Inn Overlord: Reincarnated with Enhancement Magic, Now Worshipped as a Divine Messenger! - Chapter 37

(Seraph’s Perspective)

It was still dark outside. It was early morning, and the sun was just about to rise. We listened to Jeanne as she told us what had happened last night.

“……”
“……”
“……”
“……”
“……”
“Ah, I’ll have some more rice, please♪︎”

Next to the relaxed and cheerful Luka eating his meal, Albert and Setsuna sat in silence, looking down with awkward expressions.

We were all quiet, stunned by a story that was hard to believe. David was the first to speak.

“It’s hard to believe, but is it true, Albert?”

Albert nodded. I had been asleep, so I didn’t notice anything at all last night. If Jeanne and Luka hadn’t been there, who knows how many people would have died?

Again, we fell silent. I also couldn’t fully believe it yet. Jeanne spoke up to break the silence.

“I believed this adventurer and Seraph were close. That’s why I thought to keep this matter a secret. But I was worried about what the Victor Empire would do after attacking this Noonan Village, so I decided to share it with you all.”

David asked,

“What do you mean, ‘after the attack’?”

Jeanne replied,

“Yes. If the attack on Noonan Village had succeeded, the Imperial soldiers were to occupy this village and then move to conquer the city of Barmuller.”

David, Laura, Mother, and Abigail all gasped in shock. It truly was surprising. But I was more shocked that kind Albert had tried to kill us, just like Jeanne said.

David asked again, this time directly to Albert.

“Albert? If the plan failed, what would be the next move? What would the Empire do? And what about Lord Burlington, who betrayed the Kingdom?”

“I… I don’t know. I didn’t think we would fail…”

Albert’s last words gave me chills.

Jeanne began to explain.

Lord Burlington was in charge of guarding the southern border with the Empire. But a few years ago, the town of Barmuller, which supported his territory, was downgraded to a small city by order of King Ingobell, and its autonomy was taken away. That seems to be what led him to betray the Kingdom.

Laura added some details.

The Traverse Mountains, which can be seen to the west of this village, form the border between the Viktor Empire and the Kingdom of Schmar. Lord Burlington is constantly watching to make sure the Empire doesn’t cross those mountains.

Although the mountains rise high into the sky, both ends are relatively easy to climb. Merchants and adventurers use these paths to enter either the Victor Empire or the Kingdom of Schmar. This time, from the eastern end—the side where our village is located—Imperial soldiers crossed the border and tried to attack our Noonan Village.

King Ingobell most likely wanted to ease the burden on Lord Burlington, who had to monitor both the east and west ends of the mountain range. But instead, it seems to have hurt his pride. Lord Burlington planned to let the Empire take Barmuller, then take it back himself while recognizing it as Imperial land, and claim it as his own.

—So we were almost killed for such a reason…

Jeanne spoke again, hesitating.

“The attack on Noonan Village was only one part of the whole plan. If this attack failed, the report should have been delivered not only to Lord Burlington and the Empire, but also to the Kingdom of Schmar. However, because of what we did, none of the three sides received any information.”

There was a brief pause, and then Abigail spoke.

“Isn’t that… a good thing?”

Jeanne replied,

“If it had failed normally, various information in various forms would have reached Barmuller. Then the city could have taken action. But this time, because of us, it’s like nothing ever happened.”

“Th-Then maybe we can tell the mayor of Barmuller about this—”

“I would like to, but I don’t think anyone would believe us. If only we had captured the 400 Imperial soldiers alive…”

Jeanne’s words made me feel a little sad. What she just said meant they had killed all 400 Imperial soldiers. But I couldn’t blame Jeanne or Luka. Without them, someone here might have died.

If Mother, Abigail, David, Laura, Luka, Jeanne, Mr. Hazan, or Mr. Rubens had been hurt or killed, I might have killed Albert or the Imperial soldiers just like I killed the hobgoblins that were about to eat Luka.

David said,

“No, Jeanne. Even if you had captured those 400 soldiers alive, nobles who see you or Luka as dangerous would still appear. And not from the enemy—but from our side, the Schmar Kingdom.”

David’s words had a certain weight to them. At that moment, I noticed Laura looking at David’s prosthetic leg.

David continued,

“What you two did was the right thing. What matters now is to make it the right thing moving forward.”

“How do we do that?”

“By predicting the Empire’s next move. If the attack on this village failed—or if they received no reports—what do you think they’ll do?”

Jeanne answered,

“I think they’ll send spies to this village…”

“No, that’s not it. Attacking this village was only preparation to take Barmuller. War is all about speed. A plan that has started can’t be stopped easily. If the attack on this village fails, the small city of Barmuller would likely take defensive action against the Empire. If that happens, Lord Burlington’s betrayal becomes useless. Also, if they take too long, someone might question how 400 Imperial soldiers crossed the border unnoticed.”

“So that means…”

“Yeah. They’ll probably bring their army and start a war today.”

With Lydia Kreil from the Demon Forest, this situation, and the Empire’s actions—so many problems are piling up.

Now, what should we do next?