Encounter
Encounter
I was just endlessly exhausted.
Not a single comfortable day had passed since he lost Delt. It was almost as if someone was deliberately sabotaging every plan.
Inside the carriage heading for the tribunal, Count Envelde da Bosha, who had been wrapped in deep fatigue, replaying countless problems he had to deal with, soon realized he needed to correct his thoughts.
"...Now that I think about it, that's not quite right. Things had been going sideways long before that."
It was already a memory over seven years old, so he simply hadn't felt the connection, but he had experienced far more grim failures than this.
He had felt this way for a while when the massive slave merchant group his close aide had run was wiped out years ago. The worst failure, no different from being swept away by a natural disaster. Ironically, recalling the worst failure of his life actually improved his mood.
At least this time, there was still a chance.
"I will overcome this as well. As I always have."
The operation had been a source of funds so massive that he could even afford to separately employ elf hunters. The blow had been indescribable, and he couldn't even figure out who did it or why. And it remained unsolved to this day.
Though the slave merchant group was operating again, it inevitably caused problems and shrank whenever it grew beyond a certain scale, never regaining the same utility it once had. Yet it was still a sufficiently large source of funds, just not comparable to the past.
He had ultimately overcome that day, which had been like an unfair natural disaster.
"Still... there's still a chance. Ragnis's ties with the Empire haven't been confirmed yet."
The Margrave of Levien. A position that, if only the territory could be reclaimed, would grant both the justification and the ability to stand at the vanguard of an invasion into Demonfolk Territory, and the capacity to command sufficient forces.
Even with enough ability, funds, and talented individuals, it was what he, whose official title was merely an ordinary count, needed most.
That was why he had dispatched a covert investigation unit to Levien, which had become a ruin fallen into the claws of the Demonfolk, to find a clue to that opportunity. Even after receiving the uncertain report that Ragnis might be alive at the cost of considerable losses, he had scattered men to find a girl resembling her.
Although the decisive clue had ultimately come through a spy planted in the Royal Faction, Envelde had not regretted the time and effort spent one bit.
Because it was worth it. If Delt had safely brought Ragnis back and he could have set her up as a mere figurehead, everything could have been resolved much more smoothly.
That was how it should have gone, and yet...
"My Lord Count. We have arrived."
"...Indeed."
Barely suppressing the surge of fury at his instantly derailed plans, Envelde steeled his expression.
He would take another hit from this trial, but it was better than seeing Ragnis become a bridgehead to the Empire and go from a Margrave in name only to a true Margrave, making her untouchable. The discard pawn he would use in a trial with a foregone defeat was someone he felt no regret over anyway. On the contrary, it was close to being used far more usefully than the pawn's original innate value.
Having finished regulating his emotions, Envelde knocked on the door, and his attendant opened the carriage door.
The area in front of the tribunal, already crowded with many people, was nothing short of tumultuous. Among them were those who recognized him and came running in a fluster, and those who shot him unwelcoming glares, but the only one Envelde was interested in today was Ragnis.
"The Royal Family's reaction?"
"They talked throughout the night, but no specific details leaked out, it is said."
"Hm."
It wasn't difficult to find Ragnis while talking with his attendant. Nobles with that blazing red hair were rare, after all.
But Envelde found Ragnis easily because of another presence.
"Is that one Eldmia Ega?"
"That is correct."
The one who had beaten the Hero he had only heard about in stories. The one who saved the Empire's 1st Princess. The hidden blade of Levien. And now, a boy some were even starting to call the Guillotine due to the incident that occurred just yesterday.
Honestly, judging solely by his build, the word 'boy' didn't exactly roll off the tongue.
"A build not inferior even when compared to Sir Radnelbandes. How had they managed to hide such a conspicuous fellow until now?"
"It seems he was staying with the Ogatorf family for some reason, but considering he occasionally did adventurer work, it is judged that there was no particular intention to conceal him."
"A man who even defeats the Hero... was an adventurer?"
A question slipped out involuntarily, but the attendant accurately grasped that it wasn't meant to be answered and shut his mouth. Envelde didn't particularly mind the attendant's reaction either. Instead, he naturally moved his steps toward Ragnis.
Someone like that could have easily filled Delt's vacant spot. It was endlessly lamentable how such a card ended up in the hands of a brat like Ragnis.
But there would soon be a way. He had always found the answer.
"It has been a long time, Ragnis."
"...It has been a while, Uncle."
Come to think of it, this was the first time they had come face-to-face since she returned to the capital. Yet Ragnis kept her distance, showing a reaction not much different from the childhood he remembered.
Those eyes, absurdly, resembled her dead father.
"I see my brother raised his child well. Seeing you loathe me just the same."
"You know my father's character."
"Indeed. He viewed the Noble Faction as vermin."
His brother, who had scorned the Noble Faction for only chasing self-interest. His brother, who refused to admit the royal family's incompetence and swore loyalty to the end. And his brother, who ultimately died unrewarded for that loyalty. An incompetent brother who couldn't even properly use half of his standing as Margrave.
In the end, he hadn't been able to prove him wrong while he was alive, but soon, that would happen.
"There's no need to bring up such matters when you must already be struggling because of the trial. Yes, so this is that attendant who's been the talk of the town lately."
"...Yes. His name is Eldmia Ega. Eldmia? This is Count Envelde da Bosha. My uncle."
A rather friendly tone, more so than expected. Amid that impression, Envelde, who had naturally been about to offer a greeting, found himself involuntarily tilting his head at an utterly unprecedented reaction.
Why... is he smiling with his head tilted to the side like that?
"What a small world it is. Wouldn't you agree, Count Bosha?"
"Hmm? Are we acquainted?"
There was no way. They had never once made contact. Yet the tall boy grinned, showing his teeth.
"Strictly speaking, this is our first meeting. But it seems we've been entangled in many ways without knowing it."
That was less of a smile... and closer to a beast's threat.
"Did you manage to find Delt's corpse?"
Envelde's thoughts ground to a halt.
◈
A handsome middle-aged man with long hair reaching his neck swept back loosely and a stylish beard.
That was the extent of Count Bosha's first impression. Just like with Pabaera, why do these villain bastards all look so damn normal?
"He fell from quite a height, so I wonder how much trouble you had finding him. Maybe his head flew off somewhere else. Considering the height, it probably didn't retain its shape even if it landed nearby."
"You... bastard...!"
Watching him grit his teeth, trying to hold back his face that had been indifferent and gentle just moments ago from instantly twisting in rage, was quite the sight. Was that anger because his plans had been disrupted, or because of the death of his subordinate Delt, whom even Duke Lesrom had coveted?
I didn't know the reason, but either way, it was a rather pleasant meeting.
"Why don't you manage your expression? I'm smiling like this while thinking you're a piece of shit, right? Smile. They say good things come to those who smile."
It was still way too early to screw up your face and pout, so what was he already doing that for? I spoke casually as if nothing was wrong and even demonstrated by beaming brightly, but Count Bosha couldn't even manage something resembling a smile.
"You still have plenty left to lose, so what's the use if you show it that openly over just one Delt?"
"How far... do you know?"
"I'm not a fucking idiot, why would I tell you that? Send me an itemized estimate of what you've lost later. I'll check it and mark which ones were my doing."
So, the reason he couldn't leave Ragnis alone was because he was family.
If it were before her coming-of-age ceremony, I could've assumed he wanted to exploit her position to suit himself under the pretext of serving as her proxy, but why was he meddling now? Just as I was considering asking him outright, Count Bosha suddenly shook his head and burst out laughing.
"...Heh heh heh."
He laughed? They say someone who can laugh when things are tough is first-rate, but I couldn't tell if this bastard was first-rate or if things just weren't tough enough yet.
"Incredible nerve. Your skill goes without saying, of course."
"Whereas you seem a little bit cracked right now, though? I did say smile, but I didn't know you'd actually laugh."
"I do not waste talented individuals. What do you say? Won't you follow me, even now?"
At the guy's serious proposal, my business smile vanished, and a real laugh burst out involuntarily. Had this mister read too many novels or something?
I'd watched a lot of movies, so I decided to answer with one.
"Nah, how could a wolf pup end up under a dog?"
A micro-flash of stiffness appeared on Count Bosha's face, which had been feigning laughter.
"...Money, power too. Wouldn't following me be more profitable than Ragnis? Are you the type who wastes his life on honor, like those Royal Faction idiots?"
"Even when speaking quietly with a smile, your word choice is quite direct. But you know what? I'm not interested in that kind of thing. What matters is... the message."
"Message?"
"The message: Never mess with Eldmia Ega."
After poking and prodding someone's temper every which way, now you decide I might be useful and try to win me over?
"You've already made an irreversible choice, and it was simply the wrong one. All that remains now is ruin."
I presented the third of the interdimensional gestures toward Count Bosha. Among the gestures that carried a simple yet certain meaning of insult, there was none quite like this one.
His expression twisted once again as he stared at my middle finger, standing alone and tall between my outstretched fist.