The Princess Candidate (3)
Louis Fairmont, the son of the corrupt politician and a fake Lucky Encounter holder who claimed Manuel Lucas's legacy, stood at the center of the revolutionists' scrutiny.
Their question hung in the air like a blade: was the Lucky Encounter he had obtained truly authentic? My gaze and Arsia's followed theirs, locking onto Otis the princess.
Otis hesitated, fingers twisting nervously at her sides. But when survival itself was at stake, she answered honestly.
“The form of the Lucky Encounter was quite convincing. Yet when I briefly inspected its interior, it seemed far too empty.”
Her assessment was too precise, igniting a surge of caution in Otis the princess.
Could there be some hidden weakness in the Lucky Encounter that I hadn't noticed?
Surely, the core of it couldn't be pierced by her either.
That thought alone brought the assassination proposal Arsia had made weeks ago straight to the forefront of my mind.
“The possibility of it being genuine is certainly high, but its authenticity remains uncertain,” I said coolly. “In that case, the commander's speculation that it might be a fake created by a true Lucky Encounter holder is quite plausible.”
Yet the real issue wasn't just Otis.
Even the revolutionists—who had only seemed out of place earlier—were making remarkably accurate deductions.
Should I kill them all?
The thought crossed my mind seriously. These people were urging me on as if my life were about to end, yet they didn't even know the person standing right before them had acquired a Lucky Encounter.
But I shook off the murderous urge.
Without knowing the revolutionists' true scale or who stood behind them, moving against them would be far too dangerous.
If I made a careless move and failed to contain the situation, it would be worse than doing nothing at all.
‘Better to keep my mouth shut for now. No one here knows I'm the Lucky Encounter holder.’
And on cold, rational thought, the odds of Otis piercing the firewall of a genuine Lucky Encounter were extremely low.
Even if it were some hastily forged fake, there was no way Manuel Lucas's creation would be that fragile.
“But how exactly did you access it? You couldn't have infiltrated the president's palace, could you?”
“Ah, that…”
Amid the tense stares from everyone—including Piero in his mask and the black-robed figure—Otis the princess, who had quickly realized who we were, answered without hesitation.
“I connected through the online interface. I believed the Lucky Encounter was most likely hidden within a virtual world rather than reality. That hunch proved true this time.”
…
“When I remotely connected to Louis Fairmont's terminal, I discovered he had frequently accessed a certain domain. I assumed it was the entrance to the Lucky Encounter.”
She was no ordinary person.
Someone who had dug this deep into the system was nothing short of extraordinary.
If I hadn't claimed it, she might have been its rightful owner.
And within her words lay something far more intriguing.
“Remote connection to Louis Fairmont's terminal? Quite an unusual talent you possess.”
Remote connection? Or was it simply hacking?
I had vaguely heard of such techniques in Hollywood and magic circles, but I had never seen one used in practice until now.
“I acquired the tool through an acquaintance. It was necessary to verify whether Louis Fairmont's Lucky Encounter was genuine.”
That meant there was a separate hacker out there.
The kind of talent I definitely wanted to recruit.
With the situation now clear, I turned to the Aura Master who appeared to be the revolutionists' leader.
“It's time for us to withdraw. Chase is bound to come soon. These two are our responsibility.”
The Aura Master gave me a troubled expression.
“Just a moment. Our business isn't finished yet.”
“What business?”
“Our commander invited both of you.”
I narrowed my eyes, but this was a decision that lay beyond my control.
When I looked at Otis the princess and the Earl of Acker with a sigh, they both froze, clearly reluctant but unwilling to reject the favor shown by the benefactors.
Since neither seemed ready to answer, I offered another suggestion.
“First, we should move to a safe location. The rest can be discussed later.”
Everyone nodded without objection.
“Then let me and her go together.”
The revolutionists' Aura Master and a woman who appeared to be the next in command—a Vanguard—approached us.
With no choice, I led them through spatial teleportation.
***
Shortly afterward, we found ourselves in the frozen wasteland of northern Prius Republic.
Only those who had accompanied me through the spatial teleport remained unaffected by the blizzard, forming a tight circle around me.
I fixed my gaze on the revolutionists' Aura Master.