The Villainess That Was Once A VRMMO player - CH 62.1

Farewell and Departure

The top of the Royal Castle, the highest point in the Caenista Kingdom and a symbol of royal authority, built for the first king to look down on his people while surrounded by treasures, was destroyed.

“My God… what has happened? What happened to my treasure!?”

“Well, fortunately, only the spire was broken, and since no one usually goes near that area, no one died, although some people were seriously injured by the flying debris…”

“I don’t care about that! What about the treasure!”

A civil official, who appeared to be a middle-class nobleman, reported the situation, and the King of Caenista approached the civil official, shouting as if he was about to grab the official.

The treasury in the spire, which only the king could enter, was filled with gold coins and gold given to the king as a favor by nobles from other countries and within the country.

These were the personal assets of the king, not of the state, and he used the money to keep a large number of mistresses and to indulge in extravagant spending. But that was not a bad thing. The king circulated a large amount of money on a budget separate from that of the state, and this was part of the reason why the economy, albeit only in the Royal Capital area, was able to keep going.

Generation after generation of kings has spent the majority of the money they acquired before dying, rather than passing it down to their children, the next generation of kings. However, because the previous king collapsed due to an unexpected death, many assets remained, and when combined with the assets collected by the current king, he personally owned the largest assets of all the kings in history.

“Well, umm… the treasury, along with the spires, has been completely blown away, so most of it is either gone, or scattered throughout the Royal Capital along with some minor debris…”

“What! There were over 10,000 large gold coins in there! And now…. Damn you! Prime Minister! Find out the cause of this matter at once! And recover the scattered treasures immediately! The commoners must have stolen it!”

“…Yes, sir.”

According to eyewitness accounts, a massive thunderbolt from the heavens swept down like a sword, destroying the spire, and most of the treasure was thought to have vanished.

And although the civil officials reported that it was scattered throughout the Royal Capital, most of the gold, which was of great weight, was, in fact, scattered throughout the castle courtyard and other areas, where it had all been embezzled by the castle workers. It was obviously foolish to steal the money and then blame it on the commoners, but the nobles were relieved that the king’s wrath had not been directed at them.

The incident, dubbed “God’s Wrath,” was dismissed as a natural disaster, with only dozens of people seriously injured by debris in the castle, a few people missing, a few slightly injured by flying debris in the Royal Capital, and a few knights and nobles killed by unlucky direct hits from the debris.

Among the missing was the subhuman young lady, the former fiancée of the king’s brother, but this was soon buried by the king’s subsequent outburst.

***

“Setup [Arjuna Cloche]”

I was currently hiding in the Royal Capital. Flare was supposed to be working behind the scenes to get my servants out of the Royal Capital, so it would be best to wait outside the Royal Capital, but before I escape from the Royal Capital, I’d like to complete the tasks that have been bothering me.

The Royal Capital was in quite a commotion, which was understandable since the entire top portion of the castle, which could be seen from anywhere in the Royal Capital, disappeared.

In the Royal Capital, subhumans would risk being reported and entangled if they were discovered, but in the current chaos, it would not be difficult to lurk for a few days.

But when I arrived at my destination, I found myself in a bit of trouble.

“Cam…”

I was hoping to make sure Cam was safe and to have a little chat with him before I left, but it seemed that the king still considers Cam to be a danger.

To prevent Cam from acting suspiciously, the castle’s knights and soldiers, whom I had never seen before, surrounded Cam’s house and restricted access to it.

But this deftness might be the Prime Minister or the Duke of Prata rather than the King. I also had [Concealment Skill], but it wasn’t very high, so sneaking into a guarded area with a large number of people, even if it was just to check on them, was difficult.

The access was restricted so the butler, Nicholas, didn’t come out either, so I couldn’t contact him.

Should I write him a letter to let him know I was safe? No, I believe it would be reviewed regardless, and I couldn’t leave any evidence of my survival after Flare made me disappear.

Still…I owe Flare quite a bit.

Flare was still a terrible person, but I guess there was a subtle camaraderie between us that made Flare look cool, which was troublesome.

I quietly wait for night to fall and try to get in by relying on my status from the high wall, where the security seems to be weak.

After all, there were many knights inside. The Prime Minister and the Duke of Prata use pretty good knights, so I didn’t see any soldiers drunk on liquor like I saw in the Arceides frontier territory.

I thought about using dark magic to confuse them, but I dismissed the idea because Cam might be blamed if a commotion broke out.

I tried to figure out if I could break into the building somewhere on top of a tree in the yard. …Oh, the rose that Cam planted for me was trampled…

I was about to leave, feeling a little down, when a window on the third floor terrace opened and a man appeared.

“…Cam.”

Thank God he was okay. He was safe.

Because this world used magic to build, I assumed there would be no damage inside the castle, which was stronger than reinforced concrete, but it was still a relief to see him unharmed.

Cam looked up at the moon at the night sky in silence.

I wondered what he was thinking about right now…. I would like to talk to him, but knights were patrolling in the yard in plain view, so I doubt I could get any closer.

Time to go home… I thought and turned my back to look at Cam one last time, and at the same time my eyes met with Cam’s, who lowered his face.

“”…”””

He looked like he was about to cry…. Cam tried to say something, but I stopped him by shaking my head.

Then, after staring at each other from a distance for a bit, I turned away and left the place, using the space transition to escape from the Royal Capital.

I did not know how much of that exchange got through to him, but I didn’t want him to do anything too reckless…