Chapter 4-3:
Serpent
LAKE ELFEN WAS LOCATED IN THE NORTHERN region of the kingdom, and it was a scenic place. Surrounded by mountains and forests, it boasted a beautiful view. It was apparently freezing in the winter, but it was cool in the summer, making it the best location to escape the heat.
Since the olden days, it had been a status symbol to spend the summer at the lakeshore, and many powerful nobles owned villas by Lake Elfen.
Needless to say, House Rosenberg also had a large property nearby.
The interior was adorned with paintings and engravings. While it wasn’t as grand as the manor in the royal capital, it was still enough to enjoy an elegant and comfortable stay. The duke’s influence was present here as well.
I had the weapons, armor, and other equipment carried into this lavish building. I initially planned for seven sets to cover myself and the squires, but we brought plenty of backups, enough to equip dozens of people. The entrance of the villa quickly transformed into a stronghold for knights.
“Lady Serena, may I ask what is going on?” the butler, an elderly man in charge of the villa, asked as he gingerly approached me.
“These are all necessary for my summer retreat,” I insisted, deciding to lie through my teeth. I couldn’t say that the gear was for the serpent monster that would appear at the lake.
“I can’t imagine all this being necessary…” the butler said.
“It’s become popular in the royal capital,” I replied.
“I’ve never heard of these dangerous items trending. They clearly look like gear prepared for military warfare.”
I snapped my fingers, and Richard immediately rushed to my side.
“Should Lady Serena claim that crows are white, they shall be painted white,” he said. “If she declares that blood is blue, we shall bleed blue blood. That is what our loyalty and our faithfulness are. Do you understand?”
With bloodshot eyes, Richard cracked his knuckles, glaring daggers at the butler. He was young, burly, and had an intimidating face that only added to his intensity.
“Yes, of course,” the butler replied, turning pale as he nodded.
It was important to have a mutual understanding about these things.
✦ ✦ ✦
We continued to train by the villa, preparing for the monster. Piecing together bits of memory from my previous life, I could only recall that it was a large snake. I had Alice look into monsters to see if anything similar had ever existed. We then held a meeting in one of the villa’s rooms to hear a report on her findings.
“From your story, Lady Serena, I surmise that the monster is called a serpent,” Alice said. “It’s a legendary monster also known as the demon incarnate, feared for the destruction it causes. Its weakness is apparently light magic, but because it shows itself only around once a century, not much is known about it. A majority of them have been dispelled by saintesses who seemed to just appear within the kingdom. One theory suggests that the serpent is highly intelligent and can likely understand human language, though through ancient words.”
Alice provided her explanation in a straightforward manner. She was the calmest of the six squires and rarely showed her emotions. It sounded like the serpent lived merely to give the saintess a spotlight.
Its weakness is light magic? I thought. What the…? I feel like it exists only to be defeated by a saintess.
“Is light magic the only thing effective against the serpent?” I asked Alice.
“In terms of magic, yes,” Alice replied. “As I’ve said before, iron weapons cannot scratch the serpent’s scales, but items made of mithril can harm it.”
She had told me that mithril weapons were effective before we arrived at the villa, so we’d prepared plenty of armaments of that type.
“However, knights and soldiers have been reluctant to fight simply because of the rumors that it’s a terrifying snake monster,” Alice continued. “There aren’t many records of battles against it. And while the monster causes destruction, it stays in the water. Thus, there have been no records of it wreaking havoc on a large scale. The kingdom also generally leaves it alone. The normal process is to wait until the saintess arrives to dispel the beast. However, since there have been no records of it being defeated by weapons, the serpent is undoubtedly a powerful monster.”
Anger began to well up within me. So everyone’s just colluding to hype up the appearance of the saintess.
“Indeed, it’s difficult to fight in the water,” Oscar said. “Will it not come up on land?”
“It has the capability to leave the water, but it mostly likes to stay submerged,” Alice replied.
“If we poison the lake, will it come up on land?” Isabel wondered.
It was a good idea. This battle was one on the side of justice—it couldn’t be helped if some sacrifices had to be made.
“It’s said that women are effective in luring it out,” Alice said. “They say serpents favor beautiful ladies.”
It’s not only weak to holy power, but it likes women too? How convenient a MacGuffin is this serpent to the saintess?
“Then after Isabel and I lure the serpent onto land,” I said, “we shall cut off its path of escape and attack. How does that sound?”
I was the most beautiful lady in the world, and Isabel had a decent face too. We would be the perfect bait.
“That’s a great plan,” Alice agreed. “The two of you can slowly draw the serpent out of the lake.”
“If you’re bait, Lady Serena, I’m certain that any monster would be enchanted by you!” Richard added. “If they aren’t lured by you, I’ll be sure to drag them out!”
After we came up with that rough plan, we began to hash out details on how to vanquish the monster.