86. Not a Favor — On My Own (2)

From the crown of my head to the tips of my toes, cold blood crept slowly through me.

My senses had gone so frigid I couldn't even feel the chill night air — and yet that very numbness tightened the last thread of my reason, making it all the more unbreakable.

I'd just witnessed a deeply unpleasant piece of the past, but instead of crumbling, I found myself running through what needed to be done, sharpened by the wariness surging back to life inside me.

That's right. I had to escape.

I had to escape this game.

I had to escape from those damn family members of mine.

Those two facts were all I needed to know.

Back in my quarters at the Training Grounds, I dropped into a chair and immediately pored over the Shatren Territory report Harnie had given me.

"This is written up in remarkable detail. Month-over-month comparisons, sure — but to think she condensed years of data, month by month, into a document like this."

At this level, the margin of error would be small. It would be easy to see how sharply growth had declined, and to pinpoint exactly which part of the territory the problem lay in.

And Harnie had done precisely that — zeroed right in on it.

Every figure tied to the two crops that had once been the pride of Shatren Territory had been compiled with painstaking thoroughness.

"Good. This side is settled, then."

Rather than memorizing every fine detail here, it would be wiser to enter the territory itself and see the truth firsthand.

Progressing through Chapter 2 would inevitably drive me into the main episode, and Karsein setting foot in Shatren Territory was an unavoidable development.

And I had no intention of dodging it, either.

Because what I stood to gain from resolving this episode was nothing less than the single most important thing for my escape — money.

It ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠looked simple, but it mattered a great deal.

Settle the Shatren affair, and I would finally hold private property of my own. It would become possible to repay everything I'd received from the ducal house over the years.

In other words, before I severed ties with the family, I could cleanly cut away the one lever they might ever use against me.

I set the Shatren report aside, and this time drew out the book Heron had handed me, telling me to read it whenever I found myself at leisure.

In truth, it wasn't the sort of thing you read to idle away the hours — the book was a treatise on farming methods for managing a territory.

The sharp-eyed butler had clearly foreseen the Eastern Noble Conference and given it to me with that in mind.

"And knowing Heron, he'd never have simply handed over a book and nothing else."

Shhk.

"Just as I thought."

Between the pages of the unmarked, bookmark-less binding — tucked into the front section of the hardcover — a small note revealed itself.

"Hm... so that's how it turned out."

Depending on which branch the story took, the Eastern Noble Conference split into three routes for its participants.

The first: attend alongside the head of the house, with the entire ducal family examined together.

The second: attend alongside the head of the house, but with the heirs examined separately, receiving only occasional counsel.

The third: the head of the house isn't even permitted to attend — the heirs are examined entirely alone.

In the first route, Karsein is denied any chance to speak and fails outright. In the second, he at least receives Isabella's guidance.

But judging by the note Heron had sent, we'd landed on the third route.

Isabella can neither observe nor advise. Which meant Karsein must somehow reclaim the participation rights stolen from him by Arina, and resolve everything on his own.

Ordinarily, this would be the nightmare route — no help from anyone, difficulty maxed out. And yet, to me, it actually seemed like the better path.

"Either way, solving it alone suits me fine. I've already picked up the main episode in advance, and if I move on my own and win it with my own hands, no one can say a word."

Not a favor asked — but a thing done by my own strength.

That was my motto for now.

Knock, knock.

"Young Master, it's Camilla. May I come in?"

"Come in."

"Pardon the intrusion."

Camilla finished a deep bow, then pulled back her hood and revealed her face.

I'd asked her to investigate the Shatren Territory, so no doubt she'd brought back everything she'd found on it.

Unfortunately for her, though, with Harnie's extraordinary report already in hand, I had, in effect, sent her on a wasted errand.

I should hear her out fully and apologize for how things had turned out.

Except — Camilla kept hesitating at the threshold.

"Is something the matter?"

"Oh — no... there's no problem at all with what you asked of me, Young Master."

"Then why are you stalling?"

"Well, it's..."

Camilla kept glancing nervously behind her.

As if something lurked behind that closed door.

When I followed her gaze, a few strands of golden hair were fluttering in the gap of the slightly ajar door.

My guess: she'd known full well that someone was poking just her head through that crack.

She had every right to be.

Not that she'd been followed with malice — Flora had simply trailed along and had nowhere else to go.

Rolling her eyes to make sure I noticed was a sound judgment on Camilla's part; if she'd reported aloud, word of what I'd been doing might have leaked.

"Step outside for a moment. I'll handle this myself."

"Yes, Young Master."

I ushered Camilla out, planted myself in front of the door, and spoke plainly to the Flora hiding behind it.

"Now what?"

The few blond strands she'd failed to hide flinched hard.

Flora fidgeted, then opened the door and showed herself.

I'd expected her to dodge my blunt "what now?" or play dumb.

This time, she didn't hide anything at all. She just asked.

"...Um, can I come in for a minute?"

Honestly, looking at this little brat right now held no appeal whatsoever.

But I could probably guess why she'd come looking for me.

She'd heard what Arina had to say.

"Come in."

I told her to enter, first things first.

I'd already shaved my Intimacy down to break away from Arina — watching it get chipped at again would leave a bad taste. Besides, I had things I wanted to say myself.

Flora shuffled inside, glancing around the room restlessly. Finding no obvious place to sit, she flustered about until I told her to just take the bed, and she obediently claimed her spot.

Asking Flora why she'd come would only waste a mountain of time, so I brought up the matter myself.

"Arina took my right to attend the Eastern Noble Conference, and you came here with it. That's it, isn't it?"

"Huh? U-um... y-yeah. That's r-right. I came to talk about that."

Swallowing hard, Flora made her opening move.

"You're really not... you're really not skipping the Eastern Noble Conference, are you? Like Unnie said?"

"Who knows. We'll see."

At that, the little brat flared up and shouted.

"If it's because I woke you, I can talk to Unnie about it!"

Peeling herself right off the edge of the bed, Flora pressed on, over and over.

"If it happened because I was waiting there... then I can tell Unnie. I haven't told Mother yet either, but if I do...!"

She meant that I could win back my right to attend the conference, at the very least. That was what she wanted to say.

Consistent as ever.

This little brat was exactly like the third daughter, after all.

I cut her off flatly.

"Don't bother. You'd only get in the way."

"Wh-what...?"

"You said the exact same thing before, remember? That I'd only get in the way. Does that ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ring a bell?"

I'd been half-ready to spell it out for her if she'd forgotten.

But Flora reflexively recalled what had happened at the tribunal and flared up again instead.

"I know! Because of Emma and Theo... you think I'm u-unreliable. But this time I won't lie, and I won't insist it was your fault. This time... this time I really..."

Her small hands clutched the hem of her skirt, knuckles white.

This time, she insisted, it would be different.

Which only made me sneer harder.

"Not needed."

"..."

At those words, Flora's shoulders sagged and her head dropped — then she lifted it again, voice thick with swallowed sobs.

"Th-then what are you going to do! Are you just going to s-skip the conference like this and hole up in the ducal house forever?!"

"I never said I wasn't attending."

"Huh?"

The silver dew brimming in her eyes dropped, plip, to the floor.

"Let me say it one more time. I have no intention of reclaiming my participation rights by leaning on your help at every turn. That's something I'll do myself."

"But...! If I help you, you could get there so much easier!"

Hearing that I wasn't planning to abandon the conference seemed to hand Flora a fresh glimmer of hope, and she argued that she could still be of use.

"Maybe. Though the way I see it, that would be the harder road by far."

"What do you mean...?"

"You know perfectly well. Arina will ask, won't she? Whether I put you up to it."

"...!"

"And then I'll be cornered all over again. As the trash who manipulated his little sister into snatching up participation rights."

The easy road, sometimes, is poison.

The moment I borrowed the family's strength to take back what Arina stripped from me, a Dead Flag would plant itself square in my options.

If it came to that, I'd rather choose the long way around.

"..."

A violent storm was churning in Flora's blue eyes.

I had no idea what was turning over inside that tiny head of hers.

But I had no intention of giving Flora any more of my time.

"Camilla."

"Yes, Young Master."

"Escort Flora back to the estate."

As Camilla moved to obey, Flora bit her lip hard and sniffled.

"You... you are going to attend the conference, right?"

"Camilla."

"My lady. It's time you returned."

"Just answer this one thing. Then... then I'll go back quietly."

Tears strung heavy along her lashes, she asked as though this one answer were the only thing she needed to hear before leaving.

Well. I supposed I could grant her that much.

"I'm attending."

"...All right."

Shrinking into herself, Flora turned away. Camilla gave a light bow, followed her out, and began seeing her off — and then the door closed behind them.

No sound of further sobbing followed.

Before long, Camilla returned, having finished escorting Flora.

"Did you get Flora back safely?"

"Yes, Young Master. The young lady left without any further fuss. And — she asked me to pass along one more message to you. May I?"

"What is it."

"She said, since she won't say a word to anyone, you must attend the conference. She pressed that on you one more time, Young Master."

"She wastes no effort on useless questions."

Skipping it would mean a Bad Ending — did she think I was insane enough to drop out?

Well, in any case, it seemed Flora wouldn't be causing problems. She'd promised to keep her mouth shut herself; there was no need to argue. From my standpoint, that worked out fine.

Which meant the next matter was—

—it was time to resolve this episode.

"Here it is, Young Master."

Camilla handed me a report.

It compiled days of investigation into the movements of Shatren Territory's residents — but alas, Harnie's side had beaten hers to it, so I'd cut the survey short and issued her a new order.

And that order had produced this: the Rusmayer Territory report.

But why is it so...

Thick?

It ran far longer than what she'd gathered on Shatren in all those days?

For a rush job redirected mid-course, it was conspicuously — noticeably — abundant.

And I hadn't read all of it yet, but ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the content was thorough to a fault.

"Lest you misunderstand, Young Master — this was not thrown together carelessly. There was a fair amount I already knew beforehand."

"What do you mean by that?"

Camilla answered with a faint smile on her lips.

"Rusmayer Territory is, as it happens, a place I know rather well."

"Well?"

"That isolated territory is one none of the surrounding families has ever been willing to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠take on. And yet they still collected every toll they could squeeze from it — and this time, they went so far as to commit outright terror. Led by that boy, Kiyan."

I was stunned.

As if she had been standing there in that banquet hall herself.

Camilla was describing, with perfect accuracy, the very scene I had witnessed.

Things like this... are impossible to know unless you speak face-to-face with someone who was there.

"Wait. Rusmayer... Camilla. Don't tell me—!"

"As expected. You catch on quickly, Young Master."

My guess confirmed, Camilla smiled in affirmation.

"Rusmayer was once managed entirely by the Deol family — so I knew a great deal about it."

Good heavens.

Now this was truly the easy road.