204 - - The Search for the Third Episode

-Turn back the clock.

The capital of the racial kingdom, a castle--although it is more of a mansion than a castle.

In one corner of the mansion is the bedroom of Lilith, the first princess of the racial kingdom.

She is already in a hypnotic state, right?

Yes, it's all right in that state.

A girl dressed as a maid answers Lilith's question.

Lilith is made to sit on the bedroom bed and peeks curiously into the face of Nono, the head maid, who is in a daze.

Nono, the head maid, does not react to Lilith standing in front of her.

In her position, it is disrespectful for Nono to sit and interact with Lilith, her master, and moreover, to continue to sit on her bed. This is an attitude that is out of character for Nono, who, in her position as head maid, is notoriously fussy about etiquette.

But there was a good reason for this.

When Lilith confirms that Nono is safely under hypnosis, she thanks Yume, the girl in the maid's uniform.

Yume, thank you for successfully playing the "SR, Hypnosis" card.

No!　Because the Princess ordered it!"

With a smiling smile, Lilith's maid, Yume - "UR, Double Shadow" to be exact - says, "I've been working with Lilith for a long time, and I've been working with her. It is an imposter of Yume, created by the "Infinite Gacha" card, a gift.

UR, Double Shadow" - a shadow that appears exactly like the user. Even the clothes he wears are reproduced, and his speech, behavior, and habits are indistinguishable from those of the user, and even his benefits are reproduced, albeit at a degraded level.

Nono was put into a hypnotic state by this fake Yume with the "SR, Hypnosis" card.

SR, Hypnosis" is a card that can hypnotize a person and manipulate him or her at will or extract information from him or her. However, it does not work well against high level opponents, and the blank expression on the face during hypnosis makes it easy for a third party to detect abnormality at a glance. It is by no means a universal card.

Then, why did Lilith hypnotize Nono, the chief maid, who is her confidant?

'First of all, I must first prove the innocence of Nono, my close associate, don't you agree? I'm not too keen on the idea, even though ...... it's necessary."

Lilith, in cooperation with Wright and others, made a plan to abolish her father, the current king of the Kingdom of the Races (Humans), and take his place as the head of the country, the King of the Kingdom of the Races (Humans), at the Six Principality Conference to be held in a few years' time.

He is not aiming for the throne out of self-interest.

Although the Kingdom of Humans is ostensibly an independent country with sovereignty, it is in fact a cattle state that cannot decide on import and export tariffs without the permission of the other five species, sells its own people at low prices if it wants to, and even the king cannot decide on his own.

The current king and his brother, who is a prince, have given up and accepted this situation, but only Lilith is willing to change the status quo.

Therefore, with the cooperation of the Lights, Lilith is trying to change the situation and improve the status of the human race by standing at the top of the country herself.

However, it is not a simple matter of seizing the throne with the military might of the Liliths.

Because there are many weeds, spies, and spies from various countries mixed in within the human kingdom.

Unless the spies from other countries are eliminated, even if Lilith is forced to become the king of the Human Kingdom and push for reform, her vassals will not agree, and no policy will be implemented.

Above all, it is impossible to run a country in such a state.

For this reason, Lilith is trying to identify the spies and eliminate them under the radar by using an infinite number of gacha cards with the help of Light.

Therefore, she first put Nono, whom she herself trusts the most, into a hypnotic state with the "SR, Hypnosis" card, in cooperation with the fake Yume, in order to prove his innocence.

Lilith sends instructions to the fake Yume.

Lilith instructs Fake Yume, "Yume, wait outside the door to see if anyone else comes in. If they try to enter, give them a signal, and then hold them back for a moment.

Understood, sir.

The fake Yume bows and walks out the door, just as Yume said and did.

(It's not just the shape, but the habits, the movements, the way she speaks, everything is the same, so much so that I almost get confused thinking the real Yume is here. ......)

It is ironic that the only one in the castle that I can believe is the fake Yume, who is being changed by the power of "UR, the second shadow (Double Shadow)," although my mind is almost confused.

Lilith regains her composure and turns to Nono once again.

She said, "...... Well, Nono has been with me since I was a little girl, and she's like an older sister to me, so there's no way she's an interloper, but we need to be sure. Okay, Nono, I'm going to ask you a question. Please answer honestly, okay?"

............ understand."

Nono, sitting on the edge of the bed, responded more sluggishly than usual.

Lilith asked confidently.

Nono, you are not an interloper from another country, are you?

............ No."

I'm sure. We have known each other since we were children. If I were a spook, somewhere along the way, you would have noticed me and--what?"

The answer was so unexpected that Lilith's brain rejected it and delayed recognition.

Lilith asked again.

'No, Nono is not an interloper from another country, is he?

'............ no. Nono is an interloper of the Majin Nation."

Out of the blue - Lilith was so shocked that she slumped down on the spot.

The vibrations and sounds of her collapse were fortunately unnoticed except by the fake Yume outside the door, who entered the room, nursed Lilith, and succeeded in calming her down.

Thereafter, Lilith sat in a chair and repeated her question to Nono, with the fake Yume waiting outside the door again.

'Nono's clan had long been those who served as spies who infiltrated the racial (human) kingdom at the behest of the Majin Nation.'

"If Lilith, out of a sense of blue justice, were to do any harm to the Majin Nation, she was to be assassinated by Nono."

Nono has known Lilith since they were young children, and they have a close friendship that transcends the boundaries of master and servant, but the imprinted mission and love of family could not be overcome. For if he did not kill by Nono's hand against orders, his entire family, including himself, would be slaughtered."

In addition to Nono, there are other Majinkoku spies who have infiltrated the country as maids, servants, and some with heavy responsibility for the administration of the state. The candidates for the other five types of spies were also known. I am not going to confirm this, so I am only a potential interloper.

After listening to the whole story, Lilith gets her head in the game.

I didn't think that not only Nono but also interlopers from other countries had made such inroads into the racial (human) kingdom. ...... I was prepared for that, but they've been infiltrated too much!"

The head maid, Nono, who thought she was a safe bet, was unexpectedly confirmed as an interloper.

I had known her for many years and loved her like a sister, but in order to take the king's place, it is essential to ensure the safety of Lilith's own surroundings, and a great deal must be done to achieve national tranquility.

Worst of all, not only Nono, but her family must be forced to face charges and executed.

I was asked, "......Why, why are you doing this, being an interloper in another country?　Do you have no love for your own racial (human) kingdom? ......

Lilith spontaneously burst into tears.

The betrayal of Nono, whom she trusted the most and looked up to as her sister, the pain and sorrow of having to kill her with her own hands in order to maintain the independence of the Human Kingdom, and worst of all, the pain of having to kill her with her own hands.

If she were just a girl, she would have broken down, pretended she had never heard of all this, given up on reform, and chosen to live quietly--but she is Lilith, the first princess of the racial kingdom.

After letting out all her sorrow, she bites her back teeth and looks up.

In her eyes, she had the determination to "kill" even the person she loved as her sister in order to save the Kingdom of Humans from the place of a healthy nation and the position of a human race as livestock.

I will end this kind of suffering in my generation. ...... Even if I have to kill you, Nono, with my own hands. ......

For this reason, Lilith was determined to "absolutely eliminate the disease that nestles in the human kingdom.

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