“…Hmm.”
“Did Harang actually give the order himself?”
Anna’s expression seemed a bit angry, and she let out a tense hum.
When Anna mentioned “the one I commanded,” it was highly likely she was referring to the Cheonma Church.
Of course, I didn’t order them to raid the palace…
But I did ask them for something, and it’s also true that I’m responsible for it.
“That’s right.”
I nodded.
“Why on earth…”
I scratched my head at Anna’s clenched teeth and disappointment.
I can’t say I don’t understand her feelings.
She’d be mad since the kids I introduced suddenly raided the palace.
…It’s a bit unfair for me, though.
I still don’t get how asking to catch a spy turned into a request for them to raid the palace.
Well… there must have been some misunderstanding.
And the disharmony arising from the lack of communication is usually the fault of the one making the request.
In the end, it means it’s my fault.
“…Then, I’ll be heading out first.”
I sighed deeply and waved my hand at Anna, who came out to greet me.
“It’s cold, so you should head back inside quickly.”
“Stop right now… Ugh!”
– Thud!
I kicked the ground hard and jumped into the sky.
As I soared, the wind pressure created caused Anna to briefly raise her sword to block.
“Damn…!”
She gazed at me with a look of despair as I flew farther away.
“Hmm.”
I watched her for a moment.
With a sigh, I turned my gaze back to the little cabin in the east.
“I guess we’ll meet again someday.”
I’m also not planning to stay stuck in the cabin.
When the misunderstanding is resolved, it will be fine.
For now…
S-s-s—
“…Looks like he’s definitely sound asleep.”
Nameless’s stability is the top priority.
I confirmed that Nameless’s body wasn’t being overexerted due to the cheerful nature.
But that alone isn’t enough to put my mind at ease.
Once I reach the cabin, I need to check more carefully when all the eyes around are gone.
Am I being too overprotective? I wondered…
Well, what can I do?
Nameless comes first for me.
Also, it’s strange that Nameless hasn’t woken up after just using the cheerful nature.
“Just a little more wait.”
I scrunched my brows and continued staring into the air.
―――――――――
A rumor began to spread throughout the Empire afterward.
That a monster causing various natural disasters appeared in the world just by passing by.
*
“Well, the principal must have definitely intervened.”
I don’t really understand why that’s important, but it’s not wrong, so I nodded.
“Hmm, I guess…”
Nameless lay down, seemingly relieved, and took a deep breath.
“Thank goodness…”
“What is there to be thankful for?”
I asked, squinting my eyes slightly.
Isn’t it rather bad?
It seems there’s been some misunderstanding between Anna and me because of this, and thinking about fixing that makes my head ache.
And there’s more to ask than just that.
“Why did you use the kids for the palace raid?”
A question that arose since the day before.
Why did the Tri-Sword of the Cheonma Church join forces with some spy hiding in the Academy?
Nameless opened her mouth as if she had known I would ask.
“To catch them more decisively.”
“Decisively?”
I tilted my head, asking for additional explanation, and Nameless nodded before continuing.
“According to the investigation into the mixed sword, the spies hiding in the Academy were not acting alone.”
“…That makes sense, it’s the Academy after all.”
It’s a massive scale to act solo by raiding the Academy, so I had some idea.
But maybe I was a bit off, as Nameless shook her head slightly.
“It wasn’t the Academy; their target is the Empire.”
“…The Empire?”
“Yes, the raid on the Academy was the Reaper’s personal desire, and the one who roped in the Reaper is suspected to have had a grudge against the Empire itself.”
“Ah.”
If they intended to ruin the Academy, then they might have already achieved that by successfully infiltrating as a professor.
The one influencing the students’ common sense or ideas isn’t the principal, but the professors teaching them.
The best way to wipe out a group is to shake it from within.
Yet they still incite the Reaper for an assault, despite having infiltrated as a professor?
Talk about a long tail catching, it seems utterly unnecessary.
“Yes, I started the investigation on the premise that behind the spy was a group.”
Having revealed the identity of the spy, they investigated his movement locations, his acquaintances, or any abnormal behaviors.
They worked hard in just two days.
“…But who was that spy?”
Only then did Nameless seem to realize she hadn’t mentioned it before, and she awkwardly followed up.
“It was the professor we met on the first day of class.”
“Ah… that burly guy.”
As expected.
His intentions seemed quite foul from the start when he tried to make me his assistant.
“Did you manage to find that group?”
“Yes, we did.”
“…Alright, go on.”
Nameless continued with a lengthy response.
“First of all…”
The professor was getting increasingly anxious as the net gradually closed in on him, and at that timing, the Cheonma Church appeared like a savior.
At first, it wasn’t easy to make contact, but…
The mixed sword showed that they were investigating not only him but all related to the Academy, leading them to suspect anyone harboring grudge or interest against the ‘Academy.’
After making contact, everything proceeded swiftly.
Since it was confirmed that the opponent was not an individual but a group, they could not hastily arrest the professor.
While they could have interrogated the professor, if he had little information or used some sort of magic to leak information, he could have easily escaped.
Thus, to eradicate that group at once, they used the method of…
“Inciting them to raid the palace….”
“Quite right.”
As I massaged my throbbing temples, I sighed again.
…Even so, an assault on the palace seems excessive, right?
There’s the possibility that the children of the Cheonma Church could get marked by the Empire too, and…
“Did Anna know about this?”
“…Probably, yes.”
“Why the ambiguous ‘probably’…”
Seeing Nameless tilt her head as if uncertain made me frown.
“I’m sure I informed her about the spy’s identity and that it was a group, not an individual.”
“…Really?”
It seems they had communicated somewhat after all.
Nodding along, Nameless rolled her eyes and continued.
“However, the manner of notification was more like an announcement.”
“…What?”
“I heard that Anna left a note in the principal’s office about what was going to happen next.”
“…”
Only then did I begin to understand why Anna looked at me like that.
Seriously, just leaving a note?
Isn’t that the very definition of a notification?
And since I’ve never seen the content of that note, this is just speculation.
If it said something short like, ‘Tomorrow we will raid the palace with the spy,’ then…
“…Wouldn’t that make us look like the criminals?”
Or maybe not…? Since we did actually raid with them, we might as well fit the bill.
“Wouldn’t it be alright?”
“The kids of the church are, before anything, people tied to the Empire, so how is that alright?”
In response to my retort, Nameless straightened her posture and spoke again.
“It’s a bit different. They’re members of the Cheonma Church before they are Empire citizens.”
“…Isn’t that the same thing?”
“It’s a bit different; everyone in the Cheonma Church grew up in the slums.”
I nodded, signaling her to continue.
“They’ll feel no allegiance to the Empire.”
“…Is that so?”
“Yes, in fact, most of them consider the Master, who directly helped them, as their savior rather than the Empire that neglected them.”
“…Hmm.”
Nameless smiled and continued.
“And, Master, you don’t need to worry.”
“…Worry?”
“Yes, are you worried that the Tri-Sword might harm the Empire citizens by any chance?”
“…Well, I guess so.”
Nameless grinned, as if she expected that.
“Right once the assault commenced, the sky fell as a signal, and the Tri-Sword all evacuated the scene.”
“And that’s why they used the cheerful nature…”
“Exactly. If they wanted to convey the message without speaking, wouldn’t it be best to use a grand technique?”
Seeing Nameless still smiling, I found myself momentarily speechless.
By the way… they’re calling me a savior?
At first, they weren’t gathered with such benevolent intentions; they were merely gathered for my sake…
As if sensing my thoughts, Nameless flashed a smile and said,
“Master, isn’t hypocrisy also a virtue?”
“…Hmm.”
I feel like I’ve heard that before…
“Regardless of the intentions, the seeds you planted have blossomed into beautiful flowers.”
I guess it’s okay to feel a bit proud, and I nodded at Nameless’s small addition.
That’s right… that’s right.
Regardless of my intentions, those kids made their own choices and even showed results.
I only need to commend that achievement.
No matter the process, in the end, Anna and the Empire’s knights would have succeeded in suppressing that group…
“Well… good things are good things, I suppose.”
“Absolutely right.”
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