TLWCA 152

Chapter 152 – Encounter (1)

Tired, sunken eyes.
Dark circles reaching down to the corners of the mouth.

“Oh… you’re here… Adrian-sama.”

Edlerun greeted weakly.

His face looked like someone on the brink of death.

“…What’s the matter?”
“Huh? Ah, it’s just… I didn’t get much sleep last night because I was working on research.”

Still, Edlerun tried to perk up, as if to show he was okay.
…It made me feel a little guilty.

After all, in the end, the situation was one where Edlerun didn’t even need alcohol.

But who could have predicted this?

“How’s the progress of the research?”
“About 60%, sir.”

Still only 60%?

“Since it’s different from traditional fermentation, setting up the proper research equipment has been challenging…”

Edlerun lowered his head and sighed deeply.
Despite the money I had invested, there was no progress, and he looked frustrated and apologetic.

“Is it very difficult to set up the equipment?”
“…Well, you see, for night beer, the fermentation temperature must be maintained at at least 55°C.”
“And?”
“But existing fermentation equipment deforms or breaks if the temperature exceeds a certain level. So we’d need to use heat-resistant alloys, but there are hardly any craftsmen who can make them…”

And then came a long, complicated explanation.
…I didn’t really understand it.

But the main point was clear: there were “technical problems.”

“Edlerun, have you ever been to the Count’s territory?”
“Uh… no. I’ve never been there in person.”
“Then come with me this time.”
“…Yes?”
“There are dwarves in the Count’s territory right now.”
“Dw-dwarves?!”

Edlerun’s eyes widened like a ferret struck by thunder.
And his whole body shook like a ferret hit by lightning.

He had a look that said he didn’t understand why dwarves were there or what they had to do with the Count’s territory.

Dwarves’ creations occasionally appeared on the market,
but it was extremely rare for dwarves themselves to appear in the human world.

So, he looked like he was waiting for an explanation—but it would take too long to explain.

“Go with me to the Count’s territory and tell the dwarves about the problems we’re facing. They’ll solve them for us.”
“B-but…”

Edlerun opened and closed his mouth several times, swallowing his doubts.

“B-but hiring dwarves will cost an enormous amount! At the very least, tens of millions of gold—”
“I’ll handle the cost.”
“Whaaaat?!”

Edlerun jumped in shock.
Indeed, hiring dwarves could easily cost tens of millions of gold.

No, tens of millions? Even hundreds of millions wouldn’t be enough.

Dwarves weren’t greedy.
They only cared about the cost of obtaining ore or making their creations; they weren’t after money beyond that.

But that wasn’t a problem.
In fact, it meant dwarves valued things other than money.

‘If they taste night beer, they’ll probably go crazy and demand more,’ I thought.

Dwarves were a race obsessed with alcohol.
Money or no money, it was obvious they’d make the equipment themselves.

“R-really?!”
“Yes. Then the problem should be solved, right?”

Edlerun was speechless.
His face was scrunched up like a cowering ferret.

“T-to this extent….”

His voice trembled.

“Why would you… go this far for someone as insignificant as me….”
“Edlerun, you are the president of the Predator Guild.”
“Don’t… say that…”
“If you’re insignificant, then I must be the master of an insignificant guild.”

Edlerun’s eyes widened.
He rubbed his face with his forearms in disbelief.

“…I swear! I will do my absolute best!!”
“Just keep doing what you’re doing. You’re already doing well—”
“No!!”

Edlerun suddenly clenched his fists.

“I’ll reduce sleep, skip meals, and even fast if I have to to do this perfectly!!”
“You don’t have to—”
“I have to!! For your dream! For the honor of the Predator Guild! I will make it happen myself!!”

The eyes that had been tearful moments ago were now burning with fierce determination.

“If I die, I die! I won’t fail you!!”

I stopped myself from saying anything.
If I added a single word, I might not be able to handle the consequences.

“…Anyway, if we hire dwarves, the problem will be solved?”
“They could start production as soon as tomorrow!”

Maybe not that fast, but the issue was effectively resolved.

“Then can I tell you my purpose?”
“Ah, yes! I’ll listen carefully!”

Edlerun grabbed my ears like he was really going to pluck them.
I had to speak quickly before they got torn off.

“The Ghost Guild.”
“The Ghost Guild…?”

The Ghost Guild that had toppled Kraven, the magician in charge of Illiana.

Currently, it was bribing the elder magicians of Langrit Tower with the plan to self-destruct later, all to reform Langrit Tower.

“I’m thinking of using it.”

It would serve as bait to lure the Empire.
The bait: runic iron.
The guild would be a vehicle to operate within the Empire.

At first, I considered using the Predator Guild.

‘Too risky.’

I’d be exposed, and so would Whitewolf County.
Because it was related to the Empire, I had to be cautious.

The Predator Guild should grow as a guild to secure funds for the allied forces.

Above all, the Ghost Guild was destined to self-destruct.

If Empire-related matters went wrong, I’d simply trigger the self-destruction.

“Do you mean the Crow Poop Jar Guild?”
“The Crow Poop Jar?”

…What kind of name is that?

“It literally means a poop jar.”
“…?”
“We collect the ‘poop’ of the elder magicians, as black inside as a crow. A guild to detonate it all at once, hehe.”

Edlerun chuckled, proud of the name choice.
The meaning fit, at least.

“I considered Crow Poop Bucket, but Jar sounded better, so I went with Crow Poop Jar!”

…I don’t even know what the Empire will think.

Now, making a new Ghost Guild was unnecessary.

So I decided to use the Crow Poop Jar Guild.
And it required administrative procedures for distribution rights.

“Leave it to me, Adrian-sama!”

I left it in Edlerun’s hands and returned to the streets of Freche.

Next, I headed to the Mage Guild.

To buy recovery potions.
Of course, the potions wouldn’t improve Seraphia’s condition, but at least they could prevent it from worsening.

And Brumbar’s condition could definitely improve.

The Mage Guild was quiet.
As I entered, a mage at the reception spoke in a dull voice:

“What do you want?”

But upon recognizing me—

“You’re here, Adrian-sama!!”

He jumped to his feet and bowed 180 degrees.

Ever since sweeping through Freche’s market last time, almost no one here didn’t know my face.

At the same time, the curtain behind the reception whipped aside.
A high-ranking mage appeared, running to me.

“D-do you need something?!”

His attitude was almost as if he were addressing the head of Langrit Tower.

“I’ve come to purchase recovery potions.”
“Ah, yes! Please wait a moment!”

He went into the storage himself and carefully retrieved the neatly sealed potions.

No need to use Predator Instinct[S] to identify them.

“Are these made with troll blood?”
“Yes! They’re rare potions, and there aren’t many left, hehe.”

Indeed, they were troll blood potions.

Troll blood potions carried a risk of madness.
They were used topically on wounds or as an ointment, never ingested.

Could monster-induced insanity at the genetic level be removed?
It was one of Arcanis’s 23 great problems, ultimately deemed impossible.

But…

‘Could my blood be used to make a potion?’

I realized suddenly: if I could consume monster meat without going mad, maybe a potion made from my blood wouldn’t induce madness either.

‘Hmm.’

The previous emperor had made potions from Ice Trolls, but he couldn’t solve the madness problem either.

If my blood, after consuming an Ice Troll, could be used…
It could make a regeneration[B+] potion without inducing madness.

From there…

‘Could I even extract the super-regeneration factor?’

An ultra-regeneration[A] potion.
It might even work on aberrant tissue.

‘If that works…’

I wouldn’t need to accumulate 3,200 Sanity each time for Frenzy[A].
I could just consume the pre-made ultra-regeneration potion from my inventory, generating the Bone Blade whenever needed.

Then, the combination of Monomolecular Blade[S] and Bone Blade.
Even an ogre could be cut down in a single strike.
The strongest weapon, ready at any moment.

Of course, I wasn’t certain it would work.
Even if possible, it wouldn’t be easy.

But there had to be a way.
A master of all magical knowledge should be able to find it.

‘I should try contacting them.’

Langrit Tower.

The cradle of all magicians on the continent.
All magical research and knowledge of the continent resided here.

Thus, the rules were strict, and people were needed to systematically manage the accumulated knowledge over thousands of years.

Archivists.

They managed the tower’s library, preserving research, rituals, and new magical knowledge meticulously.

And the deputy archivist, Gwendolyn.
She assisted the chief archivist and oversaw the library’s daily operations.

“Illiana, shouldn’t we start organizing the magical library soon?”

-That’s all she sees!

Gwendolyn sighed deeply.
Really, it was more chaotic than practical.

“Illiana, at this rate you’ll be up all night again. It’s been several days already—”

-Just a moment!

Sure enough, having an ogre ignore a hatchling would’ve been more realistic.

“Then can you at least receive the letter that came for you earlier?”

-Just a moment!

…and then, silence.

“Hasn’t that ‘moment’ lasted long enough?”

No response from Illiana.
She was clearly focused.

“Should I read it myself?”

No sign of her.

“Who’s it from… Adr—”

Right then:

Bang! Crash! Boom! Rumble!

It sounded like the entire library was being destroyed.

Illiana appeared immediately, her blue hair and clothes completely disheveled.

“G-give it here!”

She snatched the letter from Gwendolyn and tore the seal with lightning speed, scanning its contents.

Who was this Adr— person anyway? Surely not Adrenaline.

Illiana’s blue eyes darted across the page at an incredible speed.

…An extraordinary level of speed reading.
Beyond human limits.
As if she had a real Adrenaline installed.

“Um, I’ll go out now!”
“…Go out?”

“So suddenly?”
“Where are you going?”
“To Whitewolf Cou—uh! S-sorry, it’s a secret!”

Illiana tried to brush it off as a secret, but it was already too late.

‘Whitewolf County…’

Wasn’t that the northernmost territory on the continent?
Langrit Tower had been abuzz with news about monster meat, so I knew.

One of Arcanis’s 23 great problems: removing monster-induced insanity at the genetic level.
A problem previously deemed impossible was overturned, causing a huge commotion at Langrit Tower.

…Not just a commotion—total chaos.
Even thinking about it gave me a headache.

Gwendolyn knew:

‘There were probably many magicians wanting to personally visit the Predator Guild,’

all in hopes of finding a method to remove the madness.

Equipped with all sorts of dirty tricks, countless magicians headed to Freche.

‘The Merchant Guild pressure was intense,’ she recalled.

Not just them—miners, herbalists, even seemingly unrelated adventurer guilds rose up.
Even the Mage Guild supported the Predator Guild.

Practically, the entire free city had risen.
Even Langrit Tower couldn’t act recklessly.

Like an ogre chasing a wyvern, looking only at the sky.

There was nothing they could do to the Predator Guild.

…Anyway.

The exact location of Whitewolf County was unknown.
But it was quite far from Langrit Tower.
And it was nighttime.