HDBMTD 65

HDBMTD | Chapter 65

Posted by Ruby, Released on August 13, 2025

~Chapter 65~

While eating jerky and rummaging through the drawers, the Princess suddenly muttered,

“Found it.”

Jason looked up and saw a uniquely shaped metal rod in her hand.

“What is that?”

Instead of answering, the Princess felt along the wall. Her fingertips found a tiny gap, and she inserted the rod into it.

Click.
Part of the wall pushed in, revealing a hidden door.

“Wow, how did you know?”

“Cambiatas love things like this.”

Of course. If he had come alone, he would never have guessed that the rod was a key. The Princess naturally disabled the lock mechanism as well.

When the door opened, Jason instinctively stepped back.

As the darkness lifted, rows of gleaming metal appeared—pistols, daggers, crossbows, and unidentified mechanical devices.

Lethal killing tools were neatly lined up like luxury goods.

So this is the Cambiata’s weapon stash I’ve only heard about…

Beside frozen Jason, a sigh of relief came from the Princess.

“At least they haven’t fully recovered. They don’t even have decent weapons now.”

“…Huh?”

While Jason looked at her in confusion, she found a small palm-sized gun deep inside the arsenal. Her red eyes lit up in joy.

“At least there’s one useful thing.”

“It’s small enough to carry around hidden.”

“This is the real deal. It’s made entirely from high-grade monster cores.”

She tucked the gun away and gestured to Jason.

“Pick one for yourself. Cambiatas are Normers, so they put their lives on their weapons. Even if they’re not like the old days, most of these are still quality artifacts.”

“Then… I’ll take a sword.”

While Jason picked a weapon, the Princess stood silently for a moment. When he looked back questioningly, she said,

“Reinforcements just arrived.”

“All four of them?”

“Six. The hospital sent two more B-class Eshapes.”

“That’s great news!”

Jason’s face brightened. They desperately needed manpower to kill the wraiths and evacuate survivors.

“We should take weapons for the reinforcements too. Oh, there’s even a space-transfer artifact here.”

Like a grandmother packing snacks for her grandkids, she began stuffing weapons generously. For someone who’d just complained about the lack of good ones, she was surprisingly thorough.

Then, she froze, staring into empty space. Jason realized she was communicating mentally with someone, and her expression worried him.

“Bad news?”

“They’ve reported to Nocturne.”

Jason hesitated.

“Well… it is something worth reporting.”

“You think he’s mad?”

“…Honestly, yeah, probably.”

The Princess silently packed the documents and weapons into a bag. Jason slung the unconscious woman they had rescued from the chair onto his back and took the bag as well.

They left the small room loaded with loot.

“If we finish without a scratch, it should be fine.”

“I’m suddenly scared. Even if I die, I’ll make sure you don’t get hurt, Princess.”

“My safety’s not more important than your life.”

“No. If you get hurt, I’ll be killed by the Duke anyway, so I might as well die here.”

The Princess turned her head toward the giant wraith. It was in a deep sleep, and the iron bars seemed sturdy. There should be no problem for now.

“After handing the rescued woman and weapons to the reinforcements, let’s raid the Cambiata base.”

“Yes!”

Later…

Low-ranking member Doc overheard some of the older guys talking about the boss late at night.

“Our boss is really beautiful.”

“She’s pretty, sure… but I think you’re just smitten.”

They said the boss had come last night to check the giant wraith. Even after seeing it wasn’t S-class, she didn’t get angry, just treated it kindly—and she was stunningly beautiful.

Our boss is kind and beautiful…

Doc wondered if he might see her himself. The next morning, he eagerly went outside early, but found three men standing at the breeding pen entrance.

“Who are you?”

Before he could finish, the fattest man smacked him on the head.

“You don’t know who I am?”

“W-who are you…?”

“I’m Arthur Linata.”

“…What?”

Doc looked up in confusion at the huge man with a scar across his left eye and a vicious look.

“She’s our boss!”

“That’s right, idiot! Now open the pen!”

Under that glare, Doc hurried to unlock the gate, his hands trembling.

It wasn’t the smack on the head that made him despair, nor being insulted for not recognizing the boss as a newbie.

It was just…

He glanced back at the “boss.”

Our boss is really beautiful.
She’s pretty, sure… but I think you’re just smitten.

The older guys’ lives must have been tragic.
What kind of life makes you have that standard?

They say people are products of their environment… If I stay here, will I end up like that too?

Doc began seriously considering changing jobs.

The boss, meanwhile, was angry that the giant wraith wasn’t S-class yet and smacked Doc again, then gave an order:

“Start by setting fire to the slums.”

“Yes!”

Doc rushed off. The arson job was to destroy evidence. They had already placed oil and flammable materials all over the slums. All Doc had to do was activate the artifacts placed at key ventilation spots between buildings.

But as soon as he entered the town, he felt something was off. By the time he reached the center, he realized what it was.

“…Where did all the corpses lying around go?”

Maybe they’d turned into wraiths… but this many?

Just as he hesitated, gunshots rang out from the direction he was headed.

Weird. There should only be Cambiata members alive here. Who would they be shooting at?

Doc hid between buildings and moved cautiously. Peeking around a corner, he saw a woman floating three slum residents in midair as she moved them.

That’s…!

An Eshape.

She’s not one of ours!

Shocked, Doc turned to run back to the breeding pen.

The older guys said the Empire joined hands with Cambiata, so no one would get in our way anymore.

Then… who was that?