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Chapter 108 Reunion after a Long Time
I had never expected her to come to us. Seriously, she's beyond impressive and a bit scary. I mean, we're in an inn! We just checked in a moment ago. What's up with Joanna's information-gathering abilities?
"Heeey! It's been a while, Joanna-neesan! Are Beato-chan and Mel-chan doing well?"
"No, no, no, no, you suddenly showed up! We just arrived a little while ago!"
"I happened to be watching the entrance to the town and happened to see you coming in."
"...So, you followed us?"
"Correct! Applause for Kyrie-chan who got it right! *clap clap clap*"
She's more annoying than usual...
"Well, whatever. We saved the trouble of searching. Toka, let me introduce you. This annoying person I mentioned earlier is Joanna."
"Nice to meet you, Toka-san. You're a new companion, right? You seem to be a dwarf."
"Indeed a dwarf. I've heard a bit about you from Kyrie. She trusts you quite a bit.
Hey, Toka, what are you saying? Now Joanna is getting carried away again!
"Well, well, well, Kyrie-chan relies on her big sister so much, huh?"
"It's not like that, so don't get close! It's annoying!"
*Sigh* As expected, annoying banter.
...But it feels somewhat nostalgic.
"Oh? My, my? Beato-chan, your collar has changed. What happened to the collar I gave you? What's going on?"
"That. Joanna, let's start with that. There are various things to talk about, but let's start with that."
The attack by the golem user Blum and the transmitter attached to Beato's collar. As part of Toka's introduction, I briefly explained those points.
"...So, about the transmitter, Joanna, what do you think?"
"Well, well, the timing of the implantation is too mysterious. This is a difficult question..."
"Yeah, there shouldn't have been time for the Taltus army or the Paladisians to implant it."
She had been wearing the collar all the time. As far as I know, she wore it even when sleeping, except during baths. Wait a minute. Isn't there a contradiction in this story?
"...Could it be that the one who planted the transmitter wasn't from the Taltus army or Paladis?"
"Oh, why do you say that?"
"A transmitter was embedded in something Beato wears all the time. If they were targeting Beato, wouldn't they just catch her instead of sneaking something like that in?"
"I see, that makes sense... maybe."
"In that case, how do you explain how Blum found Beato's location?"
"Oh, right..."
My head was starting to get tangled up. Including the timing of the setup, I'm completely lost.
"...Hey, Joanna-san. You were the one who provided that collar, right?"
At that moment, while looking directly at Joanna's face, Toka voiced something.
"I worked hard to find something that would suit Beato-chan. What's wrong with that?"
"Well, as far as I can see, you had quite good taste. In contrast, Kyrie..."
"Leave it, Beato likes it too."
"..."
See, Beato was nodding in agreement.
"...Is that all? Come on. We're talking about something important."
"Hahaha, sorry, sorry... I got curious, you know."
Hahaha, no. If you're the older one, please don't interrupt the conversation with such irrelevant things.
"Okay, okay, enough about the transmitter... Joanna, let's get to the main point. Tell us all the information you've gathered since entering Corcut."
"All of it? If I tell you everything, the sun will rise about three times."
"...Correction. Just give us the key points briefly."
"Roger that. So, first, I'll talk about the actions of Taltus at the front line and then about Corcut's perspective."
First, Joanna told the story of Taltus's actions until the kingdom's front line was broken. She combined information from a few soldiers at the front line and soldiers on Taltus's side, revealing Taltus's initial misdeeds.
First, three days after we left Frejenta, Paladis envoys made contact with Taltus. At this time, they obtained the Hero Gift Sphere. They accepted the condition of bringing Beato in exchange.
"The information Toka-san provided seemed a bit inaccurate."
"...Well, what I heard was the testimony of a single soldier in the chaos of the battlefield. There might be discrepancies."
According to Toka's account, the Taltus army, which tried to attack the kingdom army, ended up clashing with regular and demi-human armies and turned into a friendly-fire situation. However, the truth was different.
"First, a mysterious army attacked both the demonic and demi-human forces. A mysterious group of black knights led by an unidentified young girl. And hordes of monsters."
"... [Mech] and [Domination]. The girl is probably Blum, who altered her appearance to look younger."
"That's right. Thanks for getting to the point quickly."
So, Blum spent time on the battlefield in her original form. To conceal her identity, she transformed into a child and unleashed magical mechs, mainly against the Dwarven forces.
"The mysterious legion disappeared abruptly after causing havoc. Leaving behind a massive number of corpses. Naturally, the battlefield was in chaos."
Amidst the chaos, with communication between units disrupted, the Taltus army launched an attack on the 15,000-strong kingdom army. The demon army, numbering less than that of their counterpart but each equipped with the Hero Gift Sphere, wiped out the kingdom army in less than an hour. Simultaneously, the city of Frejenta collapsed.
"Subsequently, the Taltus army began advancing towards the capital. They sent messengers to the main force."
"Messengers?"
"There were traitors within the demonic forces. They defeated them, but the regular and demi-human forces suffered heavy casualties. Realizing that maintaining the front line was no longer feasible, they attacked the kingdom army with a desperate resolve and emerged victorious. Riding on this momentum, they will swiftly defeat Brutogyu and liberate the people of the capital... well, that's a summary of the situation."
"Sigh... I want to kill them."
"Oneesan, I agree wholeheartedly."
Mel, we really click, don't we? I'm starting to feel the urge to do some good old torture and murder after a long time.
"Yes, let's not let the murderous intent take the lead. So, in the homeland, Taltus is treated as a hero. It seems a bit challenging to get Corcut on our side in the war against Taltus, right?"
"I see. But you know, a military person is coming back to this town tomorrow. If that person can corner Rugolf, the situation will surely change dramatically."
"Oh, really? That's quite good news."
Yeah, that guy was probably good news. There's even better news, like the fact that the leader was alive, a piece of major news.
"I heard good news, so I felt like picking some flowers. I'll be right back~"
"Ah, wait a moment..."
She's gone. I wanted to tell her about the leader being alive. Seriously, who talks about picking flowers nowadays? Just go to the bathroom normally. Her way of talking is truly unique...
△▽△
Right after she heard about Leah-san, Joanna left the room. She said she was going to pick some flowers, jokingly. Seriously, who talks like that these days?
"...I'm going to the bathroom too."
"Go ahead. Hey, Beato? Why are you climbing onto my lap?"
"...♪"
"I'm feeling hot... it's spring, and yet I'm feeling so hot..."
Hang in there, Mel. I can't be of much help. There's something even more concerning for me, you see.
I peeked into the bathroom, but as expected, Joanna was nowhere to be seen. When I left the inn and went to the back where no one was around... there she was. Joanna, sending a bird with a letter tucked into its leg sleeves.
"Hey, that's a pretty unique way to pick flowers."
"Oh dear, I got caught."
"Where were you sending that to?"
"Of course, it's Stige. To inform Strah-chan and the others about your information and various other things."
"Hmm, interesting. But Kyrie's story is still in progress, isn't it?"
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