Chapter 81
Chapter 81
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 81
Chapter Title: The Missing Runners
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"Franco? You mean the leader of Libertha?"
Despite only seeing the pen move from a distance, Adrian immediately knew what Loan had written.
"Yes."
"Our new Runner is certainly ambitious, wanting to catch the head of Libertha."
"..."
"I heard the story. He fled with a piece of your sword stuck in his eye, didn't he?"
"Yes. I have to find him."
As Loan answered in a determined voice, Sienna’s gaze shifted to his waist.
She spoke.
"That exact spot is empty."
Her usually low voice sounded unusually bitter.
Of all the pieces to go missing, it had to be the one that came with the scabbard Sienna had given him.
All the sword fragments looked identical, and it made no difference which slot they occupied, but for some reason, Sheville was always drawn from and returned to the same spot.
Perhaps Loan’s subconscious could distinguish the subtle differences.
"Even with the increased number of sword pieces, how could that particular spot be the one that's empty? I'm a little disappointed."
"..."
Her voice was even lower than usual.
Was she angry? Was she that upset?
Loan grew restless, and even Adrian began to watch Sienna cautiously.
This, in turn, flustered Sienna.
"It... was... a joke."
Loan couldn't quite comprehend her words.
Who on earth tells a joke so bluntly, with such a monotone voice?
Adrian clicked his tongue.
"Sienna. So that's your idea of a joke."
"What's wrong with it?"
She asked back in the same unchanging tone, and Adrian wore an expression of utter bewilderment.
"Yes. So much so that I don't even know where to begin."
"..."
Loan decided he would have to teach Sienna a little about telling funny jokes during their Aura training.
After all, they had known each other for a long time, and he was quite good at telling jokes.
Sienna suddenly became as quiet as a statue, so Adrian took the lead in the conversation with Loan.
"The page where you wrote your question. The answer will probably appear there. It won't be physical text, but the meaning will seep into your mind."
"There's nothing yet."
Loan replied, staring down at the notebook.
"I'd expect as much. He's a man without roots, so he won't be easy to track."
"Is there information even the Union can't find?"
"Plenty. That's what we're here for. The Management Bureau gathers information from members scattered across the regions and interprets the circumstances."
"Ah, right."
As the vanguard of the Union, the Faith Division was responsible for thorough information gathering.
As a Runner of that division, Loan felt a sense of shame.
The shock from Sienna's surprising joke and his excessive faith in his organization had momentarily made him act like Lucas.
"Anyway, that Franco fellow is a master of escape. We should have caught him back then."
"Does that mean you were one of the four Commanders who fought Franco?"
"There were circumstances."
The Commander chattered on about the situation, though his story sounded more like a tale of his own exploits than an account of Franco's escape.
Loan let the story wash over him while glaring at the notebook.
The answer to his question still hadn't appeared, neither seen nor felt.
Sensing Adrian's story would drag on, Loan subtly shifted the topic with a question.
"Then how do we receive common information?"
"That's why I—huh? Oh... flip the notebook over and turn it around."
Loan did so, and following Adrian's glance, he opened the back cover.
In that moment, he felt a vast amount of information seeping into his mind.
He then realized that an entire page was filled with tiny letters written in mana.
It felt like reading a book after already hearing the plot summary.
[Stability Division, currently focused on clearing out Libertha remnants in Varchino and identifying Le Tell's modification facilities.]
[Key Le Tell forces presumed to be in Versa. The outlying town of Bouillon has been annihilated. Traces of the Puppeteer discovered.]
[The Duchy of Ferrara is expected to host a social gathering for the duke's daughter's birthday. The purpose appears to be rallying young nobles to consolidate power and keep the Kingdom and the Union in check. The Faith Division's Vice-Commander is assessing the situation.]
[Several families in Varchino have requested consultations regarding a marriage match for Loan. A similar request has arrived from the Torchbearer clan of the Bridge District.]
[Freedom Division intelligence confirms Norfolk is expanding its influence, based in the Tique Mountains north of Shiong.]
It was an immense amount of information.
It felt as though the world he belonged to had expanded in an instant, but most of the contents, save for one, were too serious to be taken lightly.
"How reliable is this carrier pigeon?"
"It can't be altered or stolen, so there's no need to worry."
Loan himself couldn't decipher the magic circle inscribed on this pen, so he had to assume the information was true.
A sense of urgency suddenly washed over him.
"Are missions assigned based on this information? Is it possible to choose one?"
It was a rare, almost pressing question from him.
Adrian pushed up his lensless glasses, his eyes gleaming.
"Choose, you say. Are you perhaps interested in the marriage proposals? Isn't it a bit soon?"
"No, that's..."
That was the one piece of news he wanted to ignore. He hadn't expected something like that to be mixed in with all the heavy, serious intelligence.
Moreover, he couldn't understand why it was included in the information shared with all Union members.
Seeing Loan's flustered reaction, Adrian laughed with amusement and glanced at Sienna.
"Now *that's* a joke."
"I fail to see the humor..."
Sienna replied. On that point, Loan agreed with her.
Adrian shrugged with a comical expression and turned back to Loan.
"Let me guess. The Puppeteer, right? That's the information you're interested in."
"..."
"It's not that impressive a guess. You have a record of getting excited and charging in alone when you saw the Puppeteer in Olen. Now that traces of her have been found, you'd naturally be interested. Huh? Come to think of it, that Puppeteer is a woman... Is that why the marriage proposals didn't catch your eye?"
"It's not like that."
"Oh, come on."
A wide grin spreading across his face, Adrian glanced at Sienna again.
His expression clearly said, *See? This is how you tell a joke.* Sienna, looking thoroughly unimpressed, slowly shook her head.
For a different reason, Loan's face flushed red again.
Now that he'd been asked directly, he realized his personal interest wasn't so different from the marriage talk he'd dismissed as irrelevant.
He was just as guilty of failing to separate public and private matters.
Adrian smiled leisurely.
"Well, we're only human, so we can't be completely free from our emotions. But Loan, you must not forget that you're a Runner now."
"Yes. I apologize."
"No need to apologize."
Adrian gently offered a cookie to the somewhat dejected Loan.
As Loan accepted it with both hands and began to eat, Sienna finally spoke up.
"The Management Bureau is planning missions based on the shared information."
"Mm."
"..."
"Yes, ma'am."
Once Loan had swallowed his cookie and answered properly, Sienna continued.
"Missions are assigned based on the suitability of the squad and its members for the objective, their compatibility with the target, the squad's specific traits, and the probability of success. Of course, a squad can also devise its own plan and submit it for approval."
"Actually, that's why we were thinking of drawing up a plan of our own,"
Adrian quickly added.
"You were?"
"It's a bit strange to call a mission a promotion gift, but I was sure you'd be itching for one."
Loan had nothing to say. He had just made that perfectly clear.
"So, will I be going to Versa?"
"Ultimately, yes, but the matter is different. More urgent information came in that wasn't shared with everyone."
"Urgent information...?"
Loan tilted his head slightly, and Adrian and Sienna exchanged a look.
Sienna spoke.
"While we were dealing with Libertha in Varchino, a part of the Honor Division was deployed on another mission with the Practicality Division."
Indeed, only a portion of the Honor Division, including Magda, had come to support them in Varchino.
This was common for the Union.
It was rare for an entire division to mobilize at once.
"Yes. I heard Sophie was assigned to another mission as well."
As he said this, Loan's brow furrowed slightly.
Sophie hadn't even been able to attend his promotion ceremony. He had simply thought she was working hard.
"Could it be..."
"Yes. It's related to Sophie."
His heart pounded in his chest.
A sense of foreboding washed over him. At the same time, he was confused, remembering that she had appeared in his vision.
According to that vision, anything bad happening to Sophie shouldn't occur for at least another five years.
Adrian continued his explanation.
"To be precise, it's related to the Pobel family. You know about your friend's family, don't you?"
"Yes."
The Pobels, one of the great swordsmanship houses of the Duchy of Versa.
Of course, given that Sophie was an illegitimate child who had fallen out of favor with the head of the family and had been all but exiled to the Union for political reasons, it was questionable whether she could still call them family.
Therefore, if Sophie's mission was related to the Pobel family, it was bound to have some hidden intentions.
"The Pobel family is a noble house comparable to the Ducal House of Versa, the very foundation of the duchy, but their recent actions have been rather suspicious."
"In what way?"
"They're building up their strength. It seems they're forcefully absorbing other families within their territory. The conflicts are causing harm to civilians."
"Why would they need to go to such lengths to build power? They're all families within the same territory, aren't they?"
"Their goal seems to be the secret sword techniques possessed by each family."
A name immediately came to mind.
"That's similar to Libertha. I heard they grew their power the same way in Varchino."
"Correct."
"Are they trying to start a war?"
"Who knows. For now, the Duke of Versa must feel threatened."
"So Sophie was sent on a mission to uncover her family's intentions?"
"That's part of it, but it was the Pobel family who called for Sophie first. They've been recalling not just Sophie, but all family affiliates scattered across the regions."
It certainly seemed they were focused on amassing military strength.
"It sounds like they're plotting something."
"They are. But the Duchy of Versa can't take immediate action. After all, it's happening within Pobel territory, and the Duke of Versa has his hands full with the Le Tell problem."
An outlying town had been annihilated by a Le Tell faction, presumed to be led by the Puppeteer.
The seeds of rebellion and war were visible, but it wasn't a situation they could focus on exclusively.
Since the matter couldn't be resolved internally, an external party had to step in.
Even if it was an affair of an autonomous duchy, the Union couldn't turn a blind eye when civilian lives were being destroyed.
That was what the organization was created for.
Loan nodded for a moment, then asked the question he had been suppressing.
"So, what is Sophie's situation now?"
"We've lost contact. With her, and with the Honor Division and Practicality Division Runners who went to back her up."
"..."
He couldn't speak.
The sense of foreboding returned, so strong that he found himself wanting to believe the vision the human tree had shown him.
"So, this is the mission."
Adrian began, his face uncharacteristically serious.
"Go to the Pobel family estate and confirm the status of the missing members. I believe you're the right person for the job. What do you say?"
"I'll do it."
It was a mission to save a friend.
There was no other choice.