214 The Plan
“We could try to infiltrate into the mansion of the Smakusa Family and try to find clues about this connection between them and the demons? There must be some document or other… or even people who would accept bribes. If we find something about this Patriarch, the Emperor wouldn’t want to arrest him but rather execute him for treason.” Matthew gave the idea when he saw that everyone was quiet.
As great as the danger was, the idea seemed workable to most people present.
The Smakusa Family lived a little way from Oukiwa, further south, beyond the greenish mountains. Their estate was more like a fortress than a mansion, and this construction stood at the foot of the colossal mountain ranges, which split the continent in two. Because of its sturdiness, size, and complexity, this fortress was nationally regarded as the second-best protected place in the entire Broteforge Empire, losing only to the Emperor’s Palace.
“Are you fools?” Luke asked, looking at how everyone pondered Matthew’s crazy idea. “The Smakusa fortress is so well protected that even if we got something, we wouldn’t get out of there alive. The Zone Threat Clan, the clan with the most members that are known, has that place as their base, and they are sponsored directly by the Smakusa Family. Besides, I bet that place is a maze, and there shouldn’t be any information for sale on the Black Market about their blueprints.”
Alexis stood up, stopped next to Luke, and touched his shoulder while looking at everyone. “Luke is right. The Zone Threat Clan has two Class-S adventurers and both are from the Smakusa Family. There is no way we can just break into them, grab important information and then go back there with an arrest order by the Council. Luke is very strong and also sneaky, but he isn’t invisible. If he would be found, it would be three hundred adventurers against one. Also, if they caught an ally of the Strogueher trying to bribe a Smakusa, Ayumi could be judged and expelled from the Council itself, something that has never happened.”
Shiro raised his hand and asked, “So, do you guys have any other better plan?”
“We have discussed this at length, and considering the current situation of the city, and the instability with Patriarch Smakusa on the council, the best way is for us to find an ally who can provide us with information.” Luke spoke and pulled Marie’s letter from a pocket of his worn overcoat. “Shiro, Nathalia, Ayumi, and Martha, any of you know a man named Doctor Vinigo?”
Upon hearing that name, Ayumi and Nathalia both widened their eyes.
“Yes, I know him. He is a teacher of a unique discipline at the Oukiwa Academy of Nobles.” Nathalia said as she stood up from the couch.
“If I am not wrong, he joined the staff three years ago. Although he started out as a professor of medicine, he is currently teaching alchemy. Am I right, Nath?” It was Ayumi’s turn to contribute.
The white-haired young Elf frantically nodded.
With this new information, everyone concluded that Luke and Alexis’ plan was actually less risky and might be more advantageous in the long run than invading the Smakusa Fortress. Because, even if the Melki Empire started the war at that moment, they could still gain important information through Doctor Vinigo, thus trying to slow down the enemy’s advance.
Thus, they only needed to find a way to find the Doctor and convince him to cooperate, but plans like this can be as complex as a fortress invasion.
The Oukiwa Academy of Nobles, where Doctor Viniga taught, was large, with dozens of buildings and a few hundred students. Because it was such a vast institution and sponsored by the Emperor himself, like the University of the Cardinal Kingdom, the Council’s influence was minimal. But, this could be a good thing for Luke; after all, he never planned to use Ayumi to help him. In fact, he wanted to make her look as neutral as possible, so that in case everything went wrong, there would still be a chance for the Melki Empire to spare her.
*
The half-wolf never considered acting in an educational institution, even less with an impending Continental War, but that’s what they decided should happen.
At this point, Luke was already a nationally renowned figure due to the walking stories and legends about his accomplishments, which included defeating Nebezial, killing ‘The Beast’, and ridding Latgor of two lunatics. So, it shouldn’t be hard for him to enter the Oukiwa Academy of Nobles as a prestigious and respected student; however, Doctor Vinigo was a respected teacher of an exclusive subject, which few students have access to after the second or third year.
This left Luke with two options: dedicate himself to his studies to try to skip approximately three years of studies in just a few months, or try to become the replacement for the Professor of Dueling, who had resigned because of the Horizon Clan Massacre, and get closer to Vinigo as a colleague.
Everyone in the half-wolf gang had learned from their failures, and this time they didn’t interfere with his decision. This was something that only Luke should decide, because he would be the one taking the risk.
Luke had one day to make this decision, so he didn’t hurry.
In fact, he felt he needed to take some of the stress off to make the best decision, so when Martha realized it was getting late, she went to introduce the rooms to the new residents of the house, and Luke went upstairs to his room, or rather… to Ayumi’s room.
With his hand around the Elf’s waist, Luke pressed her against his body, surprising her.
” Calm down, Luke… it’s been a while…” Ayumi spoke as she stopped the kiss suddenly and looked at Luke.
The fuzzy-eared man looked her in the eye, and when he saw that she looked away, Luke knew that she was lying and kissed her again while moving his hand down to her ass. Ayumi really loved when Luke was more aggressive like that.
When Ayumi thought nothing could make her more aroused, Luke pushed her down on the bed of white sheets and flipped her to her back.
“Hm~ No foreplay~?” She questioned in a lewd voice.
In fact, Luke was about to start foreplay, although Ayumi already looked wet enough for them to fuck.
Knock~ Knock~
Two knocks on Ayumi’s bedroom door stopped Luke from starting to suck his bride. Surprised, he whispered to the Matriarch:
“Who could it be? I thought everyone would be sleeping on the bottom floor…”