414 - Tactical Roland Drop 4


    TL/Editor: raei


    Status: 5/Week Mon-fri


    Illustrations: Posted in discord.


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    We demolished a massive encampment teeming with thousands of monsters and obtained a dark purple crystal that seemed to be its core.


    On the surface, it looked like a chunk of amethyst, nearly black in its deep purple hue, the kind you might find as a decorative piece in a sauna. It was about the size of a palm and resembled premium currency from some mobile game.


    One thing was certain, though - this was no ordinary rock. Despite being bombarded by a high-rank mage''s lightning, it remained flawless and radiant. It had to be more extraordinary than a regular mana stone. Everyone seemed to share this thought, with soft "ooh"s and "aah"s escaping from between their huddled heads.


    "It seems kind of... ominous," Grace mused.


    "There''s probably not much more we can figure out just standing around like this, right?" Katie added.


    "True. We should put it in the inventory quickly, in case it can be absorbed by a safe zone," Irene suggested.


    But that was the extent of their observations. After all, a hero party was more of a guerrilla special forces unit meant to wield swords and smack down demon kings, not a team of genius scientists analyzing unfamiliar objects on sight.


    So, the dark purple crystal was quietly sealed away in Han Se-ah''s inventory, and we moved on. We agreed not to take it out until we left the tower, as Katie pointed out that it might corrupt a real safe zone into a monster encampment, which would be a real headache.


    After that, events unfolded as smoothly as a well-set line of dominoes.


    "Oh, so this is that suspicious thing from the monster encampment..."


    "My goodness! Thank you so much, heroes!"


    True to her title of ''Ambitious'', Charlotte Cavendish moved quickly to establish a research exchange agreement with Maelis Borange and took possession of the dark purple crystal.


    While combat mages might measure their skills by the amount of mana they could accumulate and the number of destructive spells they could wield, scholarly mages who spent their lives cooped up in labs building reputations through experiments valued research papers more than personal rank.


    With a mere 2★ and 3★ receiving secrets of the tower from the heroes, even the most distinguished elder mages began to quietly approach them and join their faction.


    It seemed Charlotte, noticing that Han Se-ah disliked being pestered by the Magic Tower geezers, had brought in Maelis and started controlling the elders to monopolize power and knowledge... Watching this made me appreciate anew how impressive those who use their brains for politicking can be.


    Anyway, Han Se-ah was happy not to suffer through three days and nights of relentless questioning from the Magic Tower geezers, the viewers were happy not to riot by writing novels in the chat, and Charlotte and Maelis had risen from grad student-level slaves to positions where they could enslave others.


    I wondered why so many mages were gathering, but research topics sprouted by the dozens, from the Magic Tower''s spatial movement to interpreting the goblins'' disciplined behavior as a mental disturbance spell.


    "So, what should we do now?" I asked.


    "Well... I have a favor to ask," Irene replied hesitantly.


    While the Magic Tower was busy grinding its disciples and finally moving its heavy ass into action, our party needed to continue on our way.


    As we sipped hot tea brought by a maid in Zedeau''s mansion, Irene, who seemed oddly withdrawn, raised her hand halfway like a child about to give a presentation and opened her mouth.


    Usually, Irene didn''t assert her opinions much, always kindly and reliably supporting us from behind. So when she gathered everyone to make a request, all eyes instantly filled with curiosity.


    Staying on the 55th floor for continuous grinding might feel a bit off and slightly uncomfortable, but refusing would turn the relaxed eight hundred thousand viewers into a horde of one and a half million rioters.


    "Then how do we handle the merchant group..." Han Se-ah began.


    "Let''s send word to the royal family through Sebastian, and also talk to Charlotte and Maelis. We''ll need to give them mana stones in exchange for just taking food," I suggested.


    "Ah, that''s true. Everyone... thank you so much for going along with this."


    "It''s not a burden. Those who''ve received the sword shouldn''t back down at times like this. Especially not for their own comfort."


    As soon as Han Se-ah gave her permission, Katie, who must have received some kind of imperial education before running away, quickly tied together the Magic Tower, merchant groups, and the royal family.


    "When we make the contract, please include my arrows too."


    "We''ll need whetstones, oil, and cloth for weapon maintenance as well. Though not as much as the arrows."


    While Han Se-ah, who had agreed without much thought, wore a blank expression, and Irene''s large doe-like eyes welled up with gratitude, Katie rapidly advanced the conversation.


    She wasn''t as shrewd or quick-witted as the two mages, Charlotte and Maelis. But thanks to her high-born background as the Northern Duke''s daughter and what she''d learned there, Katie was the one among us who knew best how to wield her status as a member of the hero party.


    Unlike the country girl Grace and the nun Irene, Katie held her head high and started ordering people around with an attitude that screamed, "I told you to do it, so you''re not going to? Are you crazy?"


    It might seem arrogant, but in a medieval fantasy setting, there was no threat more effective than this. Whether they were rich merchants or not, who could slack off in front of the cherished daughter of the Northern Duke, a member of the Goddess-chosen hero party, and sponsored by the royal princess?


    "Oh my, of course! That''s absolutely! Possible!" the merchant agreed hastily.


    "Then, provisions for five people every two weeks, along with some consumables."


    "At cost price! No margin! Consumables are on the house!"


    The large merchant group contracted with the royal family efficiently assigned some personnel exclusively to the heroes and got to work diligently.


    The alternative was to act arrogantly because they''d made some money, get dragged away by inquisitors, tortured in a basement, have their group dissolved and handed over to rivals, and then end up on the gallows with a sign reading "Insulting the Royal Family and Blasphemy," their bodies mangled from torture.


    "Is everyone ready?" I asked.


    "Of course," came the unified response.


    -I shall progress the quest before this mana stone cools


    -I thought my child would coast through life, but now they''re out grinding. Dad is so moved


    -It''s a bit sad to see the girls and mama work hard, but no thoughts of grinding alone?


    -Ah, the great ^Born6★RolandOne-TrickInventoryMinimapWaterPurifierLighterFlashlightRoadPaverMechGifBombardier^ Han Se-ah is truly amazing


    -At that point, it''s not a one-trick pony anymore lololololololol


    Thanks to the gentle choice offered by the Northern Duke, the princess, and the saint, and the royal merchant moving more efficiently than anyone else when faced with a deadly dilemma, the framework for grinding on the 55th floor was quickly established.