Each One's Circumstances
Each One's Circumstances
Where is this?
The temporary detention center, now as familiar as my own villa.
Who am I?
Eldmia Ega, temporarily detained on charges of excessive response to an adventurer's retaliation issue.
That's right. This time I thought I'd finally get a look at this country's prison, but surprisingly the place I was taken to was the noble temporary detention center. I was inwardly flustered, but without showing it, I greeted Ms. Meshiella, whom I hadn't seen in a while, and she ended up even more flustered. Of course, it wasn't just my bold attitude—Laika's accompaniment likely played a part—but I could clearly tell she was dumbfounded enough to break her poker face.
But whatever the process, in the end I was staying here again. I acted as if I owned the place, took a shower, and sprawled out on the bed. Laika, who'd spent a while excitedly inspecting the unfamiliar room, came and lay down beside me, so I stroked Laika's scruff for about five minutes.
"This is different from the plan...?"
Only after that did I start worrying a little belatedly.
Killing Dantel and willingly letting Garun lead me to be restrained by the guard force was all within my assumptions. The charge of excessive response, and even being held for up to three days as a result of the ensuing investigation—I had anticipated all that. But I never dreamed they'd bring me here as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
A misunderstanding? The noble temporary detention center wasn't called 'noble' for nothing. It was a place to confine nobles for the sake of saving face, but it also served as a political tool—a sham with a plausible formal procedure, a way to look the other way. Without orders from above, the guard force didn't dump all arrested criminals or suspects into the temporary detention center where Ragnis had been held or into the slammer; they didn't make their own judgment and sneak them into the noble detention center.
In the end, it meant that as soon as someone heard about the situation, they pulled strings and put me here first.
"There are... way too many people who come to mind...!"
Duke Lesrom? The royal family's judgment with Esmue in mind? Or Princess Mesina? Or maybe word reached Mr. Widra and he intervened? Even so, the response was too fast. Unless there was already a point of contact between the Adventurer's Guild and the royal family so the story had been relayed, the plausible speculation was that someone had been continuously monitoring my every move.
It wasn't hard to imagine that far, but ultimately my reasoning couldn't go any further because I lacked information.
"Ah, whatever. Worrying won't give me the answer, and when it's time to rest, I should rest."
Unless someone came as a contact or something, ultimately my worries and speculations were all pointless. I chose to fall asleep comfortably rather than indulge in the absurd delusion that I could predict everything in the world with my highly inaccurate guesses.
It was a shame I couldn't contact Asilie in advance, but Garun said he'd take care of delivering the message, so I decided not to worry about that for now. And once I let go of my concerns, I was able to fall asleep at a surprisingly fast speed.
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When I woke up, it was just around sunrise, thanks to Laika's hind paw pushing against my face—we'd fallen asleep together.
I shoved the damn hind leg aside and checked the clock; it was about 7 o'clock. I felt a bit tired, but what was surprising, if anything, was that it was similar to my usual wake-up time.
"What a useful guy in the weirdest ways."
I gave a light smack to Laika's rump—once a Demon Sword and now some inexplicable living, breathing alarm clock—but there was no sign of waking up. I drummed on those plump hindquarters hard enough to wake an ordinary dog even from a deep sleep, but all I got in return was a rippling wave of fur and flesh.
Hmm... Could this also be an abnormal symptom from the transformation? I'd have to tell Seneran later.
Anyway, just because I opened my eyes didn't mean I felt like doing something, so I was tapping Laika's rump to a rhythm, pondering what to do, when I heard a knock.
-Eldmia, are you awake?
"Yes. Ms. Meshiella. I just woke up anyway."
It was early for nobles to be awake; what was this about? As I answered, puzzled by this early visit I had never experienced during my previous stay, a calm reply came back.
-Someone who wishes to see Eldmia has arrived. What should we do?
"...At this hour? Who is it?"
-If I say it's Ruserik, you'll know...
What? I had no idea at all. Still, if they said it that confidently, how could I not remember?
As I hemmed and hawed, worried that hastily saying I didn't know might make the confident other party lose face, Meshiella added an extra detail.
-He didn't seem to be a noble, but he was a man in whom manners were ingrained.
I remembered. Ruserik, Duke Lesrom's direct agent.
"...Thanks to that, I remembered. I'll be right down. It's an early morning, and I'm sorry for the trouble, but could I ask for some tea?"
-I'll prepare it.
With that brief reply, I heard Meshiella's footsteps receding, and I sluggishly got out of bed and changed my clothes. Even though I had checked in late last night, my clothes were hanging there neatly pressed, as if by magic, so I mentally applauded Meshiella's excellent work skills, then gave Laika's rump—who was still sleeping soundly, oblivious to the world—one more pat before coming downstairs.
I'd left the door open, so Laika would come out on their own once awake.
"It's been a while, Eldmia."
"It's been a while, Ruserik. Have you been well?"
"Thanks to you, I've been doing well. After the Envelde incident, the inside of the Noble Council has become much more subdued."
Hmm. I had been prepared for an answer along the lines of 'I haven't been well because of you,' but whether it was empty words or sincere, the answer that came back was quite positive.
"Thanks to the exploits you showed in Englem this time, things have become even easier. As you know, for us to move, we need just cause, so it was a matter that would have taken more time."
It seemed it was sincere after all. After exchanging brief pleasantries, Ruserik leisurely admired the interior decorations without any sign of hurry, waiting for Meshiella. Then he accepted the teacup from Meshiella, who had prepared tea in an instant, and only after taking a sip did he begin to speak seriously. He was indeed a man with manners engraved into his body.
"May I first explain the reason for visiting you early this morning at the risk of being rude?"
Since I was actually hoping he would explain, I nodded appropriately and took another sip of the strong black tea, and Ruserik smiled and continued.
"Thank you. In truth, the main reason I came this early is that our work will be busy today, making it difficult to spare time separately. However, it is to wrap up the unsavory incident from yesterday, so I hope you can understand."
"...The Noble Council is wrapping up an adventurer's matter?"
"Yes. You see, Eldmia has not yet received a medal to honor your achievements in Englem. Since the person who proposed and negotiated the reward to be given to Eldmia this time is His Excellency, it is safe to say that until the medal is awarded, you are under the protection of the Noble Council."
A medal? That was something I had never heard of. Even receiving the money and the house had been handled by Duke Lesrom's attention, delivered through his spokesman in a non-official manner, not a formal ceremony. So there was no way a medal remained to be given now...
None. Not at all. That old man had known I'd find such occasions bothersome, so he'd settled everything and only handed over the material goods.
"Isn't that kind of thing left in documents? I suspect it's an official document forgery."
In other words, that meant it was a lie they fabricated to defend me. As if he hadn't expected me to guess that far, Ruserik's eyes widened for a moment.
"When His Excellency said you'd know if I told you, honestly I was half in doubt, but your insight is accurate. However, as you know, His Excellency doesn't proceed with work alone."
Seeing him euphemistically express that they had received the royal family's permission and cooperation, it seemed Ruserik also knew about the relationship between Duke Lesrom and the royal family. No wonder he wasn't just a direct agent for nothing. Thanks to that, my doubts were largely resolved, and I nodded slightly.
"But how did you move so quickly? I doubt the royal family is keeping a close eye on every adventurer's matter."
"Recently, the guild master of the Adventurer's Guild has been cooperating with the royal family to grasp a clue of treason. As we had been sharing information about Eldmia in various ways, we were able to act immediately."
Hmm. It was natural if you thought about it, but still surprising. Perhaps even the first request I took on with Gaendal's party was part of such activities.
"Anyway, due to such circumstances, Eldmia should be able to leave here by tomorrow. This is also the result of hurrying as much as possible, so I hope you understand."
"I had expected to be held for at least three more days, so I am nothing but grateful."
"Well, His Excellency also said that if Eldmia expressed gratitude, he had a request..."
That old man was a real sly old fox. Just how far ahead did he see? As I urged him with my eyes, Ruserik shrugged and raised his teacup to his lips, then said:
"He said since he was bored, to come visit once. He said to make the pretense the medal ceremony."
"...Alright then."
Yeah, I had wanted to say thank you anyway, so it worked out. I let out a short sigh and downed my tea.