CH 87

Intermission – The conversation of the sisters and The beautiful senior

After Kitsune’s departure, Claire Lemar began to act quickly.

As she had long made steady preparations for the day she eliminated Duke Orba, her immediate actions were swift.

She removed the Arcs family from the residence register, just as Kitsune had expected, she treated the child Nico, the father Higurd, and the mother Ellie as had been killed by the Goblin King.

Although the Goblin King’s attack was originally an unexpected incident, she decided to take advantage of it as a matter of convenience. If it didn’t happen, she’d have to make up another reason for their death, but now it was more convenient.

Otherwise, there would be a lot of trouble in dealing with Duke Orba. From then on, correcting the corrupt government, manipulating information, communicating to the knights, there was still a load of matter to deal with. So many that she alone couldn’t handle them all.

However, she had never planned to deal with Duke Orba by her lonesome. She had comrades in her endeavor. The people who would be in trouble should Duke Orba be alive were her comrades.

In other words, the ‘predecessor’ of the town administrator. He was a middle-class nobleman who had a well-regulated good government, and also Claire Lemar’s “lover”.

Originally, before Duke Orba came to the town, the predecessor, the head of a mid-ranking noble “Tineria house”, a man named “Ista Tineria” was in charge of managing the city. He properly thought about the townsfolk, and did his best to create a town where everyone could live comfortably at, loved by both the townsfolk and the knights, simply put he was a good noble.

And the one who supported him as his lover was Claire. She was originally his secretary, and fell in love with him. From the bottom of her heart, she loved how kind he was, and how he sincerely worked for everyone.

That’s why, when Duke Orba came, she felt nothing but dissatisfaction.

He forcefully removed Ista, a middle-ranked noble, from the town’s administrative position simply because he was an upper-ranked noble. Moreover, Duke Orba was an evil noble who imposed misgovernment. When he was irritated by something, he often moved the knights for his own convenience.

Would she like to work under someone like that? No, she wouldn’t. Claire thought that Ista was definitely more suitable for the position than Duke Orba.

Hence, she decided to get rid of Duke Orba. So that Ista could take his seat back.

Not everyone could take on the administrator position. It was a seat for someone with a certain amount of experience and suitable rank. Therefore, if Duke Orba disappeared, it would be his predecessor, Ista, who would be appointed to take his place. Even if he was once removed from this seat, it wasn’t like he’d lost his ability to do the job, so it was natural for him to take this seat back.

But for Claire, Ista, or the knights to either kill Duke Orba or drive him out of town was a bit inconvenient as they were related to Ista. If they were found out that they had killed him, let alone taking their seats back, in the worst case there was possibility of being arrested and given death penalty for murder.

They needed cooperation of a “third party” who wasn’t connected to them.

—the one who came up was Naginata Kitsune (third party).

Claire had heard of him from the letters from her sister. She thought that he was a gentle, funny, and good nature person. It might have been for Nico’s sake, but when she noticed him infiltrating the Government office, while she was surprised, she couldn’t help but to think about utilizing the ensuing situation. Even if he was a good person, even if he came to resent her, Claire decided to utilize him for the sake of her lover and herself.

As a result, Duke Orba died. He died without even leaving a body behind.

And then Claire caught a glimpse of a being that seemed to be the personification created of human malice. She felt as though looking at a god of death-like peculiar monster. She felt as though she had involved herself with something more dangerous than Duke Orba.

“…. No, let’s stop thinking about it. We won’t be seeing each either again, anyway….”

Claire shook her head and shove Kitsune out of her mind. She’d decided not to think about it any longer.

“For the time being…. Now that we’ve dealt with Duke Orba… I’ll demand to have Ista to take his place. As for the knights…. I’ll just feed them suitable lies later. It’s that Duke we’re talking about, so it wouldn’t be surprising for him to suddenly disappear…. fleeing out of fear of the Goblin King also doesn’t sound half bad. It may be inappropriate, but the Goblin King’s attack sure is convenient.”

Claire thought as she tidied up the room nonchalantly. The way she quickly cleaned up Duke Orba’s blood and the scattered documents, she seemed to be used to it. She seemed to be quite an excellent secretary.

“… Next is, it isn’t really necessary, but… I suppose I’ll send some letters to my sister… mainly about her ability to judge people, I’ll be sure to give her an earful.”

And then, as though she just recalled something, she left the room. After tidying up the room enough that nothing seemed out of place, she recalled what to do next.

The next thing she did was to head to her own room. There was a coffin inside with Nico’s mother’s remains in it. The wounds on the neck were stitched up and the blood-stain was cleaned up. The skin was drained of vitality, pure white, the remains looked as though a sleeping beauty.

When she heard that Nico’s mother and their servants were killed by Reis, Claire immediately rushed to retrieve the remains. Unfortunately, when she arrived there, the servants’ remains were in the middle of being cremated by the knights to erase the evidence, and only the mother’s remains that were still intact.

Claire couldn’t imagine the grief of losing a loved one. That’s why she thought about giving Ellie’s remains a proper burial. She thought it as her way of atonement to them.

“…. I’m sorry… but I’ll never forget your sacrifice. I will be sure to make this town a great place to live. And I won’t let anything happen to your husband and your daughter.”

She did think that it was selfish of her. As some lives were sacrificed in her cause, it was inevitable for others to think as such. However, it was true that that was the only choice. She showed no regret on her face, as she mourned and closed the lid of the coffin.

◇ ◇ ◇

—An exchange of letters between two sisters

Dear sister, Michelle

Some time ago, I met the adventurer you mentioned, Kitsune.

To be honest, I think he’s different from the way you described him. I felt something peculiar and eerie about him.

How could you have such an impression of him? I can’t relate at all. I won’t blame you, but I do think it’d be better for you to not involve yourself with him ever again. If he ever comes to Miniera again, be sure to stay as far away from him as possible. You should also tell your senior about it.

Also, it may be a sudden report, but just a while ago the Goblin King attacked the town. It seems that the adventurers had somehow dealt with it, but is it perhaps connected to the revival of the Demon lord? I think the demonic beasts would be getting more active from here on. So please be careful.

From Claire Lemar

◇

Dear Big Sister

Thanks for the letter!

But I do think that he’s not a bad person! Sure, he was a bit perverted and eerie at times, but he was still very funny and interesting…. Also, he’s an H-ranked adventurer, so there’s nothing to be scared of him, right? I think you’re the one who is bad at judging people, big sis! Besides, senior Mia treated him like a little brother, so I can’t bring myself to say that.

Next time I see him, I’ll check it out and let you know. Look forward to it, okay?

Also, you said that the Goblin King attacked, are you okay? Are you hurt, big sis? I’m worried.

In Miniera, we have the Knight Commander and other reliable adventurers, so don’t worry! Besides, the demonic beasts aren’t that strong either, after all.

Ah, but recently, or more like… when he was still in Miniera, there was a rumor about the appearance of “red night”…. When the investigation team was dispatched, they found matching traces of it, but she also added that it was no longer around. I wonder if it’s also connected to the revival of the Demon Lord? I’d have never expected for an A-ranked demon to show up in a place like this.

But, I’m doing fine here, nothing to worry about! So don’t worry!

More importantly, how are things going with your boyfriend? Are you doing well? Be sure to contact me when you get married, alright?!

See you again then.

From Michelle Lemar

◇ ◇ ◇.

“… that girl… is she really alright? But still, for her who believes him to be a good person, the moment she realizes how dangerous he is… I’m sure she’d be sad…. She is such a kind girl, after all.”

After reading the letter, Claire let out a sigh and looked up at the ceiling. As someone who loved her sister, she hoped she would stay as innocent as she was, and not to get hurt by the harsh reality that would greet her.

However, looking at the letter from her sister, she felt cheered up a bit. She couldn’t help but smile at the still slightly messed handwriting.

“But still… here we have Goblin King, and there they have ‘Red Night’, huh… good graciousness, what a dangerous world it has become…. As expected, is this the effect of Demon Lord revival….”

Human relationships alone were already bothersome, so if the Demon Lord and the demons decided to mix in, as expected that would mean chaos. Claire felt as though she was on the short end of the stick. One of the main causes was as expected that boy, but in the end everything was exhausting for her.

“But now isn’t the time to just whine about…. We’re almost there, so let’s do our best.”

She clapped both of her cheeks to get herself fired up. Claire pulled herself together and went back to work.

◇

“Oh my? What are you looking at, Michelle?”

“Oh, Mia-senpai! Ehehe, a letter from my sister. Apparently she met with Kitsune-sama, you know?”

At the time, Claire’s little sister, whose name is Michelle Lemar, was reading Claire’s letter. She smiled at Mia, who spoke to her in the Adventurer’s Guild in Miniera, while showing her the letter.

The smile on her face made Mia think that this girl must like her big sister a lot. Then, she solemnly listened to the topic of Kitsune, whom she hadn’t seen for about a week or so.

“! Is, is that so? … So, how was he?”

“Oh, you’re curious?”

“Not really, but I do know him and all, after all…”

“You’re the one with the closest relationship with Kitsune, after all. Right, senpai?”

“Like I’m telling you, that’s not it….!”

Mia had a soft side for Kitsune. While they might not be lovers, she couldn’t run the conversation she just started.

“Umm… it feels like she’s telling me that Kitsune-sama is a dangerous person.”

“What does that mean?”

“I’m not sure, but she told me to be careful if I see him again.”

“…Haaa ….What in the world has he done this time… that boy?”

At Michelle’s words, Mia let out a sigh while holding her head. Thinking of Kitsune’s face, she imagined what manners he had screwed up this time, and thought that most likely it wasn’t an improper thing. However, she smiled for a little bit, glad to hear that he seemed to be fine.

Seeing that, Michelle smiled as though she just saw something good.

“You’re just like his mother, Mia-senpai.”

“Wha… do I look so old?”

“I mean I sense motherhood from you, isn’t that why men tend to approach you and ask to fondle them?”

“Hmm… It’s true that the number of times I’ve been spoken to has increased a bit, but… isn’t that just a coincidence?”

“Men love a woman overflowing with motherhood! Mia-senpai, you’re without a doubt a beautiful woman, but you used to be giving off an unapproachable aura, after all. Haven’t you noticed that your expression has softened recently and you’ve also become easier to talk to?”

At Michelle’s words, Mia’s lips twitched and her brow furrowed. She didn’t know this so-called motherhood, and she didn’t feel that anything about her had changed, either. She also felt that she interacted the same way she always did.

Even when she was told that her expression had softened, she wasn’t aware of that, so didn’t know.

“I don’t know. Come on, it’s about time to get back to work.”

“Okay.”

She felt that she’d only be on the receiving end, so Mia decided to end the conversation and got back to work. Michelle also answered in agreement.

Perhaps because she’d heard something about Kitsune after a long while, that day Mia showed more smiles than she usually did.