New chapter of Let’s Create a Dungeon is out! (1/3 chapters)
Short Story (10): Baron Farce and the Cheerful Butler
Thank you for reading at bayabuscotranslation.com)
Author’s Note: In terms of the timeline, this would take place around Short Stories Four to Five.
Margrave Farce. During the previous war, he personally took up a spear and achieved military merit, earning the favor of the Emperor, and as the number of nobles had decreased due to the war, he was promoted from a baron to a frontier baron, becoming the leading noble of the military faction.
However, this was the story of the previous generation, Morgan Hos Farce, the frontier margrave.
Unlike when he governed a territory the size of a cat’s forehead, the newly governed land was so vast that it was among the upper ranks of the imperial nobility. Furthermore, to the east were the nations, to the west the Don Ogre, and to the south the Great Forest of Owa, making it a dangerous area. What was required was not powerful military force but rather superior political strategy. As a result, Morgan, having decided to retire, put his efforts into strengthening the knight order.
As a result, even after Morgan’s death, the Farce Knights were known to be formidable, and the current head of the family, Naragan Hos Farce, became a shrewd noble who excelled in politics.
And now, this Margrave Farce was…
“…” (Farce)
In the office, he was making a face as though he had just bitten into a bitter bug, looking at a single letter in front of him. The situation began when he was reading the letter that had been delivered to him. Being a frontier margrave, the number of letters delivered to him was enormous, and from among them, his butler, Claas, selected those that could not be judged as coming from the head of the family and delivered them to the office.
Thanks to this, the pile was reduced to a manageable number, but today, among them, there was one particularly unusual letter. The envelope itself was something commonly used in guilds and wasn’t particularly rare. However, it was the sender and content that were the problem.
“‘Great Forest of Owa’s Demon King Nobunaga’” (Farce Baron)
A demon king. And furthermore, the demon king of the Great Forest of Owa to the south. Moreover, the content of the letter could not be read. There was certainly something written that looked like characters, but Farce Baron could not decipher it.
The problem continued further. Neither Margrave Farce nor any of the imperial nobility knew that a demon king had been born in the Great Forest of Owa. Furthermore, the first report that had reached him, which was supposed to be a damage report, did not mention anything about a friendly or wise demon king, and the contents of the letter could not be judged until its meaning was clear.
Lastly, there was the route by which this letter had been delivered. If the envelope had been forged by the demon king, then the fact that the letter had arrived meant that somewhere, the letter had been sent. This meant that the demon king had stepped into human society. If the demon king had entered a village or city, it would have caused a commotion, but no such reports had come in yet.
“Claas!” (Farce)
With his stomach tightening as though squeezed, the baron called his butler.
“Did you call for me?” (Claas)
As soon as he called, the door opened, and Claas appeared, as though he had been waiting right in front of the door. In fact, he likely had been. After all, he had selected and delivered this letter. Of course, he knew about the troubling letter.
“Bring the guild master and the high priest of the main religion here immediately!” (Farce)
“I anticipated that, so I have already called them.” (Claas)
With surprising efficiency, the guild master of Mustang and the high priest of the main religion appeared from beyond the door. The swift and smooth manner in which Claas worked was astonishing. This was the skill of the butler who had served two generations. Though he looked like an old man of bones and skin, his sharpness was first-rate. Even Margrave Farce himself had once wished for Claas to take over the governance.
“If they’re here, bring them in right away!” (Farce)
“My apologies. I thought you might not need them, so I waited.” (Claas)
Claas easily dodged Margrave Farce’s shout, like a leaf fluttering in the wind. He always prepared the best course of action but never showed it unless asked. To Margrave Farce, Claas was an exceptionally talented butler with a terrible personality.
“Tch, fine, whatever. Now, both of you, you understand why you were called, right? You kept quiet about the demon king being born in the Great Forest of Owa. Well, be happy, because we received a letter from that demon king.” (Farce)
With sarcasm, he threw the letter, still in its envelope, across. The guild master opened his eyes wide upon seeing the letter, and the priest, who had been looking sideways, snorted.
“Is this some fool’s prank? I’ve never heard of a demon king sending a letter. Surely, what’s written inside is just doodles, isn’t it?” (Guild Master)
“Oh? But you won’t deny that a demon king was born in the Great Forest of Owa. If I’m not mistaken, the main religion should have detected the birth of the demon king, right?” (Farce)
Now, as a lord who was skilled in governance, but until the previous generation was a descendant of a warrior who had gained fame, his gaze was sharper than that of the average knight. However, that sharp gaze seemed to have no effect on the priest, whose face looked like a mixture of a pig and a frog, literally thick-skinned. He showed no signs of caring, and boldly replied.
“Recently, the church’s walls have been peeling, and it’s possible that due to this, the divine majesty hasn’t reached the earth…” (Priest)
“I see, then you’d better hurry and repaint it yourself. You may leave now.” (Farce Baron)
He tried to ask for money, but Margrave Farce dismissed him in one go. The priest left the office, showing his displeasure on his face.
“Tch, to ask for money without doing anything. How much better is the spirit religion that says nothing? Guild master, I’ll listen to your excuse.” (Farce)
“Excuse? Well, there’s nothing I can do. We received a report from the headquarters about the birth of the demon king in the Great Forest of Owa, but at the same time, an order was issued to prohibit informing the empire. Therefore, the information was only made available to adventurers, and if leaked to others, there were severe penalties put in place.” (Guild Master)
Saying it clearly, as if there was no reason for an excuse, the guild master spoke. Being a former adventurer, he was large in stature, but due to his office work, he had begun to show signs of middle-aged spread. However, as a guild master, he was well-liked and competent.
“Couldn’t you have secretly passed the information along?” (Farce)
“If we did, there’d surely be a reaction, wouldn’t there? That priest would immediately notice. And if he were to report it… You know, the country where the guild headquarters is located has close ties with the main religion. Anything harmful to the main religion would also harm the headquarters. If we angered the headquarters, the information wouldn’t circulate to this entire region, as though we were ostracized. If that happens, what would occur? The guild would collapse, adventurers would move, and public order would deteriorate. For the headquarters, it might only be a slight decrease in income.” (Guild Master)
Margrave Farce clicked his tongue at the guild master’s words.
Things never go as planned. However, governance rarely works out the way he wants, so he quickly shifted his thoughts.
“Fine. So, do you think this letter is from the demon king? The envelope is one you all use.” (Farce)
The guild has connections to the demon king? While he already knew the answer, he subtly asked.
“The letter, it’s hard to say. The envelope, from the paper quality, is likely from a guild in the kingdom. Well, as the priest said, I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of it being a well-crafted prank…” (Guild Master)
He paused, implying that everyone could understand without him finishing his sentence. Margrave Farce also understood in reality. There was a high possibility that this letter was indeed from the demon king.
The only ones who know of the demon king’s existence within the empire are the main religion, the guild, and the adventurers. As for the main religion, it’s out of the question, but the guild and adventurers might act out of patriotism. However, if that were the case, they wouldn’t use such an indirect method.
Moreover, the envelope from the guild in the kingdom. Obtaining this in the empire would be difficult. Even from the neighboring countries, it wouldn’t be easy. Only the demon king of the Great Forest of Owa could do this. Only a demon king who had turned adventurers who came to slay him into victims and reused the guild’s envelopes from their belongings could manage this.
If the response to this letter is wrong, they will end up facing two demon kings, or at worst, be opposed from three directions, including the confederation of nations. But what if they could establish a friendly relationship with this demon king? Whether it’s hostility or friendship, the scale would naturally tip toward the obvious. The problem is, what does this letter signify? If that can be understood, negotiations can proceed.
“Claas, how do you view this?” (Farce)
“I see it as a letter.” (Claas)
When Margrave Farce glared sharply, as if satisfied with the reaction, Claas finally spoke seriously.
“Most likely, we are being tested. The letter isn’t a doodle. There is clearly some kind of pattern in the characters, so we can determine it’s writing. However, I can’t read it. I’m not an expert, but it appears that two or three different types of characters are used. But look at the envelope. It has ‘Great Forest of Owa’s Demon King Nobunaga’ written in characters that we can read. The reason to use cryptic characters, even though readable characters are available, must be deliberate.
This is just a guess, but perhaps the demon king doesn’t understand us as much as we don’t understand him. Perhaps he intends to gauge our reaction with this letter.” (Claas)
This reasoning was understandable. The guild master seemed to have no objections and nodded.
“So, what is the best course of action we should take?” (Farce Baron)
“The best course would be to respond immediately with an attempt to decode the writing, but I don’t think it can be deciphered in just a few days. Therefore, as a second-best option, we should reply that we couldn’t read the letter, but we don’t have hostile intentions and are open to negotiations. That should be the content of the response.” (Claas)
“…In other words, we are fools who can’t read the characters, and we should write to the demon king and let him mock us?” (Farce Baron)
“Is that a problem?” (Claas)
There was no problem. If the demon king mocks and belittles them, and opens an opportunity for them to exploit, that would be very fortunate.
“I’ll adopt that plan. But should we send a letter to the demon king, or would it be better to be direct and not beat around the bush? Guild master, go back and select the adventurers. The demon king might be communicative, but we can’t say for sure it will be safe. However, anyone too blunt who might offend the demon king won’t do. Understood?” (Margrave Farce)
Although Margrave Farce gave an order that seemed troublesome, the guild master made a face as if it was a bother, but when glared at, he shrugged and left the room. Margrave Farce, truly bothered by the lack of honest and lovable people around him, was about to begin writing the response to the demon king when he realized that Claas was still in the room.
“What’s wrong? You have work to do as well, you can go.” (Farce)
“Yes, I am staying behind to do my work. If you’re going to write the reply to the demon king, why not write another one as well? There is someone who is currently visiting for inspection nearby, and it would be ideal to send them a letter too. I’m simply suggesting this as part of my task. Now, I’ve finished my work, so I will excuse myself.” (Claas)
Claas spoke in a manner that was quite irksome, and before Margrave Farce could shout, Claas escaped. Angered that the one he wanted to vent his frustration on had escaped, Farce Baron still didn’t forget Claas’s words.
“Indeed, it’s not a problem that can be dealt with by the Baron alone. It can’t be helped.” (Farce)
In addition to the demon king, there was one more letter. It didn’t take much time.
Thank you for reading at bayabuscotranslation.com)
Please consider supporting Bayabusco Translation @
bayabuscotranslation 