For now, I decided to stay calm.

　You can only get a few words out of your emergency contact mages.
　So now all Allen knows is that Leeds was taken, and the circumstances of that abduction are unknown, including the other party.
　The location of the abduction was about a day's ride from the capital, that's all we know.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find out that Beatrice is safe from the fact that she contacted me: ...... At any rate, there's not enough information to speculate on the situation.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on in the world, and I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on in the world, and I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on in the world, and I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on in the world.

　I'm not sure if you're going to be able to get a good idea of what you're looking for.
　I'm not sure if it's a good idea for you to be able to get a good idea of what you're looking for, but I'm sure you'll be able to find it.

　The means of transferring a person is a rather delicate process.
　It's almost impossible to make a transfer without the other person's consent, so much so that you can be forgiven for thinking that it's almost impossible to do so.
　Especially if you're in the middle of a carriage ride, and even if you're stationary, it's not worth considering.

　So, you have a real choice.

Hmmm ...... but that's not really ......
"Allen ......?　What the hell is going on?
"Oh, yeah, sorry, I'm just collecting my thoughts.
"If you can't afford it, does it mean that ...... has been kidnapped and no details are available?

　Or is it that Allen is that easy to understand?

　Well, either way, I'd appreciate it if you could get an accurate understanding of the current situation without saying anything.
　I'm sure Henriette will be able to make more guesses without us having to say anything.

　Simply put, it's twice as efficient.
　Feeling truly grateful, Allen's thoughts turn further.

　Who is this opponent and what is his purpose?
　Was their goal to take Leeds in the first place?

　It's most likely so.

　The reason I assume that Beatrice was knocked unconscious in an instant is because the moment the other party recognized the danger, Beatrice would have called you with an emergency message.
　The fact that she contacted you after she was abducted, rather than having time to contact you, means that she was stripped of her consciousness before she could even recognize the threat level of her opponent.

　And it's unreasonable to think that someone with that level of skill would have kidnapped Leeds who happened to be passing by.
　It should be assumed that they took Leeds by chance.

　However, it should not have been hidden that Leeds was heading to the capital, but only the top brass of the kingdom should have known about it.
　It's been less than a year since the last demon incident.
　They should be nervous, and considering Leeds' position and the information they were about to bring, it's unlikely that they would make it known.

　But for the same reason, it couldn't have been an inside job for the kingdom.
　As a result of that incident, any suspicious characters should have been thoroughly cleaned out, at least in the current royal capital, there are no traitors or spies with dangerous ideas.

　But then how did the culprit know that Leeds would be passing through there: ...... This is not so difficult to do.
　The fact that it is possible to bring Beatrice into a coma in a split second before she knows she's there pretty much narrows the options down.
　There is only one entity that Allen can think of that would provide him with information that is essentially unavailable on top of that.

Is it a demon?
"-- the devil, is it?

　At that moment, Allen couldn't help but look at Henriette.

　Not only did their mutterings unexpectedly overlap, but they came to the exact same conclusion.
　After looking at each other intently, a chuckle escaped their faces.

...... strange.
It looks like. Well, maybe not in the same way.
I guess. But if the process is different and the conclusion is the same, does that mean it's almost certain?
I don't know yet, but...
Well, I don't have enough information, to be frank.

　However, as long as you say the situation is unknown, even if you go to talk to Beatrice, there should be no significant difference in the information you can get.
　For the time being, we should assume that the demon is the culprit and act accordingly.

Now that we've come to the first conclusion, ...... the next step is to go see Beatrice, right?
"Yes. He may not understand, but it may give him some clues.
By the way, are you acquainted with Beatrice?
"About the same as Leeds before he came to the Empire. I just haven't talked to him.
Hmm, I think Leeds has talked about Henriette to some extent, so, well, that's not a problem, is it?

　The crucial point is Beatrice's current location, which is not a problem.
　I'm sure you'll be able to follow the emergency contact mages.

I'd like to say ...... right away then, but is that still a bad idea?
At the very least, we should wait for Milene. I'm sure Milene will be surprised when she comes back and there's no one there, as expected.
It would be nice if Henriette could wait, though.
"Can you leave me in the dark when the devil is likely to be involved?　Maybe there are not many people who know more about demons than I do?　Even if you include the demons themselves.
I know, I know. ...... By the way, after all this time, you're going to follow me, Henriette, aren't you?　I'm assuming you're going to follow me normally.
...... Well, she's my roommate. I'm not cruel enough to do anything here.
"No, I'm well aware that Henriette isn't ruthless, and I've never even thought of her as ruthless?

　Considering how much Henriette helped him, he would never think such a thing.

　But for some reason, Henriette gave me a blank stare, even though I praised her.

...... really is you.
"I'm not sure I understand the accusatory looks you're giving me here?
"Shut up. If you have time for this kind of nonsense--

　It was as I was saying this.

　Suddenly, the door opened with great force and a breathless Milene jumped in.


　It's a very unusual sight to blink a few times at a very unusual sight ......, but immediately pulled himself together and squinted his eyes because he had some sort of premonition.

It's a good thing that you're in such a hurry ...... no. Is it possible that Noel was kidnapped by someone?
"--What?

　A moment later, Milene jumped up and her eyes widened.
　Without hearing the words, I know she's asking why.

　But Allen let out a sigh, knowing the outcome without having to ask.

"I see. ...... and Noel, too.
"...... Noel, too?　...... possibly?
Yeah, I just got an emergency call from Beatrice, and someone kidnapped Leeds, too.
"....... ...... so.
So, it looks like Noel was kidnapped, but did Milene see the scene?
I haven't seen ....... So it could be different, exactly. . even at .......
How did you come up with that?
When I went to the ...... store, there was no sign of Noel. . nor in the workshop . ...... but the workshop was still on fire and there was a bruising sword in the workshop.
I see, that's definitely an anomaly.

　Aren and the others know that Noel never leaves his workshop until he finishes with his sword, and that he never leaves his workshop on fire.
　The six months of living together have reminded me of this very well, and I'm sure Milene, who spends a lot of time with Noel, especially going to his store, knows it even better.
　It would be strange to have either of them, but if there was either of them, it meant that something had happened for sure.

It's not yet known by Henriette that it's that unusual, but ...... is that far?
If the cataclysmic event happens, maybe Noel will still be blacksmithing.
Well, that's quite something. But how does that make you get kidnapped?　It could be anything else.
...... There is no denying it. But there were no signs of a struggle, nor was there any indication that Noel had left the workshop in the first place. ...... I asked around a bit and they said that no one had seen Noel in recent years.
It's easy to imagine that Noel was holed up in the house because of our absence. ...... That's why people didn't think there was anything out of the ordinary, or even that the fire was left on. In addition, the fact that the fire was left on means that Noel has only recently disappeared.
Certainly, from what I've heard, it's highly likely that someone kidnapped him ...... or at least just disappeared out of nowhere? And Leeds has also been kidnapped by someone: ...... Is this a coincidence?

　I shrugged my shoulders in response to Henriette's words, meaning that I wouldn't have to listen to the obvious.

　Or rather--

Wasn't Henriette rather predictable to this point?

　When Allen asked that, Henriette looked straight back at him.
　Then she opens her mouth.

...... How did you come up with that?
"Because I vaguely remember something similar, I guess.　I would also like to know if Akira is safe or not: ......
The first thing to do is to get a new set of eyes. Besides, ...... maybe you'll find out as you follow the whereabouts of the Leeds, too.

　Although there was no clear answer, it still seemed that Allen's guess was correct.

　But I'm not going to ask for more than that.
　That's all you need to know for now, and if you need any other information, Henriette will tell you.

　Anyway.

I don't think we'll be able to get any information from Noel's place of business: ...... I guess Beatrice's place is next.
I wish I knew what it was. I wish I knew what it was: ......
Well, I don't know. Oh, yeah, so that's why I'm going to go to Beatrice's place now to ask for information: ...... Do you want to come too?
Go to ...... . I'm curious and I can't sit around and wait.
Copy that. But first, should I tell Isabelle and her friends?
It's a good idea to report the demons to the guild for now, don't you think?
...... If Allen tells you, he'll take care of the rest?
Hmm, I'm not so sure about that. I'm sure you're right that it's not that far: ...... Well, at any rate, I guess we have a few things to do before we go to Beatrice's.

　To be honest, I'm impatient, but I also know that there's no point in being impatient.

　Telling himself to calm down, Allen moved quickly to do what he needed to do for now.