"What's the situation at the campsite?"
"It's completely empty. Judging from the traces, they probably retreated as soon as the dragon lich appeared. They didn't even bother to clean up their campsite. They were probably frightened by such a level of magic power. In that case, it would seem that they don't have that much power. "
"… They abandoned their pawns?"
I nodded thoughtfully as I recalled the two dark cultists who were locked in the basement with dejected expressions.
Suddenly, there was a "pa pa" sound outside the window. The window opened, and a snow-white eagle descended from the window, landing directly on Heloise's back, and then disappeared without a trace.
It would seem that Harloys was becoming more and more proficient at using her clones for scouting and beast transformation.
Although it was fine to wait for the town's security team to report back, there was a huge difference between a newbie and an experienced one when it came to collecting information. An excellent forest ranger would be able to determine a prey's job class, specialty, and body data from the weight of a broken tree branch. Experienced wood elves and Druil would be able to use trees and plants as their eyes and ears. Archmages with the ability to see back in time would be able to directly look back at the scene. However, newbies would be able to lose their footprints, and newbie detectives would be of no help at all apart from messing up the scene and breaking all the clues.
And so, when I guessed that they likely had companions, I had Harloys send out her clones for scouting purposes.
"There's about forty-six to fifty of them, and they've brought more than two hundred sacrifices. Most of them should be humans. Their numbers match the information from the two dark cultists. However, there are a few black-clothed people among them that give me a threatening feeling. They might be high-level undead creatures. If it wasn't for the fact that they intentionally hid it, even they wouldn't know. "
"Is it possible to catch up to them?"
"Impossible. They're incredibly experienced, and they've already entered deep into the mountains. It would seem that they also have a professional ranger job class. It's probably something like a dark ranger. I don't dare to get too close to them. If I go any closer, I'll lose control of my clones as well. "
Harloys' clones also had a limited area of effect. Not to mention, clones had negligible combat strength. In fact, they could even be killed by wild beasts or birds of prey on the way. They were indeed no match for professional scouts.
However, they had some other wondrous uses …
"Here, help me send this letter quickly. We need laborers to help us."
I passed the letter to Harloys. She waved her hand and a white messenger pigeon appeared in her palm.
Due to the natural limitations of the doppelganger, it was impossible to send it across the national border. However, it was possible to send it along the official road to the nearest post office in the largest town.
Of course, they wouldn't consider using a normal delivery horse carriage. It would probably be spring by the time the letter arrived in Bardi. This time, the mail company was a fairies air express delivery company, or Fairies Express for short.
Yep, that's right, air delivery. This was the fairies' newest service, and it was incredibly popular.
In battle, information and information would be even more valuable than gold. As previously mentioned, the fairies would hire Air Knight to deliver news and important letters. And in order to serve the other species, the fairies had created the Fairies Express, an expensive yet highly effective messenger service.
Of course, due to limited resources, a small town like Anton Town did not have a station, but there were definitely stations in the capitals and commercial cities of various countries.
"… We don't have much time. They should arrive soon."
"You left the magic signature of 'Roland the Undying' at the bottom of the envelope. Considering your reputation, I believe that those fairies will treat it as an important military intelligence. They'll send an air steed to deliver it. It should be back soon. But you really didn't reveal your identity to save money on the delivery? "
"I … cough — cough — let's discuss how we should split the money we just swindled from gambling."
It would seem that the silly cat had seen through everything. I was rendered speechless. However, these fairies were truly greedy. Even if I used up all the money I swindled from gambling today … I wouldn't have much money left for alcohol.
"… Are you trying to bribe me? Sure, I'll have the newest evening gown from the fashion capital — a purple rose outfit. "
"I wouldn't be able to afford it even if I sold everything I own …"
I could only helplessly roll my eyes. Those so-called fashion outfits were ridiculously expensive. If I wanted to buy those, I might as well just obediently pay the postage. However, I suddenly chuckled as I looked at Harloys, who kept gesturing with a fashion magazine. I even reached out and compared her height, which was only up to my waist.
"Haha! Even if I buy it for you, you probably won't be able to wear it with your infant body. How about I find some children's clothing for you? "
Upon hearing this, the silly cat's expression suddenly changed. She seemed rather frightening as she gritted her teeth.
"It's all your fault. I'm truly unlucky to have you as my magical pet. If you were just a bit stronger, I wouldn't have been restricted to being younger than ten years old. Children's clothing is fine. I want the golden 06 Pink Wings for children! It's the classic pink lace princess dress from Black Forest Fashion Monthly! "
"The one with diamonds? You want to mail order again? We're already out of money! Damned fairies! As expected, all merchants in the world are just as greedy. Do these cheap magazines all rely on advertisements to earn back their money? Just a little bit of cloth and a few buttons can be sold for several tens of thousands of gold coins. That's a hundred times profit. That's even faster than robbery. "
Actually, ever since the fairies started their mail order service, the complaints I just said had already been made by countless men.
The beautiful posters and fashionable dresses on those magazines were the best examples of the world's female charms. While all the women in the world were mesmerized by them, they also drained the men's pockets dry.
Of course, it was impossible to satisfy the silly cat's request. The reason was obvious — I couldn't afford it at all. But at this moment, I once again witnessed how low Harloys' morals were, as well as how crazy women could be for the sake of so-called fashion.
"Harloys, can you have some morals? It's one thing to write 'Demon Professor Harloys' next to my signature, but you even wrote in your letter that you'll hijack a courier if you don't give me ten sets of the latest fashionable dresses? You're really going to rob me? A terrorist hijack a passenger plane? Can you be any more shameless? A vicious individual on the Calamity Rankings is threatening to rob me just for some clothes? I've lost all my face. "
However, it was obvious that the silly cat wasn't moved at all. Her mouth twitched as she glanced at me in disdain. She said something that would hurt a man's pride the most.
"Hmph, it's all because you're poor."
"I … wait a moment, that's not right. I'm not your man! I have no obligation to buy clothes for you! A cat only needs to be fed. "
"Tsk, poor bastard. Is it enough just to be fed? You barbarian who doesn't understand fashion. "
"… You said something that you shouldn't have said."
While we were arguing, the bald old man was having his worldview cleansed. He only knew how to stare at the ceiling listlessly.
"Child, do you understand now?"
Old Barton nodded with a pained expression. Then, Winlair giggled as Old Barton buried himself back into Winlair's large, warm chest. This time, even though Winlair paid more attention to his strength, Old Barton struggled even more violently, and his expression became even more conflicted.
After all, the only thing more damaging to one's worldview than having a beautiful grandmother from more than three hundred years ago was the fact that Old Barton was actually your grandfather …
Meanwhile, on the other side of the battlefield, the team that was about to head out to search for the Death Council had finished gathering and was about to depart.
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