Book 8: Chapter 1

The St. Altlis Kingdom’s capital city, Edius.

Even while the power struggle between the King faction and the Temple faction was in the middle of its struggle for supremacy, it had no sort effect on the lives of the citizens.

However, a portion of the citizens somehow sensed an unpleasant atmosphere, and even felt baseless insecurity.

Among the merchants, who were sensitive to rumors and situations that were connected to their interests, there were those that thought of fleeing the country, but in that case, there was the problem of where they should run away to.

In the Canal Kingdom which was said to be more free and equal than anywhere else, the civil war was dragging on, and it was said that Mazoku were regularly visiting the Jiol Forest Kingdom. In the Cylas Empire, it was pretty difficult for new businesses to join the market, and unless they had connections, it would be unsuitable for setting up shop.

As a result of thinking about this and that, the merchants decided to stay within the country in the end, and they maintained a normal state and circulation through firms.

Among them, the Tianot Company, which continued to develop revolutionary merchandise and actively went to do business outside of the country as well, managed to grow into a company that could compete for the number one or two spot in the St. Altlis Kingdom.

Sharon, the daughter of the owner of that company, had many marriage proposals brought to her, and recently, the number of them that had the smell of being the authority of being from the King faction or the Temple faction had increased.

On the other hand, the Edius Adventurers School extended their hands to such fellows, and recently, the admission of the sons of nobles happened one after another.

「……Fumu, after consolidating the information like this……It truly is hopeless situation, isn’t it.」

An intelligence operative of the country of Mazoku, the Zadark Kingdom, Ein muttered that while looking at the memo in her hand.

She didn’t know if either the King faction or the Temple faction held the initiative, but either way, it probably wouldn’t make much of a difference.

The Temple faction seemed to be much more radical, but it wasn’t like the King faction was moderate either.

In the end, maintaining the current situation seemed to be convenient at the present point.

It’s just that if there were any problems, it would be the leaders of both factions, the Holy King Aljuel and the Grand Priest Elheil.

Both of them were remained inactive publically, and furthermore, since they were in locations with strict security, Ein was unable to take investigative actions on them.

If anything couldn’t be helped, it was that. Since the Mazoku didn’t have the concept of intelligence assessment to begin with, no one held any techniques for the sake of that.

For Ein, she did nothing more than make good use of the abilities she had to begin with and was somehow able to do infiltration activities.

「……Fuu.」

Breathing a sigh, she looked up at the night sky.

The place that Ein was sitting at was on top of a roof of a vacant house on a side street.

Although the number of people was gradually increasing, there were still many vacant houses like this one in the side streets of the town of Edius.

Naturally, they became perfect places for people like Ein to be at.

「……Again huh.」

Feeling the presence of something climbing up, Ein breathed a second sigh.

Even though she was always changing her location, it would come no matter where she was every time.

「Yotto……! Ah, there you are. Good evening, Ein.」

「You never get tired of this, do you, Kain. Even though the Alva don’t even appear anymore.」

It was Kain Stagias, one who went to the Edius Adventurers School.

The mysterious Mazoku called Alva would frequently appear every night up until recently as if targeting Kain, and Ein had cooperated in the subjugation of them as well.

She did this in order to investigate the Alva, which weren’t under the control of the Zadark Kingdom’s King, Vermudol, and who were displaying unsettling movements in mankind’s territory, and it was also in order to investigate the identity of Kain who was being targeted by them.

However, at a certain point, the Alva stopped appearing, and that is why Kain’s degree of relative priority had lowered in Ein’s mind but……without worrying about something like that, Kain would come to be involved with Ein.

Moreover, since Kain would be connected with a high probability whenever she would try to get close to a woman that was important in the matter that was currently under investigation, the fact that her chances of making contact with him absolutely wouldn’t decrease could even be said to be inevitable.

「True, the Alva don’t come out anymore but. Something different has been coming recently, right?」

「……You really are a whimsical fellow. It’s not like it has anything to do with you.」

Goblin Assassins──Goblins that had taken up that sort of name had recently been appearing in Edius.

Clad in black clothes, the Goblin Assassin’s would fly about with physical abilities that didn’t resemble Goblins.

Although it didn’t turn into a huge uproar since Ein and the other intelligence operatives were crushing them since they were first discovered, they had heard that assassinations were executed in places where their eyes couldn’t reach.

It’s been said that their true state is that they’re the results of some assassin organization that took Goblins in, but the truth was unknown.

「That’s not true. Technically, I am the son of a Baron House after all.」

「You’re just a regional noble. Do you have some sort of relation to the central power struggle?」

「Th, that’s true but.」

Although she had tried out saying that, Ein knew.

The most hopeful stock even within the Edius Adventurers School, was Kain Stagias.

Although he is a regional noble, he was the son of a Baron House that laid out a good government, and was accomplished in both the literary and military arts.

He raised enough achievements that he didn’t seem like a beginner Adventurer, and was even the overall victor in the internal school competition tournament. Moreover, how the Second Princess of the St. Altlis Kingdom had come to cheer Kain on was a famous story.

Furthermore, it was said that Kain had even contributed to the Tianot Company’s development.

This was a rumor level story, but it seems that Kain was being considered for a conferring of decorations.

Hearing that, Ein thought that it was bait that was spread by the King faction so that they wouldn’t let go of the hopeful stock known as Kain, but when she tried asking that to Kain himself, he made quite the difficult face. He seemed to be self-aware that something had happened, but no matter how much she asked about it, she couldn’t get him to disclose it.

「……So, what did you come here for.」

「Nnー……To meet with you, Ein, I guess?」

Hearing that, Ein made a fed up looking face.

「……Look here, say that sort of thing to Sharon or Seira. I’m sure that Seira is restlessly looking around for you tonight as well, right?」

「I, I don’t think that’s the case though……Look, the Alva don’t appear anymore, right?」

While breathing an unconcealed sigh, Ein took her gaze off from Kain.

There’s no way she wasn’t around.

The fact that Kain walked around here and there at night was already a public fact. Furthermore, there was a high probability that he would encounter some sort of incident.

There was no way that Seira, who was his Adventurers School friend that said that she wanted to always be Kain’s strength, would leave that Kain alone.

For now, it seemed like she wasn’t nearby but……

「Besides, today, I came to meet with you, Ein.」

「I just heard that.」

「Ah, no. That’s not what I mean. It’s more like I have something to talk to you about……」

Finally feeling an uncomfortable feeling from Kain who was being hesitant to say something, Ein turned to face him.

「Talk?」

「Ah, yeah.」

Kain restlessly looked around the area. It seemed to be a talk that he didn’t want any other Humans to be listening to.

「Don’t worry, there is no one else in the vicinity.」

「Is, is that so.」

「Hurry up and say it. I don’t have that kind of free time.」

After Ein urged him, Kain opened his mouth while being hesitant.

「Erm……see. I think we’ve talked about the future before but.」

「That’s true.」

Indeed, she did remember hearing about that. That recently, his choices had abnormally increased way too much and that he was starting to worry over it.

Certainly, there were probably countless choices that Kain could make. Noble, merchant, Adventurer……and considering how he would sometimes meet with the Second Princess when travelling incognito, there might even be the chance that he would enter the royal family.

Or perhaps, since he possesses the 【God of Life’s Divine Protection】, he even had the path of becoming a Priest.

「I, think I’m going to stick with becoming an Adventurer.」

「Is that so.」

However, actualizing that choice was difficult. Every power was probably moving so that they wouldn’t let Kain get away, and there was no mistake that they would try to attach shackles to him with various hands to play.

「So you won’t ask why?」

「What would happen if I did ask. Besides, if it’s the reason, I know what it is.」

He wants to be useful to someone.

Kain was always saying that sort of thing.

Ein remembered saying “you will be useful to someone no matter what path you take” to him but……well, he was most likely thinking that he could become the strength of a great number of people if he was an Adventurer.

「But, the Adventurer’s Guild is shaky right now, isn’t it. Can you make decent activity with that?」

The Canal Kingdom, where the Adventurer’s Guild Headquarters facility had moved to, was currently at the height of a civil war.

For a period of time, it had fallen into pandemonium with that, and currently, it looked like it had regained a normal situation at least on the surface, but one couldn’t really tell how it was behind the scenes.

「Un, I had heard that before but……it seems that they relocated to the Cylas Empire. It seems that the Headquarters facility returned to normal with that.」

「Is that so.」

Ein nodded, and silence appeared on the rooftop.

*Hou, hou* Only the voices of crying birds resounded……and before long, Ein opened her mouth.

「Well, at any rate, it’s the path you’ve chosen. It’s……」

「Ein.」

She was about to say “It’s not something for me to poke my nose into”, but she was interrupted by Kain’s words.

「……Won’t you, become my party member?」

Ein’s thoughts came to a stop at those words.

「You don’t need to answer me right away. Just think about it for a bit.」

After leaving those words behind, Kain left Ein who wasn’t making even the slightest movement.