The Sequel to the Romance Fantasy Was a Zombie Apocalypse – Chapter 85

“…”

“If you really don’t believe it, you can send someone to verify it. Although our Lanit burned about 30 of them to ashes without a trace, we left the corpses of the remaining wyverns just as they were, only taking out the magic stones.”

Count Peltion, the mayor of Pedina City, listened to Esmela’s report with a dazed expression, forgetting to close his half-open mouth.

It was a little past lunchtime when Esmela and Lanit finished their discussion about the wyvern extermination.

After guiding the two to their lodging, he was handling the delayed city affairs before the promised dinner with Young Lady Herta when…

“So, I asked for extermination about five hours ago, and in between that, you’ve exterminated roughly 70 zombie wyverns with just your soldiers, and that’s with your personal butler, the one called Lanit, doing it all by himself?”

He’d definitely told his secretary to gather soldiers to support them, but he hadn’t mentioned they should depart today. He muttered to himself like that.

It didn’t seem like a lie. Rather, a lie had to be plausible enough to deceive the listener.

There was nothing about them bursting into the mayor’s office and singing the praises of the butler for two hours that felt like acting.

“Whoa…”

If the news was true, it would indeed be blissful, but the report was so absurd he couldn’t decide whether to genuinely rejoice or maintain a skeptical stance.

“I’ll send an investigator towards the plateau to confirm the situation and get back to you. It’s late, so I’ll send your meal to your lodging instead…”

When Lanit first arrived in the city, riding in the mayor’s carriage and observing the situation, as he had anticipated, Pedina City was deteriorating further.

The overly dense population contrasted with decreased trade with other regions.

They were forcibly driving out refugees and hunters to procure supplies, barely managing to bridge the gap, but with the zombie wyverns blocking the path to the Count Ferelude’s territory, that precarious balance crumbled.

Starving people, rising theft, and conflicts.

Just as that turmoil circled around Pedina City, a long-awaited victory report came in.

The source of the rumors came from the soldiers who had followed the wyvern extermination.

“I’m telling you it’s real! I mean, that butler who was next to the duke’s young lady suddenly charged into the wyvern’s nest, and all of a sudden, he was engulfed in black flames…”

Amidst the drunken ramblings of a bearded man, a 20-something young butler who transformed into a dragon and tore apart dozens of zombie wyverns with his hands while breathing fire was mentioned.

Initially, none of them listening to the drunken man took it seriously.

However, the next day it was said that the zombie wyverns had been exterminated and notices were posted about starting exchanges with the Count’s territory again, recruiting stablehands and guards for that purpose.

Unlike the bearded man who blustered on and on, other soldiers who participated in that operation shared the same testimony, which gave the rumors some credence.

While the rumors started gaining traction among the townsfolk, there was a decisive moment that made them believe it as fact.

An unexpected guest entered a tailor shop in Pedina City.

Since the city was locked down, the flow of customers had ceased, and the shop had merely been a front while the tailor spent his time at home.

The one who entered the store was a noble young lady clad in a splendid red dress.

As the tailor fumbled and said there were no dresses that would satisfy, she indicated she was searching not for a dress for herself, but a uniform for her butler.

“Well, we might be able to get that,” the tailor said, delighted at having received a job after nearly a year, and began asking about the size and preferences of the butler for whom she wanted to buy clothes.

Initially, it was a simple transaction, but their conversation gradually changed into casual chatter between two ordinary women.

“By the way, Young Lady, what’s the reason you’re getting clothes for your butler?”

When the tailor inquired about the purpose of the gift, she hinted that her butler was the protagonist of the rumors circulating about the wyvern extermination, mentioning that as he was firing his breath, his clothes had burned away, prompting her to consider gifting him new ones.

After she left, the gossip-loving tailor began spreading tales about that mysterious guest, leading the people of Pedina City to cautiously accept that unrealistic heroic tale as the truth…

“This outfit, what is it, Young Lady?”

Lanit asked, having received a new butler’s uniform from Esmela out of nowhere.

“It’s a gift.”

“I’m grateful, but I brought a spare from the royal palace, so it’s not necessary…”

“But your clothes burned away when you fired your breath, right?”

“What? No! My uniform is fine. Besides, you saw me in my uniform just fine right after the battle ended.”

As Lanit said, even when he transformed into a dragon or reverted back, the clothes he usually wore remained intact.

Esmela was puzzled over what principle allowed that to happen, but Lanit had an inkling.

To be precise, he didn’t understand the principle, but somehow it felt more normal for his uniform to remain unharmed.

… Transformations in creative works usually operate like that.

“[The butler of rumors] had it that way, so it can’t be helped. Just accept it.”

After Esmela left with her cryptic words, Lanit stared at the neatly folded butler uniform on his lap, contemplating its implied meaning for a long moment.

And the next day, precisely five days after the extermination…

As promised, the mayor mobilized his connections to investigate the House of Herta, compiling even the slightest bits of information into a brief report for Esmela.

Nervously, the two began reading the report together.

With important information mixed among trivial sightings and unverified rumors, it took longer than expected to extract the needed details.

整理 בתחوبة보고회, 테리드 공작과 그 사용인들의 행적은 다음과 같았다.

After escaping the royal capital, intense conflict arose between Duke Tereed and the royal family.

The duke hurled insulting remarks in front of the king and even pulled out his sword to cast attack magic, attempting to assassinate the king.

Under normal circumstances, that would have been enough to earn him a death sentence for treason, but for some reason related to his status, the king did not punish him but instead dismissed him from his position as a chancellor.

According to unverified rumors, that conflict was tied to the disappearance of Duke Herta’s daughter, Esmela Herta.

…

At the mention of her name, Esmela’s face twisted in sorrow.

After that, a provisional government was established formed of the royal family and the coalition that led the rescue operation, but Duke Herta did not participate and instead left with his personnel for another region.

The original destination was the territory of Count Ferelude. The Ferelude family had long been in contact with the House of Herta, thus suspected to have invited them for that reason.

However, soon after, the royal family set up close to the count’s territory and declared it a provisional royal capital. The House of Herta then fled the count’s estate to escape them.

Afterwards, their whereabouts became unclear.

They stayed a few days in Pedina City before leaving through the city gates, and nobody knew where the House of Herta’s people headed after that.

However, they had managed to gather a few eyewitness accounts that portrayed the Herta family, at odds with their known strong and dignified impression, as perpetually drunk and in rags.

“Papa…”

Tears fell from Esmela’s eyes onto the report.

Instead of offering words of consolation, Lanit silently took out a handkerchief from his inner pocket and gently wiped away her tears.

So, he comforted Esmela for a long period in silence.

“… Thank you.”

After crying for a long time, Esmela finally calmed down and shyly expressed her gratitude.

“It’s my duty as a butler. But Young Lady! Don’t think too negatively. At the very least, the next destination is determined, isn’t it?”

“Right.”

After Esmela brushed away the remaining tears with her fingertips, she stood up with a determined look.

“Let’s leave for Count Ferelude immediately. I planned to seek assistance from the duke if I couldn’t gather any useful information from him, but this solidifies it further. I’ll find more information about the Herta family in the Ferelude territory.”

“Then I’ll pack right away. Oh, but the mayor hasn’t provided the supplies he promised yet, has he? We should urge him to secure them before we leave.”

“Yes. I was planning to visit the duke anyway. Since he saw you handle the zombie wyverns so easily, he probably got greedy. Given that strength for survival has become even more important in this world, it’s understandable that he wants to keep us in the city that long…”

The two were making plans to leave Pedina City.

Knock, knock.

At that moment, someone knocked on the bedroom door.

“Did you have any visitors today?”

“That’s impossible. I’ve never invited anyone without you knowing.”

“Esmela, are you there?”

It was the mayor Peltion’s voice.

“I’m here. What’s the matter, Count Peltion?”

“Actually, Esmela, you have a guest.”

“A guest?”

“Yes, a very delightful one for you…”

Suddenly, the sound of someone racing down the hallway interrupted the count’s words.

“Wait, we were still talking…!”

Bang!

“Esmela!”

With a shout, the door burst open, and three people rushed into the room.

Before Esmela could even greet them upon recognizing their faces, a blonde woman in a nun’s outfit leaped into her arms with all her might.