"...By the way, who was it that encouraged you, Mileisha, to consult me?" (Mitsuha)
"Ah, yes, it was the daughter of Count Lethes d'Almarote... I am grateful for being introduced to Mitsuha-sama." (Mileisha)
"Hmm..." (Mitsuha)
After all, she's not a member of Society... No, I knew it. If she were a member, she wouldn't have done something like that without first consulting them.
"Please don't tell that kid that I gave you advice. Let's just say that you visited me, but you refused and chased me away." (Mitsuha)
"……eh?" (Mitsuha)
Mileisha was surprised by my unexpected words, but that's only natural.
"That kid is not a member of Society, nor is she someone I am on friendly terms with. And yet, without getting my prior consent, she just forced your issue on me. That way, if things go well, I can owe you, Mileisha, something without me having to do anything. And even if it doesn't work out, it will just worsen the relationship, and I won't suffer any loss. ...But isn't that just taking advantage of me? For her own gain, without my permission... Don't you think there's any ill will towards me?" (Mitsuha)
"Ah……" (Mileisha)
"So, tell that kid I said no. And please tell her that I was really angry because I was introduced to other people without asking me first, even though we weren't even friends." (Mitsuha)
"Y-Yes..." (Mileisha)
Let's make that kid understand that it was they, not Mileisha, who have incurred the displeasure of the Yamano family. And of course, the same goes for Lephilia Trade and Society.
Oh, Mileisha, you look a little troubled. Would it hurt to say something like that to someone who was worried and took the trouble to introduce me to her?
"Well, the possibility that this kid is the mastermind isn't zero, you know? The reason they had you come to this place may have been to damage their relationship with us and turn against Society. It's a classic story where the mastermind is close to the victim and pretends to be their ally. Besides, at the moment, I don't think they like us at all. The moment they instigated Mileisha without consulting me beforehand... There are hostile factions among the nobles who hate us and Society. Anyway, that kid is not someone you should give all of your information to." (Sabine)
"I, I see..." (Mileisha)
Mileisha seemed impressed by the comments made by Sabine-chan—who looked younger than her—and me, but also seemed a little depressed, perhaps because she felt disappointing.
Well, I don't think there's a high chance that the girl who introduced me is actually an enemy, but we can't overlook it, so it's better to be cautious, yeah. A stone bridge is broken down by hitting it hard. That is the motto of our Yamano clan. I think some kind of warning measure is necessary to stop people from trying to take advantage of me.
"…Well then, we’ll call it a day for today. I’ll check a few things over here. All future contact will be through someone else. Also, on the way home, act disappointed and downcast because it ended unsuccessfully." (Mitsuha)
"Y-Yes..." (Mileisha)
Don't forget that there may be enemy lookouts. It's the basic principle of intelligence warfare, isn't it?
"...So, what are we going to do?" (Sabine)
Sabine-chan asked this question immediately after Mileisha had left.
"First of all, I'll gather information. I'll have everyone at Society look into the rumors, and in the meantime, I'll head to Mileisha's hometown." (Mitsuha)
It had been several months since Mileisha left her hometown to study abroad. During that time, there might have been some trouble involving her family or the faction that surrounded them. The movement was instantaneous via transfer. The fact that I had previously had extensive flights across this continent had proved extremely useful.
Also, a part torn from the Thing, a spiritual life form, that was attached to me. Without that support, there's no way I'd be able to remember a place I'd only seen once from the air. It had no ego and was a part of the Thing, assisting me like an external memory. ...It's been a big help. Thank you!
An emergency meeting was held and everyone at Society was asked for their cooperation. It would be a bit risky to make a personal request from me, so I decided to say that a foreign student who had fallen into a difficult situation at the hands of evil had come to Society for help...
...Of course, everyone was excited! "It's like an adventure story!" and "It's about rewarding good and punishing evil, and championing justice!" they said, squealing with excitement. I was a bit worried, so I repeatedly told them, "It's a secret operation, so don't tell anyone! Make sure no one finds out!", so I think it'd be okay, but—
Even so, Mileisha said that "rumors are spreading," but none of the members of Society had heard of such stories. —It's a bit strange. Was it difficult to talk about such things with our members who were treated like saints? Well, that's not hard to understand.
But surely if I ask them some questions they will probably talk. After all, there are many people who want to talk to the members of Society and become friends with them. If you start a conversation and bring up a topic that shows they are interested, they will chirp with all their might about everything they know. And while the other members were busy gathering information, I—
"Are you ready? You haven't forgotten anything?" (Mitsuha)
"It's OK!" (Sabine)
"Everything is ready!" (Beatrice)
To my final confirmation, Sabine-chan and Beatrice-chan replied enthusiastically.
...No, at first I was planning to go alone... But as expected, Sabine-chan said, "I'll go too!"... Well, that was to be expected. However, I never thought that even Beatrice-chan would follow me—
Sabine-chan was adamant that we should take Beatrice-chan along as well—It's true that even though we'd invited Beatrice-chan into our group, we didn't have many opportunities to hang out together—My old friend, Sabine-chan, seemed to be concerned about that.
Well, there's nothing that can be done about that... As the daughter of a marquis, Beatrice-chan has a lot to learn, she is a sheltered young lady doted on by the whole family, and although it hasn't been officially declared so yet, she is practically already treated as a great saint... she's not in a position where she can just go out and have fun.
…Is Her Highness the Princess okay? Hahaha... Sabine-chan is unstoppable.
For Colette-chan, I thought that the intelligence war against the nobles would be too much of a burden, so I didn't call out to her this time. She's studying at my mansion. If it is found out later that she wasn't called, I'm sure I'll get in trouble... Well, I guess there's nothing I can do about it.
Now, let's head for the royal capital of Mileisha's home country, Norveth Kingdom...
"Transfer!!" (Mitsuha)
Author's Note
I will be taking two breaks from updating next week and the week after for the New Year holidays.
Thank you for reading this year.
We look forward to your continued support next year! (^^)/
FUNA