We got a lot of information using the memories of Saya. Of course, I didn't tell the two about my theory on who was the person holding the flute and caused the debuff infliction that made them insane and turn into monsters. After all, I still didn't meet the wife of the Shogun and learned about her therefore, it would be weird if I told them about it. Not just yet. But I will say to them later once they learn more about the wife or they might question me on how I know these things.
There are more things being known to us, especially the state of the capital. The populace of the place is still intact but most of them are living in fear. Also, it is not safe for travelers as well or new faces to venture there as well as they are either detained or killed by the soldiers making our first plan to keep quiet and enter the capital not valid as we are not familiar faces and we will be immediately attacked by the soldiers. The people there also don't help strangers as they would rather have other people die instead of them, stopping us from getting help by asking some villagers for some escape points.
"So that means if we head straight there, we will be blazing through the enemies, and destroy them by force then? What are we going to do then? Fight all the soldiers and their elite officers until we face off against the Shogun?" Queen Tori asked after hearing my thoughts regarding the memory replay.
"That's the only way we can enter that place. There is no way we can get in there and even if we did manage to silently come in, we couldn't go in and investigate there as the people will just more likely report you to the soldiers which will in turn sabotage our hideout and make various trouble for us. So in short, if we want to avoid trouble completely and free ourselves of potential headaches, then we rush head-on and continue fighting until no one is left. There is no way to save the soldiers anymore as the debuff has been too much embedded in their bodies and the curse has changed them from humans to monsters so killing them is the only way to "save" them from themselves," I explained as that is the only best way to face off the shogun.
"Fighting the enemies head-on without the need for any negotiations... I like that. Straight to the point and I can even fight to my very best as well and wreak havoc to the point of destroying everything huh?" Queen Tanya grinned, excited at the new opportunity to fight.
"Come on, Sis. You fought before to your heart's content just the other day and now you are itching to fight again?" Queen Tori couldn't understand why her sister is always out for the blood.
"Ah, come on, Sis. Don't be such a wet blanket. Fighting enemies with all your might and emerging victorious always gives you the blood-pumping feeling of rush and the feeling is very good for your body. Not only that, but it also builds muscles and a tough body as well. Not only that but it also helps you react much better in battles as you continue to slay, allowing you to be more capable in battles without the fear of being defeated. Isn't it neat?"
"Ugh... I don't really get it but I don't really care. But Bladeheart, you know that the Shogun does not employ his soldiers alone but also weapons to fight back. I heard from Ran that the Shogun uses cannons at times. Doesn't that sound bad?"
"Not really. Cannons might sound a bit intimidating but during battles, they are not that dangerous. Grapeshot attacks are troublesome but they can be blocked easily by any defensive abilities and normal cannonballs can be destroyed in midair. They are just a nuisance but they aren't that troublesome in the first place. Don't worry about them. If you still feel like it will be a problem, then when the time comes, I will deal with it."
"So that means we should go now? There's no point in us delaying it, right?"
"Nope, we will have to prepare. Remember the person that seemed to be the bard that inflicted the debuffs on everyone? We needed to counter the sound or nullify it completely to ensure that we have a smooth sailing experience in the fight we will be heading. It would be troublesome if we were the ones who will be inflicted by it and I doubt we would like to undergo the same transformation as the soldiers, yes?" I reminded them as that will affect us too bad on us, especially those who might be vulnerable in default. As for me, I can die and revive anyways though I prefer to not die, it's not that big of a problem to me.
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that thing. We need to counter the bard on using its effects. But what do we even do? Plug our ears?" Queen Tori tilted her head.
"No way. That will diminish our reaction time as a result. I don't like that at all!" Queen Tanya shook her head, not fully in agreement with the earplugs.
"I will have to design a few things we might be able to use. I have a few ideas and I just needed to build them. I need around two days to fully finish it."
"Two days... that's good as that also means we can have two more days of rest until the battle comes. My body still feels sore after all the things we have experienced and I don't think I am up for another one so soon," Queen Tori lies down into the tatami, closing her eyes.
"Really? I feel fine though?" Queen Tanya stretches her body.
"Ugh, dammit Sis, I know you are built differently but come on. Not everyone is built the same as you."
I leave the two bickering as I start to mentally plan on what to do next. Thankfully, I don't need to use a workshop to create anything related to what I think will help counter the flute user bard. A normal table will do.
I thought of earplugs at first but since Queen Tanya is against them due to the fact that it reduces her hearing which contributes to her senses to her fights, it's a big no-go then. Which comes with some kind of equipment. Debuff immune items will be a good help but I don't think it's pretty practical and useful. If a bard uses music, that also means the bard uses the ears to inflict debuffs on those who can hear which will tend to make the equipment useless if they can easily bypass that by just entering the ears.
In short, I needed to make an item that can cover the ears but does not impend the hearing of the person wearing it, only covering the ears to stop hearing the noises of any music and other stuff that would make big trouble if heard.
Which means something like an ear plug but not an ear plug. That's when I thought of the headphones and ear muffs. Although ear muffs can be considered ear plugs, it does not really cover many sounds as an ear plug does and still allows sounds to be heard. Which is perfect for the purpose of plugging the ears but not fully blocking the sound.
Headphones on the other hand are a bit different. Can be used as something of a transceiver to receive voice commands from others like the teammates who also wear one. Of course, there is the music player as well. If we want to counter the music of a bard, use another music to counter it.
Although both items do not exist here in Alternate World doesn't mean I can't make it. These two will become new items but has the flavor of the modern technology that does not exist in Alternate World. I have the materials and the necessary designs I can make for it as well. The only thing left to do is finish it up and create it.
Our plan is reckless but this will become something we will be going to need if we want to finish this event. I even have to abandon the first plan of recruiting the wife of the shogun as well. If the wife of the shogun is the main culprit of the soldiers transforming into monsters, then she is not an innocent victim but another adversary that is needed to be defeated. There is no way that she will act like this and pretend it wasn't her fault. Although the Shogun is still the main threat, the wife might be a wolf hiding in sheep's skin. In fact, she might even be a bigger trouble than I imagine as well.
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