The cat-headed being confidently opened its mouth.
“1st Princess has postponed her return to the Northern Region.”
Immediately after, the members reacted quite intensely.
“…1st Princess? The 1st Princess who loves the North?”
“Then who will defend the front line?”
The cat-headed being answered leisurely amidst the numerous questions.
“It seems there’s something more important to hunt than the monsters in the North—it’s in the Imperial Capital, it seems. From the perspective of the Magic Towers, it’s something that should be taken very seriously, meow.”
The members nodded in unison.
“Does that mean there’s a tremendous monster lurking somewhere in the capital? Finding it quickly will be key. Perhaps it could be possible to trip it…”
“If the 1st Princess even casually mentions receiving help from the Magic Towers, the repercussions would be enormous. We should seriously consider hunting that game down.”
Everyone was getting enthusiastic about the conversation, but…
“….”
Ezekiel remained quietly silent.
Because, well, he had a hunch about the identity of that prey.
‘That prey is me. It definitely has to be me.’
No matter how he thought about it, the prey the 1st Princess was referring to had to be him. The last words she had pronounced during their chase were still vivid in his mind.
─…Okay, if you get caught, I’ll completely squeeze you dry.
Should Ezekiel escape from the capital? Or should he endure being squeezed? Either way, it was a truly bewildering choice to make.
‘…This secret meeting is incredibly useful.’
No, it had already surpassed the level of usefulness.
While other mages were pondering how to use this information to benefit the Magic Towers, Ezekiel’s thoughts sunk into a much more primal concern.
…Survival, solely survival.
“It’s strangely fascinating, as the information each of us has gathered doesn’t overlap at all. I brought something about the 3rd Princess.”
Next up was a woman in a veil.
“I heard that the Inquisition Officers have entered special training.”
“Special training…!”
It was only natural for the members to be agitated.
The fact that the Inquisition Officers were entering special training clearly indicated that they were about to engage in something significant.
Worry crept over their voices.
“Why are the Inquisition Officers suddenly doing this? Doesn’t that mean a large-scale ideological purge is imminent?”
“It seems so. We should be cautious of the Magic Towers…”
“Please keep an eye on the mages in the Magic Towers. There could be fiends hidden among them.”
Sure, everyone was worried about the fiends, but…
Ezekiel didn’t share that sentiment.
‘…Could it be that they have plans to use this in another way?’
Suddenly, words that Solana had spat out came to mind.
─Keep all the other women away from me.
─If you don’t…
─I’ll have no choice but to punish you all myself.
Several women quickly flashed through Ezekiel’s mind. Tether, Agnes, Seina… the ones he had traveled with this time. He couldn’t help but worry if they would face any unfortunate events.
…He had resolved to soothe Solana well.
But just then…
“Oh? Ohhh?”
The cat-headed being reacted strangely and stepped forward.
With wide eyes, it pointed towards Fake Ezekiel.
“I had no idea until now, but now that I look at it, the appearance of the Leader is exactly the same as the Imperial Tower Inspector, right? I mean, the person who shone at this exchange meeting!”
Soon, that surprise spread among the members.
“That’s true?”
“That’s definitely the Inspector’s appearance.”
“Could it be…?”
Fake Ezekiel quietly shook his head.
“No.”
“Then…?”
“Just an acquaintance. That’s about it.”
Ezekiel narrowed his eyes at the phrasing “just an acquaintance.” It was certain that they had some connection, but who in the world would remember him?
Someone who could even imitate his appearance and actions.
He began to gradually tighten the net around his thoughts.
‘Could it be…’
There was someone among the princesses with a similar speech pattern.
─Teacher, it’s time for bed now.
─I can’t sleep alone, we need to sleep together.
─Teacher, teacher…
He shook his head. Could it be that the princess was here?
“Hmm, it wouldn’t be polite to ask more than this…”
Ezekiel inwardly hoped that information about Fake Ezekiel would emerge, but no one else dared to ask.
Given that it was a virtual world, there were various circumstances at play.
While someone could simply mimic another’s appearance out of admiration, the opposite was often the case.
The most famous was taking on the form of an enemy as a disguise. No matter how many wrongdoings were committed in the virtual world, the bad rumors would invariably fall upon the enemy.
Perhaps because of that, no one asked about relationships.
They only talked about the Imperial Tower Inspector.
“Wasn’t he amazing?”
“I was shocked. Calling it a decisive victory wouldn’t even do it justice.”
Hearing stories about himself openly felt strange. Ezekiel pretended to be oblivious and asked.
“Was the Imperial Tower Inspector really that amazing?”
“Not just amazing, he caused a revolution, meow.”
“Is there really something to call a revolution in the magic world? No matter how busy it seems, it’s always the same boring industry.”
“…Did you sleep throughout this exchange meeting? No, you must’ve completed a specific task. You’re not a mage!”
The other members’ faces were no different. Circumstances had led to Ezekiel having to hide his identity even more.
After that, he had to listen to quite a bit of flattery.
“The special thing about the Imperial Tower Inspector this time is that he knows how to get things done himself. Normally, inspectors only tell others what to do, but it’s been a long time since he directly punished the wicked one by one.”
“Is that really that amazing?”
Wasn’t it just an ordinary thing?
Weren’t the other inspectors just lazy?
That was all Ezekiel could think.
The compass beside him nodded along.
“It’s truly remarkable. It seems that those ten years of inactivity were part of a smoke screen, and he showed up after sharpening his blade.”
“Well… I suppose that’s one way to look at it.”
“Not a way to look at it, this is the truth.”
Ezekiel scratched his head.
‘These guys were obviously at the exchange meeting.’
He thought he should dig deeper for information.
“Then, it seems most Magic Towers didn’t take the presentations seriously, huh? Since the Imperial Tower had the upper hand anyway.”
“Exactly! So they kept their trump research results hidden! After all, they knew they weren’t going to be first place.”
“That’s clever. Very clever.”
Ezekiel nodded, but the thoughts in his mind were different.
‘These guys, I’ll need to thoroughly shake them down sometime.’
Now he understood why the secret meeting was so strictly excluding anyone related to the Imperial Tower.
With how easily they spilled juicy facts, speaking was like handing the inspector a honey pot.
Remarkable achievements were alive and breathing all around.
Thud—
At that moment, Fake Ezekiel rapped on the round table.
“Enough chit-chat. We don’t have time.”
At that, the round table quickly regained its silence.
“I have some information. Today, I have two pieces.”
“…Two?”
All the members showed intense reactions.
It was an obvious reaction.
Every piece of information the leader brought was immense, and now they were declaring to reveal two pieces. They couldn’t help but be excited.
“Are you serious? You’re telling us two pieces of information?”
“Yes. Since the Inspector’s talk came up, here’s an extra one.”
Fake Ezekiel nodded his head.
“The Imperial Tower Inspector, particularly likes the 5th Princess.”
“…”
And the first piece of information was a bit out of nowhere.
“…?”
Confusion flashed across everyone’s faces, but Fake Ezekiel calmly emphasized his statement.
“No, he just really loves the 5th Princess. He cares for her above all. He works for the 5th Princess.”
“…”
As the person in question, Ezekiel could only feel shocked.
‘Did I really like the 5th Princess that much?’
5th Princess, Neo.
The continent’s greatest scroll researcher.
He did hold her in high regard as a disciple, but he regarded her the same as the other princesses. There was no favoritism.
In fact, it didn’t even ignite a fire in the round table.
Shaaa… Ah…
No, it lit up, but the light felt somewhat weak.
Most members seemed lukewarm, but as it was the leader spouting this, they could only nod their heads awkwardly and go along.
“I’ll have to keep this in mind for when I want to gain the favor of the Imperial Tower later. Knowing preferences is important.”
“…Y-yeah. To think you even investigated the Inspector’s preferences, our esteemed leader is indeed remarkable.”
Fake Ezekiel quietly nodded.
“The information I just mentioned. Just a bonus.”
His expression turned serious.
“The second piece is truly important.”
With the emphasis on its significance, everyone focused more than ever. Of course, Ezekiel was no exception.
And finally…
Fake Ezekiel uttered one line.
“The 5th Princess is plotting treason.”
“─!”
The members’ mouths dropped open.
“What, what, what did you just say…!”
“What…!”
Shock and disbelief flooded the scene.
In a place where a fact so utterly unbelievable shattered the atmosphere.
Shaaaaaaaa─!
The round table shone wondrously bright.
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