39: Summoning
In the morning, I went to the mediation office in a very bad mood. I hadn’t been able to sleep a wink since I got back to the mansion yesterday. Thanks to my excellent ability level, I was physically fine, but mentally I was not.
The reason was my younger brother’s defeat, and my confusion at being so shaken by it. I thought my affection for my younger brother, whom I thought had withered away, still remained so strong.
I thought I didn’t care about things like the right to succeed to the throne, but when I actually learned about my younger brother’s situation, my stomach felt heavy.
“What should I do?”
I shook my head and walked into the dining room of the mediation office, where I found Mimirira with her face exposed. Nyamuri and Pipiri were by her side. The Neal group was sitting at the table next to her.
Oh, she’s cute. When I see Mimirira’s face and ears like this, I can’t help but feel that way, and I feel a little better.
I waved my hand and touched her.
“Good morning. How are you feeling?”
“hahahaha, I’m feeling good.”
I answered Neal’s joke casually and then looked at Mimirira.
“First, let’s register as adventurers, then register as a group.”
“I’ve already registered as an adventurer. All that’s left is to register as a group with Jasper and these three.”
“Oh, you’ve already done it?”
“Was it bad?”
Her slightly worried face is so cute.
She’s Jasper here, but she’s really Car-Mine, so it might be painful for her to go against her master’s will.
“No, it’s fine. It saves us the trouble. By the way, who are those two?”
“Oh. Let me introduce you again. This is Nyamuri and Pipiri, who also registered. I don’t know what will happen, so I made the number of members the same as Neal’s.”
“I’m Nyamuri.”
“I’m Pipiri. Nice to meet you.”
“Oh, yeah.”
This is the second time I’ve heard Nyamuri and Pipiri talk, but is this Pipiri’s natural tone of voice? When I celebrated her the other day, she spoke politely. Anyway, I don’t think I’ll forget Pipiri’s name. It’s definitely made an impression.
“Well, we have a lot to do, but let’s register first. Then we can eat. I’m hungry.”
“Let’s go then.”
The four of us registered as a group, returned to our table, and ordered food. I ate silently, and sensing the atmosphere, no one spoke.
The unusually quiet meal ended, and after the dishes were cleared away, I pointed my finger and spun it around to activate the [Dark Room]. This way, no one outside could hear our conversation.
From Noble mtl dot com
Everyone seemed to understand, probably because they had seen it many times before.
“Before I forget, I’ll give this to Mimirira first.”
I handed her the [Meta Voice] that Jalnaar and I had. In fact, I had recently incorporated it into my My Copy as well.
“What is this?”
“It would have been nice if it was an ornament for marriage, but it’s a magic tool.”
Mimirira stared at it with wide eyes.
“The effect is that you can communicate even when you are far apart. There are three ways to use it. Wear it. Think of the other person’s face and name. And talk to them in your head. Try it.”
“I understand.”
Mimirira carefully put the necklace around her neck and closed her eyes.
“Like this… right?”
“That’s right.”
“Nni!”
I burst out laughing. I understand that she was surprised, but nni?
Mimirira pouted her lips, embarrassed by my laughter. She’s really cute. Should I make her my captive?
“Are you okay?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t worry. If you don’t meet even one of the conditions I just mentioned, your voice won’t reach the other person.”
“…I understand.”
I couldn’t help but smile at her shy expression.
Now, I thought, moving on to the main topic.
“Everyone knows about the war, right?”
Everyone nodded.
“Apparently, we were badly defeated.”
Everyone’s eyes widened at my blunt words.
“So I don’t know what will happen in the future. I don’t think it will affect me directly, and I don’t think it will hinder my future actions. However, as Mimirira said before, if the tension of other “Uras increases, be careful.”
“Understood.”
Mimirira looked at Neil, who stood up and left after receiving her gaze. He must have gone to give instructions to his other companions.
“What should we do?”
“For the time being, let’s keep the Neil group as usual so as not to arouse suspicion.”
“Acknowledged.”
“My party members will hunt nearby. I’d like to see how strong you are.”
“Jasper… We can fight to some extent, but our true strength does not lie in a head-on battle, so please don’t expect too much.”
“From what I saw of Neil’s battle, it seems okay.”
“If you don’t mind being disappointed, then that’s fine.”
Looking at the somewhat wilted tail and ears, I felt an irresistible urge to stroke them. But if I did that outside, it would look like we were lovers or a married couple. I’ll have to restrain myself a little.
“Well, let’s just be patient until the guild house is built. Let’s take it easy until then.”
“Yes.”
“Yes.”
“Understood.”
After all, I can’t forget Pipiri (this guy).
Thinking, “Oh dear,” I felt somewhat relieved, so I released the [Dark Room] and asked for more food.
Well, it’ll work out somehow.
Just as I was thinking that, I received letters from my father and grandfather ten days later.
*
“Hmm…”
In my room in the mansion, I opened and read the two letters I had received from Zeel and Tanal.
The envelopes, which contained the finest parchment, were sealed with the wax seals of His Majesty the King and the Lord of the Zarud Dukedom.
A letter written on parchment that is not rolled up means that the utmost care should be taken in handling it by the carrier. offline, it usually means that the contents are very important.
The contents of the letters sent this time were no exception.
“Zeel. And Tanal. Do you know the contents of these?”
“A little.”
“Me too.”
That’s right. Otherwise, my father’s letter wouldn’t have come from Zeel, and my grandfather’s letter wouldn’t have come from Tanal. It would have been a hassle. They must have given the letters to their own men to ensure that they would reach me, and they must have also given them a brief explanation of the contents so that they would not forget to convey them.
Besides, these two are definitely in cahoots. Otherwise, there’s no way that the letters would have reached me at the same time, even though they were sent from cities that are three days by carriage to the royal capital and over ten days to Zarud.
“So, let me ask you this. What should I do?”
Zeel answered that question.
“His Grace the Duke of Zarud will soon be going to meet His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, so we will make preparations for that.”
Oh, no, this is hopeless. The way they say it is all so definite. I can see their determination not to let me escape. Well, since these are official letters from these two, there’s no way I can escape.
To put it simply, the letters from the two of them said:
From my father: “Come to the royal palace.”
From my grandfather: “I’m going to the royal palace, so I’ll come and get you.”
Having just heard the information from Jarnall, I was convinced that it was related to that. And judging from the way Zeel and Tanal are acting, there must be something that absolutely requires me to go to the royal palace.
I don’t understand the reason. Why do I have to go to the royal palace? If you were to say that my younger brother died, I could understand it, just barely. With only two people left who have the right to succeed to the throne, it wouldn’t be strange for them to want to completely isolate and protect the direct line of succession, the Crown Prince.
However, I have not heard any reports of my brother’s death, nor is there any information to suggest it. There are still younger brothers born to concubines. I shouldn’t say this, but strictly speaking, there are others who have the right to succeed to the throne.
For example, His Royal Highness the Prince, who is my father’s younger brother and my uncle. Or perhaps his son. To be vulgar, there is a difference in lineage when tracing back to the direct line of the king.
…Ah, His Royal Highness the Prince has a daughter, but I don’t think he has a son. In the first place, my uncle is now a Grand Duke, so it’s impossible.
For a moment, I thought I had revealed myself as Jasper, but that’s unlikely. If it were discovered that I had such power, it wouldn’t be a matter of “come,” but rather a group of soldiers would come to kidnap me in the name of a greeting.
There’s no point in thinking about it, so I stopped looking for an answer.
“Do as you see fit.”
“Yes, sir.”
I watched the two of them leave the room, then lay down on the bed.
I thought of the other person’s face and name while touching “Telepathy.”
“Be honest. Are you a virgin?”
“No, I’ve never known a man…huh? What?”
“Hey, hey, if you don’t get used to it soon, people around you will think it’s strange.”
I smiled with my eyes closed. My only solace lately has been Mimirira.
“Where were you just now?”
“I was having breakfast with everyone.”
“Did they look at you strangely?”
“Nyamuli was worried about me.”
Somehow I could imagine her, and my smile deepened.
“Well, never mind. Report. I’m going to the royal capital soon. I won’t be able to act with you for a while, so hunt to the extent that you don’t stand out. Try not to accept requests as much as possible.”
“Understood. Um, what should I do with Kyō?”
“If he comes with you in the current situation, he’ll be caught and tortured even if he doesn’t do anything wrong. Stay put.”
“Understood.”
“Well, if anything changes, contact me anytime.”
“Yes. Please take care.”
I exhaled and then contacted Jalnaar.
“This is Jasper. Are you okay now?”
“Yes, there is no problem.”
“To make a long story short, I’ve been summoned to the royal capital. Do you know anything about it?”
“…No, that’s the first I’ve heard of it. I haven’t received any information.”
“That means they’re being very careful about information leaks. Do you have any idea?”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t read this one. Oh, but there is another report.”
“What is it?”
“I thought I’d wait until I had gathered a little more information, but Prince Kreutz is currently gathering troops from the surrounding territories and setting up camp to restrict the enemy’s main force.”
“Restrict?”
“Yes, it seems that they have really started to ravage the territory this time. Therefore, they are using the Arley Kingdom’s army to put pressure on the enemy’s main force and using the lords led by Duke Concord to defeat them individually.”
“Well, then it looks like we’ll be okay for a while. Anything else?”
“No, that’s all.”
“Understood. Contact me again if anything else comes up. If I don’t respond, you can assume I’ve been beheaded.”
“hahahahaha. Then I shall accompany you at that time.”
“Very well.”
I exhaled again. I felt more energized in a different way than with Mimirira.
It’s okay. I have a reliable ally. I should be able to get through anything.
I told myself this as I swallowed down my doubts and concerns about the unexplained summons and the pain of the gazes that had once been directed at me in the royal palace.