Chapter 66: CH 65

“… Are you okay, Claire-sama?”

“I I I, I am okay as always!”

“You’re obviously not okay…”

I worried about Claire-sama, Claire-sama put on a brave front, and Misha seemed anxious, each of the three of us acted differently.

The subjugation party, including us, is approaching the ghost ship on small boats.

We are thirty people strong.

Divided into groups of few people we boarded the boats and attempted to approach it while staying vigilant.

So far, we haven’t encountered monsters, but we’ll be within the dangerous distance soon.

I was thinking such thing, when.

“They’re coming!”

The adventurer at the front of the boat raised his voice.

As I strained my eyes to see through the fog, I saw bird-like monsters flying towards us up ahead.

Their number is roughly ten.

“Claire-sama, do it!”

“I, I understand!”

Claire-sama responded to Louis-san’s voice.

Because the monsters are in a distance their figures couldn’t be clearly seen.

I wonder if it’s a success, Claire-sama’s frightened state didn’t seem that serious.

“Shine!”

Claire-sama casted Magical Ray.

The heat rays hit the flock of birds and burned most of them.

“Tsk, few remain”

“Please leave it to me”

Misha responded to Louis-san who clicked his tongue.

Immediately, a shrill sound resounded, and the remaining monsters were shot down.

It’s Misha’s Siren.

“So many monsters in an instant…”

“We can do it… We can really do it!”

By completely winning the first fight, the subjugation party’s morale increased more than enough.

Louis-san showed appreciation by raising his thumb.

Afterwards, before we reached the ghost ship there were sporadic fights, but no one got injured.

“Then, the real thing starts now”

After every subjugation party member boarded the ghost ship, Louis-san told everybody to focus.

“Following the plan, groups A to E will open the path. I will go with these children to the captain’s cabin”

At Louis-san’s command soldiers briskly took their positions.

He’s an experienced adventurer.

His directions are efficient and appropriate.

“! Skeletons! Many of them!”

When the door to the deck opened, ten undead in the shape of skeletons appeared from inside.

Everybody prepared for battle.

“Don’t falter! We have superior numbers! Surround and crush them!”

Under Louis-san’s command, a melee began.

◆◇◆◇◆

“Everyone must be exhausted”

About two hours have passed since we boarded the ship.

The three of us, kept as a trump card, advanced while being protected by the subjugation party.

Although individually undead don’t have much power, their strength lies in numbers.

The subjugation party’s stamina was little by little being whittled down and many people suffered injuries.

“We’re almost at the captain’s room! It’ll end when the boss is defeated, so everyone, keep at it!”

The voices responding to Louis-san’s encouragement are gradually getting smaller.

Really, we’re cutting it close.

“Leader, it’s the captain’s room!”

The voice of an adventurer who went ahead brightened the faces of the subjugation party members.

It’s finally over, is what relief on their faces say.

“Alright. I’ll join these children, and us four will go in. Everyone, fortify outside of the room and keep monsters from getting inside”

“Roger”

While being vigilant, we went inside the captain’s cabin with Louis-san taking the lead, followed by me, Claire-sama, and Misha.

“… Huh?”

The inside of the room was deserted.

I expected a boss like Captain Hook, but I was let down by the room being empty.

“Is it in another room…?”

When Claire-sama raised her voice in suspicion, Louis-san declared.

“Form a barrier”

By saying so Louis-san invoked some magic through a magical scroll.

“But, there’s nothing here?”

Misha also looked around the room, but after all there’s nothing here.

“Well, that’s right. The boss… I will summon it now”

Hearing that voice, I quickly moved in front of Claire-sama.

Misha also prepared her wand and readied for battle.

“You…”

“Everyone is so simple. Just by having adventurer’s guild license I was trusted this much”

Louis-san went to the back of the room with a bitter smile.

“Louis-san, are you an enemy?”

“Enemy? That’s right, I’m an enemy”

Saying so, Louis-san – no, Louis presented his right hand.

On his ring finger was a ring only I was familiar with.

“The magical tool of undeadification――!”

“Do you know it… Well, that’s what it is”

What he’s wearing is the magical tool I made Hans-san give up on in the royal capital.

So that means, Louis is the culprit of the ghost ship uproar…?

“But, there’s no corpse here”

It’s as Misha pointed out.

Even if he has the magical tool, it’s useless without a target for its effect.

“I’ll make one now. Using this”

Louis took out what looks like a bottle of perfume from his breast pocket.

It’s filled with a clear liquid.

“It’s the new type of cantarella”

“!? Are you an assassin from the Naa Empire!?”

“Sorry, but that’s how it is”

Louis said so, apologetic from the bottom of his heart.

“Are you not being overconfident disclosing your secret?”

“Well, you could say that. I don’t mind if you think this is me feeling obliged to you”

To me, Louis looked like he was truly regretting this.

But――.

“Are you behind this ghost ship?”

“Yeah. It was a ship of a noble from the Bauer Kingdom, so I just”

There are casualties already.

There’s no reason to forgive him.

“If we know there’s a poison, we’ll take countermeasures”

“You know detoxification method… Right?”

Louis laughed just a little at my words.

“I told you this is the new type of cantarella, didn’t I? Magic is unusable on the person it’s used on. Therefore, you won’t be able to detoxify it with detoxification magic”

“Then, it is fine if we do not come in contact with the poison in the first place”

Claire-sama said confidently.

However, Louis’s laughter didn’t stop.

“Nobody said I will use it on you though?”

“!? What!?”

Claire-sama’s surprise was reasonable.

Louis opened the cantarella bottle and immediately gulped it in one go.

“Guwaa…! Guu… u….!”

“Suicide…? No, this is――!”

Louis collapsed on the floor and writhed in pain.

It was Misha who was at first bewildered looking at his state, but then seemed to suddenly understand something.

“This person is willing to become undead himself!”

“!? Such a thing…!”

Is impossible to understand.

This is exactly a suicidal act.

Once you become undead, there is no choice but to wander about the hell of this world forever or return to dust.

I guess Louis aims for our lives, but even so he’ll still die and lose everything.

“Detoxify!”

“… It’s useless! The effect of cantarella has already activated!”

It happened while we were overcome with surprise.

“… A monster…”

Skin peeled off, dark red muscles became visible and swelled up.

Louis’s body that was normal for a man rapidly grew bigger, and soon became as large as an orc’s.

“We are running away!”

Claire-sama’s voice made me quickly come back to my senses.

That’s right.

There’s no need to go along with this.

If we escape――.

“USELESS”

Louis said in an inhuman voice.

The door… won’t open.

“It is the magical scroll from before”

Was that meant to confine us.

“NOW… OBEDIENTLY LET YOURSELVES BE KILLED”

“I shall decline!”

Claire-sama released a flame lance.

The flame lance hit Louis, but――.

“MAGIC HAS NO EFFECT”

Louis was unscathed.

“I see… It’s not just detoxification magic, it renders all magic ineffective”

While keeping up her vigilance, Misha calmly analyzed the situation.

Speaking of which, there was such a thing.

“After all, everything that we did was for the sake of exhausting other people who excelled at physical attacks?”

“YOUR HEAD WORKS QUITE WELL”

From the start his aim was to create this situation.

Although our ability in magic is high, we have poor means of physical attacks.

If magic can’t be used, we can’t do anything.

“What should we do…”

Bitterness was mixed in Claire-sama’s voice.

We’ve been cornered.