Chapter 326

Wearing a bizarre can on his head and visibly hunched, Lucas had returned nonetheless.

I decided not to ask any questions for the moment. Once he was more settled—or took off that can—I'd have a detailed chat with him.

"Today, we're going for a free exploration of the dungeon!"

I planned to go to the dungeon for a practical test of my ultimate skill, [Imperial Edict].

To use [Imperial Edict], a flagpole and a flag were necessary.

I didn't pay any attention to stats and simply picked up a standard Imperial Army flagpole from the forge's storage.

Since I didn't have any spare Imperial flags, I took out a random festival banner that was stored in the warehouse.

It was just for a skill test, so it didn't really matter what the flag was.

"It's heavy!"

But it weighed quite a bit. I swayed when I picked it up without thinking.

The flagpole combined with the flag was heavier than I'd thought. The flag bearers in each unit must have insane arm muscles. Ugh.

"I'll carry it for you, My Lord."

"Oh, thanks."

Lucas volunteered to be the porter, so I gladly delegated the task to him. What else would I use his spare Stamina and Strength stats for? Knight, carry my stuff.

"Great, let's call the rest of the party members while we're at it!"

Evangeline could join us last since she was staying in the manor. First, let's stop by the temple and the inn to pick up Damien and Junior.

Exiting the forge, I headed towards the temple. Damien happened to be sweeping the front yard.

"Yo! Damien! Did you sleep well? We're gathering. Grab your gear!"

"Ah, Your Highness! Yes!"

When I called him, Damien looked back at me with a bright face, then his eyes widened.

Following his gaze, I found he was looking at Lucas standing behind me.

A towering knight with a can on his head, waving a flag from a festival that had already ended... It did look a bit strange.

"Ah! Aha!"

Damien suddenly let out strange noises and clapped his hands.

"Got it, got it! Just a moment!"

"Huh?"

He dashed into the temple. What was going on?

A moment later, Damien came running out, a mace strapped to his back and something in his hands—a small flag representing the Church of the Goddess.

Damien excitedly waved the small flag back and forth.

"Let's go!"

"...?"

I mean, it's not a flag parade...

But seeing Damien's innocent smile, I couldn't muster the courage to tell him the harsh truth.

Reluctantly nodding, I took the lead.

Next, we arrived at the inn.

Sitting on the terrace, sipping coffee and jotting something down on paper, Junior saw us and furrowed her brow.

"Your Highness? And everyone else...?"

A knight in a can helmet lifting a festival flag high, and Damien, who seemed delighted for some reason, flapping a small Church flag.

Observing this scene, Junior clicked her fingers.

"I get it!"

Then she went into her room and came back out with... a kite shaped like an eagle. What was that about?

"Like this, and... yup!"

Junior tied the string of the kite to her staff and cast a wind spell, sending the kite soaring into the sky.

The kite shot up and fluttered its long tail in the sky. It sort of resembled a flag too.

"It's a magic kite for high-altitude scouting. This should do, right?"

"...?"

Do what?

What's fine? You mean that kite works as a flag?

'No, I mean, it's not a flag parade! How did it end up like this?'

But what could I do? I'm not so tactless as to rain on the parade of my mysteriously jubilant party members.

The four of us cheerfully headed back to the manor.

Seeing our spectacle, the citizens of Crossroad were puzzled. Some went back into their houses, returned with whatever flags they had, and started waving them while singing marching songs. What was going on?

"Hey! What is this? Why are you guys having fun without me?"

As we got closer to the Lord's mansion, Evangeline burst out, holding the banner of Crossroad.

"Let me join in!"

In front of the Lord's mansion, the four members of my party were laughing and waving their own flags.

Seeing this, I clenched my throbbing forehead. No, I mean, what the…

"...Never mind. It's fine."

If you're happy, then so be it. Sigh.

"Alright, guys! Enough of this! Let's get into the dungeon!"

With the sentiment of a student teacher on a high school practicum, I spoke and my party members obediently gathered around me. At least they listen well.

Today, I was leading only my main party of five.

It's been a while since I've had such a simple formation, and it felt somewhat nostalgic. Lately, I've been leading multiple parties on expeditions.

Damien, who was getting tired from waving the flag, put it down and asked me.

"Which dungeon are we heading to today, Your Highness? Zone 7?"

"No. Today, for the first time in a while…"

My party members looked surprised at my next words.

"We're going to Zone 1."

***

[Now Loading...]

[Tip - If your character's level is significantly higher than the monster's, the experience gained decreases. Farm in an appropriate level dungeon!]

***

Flash!

With the brilliance of the teleport gate, we entered the safe zone. As I looked up, I saw a damp corridor with a maze of interlocking drains.

Zone 1. The Dried Sewer.

It was the first dungeon we entered when we first came to the Lake Kingdom.

At the time, we had arrived at the Lake Kingdom, but the main entrance was blocked, so we had to go through this dried-up drain to enter the kingdom.

'It's been almost a year since then...'

Time really flies.

But we've all grown so much since those early days. I briefly looked at my party members.

Junior, who used to puke blood, had somewhat become a healthy girl.

Evangeline, who used to bristle like a porcupine, had gotten plump like a chubby hamster (seriously, she's gained some weight).

Damien, who always had a gloomy look, had overcome his darkness and brightened up a lot.

And Lucas was…

"…"

"Becoming a tin-can knight…"

No, everyone else evolved in a positive direction. Why do you seem to be the only one on a dark evolution path? Where did you go wrong?

I believe Lucas will improve eventually, too.

Anyway, we were in the dungeon now. Time to prepare for battle. Each party member began checking their equipment.

Evangeline approached Lucas, who was adjusting his helmet, and tilted her head.

"Why are you wearing that thing anyway?"

"So people can't see my face."

"...What are you talking about?"

Tilting her head the other way, Evangeline leapt up and playfully hit Lucas's helmet.

Clang!

A refreshing sound echoed. It was like striking a gong.

"Whoa, that sound is awesome!"

An excited Evangeline exclaimed, and although we couldn't see Lucas's face, he seemed annoyed as his shoulders trembled.

But as this helmet sound(?) served as a signal for all party members to gather, he couldn't really get angry and just took deep breaths instead.

'Well done, Evangeline!'

I secretly cheered for Evangeline. Keep pestering him like that until Lucas takes off that helmet himself!

"Alright! We're here in Zone 1 today to test out my new skill."

I spoke as I looked over my party members, who had just finished gearing up.

"My new skill has the potential to influence the state of the dungeon, so I deliberately chose the weakest one. We'll quickly clear out the monsters and then proceed with testing my skill."

"Got it!"

"Alright, let's go!"

My party members took the lead and entered the dungeon.

We still had flags we brought from Crossroad, but, eh, it's a Zone 1 dungeon.

At our level, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say we could clear it with our bare hands.

"What monsters do we have this season~!"

I exclaimed as I stepped out of the safe zone and into the dungeon. What kind of scum will we face this time?

Craaack-!

The moment we entered the dungeon room, monsters let out a grotesque scream and—feathers scattered as they fell from the sky.

Huge bird-like bodies with faces similar to humans and thick, shovel-like beaks.

Junior, who first noticed the type of monster, shouted.

"It's Harpies!"

I clicked my tongue. Well, it was about time for flying-type monsters to appear!

Compared to other flying monsters, Harpies are pretty average, except for one extremely annoying aspect: 

Craaack-!

They're loud!

Not just that, they actually use their screams as a sonic attack.

A wrong move and you could end up dizzy or disoriented, a real nuisance of a status inducer.

A flock of about ten Harpies swarmed in, filling the air with a cacophony.

Caught off guard by this attack, my head instantly felt dizzy. I covered my ears and staggered.

"Hey! Can someone shut these birds up!"

Before my words even finished, my party members were already sending the Harpies crashing down.

Bang! Bang-!

Damien casually fired his magic pistol, Cerberus, and 

Zap!

Junior released a small chain lightning, burning the rest of the Harpies.

In a matter of seconds, about ten Harpies fell to the ground, feathers spewing everywhere.

Evangeline, who had been about to throw her spear, and Lucas, who had been gathering energy at the tip of his sword, awkwardly halted their attacks.

"Having such weak monsters all of a sudden is a bit disorienting..."

Junior muttered, looking over the Harpies he had scorched black with his lightning.

Fair enough. Going from high-level zones back to a beginner dungeon is like going from fighting tigers to squirrels.

I complained as I pressed my hands against my throbbing ears.

"Even if they're weak, it's an issue that they're loud..."

Heroes like us can probably withstand their sonic attacks, but regular soldiers might suffer hearing damage.

I'll have to prepare some earplugs for this season.

But apart from the discomfort in my ears, the dungeon was easily conquered.

The monsters in Zone 1 had become so weak that they were falling to our basic attacks, so it didn't even take us 30 minutes to fully clear the dungeon.

Once the cleanup was complete, I received a flag from Lucas.

It was finally time to test my ultimate skill, [Imperial Edict].

[Imperial Edict]

- Declares a specific area as territory belonging to the user's faction and exercises control.

- Allied Units Inside Territory: Applies all beneficial effects the user possesses.

- Enemy Units Inside Territory: Applies all harmful effects the user possesses.

- Within the territory, the summon limit is removed.

- If the declared area is an enemy zone, it will enter a [Conquest War], and winning will allow the capture of that zone's control.

Everything about the skill's effects seemed clear, except for the last line.

'Use in hostile territory to initiate a Conquest War. Winning the battle will seize control of the area.'

So, if I use this skill in this dungeon, does it mean I can snatch it away from the monsters?

There's no way to know for sure except to test it out in the field. I took a deep breath and raised the flag high. Alright, let's do this!

"...?"

I paused my flag-raising, sensing something odd, and turned around.

There, I locked eyes with my party members, each raising their own flags and banners.

"...What are you doing?"

"...It looked fun?"

Evangeline answered while scratching the back of her head. I shook my head, flabbergasted. Do as you please, then.

I hoisted the flag up high once more.

"This land..."

And, chanting the ultimate skill's incantation, I drove it into the ground.

"...I declare as territory of the Empire!"

The flag was planted.

Flash!

With a blinding burst of light, magic power flowed from my body, covering the entire area—expanding outward in a wide circle.

The party members who had imitated me by planting their own flags recoiled in surprise.

Their flags couldn't stay planted in the ground; instead, they were repelled by an invisible force.

Whoosh!

As my far-reaching magic power settled and the atmosphere calmed down, there it was.

"...?!"

A fortress, constructed out of gray magic power, stood in a circle.