Chapter 844: The Sand City Uprising 1
“Do you understand why dragons must not be involved, Smithson-san?”
“……E, Emm……well, since the dragons themselves have admonished me several times, I suppose I should at least……”
The power of dragons is simply too great. That’s the crux of it, plain and simple. An overwhelming offensive capability that could easily reduce an entire town to ruins in a single day. Defensive and regenerative abilities that repel any half-hearted attack. And mobility that rivals any creature on the land. The terror and despair they brought during the Fire Dragon War a century ago. To unleash that upon this town again would be utterly unreasonable. ……My understanding of this situation requires no confirmation. Even ordinary people, not dragon riders, surely grasp this much without needing to be told. So, I waited for words that would echo this sentiment. After a moment of thoughtful contemplation, Cosmos-san spoke.
“……Currently, the Tower Emblem has lost its original leader, and those who were considered potential successors are now at odds with each other, undermining each other’s legitimacy. This time, the major problem within the Tower Emblem’s internal conflict is that all five factions possess a certain degree of legitimacy and military strength”
“What do you mean?”
“First, the Tower cannot be divided. If it were divided into five parts, it would be easily defeated by the Tricorn’s 『Trident』. Therefore, one of these five factions must inevitably rise to the top of the Tower Emblem. In such a situation, the usual course of action would be to secure an external sponsor to back and install a leader. However, with the former leader notorious for his womanizing, and three of the five factions being illegitimate offspring, gaining decisive support is difficult. The major merchant guilds have no choice but to remain neutral. They can’t risk the possibility of violence from the remaining four factions against the Tower Emblem, known for its short temper and being one of the nation’s largest ogre groups”
“What about the military……I’m sure there was a fairly large Celesta military base here too?”
“The military probably can’t move. It’s funded by contributions from each merchant guild, so it must remain neutral towards domestic guilds. ……Unless a major guild suffered catastrophic damage, intervening in a single construction union’s internal conflict would set a dangerous precedent of violating civilian control”
“But if young ogres are rioting, they’re breaking the law, right?”
“Scolding just that one group won’t help. Addressing each isolated act of violence won’t curb the problem at all”
……Well, true. If it’s a large organization doing this, they could easily create scapegoats. Trying to tackle it at the granular level might be futile.
“And dragons need a just cause to act. At the very least, without one, Talc’s citizens won’t accept dragon violence being directed at 『People』. ……But in the current situation, that would mean either 『Punishment of specific citizens』 or 『Slaughter of the Tower Emblem』”
“Citizens……”
“Before a dragon, even the most ferocious ogre is just another townsperson. To Talc’s citizens, the dragon is ultimately an 『Outsider』. If its power crushes the lives of this town, then it becomes personal for citizens other than ogres too. It’s merely a matter of them not being the one targeted this time”
A pause.
“In other words, if you intervene in this conflict here, even if you defeat just one opponent, this town becomes a target of the dragon’s violence. And likely, in this stalemate, defeating one person solves nothing. Tragedy triggers more tragedy, and attempting to resolve everything by force will require a carnage worthy of being called slaughter”
“That can’t be……”
I wanted to say it wasn’t true, but looking around, Aurora and the two dragons themselves were silent. Emma and Leda, as parties involved, couldn’t help but deeply understand the influence of dragons. Aurora, both a ruler and a martial arts master, surely continued to consider a military solution. Yet none of them objected. Meaning, in Talc’s current situation, it was easy to predict that if you acted rashly, that’s exactly what would happen.
“The power of dragons is simply too absolute. The people of Talc would likely be unable to bear the fact that such power is wielded against 『Humans』 right in their midst. Even if we could quell the turmoil over the 『Tower Emblem』, the mere fact that a dragon slaughtered people in Talc……that alone would drive people away from this town, and it would eventually become a ruin”
“……Even if it was only the bad guys……”
“Among people living together, hardly anyone can confidently say they’ve never done anything wrong or caused resentment. If anyone could, it would only be a child who’s been utterly spoiled. ……Ordinary folk cannot imagine what an Overlord deems evil. Faced with the fact that lives are taken so easily, by unresistable power, according to standards they don’t understand……only a madman could remain innocent and continue living amidst such slaughter”
And beyond that, Cosmos-san murmurs.
“If a single person holds that 『Standard』, then this place can no longer be a fair marketplace in a commercial nation. To avoid being hated or targeted for death by that someone, you must flatter them, offer tribute, and survive. When violence stands at the pinnacle of all values, that’s the kind of world it becomes. At least, those who have lived in this town would never choose to live in such a place”
“……Cosmos-san”
“You are not 『Yet』 that kind of person. ……For this town, for this world, whether you become that kind of person or not……right now is the critical moment. ……Please, I beg you……could you just stay here, drowning in drink and women? That alone will keep you 『On this side』. Emma-san and Leda-san will complete their first journey without major incident, and none of the Onyx members will be made unhappy. So please”
“…………”
Even now, having sworn herself a female slave, Cosmos-san remained a person of this town, a member of this society. And……I think she continued to feel and contemplate the precariousness of my existence, maintaining that perspective she gained looking up from this place. Like Tetes, she probably even considered using herself as a sacrifice. ……She lived 400 years, a remarkable woman who navigated this society from her position as a prostitute. Precisely because I sincerely regard that as a great achievement, I cannot treat lightly her decision to protect the world she has staked her half-life on. Emma and the others likely agreed to her secrecy because they believed that aligning with her intent would undoubtedly safeguard my safety. Though they once defended my heroic actions, this visit—where they deliberately relinquished combat strength—is a deliberate approach to a dubious danger. I certainly don’t want to endorse that.
But still, something bothers me.
Three days and nights, effectively imprisoning me with booze and women……what exactly does she plan to do in that time? Frankly, she could just send us back immediately. There’s no reason to deliberately keep us here.
What does she intend to accomplish in three days? Arrange for the prostitutes to escape elsewhere? No, if that were the case, she wouldn’t be keeping them here so deliberately. The logical move would be to arrange for them to leave town immediately. Keeping me occupied would only delay that. Precisely because it’s a difficult conflict, three days isn’t enough to resolve it. That wouldn’t change no matter what Cosmos-san did. Even if I was fooled into smiling and playing along, what exactly did she plan to do during that time? And if it had succeeded, what then?
“……Cosmos-san, I won’t intervene using the dragons. I promise”
“Then……”
“So don’t hide what you’re trying to do. ……This unease won’t go away. What are you planning to do while you keep me here for three days? ……Based on the info so far, I don’t have much reason to act. There’s nothing threatening enough to warrant this. You’re hiding something that would make me act recklessly”
“……!!”
Cosmos’s expression visibly stiffened. Beside her, Cathy-sama let out a small sigh.
“……Just seeing the city from afar and noticing that…keeping it hidden without saying anything, Cosmos……noticing that too, big brother…what is this?”
“…………”
Apparently, the reason was obvious to them. ……I was starting to see it. But now that we’d come this far, we shouldn’t force things based on vague assumptions. Cosmos and I just……stared at each other for about a minute, I think. Eventually, she looked down as if giving up, and hesitantly asked the girl with the ledger who was still nearby.
“……What about Isabel? Why isn’t she here?”
“……Y, Yes……well, about three days ago, I heard that someone named Lucky got caught up in the Tower’s turf war and died……”
“……I knew it”
“Who is that? Why did Isabel-san……”
At my question, Cosmos looked up.
“He was one of the illegitimate children born here long ago……about ten years ago, he went independent, got work in the Tower’s territory, and moved his residence there. I wasn’t certain he’d end up like this, but I knew if someone from our place or his comrades got killed in this conflict, Isabel wouldn’t stay silent……”
“……No way”
I recalled the story about Isabel, the assistant manager here, who had once come to Cosmos Main Store as a bodyguard…….
“She probably intends to seek revenge. ……If we could stop her or cover it up, there’d be no reason for you to push yourself. That’s why I planned to do it”