After Paul and Spica formally saw us off, Sarius explained that the matter was urgent and requested that Shinki carry me so we could travel quicker. We weren’t running, precisely, but we followed after Sarius at a brisk trot and soon arrived not at the emperor’s office as I’d expected but at the southern courtyard.
The emperor was there along with Euche and Sache, but wyverns were also present, so it seemed we weren’t heading to the elemental palace.
“Lady Nefertima, I’m sorry for the inconvenience, but please come with me. It seems something has happened to Dalgard and the others.”
Dalgard is the ogre that His Majesty named, right? What happened in Wildwood?!
“We need to hurry.”
Shinki and I hitched a ride on Sache, and we set off immediately, flying as fast as we could towards Wildwood. Along the way, the emperor explained that he’d felt something. He’d started having an ominous feeling while working, and Weedy also seemed to sense something wasn’t right because she’d begun moving her tentacles around restlessly.
Then he’d realized that his instincts were telling him that something had happened to Dalgard and the other ogres.
“The ogres usually spend most of their time hunting in the forest, but I’ve never sensed anything like this from them before.”
He said that he’d been hesitant to bring me to a place that he knew was likely dangerous but ultimately decided the presence of a beloved child might be able to calm the ogres down.
“If you find yourself in danger, don’t hesitate to use elemental power.”
Ideally, I’d like to avoid danger entirely! But I promise to be on my guard.
“Okay. Shinki, I’m counting on you!” I said.
I’ll leave the elemental power to Shinki.
“We’ll have to be careful the nanos don’t get carried away.”
…Yeah, he’s got a point there. I could totally see that happening.
Euche and Sache flew the entire distance at top speed, allowing us to make it to Wildwood much faster than before.
As far as we could see from above, nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary.
The emperor seemed to know where the ogres were because, without hesitation, he directed us to land at a specific spot deep in the forest. As soon as we touched down, the sound of people shouting orders back and forth to one another could be heard.
The Dragon Corps soldiers and the members of the private guard who’d come along all took up fighting stances.
“There are more of them than I expected. A large number of hostiles dressed as adventurers means there’s a high likelihood that Runohark is involved,” Emperor Celiunos mused, apparently being fed information by the elemental spirits.
Currently, there was a no-kill order in effect for all monsters, so it was clear that these weren’t members of the adventurers’ guild.
Does that mean Runohark are attacking the monsters directly?!
“Do your best to capture them alive if at all possible,” Emperor Celiunos ordered, and the Dragon Corps soldiers nodded, then disappeared into the forest.
Several wyverns remained in the air, their riders raining down magical attacks on the enemy from above.
There was a cacophony of sounds like something out of a monster movie—ogres and dragons roaring and magical explosions everywhere.
“The enemy is trying to flee! Catch them!”
“I’ve got two men injured over here! Please send help!”
“Damn it, now the ogres are attacking us! Use the wyverns to push them back!”
The dense forest wasn’t ideal for the wyverns, and the Dragon Corps were having a hard time.
Whose screams were those that I kept hearing from time to time?
“Your Majesty…” the leader of the private guard spoke up in a pinched tone.
“Very well. Leave just a few men here. The rest of you go help them.”
Several men were selected to guard the emperor, and the rest of the private guard dashed off into the woods.
“Gather the injured over here!”
It seemed that one of the members of the private guard was a healer. They immediately began tending to the wounded.
“We’ve tied up the captives!”
“If you’ve managed to take a few of them captive, don’t bother chasing down the ones that fled,” Emperor Celiunos ordered, using elemental power to send his voice to our allies.
After that, the sounds of battle gradually faded.
Once total silence fell, the normal sounds of the wind and birds singing resumed.
“It looks like no enemies left in this area.”
Once the area was determined to be safe, the emperor headed for the spot where the fighting had taken place. The soldiers were working together to carry large and heavy-looking objects that I assumed to be the unconscious bodies of the captured Runohark agents.
“Dalgard, are you okay?” Emperor Celiunos called out before stepping into the ogre’s line of sight, clearly trying to avoid startling the ogre and raising his self-protection instincts.
There was a rustling and snapping sound, and the ground faintly shook as Dalgard stepped out into view.
“You’re wounded…!”
Dalgard was covered in blood and had so many injuries all over his body that I couldn’t help instinctively averting my eyes in horror. And it wasn’t just Dalgard, either. As the other ogres gathered around, all of them were likewise covered in deep wounds.
“It looks like you’re not okay at all, huh?”
When he recognized the emperor and me, it was like all the power had left Dalgard’s body. He slumped to the ground in a seated position, looking exhausted. “It was them. Those who attacked the clan, they came again.”
“The people who previously captured the seven of you?”
“Yes. They were very strong. As strong as you, master, if not stronger. They killed everyone.”
I was shocked to hear Dalgard’s claim that the Runohark agents were stronger than Emperor Celiunos. Even though he hadn’t been using Euche’s power during the fight with Dalgard, Emperor Celiunos was an elite-level water magic user, and his skill with the sword was easily on the same level as the unit leaders of the private guard.
“First things first, let’s patch you guys up.”
Emperor Celiunos called over the healer who’d just finished tending to the Dragon Corps soldiers, and the man immediately began using magic to heal the ogres. Some of the ogres didn’t want to let anyone other than the emperor or me get close to them, so he had to move slowly and speak in a gentle, calming voice, reassuring them that he meant no harm before they would let him heal them.
“No matter how strong they may have been, I can’t believe they managed to injure you all this badly. How many of them were there?”
“…Many. That’s all I know.”
You’d think the people working on Project Roslan would’ve noticed so many people sneaking around in the forest…