Haruna doesn't know everything.
Even if she can see the future, she can't see all possible futures.
Haruna cannot control the future.
She is someone who can see the future, not someone who can control it.
Yet, everything is proceeding according to her plan.
“…….”
I quietly looked at the letter.
The last message left by Professor Robert.
It was almost like a will, containing such words, and all I could do was tilt my head in confusion.
“I thought it might be related to Haruna, but…….”
Why did Professor Robert write this letter?
Just reading the content makes it feel like he's warning us to stop Haruna's plan.
Does that mean Haruna's plan will harm everyone?
“No…….”
Robert was a straightforward person.
If Haruna were someone who would harm us, he would have clearly written a warning.
The mere fact that he wrote this means there's significance to it.
“Hmm…….”
I stroked my chin and read the letter over and over again.
Ian sat in the Royal Army's office, chin in hand.
"Capturing the tail of the rebels."
He was searching for traces of the rebels to build his achievements.
The dilemma he had been facing hadn't been resolved.
But pondering it forever is pointless.
Time would solve the dilemma, and Ian was just doing what he needed to do.
Ian is a commander of the Royal Army.
The Royal Army was created to counter the rebels, so investigating them was his duty.
If he managed to counter the rebels, the achievement would be his.
After all, he was the one who investigated and gathered the information that led to countering the rebels.
He might share the achievement with a few members of the Royal Army, but the greatest credit would undoubtedly go to Ian.
"Now is not the time for strange worries, focus on what needs to be done."
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})Ian decided to think about his duties after receiving the position of the family head, rather than worrying about it now.
Ian slowly read through the documents in front of him.
"Commander."
Someone entered his room.
It was Astina.
Astina, with her red hair neatly tied back and dressed in uniform, entered his room.
"You're here."
"Yes, I've brought the documents."
Astina handed over the documents she was carrying to Ian.
Normally, delivering such documents was a task for someone of lower rank, but the documents were so important that Astina delivered them herself.
Ian skimmed through the documents Astina handed over.
"There's no significant movement from the rebels."
"So, they only moved to kill Perrian."
"And possibly to kill Rudy as well."
Rudy could be considered Aryandor's only weakness.
It was only natural for the rebels to target him.
"Is that all there is to it?"
Targeting Rudy and Perrian.
It might seem like something Ian could overlook, but it raised another question for him.
"Killing Rudy would certainly open up a great possibility for those bastards. But did they send a leader just for that?"
Killing Rudy would indeed bring a significant advantage if their plan succeeded.
However, they couldn't ignore the risk of failure.
"If their goal was solely to kill Rudy, there are many other ways to do it. They didn't proceed with those because failing would have been too costly for them."
They were willing to take risks for something they desperately wanted.
Not just to kill Rudy, but to find a way to solidify their victory.
"Are you talking about the mana stone?"
At Astina's question, Ian nodded.
The mana stone that Perrian had.
They wanted to obtain it.
According to Rudy, they pretended to cooperate with Perrian and then ganged up on him.
Killing Rudy was their top priority.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})There was no room for argument about this.
Yet, killing Rudy and the importance of that mana stone were of similar importance.
They betrayed Perrian almost immediately after draining Rudy's strength, when he was off guard.
If the mana stone wasn't that important, they could have waited to seize it after killing Rudy.
But they moved first.
"What if they had waited to kill Rudy?"
"Perrian would have used the mana stone and the amplifier to cause trouble."
"For them, Perrian causing trouble would have been a hindrance. If he used life drain to suck the mana and life force from people in the capital, their path to victory would practically disappear."
Both Rudy and Perrian were obstacles to their victory.
And the mana stone Perrian had would be a great help to them.
"Didn't we interrogate the necromancers who surrendered recently?"
"Yes, I've included the documents about that as well."
"The mana stones created by the necromancers were heavily used by Perrian himself, but a portion of them went to the rebels."
Ian pointed to the documents he had been looking at earlier as he said this.
"Then where did all those mana stones go?"
They are preparing for something using the mana stones.
Some of the stones were used for Daemon's necromancer legion, but that couldn't be all.
According to the necromancers' statements, about 5,000 mana stones went to the rebels.
That was the total amount received over a few years.
Compared to the amount of mana stones used by the empire itself, it was a small amount. However, if all of it was used for combat purposes, it was a significant quantity.
The empire used many mana stones for various facilities.
"Didn't you see the necromancer legion that attacked the Persia territory last time?"
"It didn't seem like a legion created with at least 5,000 mana stones."
"I also attacked the rebels when you were attacked, but it didn't feel like they used 5,000 mana stones for magical tools."
Ian stood up from his seat.
"So, it's settled then."
"Shall we track the mana stones?"
Ian nodded.
"I'll take a few people and search. You should get moving too."
"Understood. I'll move out immediately."
Astina agreed, then turned to leave.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})"Astina."
At Ian's call, Astina turned her head.
"Act properly. Don't move just for Rudy's sake."
Astina smirked at that.
"I wouldn't do such a thing. At least I know how to separate personal matters from official duties. Besides, we have priorities that come before Rudy inheriting the dukedom."
Something more important than the dukedom.
It was a bold statement.
The dukedom is the highest position in the empire, second only to the emperor.
No wealth or honor could match it.
Yet, there was something more important?
It was hard for Ian to understand.
Something more significant than that...
"Then I'll take my leave."
Astina saluted Ian and left.
"Something that comes before the dukedom..."
Left alone, Ian muttered to himself quietly.
"Hey, Rudy, you're here?"
Rie greeted me with a smile.
She had her hair braided to the side and wore a white dress.
Because of the outfit, or perhaps because Yuni wasn't there, she appeared softer than before.
"Shall we take a walk and talk?"
"I'd like that."
I walked with Rie through the palace gardens.
The garden was full of vibrant flowers, signaling spring.
Rie slowly walked through the garden before speaking up.
"Have you thought about Haruna?"
"Yeah, I've thought about this and that."
"So, what are you going to do?"
"I have a rough plan, but I'm still debating whether to go through with it."
"What's there to debate? Tell me, and I'll take care of it for you."
"It's not that it's difficult to implement."
Rie tilted her head in confusion.
"What is it?"
"I'll tell you later. If I decide to go through with it. Anyway, I didn't come here for this."
"Right. Wuying, come out."
"...Wuying?"
I remembered hearing this name before.
As someone walked up from behind, I realized who it was.
"Ah... last time..."
"Rudy Astria, good to see you again."
It was the man who had helped me when I was looking for Uncle Yurik.
"Why is he here?"
"Hm? You two have met before?"
"We have, but why here..."
As I spoke with a puzzled look, Wuying slightly bowed his head.
"I didn't properly introduce myself last time. I am Wuying, the head of the Royal Secret Service."
"The Royal Secret Service?"
I remembered something I had forgotten.
The fact that Rie knew I went to the ball with Luna.
He must have been the one who told her.
"How did you think I found my information?"
"Hmm..."
The source of Rie's information was indeed the Secret Service.
At the academy, I got used to her using elementals to overhear various things, so I thought we would gather other information in the same way.
It did seem odd, though.
If Rie really listened to every sound to gather information, she would have to do that every day.
Considering Rie's busy schedule, she couldn't possibly have the time for that.
"Let's get back to business, anyway."
"Here, take this paper. It contains the information you requested."
"Ah, yes…"
I took the paper Wuying handed me and read through it.
It contained information related to mana stones.
The focus of my investigation, aimed at building my achievements, was related to mana stones, specifically magic engineering.
One question that no one had posed so far.
When McDowell and Aryandor fought, McDowell lost an arm, and Aryandor lost a leg.
Yet, Aryandor had a leg.
A prosthetic made through magic engineering.
Initially, I didn't question it, but seeing the mana stones created by the necromancers sparked a thought.
The rebels have an expert in magic engineering.
He received a large amount of mana stones and is preparing something.
So far, besides Aryandor's prosthetic, there have been no magic-engineered items from the rebels, despite having fought a significant battle.
"I've asked about magic engineers at the Magic Tower, and the documents include possible locations for this person. Check it out."
"Thank you so much, Rie."
Rie's lips twitched at my sincere thanks.
"How would you live without me?"
"I couldn't do without you."
"You'd be lost without me, wouldn't you?"
"Yes. I'd be lost."
"…What?"
"How could I live without you?"
When I spoke plainly, Rie's eyes widened.
"What are you talking about?"
"Exactly what I said."
"Explain further. What you mean by what you said."
I smiled and gathered the documents.
"Thank you, Rie. I'll be going now."
"No, wait. Explain what you meant."
I moved my mana and approached Rie.
"Huh?"
As I approached, I kissed Rie on the forehead.
"Wha??????"
Rie looked at me as if she was malfunctioning, unable to say anything.
"See you next time."
I enjoyed Rie's stunned expression as I used spatial magic to teleport away.
