“Uh…”
“Did you come, Hertlocker?”
Walter Bank basement.
Hertlocker stood still with his mouth agape as he entered another base of the Intelligence Agency.
In front of him was a hunk of meat soaked in blood, chained up.
Honestly, it looked so much like a corpse that he could barely believe it; it occasionally let out *shew shew* sounds of gasping.
“He’s going to die like that.”
“Don’t worry. People don’t die that easily. Don’t you know I’m an expert in this field?”
“…That aside, have you found anything out?”
Hertlocker turned his head away from that thing.
He had seen countless corpses on the battlefield, but he felt like he was going to be sick at the sight of something so grotesquely distorted.
“I’ve figured out a lot. The problem is that guy is still lying.”
“Really? Even in that state?”
“Yeah. Isn’t he spouting nonsense about how Schlus Hainkel burned the data?”
Eric shook his head.
If Schlus Hainkel had taken the Intelligence Agency’s information from that guy, there would be no reason to destroy it.
Just handing it over to the Imperial Police would make him a national hero, and he would receive a tremendous reward.
Even keeping it would give him a good bargaining chip to threaten the kingdom.
But he burned it right there?
There’s no lie more obvious than that.
“But seriously… why would he lie to that extent?”
“That’s a mystery. He hasn’t had his eyes gouged out yet, right? Let’s gouge them out and ask again.”
“It might not be a lie…”
“What do you mean? Are you saying Schlus Hainkel really did destroy the data?”
“No. At least that guy believes that’s what happened. Schlus Hainkel used magic to show an illusion, and that guy thinks he saw the data being burned.”
“Ooh… That sounds plausible?”
As Eric clapped, Hertlocker let out a *sigh* of disbelief.
He couldn’t believe he didn’t think of something so simple while putting someone in that state.
At this point, it felt like he was intentionally playing dumb just to continue the torture.
“Ah. I feel a bit sorry now. If I had thought of that a bit earlier, we wouldn’t have had to cut off his tongue.”
“Can a person survive after cutting their tongue…?”
“Sure. After you cut it and immediately sear the stump with fire, it clots due to the heat, and then bleeding stops…”
Hertlocker listened with one ear and let it flow out the other.
It was information he didn’t want to know.
“By the way, what do we do about Schlus Hainkel?”
“Ha… that’s a good question…”
Eric and Hertlocker sighed deeply at the same time.
Schlus Hainkel was in possession of the personal information of the Intelligence Agency’s agents.
The fact that the Imperial Police haven’t stormed in yet means he hasn’t snitched on them.
That means he wants to deal with the Intelligence Agency.
Holding a weakness capable of annihilating the Intelligence Agency.
“Shouldn’t we eliminate him now? I’ll sacrifice my life to take him down.”
“No. Schlus Hainkel isn’t a fool. He’s definitely arranged for the data to be released if he dies.”
“That’s…”
“There’s no way to counter him. We can only wait and see what he demands next.”
“…”
Hertlocker clenched his fist tightly.
Schlus literally held the lifeline of the Intelligence Agency.
They found themselves in a position where they practically had to submit to Schlus.
What on earth would he demand?
Just imagining it sent chills down Eric’s and Hertlocker’s spines.
*
“Ha. Haha.”
I kept letting out bitter laughs.
The warm sunlight streamed down; the current time was 11 o’clock.
The medal conferment ceremony starts at 1.
Even if I grabbed a carriage right now, I’d barely make it to the Imperial Palace on time.
But the problem was—
“Ugh, I’m in trouble.”
My outfit was in tatters.
Had I brushed against Hertlocker’s blade earlier? My side was ripped.
How could I stand before the Emperor dressed like this?
Well, that might be better than not showing up at all.
There was no choice but to go like this.
Determined to catch any carriage, I began to look around.
“Uh?”
The sound of thunderous hooves echoed behind me.
Turning around just in time, I heard a *screech* as a carriage skidded to a stop right in front of me.
It was literally inches away…
I almost became roadkill.
“Hainkel!”
At that moment, the carriage door opened, and Emilia appeared.
Was she here to greet me?
But how did she know I was here…?
“Emilia, how did you know—”
“How do you think I knew?”
“…”
Before I could finish, another voice appeared behind Emilia, silencing me.
A girl in a nun’s outfit with an incredibly gentle smile.
It was Iris.
She must have used future sight.
I was grateful, but I felt uneasy about accumulating more debts like this.
It felt like they’d ask for something huge later…
“What are you doing? Hurry up and get in. Are you not getting in?”
“…I guess I will.”
With a slight unease, I climbed into the carriage.
The moment it carried me off at full speed toward the Imperial Palace, I noticed this was no ordinary carriage.
The interior was spacious enough for six people, complete with plush sofas.
Even if the travel expenses were covered by the royal family, there was no way thrifty Emilia would procure such a luxury carriage.
Thus, the ownership narrowed down to one person.
“So it’s the Flechette family’s carriage?”
“Oh my! How did you know without the family crest?”
“Thanks. I owe you one.”
“What? I didn’t hear you.”
“…”
Iris flashed a mischievous smile. She had heard everything yet was acting innocent.
She seemed intent on pulling me into more obligations, making me wonder what she thought.
“Really. Just as the saintess feared, I’m glad I brought extra clothes!”
Emilia, noticing my ripped side, pulled out a shirt from her bag.
I guessed Iris had hinted at it.
Maybe she suggested I bring a change of clothes… without discussing the future sight with Emilia.
“Thank you. I’d appreciate it if both of you could close your eyes.”
“W-What? You’re changing right now?”
“Time is tight; it’s either that or nothing.”
Iris gently closed her eyes, and Emilia quickly covered her face with her palm.
I had no idea I would be in such an embarrassing situation before them…
But there were no other options, so I quickly put on the new shirt.
But wait, did I just catch a glimpse of Emilia’s eye peeking between her fingers? Was it my imagination?
“Okay, done.”
“Phew, can I ask now?”
“What do you mean?”
“What on earth did you do all night?”
“…”
Emilia’s straightforward question left me speechless.
I could hardly say I had beat up her brother, dislocated all his bones, and dumped him in filth.
What should I do now?
I would eventually have to come clean when I contacted the agent from the Intelligence Agency.
“It’s a secret.”
“Ah…”
I shrugged, hoping to evade the question.
I was a bit afraid of the backlash when Emilia found out what happened today.
Maybe around an hour later, the carriage came to a stop.
I pulled the curtain aside and peeked outside; we were already in front of the Imperial Palace.
Unexpectedly, there were still about 30 minutes left.
Should we go in early?
Just as I was about to open the door—
“Oh, Hainkel! You forgot something.”
“What is it?”
Emilia tugged on my sleeve.
Leaving me bewildered, she rummaged through her bag and pulled out a box.
Upon opening the box, it was filled with…
Makeup tools.
“Did you forget? You promised to let me do your makeup.”
“Did I really say that?”
“Yes, you did.”
“…”
Now I remembered.
Why on earth did I agree to that?
I must have been out of my mind back then.
Sure, I could allow the makeup once in a hundred times.
But having Iris snickering beside me was too annoying.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothing at all, hehehe.”
“…”
She had quite the knack for being irritatingly cute.
I wanted to give her a *love tap* on the head but had to hold myself back.
Moving now would mess up the makeup.
About 10 minutes passed.
“All done, Hainkel!”
Emilia wiped the sweat from her forehead with a smile.
She had been applying something to my cheeks, eyebrows, and lips, and honestly, I had no clue what she had done.
But when I looked in the mirror she handed me—
“Hmm. Not bad.”
“Right?”
I couldn’t help but feel somewhat satisfied.
It wasn’t drastically different.
Though I didn’t know much about makeup, I could tell this made my features more defined.
Looking like this, even Schlus’s face seemed somewhat handsome.
I had always thought it was just an average face.
“Men only need to highlight a few points like this. How about doing this every day? I’ll help you!”
“I’ll pass on that.”
Even if I was okay with the occasional touch-up, doing it every day felt excessive…
Besides, it felt like Emilia saw me as a doll for makeup, which made me uncomfortable.
“Well, let’s go out now.”
“Wait a moment…”
Just as I was about to open the door, Emilia grabbed my sleeve again.
Turning back, I saw Emilia breathing heavily, her hands over her chest.
At first, I thought she was just pretending to be nervous.
But the thought faded as I watched her reaction closely.
When Aria visited last time, I hadn’t noticed, but now, looking back, Emilia’s response was too over the top to be an act.
Who would fumble their hands while trying to hand tea to the Crown Prince?
Maybe she genuinely found it overwhelming to face royal people.
“Are you okay?”
“…?”
“If you feel nervous, just focus on me. Don’t watch anywhere else. You’re here to assist me.”
“Y-Yes…”
Before long, Emilia’s trembling eased, and her breathing became more steady.
It seemed her tension was subsiding.
“Should we get out now?”
“Yes, let’s go.”
“Thanks for lending me the carriage. I appreciate it.”
“Eh? Yes…”
As I stepped out of the carriage, I noticed something odd about Iris’s response.
Typically, she would have made some snarky comment to embarrass me.
But her eyes were wide, as if she was a bit shocked.
What could that be about?
My puzzlement was quickly resolved when I caught Emilia stealing glances at me.
‘Oh.’
I realized what I had just done.
I had patted Emilia’s head.
Out of habit, unconsciously, naturally.
In front of Iris no less.
Wow, I’m so embarrassed I want to die.
