Chapter 264: Chapter 216

Simon screamed spiritedly as he glared at his right shoulder… the artificial metal arm attached to it.

The fingers of the artificial arm were moving. The arm itself was empty inside; it did not have any mechanical parts inside it, nor was it a Magic Item. Despite that, Simon was able to consciously move the fingers of the arm that he shouldn’t have been able to move at all.

“Simon, if you keep shouting, it’ll interrupt your concentration and just make you out of breath, you know?” said Vandalieu.

“Is that so, Master – ?!”

“The spirit form is not muscle; it’s something that you move using your mind.”

“Got it! But even if I can only barely move the fingers, I’m so happy that I have this arm again…!”

Simon’s heart was pounding with joy at having regained an arm by using his own spirit form to inhabit an artificial arm, a method that he would never have imagined, after losing it ten years ago and having given up on ever getting it back.

The same was true for Natania, who had lost her limbs to Minotaurs several days ago.

Natania panted as she struggled with the task. “I know how you feel, but we need to become able to maintain this form for longer first… Ugh! I-I can’t do it anymore.”

The bluish-white light faded from Natania’s artificial limbs, which stopped twitching and became limp.

Her spirit form had returned to her body, unable to maintain its state of being outside it.

Natania looked discouraged. “I can’t even stand on my feet… Can I really become an adventurer again?” she wondered.

“Natania, you’ve made considerable progress since yesterday. And since you have more spirit form that you need to move than Simon, it’s only natural for it to be difficult,” said Vandalieu.

“But at this rate, I don’t know when I’ll gain the ‘Spirit Form’ Skill,” Natania said dejectedly.

“Well, there’s no rush. Acquiring Skills without any bonuses from Jobs is always going to take some time. Let’s be patient,” said Simon.

“It’s just as your senior disciple says, Natania,” said Vandalieu.

“… Ah, I’m a disciple. Alright, Master, I’ll be patient, so let’s do this one more time,” said Natania.

“Of course,” said Vandalieu.

He placed his hand on the back of Natania, his third disciple, and extended his spirit form through her sweat-drenched clothes and into her body.

“Wah… I think I’m about to get the hang of something if I go a little further…!” said Natania, breathing hard.

She was learning more quickly than Simon or Vandalieu had anticipated. It was difficult to imagine that she had an innate talent for this, so it was likely due to the fact that she was under the effect of Vandalieu’s guidance.

At this rate, the two of them would likely acquire the ‘Spirit Form’ Skill in less than a month. The time taken to acquire it might feel long, but considering it was a Skill that they were acquiring without any bonuses, this was on the short side.

They might acquire it more quickly if Simon became a Dark Human and Natania became a Dark Beast-kin, but… we can’t do that, Vandalieu thought.

He hadn’t explained the truth to Simon yet, and in Natania’s case, it wasn’t clear what kind of changes a wild-cat-type Beast-kin would undergo when mutating.

The situation wasn’t right and there wasn’t enough information to have them mutate just to learn a Skill.

Well, acquiring the ‘Spirit Form’ Skill would be convenient for this method. If they can acquire the ‘Materialization’ Skill after that, they would be able to use their materialized spirit form as their own limbs rather than artificial limbs, Vandalieu thought.

These would be limbs that could change form at will, immune to attacks other than spells and Magic Items. Mana would be required to use them for extended periods of time, but they would certainly be very convenient.

With that goal in mind, Vandalieu continued instructing Simon and Natania.

“Transform!” Tarea shouted.

In response to her command, liquid metal crawled over her body and changed form.

“This is the Artifact that the great one created… It is wonderful,” said Juliana.

“The activation of Transformation Staves is interesting no matter how many times I see them,” said Rita in admiration.

“You don’t get tired of seeing them because their colors and shapes are different for everyone. But still, I didn’t think that Tarea-san would become a magical girl,” said Saria.

“Yes, I was surprised when I heard that Vandalieu was making a staff for Tarea-san,” Darcia agreed.

“Umm, it is a little embarrassing when all of you have your attention on me like this,” said the fully-transformed Tarea, her cheeks turning red. “And I am not a magical girl.”

Indeed, her appearance did not resemble what the people of ‘Earth’ might call a magical girl.

There was no skirt on her clothing, nor were there any decorations such as ribbons and frills. She was wearing a bodysuit that clung tightly to her skin, and there were pieces of armor guarding her joints such as her neck, hips and knees.

There was also a metallic shine to it; it looked like something from science fiction at first glance.

“My magic is something that I studied in order to learn the ‘Alchemy’ Skill; I may be able to dance, but I cannot sing. It is true that Kanako invited me to become an idol, but Van-sama did not grant me this staff for that purpose,” said Tarea.

“I know that. It’s your hips, isn’t it,” said Rita.

“And your shoulders,” added Saria.

“… I wonder if these sisters can be a little less direct with their words,” Tarea said with a bitter expression and tone.

The main purpose of her transformation staff was to assist with her work… decreasing the load that was placed on her hips and joints. To describe it in Earth’s terms, it was something like a powered medical suit.

Tarea had originally been the elder chief of another Ghoul settlement; her appearance was that of a girl in her late teens, but she was actually over 260 years old. Her lower back pain was a source of distress for her.

Vandalieu had improved the situation by using ‘Youth Transformation’ to take the age from her body and restore it to the age of its physical appearance, but… that didn’t mean that he had completely cured her.

It seemed that her body had developed something like a habit. She had become a Ghoul High Artisan and then a Ghoul Elder Artisan through Rank increases after Vandalieu’s treatment, which caused her back to hurt less often, but… she was one of the two main leaders when it came to Talosheim’s arms manufacturing. She had recently started being provided with unfamiliar, extremely precious and extremely quality materials, such as materials taken from evil gods. Although her life was fulfilling, it also came with its pains at times.

Vandalieu had created this transformation staff for Tarea because he was spending time away from Talosheim for the time being, meaning that he wasn’t available to provide spirit form massages when her back was in pain.

“But you’ve taken a liking to it to the point that the ‘Transforming Craftsman’ Job appeared for you,” said Rita.

“You’ve acquired the ‘Crafting Princess’ Title as well,” sad Saria.

“It’s a present from Van-sama, after all! There is no way I would not take a liking to it! Once you grow old and feel back pain… No, you wouldn’t have this problem even after centuries,” Tarea realized.

“Yes, we have hips –” said Saria.

“But we don’t have any bones, after all,” said Rita, finishing Saria’s sentence.

Saria spun her upper body 360 degrees with her lower body staying in place, while Rita twisted her hips around in a way that would be impossible for any human.

The two of them had the appearances of girls in very revealing suits of armor, but as they were Living-Armor-type Undead, their main bodies were the suits of armor themselves, and what appeared to be their flesh was actually all spirit form. Naturally, they didn’t have any bones, cartilage or nerves.

“Ordinary Living Armors’ joints would deteriorate from all the abrasion… You should be grateful to Van-sama for having the wisdom to make your main bodies with suits of armor in the shape of a bikini and high-leg leotard!” said Tarea.

The truth was that Vandalieu had not been particularly enthusiastic about turning the highly-revealing women’s suits of armor that he found in a Dungeon into Rita and Saria’s main bodies. This choice was the result of their father Sam’s desire to have them turned into Undead as quickly as possible, but Tarea wasn’t aware of that.

“Tarea-san, I died in my previous life before I could experience any back pain, and thanks to Vandalieu, I probably won’t ever experience it in my current life. I’m sorry,” Darcia apologized.

“Your skeleton is made of Orichalcum, after all… and you have so much muscular strength that if you went all-out on an arm wrestle, you’d tear most opponents’ arms right off,” Tarea murmured.

Being the Chaos Elf ancestor, Darcia was unlikely to ever experience back pain.

Tarea sighed. “I don’t really care. It isn’t as if I am looking for a friend to share in my back pain, and I have come here to do work,” she said. “Now then, I shall make a start.”

With that, Tarea began her work in the workshop that had been built next to the entrance to the underground Dungeon.

Tarea had come to Vandalieu’s house in the city of Morksi with Gufadgarn’s teleportation in order to create Simon and Natania’s artificial limbs.

Once their training was complete, they would be able to have their spirit form inhabit any artificial limb, but Vandalieu apparently wanted to give them artificial limbs made of the best materials that could be used even in human societies.

He was hesitant to use materials made from the fragments of the Demon King, as there had been numerous incidents involving Demon King fragments lately. That was why he had brought Tarea here.

“I have been told their sizes, and I examined Natania-san’s muscular structure myself, so now I just need to build the limbs and then make repeated fine adjustments,” said Tarea.

“Thank you. It is because of her that I am still alive… that I was able to meet the great one,” said Juliana, struggling slightly as she lowered her head.

She held special feelings towards Natania because, despite the two being strangers and having met under extreme circumstances in a Minotaur lair, she had been saved by her.

If Natania had not begged for Randolf to spare them, Juliana would be dead. She would then have returned to the circle of transmigration, been trapped inside the place she died, or haunted Randolf… In any case, she would not have been able to meet Vandalieu.

It was because of Natania that Juliana had been guided by Vandalieu and was now able to live a new life.

“I don’t mind. Building these artificial limbs is a joint task with Van-sama, after all,” Tarea said happily. “And it is my first time building artificial limbs, and I will be able to use this experience when Van-sama guides others that are like Natania-san. And –”

Juliana is my first friend who is a noble from human society that is actually like a noble, someone who was born a princess! I will use this opportunity to ask all sorts of things about royals and nobles! Tarea thought as she stifled her laughter.

Her tone of speech was like that of a lady, but she had been born and raised as a commoner, into a family of arms smiths in a human city. She lived for over two hundred years in the Ghoul settlement after that, so she generally had no contact with nobles.

Thus, her tone of speech and mannerisms were all based on her internal image of what a noble lady should be like. That was why she actually had a keen interest in Juliana.

… This was especially true because while there were already numerous women of noble birth in Talosheim, they were all either nobles only in name, women whose personalities were not like that of ordinary nobles or women that Tarea hadn’t had a chance to speak to.

I wonder if they can talk and become friends while Juliana-san can’t move? Darcia thought, vaguely guessing what Tarea was thinking.

“– No, it’s nothing,” said Tarea. “Most importantly, do I not need to build artificial limbs for you?”

“No. Unlike Natania, it has been decided that I will be guided to the same fate as my subordinates. Thus, we will not be able to converse like this for long,” said Juliana, giving her own abdomen a sad gaze, as she could not touch it with no arms.

A countless number of eggs were developing inside her womb, having been planted there by the Demon King’s oviduct. She intended to undergo pseudo-reincarnation into one of them.

Pseudo-reincarnation, which involved the direct insertion of a soul into a new body, affected the soul’s memories and personalities, so it was not desirable to conduct while still alive. But in Juliana’s case, a part of her had already become unable to function, and Vandalieu had used the ‘Mental Encroachment’ Skill as a temporary treatment.

On the surface, she appeared to have returned to normal, but as Guild Master Berard of the Adventurers’ Guild had quickly noticed, she was in a state that was far from normal.

If she only had problems with her mind, then it would have been possible that she would get better if Vandalieu regularly spent time treating her over and over. However, her body had also grown weak due to the eggs that had been planted inside her by the Demon King’s oviduct.

Pseudo-reincarnation was the most suitable solution to both problems.

Fortunately, Vandalieu already had experience in conducting pseudo-reincarnation on a living being – Quinn, the former Cemetery Bee Queen. The only difference in the process was that he would be carrying it out on a human this time.

“I could heal your body over time with ‘Life Empress Magic,’ but… it would take about a month to completely regenerate your body,” said Darcia.

‘Life Empress Magic’ was a superior version of the ‘Life-Attribute Magic’ Skill. Thus, it was simple to reconnect severed limbs back onto the torso and restore them to normal. There would be no scars or discomfort, and the limbs would return to their original state.

But completely regenerating lost body parts was still difficult. It would take hours just to restore the basic shape of the missing parts.

The process would be much quicker for races that already possessed the ability to regenerate lost body parts, or monsters with simple body structures, but… it was difficult to carry this out in humans.

That was why it had been decided that Juliana would undergo pseudo-reincarnation while Natania would train with spirit-form artificial limbs.

Of course, people with ordinary views would choose to restore their original limbs no matter how much time it took and no matter how much they would need to struggle with rehabilitation.

But Vandalieu did not have ordinary views. When he resurrected Darcia, he had used an Orichalcum skeleton, materials from powerful monsters and fragments of the Demon King to ensure that she would never be killed again.

Natania would become stronger than before by learning how to move artificial limbs with her spirit form, and Juliana would become stronger by undergoing pseudo-reincarnation and being reborn. This was the correct way to make sure that they would not endure hardships like having their limbs severed by Minotaurs ever again.

This was the kind of view that Vandalieu held.

“Please don’t worry, Goddess. Everything is according to the great one’s guidance,” said Juliana.

She was being treated and guided by Vandalieu. In other words, she viewed him as her savior, and had no will other than to obey his. Natania was in a similar state of mind as well.

“Tarea-sama, I will be able to speak to you from my new body soon. It seems that he has already altered the characteristics of the eggs that have been implanted inside me, along with my subordinates. However… There are two things I am concerned about,” Juliana continued.

“What is it? Mother-in-law, myself and these two will listen,” said Tarea.

“Yes, say whatever is on your mind. We’ll help you,” said Darcia.

“I shall take you up on that offer… My subordinates and I have always believed in the goddess. I prayed to Vida-sama very often, but I also prayed to Botin-sama, Peria-sama… and Nineroad and Mill as well,” said Juliana.

Lambda was a world where the existence of multiple gods was commonly known. Thus, there were many like Juliana who offered their prayers to multiple gods. Before they went out to complete their commissions and hunts, adventurers would offer their prayers to the heroic god Farmaun, the founder of the Adventurers’ Guild. Before battle, they would give short prayers for good fortune in combat to the god of soldiers and the god of thunderclouds, who were also war gods. Upon returning to their cities, they would pray to Alda, the god of law and fate, out of gratitude for having been able to return home alive.

Clergymen who worked in Churches would only offer their prayers to specific gods that they worshiped, but it was normal for everyone else to pray to multiple gods.

But it seemed that Juliana felt guilty for this after having learned about the truth regarding Vida and Alda, and being saved and guided by Vandalieu, the leader of Vida’s faction.

“And some among my subordinates fervently worshiped a goddess who is close to Alda. Will the gods under Vida forgive us for this?” Juliana asked.

The goddess’s incarnation spoke out to the lost lamb.

“You don’t have to worry about that! Don’t worry, we’re all going to work together from now on,” said Darcia.

Vida’s gods did not see people’s past religious beliefs as a problem if they were willing to convert, and this had been true for all of the people who had migrated to Talosheim. This was also true for Juliana, who had been a member of a family of dukes.

“Ah, thank you, Goddess,” said Juliana. “My subordinates can be reincarnated with peaceful minds.”

“Umm, I’m not Vida herself… But I think the goddess holds the same views,” said Darcia.

“By the way, what is the other thing you were worried about?” asked Rita.

“I have heard from the great one that he will make our forms resemble humans as closely as possible, but it has been some time since the eggs were implanted within me, so our forms will be a little monster-like. Will it be possible for us to become the disciples of the goddess known as ‘magical girls?’” Juliana asked, gazing at the transformed Tarea with an expression of yearning.

It seemed that she had only received a half-baked explanation of magical girls and was under the impression that they were disciples of the goddess.

“Magical girls aren’t exactly Vida’s disciples… Wait, I don’t think you’re necessarily wrong! But I’m not a magical girl!” Tarea exclaimed in alarm.

“You’re right. We’re singing and dancing in worship of the goddess, so you might not be wrong to say that magical girls are disciples of Vida,” said Darcia.

“I am not wrong… Then that means that Tarea-san is a magical girl! Will I be able to become a magical girl like Tarea-san?!” Juliana said excitedly.

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“Wait! That’s not what Mother-in-law meant when she said that you’re not wrong!” Tarea shouted.

“I’m sure you can become one, Juliana-san! I think you have a nice voice, and Bocchan can make staves in any size,” said Rita.

“Rita, that doesn’t mean Bocchan can make them right away. But if Juliana-san strongly wishes for it, then I think he will consider it,” said Saria.

“I will try and make my request when the great one returns today. I shall tell him that I wish to become a magical girl like Tarea-san after I am reborn!” Juliana declared.

“You don’t need to tell him that you want to become one like me! Wait a moment, Mother-in-law! Could you please transform for Juliana-san?! I am sure that will be enough for her interest to not be so fixated upon me!” Tarea protested, almost screaming.

But it seemed that Juliana’s strange tendency to not listen to people she was very fond of applied not only to Vandalieu, but to Tarea as well.

As this loud conversation was taking place in the basement, it was not noticed by the spies of the region’s lord, who were keeping watch outside.

Having finished their training, Vandalieu and the others were on their way back into the city, but they were stopped at the gate.

“Vandalieu, the collars on Fang and the others are barely staying on. Maroru’s is almost burnt to a crisp, and Suruga’s is full of holes. Urumi’s looks normal, but… it’s frozen. It’s fine for now, but if you keep this up, they’re gonna break soon,” warned Kest, the rookie guard.

“I’m sorry. I did try to be careful, but…” said Vandalieu.

Fang and the rats whimpered, looking apologetic, but the general-purpose collars that Vandalieu had purchased from the Tamers’ Guild were reaching their limits.

The problem with Fang’s collar was the size of Fang’s body, as he had grown larger after becoming a Hellhound. The rats’ collars had physical damage, as they had become a Flame Rat, a Wet Rat and an Iron Rat. Maroru’s had been burnt, Urumi’s had been exposed to freezing-cold air and Suruga’s had been worn down by her metal-like fur.

“You need to go to the Tamers’ Guild and get replacement collars today. They sell special collars for monsters like Maroru and Urumi who have burning or freezing bodies,” said Kest.

“I didn’t know they sold such convenient items,” said Vandalieu.

The Tamers’ Guild had registered members who tamed all kinds of monsters. Thus, the Guild manufactured and sold special collars for certain kinds of monsters.

They didn’t just have collars of different sizes; there were all kinds of collars that could withstand certain conditions with properties like decay resistance, heat resistance, cold resistance and electrical current resistance.

Tamers would notice this as they regularly visited the Guild or were taught this by their masters, but… Fang and the rats had increased Ranks far too quickly, so he hadn’t learned about this in time.

“I’m not too knowledgeable about it myself. Even if you don’t have enough money, you can get a loan if you’re an official member, so make sure you buy them,” said Kest.

“Kest, you…” said another guard, one of Kest’s seniors, from behind him.

“Ah, I’m sorry, Senpai! I’ll keep private talk to a minimum!”

“No, that’s not it… I just thought, it’s amazing that you’re totally fine with them.”

The senior guard was a little scared of Fang and the rats. But it wasn’t fair to think of him as pathetic.

While they were Rank 3, Fang had been the size of a large dog, and the rats had been the size of large rodents. But after becoming a Rank 4 Hellhound, Fang had become the size of an ox, even larger than a wolf. And considering the states of the rats’ collars, it was clear that they had special abilities of some sort.

The people watching the gate were not adventurers, but ordinary guards, who were not accustomed to combat with monsters. They couldn’t be blamed for feeling fear towards Fang and the rats, even if they did know they were tamed. It seemed that the senior guard thought it strange that Kest was unfazed by their presence.

“You were petrified like a statue when you saw Bachem-san’s Huge Wyvern, too,” the senior guard added.

“That’s true, but… for some reason, I don’t mind these guys. Maybe it’s because Huge Wyverns are a type of dragon, or maybe because I knew this guy from when he was just a dog…” said Kest, looking a little confused himself; he wasn’t sure about the reason for this either.

… He didn’t know that it was because he had been drawn by the effect of Vandalieu’s Titles and was in the process of being guided.

“Well, I’m not complaining, as long as you’re not like Aggar who is so scared that he pretends to be sick so he can leave early,” said the senior guard.

Kest gave a nervous laugh. “I mean, yes.”

Aggar was supposed to still be working at this time of day, but it seemed that he had left early to avoid gate duty at the time of day when Vandalieu would return. Although some of his behavior was not good, he was still Kest’s senior, so Kest couldn’t speak ill of him.

“… Come to think of it, I get the feeling that I didn’t see him yesterday, either. Or the guys that are buddies with him. I wonder if everything is alright?” Simon whispered to Vandalieu.

As he lived in a dilapidated house in the slums, he knew even more about Aggar’s wrongdoings than Miles, who was currently serving as one of the heads of a criminal organization.

Of course, his activities were not a big deal other than to his victims, but… Aggar had even been meddling with Vandalieu, whom Simon respected as his master.

Simon thought that the fact that Aggar was continually avoiding Vandalieu meant that he could be plotting some new method of harassment.

“It’s alright, Simon. I’m taking care of it,” said Vandalieu.

“As expected of my Master!” said Simon, looking relieved and losing interest in Aggar.

Incidentally, Kest and the other guards were not experts on monsters, so they didn’t notice that the rats had become members of unknown races. They simply seemed to think that they were unusual monsters that they had never seen or heard of before, but possibly existed in other cities or duchies.

Meanwhile, Aggar was headed for the orphanage in the slums with his companions.

Today was the third day since they saw Darcia using ‘Familiar Spirit Descent’… they were finally executing their plan of kidnapping orphans from the orphanage, using them to lure Vandalieu out and capture him, then threaten Darcia.

Wearing dirty overcoats to disguise themselves as inhabitants of the slums, they approached the orphanage’s back door.

“You know the plan that comes after, right?” Aggar said to his companions.

“Of course,” one of his companions replied.

They had decided to confine the kidnapped children in an empty house not in the slums, but in an ordinary residential area. This was because a number of the food carts in the slums were now associated with Vandalieu, and because the ‘Starving Wolf’ would get involved.

There was no way to know who in the slums was friends with the owners of the food carts, and there was the danger that Darcia would rely on the ‘Starving Wolf’ to use his thug subordinates to search for the children.

Thus, they had decided to confine the children in an empty house in an ordinary residential area, where there should be no connection to the slums.

It had taken some time to find a conveniently-located empty house and make various preparations, which was why the plan was being executed today.

“Wouldn’t it be less troublesome and better to kill the orphans and bury their bodies?” said Aggar.

“Aggar, I told you that’s impossible,” said one of his companions.

Unlike Vandalieu, who was a Dhampir and a skilled Tamer, it would be easy for them to kill children that were just ordinary orphans. However, disposing of their corpses would be troublesome, and… it would be difficult to hide the fact that they had been murdered.

To begin with, their objective was not to kidnap orphans. Their objective was to use them as a hostage to get their hands on Vandalieu, then use him as a hostage to draw Darcia out, and then threaten her into fulfilling their greatest wishes.

That was why they needed to always have hostages that they could manage within reach, so that Vandalieu and Darcia would give in to their demands.

Aggar’s companions were quick to remind him of this.

“If that kid or that woman lose their shit and let loose, we’re done. Have you forgotten that?”

“Joseph might be happy, but I ain’t dying just to please him.”

It was possible that Vandalieu and Darcia’s social standings would take a fall if they were to harm… or possibly kill Aggar and his companions, as they were city guards.

But they had no intention of giving their lives for the purpose of harassing Vandalieu. There was no point to it all if they died, and they didn’t want to become seriously injured, either.

On top of that, they had been warned by their superiors to not get involved with Vandalieu and Darcia. It was highly likely that their excuses and hastily-made lies wouldn’t work, even if Vandalieu and Darcia’s reputations were indeed harmed.

That was why they needed to rape Darcia, and then silence her, Vandalieu and the orphans… though it seemed that Aggar didn’t mind giving his life if he could make Darcia his.

“… I know. I was just kidding,” he muttered.

“You didn’t forget the drugs, did you?” one of his companions asked, looking uneasy.

The plan was to immobilize the orphans and Vandalieu with sleeping drugs and anesthetics.

It had been Aggar’s job to prepare the drugs.

“Yeah. This is the result of my hard work in steadily stealing the stuff that gets confiscated. Don’t worry about it,” said Aggar.

And I’ve got the aphrodisiac to use on the woman, too! he thought gleefully, the corners of his mouth twisting in a vulgar smile.

He and his companions crept towards the orphanage’s back door, and Aggar took out the duplicate key that he had stolen long ago.

Spies sent by the region’s lord, Earl Isaac Morksi, watched on with contempt in their eyes.

The orphanage in the slums was where Vandalieu and his companions regularly visited and made donations. Thus, there were spies keeping watch here, too. Yesterday, they had found one of Aggar’s companions coming to test whether the duplicate key still worked on the back door that led to the courtyard.

They had kept watch at the orphanage vigilantly since then, and now they found themselves in this situation.

“What should we do? Shall we dispose of them now?” one of the spies asked.

“Do it after they enter the orphanage through the back door… We will leave evidence at the orphanage that this incident was prevented due to our intervention. This will also make the Dhampir notice us,” said another.

Earl Isaac Morksi had kept his distance from Vandalieu thus far, but it seemed that he had changed his approach after receiving a report from Berard that there was a limbless Minotaur victim who appeared to be Juliana Alcrem who had agreed to come into Vandalieu’s care.

It would be more dangerous to leave Vandalieu unchecked. Thinking that it would be more dangerous to not form any connection with the Dhampir boy and his mother, no matter how dangerous they turned out to be, he should show Vandalieu how useful he could be in order to build a favorable relationship… a relationship where they could discuss all kinds of delicate problems.

Isaac knew nothing regarding what had happened to Juliana, but he could guess. Considering that, it was not hard to imagine that Vandalieu, and his mother who could summon a familiar spirit of Vida, would harbor ill will towards Duke Alcrem.

The earl did not intend to denounce Duke Alcrem. But at the same time, he had no intention to defend his actions. However, he simply thought that it would be best to make Vandalieu recognize that he could talk to the region’s lord, rather than have him hold feelings of true animosity.

If Vandalieu and Darcia began to harbor animosity towards all nobles in the Alcrem Duchy, it was highly likely that they would form relationships with other duchies with nobles who showed more understanding.

The mother is extraordinary, but… her son is even more so. The earl doesn’t seem to have committed himself to sharing the mother and son’s fate, but I suppose he’s in a situation where he will not want to simply stay silent and let them move onto another duchy, the leader of the spies guessed.

The spies prepared to leap over the wall, then surround and capture Aggar and his companions once they opened the back door and went inside.

Unaware of this, Aggar grinned as he unlocked the back door and opened it a little. He crouched and peered through the gap in the door to see a boy, about ten years old, and a silver-haired girl who was a little younger, from the side. There was snow on the ground; the children were playing and drawing pictures in it.

“Hmm? Was there an Elf kid at this orphanage?” one of Aggar’s companions muttered as he suddenly stopped, bewildered by the sight of the beautiful Elf girl who looked like she was a delicately-made work of art.

“Who cares about that. It’s perfect that there’s kids nearby, so hurry up and grab them!” said Aggar.

“Aggar’s right. I’ll grab the boy, and you grab the girl,” said one of the others.

“Leave it to me.”

In the end, Aggar and his three companions walked through the door and entered the orphanage, one by one.

“Move,” said the captain of the spies.

They leapt over the wall of the orphanage with their great lower body strength, absolutely certain that they would capture Aggar and his companions in the next moment.

Name: Tarea

Rank: 6

Race: Ghoul Elder Artisan

Level: 95

Job: Transforming Craftsman

Job Level: 95

Job history: Apprentice Arms Smith, Arms Smith → Slave (Forced job change at level 47), Apprentice Prostitute, Prostitute, Arms Smith (Level 48), Arms Smith: Famous Artisan, Magical Craftsman, Alchemical Craftsman, Magic Tempering Craftsman

Age: 274 years old (18 years old physically and in appearance)

Title: Crafting Princess

Passive skills:

Dark Vision

Pain Resistance: Level 2

Superhuman Strength: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)

Paralyzing Venom Secretion (Claws): Level 1

Allure: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)

Enhanced Attribute Values: Guidance: Level 7 (NEW!)

Self-Enhancement: Transformation: Level 2 (NEW!)

Mana Enlargement: Level 1 (NEW!)

Active skills:

Estimation: Level 9 (LEVEL UP!)

Armor Smithing: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)

Weapon Smithing: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)

Bedroom Skill: Level 5

Dancing: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)

Love-making: Level 2

Archery: Level 3

No-Attribute Magic: Level 2 (NEW!)

Mana Control: Level 3 (NEW!)

Alchemy: Level 4 (NEW!)

Surpass Limits: Level 2 (NEW!)

Unique skills:

Zozogante’s Divine Protection (NEW!)

Vandalieu’s Divine Protection (NEW!)

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