I Became A Collaborative Character In The Game

Chapter 29 – The Count of Glasston’s Estate

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“Master Luther!”

On the outskirts of Anus Village, Lilia ran towards Luther, who was standing by a tree, but she had to stop just as she was about to jump into his arms.  The drone that had guided Lilia, Karen, and Max to this point kept blocking her path as if it wouldn’t allow it.

“M-Master Luther?”

Lilia made a disappointed face as she searched for a way to get past the drone, but eventually stopped in her tracks. Luther couldn’t do anything about it.

Although invisible to Lilia, Luther could see mini Integra standing on the drone with her arms crossed.

‘They’re both cute.’

Both Integra, humming triumphantly, and Lilia, with her downcast expression.

Luther chuckled softly and looked further to see Karen and Max.

“Master Luther.”

Karen, calling Luther in a calm voice, let out a long sigh of relief, as if finally at ease, and naturally approached him.

“We were very worried when you suddenly disappeared.”

“Sorry, I didn’t have time to explain.”

When Luther corrected his expression as if genuinely apologetic, Karen nodded once and asked in a small voice,

“The assassins who collapsed in the inn… you defeated them, right, Master Luther?”

“Yes.”

Luther calmly admitted it and explained in a composed voice what had happened the previous night.

The sleeping gas spread throughout the inn and the assassins targeting Aru in the next room.  The fact that Aru was actually a princess of the Malkuth Kingdom, and that she had returned to her kingdom under the escort of her retainers.

He had explained practically everything except for the details about Hecatoncheires.

“It’s… quite something.”

“Indeed.”

It was absurd enough that assassins had suddenly appeared, but the fact that their target was a princess of the Malkuth Kingdom…

It was far too big an incident to simply dismiss as ‘something that happened last night.’

So, Karen blinked with a slightly bewildered expression, while Lilia and Max looked at Luther with expressions of great admiration.

It seemed the latter two were quite excited by the ‘tale of rescuing a princess of a nation.’

“Anyway… can we consider it resolved for now?”

Luther nodded at Karen’s question and said,

“I think so. As I said, I defeated all the assassins, and Princess Aru returned under the protection of her retainers.”

“Mmm, I understand. Then let’s head to Venus City as planned.”

It was true that the incident involving Aru wasn’t something to be easily dismissed, but strictly speaking, it wasn’t an incident that was particularly relevant to the group anymore.

In the first place, Luther’s involvement in Aru’s affairs had been purely ‘coincidental.’

So, they would head to Venus City as planned.

Luther nodded at Karen’s concise summary.

“That’s what I was thinking. That’s why I called you with the drone.”

“You did well. The inn is in chaos because of last night’s incident. We were almost detained as witnesses.”

When Max looked at Karen and Lilia as if asking for confirmation, they nodded slightly wearily.  Because Luther had disappeared, they had been repeatedly questioned since last night for being his companions.

[Master, let’s depart then.]

[I believe it would be best to use a carriage to save time.]

“Good idea.”

In the original story, the ‘Tragedy of the Count of Glasston’s Family’ occurred about a week from now.

Since he had defeated Balboa, the perpetrator, it was more likely to occur later than scheduled, not earlier, but it would still be best to arrive as soon as possible and resolve the incident.

“Max, can you get a carriage?”

“Yes, the roads are well-maintained from here, so there are quite a few carriages operating. Especially if Venus City is the destination, there are many carriages coming and going, so we should be able to find one quickly.”

“Then let’s hurry.”

It was already past morning. The others would have already had breakfast, and Luther himself, thanks to the Dragon Heart he had absorbed the previous day, wasn’t hungry but rather felt full.

“Yes, this way.”

Responding immediately to Luther’s words, Max skillfully led the group to the carriage station as if he were a local.

And about two hours later…

Luther, riding in the carriage heading towards Venus City, suddenly looked at his companions.  Perhaps because of the commotion at dawn, Karen and Lilia were dozing off, leaning against the carriage wall, and Max was also lightly sleeping with his eyes closed.

‘Should I sleep too?’

He wasn’t particularly sleepy.  He had been the main cause of the commotion at dawn, but thanks to the nanomachines, Luther only needed about three hours of sleep per day.

‘Let’s sleep anyway.’

There wasn’t anything particular to do if he stayed awake.

Of course, it would be much more productive to discuss future plans with Integra rather than wasting this free time, but there were various difficulties in doing so.

Even though he had mentioned the presence of a spirit in his head, it was difficult to openly discuss future matters in such a cramped space.

But just then…

[Master, a new function has been activated during the nano-gauntlet generation process.]

[From now on, you don’t have to vocalize to speak to me.  Just moving your lips will convey the meaning to me.]

Integra appeared with a new function perfectly suited to Luther’s inner thoughts, as if she had read his mind.

Intrigued, Luther immediately moved his lips.

‘Integra, dummy.’

[Oh, really?]

[Do you know how childish you seem right now?]

Despite Integra’s scolding, Luther chuckled softly.  It was because of Integra’s gentle voice, even while she was chiding him.

[Anyway, Master, now that silent communication is possible between us, I think we can discuss our future plans.]

Luther nodded at Integra’s words and said,

‘You mean after arriving in Venus City?’

[Yes.]

Simultaneously with Integra’s reply, mini Integra appeared before Luther’s eyes.

Floating in midair, mini Integra crossed her arms and said,

[First, I think we need to address the matter of the fragment.]

The fragment’s signal was being detected a little further away than Venus City.

[If we secure the fragment and then return to the Count of Glasston’s estate, obtaining the Spirit Jewel will be easier, but it seems difficult schedule-wise.]

‘It would probably be a bit tight, right?’

[That’s correct.  There’s a high probability that it will overlap with the original event date, and there’s also a chance we’ll miss the event entirely.]

[Therefore, I believe we should focus on securing the Spirit Jewel first.]

It was a reasonable argument.  As Luther nodded, Integra continued,

[To strategize for the Count of Glasston’s estate, we need to gather information.]

[But you already have some information, Master.]

‘You mean Annerose, the protagonist of the Western Arc?’

Integra nodded at Luther’s question.

[That’s right.]

[But Master, if her name is Annerose… is she a woman?]

‘Yes, she is.’

[Since she’s a game character, she must be beautiful, right?]

‘She’s incredibly beautiful.’

Even in Dragon Hunter Origin, where only handsome men and beautiful women appeared, the four playable characters were especially striking examples.

At Luther’s answer, Integra frowned and said,

[Didn’t you say that over 90% of Dragon Hunter Origin players are male?]

[Why is the first character you play a woman in a game played by men?]

‘It’s because it’s a game played by men that she’s a woman.’

Moreover, Dragon Hunter Origin primarily used a ‘back view’ or ‘shoulder view’ perspective.  What man would want to stare at a guy’s backside throughout the entire playtime?

[That’s a reason to sigh.]

Shaking her head as if dizzy, Integra let out a real sigh and said,

[Anyway, I request information on Annerose.]

[If she’s a playable character, she’ll play an important role not only in this incident at the Count of Glasston’s estate, but also in the future ‘plan to prevent the world’s destruction.’]

She was right.  Therefore, Luther erased his playful attitude and seriously thought about Annerose.

‘First… Annerose is basically a warrior. She can use a wide variety of weapons.  Among the four playable characters, she takes the all-rounder position, capable of anything. Her role changes depending on the equipment she uses.’

[Doesn’t that usually result in a jack-of-all-trades, master of none?]

‘Actually, it’s a bit like that. While the other three playable characters specialize in dealing damage, tanking, and healing, Annerose doesn’t have any particular strengths.’

Radian, the mage specializing in damage dealing.

Ash, the paladin specializing in tanking.

Reinhardt, the cleric specializing in healing.

And Annerose, who could do everything, but was second best in every area.

‘If you had to categorize her, Annerose is like the hero position in an RPG.’

[Hmm, I see.]

‘Right, and… Annerose has a master who taught her swordsmanship.’

[A master? Is he a character?]

‘No, he’s a character in the setting. Annerose left her training for a while to visit Venus City, but she got caught up in the fight with Hecatoncheires and couldn’t return for a long time.  But when she finally returned, her master had already passed away.’

[Hmm… then there’s a possibility he’s still alive now.]

‘Probably. It would be best to keep him alive if possible.  Judging from Annerose’s lines and recollections, he seems to be an incredibly strong person.’

It would be more beneficial in many ways to keep the master alive rather than having Annerose inherit his weapons and techniques as in the original story.

[Understood.]

[Are there any other peculiarities?]

At Integra’s question, Luther listed everything he knew.

Annerose’s appearance, her specialties, her background, her basic personality, the reason for her stay in Venus City, and so on.

After listening to everything Luther had to say, Integra slowly nodded.

[I think I’m getting a rough idea of what kind of person she is.]

[Let’s conclude the discussion about Annerose for now.]

[Master, let’s talk about the Count of Glasston’s estate.]

[Do you know anything about the estate?]

‘Sorry, I don’t know much about the estate.’

Although it was the location where Annerose’s main scenario began, there wasn’t much information to be gleaned, as it was a place that burned down as soon as the game started.

[I can’t help it. We’ll have to gather information by infiltrating the estate with drones after arriving in Venus City.]

‘Good idea.’

That was what the drones were made for in the first place.  Perhaps pleased by Luther’s praise, Integra spoke in a much lighter tone.

[Let’s discuss the rest after we arrive in Venus City.]

[I’ll let you know when we arrive, so please rest well, Master.]

‘You too.’

Replying briefly, Luther closed his eyes and thought.

Venus City.

The Count of Glasston’s estate.

Besides infiltrating the mansion with drones, wouldn’t there be another way to obtain information?

Something safer and more certain.

And after another two hours or so, Luther found the answer to his own question.

“I’ll take you to my uncle’s house. He’ll be very pleased to welcome you.”

Lilia, smiling shyly, guided the group to the Count of Glasston’s estate.

No, ‘Lilia Ailsworth.’

A talented and brilliant enchanter, and also the niece of the influential Count of Glasston in Venus City.

Integra, staring blankly at the wide-open gate of the Count of Glasston’s estate, said in her usual gentle voice,

[Master, it seems we have a clear path to an easy win.]

‘Indeed.’

What was all that worrying in the carriage for?

Luther smiled wryly and followed Lilia into the Count of Glasston’s estate.

—–CROW—–