Chapter 32
Should I finally make up my mind and build a camera or something? If I filled an entire album with pictures of Ellie, it’d be unbeatable.
Ailesia grinned to herself and lightly drew up her mana. Before the knights woke, she planned to light a couple more fires and scout the surroundings.
“Oh? Blanky, you’re already awake?”
Mindful of the others still asleep, Blanky merely swished his tail quietly. When Ailesia spread her arms wide, Blanky flopped down beside her and rested his head against her legs.
“You’re so warm. Did you sleep well last night?”
“Grr.”
Blanky nodded. The heavy weight pressing against her body made her feel oddly at ease.
“…Tsk.”
Termion, watching the scene from in front of his own tent, clicked his tongue in irritation.
Is it just that my personality’s warped?
The sight of a beautiful woman sitting there with her arms around the neck of a house-sized wolf was tender enough to look like a painting. So why did his own feelings twist so unpleasantly at the sight?
Waiting until sunrise is getting tedious.
As if responding to Termion’s thoughts, just as dawn began to break, an unexpected sound rang out from the center of the camp.
“Awooooo!”
The vigorous wolf howl jolted the knights awake, and they came rushing out of their tents one after another. Having bolted out of bed, most were dressed rather lightly.
“What the—?!”
“An attack? A monster?!”
“Check on His Highness and the Archduchess first!”
Even in the chaos, every one of them had a weapon in hand—clearly the Tigel Knights through and through. Meanwhile, Ailesia, seated calmly by the campfire, could only smile.
“Good morning, everyone.”
“Huh?”
“T-teacher?”
“That howl just now was…?”
Beside Ailesia sat Blanky, gently swishing his tail, while Whitey stretched his forelegs and arched his body. Dangling cheerfully from Whitey’s neck, Eleonora shouted brightly,
“Wow! Mister knights, aren’t you cold? Ellie’s breath is all steamy!”
“…Aaaagh!”
“Waaah!”
“S-sorry, Archduchess!”
There was a clatter of things falling and overturning, followed by even louder screams and yelps. Thankfully, everyone had at least covered the important parts.
“They’re all so energetic. Pfft.”
Thanks to Blanky acting as the morning bugle, she’d gotten quite the visual treat right from dawn.
As expected of knights, their bodies were all lean and solid—works of art, every one of them. Ailesia stretched luxuriously, wearing a satisfied smile.
“…Starting today, we’ll conduct tactical training while on the move.”
“Hahaha…”
For some reason, Termion was grinding his teeth, while beside him Kubera merely kept smiling with his usual kindly expression.
* * *
During the day, they traveled by carriage. In the evenings, Ailesia returned to the archducal residence with Eleonora. For her, the journey was almost leisurely.
The knights traveling with them never noticed that Ailesia and Eleonora disappeared every night. Termion and Kubera kept a tight lid on it.
A week passed like this. Then Ailesia sensed something amiss.
Someone’s watching us.
That night, shortly after Eleonora fell asleep, Ailesia quietly rose from the bed.
Snap.
At her finger snap, a summoned mirror reflected the corridor outside. A man in a black robe peeked around the corner near the staircase, carefully surveying his surroundings.
“…I thought maybe. But it’s real.”
The black robe was a symbol reserved for full-fledged members of the Tigel Knights. There was no chance a servant had borrowed or stolen it.
Creeeak.
Ailesia deliberately let the door make a small sound as she stepped partly into the hallway. Naturally, the man who’d been peering around moments before had vanished without a trace.
“Is anyone there?”
Her voice echoed down the silent corridor.
There was no response, of course. Snorting softly, Ailesia deliberately closed the door clumsily.
In the mirror, the man reappeared, once again checking her side of the corridor. With a wave of her hand, she dismissed the mirror and sat sideways on the bed so Eleonora would remain clearly in view.
After counting to around twenty in her head, she heard extremely faint footsteps. They were so careful that she might have missed them entirely if she hadn’t already been alert.
He’s right outside the room.
The half-open door began to move imperceptibly. Something—likely a finger—was slowly widening the gap.
The corridor was pitch-dark, and the shadow writhing through the opening looked less like a person and more like some black creature. An ordinary person would’ve screamed at the sight.
After giving him plenty of time to peer into the room, Ailesia murmured to herself in a deliberately startled voice,
“Oh dear, the door isn’t fully closed.”
At that instant, she sensed the presence hurriedly retreating. Even then, it made almost no sound—impressive, in its own way.
What’s with all that secrecy? Did he get assassin training or something?
The man likely never imagined she’d spread mana throughout the entire corridor.
Even after she’d once caught an intruder red-handed, some people in the mansion still half-doubted her abilities. That was only natural—almost no one had ever properly seen her use magic.
People rarely accept things that fall outside their common sense. That went doubly so for someone skilled enough to join the Tigel Knights.
A High Mage who looks barely in her twenties? Honestly, I wouldn’t believe it either.
So this was the loneliness of an absolute being. Amused by the thought, Ailesia secured the door properly and lay down beside Eleonora.
“Mmnn…”
“How can you be this cute, mmgh.”
As the child squirmed in her sleep and burrowed into her arms, Ailesia’s expression melted. She could stare at that face all night and never tire of it.
“My baby… it’s about time we went to see your old friends again.”
The bait had been set. Now all that remained was to wait for it to be taken.
Even if every Tigel Knight remaining in the mansion swarmed in, they wouldn’t so much as glimpse Eleonora’s shadow.
That had been the plan from the start.
* * *
“We plan to stay in the city for one night today.”
After lunch, Termion explained the itinerary to Ailesia.
The city he mentioned was governed by a noble aligned with the pro-imperial faction. However, due to its proximity to the archducal territory, it maintained a moderately friendly relationship.
“A city? There was a city on our route?”
“We’ll arrive just before sunset, when the gate will already be closed. If we apply as soon as we arrive, we should be able to use it by tomorrow morning.”
“And after that?”
“It’s about a day’s travel to the edge of the archducal territory. From there, we can take another gate and reach the archducal castle the same day.”
“That fast?”
Unlike the first city, which required special permission, the second was directly administered by the archduchy and freely accessible.
“Then tonight’s perfect.”
“…For an attack?”
“Yeah.”
“Given the circumstances, I’d come to the same conclusion.”
“Someone was snooping around last night. It’s about time they made their move.”
“…This isn’t something we should discuss alone. Please wait a moment.”
Kubera had been discussing afternoon tactical drills with the knights. At Termion’s call, he hurried over to the carriage.
“You called for me, Your Highness.”
“There’s something we need to discuss. Ailesia has brought important information.”
“Teacher did?”
Kubera looked at her with eyes brimming with anticipation. Feeling oddly embarrassed, Ailesia twirled a strand of her hair around her finger.
“Last night, someone was spying on Ellie’s room.”
“The Archduchess’s room? While she was asleep?”
“And it was one of the knights.”
“…Is that true?”
She met Kubera’s horrified gaze calmly and continued,
“No one would steal and wear a Tigel Knight’s robe, right? And forcibly taking one would be even more absurd.”
“If that happened, it’d be a serious issue in itself. Do you remember any identifying features?”
“It was dark, so not clearly. Slightly taller than Termion, and a fairly average build?”
“That describes more than a few of them. This is troublesome.”
While Kubera frowned deeply, Termion seemed lost in thought before asking,
“Did he do anything unusual?”
“He was watching the corridor from a corner, so I deliberately let him see me. I left the door slightly open, and he approached to check inside.”
“He must have seen Ellie asleep.”
“Yeah. When I muttered to myself, he vanished without a trace. I could barely hear his footsteps, if at all.”
“Then it’s one of three.”
When Termion looked to Kubera, the latter nodded grimly.
“Among the knights currently stationed at the mansion, only three fit that build and could move that silently—just as His Highness says.”
