'It's a nice night. The moon is beautiful ... phew, it's a very nice day for a walk.

　Monica smiles serenely, seemingly unconcerned that we are on guard.
　If we only take the words, we met in the middle of a walk........

　There are no signs of people lurking around........
　If nothing else, Monica's got nothing against me.

　But....

　This woman is dangerous.
　My gut was telling me that.
　The alarm was going off in my head.

　Preparing myself to move at all times...
　At the last minute, I decided to keep talking, trying to find out who this woman was.

'You're ... you're with Arios, right?
'Yes. A companion or, well, to tell you the truth, an observer.
An observer?
Here. Lord Arios you must have been a little overzealous.　That's why the King has sent me to keep an eye on you. I don't want you to do any more mischief. Also, to see if you are fit to be a brave man.
'You can't talk about that kind of flippant stuff, can you?
'I shouldn't tell the public about it. But, well I don't think it would be a problem if it were to Mr. Rain, who is close to Arios-sama.
I don't know him.
'Hmmm, yes.'

　Giggling, Monica laughs.
　It's an innocent laugh that's appropriate for her age.

　And yet.....
　I can't be distracted at all.
　In fact, it makes me more cautious.

　What could possibly be a threat to me?
　What is there to fear in this woman?

What's that watcher doing here?
I wanted to talk to Miss Lane once.
Me and...?
''Yes. Oh, before I go, I want to ask you one question.....................Did you successfully retrieve the magic tool?
What...?

　This guy ... he knows what I'm doing and what I want!

　I can't help but pull out my camouflage and set it up...
　Monica didn't draw her weapon, leaving her body unprotected and natural.
　As it was, she held up her hands.

''Don't misunderstand. I have no intention of fighting, nor do I intend to interfere with Rain-san.''
I'm supposed to believe you?
Yes, sir.

　Smiling, Monica nodded quietly.
　As usual, I can't feel something called evil spirit.
　But.........that's why it's dangerous.

　Even though I'm a watcher, I'm still one of Arios' friends........
　I don't feel an ounce of guilt for betraying that Arios.
　It's as if he has a different structure of mind than most people.

''Well, I'm sure I have no animosity towards you... but it would be absurd to ask me to honestly believe that. Yes, I am aware of that. So I'll just tell you what we want to talk about in a straightforward manner.
So, what's the point?
It's more of a question of purpose.
Questioning?
Mr. Lane are you happy with your current situation?

　The moment you ask me that....
　A shiver went down my back.

　The hidden malice inside Monica erupted all at once, or rather...
　Before I knew it, I had been replaced with a reaper or...

　Could it be that you are now dealing with something extraordinary?
　I feel such a chill in my back.

　Still, I can't show any weakness here.
　Because I felt that if I showed that, I would be devoured at once like a weak animal being attacked by a demon.

　I tried my best to maintain a blank expression...
　He frowns slightly.

''What do you mean by ... satisfied?''
'I mean it as it is. I've done my fair share of research on Rain-san. He's a Beast Tamer, yet he has the extraordinary power to use the strongest species. If he wanted to, he should be able to do even greater things.......and yet, he's settled into being just an adventurer. Don't you think it's a waste of time?　Wouldn't you like to wield your power more freely?　Wouldn't you like to do whatever you want without being tied down to anything or anyone else?
I don't think so. I don't think I'm worthy of big dreams and ambitions. Mostly, I can be satisfied without them. For me it's enough to have the people I care about.
'Hmmm. Well, that's the answer I expected. It's so predictable that it's so predictable that I suspect you're reading my thoughts.

　Am I being made fun of or not?
　It was hard to tell for sure.

Then I'll make another suggestion.
The other...?
Do you want to take revenge on Lord Arios?
Wha...?

　

''Rain-san was banished from the party despite her power. Do you have any thoughts on this?
It's...

　That was a long time ago.
　Besides, we're all here now.
　I don't care.

　I don't care that they're gone.
　I might be lying if I'm not aware of any of the pieces.
　I'm not a saint.
　I was treated like that, unfairly banned from the party...
　There is no part of me that doesn't think about it.

　It would be a lie to say that he did not think of revenge against Arios.

'It's not just that. Insulting Rain's companions and getting involved with them one way or another.......that's unforgivable, isn't it?　The son of the Lord of Horizon it's also because of Mr. Arios that he turned into a demon race.
Is it true...?
'Yes. I don't have any proof, but... well, I have a little bit of contacts and I know about it. That was something Arios-sama had set up to harass Rain-san with a childish eighteenth-century approach. And........the demon thing. If Arios-sama hadn't acted so rashly, that Heavenly Clan would still be asleep today.......and Rain-san wouldn't have been so heartbroken.
....
And ... this one. I'm sure you understand it to a certain extent.　That Lord Arios is pulling the strings behind the scenes.

　I don't know for sure, but...
　I've suspected Arios before.
　He's conveniently got a magic tool in his hand, and there's a video ready to show me killing people...
　Considering that Arios did it to trick me, it makes sense to a certain extent.

　But that's the question of why he would do such a thing, but....

Would you like to partner with me?

　Monica held out her hand.

'If I help you, I can help you get out of the situation. I can exonerate Ms. Lane of her false accusations, and I can help my friends get to safety.

　It was a temptation that was hard to resist.
　I don't really care what happens to me but....
　If you told me that I could save my friends safely, I would think about it for a bit.

''Not only that, but I can take revenge on Arios-sama. Arios-sama has done whatever he wanted by jostling his position as a brave man. The victim of that is you, Rain........you. Because of Arios-sama, Ms. Rain has suffered a lot of harm. As the victim, you have the right to take revenge.
I don't think that's very knightly of you.
'Well, I've got a lot going on too. So ... what do you want to do?　Would you like to partner with me?

　It's like the devil whispering to me.
　Monica laughed gently, really gently, and stared at me.

　At Monica's question, I.....