Otherworld TRPG Game Master - Chapter 349



349 – The Succession War: The Redburn Territory Explosion Arc – 1

The innkeeper Perkins was a migrant who settled in the Redburn territory five years ago.

His Grace, the Duke of Redburn, was generously tolerant of immigration, even accepting slash-and-burn farmers and beggars into the territory after a “simple inspection.”

As a result, criminals wanted in other territories often infiltrated and disguised themselves, but most of the territory’s inhabitants were beneficiaries of the Duke’s tolerance, so it wasn’t easy to voice opposition.

Consequently, Redburn territory was crowded and had a fairly high population density.

“Carriage coming through, carriage!”

“Get that damn stall out of the way! Can’t even get through!”

As the morning hours arrived, with citizens bustling to get to their jobs, a clamorous commotion arose that would drown out even the crowing of roosters.

A throng. Never had the phrase “a sea of people” seemed more apt.

Perkins, thankful he ran his own business, sipped on a low-proof beer at his first-floor counter, observing the hectic activity through the window.

The workers who streamed by all wore faces etched with fatigue. Pick anyone out of the crowd and nine times out of ten, they’d have dark circles under their eyes. Was it the encroaching winter?

Well, to get through the winter, you had to work hard, that was true enough. For an innkeeper, the cold weather was a boon, but for most laborers, winter was harsh. If they didn’t hustle to earn, they wouldn’t escape hunger and cold.

*Ting-a-ling.*

The bell hanging over the door jingled.

Lost in idle observation, Perkins watched the inn door swing open and a boy in a flat cap walked in. It was Matthew, who took on all the odd jobs at the inn.

A young breadwinner with seven family members. His face was practically grey, and the dark circles had sunk so low, his cheeks seemed hollowed.

“Hey Matthew, night work is a sure way to ruin your health. You been back at the smithy, then?”

“No, Mr. Perkins. I fell asleep early yesterday… *Yawns*. I’m just strangely tired these days. You don’t look so good yourself, though.”

“Well, my eyelids do feel a bit heavy. That’s why I was having a little pick-me-up to warm the blood. You want a sip?”

“If I drink, I’ll just get sleepy…”

Tiredness.

Thinking of it, the guests staying at the inn had been complaining more and more lately. Saying they were still tired even after waking up, suggesting the beds weren’t up to scratch.

Perkins, proud that his bedding was of a better quality than nearby inns, was stung by those words. He had filled them to the brim with plucked goose feathers.

He had put it down to the winter, but, deep down, he was starting to feel suspicious. The previous and year before winters, people hadn’t been this tired.

Sipping his beer, puzzling over it, he could only come up with some old wives’ tale as an explanation aside from the season. Was some kind of nightmare spirit wandering the territory? But the season and nightmare spirits were both far from the truth.

Perkins, who knew nothing of magic, had a near zero chance of uncovering the cause. Even if he knew, he wouldn’t have known how to handle it anyway.

But here.

*Ting.*

“Welcome, are there two of you? We still have plenty of rooms. One of the best, three decent ones, and a stable. That’s what’s left.”

“Just one of the best rooms, please. And I have a question… are *you* feeling any fatigue, sir? If so, when did you start feeling it?”

“W-we are, well… a fact-finding team dispatched from the holy city. We’re investigating the strange occurrences happening in the Redburn territory.”

“A fact-finding team?”

Two women in unremarkable priest’s robes. The kind of bland faces you’d pass without remembering their features.

In truth, they were Yuna and Selvier, their noticeable appearances hidden by illusion magic.

A carefully selected force of violence, poised to solve the mystery and purify the territory, had finally arrived in Redburn.

–

Rewinding time a bit.

Entering the Redburn territory was simple. Surprisingly, they weren’t picky about who they let in. They seemed to accept anyone, even characters who looked dangerous at first glance.

“『Skin Change』.”

“…that incantation is quite modern, isn’t it?”

“It’s just what I’m used to now…”

And so, by blandly changing their appearances, the three of them easily got through.

Instead, the inspection process was incredibly tedious. Troublesome and peculiar in two specific ways.

Q. When eating with a fork, how many portions do you cut your potatoes into?

One was that the questionnaire, which had to be completed on your first visit, asked about mundane details, almost to an obsessive degree.

“Extend your wrist. You must get this magical tattoo to enter Redburn territory.”

The other was that everyone entering the territory, without exception, had to have a magical tattoo etched onto their body.

The guard explained that the tattoo served as an identification, but considering Duke Redburn’s reputation, it was clear there was something sinister afoot.

Identity checks and tattoo procedures took place in an open space. Numerous troops stood by, so refusing or causing a disturbance here would surely lead to all-out war.

But submitting to the procedure willingly felt unsettling.

Quick glances and hand signals flickered between the heroines. Yuna, how long will it take to mentally subdue the guard and make him believe he’s given us the tattoos? 5 seconds if we move, 3 if we’re still. I’ll draw attention.

“…『Mirage』.”

Selvier muttered the incantation discreetly.

It was a magical application of illusion magic, a fire spell taught to her by a mad sorcerer. Thanks to honing her manipulation skills on the special stage of the Great Labyrinth, she was now able to use even this kind of delicate magic.

*Swish.*

The space shimmered, blurring the gazes around them. Immediately, Yuri Lanster moved. She coiled around the guard like a snake, throttling his neck to silence him.

Simultaneously, Yuna whispered, emitting a violet wave from her fingertips.

“We received the tattoo. We received the tattoo.”

“Y-you… you… received… the tattoo…”

That was 3 seconds. When Selvier released 『Mirage』, only a dazed-looking guard remained before them. He gestured for the three women to pass.

“Pass…”

“Thank you.”

And thus, the heroines were able to infiltrate Redburn territory.

Their first impression of the territory was that the facilities were as bustling as the capital, followed by an undercurrent of grimness.

Even though the buildings were clean, the roads well-maintained, and even street filth was rare to see, the people walking around all had a pallid complexion. Every single one of them.

Yuna tilted her head, puzzled.

“Are you under a lot of stress from Redburn’s tyranny?”

“If anything, your expression doesn’t look that dark? I even hear you laughing occasionally.”

“Yes. It seems closer to fatigue than stress. I can also observe intermittent muscle tremors.”

Something’s there.

And what this phenomenon meant was easily deduced. A large-scale sacrifice.

The reason the heroines were deployed into the territory ruled by Duke Redburn was due to concerns that he would slaughter the residents en masse and cast dark magic. And it seemed like those fears were correct.

“…I think a magic circle is laid out across the entire territory. I’d need to analyze it in a bit more detail to know exactly. It’ll take about a day.”

“Based on the symptoms, it seems like a type that absorbs life force. It’s roughly like this when you’re drained of vital energy by an incubus.”

“Then, what do we do?”

Yuri Lanster brought a hand to her mouth and thought for a moment, then spoke while licking her lower lip with her tongue.

“Let’s split up. I’ll investigate the key figures within the territory, and you two mages can analyze this ‘life force absorption magic circle’. I think that would be best.”

“Yuri, will you be alright on your own…?”

“I don’t intend to overdo it. I’ll let you know immediately if I’m in danger.”

“Um, Yuri unnie. Is there a reason why we have to split up and act separately?”

To Selvier’s question, Yuri abruptly said,

“Miss, I am merely ashamed that I was unable to secure accommodations worthy of your dignity beforehand. Please forgive this rudeness in making you stay in a shabby inn that commoners use.”

“Huh, huh?! Suddenly…?”

“Selvier, you’re not good at dealing with this kind of thing. Nor is the Master of the Magic Tower. That’s why I think it’s better if we go separately.”

“……Indeed.”

Yuri Lanster possessed the raw agility of a crazy mage and the quickness to pull off dramatic roleplaying at the drop of a hat. As well as a brazen shamelessness that wasn’t bothered by much.

If she messed up the plan with her awful acting while infiltrating a key facility, things would blow up.

Selvier nodded, understanding. Yuna went up on tiptoes and whispered while adjusting Yuri’s tie.

“D-don’t get hurt. If you do, I’ll be incredibly angry.”

“Thank you. Yuna, you stay safe with Selvier, okay? I’ll join you tomorrow.”

“Mm.”

Yuri Lanster ruffled Yuna’s hair before stepping into the crowd. Blink. When she opened her eyes, Yuri’s figure had vanished as if she were never there.

Her past as a former annihilation squad, former Defense Bureau agent, well, those habits don’t just disappear.

Okay. Then, I should look into the magic circle laid out over the Redburn estate. Yuna clenched her fist, cheering herself on. Let’s go, Yuna.

“…Then, um. Should we find a room? We can’t just sleep on the street.”

“Ah, mm!”

“Um, if you have a particular inn you’d like, Master Mage…”

“Ah, no. I sleep fine in stables and prisons, too…”

Selvier and Yuna, the two mages, awkwardly made their way to find lodgings.

–

Back to the present.

Selvier leaned the backpack he’d brought against the corner of the room, muttering in a tone that was somewhere between conversation and speaking to himself. He needed to minimize the mental damage he’d get if he was ignored.

“The room… It’s not bad.”

“Yeah, not bad. The bed’s big enough for Yuri to sleep here too.”

“I hope…the food is good too.”

“Yeah… Yeah, me too.”

It struck me anew, just how awkward it was.

Thinking about it, Yuna and Selvier weren’t even that close, not really. They’d never had any deep, serious talks.

When Yuri was around, she acted as a kind of bridge, making it less awkward, but now, it felt like being stuck alone with a friend’s friend.

And if you really think about it, they were rivals in love.

Yuna was a bundle of nerves, worrying how to start a conversation, and Selvier was wrestling with her own inner turmoil. A subtle awkwardness flowed like an undertow….

What topic to choose? Magic? Their schools were different. Their status, too. And their positions. You couldn’t just awkwardly say, ‘Lovely weather today,’ either.

While the two were withering like dried squid from discomfort, Yuna had an idea.

“….Hey, um, what do you think he should wear?”

“Huh?”

“I mean, him. He’s always wearing the purple mage tower robe…. I was thinking, what if we got him to try something else?”

“That’s definitely true. He only wears black, just like him. Something brighter would be nice. How about a knit? It’s winter, after all–“

Right. They had a common ground. Being fans of a crazy mage.

The two of them started modifying the inn room, chatting about him. It was part of preparing the basic setup to observe and analyze a major magic circle.

“….Is this a triangle?”

“No, I think a square would be better there.”

It was another of those “I haven’t done this in a while” moments, this kind of teamwork. Normally, the crazy mage just slapped things together. It was a small kind of fun. There’s dopamine to be found in simple work too.

After about half a day of work, the setup was finished. The inn room was packed with magic circles, from the walls to the floor and ceiling.

“Okay. Shall we activate it….?”

“Yes. I’ll supply power to the auxiliary magic circle. Yu, Yuna.”

“U, uh-huh. Selvier.”

* * *

Whirrrrr──.

Magic flows along the lines of the magic circle, emitting light. Red and purple overlap and blend, sensing and analyzing the flow of mana in the area.

The result:

“…The magic circle covers the entire Redburn territory. The targets are all citizens. It has the function of absorbing souls, and this speed can be increased up to 100 times depending on the operation. At maximum speed, everyone will be dead within a day.”

“The magic circle is formed and maintained by the tattoos engraved on the citizens, the facilities within the territory, and hidden magic circles… Meaning, it’s impossible to remove without eliminating all the citizens or tearing down the entire territory.”

“What do we do…?”

It was a prelude to large-scale human sacrifice, so vast and solid that it was impossible to know where to even begin.