Chapter 148: Rumors

"As for basic troop strength, I don't recommend borrowing any more."

The witch Dimia said.

"If Coral Bay truly needs people, I can stand in for the combat power of a sixth-tier witch — that should be sincere enough."

The old gentleman Humbert also said:

"I have twenty strong, able-bodied retired militia in my estate; they may go along with Lady Dimia."

"I can go too."

Rod stated.

Not so much for Coral Bay's sake — mainly he wanted to see the Sirens and the Ghost Pirates.

He'd heard that the females of both races were mostly at the absolute-beauty level.

"No."

Dimia shook her head. "Mr. Rod, the situation is chaotic right now; Shi Ying Town needs you holding the fort. Unless absolutely necessary — of course, we have no intention of keeping you tied down here."

"Yes, Mr. Rod."

"Mr. Rod has already become the guardian deity of Shi Ying Town."

"Not bad, not bad."

Every committee member agreed.

Their gazes toward Rod were full of hope and warmth.

"Pfft-zzz— pfft-zzz—"

"Mm!"

Amid all those encouraging, hopeful words, no one noticed the strange sound coming from beneath him again.

Tally's cheeks were stuffed so full she could barely fit any more food.

A slick trail leaked down from the corner of her mouth.

She gulped it down in one go.

Then she opened her mouth wide in an "ahh," signaling Rod to check.

"."

Apart from that topic, the committee had other matters as well.

For instance, the volcanic eruption in the Twilight Mountains.

Some cities could indeed prop up an extra-large magical barrier, but that was a privilege reserved for the central districts.

The vast majority of farmland could not be covered.

Shi Ying Town had risen on mining; its farmland was not well-developed, and a portion of it even relied heavily on imports from surrounding towns.

Once this volcanic ash spread down, next year every household won't have enough to eat themselves, let alone talk about exports.

Mentioning this matter made everyone fall gloomy again.

For the moment, no one could think of a countermeasure.

Another topic was the land-dwelling Naga moving into the Desert of Death.

On this matter the committee members mainly sought Rod's opinion, since he was the Warden of Windwall Forest.

For example, whether a barrier wall should be built, whether a new magical contract should be established, the policy toward the land-dwelling Naga, the stance on future trade, and so on — in short, they gave Rod plenty of face, afraid he might be displeased.

That was only natural.

Nowadays within the borders of Etheron, apart from the royal capital, virtually every person above seventh tier had been dispatched to the front lines.

Rod, invincible below seventh tier, was absolutely qualified to be the guardian of Shi Ying Town.

Yet the result was the kingdom, without a word, sending over an unruly new neighbor.

They weren't happy about it, but the kingdom's orders couldn't be defied — they could only properly placate Rod personally.

The committee meeting ran all the way until afternoon before ending.

It wasn't that all the topics had been resolved.

Rather, it was because the higher-ups from Coral Bay would be arriving at dusk today.

The committee members busied themselves with reception arrangements.

Rod also wanted to have a look, so he simply wandered around town to kill time.

Tally had eaten herself about nine-tenths full under the conference table, and was now hiding in her master's shadow, fast asleep.

The stone-paved road of the central avenue gleamed faintly in the sunlight.

From the carved wooden windows of the shops on either side wafted the aroma of baking bread and the distinctive iron scent of forged ore.

Rod stopped at a street stall selling handcrafted ore carvings.

While browsing, he happened to see the girls walking out of the bakery, chatting and laughing.

They carried bread baskets covered with checkered floral cloth.

It was afternoon-tea time at the mines now, so they were presumably heading there to bring things to their families.

They spotted Rod.

They froze for a moment, then gradually rose in shy, giggling chatter.

Rod was used to it.

He bought a white crystal stone carved with a unicorn from the stall.

It was the sort of thing the elf Lady Kali would like.

He'd been asking her for too many favors lately — he'd just pick up a small gift on the way.

Soon enough.

Rod grew tired of window-shopping.

After catching the banshee Chris at the casino, he headed straight to the Violet Tavern and passed the time drinking Giant Brew.

"Rod!"

He hadn't expected the goblin merchant Pete to be here as well.

He controlled his magic puppet over to Rod's table.

"Long time no see. I still haven't thanked you for looking after my cousin's business last time."

Pete raised the Giant Brew in his hand.

He wore a grin on his face, but inside he was a little envious.

According to his own cousin, this guy had never stopped 'driving stakes' from the very first day he set out for Emerald City, and along the way had gotten involved with all sorts of women, including but not limited to a succubus, a half-dragon, a halfling, a banshee, and a land naga.

Damn it.

Why couldn't the people on this continent appreciate a goblin's looks?

I'm a top-tier handsome man in my clan, you know!

"Miss Gemma is the best guide I've ever seen."

Rod raised his glass as well.

The goblin before him was a traveling merchant, faster with intelligence and news than any newspaper.

So he asked: "Over at Coral Bay, any new news?"

Pete glanced at the banshee floating beside Rod with a sulky look on her face, and couldn't help envying him again.

He used his magic puppet to pick up a peanut and tossed it into his mouth.

"Those bastards from the Ruins Brotherhood have set up a blockade over there. No merchant is allowed to approach. I really don't know what they're up to — maybe they're afraid of bards sneaking in."

"I see."

Rod was a little disappointed.

"But they've underestimated the bards. They're a crazy bunch chasing after big events, more annoying than flies. Coincidentally, I did business with a bard from the Chivalric Alliance who had just come out of Coral Bay this morning."

But then the other shifted the topic.

"That's our Pete for you!"

"Of course!"

The two clinked glasses lightly.

"It's the Abyss, Rod. That rebel mage is a tiefling, a claw of some Archdevil in the Abyss. He exploited the Ghost Pirates' innate desire to conquer all the seas, promising to let those fellows into the Blood Sea of the Abyss."

Pete didn't beat around the bush and went straight to the point.

"I heard that tiefling mage is looking for descendants of the Agar family."

"Humans once fought a war against demons. The Agar family was the main force at the time. They nearly slaughtered all the demons in the west, and because of that they were struck with a short-life curse from Abyss magic."

"A short-life curse?"

"Yes, but the Agar people were truly once-in-a-generation geniuses. Not only did they not remove it, they actively harnessed the power within the curse. By now, the curse exists in name only — not only does it no longer shorten their lifespan, it's even more powerful than some blessings. Maybe that's exactly why they want to blood-sacrifice them? I don't understand magic either."

Rod took a sip of the bitter and astringent Giant Brew.

An Archdevil, huh.

Not long ago, when clearing a demon nest, he had heard Farshad mention an Archdevil worshipped by dark elves.

And now here comes another one.

If even the fellows from the Abyss are making an appearance, it's no longer just instability in human society — it's instability across the entire continent.

Pete looked around, saw no one paying attention.

He leaned in and whispered:

"Be careful, Rod, you must be careful!

Perhaps you've also noticed the various strange phenomena on the continent — frequent cosmic creature disasters, super-large volcanic eruptions, all manner of evil cults sprouting up, and the Abyss inserting itself into the world.

Three months ago, I was drinking with a half-deer elder in Silver Hoof Deer Valley. After getting drunk, he told me that some strange spark was born in a certain dimension — perhaps... someone could ascend to godhood because of it."

(End of this chapter)