The camp was finally set up for the night.
I resumed my discussions with Diane, joined by Ild, Clara, Elisabel, and Lade. I had the dwarves eat a short distance away. The Schultz warriors had all regained consciousness. I wasn’t happy about it, but I left them tied up. Ted was keeping an eye on them with his team. From their group, we’d only brought the lieutenant to join our discussions. He seemed to have an idea of what was going on.
“What exactly was the nature of that adjutant’s transformation?” I wondered. “Can conjurers do such things?”
“Of course not.” Diane, who had finally cleaned up with the help of Reyha, was no longer trying to fight. It seemed that both she and the other Schultz warriors recognized daemons and daemonists as mutual, natural enemies.
“I’ve never heard of such a thing.” The lieutenant nodded in agreement with her.
“He was leeched,” Lade explained, in his typically dispassionate style. “I’ve seen it before. That’s what happens when daemonic influence grows especially strong in a daemonist.”
There are daemonists like that…?
“H-has the Schultz clan started worshiping the daemons, too?!” Elisabel asked.
“No! We are protecting the divine spirits of our ancestors! Not playing around with daemons!” Diane adamantly denied Elisabel’s accusation. Judging by the way the lieutenant trembled at her side, I believed her.
“But, you did say that the Schultz clan’s main residence is in the Holy Precincts, and that some of your warriors dwell apart in the fortress, right? What are the Holy Precincts like?”
“Th-the thing is…we don’t really know much about the Holy Precincts,” Diane admitted. “Those of us at the fortress are told not to intrude on their territory, and when we get our orders, the magemaster sends one of his lackeys.”
According to Diane’s continued testimony, there was absolutely no sign of daemonists on the front lines or in the fortress. On the other hand, she didn’t have any idea what was going on in the Holy Precincts where most of her people resided. We learned that she hadn’t been allowed to enter the Holy Precincts for the past two years, not since she had been presented with her divine sword and named warmaster.
Forget about the daemons for a minute. I feel sorry to see a girl kept away from her family for so long…
✦ ✦ ✦
“Hmph. So, to put it simply, the magemaster and company are daemonists and are up to no good in the Holy Precincts?” I crossed my arms. To sum up what Diane and the lieutenant had told us, over the past two years or so, the magemaster had suddenly become aggressive, as if he was a completely different person, and started a plot to instigate revenge on General Darmund (better known as the duke of Filsand). He had also sent spies to Filsand and given Diane and the other warriors orders based on their information.
“Worst-case scenario, there’s a possibility that the entire Schultz settlement has been taken over by daemon worship,” Clara remarked calmly.
“D-don’t be ridiculous! My father…and my mother would never worship daemons!” Diane’s face turned red.
“Urrrgh,” I grated. The entire thing made me groan. Either way, as a wizard, I can’t just leave the daemonists alone. But the whole reason we’re here in the first place is to bring Elisabel home to the duke of Filsand to negotiate trade and broaden the anti-daemon alliance, all after ensuring her safety.
“Get out that magical horse of yours. I’ll check out these Holy Precincts.” It was Lade who interrupted my thoughts with his request.
✦ ✦ ✦
The next morning…
“Hey, just what do you expect us to do, old man?! Er, I mean, Margilus!” I’d set Diane and her Schultz warriors free. I’d also returned their weapons, including her divine sword.
This was because when Lade of the warrior clan had said he would investigate the daemon worship situation in the Holy Precincts, Diane had offered to help. The lieutenant and other warriors weren’t really sure about everything that was going on, but for the time being, they obeyed their warmaster, and gave up on capturing Elisabel.
“You want to get back to the Holy Precincts as soon as possible, right? So focus on that. Hold off a little longer for Elisabel.” After Diane gave us her reply, I took a look at the people who I’d soon be parting ways with.
I’d decided to trust Lade and Reyha with searching for the daemonists in the Holy Precincts.
Lade was silent. Truthfully, he intended to go no matter what I said.
“Lord, please don’t worry. I, Reyhanalka Haiklus Si, promise to prove my worth.” Reyha was clearly going as a service to me.
“But you know, I’m worried,” I told her. “Please be careful. Don’t do anything crazy. Even if someone who looks exactly like me tries to talk to you, or if you see one of your old friends, never let your guard down. If you suspect any danger, hop right on the phantom horse and come back, you hear?”
“I understand. Your concern touches me, my lord.”
I cast every protection spell that I’d charged on Reyha and gave her several magic items. I also gave her one Arcane Postcard, in case she needed to communicate with me. The only other thing I could do was trust them.
“I’m counting on you, Reyha. Or rather… I, Geo Margilus the wizard, formally entrust you with this duty as my Si.”
“My lord…these words please me very much.”
I turned away from the emotional Reyha to Lade, standing beside her.
“Meanwhile, I’ve never had to worry about you for a second. Don’t go too crazy and cause trouble for Reyha or the Schultz warriors.”
“Mind your own business,” he replied.