Chapter 19

“True, are you hungry? Or thirsty?”

After adding Moon and True to their group, Princess Kana and the others purified two more mana pools and were now preparing to camp for the night.

“A little hungry… But Moon made water for me sometimes, so I’m not that thirsty.”

“There is no need to hold back. We have enough provisions to feed this entire group, so a little child like you will hardly make a dent by eating and drinking a bit.”

Standing in front of the tent that had already been pitched especially for her, Princess Kana held out a thin, lightly baked wheat cake meant as a snack to True and said,

“Besides, look over there.”

Where she pointed, the Fenrir was ravenously tearing into some meat. Royal Court Magician Bart was happily stroking its back. Apparently, the dog-loving magician had wasted no time feeding Moon.

(When he acts like that, he really is nothing but a dog.)

“So you really were hungry. Moon gave almost all the food he found to me. He said Divine Beasts are fine even if they don’t eat much…”

“That is probably no lie. My white foxes hardly eat either. But they also said they can eat as much as they please when it is something they like, so I suppose that is simply how such creatures are.”

With that, she urged him to take another wheat cake, telling him there was no need to be reserved.

“It is not quite a rice cracker, but it is mildly sweet and rather tasty. Two or three more should not spoil your supper. And this seems to be cow’s milk. I find the smell a little bothersome, but I have heard it is good for children.”

So eat it with that, she said, offering him a vessel filled with the white liquid as well.

“We shall reach the royal capital tomorrow. As for what comes afterward, Henry said that if you do not object, he would be willing to employ you as a general helper in the magicians’ dormitory. The dog may come too, of course. Though only on the condition that he remains that size.”

“Really?”

He must have been thirstier than he had admitted. True, who had been gulping down the milk, looked up at her with a white streak still above his mouth.

“William has no objections either, so there is no problem.”

“Thank you, big sister!”

‘Big Sister!’

Her younger sister Aki’s face overlapped with his. Princess Kana found it strange, considering they had almost nothing in common besides their approximate age and build.

(I wonder if Aki is well. I hope she has not been making unreasonable demands again and troubling her nursemaid… Even that child, who adored me so much, must have forgotten me by now…)

Remembering the small hands that used to cling to her while calling, Big Sister, Big Sister, made Princess Kana’s chest tighten. At the same time, she understood why the child before her reminded her so strongly of Aki.

(Ah, I see. Their voices sound a little alike. That is why…)

Watching True happily stuff his cheeks with wheat cake soaked in cow’s milk, the princess indulged in a brief moment of sentimentality.

The next morning. After purifying one relatively small mana pool, Princess Kana returned to the royal castle, where Shaila and Aldridge greeted her with visibly relieved expressions.

Although she had returned earlier than planned, she told them that she did not want to deal with anything troublesome for the rest of the day and therefore wished to keep Zenki and Goki materialized. The two exchanged slightly complicated looks, but quickly replied, “Understood.”

After entrusting True and Moon to Magician Bart, the princess told Aldridge and Shaila that there was something she wanted to show them immediately and invited them to the magicians’ training grounds.

Naturally, William, Burley, Beaton, and Henry accompanied them as well.

Once they reached the training grounds, Princess Kana took both of the jars in question from her mysterious storage box and placed them side by side on the ground.

“I have already purified them, so I believe they are safe, but it would still be best not to touch them carelessly.”

“Saintess, what are these?”

“Tools of sorcery. They were buried inside the mana pools.”

Princess Kana answered Aldridge’s question.

“Sorcery…”

Upon hearing that word, Aldridge smoothly stepped forward as though shielding the queen.

“Indeed. And these were not the only two.”

From there, William took over the explanation.

He explained that similar objects had been found in every mana pool Princess Kana had purified, making it highly likely that they were the cause of the mana pools themselves. Moreover, since they were clearly man-made, there was a strong possibility that this was part of an invasion plan by another country.

He also explained everything about the situation in Clutchfield and what Dawkins had done.

He further added that the head of the Babbage Trading Company, who had given Dawkins unnecessary advice, had been staying at the temple in Clutchfield.

At first, the two listened with astonished expressions, but those gradually shifted into quiet anger. Aldridge in particular became so furious that his expression alone caused William to involuntarily stop speaking.

“I suspect the empire is responsible. Moreover, there are collaborators or traitors within the kingdom. The Babbage Trading Company in particular seems suspicious.”

At Beaton’s words, the queen bit her lip and nodded.

“Regarding that matter—Burley, bring me that.”

What Princess Kana received from the extermination commander was the map she had drawn using a Shiki before the expedition began.

“I do not understand it well myself, but William said something about it seemed rather strange. This part here.”

Princess Kana pointed to a certain territory. The moment Aldridge saw it, the creases between his brows deepened even further, and the sound of his grinding molars could be heard from his clenched jaw.

“Indeed. But I never imagined it would be this blatant. I remember the reports submitted to the crown showing somewhat more than this, but it seems those reports were falsified.”

Managing to say that much, he turned toward the queen as though seeking confirmation. Shaila nodded while rubbing a finger against her temple. With that, everyone present recognized that the lord of that territory was either a traitor or somehow involved with the traitors.

“Then, Beaton, I leave this matter to the knight order. I apologize for asking so soon after your return, but I want it resolved as quickly as possible.”

“Understood. I’ll move as soon as preparations are complete.”

“And regarding the drawing the Saintess left in my care…”

Apparently calming his emotions by taking a deep breath and slowly exhaling, Aldridge returned to his usual composed self and began giving a detailed account of everything that had happened at the castle during Princess Kana’s absence, including the matter of the silver brooch.

“At present, we are reinvestigating that man, including his relationship with the murdered individual.”

When the chancellor concluded, William asked him a question.

“Chancellor, could that brooch possibly have belonged to my great-uncle?”

“As expected, Your Highness is aware of it. That is correct. Nearly fifty years ago, the late king gave it to his younger brother, Lord Milford, when he left the royal family to join House Arclight as a subject.”

As he spoke, he removed several sheets of paper from a document folder. The top sheet bore a design drawing of the brooch.

“Lord Milford was betrothed to Lady Candice, the only daughter of House Arclight, and it was decided that he would inherit the ducal title on the condition that a child born between him and Lady Candice would become the house’s successor. However, until such a child was safely born, his position remained somewhat ambiguous. Concerned about that, His Majesty gave him the brooch as an object that would demonstrate his status.”

The sheet beneath it contained two illustrations. One depicted the same brooch as before, while the other looked similar but differed in several places, with notes and cautions written in the center explaining those distinctions. When viewed side by side like this, the differences between the two were easy to identify.

“However, because it was ultimately a gift to someone who had become a subject, His Majesty deliberately ordered it made of silver. The rose on the shield was changed to a five-petaled rose, and its color was specified as vermilion to represent the fire magic Lord Milford excelled at. Four were made in total, including spares in case of damage or repairs. Every one was individually numbered.”

With that, he returned the papers to the document folder.

“Lord Milford must have been deeply touched by His Majesty’s consideration. Even after his child was born and he formally inherited the ducal house, he continued wearing the brooch for many years. However, there was concern that someone who later obtained one of those brooches by some means might see the crest and misunderstand its significance, so legislation addressing that possibility was enacted nearly forty years ago.”

Saying that, he then produced a thick book from seemingly nowhere and opened it to a particular page. There, the brooch in question and the laws governing its treatment were recorded.

It clearly stated: 【Even should a person outside the direct line of the ducal house possess one of the brooches described above, said person shall be regarded as having no connection whatsoever to the royal family.】

“Furthermore, the brooch bearing the number two was reported lost by the former duke himself twenty-five years ago. Since it clearly passed into the hands of someone whom he could not publicly admit having given it to, I suspect the recipient was a woman.”

“Then is the arrested man the former duke’s son?”

“No. Your Highness may not know this, but approximately thirty years ago, when an illness that caused swelling beneath the ears spread through the kingdom, the former duke contracted it. According to the physicians, Lord Milford became unlikely to father children after that. Therefore, I suspect the man is actually the son of the current duke, Lord Maxwell.”

Aldridge added that this was still only speculation.

“Then the father and son were conspiring together?”

William asked, but,

“Strangely enough, that does not appear to be the case.”

The chancellor gave a wry smile and explained that the captured man seemed to believe himself to be the current king’s younger brother.

“Well, the royal family would never have its crest fashioned in anything other than gold, but many commoners and lower-ranking nobles are unaware of that.”

After saying so, he closed the book and put it away somewhere again. Finding this curious, Princess Kana asked,

“Aldridge, was that just now your Magic Box?”

“No. Mine is called 【Library】, and it can only store books. Moreover, it has a limit of five hundred volumes. Still, given the nature of my work, it is extremely convenient, so I make considerable use of it.”

At those words, the princess imagined Aldridge carrying on his back a bookshelf large enough to hold five hundred books and thought he would look rather like a snail, though she wisely kept that observation to herself.

Since they had been told that the captured man refused to speak except to ask whether they had figured out who he was, Princess Kana devised a plan.

“I have a good idea. This.”

She took out one of the jars she had just put away.

“That fellow may know what this is, may he not? If so, we can expect an even stronger effect.”

A little fright ought to loosen even the tightest lips, she said with a laugh before calling for the white fox with the floral markings.

“Kaō, canst thou perform Oboro Dance?”

“At once—”

“Let us see… Hashiridokoro or Mandrake should do nicely.”

“Oh! Are you certain we may use those?”

“In small quantities. Enough only to cause a few hallucinations.”

“Then take care not to approach while the technique is active. Should anyone accidentally breathe it in, it would be quite dangerous.”

“Indeed. In that case, Henry, is there magic that can carry a voice? And perhaps magic that can preserve what someone says? It would be dangerous to remain nearby, so I would rather keep as much distance as possible.”

“There is. We can carry a voice on wind magic, and this preservation magic circle should work perfectly for recording it. I also know one person particularly skilled in wind magic.”

“Then I leave it to you. Here is the plan. First, I shall…”

Clunk.

Hearing the sound of something being set down, Darren looked toward it and saw a familiar jar that had somehow appeared directly in front of his cell.

A shiver ran through him…

Goosebumps rose across Darren’s entire body.

(Is that the same kind of jar I buried several times? Why is it here…? Has my employer betrayed even me? No, more importantly, how did it get here? No one came in…)

Then something resembling murky black smoke began writhing around the jar. Darren panicked, wondering whether a mana pool was about to form right there, but the darkness instead assumed something like a human shape and slowly approached his cell.

(What is that…?)

Darren backed away as far as he possibly could, but there was nowhere to go beyond the wall to which the bed was fixed, so he pressed himself flat against it as though trying to sink into the stone.

(Don’t come in. Please, don’t come in here…)

Yet it passed straight through the iron bars and entered the cell… then swayed to a stop directly in front of him. And then…

‘…Why did you kill me…? Darren… why did you kill me…?’

It was a low, hoarse voice that seemed to echo up from the depths of the earth.

(No way… Cliff?)

“Eek! D-don’t come any closer. Cliff, you’re already dead…”

The murky black shadow writhed around Darren as though surrounding him. The voice seemed to come from the right one moment, then from the left the next, never settling in one place…

‘…That’s right… I’m dead… You killed me… Why did you kill me? We were two men living as one…’

“I-I was ordered to! By your employer! He said you’d been doing too many unnecessary things! He said if things continued, they’d trace the employer through you! If you want to hate someone, hate him, not me! Besides, I’m the king’s brother! Having a criminal like you in my family would be… an absolute disgrace!”

‘…So that’s why you killed me… You killed the men in the cells too, didn’t you…?’

The shadow coiled around his neck and arms, its shape gradually becoming impossible to distinguish as either human or beast…

“N-no! Those men were killed by one of the employer’s subordinates…”

‘A subordinate…’

“Norman, the laborer!”

‘…Ah… him… He killed everyone…’

“That’s right. So if you’re going to hold a grudge, hate them, not me!”

‘…But you’re the one who stabbed meeeee!!’

At that instant, the shadow of an enormous monster expanded until it filled the entire cell. A growling Grrrrr sounded directly beside Darren’s ear, and a warm breath washed across the back of his neck…

“S-someone! Somebody help me! …No, I don’t want to die here! I’m the king’s brother, and I’m going to take the throne… I can’t possibly be allowed to die in a place like this…”

His words abruptly stopped, and Darren’s body slowly slumped onto the bed.

Half an hour later

“Princess, it should be safe for you to enter now.”

“Kaō, splendid work. Oh my, he is still showing the whites of his eyes and foaming at the mouth. Still, that worked considerably better than expected.”

Princess Kana’s delighted voice echoed through the underground cells.