For Sale. Fallen Lady. Never Used.

Chapter 329: Yggdrasil (3)

“If you’re not too tired, would you like to have some tea and hear about the war situation? By the way, I am tired.”

“???”

“I am tired…”

“…”

Her eyes were so hollow, it seemed like she might hang herself with the paperwork if not rescued from this paper hell.

I knew through H&A that she was a character suffering from chronic fatigue, but seeing it in person was no laughing matter.

Overwhelmed by her aura, which was hard to tell whether it was pathetic or impressive, I nodded dazedly.

“Uh, sure. But there aren’t enough seats for everyone to sit here…”

Saying so, Milone tapped the floor with her toe, and I felt pure water magic.

Is this the same technique we saw on Nidhogg?

Whoosh.

As if confirming my suspicion, chairs soon rose from the floor.

Normally, they wouldn’t make seats for slaves, just having them stand on the side, but perhaps she already knew I cherished my slaves.

Nodding at the chairs made just for our number, I said,

“…This should be enough.”

“I’ll also prepare some tea and refreshments for you to enjoy.”

At those words, Eda, who had been standing a bit further away, began to take out tea sets and leaves from a corner of the office.

It seemed it wasn’t his first time doing this; he moved smoothly without needing further instructions.

Sitting down with a slight smile to express gratitude, my companions took their places around me one by one.

Finally, Milone sat across from me and let out a deep sigh.

“Huu… Ah, I apologize. That was rude in front of a guest. I just relaxed when I couldn’t see the paperwork anymore…”

“You look tired; it’s understandable. I know it wasn’t intentional, so it’s fine.”

“Thank you for your understanding. I haven’t been able to sleep properly due to some unexpected issues recently, so I guess I’m quite fatigued.”

“How long have you been awake?”

“Hmm. Exactly 235 hours, 14 minutes, and 32 seconds.”

“…”

The precision with which she counted time was astonishing, but even more shocking was that she had been awake for nearly ten days.

She could die from this…

No matter how much blessing she received from the Circulating Life as Chancellor, sleep was essential.

Faye was also the type to cut down on sleep when she was absorbed in work, but not to this extent. It was quite fortunate.

Anyway, as everyone except Milone was momentarily speechless, Eda, who had finished preparing, placed teacups and snacks on the table.

The rising steam and spreading fragrance naturally elicited admiration. Noticing our reaction, Eda added a brief explanation.

“This is tea made from moss that grows on the roots of the World Tree. It slightly increases mana but mainly helps with stamina recovery and mental stability.”

He said it as if it were nothing, but the energy I felt was quite substantial.

Having experienced the effects of Elven liquor on the way here, I could be certain.

That tea must be at least a low-grade elixir.

Right. Even modern people drink coffee when pulling all-nighters, so there’s no way Milone would have managed without some doping.

This level of enhancement was only natural.

As I nodded to myself, Milone, seeing my admiration, spoke with a hint of pride.

“I’m glad you like it. Then, let me share my special blending method.”

“Blending… method?”

“Yes. If you mix it with a stamina potion in a one-to-one ratio, you can see immediate effects.”

Saying this, she poured a high-grade potion from somewhere into the tea.

To someone like Faye, with an expert’s eye, this might have looked horrific; she started trembling, though her timid nature kept her from saying anything.

“Now I feel like I can live…”

It seemed like she threw proper dosage and usage out the window, but the effect was undoubtedly clear.

Milone’s complexion visibly improved, though the dark circles remained.

Chuckling, I also took a sip of the tea. An incredible feeling as the warm heat going down my throat turned into vitality.

As expected, it was at least a low-grade elixir. The aroma was even better.

After savoring the tea for a moment, I finally spoke.

“You mentioned there was an issue. At this timing, it must be the cultists, right?”

“Exactly. Recently, the frequency of small-scale skirmishes has increased throughout the Great Forest. Actually, up to this point, it was somewhat predictable due to the warnings from the Levantin Empire or the great deeds shown by Count Lindelheit…”

“But those cultists always defy expectations.”

Even I, with knowledge of future events from H&A, had been blindsided more than once. No matter how capable Milone was, it would be impossible to deal with everything perfectly.@@novelbin@@

Milone nodded, letting out another sigh.

“As expected, you catch on quickly. I’m glad I chose the right person to consult with.”

“You’re flattering me too much; it’s embarrassing. Anyway, what kind of problem has arisen? Has the communication suddenly cut off like they vanished? Or is an undead army swelling at an exponential rate? Maybe they’re nibbling away at the territory of the Circulating Life in the Great Forest, playing a game of capture the land. Greenskins won’t be able to exert their full strength in the Great Forest, so that’s not a concern, but surely there isn’t something in the sky bombing us? The High Lord’s forces are a bit tricky…”

I mumbled half to myself, listing the invasion scenarios I’d experienced, but there was no particular reaction on Milone’s face.

…It can’t be what I’m thinking, right? Please, let it not be.

However, betraying my fervent hope, the scenario I least wanted to consider came from Milone’s lips.

“At first, there were skirmishes similar to what you described. But the real problem now involves entirely different cultists.”

“No way…”

“Countless succubi. Tentacle-type monsters covering the ground. And controlling goblins, who are despised even by other greenskins…”

“…The Grotesque Proliferation.”

“Yes. Just a few days ago, the followers of the Grotesque Proliferation were attacking the Crasius Kingdom, but now they’re converging towards the Great Forest. They’re still in the east, disrupting nearby forces, but we don’t know when they’ll launch a full-scale assault.”

Of all things, it had to be the Grotesque Proliferation. I had some hope since they usually target the Crasius Kingdom first, but bad omens always come true.

As I let out deep sighs, Iona tilted her head, asking,

“What’s up? What’s so troubling about the Grotesque Proliferation that it’s bothering Yandel so much? Sure, they’re annoying, but in terms of combat strength, they’re slightly below other cults, aren’t they?”

“Ah, Professor Iona, you fought alone during the War of the Gods, right? Then you might not know. Vampires have a particularly good matchup against the Grotesque Proliferation.”

The Grotesque Proliferation.

An Evil God who used lust as their power, originally aiming to make the broken Carla their Apostle.

While their direct combat power was relatively low, since few beings could be free from lust, they were extremely tricky…

Because their powers were based solely on lust, they couldn’t exhibit full strength against unique cases like vampires, where lust and hunger merged into a craving for blood.

…On the other hand, they showed a disastrous power against races with strong sexual desires.

For example, the beastfolk.

Beastfolk weren’t true beasts, so they didn’t have a mating season, but once exposed to the power of the Grotesque Proliferation, that would change.

They were a race with strong instincts due to their physical prowess, making resistance difficult.

What would happen when beastfolk, who primarily relied on physical abilities, fought with all sorts of debuffs hanging on them?

And if their minds were clouded by rising lust, blurring their natural ferocity and instinct?

They’d be pushed back without even properly fighting.

But does that mean it would be over if they were pushed back? Not at all. There was a reason why the name “Grotesque Proliferation” had such significance.

They would never kill their captives. Those who could be swayed would be baptized and turned into their followers. Those who couldn’t…

…would be put into breeding factories and used.

Men would be drained until they withered, or become playthings for those who enjoyed men.

Women would be repeatedly impregnated and give birth until the moment they died.

Naturally, this cycle was drastically shortened to about a week to a month by the power of the Grotesque Proliferation, and the growth of the children born this way was abnormally fast.

Children baptized by the Grotesque Proliferation from birth would naturally become excellent soldiers, joining the Evil God’s forces, guaranteed basic combat power since they were based on beastfolk.

The luckier cases might become portable sex toys for the units instead of being dragged to breeding factories…

But either way, the end result was the same.

Becoming a piece of meat with only lust left, mentally broken. That was the only fate for those captured by the Grotesque Proliferation.

Isn’t this truly a Hitomi-esque Evil God?

And now, this Grotesque Proliferation was targeting the elves.

Oh, for the love of Radiance…