Mushoku Tensei (LN) - Volume 21 - Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

A Chess Problem

THE NEXT DAY, I found myself back in a little room cut off from the outside world, squaring off against the pope. Next to him sat Cliff.

“Your Holiness, I hope I find you well,” I said.

Cliff knew what had gone down last night. I told him everything about how Zenith had been taken, and he was outraged on my behalf at the Latrias’ brutish tactics. 

“I need the pope’s help,” I told him.

Now I was on my second audience with His Holiness in as many days. The pope had to have other things on his plate, but he’d made time for me.

“You must be tired, Mr. Rudeus.”

“Is it that obvious?” I said.

I touched my face and felt a prickle, even though I’d just shaved. I’d spent all last night replaying my encounter with Claire, too infuriated to sleep. I must have looked awful.

“It is. Am I correct in assuming that is why you requested today’s audience?” replied the pope.

He acted like he saw right through me. Maybe he’d already heard of what happened to Zenith.

“The truth is, Your Holiness, my mother was abducted last night.”

“Oh? And by whom?” inquired the pope. His smile never faltered as he watched me. 

That phrasing… He knows, I thought. Could it be that the pope was pulling the strings from behind the curtain? I hoped not.

“The Latrias,” I answered. I recounted last night’s events. 

The pope’s eyes narrowed. “And now, you wish for my assistance in your investigations?”

“That about sums it up,” I said.

The pope twirled his Santa Claus beard, considering my words. Then he looked at me. His smile remained, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

“In that case, I’ll need a favor of you.”

“Your Holiness?” said Cliff, baffled. “Rudeus is my friend. He isn’t here as part of a faction squabble, but for his family. Do you really think it’s appropriate to negotiate terms for such a matter?”

“Think carefully, Cliff,” replied the pope. His voice was kind but chiding. “This is a Latria family dispute. I can intervene, but that will mean interfering in another family’s affairs. I doubt the Latrias will take kindly to the Grimors getting involved. They will, however, hear me out if I come to them in my capacity as pope. This is all between a mother, her daughter, and her grandson, at the end of the day. Also, unless I use that authority, the Grimors would end up owing the Latrias a hefty debt.” 

So the Latrias will have baited a minnow and caught a whale. From the whale’s point of view, the bargain needs a little extra something to be worthwhile.

“What would you have me do, Your Holiness?” I asked.

“Oh, you say that easily enough,” said the pope, “but this is all feeling a little too good to be true. The Dragon God’s right hand comes to me in distress, seeking aid? What possessed the Latrias to go and make an enemy of you in the first place, hm?”

“…I don’t know. Isn’t it possible the Latrias don’t know who the Dragon God is?” Now I thought about how Claire had treated Aisha or how she’d totally ignored me when we arrived, it seemed obvious that she’d looked down on me from the start. The Dragon God Orsted? I imagined her saying. I’ve never heard of any such backwater deity.

“However he might appear, Count Latria keeps himself well informed on what’s going on in the world,” said the pope. “He wouldn’t let anything concerning a warrior of your caliber slip through his net, and he certainly wouldn’t dismiss it.” 

Count? Not Claire, then, but her husband—Carlisle.

“I…haven’t been introduced to the count yet,” I replied. “I suspect that Claire, his wife, may be doing this alone. She doesn’t know anything.”

Even if she did know who I was, different people had different views on who counted as important. I wasn’t a noble, nor did I hold an important role in any government. I served under this alleged Dragon God, but while Claire might have heard of the name, she had no idea who he was beyond that. I had some sort of connection with Ariel, but she didn’t know how close those ties were. For all she knew, I was just tossing big names around to make myself sound important. It followed, then, that in Claire’s world, I hardly held much standing at all.

“Lady Latria has a tendency to put too much weight on titles and blood, it is true. What you say is plausible…” said the pope. He stroked his beard thoughtfully, then gave a slight nod. “Well, why not? No risk, no reward as they say! In which case, Lord Rudeus… What exactly can you do for me?”

What can you do for me? Put another way, he was asking: What are you willing to do for me? He wanted to know how far my loyalty extended.

“Well…” I began, thinking about my idea from the previous night. The sudden brain wave I’d shut down as too brash. “Kidnapping the Blessed Child would be within my power,” I said. 

“Kidnapping?!” exclaimed Cliff immediately. “What are you saying, Rudeus?!”

“I’m basically saying I could hit the Demon Expulsionists where it hurts most.”

“That’s not what I meant! If you kidnap the Blessed Child over this, it could mean the end of the House of Latria! Are you really willing to destroy your own family?!”

I turned slowly to Cliff. “The Latrias?” I said. “They aren’t my family.”

Cliff looked away, lost for words. The pope’s smile stayed in place.

“Of course,” I went on, “I only suggested that because it seemed like it might have value to Your Holiness. I could reduce a whole town to ashes, or clear a forest, if that’s what it took.”

I only meant it as a flex, showing what I had up my sleeve, but the pope stroked his beard again. Does it all sound too good to be true? I wondered. He could easily suspect that someone was setting a trap for him. If he wanted to vet me, that was fine by me. I had nothing to hide. My only agenda was getting Zenith back.

All of a sudden, Cliff cried, “I am against this! Abduction is a crime. The Latrias may be our enemies, but if you talk to them, Grandfather, surely you can work things out!”

The pope didn’t reply.

“And you, Rudeus!” Cliff went on. “How can you sink to their level? This isn’t like you… Are you sure this isn’t just your anger talking?” 

My anger? Oh, absolutely. Claire’s actions had me seething with rage. I mean, I was furious. It was honestly a miracle I hadn’t gone straight to violence. I wouldn’t be nearly this angry if Zenith hadn’t been involved. I didn’t get angry when Eris was injured in the battle with the North Emperor, or when Roxy almost died in the battle with the Death God. Why? Because they’d chosen it themselves. They’d come with me of their own free will, with a full understanding of the risks. If they’d died as a result, I would have been devastated. I’d have honored their choices, full of regret that I’d been too weak to protect them. I could have prevented this! I’d have wept. 

But right now, Zenith didn’t have a choice. She’d neither consented nor refused the invitation in the letter. She was here because of me. And now she might end up married off to a stranger, forced to bear his children. If Zenith had been able to choose, if she had decided to come herself, that would be different. If she’d refused and fought back against Claire only to eventually submit, I could still have let it go. Only to the extent that I wouldn’t be angry, but still. I think I’d have been consumed by something else. Something different from anger, the kind of despair that made you want to end it all. A grimy, pathetic sense of self-loathing, that sort of powerlessness. That would have been far harder to bear than anger, but I’d still have let it go.

This, though? I couldn’t let this go. I couldn’t stand back and let Zenith be treated like an object because she couldn’t say “no.” Maybe that was why I wanted to inflict that sense of powerlessness on Claire. Maybe what I wanted was to see her hounded and denounced: It’s your fault the Blessed Child was kidnapped! Don’t try to deny it! I wanted her desperate and utterly defeated. I wanted revenge.

…Wow, I’m a real bastard.

“There’s still time, Rudeus,” Cliff pleaded. “Go back and talk to them. I’ll even come with you.”

“Cliff…”

“Didn’t the Latrias do everything they could to help in your search for Zenith? Surely that proves they care about your mother and your sisters. It’s still possible this was all a misunderstanding. If you all get together and talk it out, maybe we can get everyone on the same page.”

His words tugged at me a bit, but I knew what had happened. Talking’s great—when talking could fix things. But the old hag wasn’t listening. I was pretty far past reconciliation. Our values and attitudes were too different. It felt like trying to reason with someone in a foreign language. How was I supposed to talk things out when we couldn’t even understand each other?

All the same, I’d clear my head then think it over again.

“…Maybe you’re right,” I said.

Claire and I had different values, that was all. Maybe with a third party there to mediate we could reach a solution. It couldn’t be the pope though, not with his position; if he mediated, he’d only end up owing the Latrias favors. Cliff wasn’t ideal either. He was still a nobody in this country—Claire might not be willing to listen to him. There was, however, someone else I could ask. Someone who could get through to Claire, and who wouldn’t get us tangled up in faction rivalries. 

Honestly, I should’ve gone to her first, not the pope.

“I’ll ask Therese if she can help… My apologies, Your Holiness. Please forget I mentioned all that about kidnapping.”

“Consider it done,” said the pope with a kind smile. “Even among the Temple Knights, Therese is a woman of integrity. I’m sure she will be only too happy to assist you.”

I nodded and Cliff heaved a sigh of relief.

***

I decided to work on Therese starting the next day. There was just one small problem: Therese was the captain of the Blessed Child’s guards. In the ranks of the Temple Knights, she was a captain in the Shield Company. She spent every day living alongside the Blessed Child, always there to protect her. Ah, what did the Blessed Child do? Not a thing. Like the pope and the others, she was confined to the inner sanctum of the church headquarters. Apparently, she used to get out and about a fair bit, but after a few incidents including an assassination attempt that nearly succeeded, she hadn’t been outside except on church business in a long time. In addition to the large number of temple knights and mages specializing in divine and barrier magic stationed at the church headquarters, there were also around ten guards who were exclusively dedicated to the Blessed Child’s protection. The inner sanctum was one of the most secure locations you could imagine. Therese was always with the Blessed Child, so getting in to see her wasn’t going to be easy. Letters wouldn’t reach her, and even if I went and asked for her directly she wouldn’t come out to see me. It almost made me wish I’d gotten the pope to help me instead. 

It wasn’t impossible, though.

This was just based on what the pope told me, but it sounded like the Blessed Child didn’t spend every second of every day shut up in her room. Every few days, she was briefly allowed out into the church’s inner garden. Her yard time, so to speak. She went out into the garden, which was open to the general congregation, looked at the flowers and the trees, chatted with her guards, and spoke with the occasional ordinary visitor. Living as she did in her tiny, cloistered world, these short outings were all the Blessed Child had to look forward to.

Those outings were my chance to see Therese.

I couldn’t openly loiter around waiting for her, though. That would arouse unnecessary suspicion. The Blessed Child was a VIP. It didn’t matter if I had business with Therese. If I looked like I was targeting her, I’d end up with the Temple Knights at my neck. 

That’s why I decided to go to the church gardens pretty much every day. I walked into the church like I belonged there, presenting myself as Cliff’s bodyguard before heading to the gardens. I came up with the excuse that I’d taken an interest in the Sarakh Trees. I even took some canvas in so I could sketch them. The sketch wouldn’t take a single day, so it gave me a good cover for my always being in the garden.

In the meantime, Geese and Aisha were moving everything else along. Aisha sped around the city like a bullet train hunting for a building to house the mercenary band. Meanwhile, Geese used his contacts to keep watch on the Latria servants. No leads, of course.

The three of us carried on like this until the Blessed Child’s day off came around.

“Oh, Sir Rudeus!” she cried as soon as she saw me, running over. “You’re back again today! Now you must tell me about Lady Eris, just as you promised!” 

I obliged her, recounting what was new with Eris. There were a lot of good stories, and the Blessed Child listened enthusiastically. Her guards kept a wary eye on me. Their job was to keep suspicious persons away from the Blessed Child—to make sure no vermin came sniffing around her. But me? I’m not suspicious, no. Everyone knew that I was a friend of Cliff’s and related to Captain Therese.

After I was done talking to the Blessed Child, I went and raised my concerns with Therese.

“Ah, that…” she said. Apparently she’d heard about Zenith’s abduction too. She took the matter seriously right away.

“I can hardly believe Mother would do something so barbaric…” she said. “Look, I have a day off soon. I’ll go talk to my mother as well. Don’t worry, Zenith won’t be married off to some strange man in the meantime. I’m sure of it.” She put her hand to her breasts (they were just as big as Zenith’s) as she made this vow.

I felt like I could trust her.

“The only thing is,” she added, “Mother was dead set against me becoming a knight, so she may not listen to me.” 

“So… What do we do if she doesn’t?”

“There are strings I can pull, if it comes to that. I’ll talk to Father, or my older brother. Just leave it to me.”

I really felt like I could trust her.

***

Days passed. Still no sign of Zenith. Geese told me that none of the servants were acting suspiciously. No secret meetings outside the Latria estate nor any outsiders coming in and out of the house. Obviously there was no sign of anyone who looked like Zenith going in or out either. Geese figured that meant Zenith was probably inside the house. 

Aisha had successfully set up the new mercenary band office. The building was a former tavern in a corner of the Merchant District. Now she was in the process of stocking up on preserved food and clothing. I set up a contact stone in the basement along with an emergency teleportation circle. The emergency teleportation circle was hooked up to a scroll I kept on me that ran off of magic crystals. It could only be used once. I hoped I wouldn’t need it.

Right off the bat, I used the contact tablet to call Orsted and ask his advice.

“…And now we’re here,” I said, reaching the end of my explanation.

“All right then,” replied Orsted. He proceeded to give me some new information, along with his predictions for the Man-God’s next moves.

First, he told me about the Blessed Child.

The Blessed Child. She had no other name, having forfeited it when she was taken in by the church. From that day on, although everyone bowed down to her in public, in reality she became a tool. The Blessed Child possessed an ability called memory skimming. When she looked into a person’s eyes, she could see their memories. 

Her job was to carry out inquisitions. She was summoned for both internal church investigations and public court cases to read the suspect’s memories. A word from the Blessed Child was enough to condemn you, even if you were a noble or a bishop who’d pulled off the perfect crime. The ultimate lie detector. The King of Millis himself attested to her powers. She was the entire reason that the cardinal’s faction was on the ascendant, while the pope’s faction declined.

But memories… She can see memories. Only see them. 

A small part of me wondered: What if the Blessed Child could get Zenith’s memories back? Orsted said it was probably impossible, given the Blessed Child’s powers only extended to seeing. but even so…

If the opportunity arose, I was going to have her try. Unfortunately, non-believers couldn’t pop in and borrow the Blessed Child whenever they felt like it. The church, which in reality meant the cardinal, kept tight control on the use of her powers. You had to get his permission. Not just outsiders, everyone—even the royal family or the pope. The Blessed Child was off limits. I might have gotten her to like me a bit, but that didn’t mean I could just ask her to swing on by the Latria abode and expose their lies for me.

The other thing about the almighty Blessed Child was that her destiny was extremely fragile. There weren’t any time loops where she made it to thirty, and more often than not, she died around the age of ten. Orsted said that, given her destiny and her powers, the chances that she was a disciple of the Man-God were practically nonexistent. 

Next up was the House of Latria. There were currently four Latrias who were of age, not including Zenith. 

The head of the house, Count Carlisle Latria. 

His wife, Countess Claire Latria.

Their eldest son, Temple Knight Edgar Latria.

Their fourth-eldest daughter, Temple Knight Therese Latria. 

Their eldest daughter, Anise Latria, had married the Marquess of Berkrant, whose estate was in a town around a day’s journey to the west of Millishion. So she wasn’t in the city. The same was true of the eldest son, Edgar. He was a junior captain in the Temple Knights, and he was stationed in the same town as Anise. Their father, Carlisle, was a Temple Knight senior commander. His role kept him extremely busy, and while on duty he almost always stayed at the barracks. He came home perhaps one day in every ten. As I’d concluded from my prior investigation, Therese, as captain of the Blessed Child’s guard, stayed at the church. She essentially lived there even when she wasn’t on duty. This meant that practically speaking, Claire was the absolute mistress of that manor. 

I asked Orsted about Claire too.

Claire Latria was the eldest daughter of the Latria family. Fiercely stubborn from the day she was born, she was raised to be hard on herself and those around her. She never, ever backed down once she made a decision, and apparently would be that way till the day she died. Carlisle had married into her family. They had one son and four daughters. To the best of Orsted’s knowledge, she was an unremarkable noblewoman who would never do anything particularly noteworthy, and would pass from the world and leave it tidily, as if she’d never been here. She valued fairness and detested crime. Orsted said she wasn’t the type to go around kidnapping people. 

Orsted also gave me a detailed rundown on the internal power struggles of the Millis Church. As I already knew, the church was divided between the pope faction and the cardinal faction. The schism between the two occurred around three hundred years ago. Until the schism, the Millis Church had followed the word of scripture, where it was written that “all demons shall be destroyed,” and expelled all demonfolk. This was the church’s stance until one priest’s attention fell on the line “all races are equal under Millis,” and argued that “should demons then not also be equal?” thus triggering the schism. The struggle for power between the demon expulsion faction and the demon integration faction had gone on ever since.

This is how things stood now: 

The pope’s—Cliff’s grandfather’s—faction supported demon integration. Currently, this faction was the largest. The majority of the common folk of Millis and the Missionary Knights belonged to this faction. Commonly known as the pope’s faction, the integration faction, etc.

The cardinal faction supported demon expulsion. They controlled the Blessed Child. The Temple Knights and most of the older noble families like the Latrias were in this faction. Commonly known as the cardinal’s faction, the Blessed Child faction, the Demon Expulsionists, etc.

The royal family and the Cathedral Knights were neutral. Around forty or fifty years ago, back when the expulsionists were winning, other races in Millishion faced severe prejudice and there had been a lot of fighting with the Great Forest. In the end, though, the integrationists had put an end to a relatively severe bout of fighting with the demonfolk. Their influence had grown, and a cardinal who favored integration had snatched the pope’s throne. After that, the integration faction had the power to act however it pleased, but then the Blessed Child had been born and the expulsionists had rallied around her. An expulsionist archbishop was elevated to cardinal, and the balance began to tip back in the expulsionists’ favor. That’s how we arrived here.

Finally, the Man-God’s interference. Orsted said that there was no one of particular importance currently in Millis. With Millis being the country it was, when Laplace began his war, it would never side with the demonfolk regardless of who was in charge. That meant all of these political machinations were a wash to both Orsted and the Man-God.

Of course my ideal outcome would have Cliff on the pope’s throne. It was possible that the Man-God was orchestrating something to prevent that from happening, but if so, he had a weird way of going about it. Kidnapping Zenith was totally unrelated. No, I didn’t have to worry about the Man-God here.

“When in doubt, kill. Your enemy’s intentions will die with them,” Orsted told me. I felt like I might actually do that.

That was everything from Orsted for now. I probably ought to have gotten up to speed on all that beforehand. That said, the decision to come to Millis had been a sudden one, and my plan was to just call in, say hello, and leave. I’d been a bit overly optimistic. When the time came to go to the King Dragon Realm, I’d be more prepared.

A few more days passed, then Therese came back to me with good news.

“She didn’t say it out right, but Mother more or less admitted that she’s got Zenith!” she announced.

“No way!”

Therese had used one of her rare days off to go and see Claire on my behalf. She’d needled her mother with questions until she managed to get an indirect admission that Claire had ordered a servant to deceive Geese and abduct Zenith, and that she was now holding Zenith captive somewhere.

“There’s something off about her, though…” Therese said. “Like she’s hiding something, or feeling conflicted. I’m sure she doesn’t seriously intend to marry my sister off, but even so…”

“Hmm… What about Zenith’s location?”

“I’m sorry, but I couldn’t pry it out of her,” said Therese, her face clouding over. Her attempts to get the location out of Claire had failed. She’d then tried to persuade her mother to return Zenith to me. I don’t know what you’ve done with Zenith, but surely you’re taking on too much, trying to find a partner for a widow who’s lost her mind. 

You probably haven’t realized how amazing Rudeus is, but this is a guy who can just pop in and see the pope! You really ought to treat him with more respect.

If he says he’ll look after her for as long as he’s alive, why not just let him?

But Claire had remained equivocal and refused to give any clear answer.

“In the end, she started asking when I was going to get married…” Therese sighed. “I’m sorry. Whenever that subject comes up, we always end up fighting.”

“Hmmm…”

Geese told me that as far as he could tell nothing had been set in motion since the abduction. Therese said it seemed like Claire was hiding something, or maybe she was conflicted. Orsted himself said kidnapping was way out of character. 

Something was definitely up with Claire.

Even if there was, though, so what about her motives? It wasn’t like she ever spared a thought for me and my feelings. She acted like I might as well not exist.

“But hey,” said Therese, piercing through my thoughts, “the House of Latria can’t even find me a husband. There’s no way Claire will find someone to marry Zenith just like that.”

“…What? Oh, yeah, you’re right. Definitely.” I didn’t really see what her prospects had to do with Zenith’s, but hey, if she said so.

“Mother is just being stubborn. We’ll attack her from all sides next time. I’ve talked to Father, and asked my brother and sister to come. You wouldn’t think so, but Mother always takes my father’s words to heart. If he and my brother both talk to her, I know she’ll at least listen.”

“You’ve thought of everything… Thank you,” I said.

“Don’t thank me,” she replied. “My mother started all this.”

Therese had done a fantastic job, so much so that I had to wonder what on earth had motivated this level of devotion. I’d only even met her once, maybe twice before…

“If you do want to thank me though, you could introduce me to a few Asuran knights, maybe some nobles from there—”

“Therese! Are you finished?” Just as our conversation was wrapping up, the Blessed Child came over. Therese’s demeanor changed in an instant.

“B-Blessed Child! Forgive me, I should not be discussing my personal business while on duty.”

“Think nothing of it! This is for Lady Eris’s husband, after all. I owe her a debt of gratitude, and Saint Millis is always watching.”

Ah, now it made sense. Therese wasn’t helping me for my sake alone, but for Eris, too. This might actually be the first time anyone had thanked me for something Eris had been involved in.

Right, once the kids were a little older I’d bring Eris here.

“Blessed Child, it’s almost time.”

“Let us escort you back to your room.”

“Master Rudeus, keep up the good work!”

The otaku knights' attitude toward me had softened too, lately. When I first showed up, my connections to the pope’s faction had gotten all the guards’ hackles up, but they didn’t get up in my face much these days. They would always be wary, but they seemed to have decided that I was a neutral party. Safe.

I mean, after the effort I put in they’d better think that. I’d gone out of my way to be a total beta male, refusing to speak in an off-puttingly formal fashion due to her status and always making her smile with amusing stories. Spending time with me always put the Blessed Child in a good mood, and I heard she looked forward to my visits even after she was returned to her rooms. I’d worked hard to make that happen. Couldn’t hurt that Therese, the captain of her guard, treated me so cordially, either. When the captain herself let her guard down around me, suspicion began to feel stupid and overcautious.

Honestly, they should probably be more suspicious. I could have snatched the Blessed Child any time I felt like it. Not that I would. Although, if Therese’s efforts at persuasion went nowhere, and I didn’t get Zenith back—if I was truly backed into a corner and had no other options left…

Yeah, then I’d do it.

When push came to shove, I’d always put Zenith first. If I didn’t, I couldn’t face my dead father, or Lilia, who was taking care of a pregnant Sylphie while I was away. That was why I made sure never to meet the Blessed Child’s eyes. I knew she could see memories, but not how deep that sight went. Who knows, it might not even extend deep enough to see I was seriously considering grabbing her.

But then again, it might. The guaranteed safe option was to make sure I never made eye contact with her. I was pretty sure none of her guards had noticed—even if some of them had, from what I heard everyone tried to avoid the Blessed Child’s eyes even within the church. I guess no one liked the idea of someone peeking at their memories. My doing the same wouldn’t strike anyone as suspicious.

Abducting her would be easy.

All I had to do was place a teleportation circle scroll under the chair where the Blessed Child always sat. When the time came, I’d distract the guards then activate the scroll to teleport her away. After she disappeared right in front of me, I’d definitely be a suspect. But there’d be no evidence. The ink of the magic circle would vanish, leaving only paper. It wouldn’t occur to most people to suspect teleportation.

The teleportation circle would be connected to the mercenary office, which was stocked with food and clothes when we got the band up and running. I’d have Aisha stand guard over the Blessed Child there while I opened negotiations. 

I didn’t want to use that plan if I could help it, though. I’d feel bad doing that to Therese. She was on my side, she was angry that Claire had been so brutal, and she’d gone as far as to call her siblings back to Millishion from pretty far away. I didn’t know how Carlisle, who had to be nearby, felt about all this. But Therese herself was making a genuine effort to make Claire change her mind.

If the Blessed Child were kidnapped, that would be her failure. 

“Therese, if it’s not too much of a strain on your time, I’d be very grateful if you’d introduce me to Lord Carlisle, and my uncle and aunt as well. I really ought to meet them, and I want to personally request their assistance.”

“Oh, of course.”

But if that’s what it took. If I had to, I’d be ready. If disgracing myself would allow me to keep my promise to Paul and Lilia, I’d do it. But I’d give Therese her shot. If it looked like her efforts weren’t going anywhere, maybe I’d give them a shot and grab the Blessed Child after facing the guards in a fair fight. No sneaky tricks.

The total opposite of the plan I’d prepped.

“I wish Mother would put her efforts into finding me someone instead, when Zenith already has a great guy to take care of her…” Therese said with a sigh.

She left, grumbling to herself. I bowed my head to her once more, thinking, You don’t want a guy like me.

***

Another few days passed. It was morning. It had been what, fourteen? Maybe fifteen days since I arrived in this country. After Aisha finished setting up the mercenary office and started helping with Geese’s investigation, the two of them brought me some new information. Yesterday, a tailor shop worker had visited the Latria estate. Aisha paid someone to bring her the tailor, who in turn revealed that they’d been called in to take a woman’s measurements for a bridal gown. The woman was getting on a bit in years for a bride, and her eyes were empty. That was Zenith, beyond a doubt.

More news: Claire’s butler had met a few times with someone from the church in secret. The only natural conclusion was that Claire was picking out a husband for Zenith. And if that was the case, we were running out of time.

It wasn’t time to panic yet. After receiving Therese’s message, the Latrias’ eldest son and daughter were on their way. They had sent a letter, Therese told me, in which they said, “to marry off a daughter who cannot even speak for herself is surely impermissible.” It was nice to know that my aunt and uncle were decent folks.

I still hadn’t laid eyes on Lord Carlisle. He was probably busy with his duties as a military commander. Therese reassured me though, saying that “Father would never condone what Claire has done”.

Aisha had fond memories of the head of the House of Latria as well. She told me, “He was always kind to me.” What he’d have to say about the business with Zenith I had no idea, but I wanted to talk to him soon. Claire couldn’t keep this up if her husband and whole family were against her. She might be in charge of the estate, but she wasn’t the head of the house. It didn’t matter what she had planned—I had her in check.

I couldn’t thank Therese enough for how she’d flown into action to help me. Even if things went wrong, now I knew where Zenith was, and had an idea of how well-equipped Claire was to fight me. If I contacted Therese beforehand, I was pretty sure she’d get me the building layout and tell me where she thought the guards would be, too.

If Carlisle took my side, though, there’d be no need for violence. I’d strong-arm my way to Zenith, give Claire a piece of my mind, and that’d be the end of it.

Man, what a relief. It really looked like I could wrap this up without it metastasizing beyond myself and the Latrias. That meant I avoided making problems for Cliff and I got to build my relationships with the other Latrias. There’d been a few unexpected twists along the way, but everything looked like it would work out. It was a good thing I didn’t do anything stupid. Reaching out to the people around me and using them to build bridges was the right call. There’d never been any need to kidnap the Blessed Child. Yep! I hadn’t been thinking straight. I only had that crazy idea because I’d wanted a quick solution. But in the end, slow and steady always wins the race. I mean, look at the progress we’d made. Every piece was on the board, and I could see a checkmate in just a few more moves. Maybe I wouldn’t be able to get even, but I could let that go if I had Mother back.

Those were the thoughts that ran through my mind as I made my way once again to the garden at the church headquarters. Over the past two weeks or so the Sarakh Trees had lost their flowers, but in my painting they were still in full bloom. My painting’s trees sent an eternal spray of pink petals fluttering through the air. It was almost finished. 

It sucked pretty hard.

When I started working on it, the Blessed Child’s fan brigade had a great time mocking me about it. The moment I added the Blessed Child in her white dress, though, they changed their tune. Suddenly it was a heartbreaking work of staggering genius. These guys weren’t hard to read, you get me?

The Blessed Child even asked me to give her the painting when it was finished. I told her that while I was no artist, if she wanted it, it was hers. I was going to secretly make a figure to give her along with it. It occurred to me that I didn’t need to stamp out the influence of the Demon Expulsionists and strengthen the voice of the papalist faction—if I could just get the Blessed Child to declare from on high, “I give permission for the sale of figures!” we should be good to go. I wouldn’t start selling demon figures right away—we’d introduce new models one by one, then down the line add a demon as part of a series…

Okay, forget it. The Blessed Child probably didn’t even have that kind of authority.

“Wait…” 

As I reached the entrance to the garden, something felt off. There was someone here.

“They’re here already?” I wondered aloud. Every time up till now, a few guards came out to patrol after I arrived, and then the Blessed Child came out. At this time of day, I should have been the only one here. Maybe the patrol had started already. Or maybe it was someone else. I stepped out into the garden.

There was no one there. The aura I’d felt was probably just my imagination. I mean, it wasn’t like I had laser-point eyes like Ruijerd’s.

“Huh?” 

I noticed one item I didn’t recognize. On top of my easel, there was a lit candle. Just the one, all by itself. The flame shivered in the sunlight. When I approached, I saw footprints on the ground. One set. They led away under the Sarakh Trees. Was someone hiding back there, behind the tree trunks?

“Therese…?” I called out hesitantly. 

No answer. Ohh, that’s weird. As I called out, I opened my Eye of Foresight. 

“Who’s there?!” I tried again, putting a bit more force into my voice. Meanwhile, I activated my Magic Armor. 

I was ready for battle. I approached the Sarakh Trees, staying alert to any movement around me. I didn’t need them to come out—I’d keep my distance, then hit them with magic in their blind spot. The Blessed Child liked that tree, so I’d better be careful not to damage it. Wind magic would do the trick. Whoever strikes first wins.

“What the—?” The magic in my hand dispersed. By the time I managed to think, That’s weird, it was already too late. I tried to step back, and came straight into contact with a wall. I turned, but there was nothing there. No, the wall was there, but invisible.

I looked down at my feet. There, shining faintly blue in the morning light, was a magic circle. 

“Barrier magic…” I muttered. I’d seen this barrier magic before. If I tried to step out of the magic circle, I’d be blocked by an invisible wall, and any magic I tried to use while inside would be dispelled. I’d seen this before.

“It’s a King-tier barrier, Rudeus,” said a voice from behind the tree. A figure walked slowly out of the shadows. A woman, clad in blue plate armor. Her face, had it not been hidden under that blocky helmet, would have looked just like Zenith’s. And she hadn’t come alone. Men in armor emerged, one from behind a tree, another from out of a cluster of bushes. It was the otaku, always hanging around their princess. Otherwise known as the Temple Knights. 

I mean, I was pretty sure it was, but they were all wearing weird helmets so it was hard to say.

“I’m sorry,” she said, “but I got a tip-off that you’re planning to kidnap the Blessed Child.” I stared at her. I didn’t know what to say. The knights spread out to stand in a circle around the barrier. Therese, the only one out in the open, faced me directly.

“You are accused of heresy. Your inquisition begins now,” she said. As one, the helmeted men drew their swords and beat them on the ground. An odd, grating clang rang through the garden.