Chapter 446 – Great Wolf Queen Hiyori-sama
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I checked the area around the treasury as I ran towards the noise. The area was illuminated by magic lights, which were suspended from the ceiling. The inner room of the treasury felt about twenty tatami mats wide, I’d say.
Maybe there’s a Parades mirror somewhere in here――
――I let my eyes wander.
But, apparently not. I thought it could be the 17th or 18th facet as the spaces on the other sides of those mirrors look kind of like treasuries, but I guess things aren’t going to be this convenient for me. The room beyond the 17th gate gave you the impression of time having stopped. I saw all sorts of eerie stuff in there. The 18th gate featured a dark treasury.
I feel like my desire to explore by using the Trapezohedron has been boosted by this, but I’ve got plenty of things to do. Well, I guess for now I’ll do what I can.
I exited to a place that looked like a corridor. There I stopped.
If you looked at the place from above, I think you’d be able to see its L-shape. Rock walls were visible to the left and front with the treasury being in our back and the corridor continuing on the right side.
A red carpet adorned the floor. And further down the corridor was a stairway. Rollodeen, Higlia, and Elza were right in front of those stairs. The area downstairs was like a hall. Ancient wolfmen had gathered there.
The corridor walls were made of a combination of rock and soil. But a bit further down the corridor, the material changed to a glassy, glossy finish. As if to match that gloss, display cases had been lined up, filled with exhibition items. Shining stones, swords, spears, and even dead Soju-like brains were stored inside.
Many items were emitting mana; their priority as items was probably much lower than the treasures we were currently carrying. However, we’re no treasure appraiser. Some of those items might be Legendary or Mythological.
“Treasure…but, don’t take them, okay?”
“We know.”
After warning Valentin, I looked at everyone, and once they nodded, I started to run.
The decorations on the walls of either side decreased drastically. And because of the rugged wall surfaces, the acoustic effects of us running seemed to increase.
We approached the wolfmen guards who had gathered below the stairs. Their claw-based armor was different from the wolfmen soldiers I’d seen so far. They didn’t wear any helmets, but they still reminded me of heady infantry.
Those guards had surrounded my partner while suppressing her with the halberd-shaped claw weapons they were thrusting at her.
And just when we closed in on the guards, Higlia stepped in front of Rollodeen, spreading both arms as if to protect her.
“You guys, how often do I have to explain until you get it!?”
“Divine Princess…you say so, but…”
“BAH! Leaving me out of the picture, what’s the idea about pointing your weapons at a Divine Beast!?”
“But, it looks like a darkness tiger!”
Immediately following, one of the guards stabbed his spear at Rollodeen.
“Garururu――”
While growling, Rollodeen used her tentacles to repel the claw spear pointed at her.
“Shut up! Divine Beast-sama is just kind enough not to kill you. Can you understand at least this much?”
“Princess Higlia! Please withdraw. It’s dangerous!”
“Aris!” Elza yelled.
Right afterward, one of the guards stabbed a spear at Elza. She dodged the stab by rotating sideways. And then she swiftly drew the greatsword from her back. Swinging Yahanuga speedily while drawing a semicircle, she mowed down the spear thrust at her by another guard. The spear wasn’t repelled, but had its tip cut in half. The splinters of that claw spear flew towards the stairs, stabbing into the ground near the stairway.
The wolfmen around her raised their voices in surprise. And I can understand why they’d be astonished. She was handling the big fang of Yahanuga, which resembled the huge, broken stone monuments of dragon slayers with one hand. I’ve personally witnessed her slashing apart monsters before we came here, so I know fully well just how skilled her swordsmanship is, but I must still say, she’s quite strong.
“――Elza, you mustn’t kill the wolves, okay? Divine Beast-sama has been pushing the wolves away with her pad touches.”
Just as Aris explained, Rollodeen used her many tentacles to deal with the guards.
I ran up to Elza’s side. While approaching the guards, I let everyone know about my appearance by asking, “Rollo, you okay?”
“Nn, nyaa.”
“Ah, Shuuya-anchan! Divine Beast-sama, let’s go back.”
“Nyanoo.”
My partner ran over to me with Aris still on her back.
“Uuuaaahhh――”
The wolfmen soldiers were blown away on that occasion.
“Shuuya!” Higlia ran over as well.
But the wolfmen guards started yelling, apparently having become even more confused.
“Bloody hell! It’s a raid by humans!”
“What are the royal guards doing!?”
The number of guards increased as more came down the stairs…and some among them seemed to also be royal guards.
The stairway’s angle isn’t that steep, but it’s quite long. I guess this means we’re quite deep underground right now. Well, the hole Rollo initially dug was deep, so I suppose this is only natural.
“――Ring the bells!”
“What is the royal guard’s Tuning Fork unit doing!? The Tuning Fork Moon Boundary not ringing is weird, too! What’s up with this thieves’ raid from right underneath the fortress!?”
“It’s truly unheard-of,” muttered a big wolfman, who seemed to be a guard captain.
Was the old wolfman the guard captain of this place?
He held hooked spears that were unified with his light brown nails in both hands. They slightly resembled the Spear of the Moon Wolf Ring, which I held in my right hand.
“Sorry, we’re Higlia’s acquaintances…” I tried to explain to the old wolfman.
“Her Highness and her acquaintances, huh…? That makes you important guests. But, our excited youngsters lost their cool as if having drunk several cups of Leshun sake.”
“Eybran-sama, you mustn’t speak with these people!”
“Yeah! Look at the various treasures from the treasury…the leader of the thieves’ gang, huh? Divine Princess-sama is with such shady humans…”
The younger guards didn’t listen to their captain.
“We’re the thieves’ gang…”
“Araha, stay quiet for the moment…”
Araha and Tsubutsubu muttered while caught in Rollodeen’s tentacles. Rollodeen immediately dealt with them. She used her long tail and several tentacles to tickle the two beastgirls.
For an instant, Higlia smiled after noticing the tickle play. But she immediately reverted her expression into a stiff one as befitting a divine princess.
And then she looked at the guard captain, “Eybran! What’s the idea here with a veteran like you not stopping them! Hurry up and make them back off at once!”
It’s only logical, but Higlia and Eybran were apparently acquainted.
“…Please give me a moment, Princess-sama.”
“What are you waiting for!? The soldiers are being sent flying by the paw strikes!”
“Well, even if I were to personally strike down the young ones, it#d only increase the chaos unnecessarily…they should calm down very soon.”
“…T-That makes sense as well. Sorry, Shuuya. It’s just as Eybran says. It’s in the nature of ancient wolfmen that they won’t easily calm down once they get excited…”
“So it seems.”
Having said that, our numbers were quite big too. And even if Higlia is with us, it still remains a fact that we’re actually carrying treasures with us. I guess it’s understandable for the guards to misunderstand.
Valentin and his friends stood right behind us. They had huddled together to protect each other. Saljin, who looked just like a human with beastman blood in him, rummaged through the treasures on the ground, just to be rebuked by the sole female vampire whose name I hadn’t heard.
She had earlier said that she doesn’t trust me.
Jody was located at the very end of our group. While revealing a calm look, she intently spied on the vampires. Once our eyes met, she smiled, but then she immediately refocused her attention on the gravediggers.
No matter how you spin it, in the end, they only gave a verbal promise. She probably believes that it’s necessary to keep an eye on them. Though I doubt that Valentin would betray me.
Helme was next to me. The treasures carried by her shining threads were bigger in number than Jody’s.
The crimson-shining longsword that was dripping blood on the floor…had been called Vampire King Sarinas by Higlia, hadn’t it? Some spear-like weapons could also be seen among the items entangled by Helme’s threads.
To be honest, it was a mix of interesting items.
Aris got off Rollodeen, now standing next to Elza. One of Rollodeen’s tentacles was stroking her small head. Once her cat ears were lifted while her head was being caressed, Aris stretched herself, looking very comfy. How cute.
On the other hand, two of the Tsuranuki Thieves Gang were still receiving their tickling punishment. At this level, it might actually be called torture.
“Our comrades are in a place away from here.” “I enjoyed shopping.” “The meat at Tomrance’s Barbecue is great.” “There’s plenty of Tobcha fish in the river.” “Grated daikon hamburger.” “Majun chestnut.” “Meeting in the Blue Moon Inn in front of the main gate.”
They spilled everything from important information to useless trivia. As we grasped the situation, we heard the sounds of drums and flutes from atop the stairs. The noise was gradually getting louder.
And then you could see the feet of ancient wolfmen in black. Not one, but a group. They were coming down the stairs. You could see through the black clothes they were wearing. Many of them possessed voluptuous boobs. Not armor, but a thin dress extended from their claws. You could see something akin to panties at their crotches. Given that their fur was as thin as Ryokline’s, they looked pretty sexy…
A being, which seemed to counter that group, also came down. A wolfman with her body clad in a silver-patterned outfit that stood out in the sea of blackness around her. The lips, which were visible through her silver, transparent veil, were smiling. Her thin, silver eyebrows seemed delicate. The shape of her blue eyes was just like Higlia’s. Her skin was close to human. To be frank, she looked gorgeous…
Her silver fur was less than Higlia’s. And the claws extending from both her hands were, of course, silver as well. Those claws didn’t form armor; they had transformed into fingerless opera gloves. Yet, those gloves contained a lot of mana. I guess it’s special silver-made armor.
Her white gloves and silver outfit woke the image of a queen in me.
A path of lily-like petals was created on the stairway in front of that ancient wolfman. A path of flowers filled with mana, huh? Quite luxurious.
Several black-clothed wolfmen holding knitted baskets were to the left and right of the pretty woman. They were scattering the petals on the floor. And their basket still had plenty of petals in them.
This is definitely some VIP. Makes me a bit nervous…
Suddenly, a stir occurred. The guards talked among themselves. And then one of them shouted, “――Great Wolf Queen Hiyori-sama!”, and prostrated himself.
Following that, the other guards began yelling repeatedly, “Hiyori-sama!”
I suppose that’s her name then. But I can understand, given the dignity I sense in her.
“Quiet down――”
A high-pitched voice. But not Hiyori-sama’s. A slender wolfwoman in black clothes, who resembled Ryokline, had spoken. She was holding a wand-like item like others. And then a black-clothed wolfwoman, opposite to the one who spoke up just now, nimbly descended a few steps and put the tip of her wand into her mouth after directing a sharp look at us.
Right after that, a flute sound could be heard from the wand. Followed by drum sounds to match the flute. Wolfwomen in black clothes were hitting small drums they carried at their chests. They were small, but had an unexpectedly heavy bass sound. Enough so to make my earlobes tremble.
As the wolfwomen played their music, small wolf and moon illusions started to dance around Hiyori-sama, matching the rhythm of the drums.
This was all happening as the entire group came downstairs.
Next, the wolfwoman, who had cautioned the guards to be quiet, closed the distance to the wolfwoman who had descended moments ago. There she faced us as if performing a stage act.
“Hiyori-sama’s presence…I announce!!!”
Everyone immediately went down on their knees. I immediately imitated the others, adopting a respectful pose.
Only Higlia remained standing.
“H-Hiyori-sama…”
Higlia’s voice and shoulders were trembling, apparently in fear.
“Higlia, how much longer do I have to wait for your greetings?”
“Ah, yes! Grandmother Hiyori-sama, I have returned home a little while ago!” Higlia stated while saluting.
Her tail stood on end as if trying to align itself with her spine. How funny.
But, isn’t she rather a young lady than a grandmother!? No matter how much I look at her, she looks like Higlia.
“…Hehe, I’ve been waiting for your return. I have heard a bit about your outing from Ryokline and Lulun. L-a-t-e-r…you’ll tell me all about it, okay?”
The voice she directed at Higlia carried a tone inspiring fear. Mana was created as well. It was a unique, magical voice, kind of like Jody’s. Meeting my eyes, she warned me, “Shuuya-sama, please be careful,” while bending her body as she knelt.
“…I know,” I whispered back.
“But, Your Excellency, the glares of the guards and the leader soldiers in black are focused on the treasures we picked up…”
Swirls of words, which contained various complaints by the black-clothed people on the stairs, spread. And then the guards joined in.
“Hiyori-sama!! These people are thieves!!”
“Hiyori-sama! Please back off! It’s dangerous!”
They kicked up a fuss as soon as they stood up.
“Guards――you’re too noisy. Behave yourself.”
“Yep.”
The wolfwomen on Hiyori-sama’s sides cautioned the guards. Thereupon, Hiyori-sama added, “…Hehe, Kiko, Jess, let me talk with them.”
“But…”
“Listen――, “Hiyori-sama said with a smile, “――guards and everyone else, you don’t need to worry. I invited these people. That is the reason the Tuning Fork barrier did not sound its alarm either.”
“”――Eeeehhh!?””
They all cried out in harmony. Or rather…I was surprised as well.
The two women, Kiko and Jess, warned us to calm down once more. And when the place quieted down, Hiyori-sama continued, “…As you all know, festivities to celebrate the return of the wolf generals Ouria, Dorcell, and Azeran on the Idol square are being held. Moreover, Divine Princess Higlia has achieved great feats and returned safely to us.”
Hiyori-sama smiled broadly and extended a hand towards Higlia.
“…Based on these matters, I was planning to reward her with those treasures. So, please don’t worry, all of you. Ah, it looks like there’s a hole in the back of the treasury, so guards, please break up into underground exploration platoons and get the defenses ready,” Hiyori-sama ordered with a serious expression.
The wolfmen bowed after hearing her command.
“So that was it?”
“Sorry for this…”
One after the other apologized. They formed a line with a hand pressed against their chest. Eybran warned them, “You guys, get moving at once as ordered,” and after confirming that, the guards swiftly ran through the corridor.
Watching this happen with a satisfied look, Hiyori-sama descended the stairway. Her eyes were fixed on me instead of Higlia. She was smiling, or rather laughing scornfully.
What should I do? I guess I’ll go with the safe approach of a smile. I’m friendly…
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