* * *


　I've lost. Completely.

　How many months have passed since Lady Raspberry Bell taught me? I can say with certainty that my ability is higher than anyone else I know.

　You've raised your rankings in both body mechanics and swordsmanship to the point where you can call yourself an expert, and on top of that, you've also raised your "divine Skill" to the ninth dan. Even in that title fight, there was no way a 17-year-old this strong could be competing in that title fight. That's how strong I am.


　But in spite of that, I lost.

　...... It's not enough, it's not enough. I'm not yet the savior that Raspberry Bells wants me to be.
　I wasn't good enough. I'm not going to be able to save Lady Raspberry Bell, if I'm not there to save her.

　Oh, boy.
　Second place test. I know I'm on your side, but it's not fair.

　I thought that if I could save Lady Raspberry-Bell, I'd be okay with that.

　But what is this haze in my heart?
　Is it jealousy?　Selfishness?　A desire for recognition?　Unworthiness?　Complaints about being used?

　I don't know. I don't know who I am, at all.


What the hell do you want to do about it ......?

　The forest at night, I muttered to myself.
　I received no answer from anyone.



　　* * * *



Brighton, there's a letter for you.
What?　To me?

　A letter arrives to the anti-church group Disart, whose hideout is located deep in the rugged mountains beyond the farming village to the west of the capital of the Kamel God State, Ordrejo.

　A sturdy, mature man of 190 centimeters in height, called Brighton, receives a letter from a man who appears to be one of his companions.

'............'
What did it say?　Is it beneficial to our dithert?

　As Brighton looked through it in silence, his companion approached him with interest.

　The letter is addressed to Brighton, the leader of the anti-church group Dizart. In other words, a message from someone who is aware of the Disart's hideout, and who also knows the leader's name. If you're a member of the Dizart, it's strange that you don't care about it.


...... "...... There will be a 'conclave' at Ordrejo in a week's time.
What?　...... It's hard to believe it's so sudden.
Yeah, I agree.

　A conclave is a secret meeting of popes and cardinals in one place. The conclave in the Kamel Divine State was originally a meeting to elect a pope. However, as long as Black reigned as Pope, his position would never change. Hence, it will not be a conclave to elect a pope, but a conclave where the pope unilaterally decides on the appointment of the cardinals and below.

'Do you intend to delude us with your bullshit?
No, wait.

　Brighton waited for his companion to speak, assuming it was false information.

　It was strange to begin with. The Conclave is a secret meeting, and as such, the information about the event is communicated in secret only to those in attendance. It's a meaningless (・・・・・) lie to be deluded by bullshit. There is no way that anyone would believe it. I mean .......

'The cardinal class is on your side, or ......?'

　On the contrary, the information is extremely credible. It was reasonable to think that the people at the heart of the Kamel Church had betrayed him.

　And--.


''......?
What's up, Brighton?

　The bottom of the letter.
　Brighton's eyes widen when he sees the name of the sender.

　It was written on there - 'From those who know Kongo'.


'Kongo?'

　My fellow men don't ring a bell when they hear the name Kongo.

　But only Brighton was different.

　One who knew Kongo. To tell that to Brighton, that is to say - his relatives (...). And that too, someone quite close to him. He could be sure of that.


'I'm going to plant .......'
What?

　At this moment, Brighton, the leader of the anti-church force Disart, was ready.


'The contest is in a week's time at the Conclave. Everyone, prepare for the revolution: ......!


　He had no way of knowing at this time that the sender of the letter was a sleepy-eyed female spirit who was not at all close to Brighton: ......



　　* * * *



Hmm, the more I look at you, the more I see.
That's very kind of you, sir.

　In the Pope's room inside the Holy Temple in the center of Ordrejo, Black rubs his chin curiously and mutters to himself.

　In contrast, the "man who looks exactly like Black" facing him bows his head reverently.

I don't like it. You're a shadow warrior, aren't you?　Then let's try to imitate my tone.
'Ha. With all due respect ......

　His face, his hair, his height, everything was a perfect match for Pope Black. Yes, the man was Black's shadow warrior.
　He was the man who looked the most like Black out of the ten men who resembled Black that the Divine Kingdom Soldiers had sought out and abducted throughout the Kamel Divine Kingdom. The remaining nine men had been beheaded the moment the Shadow Warrior decided on this man.

　Knowing this fact, the man in the shadow warrior's mind opened his mouth with a small shudder and a nervous look on his face as Black gave him instructions.

''Like, don't you?　Don't worry about the conclave, I'll take care of it.


　...... sudden silence.

　And then, three seconds later. Black's smile that had been on his face until then disappeared, and he broke the silence.


'Nex, cut this guy down.
As you wish.

　The young man of the Kingsguard, called Nex, replied briefly, and then zipped forward a step and quickly drew his sword from his waist. His extremely refined movements gave the viewer a sense of the skill he deserved.

'Whoa, whoa!　Please!　Please!

　The shadow man screamed and backed away, desperately begging for his life.
　Nex ignored his words and walked lightly with his stalwart to close the gap between them.

　When Black saw this, he suddenly laughed in a good mood.

'Hee hee!　This is a masterpiece. Nex, that's enough, back off.
Yes, sir.

　The shadow warrior man looks at Pope Black, who opens his big mouth and laughs, "Hilarious comedy," while the shadow warrior man looks at him, dripping with cold sweat.


''Just kidding, just kidding. If you're going to imitate me, you'd do well to remember this kind of mischief.
'Ha, ha!　Thank you so much for your direct guidance, such a blessing!

...... Just remember one thing. I don't use words like "peace of mind". I don't use the word 'peace of mind' because I don't have it. If you ever run around with the word "peace of mind" again, I will tear your head off.



　　* * *




Decoy?
Yeah. Bait and switch.

　Early morning. I'm going to go to the Wraith's Tame today, but before that I have a breakfast and have a strategy meeting with Winfiled.
　The time limit seems to be one week from now, so I want to devote as much time as possible to the tame. Therefore, although it's a bit of a bad manners, I'm eating my meal while talking.

"First, Renko-chan will assassinate the Pope on the eve of the revolution.
Oh. I'm probably going to miss it.
No, it's probably going to work.
...... Seriously?

　On what basis?　'I was about to say,' said Winfiled, when he spoke up with an answer.


'Because, Pope, you're a shadow warrior.

Yes?

　Isn't that called a failure ......?

'Renko-chan will assassinate the shadow warrior and dare to be caught.
Hey, hey, hey, hey. He's gonna die.
You're safe. We'll torture you first. You're not gonna die during this.

　Oh, okay. That's why they call it "bait." Jeez.

You know, killing a shadow-walker is just as important. Because in all likelihood, the person who comes after a shadowman is the real thing.
Oh, sure.
So while Renko-chan was on the bait, Mr. Second was able to change in the wraiths, sneak in, find out where Pope Black was, and stay on him.
Copy that. I'm gonna have to make a tamer, otherwise we're in deep shit.
'It's fine, Mr. Second can do it. Hmmm.

　Keh, don't make light of it. It's a lot of work, that .......

　But, well, since Winfilled is like this, maybe there is an alternative plan even if the tame is not ready in time. That's why it's somewhat comforting to think of it that way.


'So?　If you discover where the Pope is, do you want me to kill him?
No, just wait until the moment Dizzard is ready to launch the surprise attack. A few dozen minutes, an hour, maybe more.
Dee, what?　Disappointment?
Oh, that's stupid. "Dithert. It's the name of an anti-church group. Revolutionary Guards, you know.

　The name of that thing, the Revolutionary Guard thing. It's really easy to understand.
　Smart people are really good at explaining things to stupid people.

"The Dzat strike is supposed to happen around dawn. There's a secret meeting at the Conclave, where the Pope and all the cardinals are gathered in Ordrejo, so it's going to be a mess.

　Hmm. Then we probably have two choices. The Pope and his friends can either defend Old Joe to the death, or they can run away like spiders.

The former.
Esper?

　Scary. This spirit is scary.

The gap in strength is obvious. The Pope and his minions must think they can overwhelm us easily. So they will have to defend themselves.
I mean, why not just kill the Pope when you're ready?
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

　Yes.


...... And there's one more suggestion that would make Disart's surprise attack more effective: ......

　Huh?　It's rare for Winfiled to slur his words.

'Say it,'

　I smiled, sputtering in a way that said no hesitation.
　Winfiled's face brightened and he nodded and opened his mouth.


I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it happen.


　Whoa!　That's because you're the one who laid the groundwork for it!

Yeah, I've got it. I've already been through it.
Wow. You're good at that~

　When I replied in a messy outfit, Winfiled smiled happily and leaned into it, "This~". Ah~ I'm glad I met ...... steam.


''--Okhon.''

　Oh shit, it's Yukari's coughing.

　In a moment, we zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. The strategy meeting is not over yet, so we can't be "deported".


''Ah, so that's why I want to assassinate the Pope when he comes out for the defense of Old Joe.
I'm going to do it, aren't I?
Yeah. That's the best way to be sure. Next in line, Renko-chan. In case you have to, Miss Anko.
'I don't want to give out too much red bean paste. I've blasted the soldiers of the Kamel Divine State once before, so the chance of being exposed is too great. Besides, if the surprise attack is at dawn, unless the Pope is indoors, there's no way for Anko to do it.

　Even the slightest exposure to sunlight would weaken the anko. To the point where she can't even move by herself.

'Hmm. Then, Renko-chan, I guess.
Didn't they have Renko in custody then?
They're here to get the saint back, right?　Then it would be more efficient if Mr. Second-san disguised himself as a jail guard or something and rescued Renko-chan, leaving her to assassinate the Pope while he rescued the saint, right?

　I see. It sure would take a lot of effort to assassinate the Pope and rescue Renko and Raspberry Belle on my own. Once we leave the Pope's assassination to Renko, all we have to do is rescue Raspberry Belle and get out of here. It's going to be a lot easier.

　He wanted to kill her too, so maybe this is the best idea.

　The only thing I'm worried about is .......


Will it work?

　I'm slightly worried. It's true that that guy is strong, but I feel like he's spinning out of control, like he's too strong. When I met him in the middle of the night, he was somewhat unstable.


"I'd say the success rate is 96%...

Ugh, there's 4% more of them?
Well, it's only 4%.

　Me and Winfiled had a different feeling about it, and I think 4% failure is a fair chance.

　Besides, we're all human here and there, so there's something unexpected about it. Depending on the person, it could be closer to 4%. Well, you can't tell by the numbers.


"No, I'll kill him. And then what percentages are you going to get?

　I asked as I piled the dishes on top of each other after flattening them, just to conclude the strategy meeting.

　Winfiled grinned and said very happily.


''120%~''