Wasn’t This Supposed To Be a Strategy Game?

“…Since she tells me to trust her, I have no choice but to do so.”

“…Excuse me?”

Ronpel furrowed his brows.

‘No choice but to trust?’

Hearing such unbelievable words from Asmun, Ronpel was taken aback.

He had already noticed that his master had been acting a little strange lately… but trusting

? Especially after what happened with Count Retten, his wariness should have only grown stronger.

“…Who are you referring to?”

But Ronpel never got an answer.

Because at that very moment, a massive shadow loomed behind Asmun.

“Your Highness!”

Ronpel shouted at the top of his lungs and rushed toward Asmun. But before he could even reach him, Asmun had already drawn his sword.

In the blink of an eye, he cut down the monster that had lunged at him.

KRAAAAH—!

With a gut-wrenching scream, the massive creature was split clean in half.

THUD—!

The beast collapsed to the ground, splitting into two with a thunderous impact that made the earth tremble.

Ronpel and the knights paled as they stared at the bisected corpse.

Though they had never seen this particular creature before, it was undoubtedly a mid-to-high-level monster.

And yet, Asmun had slain it with a single strike.

With the same calm expression, he wiped the blood off his blade and sheathed it.

His own face was stained with dark crimson blood.

Ronpel trembled at the terrifying sight.

“…We need to stay on guard. If monsters like

are roaming this place…”

Just then, a voice rang out from the distance, filled with elation.

“I—I found it!”

Ronpel’s head snapped toward the source of the voice.

Asmun, who had just finished wiping his face, also turned his gaze toward the commotion.

Through the gaps of fallen trees, a fully armed man came sprinting toward them, shouting at the top of his lungs.

“Your Highness! We found it! It’s

a mine!”

The sheer excitement in his voice made Ronpel’s eyes widen in shock.

Meanwhile, Asmun’s crimson eyes darkened.

He pulled on the reins, and his horse immediately obeyed, moving forward.

Ronpel and the other knights hurriedly followed him.

After pushing through the fallen trees, a mysterious glow came into view.

It was the entrance to a mine.

The knights stared at the luminous cave, struck speechless by its otherworldly radiance.

One of the men, barely regaining his composure, approached Asmun with both hands extended.

“Your Highness!”

Asmun took the object the man was offering.

“……”

Resting on his dragon-leather gloves was a magic stone—a high-purity one, glowing with an eerie blue light.

“It’s a magic stone, Your Highness! And not just any—this is a top-tier magic stone mine!”

Ronpel let out a gasp of disbelief.

“This kind of magic stone… Even in the Runmirt Mine, only a handful of these are found! This is

rare, Your Highness!”

At that moment, Asmun turned to look at the mine, recalling Eden’s words.

Once again, Eden’s words had proven true.

The Runmirt Mine was located in the Grand Duchy of Yuren, the largest and most valuable mine in the empire.

She was right.

Even the unregistered Tebel Mine had brought Asmun substantial profits, but magic stones were on an entirely different level.

There were countless uses for them, but their most common application was in scrolls produced by the Magic Tower.

Scrolls were the only way for those without innate magic to combat monsters, making them absolutely essential.

In an empire where monster attacks were a constant threat, life without magic stones was

.

Yet, only four magic stone mines existed in the empire, and of those, only two produced top-tier stones.

And now, Asmun had just discovered the fifth mine.

“…Ha.”

A cold laugh escaped his lips.

“Your Highness, what should we do?”

Ronpel, barely regaining his senses, whispered cautiously.

Even he seemed overwhelmed by the sheer weight of this discovery.

Managing the unregistered Tebel Mine had already been a massive undertaking…

As a harsh wind swept through, Ronpel shuddered.

“…Should we keep it a secret—”

“No.”

“…Excuse me?”

Asmun clenched the magic stone in his hand and turned to face Ronpel.

“We’re heading straight to the Imperial Palace.”

“……What?”

Ronpel and the knights stared at him in stunned silence, their eyes wide with disbelief.

Only Asmun remained composed.

“We found a magic stone mine. It must be reported to His Majesty immediately.”

His words left them speechless.

And yet, without hesitation, Asmun tucked the stone away and began preparing for departure.

“Half of you will stay behind to guard the mine. The rest will accompany me.”

Asmun grabbed his reins.

Seeing this, Ronpel straightened his posture, regaining his composure.

“…Understood, Your Highness!”

***

Meanwhile, on the day of the scheduled meeting…

After arriving at the Imperial Palace in the carriage sent by Ivatan, Eden found herself face-to-face with an unexpected person.

Standing before her with a bright smile was Karon, the Holy Knight Captain.

“…It’s been a while, Priestess Eden.”

Eden glanced between Ivatan, who remained expressionless, and Karon, who was smiling at her.

Ivatan briefly glanced at Karon before turning to Eden.

“…You two know each other?”

“Of course.”

Karon’s smile widened as he looked at Eden.

Eden, caught in his gaze, gave a slightly awkward bow.

Something about his presence made her tense up.

Both Ivatan and Karon were important figures she needed to either recruit or utilize in this world…

But she hadn’t expected to face both of them together so soon.

“I called the Holy Knight Captain here because this matter concerns monster extermination.”

“…Ah, I see.”

Eden nodded at Ivatan’s explanation.

Well, if Ivatan handled the bureaucratic side, Karon was responsible for field operations. It made sense for them to work together.

“I’ll get straight to the point. Priestess Eden, we need your assistance with monster research.”

Karon frowned slightly and looked at Eden with a puzzled expression.

Clearly, he hadn’t been informed about her ability yet.

Ivatan, anticipating Karon’s reaction, continued,

“Priestess Eden has the ability to read information about monsters—their weaknesses and potential uses. This has already been proven internally.”

Eden shifted slightly as Ivatan’s sharp gaze focused on her.

Karon’s reaction was as expected.

“…Information on monsters?”

As a Holy Knight, he had encountered countless priests in his life, but he had

heard of an ability like this before.

Not from a priest, nor from

.

“She can see a monster’s data just by looking at it. Weaknesses, applications, everything.”

Ivatan’s matter-of-fact explanation only deepened Karon’s disbelief.

For a moment, he just

at Eden.

Feeling slightly embarrassed, Eden gave him a small smile.

Karon hesitated, struggling to find the right words.

“…How—”

Before he could finish, Ivatan cut in.

“She was the one who figured out how to kill Carcillante.”

At that, Karon’s head whipped toward Ivatan.

“…Carcillante? How?”

“Yes. The answer was dragon-type monster fire. If you don’t believe it, we can head underground right now, and I’ll prove it to you.”

Ivatan’s calm tone was unwavering.

Karon, faced with undeniable proof, finally turned back to Eden.

This time, his gaze was filled with a mix of awe and confusion.

Eden simply smiled back.

No, the chapter is not fully translated yet. The last part of the chapter, where Ivatan makes a proposal to Eden about leaving the temple and working directly for the Imperial Palace, has not been translated yet. I will now continue with the rest of the chapter.

“…Then, what exactly would you like me to do?”

Eden cautiously asked.

Ivatan’s gaze remained steady as if he had been waiting for this question.

“Just as you did last time—help us analyze monsters.”

Then, after a brief pause, he added,

“You are still an apprentice priest, correct?”

“Yes.”

Eden tilted her head slightly, wondering why he was suddenly asking about this.

“I would like to make you an offer.”

“…An offer?”

Ivatan looked at her for a moment before speaking in a firm, unwavering tone.

“Abandon your path to becoming a priest. Stay in the Imperial Palace and dedicate yourself to monster extermination.”

A heavy silence filled the room.

Eden’s eyes widened slightly in shock, and even Karon, who had been quietly listening, turned stiffly toward Ivatan.

Ivatan, however, remained completely calm, waiting for her response.

“…What?”

For a moment, Eden was too stunned to even process his words.

She hadn’t expected this turn of events at all.

“Of course, you will be compensated however you wish. If needed, we can create an official position for you. I guarantee you will find life in the palace far more satisfying than the temple.”

Ivatan’s proposal was direct and unyielding.

Before Eden could respond, Karon—who had been silent up until now—finally spoke.