Book 2: Chapter 24
Book 2: Chapter 24
That means… The criminal is Duke Riviere!
「But today, when I interviewed Duke Riviere, I couldn’t come to the decisive conclusion that he was lying.」
「Eh… Is that right? But depending on the way he answers, you won’t be able to tell if he is lying.」
「What do you mean, Reiji?」the young lady asked.
「For example, even if Duke Riviere was behind the scenes, if he says “I did not poison the dish”, it is not a lie. It was the servant who actually poisoned it.」
「Ah…」
「It’s exactly as you say, Reiji-san. You seem to be quick on the uptake.」
Earl, you meant that as a compliment, right? You don’t mean in the sense that I have serpentine wisdom, right?
「Of course, with that in mind, His Majesty asked a lot of questions… but I never suspected Duke Riviere to be behind the scenes.」
「Eh… Is that so?」
「In the first place, there is almost no information that there may have been a skill orb with more than 5 stars.」
Ah, right. That means the investigation is back to the starting point.
「Today’s interview was really tiring.」
The Earl heaved a long sigh, leaning back on his chair.
「Father, let’s get some tea.」
「Yes, please do that.」
The young lady rang the bell to call the maid, and had her brew tea.
For the time being, the Earl seems to have finished what he wanted to say. Now, it’s my turn. There are some things that I must ask the Earl.
「—It wasn’t just the fact that I used the “Magic Eye of Inquiry” on high-ranking people that tired me out…」
Just as the maid left, and just before I started, the Earl started, holding a teacup in his hand.
「They said I can use my Magic Eye, but asked for compensation instead…」
「Compensation?! Does that mean…」
I looked at the young lady. Isn’t that like a declaration that they want the young lady to be married into their house?
It’s quite possible! That Louis boy must have cried to his dad!
「That’s right.」the Earl said, with a shady-looking, beaming smile on his face.「They asked for Reiji-san!」
「As I expected! They wanted the young lady– Eh?」
Me?
「Yes, you.」
Me? Why?
As I looked at the young lady, she gave me a look which seemed to say, “Obviously.”
「You moved faster than the 2nd Captain of the Knights Order, and spotted the poison that even the escort of House Ebene didn’t notice. And with no skill! Well, I only knew that today, though. But since you spotted a poison, which slipped past professional chefs who have 【Observation】 skill and the like, isn’t it obvious that you would be desired.」
「…………」
For real? Thinking about it, I guess that makes sense? No, but I’m still 14 years old.
「…Reiji, are you going to another House?」the young lady asked, grabbing the cuff of my shirt.
(I thought of not making the young lady worry any more today, and yet…)
「Of course I won’t go.」I replied, with a smile.
「Really?」
「Yes.」
「…Eva, Reiji-san’s smile looks suspicious, but what he said seems to be true.」
Earl! Don’t activate the “Magic Eye of Inquiry” whenever you please!
「But I think you should be careful from now on. The Master Swordsman also came in today. His eyes were gleaming when he heard Reiji-san’s story.」
Yikes, I didn’t want to know that information. No, wait a second. If I can see the person called “Master Swordsman” in training, I can learn 【Dragon Sword Technique】, right?
(…No. Let’s not. Greed leads to failure. I have to stay alert.)
「For now, my interests and the Earl’s are aligned. I have no reason to leave.」I reassured the young lady.
「Interests? Weren’t you just hired by my father, Reiji?」
「Come to think of it, I never told you about it, my lady. I requested the Earl to do two things: “New news relating to skill orb with 5 or more stars” and “Looking for a person named Lulusha”.」
「…Reiji-san, isn’t that matted confidential?」the Earl asked, almost facepalming.
「No, it doesn’t matter. It’s okay even if you spread it in a big way.」
「…I thought it was a secret, so I was very careful with the investigation.」
「I wasn’t asked.」I replied to the Earl, with a beaming smile.
Revenge for when the Earl said that the last time.
「If I also happen to hear something about it, I’ll let you know, Reiji!」
「Thank you. I shall look forward to it since you have also become a full-fledged noble, my lady.」
「Leave it to me!」the young lady said, puffing her thin chest.「I will try my best to become someone who can speak to Reiji on an equal footing! First of all– father.」
「What is it, Eva?」
「Thank you very much for setting up everything up until now. The Human Resource Centers that Reiji and I took down were all prepared by you, wasn’t it, father?」
I nearly spit out my tea.
Wait a sec, Earl! Why are you looking at me?! No, I didn’t tattle on you to the young lady!
Well, I was about to bring it up, though.
「…Eva, what do you mean?」
「Father, I have been thinking all day today. About many different things. Things often don’t go well. His Majesty’s sideshow yesterday, although it seemed to have turned out well at a glance, the banquet itself failed due to the discovery of poison in Kluvshrat-sama’s plate.」
Oh, my! Wow! My breath was taken away, looking at the young lady from the side.
I think… I might have misunderstood the young lady.
I had been thinking, “She must be protected,” and “She must have been very sad today.”
「I want a society in which all the citizens of the Holy Kingdom can be given the freedom to live. However, in contrast, I knew nothing about how skill orbs greatly affected the lives of the people, nor how outstandingly valuable they are until I heard it from you just now, father. Even though I was in a position to investigate it, to ask about it, in the back of my mind, I was thinking, “Skill orbs are something that nobles possess” — Even though, “Nobles are naturally superior” mindset was the one I should have tried to cancel.」
The young lady is already a full-fledged ‘Lady’. She is standing on her own feet and thinking with her own head.
「Even with my obsession of “Slave Business Crushing”, just once would have been fine, but 6 easy successes in a row… made me think it was really strange.」
「…That is why you think I made the arrangement?」
The young lady nodded, looking at her father, also known as “Cold Blood Lord”, straight in the eye, unflinching.
「I thought about this all day today… What if Reiji wasn’t around? What if Reiji left? That almost crushed my heart. But then, I realized that Reiji has his own battles too. And Reiji doesn’t waste away his free time, so I thought about everything, and came to that conclusion.」
Only one day has passed since the “Sprout and New Moon Banquet”, where one becomes a full-fledged noble. The young lady became a full-fledged Lady in that short time.
And it seems that I was the impetus for it. I couldn’t be prouder.
Unrelated to her appearance, her confident manner of speaking and her posture of holding her head high, looked really beautiful to me.
―From now on, you will choose your skill orb, learn a lot of things, sometimes fight with each other, sometimes fail, sometimes feel joy, and sometimes suffer. Since you were born with noble blood, you will have to fight that fate.
The Holy King said as such about nobles.
The young lady is no doubt a noble. If that behaviour is noble, then the young lady is a noble.