"Well...... now that I'm trapped, let's get out of here and get in touch with the raiders and get some information about the dungeon. Is there anything I can do for the time being?"
"I had a feeling about it, but it's too much to summarize." It's good to conclude, but if you're going to share it, please break it down one by one and explain it. "
I decided to give up and talk properly because my communication time-saving technique had already been broken by Iris.
Let's start by confirming the status quo: "For now, we are being raided by mysterious enemies and trapped in an underground library. We all understand that the entrances and exits are hardened and we cannot expect any help from the ground."
With this in mind, the question is “Who is the assailant?”, “Can I help you?”, and the question is, “How to escape?”, and “After you escape?”
"After that, I asked why Thor was in contact with the assailant, but that's fine after he escaped." It's about the identity of the enemy you're thinking about, isn't it? "
"Yeah. Well, that's right." I'll tell you where to start. "
"Sakurai-sama. If that's the case, can I ask you something?" This anomaly is about "Can I get help?"
What I was asking was Cordelia, who was still lying on the table with my coat as a pillow.
Normally, I wouldn't come to the aid of an abnormal situation where I would be attacked, but I've never seen anything like being attacked by the guards I trusted in a large library in Elf territory.
Although he is better than anyone else in this room at non-violent struggles such as talks, he does not seem to have much certainty as to whether he will be involved in the battle itself or whether he will be helped.
"... you're not coming to help me, are you?"
"Why, Ethel?"
"The [Phaseolus Crystal Ball] was handed out so that the four people here could combine, so no help could be transmitted to the ground." If you've been raiding so hard, the ground section of the Great Library will be hardened. I don't know how many people are involved in this raid, but I can't help you. "
It's not like you won't notice the absence of the Holy Lady forever, but you won't find her today or tomorrow.
While adding a supplement to Ethel's words, I also tell her that I see little possibility of rescue.
In addition to the fact that it is not strange to spend a whole day doing research in the back of the Great Library in a forbidden compartment, the opponent has personnel connected to the "traditionalist" Terrence who has the topic "Let's take care of the bloodline connected to the first Saintess".
[Traditional] people can't imitate things that hurt Cordelia and Ethel... It's easy to think that things will be delayed by such preconceptions, and even if some anomaly is found to be happening, the big library must be prepared to break through Terence's gesture if it is to be consolidated.
"I realized that I would not come back from my research in the Great Library, and after questioning Terrence and the others, I gathered the people to break through and capture them. It's not something you can do today or tomorrow, is it?"
"... you'll need three or four days at the earliest."
"Hmm. It's a little subtle for us to wait for days for relief that we don't know if we're going to get hurt yet, and we're not going to eat or drink. When I finally got cornered and had to act, my health was falling."
"I don't know what would happen if I let my injured mother go to the castle in the first place, so I think we should aim to escape if no help comes."
"That's why it may come in the long run, but from the current situation, it seems that it is better to act as if there is no help."
I don't know if I can say it for one person, but at least Cordelia nodded, "I see."
When it was over, Ethel asked in a voice of anger.
Naturally, it was about the "assailant" who hurt my mother.
"That Terence was attacked by an escort prepared by my grandfather, so it's not a simple story that he's a good enemy... right?"
"Right. Take a look at this."
Huh? Huh!?
That's why I threw it at Ethel from the knight's wrist that I slashed down in the middle of the assault.
I thought I'd need it later to explain the enemies I could think of.
However, if they threw their wrists suddenly, everyone would be surprised. The moment Ethel received them, she raised her voice and removed them.
However, after observing the wrist with a face that looked like a bitter bite, the expression turned into something strange.
The gaze was poured into a sharp, ham-like cross-section that was created when the wrist was slashed off.
"What, this cross-section? No bones, no blood vessels."
"I felt uncomfortable when I hit it with my cane, but is this the cause?" Sakurai-san, what do you mean by this...? "
"-That's ridiculous."
Mom?
When I tried to explain the reason for the cross-section, Cordelia responded unexpectedly.
The Saintess stunnedly stretched out her hand in horror and touched the cross section of her wrist. Then, she squinted her wrinkles on her forehead and murmured in a trembling voice.
"This is... a doll"
Is it a doll?
"I don't even know the detailed reasoning, but when the people who have the skills of" doll use "make dolls that they manipulate using organisms as materials, the inside of them is like this stuffed with meat. It's like cotton in a stuffed animal."
"You know these people, Mom...?"
"It is one of the techniques inherited by the court jester living in the King's City. Originally, it was a technique using inorganic dolls, and he said that there were ethical and cost problems such as using biotics. Also, due to the relationship that makes the interior in a minced meat state, when the body balance and texture are damaged, the internal meat may leak out from various" holes "when it is moved, so it can no longer be used immediately."
"Ah, the court jesters." Then I'm satisfied with it. "
When I realized why Cordelia-san was a doll, I realized that the source of that knowledge was the court jester, and I was convinced.
The court clown is a person who "inherits the obsolete technology for some reason, and shows off the various arts that use it".
Ostensibly, people are driven out as entertainers, but behind the scenes, they are responsible for using their knowledge to provide help, advice, and sometimes warnings to important people involved in the management of the nation and the operation of large organizations.
It's a subtle matter whether it can be transmitted, but when the "latest technology crystals" that appear in movies become useless, such as "someone who suggests that you can replace it if you use the one in the museum" or "an old fighter rider who can't move a jet plane but can move a propeller plane" or "the cause of the problem should have been lost, and it's a former employee who notices it"... well, they can do that.
There were a number of skills that could only be acquired by interacting with them in the game era, and one of them was the "Doll Actor" skill.
They said in-game, "What happens when we misuse our technology? It is also within the scope of the work to convey it." So the saintly maiden of the religious organization, Cordelia, may have heard and gained knowledge in that way.
"If you know it, you can talk quickly." The knight who attacked us like this has been transformed into a doll. You can think of everyone else as the same. "
"Does that mean some fucking puppeteer is the killer?"
"Please wait, the doll player has to control all of his movements and move them carefully. Not to mention the difficulty of behaving more naturally when you become a living being, and the fact that the contents are in this state in the first place makes you speak out.”
But as a matter of fact, the knight accompanying our escort was puppeted and responded firmly.
"My eyes can see the [enthusiasm] that comes from that person's heart, but at least I couldn't see the [enthusiasm] from the two guards and the subsequent archers who attacked me. I thought it was strange, but if it was a puppet with no ego, I would be convinced."
"That's... but all the knights." If so, one of the puppeteers in that raid would have manipulated more than 10 moves. I can do that to one person. "
Well, if you don't have my knowledge, Iris's magic eye, and other special sources, you can understand what Cordelia says.
In the setup, people with the skill of "doll messenger" are called "doll users", and they are said to be thinking and deciding on their own movements when manipulating their own dolls.
And how to move it is not like manipulating with threads from the outside, but rather like possessing part of consciousness and manipulating it from the inside. If you use organisms as a material, making the contents into a minced meat state is because "if there are muscles, built-in, skeletons, etc., the surgeon must also assume those movements and decide on the operation, so the burden will increase".
Early on, if the contents are as they are, if the surgeon moves in a poor way, the bones will break due to the load, and if the movement of the whole body muscles is not individually determined, it will not support the internal organs, and it seems that all of these things will fall down the lower abdomen, and suddenly the manure will flow out, which will be terrible.
Moreover, once the contents are in the ground meat state, it becomes impossible to do human activities such as "talking". This is a natural story because there are no living parts left to speak up.
There are many hurdles, such as "behaving naturally without making people feel uncomfortable", "conversational ability problems (and their responses)", "if you are fighting, the surgeon must be familiar with the movement", etc., and it is not unusual to exceed them.
Therefore, even if you have to overcome considerable skill and technical problems by moving just one person, it is not something that one person can do by simultaneously operating it with 10 people.
That's why I can't imagine that all the knights are puppeted, let alone manipulated by a single magician.
That's right, it's not impossible for Cordelia to think about it, but... [Joseph Asanaga] is an excellent master of dolls who can do it.
"(And that chain that attacked Cordelia-san was obviously made or manipulated by magic. It was obviously a different opponent from the doll user, and when they said that they would use the tag to magically manipulate the chain, there was no other opponent besides [Asaga Caizi] anymore."
I have to do something about it and explain it to Cordelia-san and guide her through the conversation...
"Uh, uh... uhm..."
... something... it's getting a little tedious to explain to Cordelia...
Because I have the knowledge of the original, I can almost determine the opponent, but Cordelia-san doesn't know anything about Asahi's parents and children.
Since there is a difference in knowledge, it is necessary to explain one by one in this way, and in order to gain understanding and understanding, we must do everything in our power to use words.
It doesn't mean that some kind of experience value comes in after exhausting the words. I can't do that because it reduces the persuasiveness of explaining it while gesturing.
…………
"The one who can do it is turning against the enemy!!" That's it!! "
Sakurai-san, are you tired of explaining?
"Are you kidding me? Do you ever get tired of explaining in a situation like this?"
I can't help it because I don't have any more drops left to squeeze.
In general, if humans have the ability to send and receive brain knowledge and thought processes to each other and share them, whether in PDF format or not, it is bad that they can only do so through exchanges via words that do not provide experience. Add an organ to your brain that transmits and receives radio waves in the 5 GHz band.
"The opponent is a magician who uses incredible dolls and chains!" Maybe Terrence and his men have all been turned into dolls! For now, do your best to get out of here, and after you get out, go to someone you can trust! That's enough!! "
"Don't suddenly stare at me, Thor. It's embarrassing."
"Um, Sakurai-sama. I'm sorry if I said anything to you."
"You don't have to apologize, Mr. Cordelia." Sakurai-san's side has just reached its limit on its own. "
Currently, "it's better not to expect help", so we need to take action to get out of here.
"Marauder" is a puppeteer and his allies, and Terence and the others should be judged as enemies because they are dead and betrayed.
There are calculations on how to escape, and after escaping, Cordelia and the others go to someone they can trust, and I decide the purpose of Joseph, and then negotiate to extract the information.
It's him, I'm sure he's working with his daughter, Caizi, to get rid of him!
If I only knew why we were targeting Cordelia, I might be able to take it out on Joseph, make a deal with him, bring him back to Caizi, betray him on the spot, and get rid of Joseph!
I'd like to use Ms. Cordelia's body as a negotiation card if possible!
What did you just say?
If all goes well, we can get rid of the threat to target Cordelia, which Ethel would want, which could lead to ending this raid, and perhaps more importantly, to solving the dungeon blockade!
Then we'll all be in a win-win state of happiness! There's no need to get lost, as only one person is going to be unhappy!
I promise I'll do my best for everyone! So...!
"--This is why everyone, please shut up and let me use you!!"
The screams of my soul, which made everything smelly, echoed through the no-paper compartment.
Iris exhaled a sigh of discouragement, Ethel put a blue streak on her temple, and Cordelia gave a troubled expression to deal with it as if she had seen a rare beast.
And just saying it was refreshing gave me back my composure. I smiled tinyly at the reaction around me, especially at Ethel, who seemed to be one step ahead of me because of the "use my mother" declaration.
“I can only think of one way out of here, and if I do, I won't be able to do anything about it until I figure out why I got attacked, so why don't you just talk to me for a second!”
"I'll tell you in a slap."
All right, come on!?
I don't think it's going to be written as a slap and read at the base of my palm.
"Hmph! Next time, be careful what you say, Tall."
Actually, it didn't hurt so much, but by rolling the floor slightly exaggerated, Ethel saw that she had gotten a better palm than she thought, and she lowered the drink.
Iris is aware of this, but seems to be keeping her eyes peeled for her priority of keeping her company quiet.
"Say it.... haah, before I tell you what I'm trying to do, there are two things I'd like to confirm."
"What the hell?"
"Is the barrier here the type that is affixed to the entrance only?" Or does it feel like it's covering the whole room? "
"It is applied in a way that covers it from the outside, so it becomes the latter. It's a problem if you go in through the ceiling or the basement."
"I see. Next, I'd like to ask you about the strength of the barrier, but this barrier... can you do something about my master, the Sword Saint?"
I asked, remembering what Ethel said when she ran in.
She looked at the question with a strange look and said, "Is that a metaphor, a rumor?" Cordelia replies on behalf of Ethel as she turns to her mother.
"It's not very obvious..." About 20 years ago, the administrator of the time sent out a request to see if the barrier could be broken with a body called "Checking the Strength of the Barrier", as if it had begun to be called the Sword Saint. He tried to put on the foil that said, "Even if it's a sword sacred, it can't be broken." But the result was that it was slashed and torn by a one-handed sword. "
I slashed with my one-handed sword, is there any mistake?
"Huh? Yeah, yeah. How did you do that?"
Thanks to you, we were able to break through the first barrier to escape.
If it was jammed, I just had to seriously think of a head-on breakthrough, but I can't help but be grateful to my uncle who got caught up in the troubles of the past.
Thank you, Uncle, for breaking this barrier in the past.
"Alright, we're going to manage." Well then, I'll move out in an hour, so be ready. "
“What are we going to do about getting ready?”
Well, basically, I'll prepare everything and clear the escape route, so if you can just move Cordelia, there's nothing for Iris or Ethel to prepare.
But if there's one thing I want you to be prepared for, it's strong.
"Please be ready not to get angry until it's all over!"
When I told Nikoli with a smile, Iris exaggerated a sigh of giving up, saying that she had no choice.