The Genius Strategist's Assessment

After returning to Egor, I immediately teleported away with him and Sonia.

That was because, if we delayed, the news might reach Gordon's men.

At the first location Gordon had written down, we found the parents of Sonia's foster parent—her adoptive grandparents.

The grandparents had been imprisoned in a small house far from civilization, but their treatment must have been fairly decent. They had no visible injuries and had not suffered any health problems.

Of course, there were guards, but Egor rendered them all powerless.

Then, without delay, we teleported to the genius strategist who was Sonia's foster parent.

There was another small house far from civilization, and Egor immediately rendered the roughly ten guards there powerless.

"That takes care of that."

Upon hearing that, Sonia immediately ran into the house.

I followed after her.

"Dad!!"

When Sonia spotted the bespectacled man sitting in a chair, she rushed over and embraced him before she could contain herself.

Seeing Sonia like that, the bespectacled man smiled wryly and patted her head.

"Hello, Sonia. Have you been well?"

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."

"What are you apologizing for? This was my fault to begin with. I was the one who made you take my place. I'm sorry."

After saying that in a gentle tone, Sonia's foster father turned his gaze toward me.

He was a gentle-looking man. He also looked unhealthy.

He certainly did not look strong. However, he had a distinctive air about him.

Was this the man who had once been hailed as a genius strategist?

"It seems my daughter has been in your care. Even a country bumpkin like me can tell from the way you're dressed. It is an honor to meet you, Silver, the SS-rank adventurer."

"I wasn't the one who looked after her."

As I said that, I indicated Egor, who had slowly entered the house.

He apparently could not discern Egor's true identity, but he must have sensed that Egor was no ordinary person.

Sonia's foster father quietly bowed his head and introduced himself.

"I am Kevin Laspeed, Sonia's foster father. Thank you for taking care of my daughter."

"No, no, I did nothing. Silver arranged everything up to this point. My part starts now. I shall guarantee everyone's safety so that none of you will ever be caught up in political strife again. Do not worry; I am an SS-rank adventurer too, you know. My name is Egor. Though you might find it easier to understand if I call myself the Lost Sword Saint."

When Egor revealed his identity, Kevin's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

Egor was probably among the powerful dwarves Kevin had considered, but it must still have shocked him that two SS-rank adventurers were cooperating with Sonia.

Kevin looked down at Sonia, who continued to cry while clinging to him, and murmured,

"It seems you've brought some truly exceptional reinforcements. I had been considering various things, but it seems they won't be necessary now."

"It was just... a coincidence... I only made the confusion worse."

"Your responsibility is my responsibility. You needn't take it so hard. Besides, it is impossible for two SS-rank adventurers to help you by coincidence. There are only five of them on the entire continent."

"Indeed. Your daughter proved herself worth saving. That is why I asked Silver to cooperate with me. I do not know what motivated Silver to act, though."

Egor glanced at me.

Apparently, Egor suspected that I had cooperated with him so readily.

"If it earns me a favor from Elder Egor, that's a small price to pay."

"You would not act for that reason alone."

As his questioning showed no sign of stopping, I sighed.

Egor was convinced there was some ulterior motive, and in fact, there was one.

Well, it was not as though telling him would change anything.

"I am not acting solely for my own convenience, either."

"Was it at your collaborator's request?"

"Yes. They regretted being unable to save her, so I saved her in their place."

There had been a way to save her immediately.

I simply had not done so because there was far too little benefit in it.

Once I learned that Sonia was being held hostage, it would not have been impossible to search for and rescue her. It simply was not worth the time and effort it would have required.

Under that calculating logic, I had abandoned Sonia for a time.

Leonart would have tried to save her. That was both his strength and his weakness.

I am here to make up for that. That is why I cannot act like Leonart.

"As her father, I would like to know the name of that collaborator, if you don't mind, Silver."

"...Sonia Laspeed. Does that name mean anything to you?"

"...The person who worked with you and regretted not being able to save me...? Could it be Prince Leonart?"

"Close. His brother."

"N-no... Al-kun...?"

Sonia covered her mouth with both hands, her expression one of disbelief.

Faint tears had appeared in her eyes once more.

"The Seventh Prince, Arnold Lakes Adler. That is the name of my collaborator—the man who regretted being unable to save you."

"Did you become friends?"

In response to Kevin's question, Sonia slowly shook her head.

"We aren't friends... I... deceived him..."

"He doesn't see it that way. He was worried about you. That is why I saved you. It seems human connections really do come full circle."

"Connections...? I did nothing for Al-kun..."

"I suppose it's because you're twins. Perhaps you inherited the same softness—the inability to abandon people you have become involved with."

Saying that, I turned my back on them.

I could leave the rest to Egor.

If Sonia remained by Egor's side, that would be fine too. She would be safe, and Egor's terrible sense of direction might improve somewhat.

Even if she did not, Sonia had the right to spend time with her family.

No matter how much military strategy she had learned, Sonia was an ordinary person—a victim who had been dragged into the struggle for the throne. She had had no choice but to obey Gordon.

No one would object if she enjoyed peaceful days. Egor must know somewhere where she could do that.

"Then I shall take my leave. I have to help those softhearted twin princes. Otherwise, someone like the Third Prince might become Emperor."

With that, I took a step forward.

However, Kevin suddenly called out to stop me.

"Silver. Please wait a moment."

"What is it? If you want to become the twin princes' strategist, I can introduce you."

"Unfortunately, I lack the courage to throw myself into the struggle for the throne. But please tell the princes this: Something is strange about this struggle for the throne."

"...What do you mean?"

I had heard those words somewhere before.

After thinking for a moment, I remembered that they had come up in my conversation with Erna.

They had not been Erna's own words, but those of her father, the Marquis of Valor.

So there was someone else here who held the same opinion. And he was a remarkable man who had been hailed as a genius strategist.

"...There have been countless past struggles for the throne that reached horrifying extremes. Members of the same family killing one another—that is what the struggle for the throne entails."

"That is what I have heard, and it seems that way to me. What do you see?"

"I have heard that more than a few members of the imperial family changed during past struggles for the throne. A person might change after enduring such a bloody conflict. But this time, the change is far too pronounced."

"More pronounced?"

"Three years ago, the Crown Prince died, and the struggle for the throne began. Then the three candidates for the throne changed. Princess Zandra became more brutal, Prince Gordon more tyrannical, and Prince Erik more cold-hearted."

"I assume you believe that the struggle for the throne and the allure of the imperial throne exposed and magnified their true natures?"

"People do not change that dramatically. At the very least, they do not cast aside lessons they learned in the past."

"What do you mean?"

At my words, Kevin met my gaze directly.

There was a sincerity in his eyes that made it clear he would not lie about what he was about to say.

"You may find it hard to believe, but the Prince Gordon I knew—the Prince Gordon of the first several years after his first campaign—was a commander who listened to others' opinions. At least, my old friends advised him many times, and he took their advice. During his first campaign, he ignored my advice and charged in pursuit of military merit. That pursuit cost many lives. That was when he changed."

"Is that really true? That Third Prince?"

"Yes. After that, Prince Gordon changed. He remained arrogant, but he understood that he needed advisers and began listening to his staff. He learned from his first battle and changed. Afterward, he accumulated military merit and became a general. His Majesty the Emperor was not so lenient as to make a son who charged headlong like a boar a general. Yet that same man rejected every proposal Sonia made. I received frequent letters from him telling me to come in her place because his daughter was useless. I cannot believe he has changed so much."

I had failed to notice because I was too familiar with him.

Had Gordon really undergone such a change? He had always been arrogant and inclined to solve things with force.

That was why his current self had seemed so plausible to me.

However, if he had changed because of lessons learned in the past—then yes, something might indeed be strange.

That change, born of a lesson learned from failure, had brought Gordon success.

Would he really cast aside that lesson despite the success it had brought him?

"Wouldn't it be strange to explain it away simply by saying he changed because he became involved in the struggle for the throne?"

"That's right. I do not know why. Perhaps something happened that I do not know about. But... after seeing the devastation following his first battle, he regretted his own recklessness. And when I advised him... he was not particularly thoughtful, but he was a prince who burned with passion to protect the Empire."

"Time changes people... all the more so when they become immersed in a struggle for power and think of nothing but outmaneuvering their rivals. But you, of all people, must know that much."

"Yes... I sense something besides the passage of time and his environment in Prince Gordon's change."

Kevin stated that unequivocally.

The Marquis of Valor had said the same thing, and now even the genius strategist was saying that something was wrong.

Moreover, Kevin's opinion came from watching the struggle for the throne from a distance.

"When Prince Wilhelm became Crown Prince, those around him looked forward to the Empire's future, while sympathizing with the Emperor's other children. They said that Prince Erik, Prince Gordon, and Princess Zandra might have had a chance to become Emperor in another era. They were highly regarded by many, which was why people said such things. Now, they are nothing like they were. If you say that is strange... then you're right. Understood. I will tell them."

"Please do. And be careful. Even for an SS-rank adventurer, the struggle for the throne is dangerous. If you get too deeply involved, you will be drawn in and unable to return."

"Don't worry. I know how to handle that."

Saying that, I tried once more to enter the teleportation gate, but Sonia called out to me.

"Silver! Um... tell Al-kun thank you for me... and tell him I'm sorry too..."

"Understood. I will at least convey your thanks. He likely isn't asking for anything else."

With that, I stepped through the teleportation gate and returned to the Imperial capital.