204. The Price of Greed
204. The Price of Greed
Sara, who said every minute and second was precious, left the lodging the moment our conversation ended.
According to Sara, she would return by the morning of the day after next at the latest, and if she left right away, in theory she could gather the information and be back around the morning after tomorrow.
I couldn't tell whether she was saying it to soothe me or as an objective conclusion, but I decided to send her off in a hurry.
Still, maybe because I'd had this and that conversation with Sara and even heard some fairly interesting stories, my sunken mood had improved somewhat.
But the unease didn't go away.
...At this point, I'm starting to get annoyed.
They say a person can't even control their own emotions, but including my past and present lives, it's been a long time since I've been this worried.
When Mom said she was going to Ge Vihenum, of course I was anxious and worried, but it wasn't to this degree.
It's just going into some Black Wizard's breeding ground and coming back out, so why the hell? What's the difference?
If anything, shouldn't I be more worried about Mom going to Ge Vihenum?
And besides, why the hell am I the one trembling with anxiety and having to worry?
Just because my body turned out like this, has my damn head turned into a little girl's too? Crazy bastard.
Honestly, there's no reason to be this anxious.
I just... just need to think of it as resolving things a little more slowly and proceed step by step.
This matter is the same.
If something's going to blow up on the day of the festival, the easiest and safest thing is to find that trigger first and eliminate it.
But what am I doing right now?
Not content with finding the trigger, I'm racking my damn brain to find the root cause.
It's not like me.
Even so, I have to do this.
There are many things I must protect. Many things I want to protect.
I don't want to repeat the past.
Moreover, the me of now is different from the me of my Past Life.
I can know what consequences a single action of mine will bring about without having to try it myself.
So it can't be helped, but... the thought that this is excessive greed won't leave my head.
"Hoo-ah... How long has it been since I've washed up feeling this refreshed?"
"Hieee..."
"Right? That bathtub's amazing, isn't it?"
"Hiii..."
"Right. All the strength drains out of my whole body too..."
Hearing Pina and Stella's voices coming out all limp and melted, I straightened my expression.
"Eliarnes. I drew clean water in the bathtub, so you go wash up too. It's seriously amazing. Hup—there! Ooh... so comfy..."
Stella, her face thoroughly flushed, dried her wet hair in an instant and threw herself onto the bed.
"Hweee..."
Pina, who dried her hair a little later than Stella, also threw herself onto the bed with a poof!
"Did your talk with Sara go well? Did she end up going there after all?"
"No. We decided to go once my master gets here."
"Hmm... really? Then, just in case, should I keep watch in front of it?"
"No need for that."
I decided not to mention that Sara had chosen to infiltrate that place.
There's no point in bringing it up when it would only make them worry.
Of course, telling them just in case something unexpected happens would also be a decent option, but... if even Sara ends up in a dangerous situation, those two aren't likely to be safe either.
And knowing Stella and Pina's personalities, if something went wrong with Sara, they'd obviously try to save her somehow.
So it's better for everyone to just not say anything and let them rest easy.
"You two just sleep soundly."
"...Huh? You two? What about you? Are you going somewhere again?"
"There's someone I need to meet."
"What? Then let's go together."
"No."
"Yes."
"Well, well. Lie down before I knock you out by force."
I glared hard at Stella, who had bolted upright.
"...Th-that rope, what's that for? Y-you... don't tell me you're going to tie us up like during the Arant Museum incident?!"
"If you promise to stay put here, there's no need for me to tie you up and go."
"Hiii..."
Pina, who had been darting her eyes around, was already frightened and hugging her tail.
"N-no! I don't want to! Let's go together! Do you even know how worried I was back then?!"
"You slept like a damn log until morning."
Of course, Sparkle had put her to sleep one more time, but anyway, sleeping is sleeping.
"Hmph... No! That's... that's because you knocked me out by force!"
"So what. You're saying you'll follow me this time?"
"Grrr..."
Stella, chewing on her lip, clenched both fists as if she were dying of frustration.
"...Then just tell me who you're going to meet. Is it someone related to this matter?"
"An Executor."
"...A h-heretic inquisitor? Why?"
"I'll tell you when I get back, so sleep soundly for now. Don't even think about coming out."
"...Are you going to fight?"
"No, I'm just going to talk."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Really really?"
"Yeah."
"Really really really?"
"Yeah."
"Really really really really?"
"...Yeah."
"Really rea—"
"Fuck, you're hopeless. Get over here, you bitch."
Stella burst out laughing with a playful kyahaha! and pulled the blanket over herself.
Whether she did or not, I smacked the spot where Stella's ass would be with a slap! and grabbed my cloak.
"I'll be back, so wait quietly. If anything happens, contact me with the crystal."
"Hiii!"
"Pina. Watch over Stella. If I find out you went out, you're really in trouble. Got it?"
Nod nod nod—Pina nodded so hard her short, round ears flapped.
"Oh, and when Spark—no, when Floral wakes up, make sure to contact me. Well, she probably won't wake until tomorrow evening, but still, you never know."
"Hiii!"
If Sparkle finishes her preparations and wakes up.
Then I'll go find Luna.
Before that, I should meet with Mikel first.
Wrapped tightly in my cloak, I started walking.
*****
"You managed to stay alive, I see?"
"It must be that the Lord's will remains with me."
Just as Mikel had said when she came to the Imperial Capital.
When I left an X mark in the alley next to the shabby tavern called [White Night], a hooded subordinate of Mikel's came to find me.
Of course, I didn't follow that person right away.
As the saying goes, look before you leap—I gave that person a few good hits first, forced them to swear an oath, and then received their guidance.
And so I arrived safely at Mikel's office.
Despite her subordinate having lost a dozen or so teeth, Mikel greeted me without a single change in expression.
"I never dreamed you would come so soon."
"You're not acting, are you?"
"I'm sincere. As the captain of Executor Squad 4, my ears and eyes are fairly sharp, but I could not confirm any information that the young lady of House Eustetia had arrived."
"That's a relief."
I nodded and plopped down into a chair, taking off my cloak.
"I'll have a mint chocolate latte."
"Excuse me?"
"Mint chocolate latte. You don't know it?"
Blink blink—Mikel, who had maintained a blank expression even in a situation where she might die at any moment, made a stupid face.
"No, I do know it, but... mint chocolate latte is not prepared."
"What about chocolate milk?"
"There is coffee, black tea, and milk..."
"Tsk... You call yourself the captain of Squad 4, and you don't even have anything to drink in your office?"
"I-I'm sorry...?"
"Have it ready from now on."
"...You'll be coming again?"
"Why. You don't like me coming? Is it uncomfortable or something?"
Mikel tilted her head with an ambiguous expression.
"...When we met in the Imperial Capital, did you not dislike me? But... seeing you joke around like this now, I am a little puzzled."
"Hitting you back then settled it, so whatever. And does what I'm saying now sound like a joke to you? No, so what do you want me to do? You want me to not come? Should I leave?"
"No, no. That... no, yes. For our next meeting, I will be sure to prepare mint chocolate latte..."
"Prepare ice too. I only drink it iced."
"...Yes."
Mikel nodded with a sour look and brought over a stack of documents from the corner.
"This is the information you requested."
"Ugh, damn. Why is there so much?"
Grumbling, I lightly skimmed through the documents.
First of all, it was the information I had asked her to prepare.
I couldn't distinguish friend from foe, but among them, the people who seemed especially suspicious or clearly expected to be enemies.
The Blood Heaven Knight Order, the Cardinals, the priests, and so on.
Information on enemies I'd have to kill someday was piled up to the height of my knees.
And next to it, a map of the Holy Capital.
Not one sold publicly, but a map the Executors handled secretly.
The heights of buildings, whether each building had a basement, the entrances to underground waterways connected to the rivers, and the paths along which the underground waterways stretched.
And even the internal structure of Shamaim and the appearance of the Sanctum—a map showing everything about the Holy Capital.
To find heretics hiding in the Holy Capital, the Executors made such maps for each team and updated them once a month.
And this was the piping-hot map of Mikel's team, updated as of yesterday.
"Impressive."
For now, I'd go over this map once Sparkle woke up.
I turned my gaze to the mountain of documents.
"...Among these, where's the information on the Blood Heaven Knight Order?"
"The Blood Heaven Knight Order is in red, the Executors in black, the priests in yellow, and the Cardinals are prepared separately. Would you like to start with the Blood Heaven Knight Order's information rather than the priests or Cardinals?"
"Aren't priests at most Tier 3?"
"It's ambiguous to express the priests' Realm in Tiers or Circles, but... yes. If forced to say, they could be called Tier 3."
"And the exceptional ones among them would have already moved on to being priests attached to knight orders."
"Correct."
"Then that's fine. Let's start with the Blood Heaven Knight Order, since they're the most numerous. Sort out only the ones above Tier 5 and arrange them in ascending order."
"Yes."
Leaving Mikel, who began sorting without a word of complaint, I decided to quickly skim through the Executor information.
The Blood Heaven Knight Order is an ordinary knight order.
Well, an ordinary knight order where people who swing cold weapons, shoot magic, heal, and all that gather.
As such, ordinary knights start at Tier 2 and end at Tier 4.
Among the commanders, there are some who've reached Tier 6, but as far as I can tell, they're all the same.
The overall commander is probably hovering at the edge of Tier 6 too.
So the lower their Realm, the more numerous they inevitably are.
Therefore, I thought it would take some time to sort through.
"It's done."
Mikel's sorting was finished.
"What, wasn't that under three minutes? You're fast?"
"Until five years ago, I was in charge of administration in the knight order."
"Administration? If you were in charge of administration for the Holy Kingdom, weren't you a coffee machine? How did a coffee machine become an Executor?"
"...I was in charge of administration, not a coffee machine. As for how I became an Executor... it is because the Lord's grace dwelled within me."
There are various things the Executors go on about as grace.
Lie-detector eyes, demon-breaking Mana, Demonic Energy radar, and so on.
They call such things grace, and only by receiving that grace can one become an Executor.
So everyone belonging to the Executors has that grace or whatever it is.
Of course, I already knew that.
"That's not what I meant. I was asking how a person who'd been a coffee machine until now became a captain in just five years."
At my question, Mikel's expression stiffened.
"Is it hard to talk about?"
"...If you require it, I can tell you."
"Require my ass. The way I see it, it seems like exactly the information needed for the current situation. Is that just my imagination?"
"...You have judged correctly. However, I recommend first looking at the Blood Heaven Knight Order's information and then the Executor information. That way, the story should proceed more smoothly."
"Sure. Let's do that."
I nodded readily and lowered my gaze to skim through the information Mikel had handed over.
First, the knight order's average Realm...
"...What?"
From the very start, it was information that made question marks pop up wildly.
I raised my head and looked at Mikel.
"Is this related to the story you didn't tell me?"
"It is, but before explaining about the Executors, I will explain the anomaly that occurred within the Blood Heaven Knight Order."