Abandoned Bastard of the Royal Family Volume 6 Chapter 12 (Patreon)

Chapter 12 – Underground Upheaval

“Is this the area?”

“Yes. Please dig right there.”

Following Argome’s advice, Schild is now in front of a huge hole being dug in the courtyard of the royal castle.

He is doing this because he was told that one of the Four Devas, Ante, whom he was told to have miraculously survived, is hiding beneath these grounds.

Schild was still skeptical, but since their loss would only be a ruined plot of land to an extent, and as Argome had come this far to confess without being asked, he mobilized the knights to dig in.

“Ante can change their body at will. As long as it is within the bounds of the insect theory, that being can take any form they choose.”

The ant-being can molt, grow wings, revert into pupae or eggs, or grow to any size at their will.

“I see.”

“Surprisingly, that Ante’s specs are loose even though that guy’s already have an exoskeleton. There were even times that, when I haven’t seen that being for a while, Ante’s whole body would change so much that I couldn’t even tell that it was that guy unless we do our self-introductions again.”

From this, Schild has found out that changing forms is just a piece of cake for Ante, which was also why Argome is confident of the being’s survivability.

The fact that Ante survived Schild’s blade was because of their body’s ability to transform.

Just before Schild split Ante’s body in two, the being transformed from their combat form to a smaller, covert form and escaped.

What Schild cut was only the husk of the battle form after the main body had escaped.

“Ante in covert form is a small insect no different from an ordinary ant. That way, they could stick to your body and hide behind your clothes, then jump off at the appropriate time. And they did just that without you even realizing anything.”

“You mean it’s because of me not noticing that punk attaching to me that now they had gotten inside the castle? But what would they do after that? Burrow into the ground and build nests? Like real ants?”

“You’re correct once again, Master Schild.”

Schild and the knights were again baffled by the facts that were too illogical for them to understand.

After all, they were words coming from a woman who had been an enemy of theirs until just the other day, not to mention the creature they were talking about right now was the kind that did not follow any human logic at all.

“Please don’t take my words for nothing, Master Schild. Though you may have defeated me, I am still Argome, the “Hundred-Eyed,” and has singlehandedly carried the role of the eyes of the Demon Lord’s Army. I have been following the movements of Ante since that punk infiltrated the royal castle.”

Argome had declared that Ante was safe and sound. After turning into a small insect, it entered the royal castle’s grounds by attaching itself to Schild’s body, then left at the appropriate time to a place with soil to go underground and hide.

“But what is the point of that?”

“I think Ante is trying to return to their adult form first. That guy has told us personally that it is easier, almost to the point of instantaneous, to change from a large insect to a small one, but it is difficult to enlarge themselves from a small one to a large one.”

To do that, they would have to absorb nutrients from the soil and increase their mass over time to a place uninterrupted by external factors.

That was why Ante chose to spend time underground, as it would serve as an incubator for the being.

Now that Schild has found this out, he has now become aware that they are in a terrifying situation.

In the heart and center of the kingdom, their enemy, which they had thought to have defeated, would come back to life to attack them in a way they won’t expect.

“I’m really grateful to you for informing me of this, Argome.”

“I-I don’t deserve your gratitude, master! It’s my job to know and report, after all! Really!”

“But is this what you really want?”

“What do you mean?”

Even though she was a prisoner of war, Argome was too “cooperative”.

It was not like she was interrogated by Schild’s side about Ante’s situation. There was also the fact that if left unchecked, Ante would eventually be resurrected in the heart of the capital, and Argome would have a chance to take advantage of the chaos and escape from there.

At first, Schild had guessed that his sex with her had robbed her of the energy to have the right judgments, making her confess, but he scrapped that thought as it would be too absurd for an enemy commander to have succumbed to him with just sex, even though his mating specs were already too high that it could now be considered a possibility.

“Ante is your former colleague and ally, aren’t they? I can’t believe you would actively do something that would easily compromise of your own kind, especially with your standing too being one of the New Demon Lord’s Army commanders.”

“I’m not one of the commanders, Master Schild. I’m just in a position of a head observer. Also, I don’t really mind, or should I say I no longer care about them?”

“What?”

“You see, Master Schild, I’m already pissed at them. I’ve been trying my best to gather information, but they don’t make the most of it. I’m already I’m fed up!”

“Huuh!?”

“Especially that Zaria! Yes, it’s true that I missed the fact that Schild is royalty, but I was still convinced long ago that Master was a man to watch out for, but she just won’t listen! Numerous times in the past, I had already warned her about you! But in the end, the blame still fell on me not informing her?! What the hell!”

“I-is that so…”

Schild felt somewhat strange in his heart to be genuinely appreciated by his enemy.

“She said, “It’s my role to make decisions based on the information I have,” and yet didn’t she won’t listen to my warnings at all! And when she fails, it’s my fault! I’m so mad! In our last meeting, I dared to say that I would kill myself if I failed to slay Master Schild out of frustration. Though I didn’t die, I’ve still lost to you, so this life now belonged to Master Schild! So please use me as you like from here on!”

“I-I see…”

“Ante isn’t exempt from this, either! After all, that being is a fool who still rushed in alone after I had warned them of Master Schild’s prowess in the past! Just what kind of commander rushes headfirst to the base of the enemy!? If that insect wants to die, then he should just die and regret it!”

Based on the interactions Argome was confessing, Schild had learned that the top executives of the Demon Race are apparently not working well together.

That part was also advantageous for Schild’s side, but…

(I’m hoping it lasts until the end, but I guess asking that part is already too much to hope for.)

“Prince Schild!” “Your Highness!”

The knights who were digging the hole suddenly shouted.

“We found an unnatural cavity in the soil. It’s like a passageway leading to somewhere!”

And it was found at last.

Ante’s precious hole, which the being was hiding the most carefully.

◆

“There… in the back…”

Spoke Argome, who has already flown her “terminal” to examine the very back of the passage.

“There is no danger in the passage for now. I saw no traps, and with the sides of the passageway covered with fluids that also function as adhesive, it is unlikely that there will be a cave-in in the slightest.”

“Her ability to get things done quickly is really useful…”

Schild couldn’t help but praise Argome, whose usefulness is now at its peak.

“Well, let’s dive in, shall we?”

“Wait, it’s too dangerous, Your Highness! Please leave the investigation to us knights instead!”

The knights pleaded to him, but Schild denied their offers.

“Ante might not be in their best state right now, but remember that that being still has that “Hex of the Gladiator” on them. For that, I have no choice but to go alone. Moreover, the underground passage is so narrow that only one person can get inside at most.”

Even with the adhesive holding it in place, if more than one person tried to force their way in, it would cause traffic, or worse, the hole would collapse in the chaos and they would all be buried alive.

“Let’s add one of my “terminals”. This one is specially made with a vocal and auditory organ.”

Argome still insisted, floating another eyeball next to Schild.

This time, however, the eyeball was of a considerable size. Too large, in fact, to be used for covert operations. Hence its only use was to send information to her former colleagues as some sort of speaker-receiver.

If this was used by Argome during the time he killed Dernonos, it would have changed the outcome of the first skirmish.

However, while it also has those functions, their auditory senses are subpar, and one has to get really closer to hear the target of their intentions.

An approaching eavesdropping eyeball is just too conspicuous to the naked eye… or that was what Argome believed.

Maybe because of her treatment in the New Demon Lord’s Army, or maybe because her “comrades” treated her as “the least worthy”, Argome had long lost confidence in herself.

She hadn’t even realized that even her largest eyeball was so covert that Ante, and even Schild, only noticed them when she started speaking to him through them.

In fact, if she wills it, she could clog the airways of any living target by jamming their throats with her eyeballs alone. They wouldn’t realize until it was in until they suffocated.

Such is the power of the “Fourth Deva”.

Of course, Schild hadn’t known that Argome could do these tricks yet, so he couldn’t help but feel pity for Argome and contempt for Zaria, the general commander who had hurt her pride and treated her like a tool in the Demon Lord’s Army.

And of course, the main reason was that she is a very beautiful woman, and Schild couldn’t bear making a beautiful woman look sad.

For now, to solve the problem they’re facing, Schild dove alone inside the mysterious underground tunnel.

The tunnel entrance was never made for humans, and Schild had to stretch and advance through it.

“I will show you the way. Follow me.”

“It’s a perfectly straight path, though.”

The ‘terminal’ released by Argome led the way, and Schild followed.

For some unexplainable reasons, the tunnel’s diameter grew larger and the hole wider as they proceeded.

It seemed as if the person… or being who dug this tunnel was getting bigger the further they dug.

“We are here.”

“So this is what’s at the end of this cave.”

By the time they reached the end, the tunnel became big enough to make Schild stand and walk through it.

It was almost like a room. A room enough for someone to spend a moment of peace inside.

And at its far end, what Schild witnessed was….

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