It was late in the night, and the world was silent.
　It was the time when most of the people had fallen asleep and those still active were trying not to make a sound.

　It may be because they don't want to bother others, because they are doing something guilty ...... or because they are trying to catch it.
　Each reason is different, but in a way the situation is kept alive by the efforts of everyone.

　And the elven man - Percival was one of them.

"Well, ...... what's going on?

　Percival wrinkles his forehead as he sits deep in his chair in his room.
　The fact that he is troubled is evident just by looking at ...... but it's really not that big of a deal.
　It's simply because I'm too excited to sleep.

　The reason, incidentally, is very simple.
　It was because we had found our king.

　In short, the same as everyone else.
　It is a bit dumb to say that you are not yet settled while telling everyone to settle down. ...... That can't be helped.
　That's how much you've been waiting for.

　It's not just a simple matter of time, but also an unpredictable hope, despite the fact that the hope is offered.
　To begin with, it is an uncertain hope that does not even know what is really desired beyond that.
　It is far better than the despair of a gradual death, but I wanted some certainty of relief.

　I know it was hard for everyone, but the pressure on Percival, who had to take everyone with him, was greater than ever.
　After all, one wrong move and it could mean the extinction of the species.
　How could I not feel the pressure?

　And then the king was found.
　Surely no one else knows what relief that brought to Percival.

　Still, when I told that man that he didn't have to be king, I meant it.
　It was enough to know that there was a king.

　Even if everything we were doing ended up being meaningless, just knowing that there was a destination to cling to was surprisingly lightened the pressure.
　Whether we actually cling to them or not is not important.
　It was enough to know that.

　And worst-case scenario, if she gave birth to a child, that was enough to keep the species alive.
　It's not going to leave their blood, but it's far better than having ...... the species die.

　You're going to be able to find out what you can do with it and what you can do with it.
　Tomorrow, I'm going to introduce the place again to the kings and show them around.
　You can't show your sleepless face, and yet you can't sleep, which is also a problem.

...... It would be a shame for someone to know that I'm suffering from this kind of problem.

　But in a way, Percival thinks that maybe it's a good thing too.
　Because that's what you can be bothered by.
　It pales in comparison to dwelling in the doldrums.

It's all thanks to her, or ......, that I'm really indebted to her.

　In the beginning, I doubted her intentions and even turned against her at every turn, but now I feel deeply sorry for her. ...... I wondered what we could do to repay her, but that's another thing to think about.
　I'm not sure what we can do in return for her, but that's something else to consider.

At any rate, I guess it's a good thing I didn't go with this dubious thing.

　Muttering, Percival flicked the black parchment at hand.

　The sender is unknown.
　Nor how it was delivered.

　Only the words inscribed on it are certain.

"Give us our strength in exchange for our king?

　It was more than half a year ago now, and I found myself with it.
　I didn't know how to reply to it, but it was so suspicious that I let it go, but in the end I didn't get any further response.

　I don't know if they understood my intentions or something else, but it was the right thing to do considering the current situation.
　Of course, there are a lot of things to worry about, but right now it's no use worrying about them.

...... Speaking of concerns, those kids are one of them.

　The children of the devil who were allowed to live in this land.
　Of course we know they are innocent and we accepted them.

　But it is also true that they are powerful.
　We couldn't let our guard down.

　With that in mind, though, there is something else we should be most concerned about now.
　What we should be concerned about now is above all--

"Well, ...... how did you really sleep?

　Percival let out a sigh at the lack of any sleepiness, and his mouth relaxed just a little bit.












　At the same time an elf was letting out a joyful sigh, a girl was letting out a sigh in the city.

　However, it was the exact opposite.
　Because the girl's was a gloomy one.

Hmm ...... what's up with that?

　The girl - Lisette, like any other person who moves at that time of day, tried to avoid making noise, but that was the only time she had no choice.
　The reason is because I was seriously worried about it.

　The reason why Lysette makes no noise in the first place is because of her job.
　It's a good thing that you don't have to worry about noise, because there is no indication that the target will be found ...... to catch the guilty party.

　The sound of Lysette's sigh echoes through the stillness of the city as she exhales again.

"As expected, I didn't expect it to end in a blank, either.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find out more about this.
　You'll be able to see that they have a great deal more to offer than just a few of their own.

　If the boy was not from the kingdom, there is no problem for now.
　It's just our fault for being so misguided ...... but it was odd nonetheless.

　There was no trace of him at all.
　I'm not sure where he's run off to, only that he's still some kind of spouse.

　But there was no indication that he had even entered that city.

...... impossible. Especially now, we're on high alert. It can be faked, like he came from a different direction, but it's impossible to completely hide the tracks.

　If that were possible, Lysette would not have even been able to find the boy in the first place.

　Then there is one answer.
　There was no trace, but rather it was erased.



　Of course, that is also impossible as long as we are there.
　But that is only if we are talking about an outside criminal.
　If it's an inside job, ...... or someone very close to it, it might be possible.

Well, that was pretty much a no-brainer, too.

　In short, it's just a process of elimination.
　I just figured if there's no other way to think about it, it's the only way.
　It's more like a tirade than an inference.

　But there was one thing that bothered me, though, to let it slide.

"It would have been nice to have her back in town.

　She - Henriette Leubland.
　The rightful heir of the Marquess of Liubrand, but close to us in terms of treatment.
　If she was even called an abomination, she would be able to cover the traces of each person without being distracted by us.

　Moreover, she is said to have left the city just as the sun was about to set.
　It's too suspicious.
　It's too dangerous and of little benefit to ordinary people.

　Of course, they may have had some urgent business to attend to ...... but Lisette was really curious.
　I'm sure you're going to be able to find out what's going to be the best way to get the most out of this.

"I can't even tell you that she's not home, or that she's not even .......

　Depending on how you look at it, that's why I was in a hurry.
　But when we asked where he went, he said he couldn't say.

　Honestly, it was very suspicious.
　Or was it that I was suspicious from the start?

　She is the rightful heir, albeit nominally, to the marquise family.
　Moreover, I've heard that she has a role that she is not even aware of.
　It may not be surprising if you think it's related to ......, but I was still curious.

　I'm sure you'll find that this is one of the few places where it is out of your control to investigate in detail.
　If you are too reckless, your head might physically fly off your neck.

The best thing about this is that it's still the same in the end.

　We've already done what we've done with the blockade of the streets with no results.
　If we get nothing, the result will be the same.

　To be honest, I don't have much of an abhorrence for it.
　After all, in many ways, I've had it coming.

　But I wouldn't want to die if I could--

Anyway, if the results are the same anyway, we should try to stick with it for a while longer.

　If that didn't work, then let's die gracefully.
　Thinking like a rethinker, Lisette changed her mind and began to think about what she should do first, in a dimly lit corner of the city.