Superimposed Karma (2)
Irene composed her startled expression, then glanced around once more before leaning in close to whisper.
"…Is that really true?"
"Yes. As I said, I can't be certain… but at present, it's the most likely possibility."
Assassination was the cleanest explanation that fit this situation. It was far more plausible, at least, than some natural disaster.
First of all, the number of people who hated Serpina was far greater than one might expect—even within this nation alone. The successive rebellions were proof enough of that. For another uprising to break out so soon after the last one said a great deal about just how deep the hostility toward her ran.
Serpina herself was hardly unaware of it. That was why she had been able to grasp so quickly that if remaining still was the correct answer, then a rebellion would break out.
To reach the point where she could say she was used to being hated—how much of other people's loathing had she been forced to endure?
And second: as a trigger tied to "Serpina briefly leaving her post," assassination was far more probable than some act of nature. Of course, there was always the possibility that someone would try again once she returned to Aingart Castle… but if that were the case, my prediction would not have changed. In other words, we had somehow managed to preserve Serpina's life.
I would still need to keep feeding related questions into the ability, of course—but for now, it was enough to take heart in the fact that we had cleared one major hurdle.
Having heard me out, Irene asked with a thoroughly serious expression,
"What would you have me do?"
"Please continue attending Her Majesty as you always have, Lady Irene. Simply… be aware of this fact."
"Her Majesty still doesn't know of the danger?"
"For the moment, no. She may have sensed something on her own… but I, at least, haven't told her."
Even granting that she trusted my Mind's Eye, I myself was far from certain. With too little material to explain an absolute result to her, running my mouth carelessly could just as easily ruin everything. I needed to be more careful now than ever.
"Understood. Once the rebels are dealt with, we'll be returning to Aingart Castle anyway… I'll look into it in my own way."
"You're able to do that?"
Irene smiled.
"I've gained quite a few people who follow me."
To have comrades who believed in her and followed her word. For Irene, who had been so terribly alone, how desperately must she have needed people who would trust her? Watching her achieve that goal, even if only within Serpina's army, filled me with a quiet pride of my own.
"I trust you'll handle it well, but I'd prefer you proceed as discreetly as possible."
"No need to worry. I'll investigate through other avenues—without ever letting on that I'm hunting for an assassin."
Irene was not the type to bluster. So when she told me not to worry, I could take her at her word without much concern. Besides—if I didn't trust her, who would?
"Then I'll see you later."
"Mm."
"Ah—right. Miss Reika asked me to give you her regards."
Irene nodded silently and moved off to attend to her duties. After seeing her go, I tilted my head back and looked up at the sky.
It was a clear, cloudless blue.
The air of this world had never felt particularly heavy to me… but for Serpina, it must have been different. She had said that every day she lived, she could sense the hostility and murderous intent directed at her.
I couldn't say for certain yet—but perhaps… this was the condition that kept her from unifying the continent.
If that's true, then Lady Serpina really is a pitiful person.
I shook off the sentimentality before it could take root. First, suppress the rebels in front of us.
Like it or not, those fools had staged a rebellion—and that rebellion had, in turn, saved Serpina's life. Without it, I would never have been asked that question, never have realized she stood on the brink of death, and simply been swept along by the tides of history.
The banner raised to overthrow Serpina had, ironically, become the very thing that protected her.
Irony of the purest kind.
I decided to set my foot a little deeper into her impossibly twisted fate. For as long as I remained at her side, I wanted to be wholly on her side.
And so, little by little—my pull toward Lady Serpina was growing stronger.
After the army set out from Rose Castle to suppress the rebels, what was I doing, having stayed behind?
I was spending my time at Serpina's side—closer to her than anyone—talking with her.
Most of the conversation concerned the ability she knew as my Mind's Eye.
"So you can know only the result—never the process?"
"That's correct. I can't always know, either, and depending on the situation there are cases where I learn nothing at all… but when it comes to matters of statecraft, I can generally predict what outcome will emerge."
"And you can only do so when someone asks you a question?"
"Yes."
"What if you were to question yourself?"
"In that case, I can make no prediction whatsoever. That's why I asked you to pose questions to me."
"I see… Truly, what a fascinating ability."
Serpina looked at me with shining eyes. In those gleaming golden irises, instead of the absolute sovereign's charisma they usually held, there was the curiosity of a girl who wanted to know everything about the world.
"Now I understand why you give such peculiar advice. Everything makes sense. And yet—something still puzzles me."
"I'll answer everything I can."
To keep Serpina alive, I needed to be in the same boat as her. I would keep my insurance in place—but there was no reason to drag things out and withhold what I could tell her.
"Do you remember the time the rebels rose up claiming to carry on Sidmid's will? The uprising led by Rahelven."
"Yes, I remember."
"You said then that 'the Asius forces might invade this place.' Was that also something you learned through your ability?"
"It was not. That was… less something I discovered than something closer to inference drawn from my own imagination."
"Inference?"
Serpina nodded with evident amusement. It was an irreverent thought to have about one's lord, but the way she reacted to every word of mine, clearly enjoying herself—Lady Serpina looked rather adorable.
"It's simple. A 'result' comes to me. Then I work backward, eliminating impossible scenarios one by one to determine why that result emerged. Advising Your Majesty based on the propositions I infer that way—that has been my method. Looking back on that particular case: the idea that 'troops are needed at a castle of no particular importance' suggested the reason might be 'because that place is at risk of invasion.' That was how I thought of it."
"I see. But… because the conclusion that emerged was so utterly absurd, what you said and what you left unsaid ended up diverging, didn't they?"
As expected of Serpina. From my words alone, she had grasped my circumstances with perfect accuracy.
"That's right. Even so, imagining something in that level of detail was a bit beyond me."
"By the same logic—dropping boulders from the sky was a similar process?"
"Yes. The result I obtained then was 'our army's victory.' From that, I reverse-engineered a method by which our forces could win."
"So that was it…"
I offered a wry smile to the nodding Serpina.
"That's all it is. It isn't talent or insight—I simply perceive the result, nothing more. The renown of a white-haired mage and all the rest of the fame that circulates about me—you may as well regard it as largely illusion."
Serpina listened, fell into thought—then spoke in a somewhat firmer tone.
"I cannot agree with that, Swen."
"May I ask why?"
"If you lacked talent or insight, reverse-engineering itself would be impossible. Even with the ability of the Mind's Eye to know what result will emerge, deducing why that result comes about is something only a well-informed mind can do. I am confident that even without the Mind's Eye, you would have become an outstanding strategist."
The sudden praise left me oddly embarrassed, and I found myself awkwardly deflecting.
"…I don't think I'm quite at that level."
"I believe you need to give yourself more credit. Excessive modesty is an unsightly thing. Heh heh heh…"
Serpina laughed with genuine pleasure for several minutes… then flushed, took both of my hands in hers, and said,
"Lin… and Yuuri as well—they failed even to make proper use of a talent as extraordinary as yours, and handed you over into Our hands. Fools. Truly fools. And Lin lost not only you, but General Irene as well. This entire situation feels like nothing short of destiny to me, Swen."
As she spoke, Serpina ran her tongue across her lips as if savoring something. The nakedness of her desire for me was so open it almost looked pure.
Well—even in the game, a general with 100 Intelligence was an enormous asset from a ruler's perspective. He only ever said the right thing; do as he said, and everything worked out. Of course, as with the Lunarien forces destroyed by the Brans army, some things simply could not be done no matter how hard you tried—but perfect prediction was still an immense advantage.
From Serpina's standpoint, I was someone she would want at her side no matter what.
But I—
"Swen."
Without giving me room to continue the thought, Serpina addressed me.
"Yes, my lord."
"There is a matter on which I wish to hear your counsel."
"I cannot answer everything, but…"
"That is fine. If you cannot determine it, simply say so. And I will not blindly revere your words simply because they are yours—so you need not feel burdened."
Serpina's eyes sparkled as she spoke. I hesitated for a moment… but a few pieces of advice would be fine. It wasn't as though I could twist fate with my ability, and the answers that came out were generally ones the other party could accept.
Things like "assigning wall repairs to a high-Martial general is efficient"—most of my predictions never strayed far from that range. Only a handful of incomprehensible forecasts had ever truly tormented me.
And so, while I was thinking of it rather lightly—Serpina threw a fastball straight into my chest.
"I, Serpina von Aingart… can I unify the continent and rebuild the Aingard Empire once more?"