NoveLight ™
The current distribution of the hero party at the gates is as follows:
And finally, me, at the Western Gate.
Among these, the Eastern Gate reports the most frequent monster appearances, followed by the Northern and Southern Gates in that order. As for the Western Gate, while monsters do appear, they are only enough to be handled by mercenaries and adventurers.
In other words, even if I head to the Western Gate right now, there won’t be much for me to do.
'But that’s actually better.'
Thanks to this, I can implement several plans in preparation for the Twilight Citadel.
'The western wall collapses, causing significant damage.'
Even in the original story, without me, the hero party moved in this exact formation. When the Twilight Citadel appeared near the Western Gate, they gathered there, but during that time, the wall collapsed.
As a result, many civilians and the western forces suffered heavy losses.
[If the hero had been just two days late, we would all be dead...]
That's what the soldier said because the city was nearly overrun when the hero saved it by arriving just in time.
The hero’s talent, power, and speed allowed him to reach the west quickly and minimize the damage, which gave them time to prepare for the subsequent battle, eventually leading to victory.
'This time, it will be different.'
Because I’m here now. The lessons and growth the hero party would have gained from this sequence of events won’t happen this time.
Rushing to the west with all their strength to save the weak? Learning a lesson from seeing the dead?
The hero has already learned that. Even back when they fought Arcturus in the village of Intrel and fell into the ditch, they learned that lesson.
So there’s no need to let it happen again.
'I have plenty of time.'
Additionally, I’ve found the fastest route, which will give me about two extra days to work with. Reinforcing the wall with the master key instead of a pen means I won’t be too late to stop it.
Crackle!
I summoned the master key and slowly passed through the Western Gate. Currently, Alphares is off-limits to ordinary citizens.
Only those with special permission are allowed to come and go, so there were very few people using the gate.
I could see guards, mercenaries, and adventurers chatting among themselves. Some glanced at me, but quickly returned to their business. I passed them and exited the city completely.
“Lux, would you lower yourself?”
Knightlux slowly moved its feet, searching for a spot before gently lowering its body. I hopped down and looked up at the towering wall.
Made from pure white stones produced in this region, it was truly beautiful.
“Oof.”
Prrr.
I stretched my neck to take a better look but almost lost my balance and fell backward. Luckily, Knightlux caught me just in time, preventing any mishap.
“I’ll give you something tasty later.”
Being a horse, Knightlux really liked carrots. Recently, I had been gathering special regional carrots for soup, and he had been eyeing them, which was troublesome. I figured giving him some Alphares carrots and a fruit set as thanks later would make him happy.
“For now, let’s reinforce about a third of the wall… I should use Mithril-like, huh?”
I do have real mithril, known for its high anti-magic properties and strength, but not enough to cover a wall of this size. Instead, I’ll use the liquid metal I developed, Mithril-like, which has a similar strength.
With that, I summoned the master key and an additional subspace to prepare for the reinforcement work.
“Excuse me, but who might you be?”
At that moment, a guard approached me cautiously.
It seemed like my current robe made him mistake me for someone important.
“I’m a mage. I’ve been assigned to the Western Gate.”
“A mage...? Well, I’m the captain of the Western Gate guard, but I didn’t hear anything about this.”
Ah, so he’s the captain of this gate. He was indeed older than the other guards, likely in his middle age. As someone responsible for one of Alphares’ four main gates, it seemed all personnel reports passed through him.
With the captain’s words, a few guards behind him exchanged sharp glances. It appeared that the current tense situation had raised their vigilance.
'I should have brought the steward along.'
Since the fact that I’m the hero party’s mage is only partially known, the only people who can vouch for my identity are those from the House of Alphares. Otherwise, the only other option is the hero party, but they’re already at their assigned positions.
“If that’s not possible, could you show me some related documents...?”
“Hold on, I can vouch for this mage’s identity.”
At that moment, a savior appeared.
“Serlin?!”
A female knight with blue hair. It was Serlin.
“What? Serlin...”
“The Serlin from the hero party?”
Upon seeing my reaction, both the guards and the mercenaries and adventurers nearby began murmuring.
And my own mind was racing.
'Why is she here?'
If I remember correctly, she should have already arrived at the Northern Gate by now.
“You know me, I see.”
“Of course! Your past exploits and actions with the hero party are well-known and respected by all the guards.”
“Well, I don’t deserve that much praise... but in any case, you can trust this mage.”
Serlin stepped forward and put her arm around my shoulder.
“Because this mage is part of our hero party.”
“A member of the hero party?!”
“No wonder the robe looks so fancy...”
With just one word from Serlin, everyone accepted it. The only one still looking conflicted was the captain, who spoke up.
“I’m not saying I don’t trust Serlin, but we still need a formal report...”
“Oh, the steward from the House of Alphares is on the way. You can confirm with him when he arrives.”
The captain's expression brightened visibly at the mention of the steward coming.
“I understand. In that case, we’ll step back now.”
“Thank you.”
I looked up at Serlin, who had quickly resolved the situation.
“Serlin.”
“Hm?”
With the guards and others gone, Serlin reverted to her usual familiar tone. I asked her why she was here.
“Oh, Aswell asked me to come.”
“The hero?”
“Yeah. He was worried you might run into trouble and asked me to help. He said it would take him too long to get here since he’s on the opposite side.”
So, the hero had anticipated even this situation.
“But won’t that leave the north unguarded?”
“Oh, we sorted that out by having Aria head north first. There are a lot of injured there anyway.”
Hmm, if that’s the case, there’s nothing more to discuss. I had been concerned about the potential gaps in the hero party’s formation, but if Aria’s there, it should be fine.
'She’ll heal all the wounded troops, and they’ll come back even stronger...'
Aria, with her beauty, gentle nature, and healing abilities, was immensely popular among the combat units. Her mere presence would give them the strength of three million soldiers.
'This works out perfectly.'
Before the Twilight Citadel incident, I should give Serlin her own event. If everything goes well, I’ll get to witness her unleashing her fierce battle spirit as she annihilates monsters and demons.
“For now, things are settled... Do you need any other help?”
“Not at the moment.”
When it comes to reinforcing the walls or other plans, there’s nothing she can do to assist. However, for the hero party’s future, her help is indispensable.
“Okay, can I head to the north then?”
“Yes, of course. As expected, you’re exactly as the hero described.”
“...What?”
“Safe travels.”
In conversations with Serlin, playing hard to get is crucial. After leaving an ambiguous compliment, the key is to swiftly leave the scene.
That way, Serlin won’t be able to leave, and a moment later, she’ll come back...
“W-wait!”
“Huh?”
Just as expected, she couldn’t resist. She approached me, eager for more praise.
“What exactly did you mean by what you said earlier?!”
Now she was eagerly waiting for an explanation, just as planned.
“You mean what Aswell said to me?”
“Yes! Could you explain in detail?” she asked with wide, expectant eyes.
“Of course, but could you give me a moment? I need to set up something first,” I replied with a smile.
Serlin had taken the bait. Now, all I had to do was slightly modify some of the lines from the novel's script and deliver them to her. However, explaining it might take some time, so I prepped my master key for the next task.
Wuuuung.
“Commands: Reinforce, Repair, and Strengthen. Material: Mithril-like.”
I input the simple commands, then set the master key in position, leaning it slightly toward the wall.
Prrrr!
“Oh, Lux, stay still!”
With no suitable stones or wooden posts around, I had no choice but to use Knightlux as a support for the key. His grumpy expression would need to be dealt with later by sharing some of the premium Alphares carrots I had hidden for myself.
“Serlin, it's all done now,” I said, turning back to her.
“Hm? Great,” she replied.
Now, it was time to toy with the knight and draw her into the game.