40 – Ah, Do You Not Know?

The climax had passed without incident.

The darkened sky regained its light, and all who stood on the defensive line breathed sighs of relief.

I dismounted from the Helltank.

Gazing at the glass vial I had carefully carried.

In the end, the moment to use it never came.

A blessing, more like.

“What’s that?”

Dahlphy popped out from behind me, asking.

“You startled me.”

“What’s so precious that you carry it around like some revered master?”

Ah, do you not know?

No help for it. Only this once will I explain.

“Botulinum Toxin Type H.”

“Bo… what now?”

Dahlphy blinked.

Truthfully, even I had trouble remembering the name.

“This vial contains enough poison to easily kill ten million people.”

“Are you still half-asleep or something?”

Geez, it’s the truth, though.

I used magic to dig a pit and safely disposed of the vial.

With this, this dangerous toxic protein will never again see the light of day.

Botulinum toxin type H. Known as the most potent venom in this world.

A mere four kilograms, they say, would be enough to extinguish all eight billion souls of humankind. A perilous substance indeed.

It apparently causes muscle paralysis by preventing the release of acetylcholine, or so Nob AI kindly explained.

Save for the donkey, no animal possesses immunity to this toxin, a fact that extends even to the demonfolk.

Of course, due to its inherent danger, it couldn’t be dispersed as a gas, and administering it directly to mucous membranes made it rather unwieldy to use.

Not that I ever had cause.

Unless, perhaps, modified for medical purposes, turned into Botox and sold to doctors… maybe.

But it seemed I would never have reason to employ it, so I obliterated it entirely.

The creation process, comparatively, was simple in this world. One needed only to place meat within a sealed container, magically create an environment conducive to bacterial growth, and extract. Done.

In my original world, it was a bacterium commonly found in canned goods, before science advanced, of course.

Speaking of which, just where did Nob AI learn about all this?

『ദ്ദി(•̀ ᗜ ＜)』

In any case, gazing upon the azure sky after so long, I felt a true sense of closure wash over me.

The sheer joy of knowing I could sleep upon a plush bed, and not the hard-packed ground of a camp, was immeasurable.

My heart felt truly enriched.

“You’ve worked hard.”

“Ah, Ian. How is my sister’s condition?”

“She is much improved.”

Haniel had withdrawn from the front lines two weeks prior.

Her physical state simply wouldn’t allow her to continue fighting.

The Clan Head trials were important, certainly, but health came first.

Forcing her sickly body to wield magic was bound to take its toll.

However, her condition wasn’t critical.

In fact, I could confidently say she was in the best possible situation.

The reason being, I had discovered a way to improve her health.

I had fed Nob AI the data received from Erphs some time ago.

『Based on the data analyzed, the mana circulating through the circuits is detaching and mutating for unknown reasons, damaging organ tissues and causing chronic inflammation. Therefore, if we can forcibly suppress mana production through medication, her symptoms should improve.』

Not a perfect cure, but a method to alleviate her suffering.

A glimmer of hope in the face of my sister’s previously hopeless ailment.

Until now, I had been too preoccupied fighting the demonfolk to find time to acquire the necessary ingredients, but with the conflict concluded, that was no longer an issue.

I’m thinking of returning to the manor, seeing to this and that.

I needed to start preparations for leaving the manor soon too.

“Esteemed Brother.”

“Brother.”

“You truly suffered at this juncture. We were able to overcome it safely thanks to you.”

Jepherre gave my shoulder a firm pat.

“Thank you.”

“It’s not just lip service. It’s not only me, either. Everyone thinks so.”

The people beyond gestured and waved in my direction.

“Young Master Esther! We return alive thanks to your efforts!”

“Thank you!!”

“If you ever find yourself in Daebo Village, be sure to visit the Red Pig Inn!! We’ll treat you to a feast fit for a king!!”

Countless individuals who fought alongside me against the demons at the defensive line expressed their gratitude.

The proper response in these situations was to say something along the lines of, ‘We fought together, no need to thank me so profusely. Haha.’, but when else would I receive this kind of attention?

Frankly, I carried.

The myriad of sounds mixed together into a sort of din, and after a while, I couldn’t quite make out what they were saying anymore.

It wasn’t an unpleasant feeling.

Joy is doubled when shared, wouldn’t you say? Seeing them so happy made me happy as well.

Of course, that being said.

It felt like a year had been shaved off my lifespan. I’d rather take my own life than experience that kind of back-breaking labor again.

Still, from today, suffering was over, and happiness began.

Beside me, though the main cannon was broken, stood my reliable Hell Tank, worth a staggering 1.09 billion, and the ten million credits promised by Porto.

Once I sold the tank to Erps, I’d be a rich man.

1.1 billion was a sum hard to even spend.

Even giving Dalphy a lifelong salary, buying a house, living it up, doing cartwheels, I’d still have enough left over to slap Porto across the face with! It was a truly astronomical amount!

To have such an incredible amount of money – money even successful merchants or lower nobles struggled to possess – in my hands felt like a dream.

I had graduated from life.

Thinking about the rosy future unfolding before me, I couldn’t help but suppress a smile.

“Ahem.”

Ah, must control my expression.

I’d nearly forgotten Jeper was beside me, so overcome was I with excitement.

“Anyways, there’s a story I wanted to tell you, dear brother.”

Jeper relayed various bits of information to me.

That the reason for Kenneth’s eccentric behavior was still unknown.

Even the story that his body hadn’t been found yet.

Jeper was the person whose image had changed the most within this mansion.

Perhaps I should say that while he was a snob, he was also honest, which I appreciated.

“I hear you’re leaving the mansion.”

“Yes.”

“You’ll do well, I’m sure. If we have the opportunity, let us meet again.”

Was this a meaningless platitude, or a sincere wish?

Perhaps the latter.

He was a snob, after all, and would want to become even closer to me than we are now, no matter what it takes.

Before saying our farewells, I made one request of Jeper.

“Do you truly believe that?”

“It’s merely a hunch, but there’s no harm in being careful. If you grant my request, I will also grant one of yours, dear brother.”

“Understood. I will have him watched thoroughly, starting today.”

Leaving a tense-looking Jeper behind, I boarded the Helltank.

“Are you pleased?”

“Of course. I felt like I was dying of suffocation for fifteen years. It’s incredibly refreshing.”

*Vrooom-*

I headed towards the Tristy Manor.

To prepare to bid farewell to my damned homeland.

*

The Curse of Insanity is a cancer upon the Kingdom of Yustina.

Due to the curse, something called Spawn Points came to be, creating land where humans could not live, a mother to the most loathsome demonic creatures.

When the Spawn Points reached their peak, birthing massive quantities of demons every twenty years, countless casualties occurred each time.

The King, who orchestrated and led the overall direction of the kingdom, could not help but have a face filled with worry during this period.

However, Vemark Yustina’s face maintained a smile as bright as the sun, even after the peak had passed.

He was no man afflicted with antisocial personality.

A benevolent and warm-hearted monarch, he knew how to embrace all.

Though aged, his eyes had not lost their sharp glint of intelligence.

He sat now in the royal palace’s council chamber.

Beside him stood the kingdom’s eminent figures, including the Crimson and Azure Tower Masters, for this was a session to ascertain the extent of the Flux Point damage and decide on aid.

The Azure Tower Master spoke.

“This was a meticulously planned act of terror, one that even the mages of the Azure Tower failed to foresee. I take this moment to offer my sincerest apologies. I am truly sorry.”

An anomaly had occurred in the kingdom’s east, at the Flux Point.

It was confirmed as an act of terror perpetrated by the worst of criminal syndicates, calling themselves Wonderland. Countless casualties should have resulted, but a hero had stood against it.

“Sir Ester Tristie saved the kingdom’s east. Were it not for him, we would have seen the greatest loss of life in history, and, in the worst-case scenario, the eastern lands themselves would have been consumed by the demons.”

Ester Tristie.

Bimark knew his name.

How could he not?

The one who had elucidated the Millennium Problem, disassembled the Necronomicon’s binding formula.

And now, even perceived the Flux Point’s anomaly.

He had achieved accomplishments that belied his mere fifteen years.

“Tsk, tsk. To say he merely saved the east is a rather myopic perspective, Azure Tower Master.”

The Crimson Tower Master clicked his tongue.

“May I address His Majesty?”

“You may.”

He broadcasted a video through the record sphere.

Scenes of Hell-Tanks rampaging across the battlefield, quite literally pulverizing demons, filled the screen.

“So that is the rumored Hell-Tank….”

“Its performance is truly beyond belief.”

The spectacle was dazzling, impossible to look away from.

And so, the Crimson Tower Master personally related the genesis of the Hell-Tanks to those present.

“Haniel Tristie’s talent was of that calibre?”

“Another rising star in the magical world, in addition to Ester Tristie and Etilla Bedford….”

The Crimson Tower Master stated, as Ester had told him, that Haniel Tristie was the designer of the Hell-Tanks.

But Bimark perceived the Crimson Tower Master’s intention.

“Erps.”

“Yes.”

“Are you intending to offer falsehoods before me? Speak the truth, now.”

The crimson mage tower lord lowered his head.

“While it is true that only a rare few among the most brilliant minds could create such a magnificent invention, Lord Esther Tristi is the one who informed me as such, and I merely relayed it. Your Majesty.”

Bimark stroked his pristine white beard.

“Art.”

The king called for his vassal.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Go to Tristi at once and inform Esther Tristi that he is to come to the capital. If he refuses, tell him I will come myself.”

“…”

Art, at the age of forty, served as the Palace’s Chief of Logistics.

He was not pleased with his position, having to go as an emissary to meet a mere child of fifteen.

However, upon seeing Bimark’s expression, he immediately realized the gravity of the situation.

‘Has His Majesty ever desired someone so fervently?’

He gazed with eyes shining like an explorer who has encountered a treasure for the first time.