Chapter 98: Volume 2 – Chapter 08

Chapter 8

The shogun sat in the seat of honor, waiting for the majin that had arrived in the ogre lands with an army of orcs. From the description one of his subordinates gave, it was the same majin who had named Mundro. There was no point denying that some sort of confrontation was inevitable.

He could have ordered the execution of the named ogre, but that would go against all the traditions and honor of his race. He glanced over to his son, who was one of his honor guards, standing ready to defend the clan leaders.

'If worst comes to worst, he will have to take care of the clan. The boy is not ready, but he may have no choice.'

One had to be careful when dealing with majins, but the last time he met the one called Gelmud, the majin wasn't that powerful. Sure, he was stronger than an ogre, but he could not slay them all on his own. The orcs also were not that much of a concern. Sure, they had come in thousands, but a single ogre could counter at least ten or more of them, not to mention those who could use potent magic like his son.

Once the majin walked into the gathering hall, there was a shift in the atmosphere. Gelmund had gotten stronger. Not by much, but it was still noticeable.

"Greetings, shogun. I hope you remember me." Gelmud said, bowing and lifting the hat off his head.

"I do, majin. Why have you come again?"

"I have come to offer you a chance to join my armies and lead the ogres in my honor."

"We will not join you! You are not strong enough to take control of all the ogres!"

"Hhr… You think you can deny me this time?" Gelmund said with an angry tone as an energy ball appeared in his arm. The honor guards already moved to defend the shogun.

"Wait, master!" Mundro shouted and stood up. Gelmud looked at him for a moment and then clenched his fist, absorbing the energy back into his body. Mundro walked in front of him and kneeled and said. "Permit me to deal with the ogres in your stead."

"What are you doing?" the shogun asked in a low and dangerous tone.

"Fine. Do it." Gelmud said as Mundro stood up and turned around facing the Shogun. "I challenge you to a duel for the shogun's position!"

"Have you lost your mind?" the shogun asked.

"The ogres will either serve my master or perish in a foolish struggle. I want to save my people. Now face me." Mundro said, taking a few steps forwards and standing in the middle of the gathering hall.

He had no choice. If he was to deny Mundro's request, he would prove himself a coward. Every clan leader had a right to demand an honorable duel. He had killed four clan leaders during his rule already, but compared to Mundro, they were weak. Even before the naming, the ogre was strong enough to be the leader.

Shogun stood up, walked around the table, and drew his own sword. As he approached his opponent, he sent a message to his son { Take whoever you can and run. My fate is sealed, yours must be in your own hands. }

{ Father, I am not a coward, I will fight him as well, I… }

{ Then you will die foolishly. My honor binds me to this duel, you are yet free to make your own choices. Think not of your pride, but of those in your care. If you perish, your sister will be alone. }

The prince snarled at his own helplessness, but his father was right. He was the last family his sister had. Reluctantly, he took his position in the circle around the two combatants and prepared for the worst.

The shogun was a powerful and skilled ogre. With strong, precise movements, he assaulted his opponent, making Mundro take a defensive stance. But what Mundro lacked in raw strength, he more than compensated for with speed and finesse.

The moment he saw the tiniest of openings, he went on the offensive. With his shorter stature, his reach was smaller than his opponents, so his attacks were very fast and aggressive but at the same time left no opening for the opponent to exploit.

To end the duel, Mundro intentionally gave an opening that would make the shogun attack him in an unfavorable manner. A move he had practiced in solitude just for this occasion. As the shogun's blade moved towards his exposed side, he dodged out of the sword's trajectory and lunged forward, his sword aimed at the opponent's chest piece and managing to successfully pierce it.

Mundro pulled the sword out of the former shogun's chest and stepped back. The duel was won. The shogun staggered, clutching his chest and dropping to his knees. "I am sorry, my old friend. Let me give you a warrior's death." Mundro said in a somber tone and decapitated the shogun with a swift motion of his sword.

As everyone watched in mute shock, he sheathed his sword and sat down in the shogun's chair. "Everyone listen and obey. We are now part of the great Gelmud's army. Should anyone oppose my decision, come and face me!"

The prince quickly left the gathering hall. There was nothing more to see there. As much as he hated himself for fleeing, he knew Mundro held traditions in high regard and would give his father a proper burial.

With the commotion of the orc army outside the stronghold, he had some time before his absence would be noticed. With his father's death and his departure, his clan would likely dissolve and the remaining members would join other clans.

He quickly entered his family quarters and found his sister drinking tea with the purple-haired ogress who served as her bodyguard. The princess turned to look at him with a confused expression while the purple-haired ogress stood up and bowed.

"Brother? Why are you not on guard duty?"

"We have to go. Father was slain by Mundro in an honor duel. A majin is taking over the ogres."

His sister was a gentle soul, shielded from politics all her life. Her education in political matters had just started, since she would have to marry a son of one of the clan leaders in the next few years.

With shaking hands, the princess put down the cup and asked "Father is dead?"

"Yes. We have to go." the prince said and then turned to the purple-haired ogress, "Gather whoever you can from our clan."

She bowed once again and quickly left. There was little time to spare. Together with his sister they gathered what dried food they had and packed all the family relics.

As they walked outside, a small group of ogres waited for them, much smaller than the prince hoped. Most were either still children or elderly. Few were still in their prime but mostly served lower, non-combat roles.

He understood that warriors didn't want to leave, and for a good reason at that. They would not be seen as equals if they ever chose to return. To his relief, he saw his best friend among the group.

The clan's smith was also there, a very tall and brutish dark-haired ogre, who contrary to his looks was very calm and friendly and dedicated all his life to honing his blacksmithing skills. Among the elders, he saw the sword saint as well who had trained not only him but his late father too.

"Listen, everyone. If we leave, there is no honorable path back. If you have your doubts, stay."

Not hearing any voice of opposition, he led the group of about forty ogres out of the stronghold. Where destiny would lead them was unclear, but he put his hopes into being hired in Tempest. After all, ogres were always in demand for their might and skills.

The time to mourn his father would come, but for now, he had to embrace the role of the unshaken leader who can lead his people to a better future. His sister, on the other hand, was barely holding back her tears as she walked with her head hanging low.

Once they were far enough from the fortress, his friend ran up to him. "With your permission, I will scout ahead."

The prince nodded and watched as his friend ran forward and disappeared into the trees ahead.

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The trip to the kingdom of Ingrassia was peaceful enough. There was only one bandit attack on the way there, and they ended up as a meal for Solution and nothing more. Lura, the capital of Ingrassia, was larger than any city Buku had seen in this world.

At first, she considered using flight and invisibility to get inside but decided against it. If she and Solution failed to enter the city, they sure as hell would be caught in the Free Guild headquarters. Still, going through the three steps was more tedious than she had imagined. The first step was simple enough: all they had to do was show their guild cards and they could move on.

The next one was a body search. At least it was separated by sexes and female guards performed a search on her. It was a fair guess that there would be many complaints if the search was done differently. The last step was to check for monsters in disguise, but with the rings of false data, both Buku and Solution were identified as humans.

Once inside the city, Buku planned to go to the guild headquarters right away. She knew the city well because of Shizue's memories, and Solution didn't show any real interest in knowing more about human culture beyond what was necessary to perform her duties.

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Even knowing what to expect, walking through the capital was a surprisingly refreshing experience. Lura was more modern than any other city, having advanced architecture and large glass windows everywhere. Also, the countless street vendors trying to sell their wares and city guards on every corner gave the impression of a rather prosperous and well-organized civilization.

If not for her true nature and duties, this would be a place Buku would happily choose to live in, and seemingly Shizue had shared her sentiment.

What caused a mild annoyance was the church building next to the guild headquarters, with its symbol proudly displayed on the top.

'I have to look out for them. Even if one of Shizue's students is a high-ranking member of the church, those assholes will likely be nothing but a pain in the ass in the future.'

"Sally, go get us rooms in the inn. I will go talk with the grandmaster." Buku said at the entrance. The part of the building she planned to head in didn't let anyone under the B rank enter.

"Sensei, I should be by your side."

{ Mistress Buku, it is too dangerous for you to go alone. }

"You will be fine. Just get us rooms and if anything bad happens, involve the city guards."

{ You alone will not help much, and if I'm in danger Momonga will send a strike team to deal with whatever threatens me. }

Reluctantly, Solution walked off to do her mistress' bidding. Buku took a deep breath and stepped inside. After a moment of tense anticipation, it was clear she had not set off any alarms or wards.

Considering her status, getting an audience with the grandmaster was easy, and she was invited to see him a few minutes later. The receptionist guided her to the grandmaster's office and quickly left.

The office was spacious and decorated with various memorabilia. An immediate impression was of someone who wasn't too fond of showing luxury but valued the sentimentality of the objects displayed.

Buku sat down on a guest sofa as an elven woman in a business suit entered with a cup of tea and put it down in front of her. "Master Yuuki will be with you in a few minutes."

"Thank you." Buku said, perfectly mimicking Shizue's tone of voice. There was something off about the woman. She looked like a regular rather attractive elf, but her aura was not absent, it was hidden.

'Could she be a monster in disguise as well? I better be careful around her.'

A handsome young man, or rather a boy, entered the office soon after. Yuuki Kagurazaka, despite being the one who reworked the society of adventurers into the internationally accepted free guild over the years, still looked like a middle schooler.

"Sensei, you are back. I am so relieved to see you. Did you find the answer?" he said with a big smile.

The moment Buku saw his expression, she felt goosebumps. Considering her line of work, she learned to read people quite well. That was a smile of a producer who would have lured in naive young actresses who were attractive enough to be either prostituted or sold off to the highest bidder. She had met a few of those producers, and they all had the same soulless expressions that tried to look warm and welcoming.

'How did Shizue not notice this? That guy is probably a complete psycho.'

"I found some clues, and maybe there is an answer, but it is very dangerous for both me and the kids." Buku said.

'Hmm, there is something off about Shizue. She feels different, more… powerful, and energetic. Could it be that she did find the answer on how to stabilize the summoned kids but doesn't want to share it?'

Suspicious, Yuuki quickly looked her up and down and noticed one small, but particular change. 'She wasn't wearing rings before. Where did she get those? I will have to look into the possibilities later.'

"Please, sensei, do not risk yourself. Let me help." Yuuki said as he sat down on the sofa opposite Buku.

Buku shook her head and said, "You know I can't let you do that. You are running the Free Guild. Too much is on your shoulders. While I… I just want to do one last good deed. Those kids deserve a future."

"I know. What are you planning to do next?"

"I will rest a bit, and then I want to talk with the children again. Who is teaching them at the moment?"

"No one. They scared off all substitute teachers. I have put an ad for a retired high-ranking adventurer to fill the position, but no luck so far."

"Those little rascals. I will have to have a stern talking with them." Buku said with a chuckle.

Yuuki let out a mocking laugh, "Sensei, I don't believe you are capable of being stern. Even Hinata couldn't get more than a tired sigh out of you." 'Why do I still feel like there is something off? There is nothing different in Shizue's behavior.'

"Have you heard any news about her? How is she doing?"

"Not much. She is doing fine as far as I have heard. Hunting monsters, inspiring people, you know, the usual."

"I hope she can find a time to relax and settle down as well. She was always holding everything inside."

'This guy is freaking me out. I need to get the fuck out of this room.'

"She is her own woman, sensei. You can't babysit us all the time." Yuuki said with a warm smile.

"I know." Buku put down the empty cup on the table, "If you don't mind. I will go take a rest."

"Of course. I will arrange a room…"

"There is no need. I have a room in a nearby inn with a recent student of mine."

"Sally was her name, right? I received the report from Fuze. I see that you still have a knack for attracting talented people."

"I will introduce you to her if time allows, but she will likely want to explore the capital while we are here."

"Of course. If either you or her need anything, please let me know."

'I wonder who that girl is. You can't just find someone so talented randomly. Could she be an offworlder in hiding? I will have to pull some strings to dig into her past.'

"I will. Thank you, Yuuki." Buku said as she left the grandmaster's office.

There was one thing Buku knew for sure: she needed to get the kids away from here as fast as possible.

Proofreading and DimensionalFish-Sama and placid_void

Editing by Edgy

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