Anomaly
Anomaly
The thought that flashed through Esmue's mind as Eldmia threw her toward an Imperial Guard knight was a question.
How is a member of the Demonfolk here?
Contrary to outside perception, the imperial household of the Empire was solid. No faction existed that could check her power, and what outwardly appeared to be a faction for her younger brother was nothing more than something she deliberately left alone as a gathering point for those dissatisfied with her.
Above all, none of her siblings, including him, wanted the throne.
They might want to place their children on the throne after she died, but at the very least, not now.
"Your Highness! Are you alright?!"
It was the Imperial Guard knight who pulled her out of the mire of contemplation that had nearly deepened further. Refocusing her eyes, Esmue gave her command.
"Kill the Demonfolk and take the traitor alive."
She had intended to capture and interrogate the Demonfolk member because she believed it was solely their doing, but if that wasn't the case, there was no reason to fixate on the Demonfolk member. On the contrary, capturing and interrogating the traitor who had tried to push her through the gate even after Eldmia's strike severed their blood vessels would be far more helpful.
Having reached that conclusion, Esmue's quietly murmured command, though not raised in volume, was carried out swiftly.
And at that sight, the Demonfolk member felt a flash of rage.
Because a full three of the five dealing with him had pulled back and rushed toward Esmue. As it was clear to anyone watching that they were looking down on him, his anger could be considered justified.
He had intervened openly because he was certain he could escape without dying.
It was utterly absurd that a human would show such ridiculous composure with him right in front of them.
"Ha! Believing you can easily win if you try to kill me...?"
But the Royal Guard members were different. They did not mix prejudice or arrogance into carrying out Esmue's orders. Rather, they were the type to prepare for any potential mishap.
That was why two had remained. And as if to prove it, the moment the Demonfolk member's claws and the sword intertwined, the Royal Guard member's blade slipped in and slit the Demonfolk member's throat.
The first thing that entered the Demonfolk member's vision, as the world spun around and he was too shocked to even finish his words, was his own back. And amid the dull impact, what decorated his final sight was the image of the remaining two Royal Guard members also dashing toward Esmue.
Esmue's expression, which had been watching even that scene as if it were only natural, twisted after she turned her head to check the gate.
"This trick... you're telling me we let him get away...?"
The gate was twisting and collapsing.
There had been no magical attack, so the fact that it collapsed the moment someone moved through meant it had been tampered with beforehand, like a trap.
Fury flickered in her eyes as she stared at the gate beginning to crumble.
"We've taken him alive."
Not wanting to show her face, trembling with rage, she answered the voice from behind without turning around.
"Hand the traitor over to the Imperial Guard and summon the Phantom Duke for interrogation. Tell them to extract everything they can as quickly as possible, by any means necessary."
In that case, his mind would surely collapse, leaving him a breathing corpse, but Esmue didn't care in the slightest. And the same went for everyone else around her.
Calmly surveying the academy professors and members of the Imperial Guard gathering around her, Esmue briefly organized her thoughts and gave her orders.
"Captain of the Royal Guard. Prepare my seal and a personal letter. Professor Wade. The event is over. Bring the students back and protect them. Imperial Guard. Bring the Mage Corps and investigate the gate. Tell anyone who questions or obstructs this that they will be severely punished in my name."
Those who knew better than anyone that Esmue, called the Iron-Blood Princess, preferred action to words, moved in perfect order despite the chaos of moments before.
"Where is the Margrave of Levien?"
"She is on her way."
When she turned her head, following the voice of the Captain of the Royal Guard who had approached and was now guarding her side, she saw Ragnis running toward her.
She must have started chasing from the moment Eldmia moved, yet she had been so far away that she was only reaching her now.
Eldmia had sensed the anomaly and sprinted here from that great a distance. Though she didn't know the exact circumstances, Esmue once again keenly felt that he had tried to save her with everything he had.
"Ragnis. Did Eldmia have any magic tools on him today?"
And so, Esmue was determined to find him with everything she had as well.
Even if Demonfolk were involved, the gate itself was the Empire's property. It wasn't a level that could suddenly send someone flying to another country or the Demonfolk Territory.
If only there were a magic tool that could pinpoint his location, he could be found through magic.
"No. Nothing."
Though she must have been urgent and despairing, Ragnis answered calmly before pondering.
But the only thought that came to her was regret that she hadn't bought him something—anything—as a gift beforehand, which made it difficult to think clearly.
Then, from that thought of a gift, something suddenly sparked.
Asilie.
"We must find the person who made Eldmia's earring."
"I must meet the one who made Eldmia's earring."
Ragnis felt relieved that the same conclusion she had reached came from Esmue's lips.
At the same time, she despaired. Because Asilie was in Ogwen, on the outskirts of Itisel.
"But the distance..."
Seeing Ragnis's anxiety surfacing outwardly, Esmue grabbed Ragnis's arm.
And she answered with more certainty than ever before.
"I will resolve that."
◈
Human-made gates have a limit on travel distance.
What came to mind while passing through the gate was something Ragnis had told me before coming to the Empire.
It might be forcing an optimistic view, but I thought it wasn't simply a matter of magic, but also an issue with the magic tools that comprised the gate.
And given the nature of a gate connecting two doors into one, having a superior gate on one side wouldn't extend the travel distance.
In other words, even if I didn't know where I was flying to right now, I wouldn't be leaving the Empire's territory.
With the mindset of 'as long as it's not Demonfolk Territory,' I kicked off the ground as low as possible the moment light filled my vision and, without any hesitation, swung my sword toward the presence I felt.
Fortunately, the ambush was successful, and I was able to slash the waists and thighs of the unidentified thugs I encountered in front of the gate.
"Gwaaarrgh!!"
"It's not the princess... Aaack!"
A gate isn't some all-purpose spatial movement spell. It's nothing more than a tunnel. Naturally, unless the Demonfolk bastards had the intention of randomly dropping Esmue, who was in the capital, into some province somewhere and just leaving her, every single person at the arrival point was an enemy without exception.
Since it was clear that cutting down every visible enemy one by one instead of assessing the situation would be safer, I swung my sword at everything I saw without the slightest hesitation.
"Damn it! What the hell happened on the other side!"
"It's possible the plan was exposed! Hold out until the captain arrives!"
"Is it the Hero?!"
Only after I beheaded the three who had clumsily charged at me did the very first thought that came to mind feel like something close to relief.
My abilities hadn't suddenly leapt forward compared to a few days ago, and attending five days of lectures in the Empire hadn't made me fucking stronger either. The only improvement was my weapon, while my armor had actually gotten worse.
In this situation, without even other tools, if these bastards were even at the level of the Demonfolk from the abandoned dungeon, it was clear I'd have had to seriously prepare myself for death.
Fortunately, there weren't any that strong yet.
In an instant, three were dead and two had suffered critical wounds that left them nearly unable to move. The rest began watching for an opening instead of approaching carelessly.
Thanks to that, I had a brief moment to observe them, and belatedly grasped the most distinctive feature.
"I really can't predict what life will bring, even a single day ahead."
I was talking about the sight of humans and Demonfolk working hand-in-hand as if it were the most natural thing.
At this point, I felt certain that my current life was thoroughly entangled with Demonfolk, one way or another.
Whatever the case, it wasn't the time for leisurely observation, so I took the chance while they hesitated and bolted without looking back.
"Huh?"
"C-crazy! He's running! Encircle him! I said encircle him!"
Extremely flustered shouts came from behind, I had no idea what they were thinking.
Did they believe I would fight until I killed them all? Well, since I swung my sword the moment I popped out as if I had predicted it, they might well have thought I'd come with the full intention of slaughtering them all.
Anyway, thanks to that ridiculous misconception, I managed to break out before an encirclement was formed, so I decided to be grateful for now.
"Catch him!"
A forest so dense that not even the sky was properly visible. Rocky mountainous terrain. A stream. Etc.
I gathered information on just where the hell I was while paying attention to their voices fading into the distance.
I was lucky it was a forest. It was probably because they, being hidden within the Empire's territory, couldn't have settled in open ground, but there was also the possibility they could have been in a cave or a dungeon, so this was fortunate enough to consider it pretty damn lucky.
That didn't mean I had any way of knowing where this place was right now, but I ran for a while, thinking I might at least be able to figure out later where this had been.
Suddenly, I felt a chill run down the back of my neck and ducked instinctively.
Simultaneously, a tree right next to me was sheared off without a single sound.
"Whoa? You dodged that?"
Right. I dodged that. If I hadn't heard that voice, I wouldn't have even known where the attack came from. Even to my own eyes, my senses felt like they were approaching beast-like levels.
As I turned my gaze, feeling infinite gratitude for that attitude that was clearly mocking me, a bastard radiating a vibe that was plainly dangerous was looking at me.
Two thick horns. Unarmored, but the outfit had the design of a military uniform. The feeling was closer to the Demonfolk I met in the abandoned dungeon rather than the one who attacked the academy.
But whatever trick he'd pulled, I couldn't feel any Magic Power from him at all.
"Strange. Stronger than expected? It's hard to tell with humans, so I just don't know."
Setting aside everything else, the fact that he had popped out and attacked as if he'd been waiting for me, even though I had been running for my life, made it clear he was the most dangerous type of bastard I'd ever encountered.
Because that meant, whether in magic or physical power, his skill vastly exceeded mine.
"Strange. I was certain I'd completely erased my presence, so how... huh?"
But as he stood there examining me, his eyebrow arched strangely and he began to smile. The way he smiled so broadly it looked like his mouth would tear open was fucking chilling.
I had the feeling that, fucked as things were, I'd run into a complete lunatic...
"Hey, Little Eldmia. That's you, right?"
Fuuuck.