“…That fox-like guy.”
Adele chuckled at the voice that reached her.
Did my recent actions really come off that way?
Even if they did, there’s not much I can say about it.
Saying I would draw a line, but feeling comforted by the approaching presence—it’s a contradictory emotion…
It’s true that I’ve been pushing and pulling a bit.
Adele, whose eyes narrowed in embarrassment as if she felt the compliment about her tied-up hair, hastily loosened the ribbon.
It wasn’t bad that she let it down. It’s just that I hadn’t mentioned it because I had seen it so often before.
I wondered if I should tell her again that it looked good, but I shook my head.
I can tell her later. For now, I guess waiting for Arwen is what remains.
After all, the location isn’t that important to Arwen.
As long as she analyzes the information about the ruins I sent, we can start again from then.
“Now I can rest a little for the time being.”
“You were just talking about future plans, and now you suddenly want to rest?”
“Hmm, can I be honest with you?”
With that, before Adele could respond, I opened my mouth.
“I just wanted to tease you. You seemed to be hoping for praise from earlier.”
“Do you remember what I told you earlier?”
“Well…”
She actually remembered, but deliberately mumbled, and Adele frowned as she quietly replied.
“That fox-like guy.”
#
“You asking me about infiltration makes it seem like you want to give me more work.”
“I couldn’t do that even if I wanted to. I’m just asking what you think.”
Lothos, his complexion so pale that the shadow under his eyes blended with his skin tone, gazed at me with a strained expression as I approached.
One could say he looked like he was facing something from a nightmare.
Of course, I felt sorry knowing why he was acting that way.
Even when I merely asked for his opinion, Lothos, anxious, eventually swallowed hard and began to ponder.
The infiltration operation would be manipulated by Arwen’s illusion, not by me.
I would be the one controlling that illusion. Given that I’m the one most familiar with Arwen’s magic, it makes sense that I would be the only one able to move her magic more naturally.
Create a clone, imbue it with my magic, and control it.
Then my consciousness would be connected to the clone, meaning my body would remain safe while the infiltration operation could proceed more efficiently.
After hearing this explanation, Lothos seemed unfamiliar with the concept of illusions but said there was no issue with the operation itself.
Lothos, unfamiliar with the concept of illusion, declared there was no issue with the operation itself.
“It’s practically cheating, isn’t it? Even if caught, there’s no risk involved in infiltrating, so isn’t there a chance of being tracked in return?”
“You’d have to ask them, but probably not.”
Despite her appearance being small and shabby, she was a woman who had reached the pinnacle of the study of magic.
While I gained my skills through reincarnation, it was she who truly deserved the title of genius.
“I’m in a position where I hope this matter ends quickly, so as long as it finishes swiftly, I’d be satisfied regardless of who comes. I… I should get back home, right?”
After more than three months, nearly four, seeing Lothos’s face made me feel unexpectedly guilty.
Naturally, a simple apology wouldn’t suffice, but I should wish for the infiltration to succeed for his sake.
It has been two days since I contacted Arwen. Considering it had been a while since I sent the information about the ruins,
I figured I’d hear back soon. I wasn’t hoping for a reply as quickly as before. Perhaps a slower response would be fine.
As Adrian said, there was no need to rush things.
Before coming to the North, I thought it wise to handle many matters.
If I hadn’t, Renold would probably be working like Lothos by now.
I briefly apologized to Lothos for the interruption, to which he said it was fine before disappearing with heavy steps toward somewhere.
I assumed it was his office. He was likely wrapping up what either Adele hadn’t handled or what she had left unfinished.
“Don’t you feel sorry for Lothos?”
After Lothos disappeared, I asked Adele, who had just appeared, and she swallowed her breath and gazed into the void.
Although she felt sorry, it seemed she wasn’t expressing it through her actions.
If she had a conscience, she should feel remorse for Lothos. However, her priority was with me right now.
This meant that until this matter was concluded, Lothos would not see an improvement in his treatment.
“Why should I feel sorry for him? Lothos has always been like this. Always busy, and he gets paid accordingly.”
“I saw him today, and he didn’t look great. Sometimes, wouldn’t it be fine if I helped?”
Adele sliced the meat with an effortless motion, but it was clear she was thinking about Lothos.
Her lack of honesty was an issue. However, when I mentioned my willingness to help, her eyes narrowed, and she looked at me with a small, discontented smile.
As it thinned out, it looked at me with a small, dissatisfied smile.
“You seem to have a lot of time. Why not train instead? It’s important to keep at it consistently, not just waking up at dawn to do so, if you want to avoid injuries.”
“I’ve been thinking about it. Jay will be here soon, though, so I’m not sure how much time I’ll have.”
“I don’t think infiltration is something you can just start overnight. There are things we need to do before that.”
“You had a place you agreed to go with me today.”
I nodded at Adrian’s quiet words beside me. Shouldn’t we know in advance where we need to infiltrate?
Thus, I was planning to move first for reconnaissance. I requested Adrian’s help, who could see what others couldn’t with his Divine Power.
Near the uncharted territory, to detect something there, we needed a force more concentrated than magic power.
If it’s the power granted by the Moon God, even in such a remote area, we ought to be able to find something.
With Berod also joining us, the risk was considerably low. No matter what happens, Berod and I could break through with brute strength.
Everyone had a positive view about this mission, but Adele seemed a bit dissatisfied that she couldn’t join us.
“It can’t be helped. The uncharted area is quite some distance from here compared to the ruins.”
“I think if we went to the center, it wouldn’t be impossible.”
“It’s not good to frequently leave your base. Besides, we can’t leave everything to Lothos.”
Apart from the matter of leaving tasks to Lothos, the situation didn’t look too good to outsiders.
Since people were already talking about how tasks at the center weren’t being distributed and were being focused on one person, Adele needed to show that wasn’t the case for her as well.
Just by being in the North, the center’s gaze was fixed here.
The very idea of an infiltration operation was aimed at maintaining secrecy, so Adele particularly needed to ensure that there were no different thoughts regarding those related to Kaitel.
Especially after autumn had arrived, the situation could completely flip, just like the future I knew.
“There probably won’t be any dangerous occurrences. As long as the Saintess is with us, there shouldn’t be any injuries.”
“Not getting hurt is a given. Does this mean you won’t need to borrow a sword this time?”
A sword, huh. Adele’s sword would surely be nice, but the sword I had crafted this time was quite sturdy.
I was still using one of the two swords used to kill Teresa, and it seemed to have decent durability since I had spent a lot of money on it.
“It’s fine. It’ll probably be over in less than a day.”
“Don’t worry.”
“I don’t think it’ll take long. Today is just a scouting mission.”
“If we find something, great—if not, we can narrow down the candidates for where those masked people are hiding.”
“Everything won’t really begin until Arwen arrives anyway.”
The good thing about taking it easy was this:
Becoming lenient about failure. Realizing there’s still plenty of time allowed me to sleep rather comfortably afterward.
“Are you planning to set off right away?”
After finishing her meal and changing clothes, Adele asked Adrian.
I always thought it was better to move quickly, but Adrian moved even faster than I expected.
It was almost as if he was anticipating this situation, as Adele seemed to pick up on that mood too. She frowned slightly and let out a sigh.
“It seems like you’re moving too hastily. Robert hasn’t finished preparing yet.”
“You see, I prepared in advance. It’s better to leave sooner rather than later, right?”
“That may be true…”
If someone said that after finishing all their preparations alone, it would only seem like they were here to take me along.
Berod was beyond the door, and Adele was the only one staring at Adrian with cold eyes.
In the end, there was no choice but to stop eating and get up from the table.
Whenever we’re together, the mood tends to turn out like this. The fact that I know what emotions it’s stemming from makes it even more uncomfortable.
Even Adrian, whom I didn’t think would act this way, has started to move like this.
There always seems to be a situation that exceeds my expectations, leaving me with a splitting headache as an observer.
Wouldn’t it be better to think about the tasks for today?
Adele made a surprised expression upon seeing me get up, but now that I was up, I immediately intended to leave for the uncharted territory.
Lothos had already sent scouts to retrieve an item they had previously found,
and he took out a mask that those masked people had, putting it on to check his visibility.
Adrian also wore a mask, and Berod, who was beyond the door, was also masked up.
Now there was nothing left to prepare; we just needed to depart. I briefly glanced at Adele and nodded my head slightly.
“Then, let’s head out.”
Though she didn’t seem too pleased with me going along with Adrian, Adele let out a sigh and then smiled softly in response.
“…Alright, take care.”
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