Chapter 56
“Ah, my lady.”
A fellow knight stood up in surprise.
“You may leave us.”
After dismissing the knight, Elta approached Ariel.
“Lady of House Clasta, what exactly do you think you’re doing?”
“What do you mean by that?”
Elta looked down at Ariel with a face full of disapproval.
“I’ve heard that you’ve been going around questioning our knights. Without my permission. Do you think that’s acceptable?”
“Under His Majesty’s command, the current chain of command rests with House Clasta, does it not?”
“Even so, these men belong to our family. While we appreciate House Clasta’s assistance, I’d prefer you not meddle with them any further.”
“Hm.”
Ariel stared at Elta as though completely unconvinced.
Seeing this, Elta furrowed her brows in frustration.
“We’ve already given you all the necessary information, haven’t we? I believe we’ve done more than enough on our part. Any further interference from House Clasta will be considered a direct challenge to my family.”
Elta had a point.
For someone from another house to privately investigate her family’s knights—
that was more than enough to cause offense.
At that moment, a light and cheerful voice slipped in between the two women.
“Ah, that was my idea.”
“His Highness ordered it?”
Elta turned her sharp gaze toward Saren.
Ariel was just as taken aback.
But Saren only nodded with an utterly shameless expression.
“Mm-hm. I asked Lady Clasta to handle it.”
“And why would Your Highness do that…?”
“Well, the monsters have been acting strangely lately, you see. I need to report to His Majesty, and I can’t afford any questionable details in my report. So I asked the lady to look into it for me.”
Elta’s eyes narrowed.
It didn’t sit right with her, but with the prince himself saying so, she couldn’t argue.
It wasn’t as if she could immediately contact the emperor to confirm.
“…Very well. But in the future, I’d appreciate being informed beforehand. These are matters concerning my family’s knights. Wouldn’t it seem odd if I were left out of the loop?”
“Sure, I’ll keep that in mind.”
Even then, Saren never actually agreed to her request.
He merely said he’d “keep it in mind.”
If Duke Clasta had seen this, he would have remarked that “the boy sure has a silver tongue for his age.”
After Elta left the room, only the two of them remained.
Ariel turned to Saren and asked,
“What was that all about? Did His Majesty really ask you to do this?”
Saren replied with a calm face,
“Nope. I lied.”
“…What?”
“I just thought you seemed to be in a tough spot, so I stepped in. Didn’t you want to question the Count’s knights?”
Saren sat down across from Ariel and sliced the cake on his plate with a fork.
“Do you even know what I’m investigating? What if this ends up causing trouble for you later?”
“Does that matter? What matters is that it’s something you’re doing. I’d even help if you were plotting Elta’s assassination.”
“No one’s planning something that terrifying…”
Before she could finish, Saren held up a forkful of cake to her lips.
Ariel instinctively took the bite, and Saren beamed at her.
“And besides, I calculated everything before acting. Right now, Elta’s position is too weak for her to go tattling about me to His Majesty.”
He offered her another piece of cake as he continued,
“The emperor’s already displeased with her. If she dared to question His Majesty’s intentions, she’d only dig herself a deeper hole.”
“…You really do think fast.”
To have worked all that out in such a short time.
“So, did you find anything?”
“Not much. Just that the monsters didn’t come through the sealed gate, like Elta said. They came in through another route. That’s it.”
“Then whoever did this wanted to hide that fact. Why?”
“Because it would’ve been a problem if it got out.”
“But that doesn’t add up.”
Saren rested his chin on his hands, feigning a cute expression.
“Helping someone escape or killing an accomplice—that’s dangerous business. It’s hard to pull off, and under military law, it’s a straight path to execution.”
He spoke softly but clearly.
“For the culprit to take that kind of risk, they must have had a huge reason to cover up how the monsters got in. Because if the truth came out, they’d be in serious trouble.”
“That’s true…”
“If monsters had wandered into their area, that’s bad—but they were small ones, and they’ve already been dealt with. No one even got hurt. Worst case, they’d spend some time in the dungeon and that’s that.”
That was exactly what had been bothering Ariel all along.
“To kill a comrade just to protect a big secret… I can’t even imagine what it is.”
“A secret…”
And then something hit her like a blow to the back of her head.
“…We’ve been thinking about this wrong.”
Ariel muttered under her breath.
The monsters didn’t come from outside.
That was the key.
“They had to come from outside.”
“What do you mean?”
“They were already inside the fortress.”
And suddenly, everything made sense.
The monsters didn’t need to break in—because they were born here.
Whether it was the sealed gate guarded by Helia or some other spot didn’t matter.
The chosen location just had to be the easiest to manipulate, the least guarded.
I’ve been thinking about this all wrong.
She’d been focused on figuring out which entry point the monsters had used, just like the culprit wanted her to.
The pieces fell into place in her mind.
Twice as many monsters as before.
Monsters that seemed to have evolved, grown stronger.
Monsters that spawned naturally inside the fortress.
All of it pointed to one conclusion.
Someone opened a Gate of Darkness inside the fortress.
She had hoped that wasn’t the case.
A sharp pain stabbed through her head, and Ariel pressed a hand to her temple.
Who would be crazy enough to do something like this?!
A Gate of Darkness spewed out corruptive energy the moment it was opened.
No wonder the Count’s knights were dying like flies.
With the gate nearby, the monsters would have gone berserk like they owned the place.
And no matter how ferociously they fought, the monsters would’ve had an endless surge of power. How could ordinary humans hope to stand against that?
How far has it spread already?
If monsters were already appearing, then the gate had been open for quite some time.
For now, it was only small monsters like Sparrows. But in time, who knew what massive creatures might emerge?
If the land becomes tainted, this whole mine will have to be abandoned.
I need to find the gate first. If I deploy people to search… No, that won’t work.
She still had no idea who the culprit was.
If she provoked them carelessly, they might go for an all-or-nothing move.
Do I search alone?
But this fortress was enormous, with hundreds of people inside.
At least I can narrow down the suspects.
The culprit had to be someone with enough authority to interfere with the reporting system.
That instantly reduced the list to six people.
Still, she couldn’t tail all six by herself.
No matter how skilled she was, tracking six people at once was impossible.
Better to lure them out first. But what bait should I use?
Noticing her troubled expression, Saren asked with concern,
“You okay, my lady?”
His golden hair sparkled like a jewel.
The Third Prince… He should be safe.
He had arrived with her, so there was no chance he’d had time to open a gate.
Ariel grabbed his hand firmly.
Her sudden boldness made Saren flush and tilt his head.
“M-My lady? Why all of a sudden? Not that I mind, but…”
“I need Your Highness’s help with something.”
“If you want, I’d even sign a slave contract.”
He had no idea what this was about, but the mere fact that Ariel needed him was enough for Saren to gladly nod.
“I’m serious. I really need your help.”
Ariel seemed to take it half as a joke, but still leaned in and whispered her plan.
After hearing it, Saren smirked.
“Oh, now that’s something I’m good at.”
Saren called a meeting.
Only high-ranking personnel within the fortress were invited.
Naturally, the six people Ariel suspected were all present.
I was hoping to catch some trace of dark magic… but nothing.
Ariel scanned the gathered faces.
Saren, seated at the head of the table, swept his gaze across the room and spoke.
“I’m sure you’re all aware of the recent monster intrusion in the fortress.”
“I thought that matter was already resolved.”
The first suspect, Elta—the fortress commander and daughter of a count—spoke first.
“We’ve tightened security and warned the knights. There won’t be a repeat.”
The second suspect, Jex, the deputy commander and head of security, chimed in.
The others seemed equally puzzled as to why Saren had called this meeting.
“But what if it happens again? What if someone let the monsters in on purpose?”
Saren blinked innocently, playing the frail prince, but Elta snapped back immediately.
“That’s impossible. Are you insulting my family, who’s responsible for this fortress’s security?”
“But it’s scary, isn’t it? If something happened to me, Father would be devastated.”
The delicate boy shivered prettily, whether genuine or not—it suited him well.
“So I was thinking… From now on, I’d like each of you to take turns serving as my personal guard.”
“But, Your Highness, we already have too many responsibilities. We can’t spare anyone for your personal protection.”
At that, Saren’s expression turned surprisingly sharp.
