--It was when I was doing my daily routine of [zazen] for a long time.


　While I was alone in the middle of the room, meditating as usual, and maintaining a state of blankness, a servant brought me a delivery.
　It was rare these days to have a servant other than Noah in person. Ever since Noah came to the mansion, I've always gone through Noah in all my affairs - was it that urgent?


　However, the delivery came in the form of an envelope.
　He asked the servant who brought it to him what it was.


"What is it?

"I don't know, sir. He said I must give it to Master Arx.

"...... for me?

Yes.

What kind of man brought this?

Well, he was well-dressed. ......


　The servant's words are not to the point. The servant's words don't make sense, which means he didn't say who he was and didn't check. He may have felt that his work was inappropriate, but since there was no one to blame ......, he probably thought there was no need to be so careful.


You didn't say your name, did you?

Yes.


　When I asked him to confirm, he replied in the affirmative.


　But an envelope. It's probably a letter or something. The only person who would send me such a thing at the moment is my uncle.


"...... Where is Lisha now?

"......?　Is it Miss Lisha?　She's gone out this afternoon. ......

...... Oh, right. Okay, okay. That's enough, thank you.


　The servant thanked him, bowed and left the room.
　I looked at the back of the envelope, flipping through it. As expected, there was nothing on it.
　For a moment, I thought it might have been a letter from the official who had entrusted Lisha with the evidence, but I quickly dismissed it as unlikely. If it was that official, then this should be a delivery to Risha.


　Since he had given it to Risha, it made sense to ask her to return it.
　However, if it was a letter to herself, which had nothing to do with the matter at hand, it was strange that the person who brought the letter did not identify himself.


　A bad feeling grew heavy in the pit of my stomach.
　It's the worst of all possible possibilities.
　This is turning into a bad story.
　You sit down at your desk, grab a paper knife, and hastily open the envelope.
　Inside, you find a letter.
　And there it was, just as I expected it to be.



　--Bring the things my sister left for me to the designated place. Don't tell your parents. If you do, I'll kill them both.


"Oh, shit!


　Bang on the desk.
　Lisha is the only one who knows I have the evidence. But the letter was for you. And the word "kill. This is most likely not the same official who gave the evidence to Risha.


　Then the sender is the source of the evidence of wrongdoing.
　None other than the Marquis of Carlow Gaston.
　But--


"I'm going to kill you both. ...... Is there anyone else involved that you know?


　The letter definitely said two people.
　Maybe someone else who had accompanied him had gotten involved.
　As I sat in my room, staring at the letter and groaning, there was a knock at the door.
　Eventually, a voice came through the door.


"Mr. Arx, may I have your attention, please?

"Noah. Yes, of course.


　With your permission, Noah Ingveen opens the door and appears.
　As he enters, a soft citrus scent wafts through the air.
　She has a short bob, indigo hair, a golden monocle, and good looks. She is dressed in her morning coat as usual, and her appearance is impeccable.


　Noah bowed gracefully and asked a question.


Noah bowed gracefully and asked, "I saw Cheri leave the room a few minutes ago.


　She must have just seen the servant who brought her the package.


"...... Here it is.

"A letter, a delivery?


　He nodded in response to Noah's question and tossed the letter to him.
　Noah skimmed through the letter and then turned to look at it.


"Mr. Arx, is this ......?

Noah looked over the letter and immediately turned to me. "Sir Arx, is this ?" "When Risha went to the soiree, she said it was proof of the Marquis' wrongdoing, so I brought it.


　As he pulled out the hidden evidence, he explained to Noah what had happened.
　He explained to Noah what had happened as he pulled out the hidden evidence. Risha had been entrusted with the evidence.
　He also said that he was the one who took care of it.


　Noah, after listening to the whole story, still looks reluctant.


...... You didn't tell me such an important thing?

I'm sorry. I didn't think they would find out.




　He had thought that if the officials had come to get it, it would not have any effect, but he had not expected that the Marquis would sniff it out first.


There's a lot I want to say, but we'll talk about it later.

"Oh.

The fact that the matter has come to light suggests that something has happened to the servant.

...... Yes. I'm sure you're right. d*mn .......


　I'm sure you're right.
　How dare you involve Risha and then put her in danger? It's not clear if he was caught and opened his mouth, or if the Marquis had too much intuition, but this made me want to punch him, not just complain.


It's true that Master Lisha has been kidnapped. Would you like me to report it to your parents?

No, that'll have to wait.

But, Master Arx. I'm afraid this killing thing is more of a threat.

Yeah. That's what I think, too.


　Noah is right, they won't go out of their way to kill the daughter of a viscount.
　Even if he did, he would have to prepare for it by first plotting against the Raytheft family.
　If all the evidence was destroyed, that would be the end of it.


I think it's necessary to tell someone, given the circumstances.

Yeah. I want you to tell your uncle first.


　Crabbe has more power than his father Joshua. Crabbe has more power than Joshua, and he can deal with emergencies better than Joshua, and more importantly, if we tell my parents, it might cause a commotion in the house. If that happens, they might take some action.


　It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for. ...... The fact that you're taking hostages means that the Marquis is in a bit of a hurry. There is one of the ledgers in our possession. You'll be able to find out more about this in the future.


"And then. Noah, I'm going to answer the call.

I don't think they'd keep their word if I did.

I don't think so. If they get the evidence, they'll get me too.

And you're willing to do this knowing that?

No, I'm not taking the evidence.


　No, I'm not taking the evidence.


So how do you propose to do it?

The idea is to pretend to be caught and get out with Lisha and the others. You don't think I can use magic too, do you?


　I'm not sure if it's a good idea, but I think it's a good idea.
　It's hard to imagine that a child of ten years old can use magic. As the son of a military family, one might be wary of him. He can use magic, that's all.


But there is a possibility that we may not be able to bring them together.

"Yeah. That's why I want Noah to make another move while I'm stalling like that. I want you to go to the Marquis' mansion right now and find out where Lisha is. Noah can do that, can't he?

Even if he says he can't, you'll make him do it, won't you?

Of course.

Huh. My stomach's starting to hurt.

Illusion. So, once we know where Lisha is...

You mean you'll ask Mr. Crabbe to make a move?

That's it. We won't be able to go in until we at least know where she is.


　If you break into the Marquess's mansion and find it empty, it could be a disaster.
　This is why you need to make sure that you do your homework and make time for it.


　...... The options available to me now are limited.
　In any case, now that this has happened, I have to rely on someone who has the appropriate power.



　--But is that a solution?


............


　The words "" suddenly appear in my mind.
　It is true that my first priority right now is to help Lisha.
　However, even if that is accomplished, there is no doubt that the result will leave me with a lot of confusion.
　The first thing we need to think about is how this matter can be settled.


　Is it just to save Risha from the Marquis?
　Is it just to reveal the Marquis' wrongdoings?
　No, I'm sure that's not the end of the story.


"............

Mr. Arx?


　This case will first go back to the beginning.
　Aside from the back books, the other evidence of miscellaneous irregularities is something that a nobleman as large as the Marquis of Gaston could easily squash.


　The people who collected these items were probably government officials, probably from the inspector general's office, but I wonder what they were trying to do with such useless items.


　Of course, accusations need to be lobbied for, and the Marquis is a person who plays a central role in the country.
　It would be difficult to accuse him of a crime unless there was something serious.
　This level of evidence is far from fatal, even with the back books.
　Nevertheless, he took action at this time.


　Is the official incompetent or thoughtful in throwing away an opportunity when more important evidence could have been obtained?




　And... I don't even know how the official knew that Lisha was Joshua Raytheft's daughter and left her with him.


　--It's as if there's something unseen moving around the room.
　Is this a warning that something is going on under the water, or is it just an illusion?
　I'm not sure which it is, but at any rate.


...... Noah. I have a few other things to look into. Can I ask you to do that too?

"Is there more?　You're a hard master to please.

I think he's better than your uncle.

I think he's better than your uncle.


　Noah let out an exasperated breath. This exchange has become a regular occurrence lately.
　He's always doing what he says he's going to do, but he always does it.