a problem. Besides, they are best at fighting on the front lines instead of hiding and shooting guns, so making them do something they’re not familiar with won’t help.
“Then, everyone please attention.”
It was Elsa, the maid of the Duke of Duras, who said this in a voice that was modest but resonated firmly in the drill hall.
It seems that she was invited as a special instructor because she was good with magic guns. In the crowd of students, I saw a girl with blonde hair tied up on the right.
Today, Clarice is attending class not as an instructor, but as a student.
However, she seemed to be somewhat uneasy.
Perhaps the temple attack was bothering her and she couldn’t get into class.
“The power of the magic guns handled in the school is about the second rank in terms of magic. It can’t be said that they don’t have the ability to kill even at that level, so please be very careful when handling them. In addition, depending on the quality of the magic stones loaded, it is possible to fire about 20 shots with this power. ――Please take a look.”
After Elsa finished her explanation, she held up her magic guns. And she had one in each hand. It was like two swords.
The target is a human-shaped target located about 40 meters or more away from her. Because of the barrier technique, a less powerful technique can withstand quite a number of attacks.
Then Erza held up her one-handed gun and fired a series of shots at once.
The deafening sound of gunfire continued. The recoil causes shake, and the aim is usually gradually lost. But her barrage had none of that. The flaming bullets hit the target one after another.
All 20 shots hit the target without a hitch, causing a gasp from the students, and at the same time, I put my other hand on the trigger of the magic gun I was holding.
The next shot also hit the target without missing the target.
Liz, who had been watching the cheering, muttered to herself.
“You’re amazing, Elsa. Not to mention your housekeeping and fighting skills. I wonder if all the maids in the duke’s household are like that.”
“No, I think she’s just special.”
Elsa’s fighting skills are extremely high. I feel like she probably has some kind of divine blessing.
And there was one small figure watching her from a little distance.
Charlotte, the blue-haired girl, is staring at Elsa’s shooting. She seems to be in a bad mood or somewhat bored.
Later, when Elsa’s lecture was over, it was time for a break.
In spite of this, Clarice and her men remained at the training ground.
“Well, everyone. It’s very difficult to master a magic gun like Instructor Elsa did earlier, but you must not neglect your training. Of course, the magic gun is still in the prototype stage, so there is a good chance that accidents may occur due to unexpected malfunctions. You should understand the structure of the magic gun on a daily basis and be able to disassemble and assemble it. Is that clear?”
“”Yes!!””
Clarice’s men are said to be a platoon size of ten. They were all a few years older than she was. There was only one woman in the mix.
They seemed to be well organized. They all had magic guns in their hands.
The fact that these weapons are given to soldiers and students at military schools means that they can be mass-produced in a certain number, and there is a good chance that more technologically advanced weapons are being used on the front lines.
In actual combat, a magic gun has the destructive power of a seventh-grade magic circle. It was quite frightening. It is quite frightening that a single soldier who has had no training in magic can handle it.
In the north and east, the technology of magic guns is more advanced than here. In the event that a large army of them is coming, it is inevitable that their magic powerhouse will struggle. No, to put it another way, there’s not a single chance in hell of winning.
As long as they are concentrating their forces to such an extent, it is safe to assume that the Empire is seriously trying to bring down the Kingdom of Chiaro Diruna.
I don’t know what caused it, but it may have such a deep meaning.
Truly, this must be the time when the history of this continent itself is about to be rewritten.
…… The smile of the old Diruna came back to my mind. That innocent little
What would the woman think if she knew this? If she had known that the endpoint of the bloodline that had been spun from her beloved was the destruction of her country, would she still have chosen to be united with the Beast God King Lugal?
What a thing to think about.
“Theodore. What are you rambling on about?”
“What’s it? So sudden.”
She has a magic gun in her hand.
Clarice pushed the magic gun towards me.
“Even though you are a special student of Mildiana, since you are here now, you are equal to a student of this military school in Granden. Now, let’s train.”
“But it’s long past class time.”
“It takes a lot of strength and energy to be a soldier. I bet you didn’t think you’d be able to go home after class, did you?”
I was thinking of leaving after checking out Clarice’s shooting skills for a bit, yeah.
And then she put her mouth to my ear.
“There is a good chance that the insolent people who are attacking the temple will attack this city. Train up as much as you can and be ready to strike back.”
“I don’t have to use this stuff. I’m fine without it.”
“Yes, yes. Please do it.”
It was a compelling attitude
Well, it can’t be helped. I’ll go out with you for a bit.
At first I felt the habit of controlling the recoil, but I soon got used to it.
After hitting the target with 20 shots, the magic stone inside the gun shattered and turned it into a long tube, which I put on my shoulder.
“I guess it was easier than I thought.”
“… That’s amazing. I need a few years to get that level….”
“Huh? Get what?”
“Hmm, nothing! What do you think? The magic gun.”
“It’s not necessary for me who can use magic, but for a mere soldier, there’s no harm in learning it–or rather, from now on, how you handle this weapon may determine the course of the war.”
As time goes by, there may come a time when they won’t need swordsmanship and physical skill anymore.
However, considering the possibility of fighting a prophet, an opponent who has received an uncommon divine blessing, it would be dangerous to rely on only one weapon.
“You think so, too? I believe that this weapon will eventually be introduced to Mildiana, and that it will dramatically change the way we fight. It all depends on how much the technology advances.”
“I believe so. However, the key of this weapon is the magic stone. It can be mined in the Kingdom of Lugal, but it’s not infinite. If you think about it, you shouldn’t be relying on the magic power that lies within the magic stone like this.”
As I was naturally discussing with Clarice how to fight in the future, a female soldier who had been silently watching us said.
“Ensign Fourestier and Theodore are good friends after all…”
“…. What? Wha… Who and what do you think are good friends with?
“Since Theodore’s arrival, Ensign Fourestier has been around a lot, hasn’t she? The other day, I saw Ensign Fourestier feeding Theodore a crepe in his mouth in an alleyway!”
The men subordinates screamed, and Clarice, who was the key, had a bright red face and panicked.
“Oh, there’s no way I’m doing that! At that time I had no other choice but to silence him!”
“Again and again…. Hey guys! Don’t you think this capable beautiful boy and Ensign Fourestier, they’re quite a good match, do you?”
“Oh, I can’t believe it! So that man who is seducing Ensign Fourestier!”
“I agree! In first place, he’s just a commoner. There’s no way he can match up with a woman who is the daughter of the Duke of Fourestier!”
While Clarice was in a panic, the conversation proceeded on its own, and the situation was in chaos.
The only female subordinate there said.
“Then, let’s ask Theodore, who is the key! What do you think of Ensign Fourestier!?”
“Yes, it is. I think she’s cute.”
“Ooh!”
“Wh, what?”
“Screw you!”
There were so many different voices.
“Ensign Fourestier! The only thing left to do is for the Ensign to work up the courage to confess.”
“Wait, how can you say that? I don’t care, I don’t care anything about this guy!”
“You don’t care?”
“I don’t care… It’s true that he’s handsome and very excellent… but I won’t do what you ask!”
“So you’re admitting it!”
Clarice shouted at the female soldier who was screaming and shouting.
“Private Ilaria! If you don’t behave properly, you will be punished with a hundred laps around the military academy!”
“I don’t think we have time for that right now because of the emergency!”
“Kuh….”
This is surprising.
I thought that the brilliant Clarice was in perfect command of the troops, but apparently not so much. It’s not that she’s underestimated, but I feel like she’s being treated well. Maybe this is a good relationship.
At that moment, Private Ilaria said.
“Theodore-kun! Ensign Fourestier really does have a sweet tooth! Whenever you go on a date, make sure you go to a place like that!”
“Private Ilaria!”
“Hahha, you’re pissed off! Then I’m going to run around the school building as punishment.”
Then the energetic voice of the female soldier echoed around the area.
☆
A corner of the exterior of Granden.
The temple, which once maintained a majestic atmosphere, has been damaged here and there as if it had been “skewered”, and is in a state of collapse.
After observing the situation inside, Granden’s soldiers came out from inside the temple, exchanging some words with each other.
The “perspective” passed them by and entered the temple. Inside, it was even worse.
A large amount of blood was sticky all over the walls and ceiling, and objects that appeared to be remains were scattered in pieces.
The soldiers carried a large cloth bag outside. The bags also had a lot of blood stuck in them.
A horrific trail of carnage. The black-haired girl, who looked at the scene as if she was scrutinizing it, muttered.
“It’s terrible. It’s obviously a bit much for just killing human beings.”
A girl dressed in a black dress with frills was elegantly checking the situation at the scene, tilting her cup of tea.
Of course, she was not in that place.
Giselle’s spatial magic in Lucifer’s palace in Tenebrae was projecting one of the temples in the distance.
It was a temple that had been recently attacked. In other words, it was the fourth one, and the closest one to Tenebrae.
“Asmo. You don’t have a clue who did this either.”
“Yes. I don’t receive any information until some time after the incident. I don’t know anything about it unless there are some very distinctive traces. Just …….”
The Demon King of Lust, who was also sitting around the table with Giselle, continued.
“It’s no ordinary person who could cause such a situation. And there is no sign of magic being used as far as I can see. I have no idea how they could have done this.”
“Duh. But I’m sure you can recreate this scene for me.”
Asmodeus sniffs at the question from the second wife of the most powerful demon king, playing with his peach-colored hair.
“Of course. But if I do it, the whole temple will be gone as it is. It would be more difficult to destroy it in such a half-hearted way.”
“It makes the most sense to think that it was the work of someone with some kind of great power. …… Carla, can you get me a cup of tea?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
A petite maid girl standing by poured tea into Giselle’s cup. The fragrant smell tickles her nostrils.
“Carla. How’s Lumiere?”
“She’s sleeping. In master’s bed. Should I stab her up now?”
“Oh, God. You can’t do that. If you interrupt her recess, she’ll get even more moody.
Giselle turned her attention to the black-haired maid, even as she gave a somewhat misplaced reply.
She looks lovely and her gestures are reserved, but her tone of voice is venomous.
She is a member of Lucifer’s dependent and the true ancestor of vampires. If she really fought with Lumiere, not only this palace but the whole area would be burnt to the ground.
“Hey, Carla. What do you think? This attack?”
“I have no right to interfere with the opinions of Giselle, the wife of my master, and Asmodeus, the royal.”
“I don’t mind. If you have any suggestions, I’d love to hear them in my spare time.”
Asmodeus leans back in her chair and crosses her arms, emphasizing her even larger chest.
The maid girl, distracted by it for a moment, compared her own breasts with it.
“Given that all four crime scenes are like this, whoever did it must have a strong motive attached to it.”
“Murder, destruction of temples……, roughly speaking, those are the two main objectives.”
“I think I need to add one more thing to that. I thought “ritual” might apply.”
“Ritual? I’ve heard about the Final Droplet. Do you think it’s possible that something similar to that thing may have happened in the case?”
“That’s right. Since ancient times, humans have performed various rituals in order to fight against us demons. These rituals have ranged from rituals to ward off evil, to sealing off demons, to even asking for help from the gods.”
“There are six temples in the empire. Only two temples left in Granden territory. It’s safe to assume that these two will definitely be targeted. For example, if you destroy all the temples, there’s a chance something big might happen.”
“If they were doing something big. They would never do it without a reasonable advantage.”
The assertive vampire’s words were indeed true.
In some cases, this is equivalent to an act of interest against Tenebrae.
When you think about it, this idea is still the most appropriate.
“Maybe the culprit wants to make humans and demons fight again.”
“I wouldn’t say it’s impossible. The Final Droplet incident in the last days was the work of a person who had lived for 500 years. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were others like them.”
“It is true that the demons have had trouble with remote attacks from temples before. If those temples are attacked again and again, some people may think that it is the work of the demons. However, that alone will not be the decisive factor.”
Carla continued.
“Five hundred years, a time with almost no conflict, can dull our senses. In fact, the Final Droplet incident in the last stage of the war had been lost in people’s memories even though the same thing had happened 500 years ago. Even though it was such a large scale incident.”
“I guess that’s what this is all about. When the attack on the temple continues and everything is destroyed, something will happen. It might be a big enough event to make the conflict between humans and demons clearer.”
“It’s just a worst-case scenario. However, most of the time, the truth is about as diagonal as so-called worst-case scenario.”
“That’s right. It’s a good idea to be vigilant. …… Oh,” Giselle muttered at that moment.
“I think this piece of glass is the crystal from the …… temple.”
“It certainly looks that way. I don’t know why it’s shattered into so many pieces, though.”
In the innermost part of the temple, there were scattered remnants of crystal that had been shattered and glittered like powder after being subjected to many strong impacts over and over again.
