Read Novel Full CHAPTER 82 – MEANWHILE
It’s Ko-Fi’s Supporters’ chapter (30/65), enjoy~
Chapter 82 – Meanwhile
Yes, hello everyone. I’m Kosuke, the conscience of the Liberation Army.
No, after making so many bombs and stuff, conscience is a bit harsh, isn’t it? It would be more accurate to say that I’m the mastermind behind the Liberation Army or that I’m the cause of the disaster in the Holy Kingdom.
So, what’s my situation right now? Let me tell you.
“Gumuh! Mmmmm!”
Ouch! Don’t put me directly on the floor of the carriage where there is no suspension at all!
Yes, I’m probably riding in a carriage with my hands tied behind my back, blindfolded and gagged. I’m also placed directly on the floor. I was lying down. Furthermore, it’s very narrow. Am I being put in a box or something?
Every time the carriage slammed or thumped, it was as if I was being hit on the floor. It hurts so much. Is this a new kind of torture? In this way, the flesh of my buttocks is an excellent cushion.
Why am I in this situation? All I can remember is that Qubi beat me up and strangled me. After that, I found myself in this situation.
“It looks like he’s awake.”
I think someone heard me groaning, but then I heard a muffled voice. As expected, I’ve been put in a box or something.
“We’re almost there. Stay put.”
That voice must be Qubi. You bastard, you’d better remember that. I’m going to kill you for sure, no matter what it takes. Absolutely.
I’m not stupid. I don’t know what Qubi is up to, but I know the situation I’m in. Perhaps Qubi has betrayed us. I don’t understand why Qubi would rebel against us now that we’ve conquered Erichburg, but it’s easy to imagine where he would sell me. It would be the Holy Kingdom. There’s no other destination but that.
“Nnnnnn! Nnnggh!”
“I don’t know what you’re saying, but I can tell you’re angry. Scary, scary.”
I was going to say, “I’ll kill you!” but the gagging was too tight. It must sound like a dirty moan or something! Goddamn it.
I can’t help it if I waste my energy, so I keep quiet while enduring the impact. It’s not only annoying to be agitated by Qubi, but more importantly, it’s unproductive. It would be more useful to think of a way out of this situation.
For the time being, I think I can remove the blindfold by putting it away in my inventory. As long as I can see it, I can take out the menu and store it. Probably, this box I’m supposed to be in can be stored in the same way.
However, I can’t seem to do anything about the ropes that are tying me up behind my back because I can’t see them. It looks like my legs are tied up as well, but I think I can see them, and I think I can put the ropes themselves into my inventory to release the restraints.
As I was planning my escape plan, the carriage came to a stop, and the vibrations’ nature changed. The carriage no longer vibrates loudly with a clattering sound but instead was moving briskly. The vibrations transmitted to me are also minimal. Is it running on the cobblestones?
After that, the carriage continued to run along what seemed to be cobblestones, stopping several times and then running again. I had a bad feeling in my mind. Was there any city around Erichburg that had such a vast cobblestone pavement?
I don’t know how fast the carriage is going, but I think it’s been quite a while since the quality of the vibration changed. If it were Erichburg, it would have been running from one end to the other. And yet, there was no sign of stopping. This is quite a big place, isn’t it?
There’s only one city that’s close enough to Erichburg to be under the influence of the Holy Kingdom’s army, and it’s likely to have such a large area. Isn’t this Merinesburg, the capital of the Merinard Kingdom?
But if that’s the case, the time is not right. It would take a week to get to Merinesburg, even by carriage. I don’t know how long I’ve been unconscious, but it can’t have been more than a week.
So, how did I, or rather this carriage, make it through that distance? No, wait, what? When I thought about it, this carriage was also strange. All the carriages used by the Liberation Army must have been modified to have suspension. For a carriage with suspension, this one vibrated badly.
Did they use a civilian carriage instead of a military one to transport me after being knocked out? No, Sylphy told me that the checks on civilian carriages coming in and out of Erichburg are quite strict. I believe she said that all the luggage would be inspected. There’s no way they’d miss me packed in a box.
If it’s a military carriage, the checks should be more lenient… Or did he manage to sneak through somehow without using a carriage? No, no, the wall has been completely repaired, and the security of the wall is quite strict. It’s unrealistic to think that he could somehow get through with me unconscious in his arms.
Probably, I was kidnapped by Qubi and carried out using a military carriage. Then I was transported to Merinesburg by some special method? Was the carriage switched at some point? Hmm, I don’t know. I guess it’s useless to think about it.
Anyway, it seems unlikely that Sylphy and the others will immediately save me. Wherever Qubi brought me now, there is no way he can escape from the Harpy’s pursuit with just a carriage. Qubi’s voice sounded calm, and other sounds did not indicate that this carriage was being chased by something and was in a hurry. It was easy to imagine that this was a safe zone for them.
In other words, there’s a very good chance that I’m in the middle of enemy territory, almost alone. On top of that, the contents of my inventory were already drained, except for perishable foodstuffs that would be damaged if I took them out and my very personal belongings.
No, allow me to make an excuse. It was certainly a careless move to take out the entire contents of my inventory and put them in order. But I had a feeling that I wanted to see how spectacular it would be if I lined up all the materials that I couldn’t even grasp.
In the first place, I had thought that Erichburg was a perfectly safe place, and I hadn’t even considered that Qubi would betray me. Until the moment of betrayal, I thought of Qubi as one of us. I knew that he had a scar on his shin, but I never dreamed that he was connected to the Holy Kingdom.
Even with the eyes of this Kosuke…! Yes, I’m sorry, I’ll just shut up.
Why am I so calm? It’s because I don’t think they’re going to kill me right away. If the goal were to kill me, Qubi would have finished the job long ago. He could have stabbed me in the back with a knife; he could have strangled me like that; he could have broken my neck.
But that never happened, and now I’m being carried somewhere like a box of potatoes or something. The place he’s taking me to may be the execution table, but would he throw away his position in the deepest, upper echelons of the Liberation Army just to execute me and expose me to the world?
Hmm… If he kills me in cold blood and raises my body in front of the Liberation Army, might the morale of the Liberation Army fall to the ground?
Will it fall? I have a feeling that Sylphy, Isla, and the Harpies might get upset and do something terrible. Whether or not it produces results, I’m sure they’re going to use the various weapons I left in Erichburg to the limit and kill Qubi and the guy who planned to kill me at all costs.
But if they knew about my abilities and kidnapped me, they’ll probably try to use my power somehow, either to win me over or to manipulate me into obeying them.
I’ll never lose to the Holy Kingdom!
☆★☆
“So, this is what happens.”
I muttered to myself in the small, cell-like room.
After that, the carriage seemed to have reached its destination, and I was carried by a strong man like a sack of potatoes to be shipped, blindfolded, gagged, restrained, and even stripped of all my clothes.
I was trembling. Yes.
Fortunately, it didn’t turn out like in the rotten smell doujinshi, and I was thrown into this cell-like place with a thin prison uniform, iron shackles on my hands and feet, and even chains with iron balls attached to the shackles.
No, I mean, this is a cell — no doubt about it.
However, although this cell is small, I think it’s not so bad. There is a wooden bed and a toilet at the end of the room that seems to be flushable. A water bottle seems to have been set up as well. But the stone walls seem to be a bit dilapidated, and there are traces of repair work.
“Fumu…”
The light shines through a window with an iron grate at a slightly higher place near the ceiling. It’s a semi-underground cell. This time, the shackles are in front of me, so it’s easy to escape these restraints if I want to. I could make a plan to escape right now, but I wonder what I should do.
I don’t know what the enemy is trying to do, and if this is Merinesburg, then there may be clues to the whereabouts of Sylphy’s family… that is, the royalty of the Merinard Kingdom. Maybe they’re even here.
Also, I’m interested in what the Holy Kingdom is trying to do by kidnapping me. If possible, I would like to know what they are aiming for.
However, if I don’t escape immediately, there is a possibility that I will end up in an irreversible situation. I might be executed immediately, or some mysterious magic might brainwash me. I don’t know if such a thing would work on me since the slave collar doesn’t work on me.
There’s also the possibility that I could simply be tortured into surrender.
I’m just a normal person. If I were to be tortured by a professional torturer, I would immediately succumb. I don’t believe that I have the mental strength to endure any pain. Repeated torment would soon break my heart.
Do you think I’m weak-minded for not being able to endure torture? If you think so, you should look into what real torture is like. I did. And I found it impossible. Impossible impossible.
Let’s not think about a bad future, okay? I don’t want it to come true.
Let’s figure out an escape plan. First of all, there’s nothing wrong with the shackles. It can be dealt with. Secondly, the way to break the prison… is also not a problem. A wooden bed, a blanket, and a broken stone wall that has been repaired. Considering these components, I think I can at least manage to make a stone ax.
A stone ax is a versatile tool. Not only can it chop wood, but it can also destroy stone walls and floors. The toilet seemed to be flushable, so maybe I could escape to the sewer. If I could block the hole with blocks made of a crushed stone wall or floor material, I could buy myself some time to escape. If I could escape into the sewer, the rest would be manageable. I want to believe that.
Now, what should I do? I’m wondering if I should just wait and see what happens, or if I should escape from the prison as soon as possible…