Wait. Hold on.
“…A 200-year tradition?”
“Hehe, that’s right. Of course, it’s not exactly 200 years. Roughly 200.”
“Don’t tell me…”
“Ah, well. If it weren’t connected to me, that’d be a lie. Hehe, heh. This is the kind of being I am.”
“A vampire body, you mean.”
“Yeah, a vampire bod— no, that’s not it. You rotten bastard. Anyway, what do you think? Isn’t this a splendid plan, at this level?”
“Well… I mean, yeah, but.”
Sure enough, if we used that method, it would draw less suspicion than specifically pointing to the third sword.
‘Of course… the problem is still how we’re going to pull the third sword out from there.’
Still, from that point on, I could breathe a little easier.
No matter how capable a raven was, it couldn’t come and go inside House Lortel like it was its own home.
‘Inside Lortel… even calling out the third sword directly is less of a burden.’
I knew best what House Lortel’s defenses were like, because I was the one who’d tested them.
‘Seriously… I was half-dead the whole time. It took three months just to find a gap.’
But.
“Is it really okay to tell me this so easily?”
“W-what… what are you talking about?”
“No, I’m looking at the state of things, and your goal is the Sword God’s Tomb, right? You’re trying to take out what was arranged there—are you really okay with openly telling me that?”
“Ah, why wouldn’t it be okay? We’re comrades.”
Those aren’t the eyes of someone looking at a comrade. They’re practically dripping with spite, you bastard.
“And… heh.”
Shine quickly erased the flustered look on her face.
“Even if you find out, what can you do about it?”
“…So that’s what it is. Then the Sword God’s Tomb is the tomb of the 13th Head of House?”
“…Ahem. You remembered that?”
“Of course.”
I don’t forget.
Anything that seems like it might harm me, even a speck of it, I store it all inside this broad heart of mine.
As proof…
‘…I still haven’t forgotten the snitch, either.’
It’s not like I’d have any reason now to get tangled up with some Black and White Zone vagrant, but you never know how life will turn out.
If we do end up tangled again, that snitch is clearly bad blood!
See? My heart is this broad.
Anyway, with this bastard, what he was thinking was obvious.
‘He tried to ride along on the Infinite Chain thing and make a point of contact with Lortel, then realized he didn’t need it.’
From the looks of it, Shine had been searching for something, and the 13th Head of House, Shamid, had prepared it by even making it into his own tomb.
So now, there was no need to hide it.
Well, either way, it was fine.
“Yeah. Then, since that parasite actually did something useful for once, it’s only human nature to make use of it.”
“…W-what?”
“I don’t know what you’re trying to get from there, but I’m saying I’ll go along with it without a fuss.”
“W-what…! This body is the one going with you! It’s not you moving for this body’s sake—this body is granting you generosity!”
“Ah, f***. So are you going or not?”
“……”
This punk—when I come at him like this, he can’t say a single word.
Anyway, regardless of his intent, the card Shine brought was fairly worth looking at.
‘It’s not a perfect solution, but…’
Well, we could think about what came after once it actually arrived. It wouldn’t be too late.
A common misunderstanding people have is thinking that the more meticulous a plan is, the higher the chance of success.
But it’s often the opposite.
The more meticulous the plan, the less you can respond to variables.
Therefore, having no plan is the plan.
But this time, we’d set up a half-plan and grafted no-plan onto it. So it would be more accurate to call it half no-plan.
“All right, then…”
With the situation more or less wrapped up, I flopped back down on the floor to resume training.
But then.
“You’re not leaving?”
“…? Are we done talking?”
“Anything else to say?”
“No, it’s not that, but…”
What is it—are you hoping I’ll praise you for your hard work? Sorry, but no.
‘Just looking at it, this was a plan you’d been preparing to stab me in the back with, so what’s so cute about you?’
A people who forget history have no future, and a comrade who forgets faithfulness gets no praise.
I’d already sucked all the sweetness out of him, so once I spit him out, that was that!
“Shoo, shoo.”
Like I was chasing out a stray kid, I chased Shine out.
In Shine’s eyes as she moved away, the spite was deepening more and more, but that wasn’t my problem.
‘Good. Then let’s see.’
If things went well, there wouldn’t be a direct clash of force, but you never know with people.
Before an operation, I needed to hone my mind sharp.
What was most urgent right now was… the Circle.
How to use it.
Wiiiiiing—
As my breathing resonated with the core and the Circle surrounding the core, the Circle soon began to spin.
‘The difference in talent…’
It’s embarrassing to bring up effort and all that now, but the only way to close that gap was time and effort.
The tiny spark Shine had lit flared up again inside my chest.
…Then, a few days later.
What awaited Aster’s group, who had arrived in Lortel, was a single line of news that was hard to believe.
As of the date this notice is posted, the Sword God’s Tomb will be closed.
“T-this, what the…”
As Shine turned deathly pale and trembled—
Aster stared blankly up at the sky.
“So we still haven’t saved the wyvern. Damn.”
