The Abandoned Duchess Seems to Want a Peaceful Life - Chapter 96

Chapter 96: Dangerous Traps and a Day of Pain

The report of the monster’s appearance was swiftly communicated to Enkar Village, Melto Village, and the newly established serf settlements nearby.

The monsters attack not only livestock but also people. Children and infants are especially at risk from the magical aura they emit. To prevent panic, it was emphasized that the stationed soldiers are actively engaged in extermination efforts. People were advised to go out only during the day and as minimally as possible, to keep children indoors as much as possible, and to report any sightings immediately to the patrolling soldiers.

“Still, the farmers can’t just abandon their fields…”

Four days had passed since the calf incident. As Melfina gazed out over the Enkar region, illuminated by the morning sun from the window of her office, she muttered to herself.

The soldiers are patrolling, using dogs to search, and setting up ambushes with decoy livestock, yet they have not yet succeeded in exterminating the monsters.

Melfina’s ability to remain sequestered within the high-walled estate is due to her being a noblewoman. Even if noblemen or knights were present, they would likely have led their soldiers directly into battle or at least been actively managing the situation.

Being powerless, lacking knowledge about fighting monsters, and being protected in a safe place are the only things Melfina can do right now.

Marie, noticing Melfina’s focus solely on the outside, spoke to her with concern.

“Lady Melfina, please do not be disheartened. The warriors from the north are experienced in battling monsters. The extermination will be completed soon.”

“Yes…”

Even with that reassurance, Melfina couldn’t bring herself to fully agree.

It was true that knights and soldiers are consistently trained and prepared, as Melfina had observed during her occasional visits. They are essentially experts in fighting monsters. Rather than worrying, Melfina should be waiting for good news, having entrusted them with the task.

—But, they might get hurt.

She understood that knights and soldiers exist to fight, and making achievements in such situations is their honor. They have been training and working from a young age for this very purpose. Without opponents, the skills and knowledge they have honed would be wasted.

Melfina understood that her thinking was naïve. Before recalling memories from her previous life, she likely wouldn’t have felt such inner turmoil.

Even if she worried about the territory, she would have naturally accepted that it was their role to protect and her role to be protected.

Suddenly, the sound of a knock on the office door echoed, causing Melfina to turn around sharply. Marie opened the door, and Cedric, clad in light armor, entered.

A sigh of relief escaped her as she noted his apparent lack of injuries.

“Lady Melfina, I have come to report.”

“Thank you for your hard work, Cedric. Marie, some tea, please.”

“No need, I will return quickly, so just your concern is enough.”

“Has the monster still not been found…?”

While many soldiers have experience with horseback riding, having their own steeds typically comes after being knighted.

Currently, only three knights in the Enkar region have the means to survey the area from high vantage points and move quickly on horseback. It was unlikely that Cedric, one of them, would have time to linger.

“Earlier, we discovered that the pig we had released as bait was eaten. I will have Julius verify this later, but since it was within the grazing grounds, it is presumed to be the same monster.”

According to Cedric, it was likely attacked during a brief moment when the monitoring soldiers were changing shifts.

“The monster never shows itself while it’s still light out. It won’t appear even if there are many people around. However, covering the vast grazing grounds with a reduced number of personnel is challenging.”

“If we confine all the livestock, it might start attacking humans on the outskirts of the village. Continue using decoys.”

If the situation escalates, it would only become more chaotic. It’s far better to think of the grazing grounds as a feeding ground rather than dealing with scattered damage.

“—Since it’s certain the monster is targeting livestock, perhaps we should consider setting up some traps.”

“Since it seems to be a fairly intelligent individual, I wonder if it would fall for a pitfall trap.”

“What about snares or spring traps, things like that?”

“I’m not very knowledgeable about hunting… and Godot didn’t suggest anything of that sort.”

At Cedric’s words, Melfina was taken aback.

Godot, being a hunter, would primarily use a bow for hunting. She had heard that he once used hunting dogs, but that practice had long ceased.

In a world where most lands are owned by nobles and there are few places where free hunting is permitted, hunters like Godot, who venture into the forests for their profession, are rare. Additionally, with a small population in the profession and no guilds, there might be little room for information and techniques to become established or spread.

“Cedric, could you summon Godot? Also, please have Roy and Carl come to the manor with some guards.”

“Understood. I will make the arrangements immediately.”

As Cedric bowed and raised his head, he wasn’t wearing the stern expression typical of a knight but instead had a faint smile.

“Lady Melfina, have you come up with something?”

Marie, who had been standing nearby, also had a similar expression to Cedric’s.

“Don’t expect too much, as it might be off the mark.”

After all, she didn’t possess intricate knowledge about hunting.

Even so, if there was something she could use among her available options, she wanted to resolve the situation by any means necessary.

＊ ＊ ＊

“Is this a magic stone?”

A few days later, a small red stone was brought to her by Julius, slightly delayed from the report on the monster’s extermination.

The stone was about the size of Melfina’s fingernail and, while it had the same shape as familiar magic stones, its color was much darker. If a regular magic stone resembled a deep crimson ruby, this fire magic stone was a pale red, reminiscent of a glass bead.

“It doesn’t emit much magical power in its core state, but please avoid bringing it too close to your eyes. We will store it in the temple later, and it will be returned with its magical power drained. After that, a magician can imbue it with magic to use it as a magic stone.”

“I will take care of that, Lady. I have plenty of magical power, so you can leave it to me.”

Julius, though not a magician but rather employed as an alchemist, offered to handle it. However, given that Julius often sleeps due to his excess magical power, Melfina would likely accept his offer in spirit rather than relying on him directly.

“That trap, the spring trap, was quite effective. I didn’t expect it to catch anything on the very night it was set.”

“The sound of it activating alerted the sentry soldiers immediately, so the response was quick. As expected, it was a fox-type monster. I only assisted in extracting the magic stone, but it was about the size of a wolf. It was immobilized, so it was dispatched with a sword.”

The words that no one was injured elicited a sigh of relief from Melfina.

Though her knowledge of spring traps was somewhat vague, the basic explanation was sufficient for Roy and Carl, the blacksmiths, to calculate the necessary conditions and strength of the mechanism without much difficulty.

The spring trap itself was quite simple in design, and the two quickly began its construction. Thus, last night it was set, and this morning the monster that had caused anxiety in the Enkar region was now a magic stone before Melfina.

“Cedric, what about the spring trap?”

“It was retrieved immediately. Since I was the one who set it up, only a few people, including the soldiers who defeated the monster, have seen it.”

Melfina nodded deeply in response.

“That trap is simple in structure, easy to mass-produce, and works on both beasts and humans. Since I don’t intend to distribute it widely, please give it to Roy and Carl to be melted down.”

“Is it not necessary to keep some in reserve for future use?”

“Perhaps it would be safer to prepare just the components for assembly and then build the traps as needed whenever a monster appears.”

Currently, in the Enkar region, both agriculture and livestock are running smoothly. Although the proximity of the forest means there are occasional pests, the need for hunting for survival is minimal.

Spring traps are very cruel. Someone in this world might invent them eventually, but Melfina was hesitant to introduce them herself.

“…Lady Melfina, if it’s not too much trouble, might it be possible for you to share this trap with His Grace?”

“With the Duke?”

“I believe this would be very useful for the extermination of Sasurika.”

Cedric, always serious, spoke with an unusually grave and intense demeanor.

“The Sasurika, right? I’ve heard they are monsters similar to monkeys?”

“Not as much as Pluina, but they emit strong magical power and are agile, unlike the slow-moving Pluina. They move in all directions. The basic countermeasure is to scout and eliminate them individually as soon as they are found. However, due to their speed and numbers, they cause damage equal to or greater than Pluina each year.”

“Oh, I’ve heard of them too. There was a story about tying cattle to stakes driven into the ground to gather them in one place for extermination, only to find the next morning that the Sasurika had burst from overeating and the cattle were reduced to bones. It seems they swarm anything that moves and won’t stop eating until they’ve died from it.”

Julius’s tone was light, but Melfina frowned at the gruesome content.

“If we set those traps around the bait animals, we could capture Sasurika with a very high probability. Since the appearance of Pluina is generally predictable, setting them up beforehand could prevent a significant number of soldier casualties.”

“…Let me think about it for a moment.”

“I apologize for overstepping.”

“No, it’s much better than being ignorant. Thank you for sharing this with me, Lord Julius.”

Cedric had likely participated in the extermination of Pluina before. His tone was matter-of-fact, but there was an underlying sense of yearning.

No matter how cruel the spring trap was, if it could reduce the human casualties among knights and soldiers, Melfina had no choice but to agree.

As Cedric wished, she would instruct Alexis about the trap’s effectiveness and manufacturing technique.

“Thank you both for your hard work. Marie, please inform Cliff and Rad to send a large barrel of cheering ale to the soldiers. Also, let Enkar and Melto villages know that the monster has been dealt with. They will surely feel relieved.”

“Understood.”

“I will take care of the expenses.”

“I’ll head back to my room. I’m so tired I could die.”

Melfina gave Julius a gentle push, making sure he walked back to his room, before the three of them left.

Marie would return soon, but being alone outside of her bedroom felt like a rare occurrence.

Sitting down in her office chair, she clasped her hands tightly on the desk.

It had been barely a week since the calf incident, but the constant tension had left her utterly exhausted.

The emergence of a single monster had led to such fear and large-scale actions. What kind of heavy responsibility would it be to confront a four-star monster?

Although Enkar was technically independent from the Oldrand domain, it was still a part of the northern region. It was because the Oldrand family undertook the extermination of four-star monsters that the region could continue its development without being overrun by such formidable creatures.

She had heard from a stationed knight that Sasurika, the subordinates of Pluina, appeared in numbers of around a hundred and attacked living creatures. After hearing about their dreadful habits from Julius, Melfina couldn’t choose not to cooperate.

Even if it was clear as day that the traps might be used for other purposes in the future.
The knowledge from my previous life does not only bring kind and beneficial things to this world.

That was the day I truly realized this.