In a World of Reversed Chastity, I Strive to Become an Honorable Male Knight, but Lustful Women Keep Targeting My Body - 315

Chapter 315: The Kukkoro Male Knight and the Big Sis

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After the war council ended, I went with Lady Dalaiya to the back of the encampment, where a solitary cell had been prepared… Though calling it that would be generous, it was nothing more than a crude cage. We were there to interrogate the Ant Army… or rather, the remnants of the Adan Kingdom that Lady Dalaiya had captured.

The foot soldiers probably wouldn’t have any worthwhile information, but it would be a different story if it was a high-ranking officer. After all, Lady Dalaiya had gone through the trouble of capturing the “big sis” alive. I definitely wanted to make good use of that.

“……”

The “big sis” locked inside the terribly crude cage made of driftwood glared at us with an unreadable expression. She had been beaten senseless by Lady Dalaiya and her group of lovestruck elves, but she had regained consciousness in less than an hour.

Still, honestly… There was no helping it since we were in a makeshift field camp and couldn’t prepare a proper cell, but the cage was so shabby that she looked like some kind of sacrifice about to be offered to an evil god. It just looked terrible…

“Well well, it’s been half a day, hasn’t it? Chancellor of the Adan Kingdom, Zera-dono.”

In a casual tone as if speaking to a friend, Lady Dalaiya said that. Chancellor!? I was momentarily taken aback, but then again, Lady Dalaiya was technically an empress herself. Though her empire came about due to the collapse of civilization caused by a volcanic eruption, it still felt rather lacking in dignity…

“You bastard, you know my name…!”

“Elfenia and your Adan have been sworn enemies for many years. Of course I have the names and faces of your top brass memorized.”

Smiling pleasantly, Lady Dalaiya sat down beside the cage. Letting out a small breath, I followed suit. As always, she really was a dangerous old loli… So she had deliberately aimed to capture her alive after understanding her position, huh.

I didn’t really know what kind of organization these so-called remnants of the Adan Kingdom were, but if she held the title of chancellor, she had to be an important figure. Keeping her alive would surely be far more useful than just taking her head.

“Haah, you really are a bunch of slippery old hags… So, you’re the famous Lord Blondin?”

Letting out a sigh, “big sis” Zera shrugged. Her speech had a bit of an accent, but it was far easier to understand than the elves’ way of speaking.

“That’s right. Son of Desiree Blondin, Castellan of Liseben and a knight. I’m Albert Blondin. Nice to meet you… well, saying that here feels kind of strange.”

“Hah, ain’t that the truth. …Name’s Zera Growa Adan, I’m the underboss of the Adan crew. Nice to meet ya.”

Moving her four arms, which were bound with shackles, somewhat awkwardly, Zera bowed her head. “Crew,” “underboss”… it sounded more like a yakuza introduction than anything else. Wasn’t she supposed to be a chancellor? Hmm…

Also, her surname and the country’s name were the same. Was she royalty? But then again, they were ant-humans… This was my first time encountering this kind of demi-human, so I wasn’t sure, but like actual ants, maybe their whole colony was made up of blood relatives…

“And I’m…”

“Lind Dalaiya. Ain’t a single one in our family who doesn’t know your name.”

With only the corner of her mouth curling upward, Zera said that. Lady Dalaiya snorted lightly.

“Oh?”

“So what’s gonna happen to me now? I’ve heard that anyone who gets taken prisoner by elves has their liver ripped out and eaten.”

“Well, who knows? How we treat you will depend on how you behave from here on out.”

With a chilling smile, Lady Dalaiya lightly tapped a puddle on the ground with her toe. The innocent, childlike motion only made it more unsettling. She gave off the aura of someone dangerous, someone you had no idea what they might do next.

“There are many things we want to ask you. If you’re willing to tell us what we need to know, we won’t treat you poorly.”

The ant-people had suddenly joined the war, so there were still many unknowns. If possible, I wanted to make peace quickly and have them withdraw from the battlefield. We had managed to drive them back in the last battle, but the ant soldiers were extremely formidable on open ground. They weren’t an opponent I wanted to fight willingly. If they weren’t around, breaking through the encirclement and forcing our way to the city of Carrera would have been an option…

“If you let me have a go with ya, I might just spill everything. What do you say, Blondin?”

Grinning lewdly, Zera ogled me. Of course, it was a provocation. I had to admire her nerve, running her mouth like that in this situation. That said, she was still baring her chest as usual. Her dark skin, illuminated by the sunset and oil lamps, looked rather erotic. If she invited me properly, I might actually waver.

But dressed like that in this temperature, she had to be cold. We had provided proper clothes and blankets, so was she just putting on a front? It made me feel cold just looking at her, so I wished she’d at least put something on.

“Unfortunately, Albert belongs to me. I won’t be giving him to you.”

“When did I become yours, Lady Dalaiya?”

“What! You toyed with my pure heart, Albert! How cruel you are to this old woman…”

Lady Dalaiya pretended to break down in tears. A truly pure person wouldn’t usurp the imperial throne or betray a former friend to deliberately tear a country apart.

“The first thing I want to ask is why you joined this battle. If my memory is correct, this should be our first meeting. Why did you suddenly attack us without any notice?”

Ignoring Lady Dalaiya completely, I directed my question at Zera. I didn’t expect a straightforward answer, though. She was a high-ranking officer among those battle-machine-like ant soldiers. Her composure was anything but ordinary.

“I was out for a stroll and saw a festival going on, so I decided to join in.”

“I see.”

What a blatant lie. At the very least, there had never been a single report of ant-humans being spotted around Carrera. That meant they had been hiding deep within some remote area. Since they had gone out of their way to come all the way here, there had to be a reason. There was no way it was a coincidence.

“You see,” Lady Dalaiya said casually. “For the past… well, ten years or so, I suppose. In any case, for quite some time now, there’s been a sense that someone has been embezzling potatoes from our food stores. Unfortunately, I couldn’t quite catch them in the act… but I suspect the culprit was Vanka.”

Sitting on a large rock, Lady Dalaiya swung her legs back and forth. Though her attitude resembled that of a bored young girl, there was a dark expression on her face that didn’t suit her appearance.

“I thought they were simply stockpiling provisions for war… but could it be that those potatoes were being funneled to you lot?”

“……”

The corner of Zera’s eye twitched ever so slightly. Watching her closely, Lady Dalaiya continued.

“Unlike us, who are half-soldier, half-farmer, you ant-people are a race of pure warriors. Without hunting, gathering, and taking from the farmers, you cannot survive.”

“Taking? That’s a nasty way to put it. It’s just protection money. We were protecting those powerless civilians from the lawless, depraved elves like you.”

So they lived by hunting and gathering… They really were like army ants. …Could it be that the extinction of large animals and fish in Liseben was their doing?

“That said, if there are no crops left to take and no prey to hunt, you won’t be able to survive either. To continue living… Well, you’d need to get a bit creative. For example, secretly joining hands with a former enemy…”

Completely ignoring Zera’s retort, Lady Dalaiya declared that. The captive ant-woman remained silent for a moment, then finally spoke.

“…As expected of the legendary devil our ancestors specifically warned us about. There was no way someone like me could fool you.”

Letting out a deep sigh, Zera looked at Lady Dalaiya with a mix of respect and fear.

“I give up, I give up. Can I get a drink? Better loosen my tongue a bit, or who knows what you’ll do to me.”

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