A LORD PERPLEXED
What in the world is going on?
These incidents of late wear on my body and mind alike.
What with the huge outbreak of bandits, the successive kidnapping incidents that have followed, and so on, the order within my territory has sharply declined all at once.
The abnormal increase in the number of bandits already smells of some kind of international incident, and as we were investigating, the carriage containing my wife and daughter was attacked.
Fortunately, my wife and child are safe, but it seems my trusted retainer Merazophis was briefly in grave peril.
And yet, when I received this information, when I laid eyes on him, he bore nary a scratch.
And Merazophis himself is the one who relayed this report to me, no less.
He explained that, of all things, a spider monster saved them from the evil clutches of the robbers.
My wife insists that the creature must have been the Divine Beast.
Indeed, in the texts of the Goddess whom our country of Sariella worships, there is a Divine Beast that serves the Goddess herself.
My wife seems to believe that this spider monster is that very same Divine Beast.
At any rate, just as I was breathing a sigh of relief that they were safe, we discovered the bodies of some unidentified but suspicious-looking humans in our home the very next day.
Based on that timing, I can only assume they must have been in league with the robbers who attacked my wife and daughter’s carriage the previous day. I have ordered Merazophis to investigate, but we have yet to learn just what we are dealing with.
But not long after that day, all the robbers in the county suddenly vanished, so perhaps there is no longer any point in investigating.
The culprit behind that was found immediately.
The spider monster who seems to have saved my wife and daughter has been sighted lurking in the woods near our town.
At that point, I simply had to laugh.
To think that a monster able to quickly and quietly dispose of bandits would exist so close to our town.
My wife exclaims that the Divine Beast has saved our town, but I cannot say I share her delight.
Regardless, we must proceed with caution lest we incur the wrath of the spider monster.
Yet despite my intentions, those adventurers who arrived from Ohts have made contact with the monster.
And since they have been spreading word of the spider monster in the town, now the masses are all aware of its existence.
Why has it been one major event after another as of late?
To make matters worse, my wife has been spreading her Divine Beast theory all through town.
My dear wife, is the Divine Beast truly more important to you than your own husband?
Thanks to her, the people of the town are beginning to seriously believe that the spider monster is the Divine Beast.
Even though this is certainly not the case!
We have already discovered the creature’s true identity through our investigation.
It is a dangerous monster commonly known as the “Nightmare,” which escaped from the Great Elroe Labyrinth in Ohts.
A monster that has attacked people in the past.
We have no way of knowing when it might decide to attack us on a whim.
So it is beyond dangerous to worship such a creature as the Divine Beast.
However, now that my wife has taken the initiative to announce such a thing, I cannot simply come out and deny that it is the Divine Beast.
If I take one wrong step, I may even be impeached.
“Ha…ha-ha. Whatever should I do, Merazophis?”
“Master, please stay calm. Remember, I am here.”
Thank goodness. What everyone really needs is a trusted, understanding confidant.
“Master, you are surely correct that the Nightmare is likely not the Divine Beast, but is it not possible that the thing possesses intelligence?”
I can’t help but let out a groan at Merazophis’s suggestion.
“Yes, that thought has crossed my mind. In fact, let me state my conclusion: The Nightmare most likely has very high intelligence indeed.”
“Then is it possible that it would understand speech, as well? We may be able to negotiate, if so.”
“Merazophis. It is not that simple. That thing is still a monster. Even if it does possess the same level of intelligence as a human, we may not be able to communicate. After all, do you believe that you could hold a conversation with a Word of God fanatic?”
Merazophis is silent at that.
It’s difficult enough to reach an understanding between humans, never mind with a monster.
At any rate, we must monitor the Nightmare closely lest it turn its fangs on us next.
This is a powerful monster that was able to easily dispose of thieves whom we had been utterly incapable of dealing with.
It even destroyed a fortress in Ohts.
I doubt there is anything we humans could do to stop it.
In that case, the best I can think to do is pray to the Goddess that it will not ravage our lands.
“Master, are you perhaps worrying a tad too much?”
“What? Merazophis, surely you, too, do not believe that creature is the Divine Beast that will save our land?”
I suppose the monster did heal Merazophis’s injuries when he was on the verge of death.
No doubt he is hesitant to speak poorly of a creature that saved his life.
He has always been an almost excessively diligent man.
Honest if slightly awkward, he repays any favor to the best of his ability.
“I am grateful to it for saving you, too, you know,” I admit.
I am as relieved that it saved Merazophis as I am that it protected my wife and daughter.
“However, that is only my personal opinion. As a statesman, I must respond to emergency situations such as a dangerous monster lurking near town with the worst-case scenario in mind.”
Perhaps the Nightmare really is the Divine Beast.
Perhaps it really will save our land.
But it is equally possible that it will be the ruin of our town.
We have no way of knowing just yet.
As a leader, I must proceed by assuming the worst.
I cannot put my people at risk by acting in accordance with idealistic wishes.
“Merazophis, what do you think of the Nightmare? Please tell me your honest impressions.”
I inquire, moved by a sudden curiosity.
“I…am not sure, myself.”
Merazophis’s response is uncharacteristically hesitant.
Generally, he has a black-and-white personality and prefers to respond to things with a simple yes or no.
It’s highly unusual for him to give such an unclear answer.
“It is difficult to pin down. Perhaps one might say it was wicked yet honorable… No, perhaps not. I cannot put it into words, I am afraid.”
Wicked yet honorable?
That certainly is difficult to understand.
Honorable, though…?
Wickedness would be easy enough to understand, but does that Nightmare have a sense of honor, too?
“Excuse me! Pardon my intrusion, but I have urgent news! The Nightmare has saved a deathly ill patient!”
When my subordinate bursts in with this report, I feel like I can grasp the honor Merazophis mentioned.
What in the world is that spider?!
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