Volume 2 Chapter 25 Determination
Five hours left until the inheritance battle begins.
Listening to the lively atmosphere of the castle, Nemophila gazed out of her room's window.
At this time, her attendant Kikrys would usually have come by long ago to ask about breakfast.
But today, that wasn't the case.
A single "letter" tucked away in Nemophila's pocket was clearly conveying her absence.
'In the upcoming inheritance battle, wearing the enclosed magic tools is mandatory. After the inheritance battle, the attendant will be released. Furthermore, if the above is disclosed, the safety of the attendant cannot be guaranteed.'
Early morning.
She woke up and felt thirsty, so she was about to call out to Kikrys, who should be in the next room.
However, Kikrys was nowhere to be found, and instead, this letter was left behind.
Sometimes, she would leave a note when she stepped out, but this time it was a strange envelope she had never seen before, not the usual paper.
When she opened it, it wasn't a letter from her attendant Kikrys, but a clear threat.
The moment she saw it, she felt her blood run cold.
Her mind went blank.
Because of her, Kikrys was caught up in something dangerous.
Eventually, with a calm mind, Nemophila thought.
Only her brother Crocus would do something like this.
She never thought he would resort to such extreme measures.
The moment it comes to light, it could lead to a forced disqualification in the inheritance battle──a huge gamble.
She has to say, it's a rather reckless move for the strategist Crocus.
This also shows just how desperate he is.
During the recent first round, her strength must have left quite an impression.
While she's genuinely happy to have become that strong, she never expected to be this closely monitored and have such a massive move made against her.
"...Roezé."
When she faced Roezé early in the morning, she wanted to ask for help from the bottom of her heart.
She thought he would come up with some kind of solution if she consulted him.
However, due to the perpetrator's instruction of keeping it a secret, she didn't tell Roezé anything.
Still, she did come up with one possible solution on her own.
She is sure Roezé will come up with a smarter way, but with this method, she can safely get Kikrys back and also achieve her goal of becoming king.
This is all the culprit has demanded.
'You must wear the enclosed magic tool.'
In extreme terms, she just need to win while wearing the magic tool.
She wasn't instructed to deliberately lose.
What was enclosed was a plain "ring," and from the feel of it when she tried it on, it seems to have the effect of almost nullifying the divine blessing residing in her body.
However, it doesn't seem like it completely prevents her from fighting, so she just needs to win in that state.
Given her current abilities, there's a chance she could win even while wearing this ring.
Even if she does win, there's no reason for anyone to complain, and she can become king.
It might be reckless, but this is the best strategy Nemophila could come up with given the current situation.
"...Roezé made me stronger, after all."
With a firm resolve that no one knows about, she decided to have a meal to prepare for the inheritance battle.
After parting with Roezé, she couldn't calm her feelings, so she didn't get much sleep.
With a slightly sleep-deprived head, she left her room and headed to the dining hall for breakfast.
Usually, Kikrys brings food from the dining hall to her room, but since they're not here now, it can't be helped.
On the way, one of the servants asked where Kikrys had gone, but since she was told not to speak of the matter, she said they were 'out for their own reasons.' This kind of thing has happened before, so the servant nodded without any particular suspicion.
There's no need to worry since there's a substitute head servant in charge as well.
Arriving at the front of the dining hall, feeling the oddity of Kikrys not being by her side, she spotted Clematis.
"Good morning, Nemophila."
"...Good morning, Elder Sister Clematis."
The moment she saw her kind and reliable sister, she was once again hit by that impulse.
She wants to confess everything.
This is a problem she can't handle alone.
Clematis has been getting a lot of praise lately, but honestly, she still feels like she's in a pretty immature place.
That's why she's feeling this urge to lean on her sister, but she grits her teeth and holds it in.
Eventually, Clematis lowers her voice and says,
"I'm looking forward to today's inheritance battle."
"...Yeah."
"By the way, do you know where Roezé went?"
"...Roezé?"
"He's not in my (Watashi no) guest room. All that was left this morning was a note saying, 'I have some business, so I'm going out.' Have you heard anything?"
"...N-no."
Now that she thinks about it, she realizes she hasn't seen Roezé at all.
And hearing that there was a "note" makes Nemophila's mind jump to a bad conclusion.
Could it be that Roezé was also kidnapped? For a moment, she feels a wave of anxiety, but she quickly changes her mind.
There's no way he, as a guest of Clematis, would be a target.
That would be a suicide mission, no doubt.
If there were even the slightest evidence left behind, Clematis would definitely notice and trace it back to Crocus.
So, Roezé must really have some business to attend to.
"I was hoping we could witness Nemophila's brave figure together. Plus, it'd be reassuring for Nemophila if he was watching."
"Yeah, that's true..."
After all, he's kind of like a mentor, so it's comforting to have him watching her fight.
But if he has something to do, there's not much she can do about it.
She's not sure what kind of business he could have in the royal capital.
Plus, there's still time before the inheritance battle, so he might come back by then.
She wonders if Kikrys might also just happen to wander back in by some mistake.
As she's lost in thought, Clematis leans in, sensing her anxious expression.
"...Is something wrong?"
"Eh? N-no... it's nothing."
She wants to spill everything to her reliable sister.
Nemophila continues to suppress that urge until the final battle begins.
* * *
Sure! Here's the text rewritten with "she" instead of "I":
---
About 3 hours away from the royal capital, Chernozem, by carriage.
In a dense part of the forest, there was an underground ruin with an entrance that seemed to be hidden among the trees.
Inside, it was quite spacious, with magical tools hanging from the walls and ceiling, emitting a blue light.
The ruins spread out over 3 levels, with each lower level being more expansive than the one above.
In a small room on the lowest level of the ruins, Kikrys was captured and bound.
"..."
On the way to this room, she passed by many soldiers within the ruins.
None of them looked particularly well-groomed, so they probably weren't regular soldiers belonging to a knight order.
Maybe they were mercenaries hired for money.
No, the kidnapper, Crocus, was said to have connections with many people behind the scenes.
Rumor had it that he was linked to a criminal organization, but could they really be those guys? If they were going to kidnap her and threaten Nemophila, it would make sense to leave it to people who wouldn't get caught later.
However, it seemed those guys couldn't sneak into the royal castle, as the one who took her from the castle was a man in a black mask wearing fine clothes.
That was probably Crocus's servant.
After taking her from the castle, she was handed over to these shady characters.
The young man who seemed to be their leader was quietly reading a book right in front of her.
"...Just waiting like this is pretty boring, huh?"
Eventually, the young man casually looked up and let out a modest yawn.
Unlike the others, he was dressed in a relatively neat white coat.
His green hair and white skin had a certain sheen, and he didn't look undernourished.
Plus, with his fancy glasses and polished boots, he seemed to be someone who lived a decent life.
Was he related to the upper class? Or was he someone who had a financial contract with Crocus? Since she didn't recognize him, she couldn't help but voice her question.
"...Who exactly are you?"
"Oh, are you going to keep me company for a chat?"
It wasn't a line meant to address her earlier comment about being bored, but for some reason, it was taken that way.
She thought he was a rather difficult person to deal with when the green-haired man shrugged while adjusting his glasses.
"However, unfortunately, I can't reveal my identity, so I can't answer that question. But if you have another question, I'm all ears!"
"...So, what exactly is this place?"
She was suddenly brought to this underground ruin.
For a ruin, it had a strangely lived-in feel, and it was surprisingly tidy.
So, she got curious and asked about it, but the young man gave her another vague answer.
"Well? We were just told by our client to 'keep you here until this evening'."
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