3. Dragon’s Eye, Human Mind (33)
If you go into the southern forest a little bit, there are many hidden vacant lots here and there.
According to seniors, it was a trace of a hunting festival that had been going on for a long time. The trees in the forest, which originally grew densely, used to get into trouble at every hunting festival.
It was a battle between monsters who could crush whole trees with a single swing of their arms, and skilled fighters who fought against the monster with a single sword.
Once the battle started, there was no way to be safe just because it was a tree.
Right now, I don’t have a record of knocking down a few trees at this year’s hunting festival. Although it was mainly the result of being beaten and blown away by the ‘intestines collector’.
And some of the vacant lots that were created would become great conference venues simply by trimming the trunks of fallen trees. Trimming the stump was easy if you could handle the aura.
The place where I, Delphine-senpai, and Elsie-senpai were seated was one of those vacant lots.
The sun was hot, as if the peak of summer was approaching. After escaping under the shade of a tree, I felt at least a little refreshed.
Even this, after the moon of the wand, there will be stuffy air everywhere.
I fanned my hand over my mug, which was slightly heated by the heat. Even so, the beads of sweat that began to form on his forehead did not evaporate.
It was like this even though he was less hot by turning magic to his skin. By consuming ‘dragon’s blood’, the amount of magical power increased considerably, but it was still insufficient.
In fact, Delphine senior and Elsie senior didn’t seem to mind even in this scorching heat. It was thanks to the amount of mana itself that was superior to mine.
It was also proof that I still have a long way to go.
The two women just hesitated in front of me while I was fanning my hands.
He must have thought I was angry.
Of course it was a misunderstanding. Now my heart was still calm.
I was just sparing my words because I was at a loss as to what to open my mouth.
To be more precise, I was thinking about how to dampen the bizarre competitive spirit of Delphine and Elsie.
It wasn’t a question that would give you an answer just by thinking about it anyway. But even so, he couldn’t hide his complicated mind.
I didn’t know that if I continued like this, a false reputation would spread.
The nobles of the empire value honor. If even the lower nobles, the Percus family, were like that, there was nothing to say about the high-ranking nobles.
To them, ‘honor’ belonged to something more valuable than life.
It was because it was directly related to the prestige of the family.
However, the heir of the prestigious Yurdina family and the daughter of the Rainella family are calling a man who is only the second son of a rural viscount as ‘master’.
It was not going to end with the two noble families of the old empire taking on a stigma. It was a plate that might spark me.
In the distant past, when the concept of chastity was stronger than now, it is said that if a noble woman had a relationship with a commoner, the commoner was put to death.
It didn’t matter if it was fire or rape. It was unconditionally charged with rape and killed commoners.
It was to protect the honor of the nobility.
Why do I appear overlapping with the common people who disappeared in the dew of the execution ground?
I broke out in a cold sweat from the eerie feeling. It wasn’t something to worry about touching the imperial family, though.
As if she knew my heart, Elsie hesitantly approached me and started fanning me with her small hand.
Of course, because of his small hands, the wind was weak.
As my questionable eyes turned to her, Elsie sighed and averted her gaze slightly.
A light blush appeared on his soft cheeks.
“I want you to look hotter… … .”
“Huh,” a laugh came out of my mouth.
It was absurd, but I was also grateful for that, so I decided not to say anything.
Instead, what came out was a direct question.
“… … Senior Delphine, so what happened to the information about the ‘crypt’?”
“That, actually… There is a crypt that leads from the academy to the outskirts of town.”
Delphine looked at my eyes and continued the conversation in such a calm voice.
“It is a crypt created when the academy was placed under the control of the imperial family. Yes, it’s a crypt, but it’s built as an emergency evacuation route for the imperial family at the time, so it’s probably still there. I heard that it went through magical processing.”
It is an evacuation route for the imperial family.
If the academy had been placed under the imperial family, it would have been hundreds of years ago. It was surprising that the crypt could remain from then until now.
Crypts made of soft soil rather than hard rock were vulnerable to collapse. So, it was common that the length was short and the location existed in shallow places.
However, it was a large-scale dungeon that stretched from the academy to the outskirts of the city. The emergency evacuation of the imperial family must have been made deep underground, where detection is impossible.
Even so, if it hadn’t collapsed yet, it had to be seen that it had to invest an enormous amount of mana at that time. Especially since the technology of the time was at a level that was lagging behind now.
What was a little questionable was that there was no need to insist on going to the crypt if it was a construction project that would cost that much money.
Considering durability, it was a common sense decision to make an underground evacuation route rather formally. But why did he insist on going to the crypt?
It was an unknown problem at the moment, so I decided to put the question aside in my mind.
“… … Where is it?”
“Where would the imperial family always stay after entering school?”
The answer to my question was clear.
Each of the prince and princess was the owner of the palace. Due to various practical reasons, including security issues, the royal family is treated specially in the academy.
The accommodation they were assigned to was the ‘Berrata Palace’.
The building was named after the wife of Aedalus, the conquering emperor. The official name was ‘Berrata Pavilion’, but since the imperial family used the small palace alone, it was not strange to call it ‘Palace’.
Delphine-senpai said that there was an entrance to the crypt in the basement.
I nodded my head and tried to clear my doubts, but then I asked another question.
“By the way, where did you hear that I was looking for information about the ‘crypt’?”
“The Yurdina family is the most loyal servant of the imperial family, and as a result, there are many stories about them.”
I tsk, and clicked my tongue.
It was a vague statement, but when I saw him talking about the imperial family, I thought it should be seen that it leaked mostly from the newspaper department.
Well, it was not a formally disguised group in the first place, but it was too easy to leak inside information. The same was true even if the opponent was the heir of the Yurdina family.
Someday I’ll have to catch a day and educate him.
I inadvertently came up with such a thought, and immediately shook my head and brushed off the nonsense.
It was too presumptuous an idea for a human ignorant of intelligence work to come up with. I don’t even know why I came up with such a thought.
Elsie-senpai, who was watching the conversation between me and Delphine-senpai, seemed nervous about something.
Apparently, it seemed uneasy because only Delphine was helpful. She wiggled her fingers for a while, lost in thought, then said something as if she remembered something.
“… … I-I see!”
My eyes turned to Elsie-senpai. Delphine senior was the same.
Senior Elsie, who succeeded in attracting everyone’s attention, continued hesitantly.
“Um, you know the witch we caught during the hunting festival… That, in the end, was treated as an unknown cause.”
“The cause is unknown?”
When I heard those words, my impression was frowned.
The only monsters we caught were ‘intestine collectors’. Because that was the first time I was in a group with Elsie-senpai.
The level of monsters that deserve the name simply does not occur.
First of all, it needed a powerful magical power source, and had to be affected for a long time from it. The fact that such a being appeared in the peaceful southern forest meant that something was condensing mana.
The Imperial Survey Corps were not fools. There was no way he didn’t know that.
However, being treated as ’cause unknown’ meant that in the end, the point of condensation of that magical power could not be found.
It was close to impossible for that amount of magic power to disappear without a trace. There were many suspicious things in many ways, but I decided to stop thinking with a deep sigh.
There were a lot of homework that needed to be solved right away.
I was the car that summoned Delphine and Elsie to borrow strength to do so.
“Anyway, we’ll talk about that later… Delphine senior, Elsie senior.”
The eyes of the two women turned to me. Both of them looked at me asking me to say something.
I pondered for a while.
It would be nice if I could tell you why, but only I could know the information of the love letter from the future.
The moment it is spoken, it is uttered as a separate content.
Then the best I can say is only one.
“I can’t tell you why, but… You’re going to be marching at the homecoming festival soon, aren’t you?”
Delphine and Elsie nodded their heads.
It was something that academy students couldn’t have known. Because it was such a big event.
I carefully left a request to the two of them.
“By any chance, senior Delphine can lead the group and stand in the avant-garde? Senior Elsie prepared the magic in advance just in case… Also, pack a lot of potions.”
I couldn’t say the last word, so I added it because I was worried about the two of them.
In fact, even after I said it, I was dumbfounded. I can’t tell you why, but to prepare for an attack.
It was around the time I was struggling with what to do if a question came back.
“I will do as you command.”
“Okay.”
The answer came back without the slightest hesitation.
I looked at Delphine and Elsie with a slightly unexpected look.
Even though they followed me a lot, it was because they knew how to ask at least the reason.
However, both Delphine and Elsie simply answered in a tone that said it was nothing.
“Anyway, that’s what you’re supposed to do, right? I will follow your headquarters, master. Leave the avant-garde to me.”
Following Delphine’s mischievous reply, Elsie’s faithful reply came back.
“Uh, what… So far, Master has never said anything wrong? Huhu, please leave it to this Elsie Rainella!”
On the contrary, Elsie-senpai seemed a little happy after receiving my instructions. She seemed quite happy that I needed her.
Only then could I smile bitterly.
Whatever the reason, it was reassuring to have these two. It was because they were people who had their own gangs led by them.
However, I felt sorry for not being able to make it to the end, so I had no choice but to add this.
“… … Careful.”
However, as if they noticed that my atmosphere was unusual, the faces of the two naturally subsided.
Even for a moment, an alluring smile appeared on Delphine’s lips.
“So, what happened to ‘Bee’?”
As if sneakily tempting, a hot breath whispered in my ear.
It felt like my eardrums would melt.
“… … Today, my body is ready.”
“Hey, hey!”
Of course, it was of course that senior Elsie had roared before that.
She gave me a pitiful look and told me.
“Lord, Master… What about me? It’s been a long time since I didn’t receive an award… … .”
It was a total mess.
In the end, it took a few more minutes to satisfy both of their requests.
And right before leaving while adjusting his clothes, Delphine, who was breathing heavily, asked as if he had suddenly remembered it.
“… … Come to think of it, did the princess look okay?”
My body, which was moving, stopped abruptly.
There were a few things that stuck. That unusually aggressive attitude, and even that gloomy face that he showed at times.
When I glanced at Delphine-senpai, she said in a nonchalant voice.
“He has painful memories from his childhood. Because I almost died… … .”
“… … To whom?”
A meaningful smile appeared on Delphine’s lips as she answered the vague question.
“Your own mother.”
There was not much time left before the homecoming festival.
**
The clearing in the dark night gave off a bleak atmosphere even though the moonlight was pouring down.
It was at the back of a research building with few people. I sat there blankly on the rocks around me without saying a word, then looked into the air and asked.
“… … Neris.”
“Yes, Mr. Ian.”
Suddenly, a shadow descended from the darkness.
She was a beautiful woman with brown hair and a hairpin in her bangs. She lowered her head to cover her pale green eyes.
Today was the day I was handed over the information I had organized so far.
Neris-senpai looked very nervous, just like a few days ago.
Stumbling, she first tried to make up for her last failure.
“I… Ian? Uh, first of all, information that there is an emergency evacuation route for the imperial family in the crypt… … .”
“It’s the crypt that runs from the basement of Berrata Palace to the outside of the city, I know.”
Neris-senpai’s eyes widened. Anyone could see that he was bewildered.
Soon, her head snapped.
I don’t know what you meant by my words, but Neris-senpai apologized to me in a trembling voice.
“… … Sin, sorry.”
Either way, I didn’t care. However, the questions continued to linger as if caught.
The princess almost died when she was young.
Dear my mother, why the hell?
An awl-like question pierced a certain word.
I inadvertently put the words in my mouth.
“… … ‘The Dragon’s Eye’.”
Startled, Neris-senpai’s body stiffened. A look of wonder came to my mind as he looked up at me while on his knees.
Then my eyes turned to her.
With my back to the moonlight, my gaze sank deeply. Neris-senpai, who met my eyes, immediately lowered his head to avoid my gaze.
The sound of gasping for a moment only spoke for her fear.
Not even paying attention to that, I asked Neris.
“The dragon’s eye, tell me the information about it.”
The story Neris-senpai had prepared seemed to be quite long.
She cleared her throat, clearing her throat, then continued in a dry voice.
“It is an old legend passed down in the imperial family… … .”
The story that continued like that was as expected.
It was the princess’s past.