The Catalyst

"I'm running away from home! I'm leaving!"

After losing to me over and over, Orihime declared that and stormed out of the room.

Elna pursued her with an exasperated look, while Christa and Rita followed as well.

That left only Fine and me in the room.

I leaned back against the sofa, feeling as though the storm had passed. But then someone called out to me.

The instant I heard the voice, I snapped my fingers lightly.

"Arnold-sama."

"Sebas? How is the investigation with Mia going?"

"It has not been going well, I'm afraid. The man who escaped led us to someone else, but that person is still just a low-level underling. It will take a little longer to find someone who possesses important information."

"Hurry. The ceremony is tomorrow. If they intend to do something while we are in the Imperial Capital, it would not be strange for them to make a move soon."

"Understood. I will investigate as quickly as possible."

With that, Sebas disappeared again.

Despite that conversation, Fine continued brewing tea as though nothing had happened. She seemed to be getting used to this sort of thing.

"Here you are. Your tea."

"Sorry about that. Thanks."

"Another problem?"

"Yeah. This one is a little troublesome."

"So, business as usual, then."

Fine gave me a wry smile, glanced at the door, and then nodded quietly.

I had snapped my fingers to create a soundproof barrier so the Imperial Knights guarding the room would not hear my conversation with Sebas.

Fine understood that, which was why she nodded to let me know that I could dispel it.

She was really getting used to this, I thought as I removed the barrier.

Without changing her expression, Fine brought up the subject of Orihime.

"Where do you suppose Orihime-sama went? She said she was running away from home, but..."

"Who knows? Still, the places she can run to are limited. It has to be Leo's place or Mother's."

"That's awfully close for running away from home..."

In the first place, she could not leave the castle on her own.

That left only the homes of people she knew. Even Orihime would not go to Father's place.

Besides, given Orihime's personality, it was hard to imagine her simply accepting defeat. She had probably gone to look for reinforcements so she could take back her dinner.

That ruled out Mother. All she would do was politely deflect her.

In other words...

"It can't be helped. Let's go to Leo's place. She must be begging either Leticia or Leo for help there."

"It would be a problem if she were interrupting the two of them."

"Interrupting them, huh...?"

I would be happy if they had become that close, but considering Leo's personality, it would be difficult.

I wanted them to get comfortable enough to talk about anything, and I wanted Leo to draw all sorts of information out of Leticia.

"Fine. What do women think of Leo—as a man?"

"As a man? I don't think there are many women who could find fault with Leo-sama. He is handsome and kind."

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

Why didn't he make full use of that?

As I lamented that fact, Fine gave me a wry smile.

"Are you worried about the relationship between Leticia-sama and Leo-sama?"

"Is it that obvious?"

"I have never seen Leo-sama like that before. But I don't think you need to worry. They both seem to want to grow closer. I think it will depend on what serves as the catalyst."

"The catalyst, huh...?"

That was the most difficult part.

With that in mind, Fine and I left the room.

■■■

"Taking something from someone who does not want to give it up is not a good deed. I sense malice in it."

The moment we arrived at Leo's room, Leticia began lecturing me.

Orihime stood behind Leticia, nodding emphatically at everything she said.

"You twisted the story to suit yourself again, didn't you?"

"I did no such thing!"

"Who knows? I asked if you wanted to wager something, and you were the one who said dinner. Isn't it pathetic to run crying to Leticia just because you lost?"

"Grrr! How dare you say that! I refuse to acknowledge that match! There must have been foul play! I challenge you to another match in front of the Saint! Leticia, watch him!"

"Understood! I will not tolerate cheating!"

With that, Orihime, riled up alongside Leticia, placed a game on the table.

It was the same game I had played with Fine, where the player who captured the opponent's king won.

To be blunt, this was the game I was best at, but Orihime apparently believed she could not lose to me as long as I did not cheat.

"You've got quite a nerve, considering how thoroughly I beat you."

"S-shut up! If we compete fairly, I will win! Leonart! You watch your brother's conduct too!"

"M-me too?"

Leo had been wearing an expression that said this had nothing to do with him, but Orihime forcibly pulled him into her camp.

Leticia was determined to prevent any cheating, while Orihime was determined to win at all costs.

Seeing the two of them, Leo's face twitched.

"Orihime-sama... I hate to say this, but my brother is good at cheating, yes, but he is also good when he plays normally."

"How could that be!? When we rolled the dice, I was the only one who kept rolling low numbers. It was obviously rigged! I have no doubt about it! Besides, people who cheat grow rusty! He will not be able to cheat in front of the Saint! Therefore, I will win!"

"Sigh..."

Leo's shoulders slumped.

I had seen a childhood friend say something similar before losing, so I could understand why his shoulders had slumped.

That childhood friend was now trying to leave the room with an exasperated look.

"I'll wait outside, then. Call me when you're done."

"What? You're not going to watch?"

"Watching a match whose outcome is already obvious wouldn't be fun. Besides, I learned when I was little that I should stay away whenever Al starts a game."

With that, Elna left the room.

Even Leticia seemed to sense that something was wrong, but it was too late for her to back out, so she kept a close eye on my every move.

Of course, I was not cheating, so I had nothing to fear no matter how closely she watched me.

"All right, let's begin. By the way, if I win this without cheating after everything you've done, dinner won't be the only thing at stake, you know?"

"Hmm! Are you saying dinner alone is not enough!?"

"Obviously. Once it is established that I did not cheat here, the game we played in my room counts too. At that point, your dinner is mine. I need something new to wager, or I won't be motivated."

"Hmm... All right! Then let's wager Leticia's dinner too!"

"What!? You're wagering my dinner!?"

"Don't worry! Trust me!"

"The Empire's food is delicious, so dinner is something I look forward to every day... But very well! Once I have extended a helping hand, I will not abandon you halfway! I will wager my dinner tonight!"

"Good. Then you'll both be skipping dinner."

With that, I began arranging the pieces.

Almost immediately, Orihime's scream echoed through the room.

"Waaah! No! No! Don't take any more of my pieces!"

"Then I'll take your king."

"You can't do that either! Waaah! No matter how hard I try, you keep taking everything! Uuugh... I only have two pieces left..."

The outcome had already been decided.

Orihime had only her king and one other piece left. There was no way she could turn things around now.

Leticia, sitting beside Orihime, had gone pale as well. That was probably because she could not detect the slightest hint of cheating.

Behind them, Leo had one hand pressed to his forehead as he sighed.

"Just give up. You've lost."

"I-I have not lost yet...!"

"What a sore loser... All right, then. How about we switch players?"

"What? What do you mean?"

"If you switch with Leticia, we can start over from the beginning. You don't want to skip dinner when you didn't lose the game yourself, do you?"

"Y-yes, exactly! Orihime-sama, I will avenge you!"

"I-is that so!? Then I leave it to you, Leticia!"

At my suggestion, Leticia's eyes lit up as though she had received divine salvation, and she traded places with Orihime.

She must have thought it was a chance to win back her dinner.

That would be her undoing.

"Still, that leaves me at a disadvantage. How about we wager the right to make me do chores for a day as well?"

"I-I accept! The wager can't be valid unless you gain something too!"

"L-Leticia-san! You shouldn't make a deal like that with my brother!"

"It's all right! I have battlefield experience! This game recreates a battlefield, so my experience will serve me well!"

"No, I don't think those things are related..."

Leo tried desperately to stop her, but Leticia was eager to face me.

I was impressed that he had at least learned to call her Leticia-san. As I thought about that, I grinned.

When he saw my grin, Leo began to tremble.

"B-Brother... You'll go easy on her, right...?"

"Putting the Saint and the Celestial Princess in maid outfits isn't a bad idea."

"W-what!? What is with that demonic grin and idea!?"

Heh heh heh.

Once I started something, I saw it through to the end. Especially when it came to games.

Prepare yourself!

■■■

"Oh no... This can't be..."

"This is the end!"

Saying that, I took no mercy on the stunned Leticia and quickly captured her king.

That decided the match.

"The maid outfit, then. You can watch me eat dinner."

"W-what a smile filled with such malice...!? Have you no human compassion!? Orihime-sama has gone completely silent from shock!"

"That's irrelevant. You were wrong to challenge me."

"Ngh... Leonart-sama! Please help me!"

"What!?"

Leo clearly had not expected her to hand the match over to him.

He cried out in surprise, but Leticia promptly gave her seat to Leo.

"Please! Our dinners are on the line! I don't mind wearing a maid outfit, but watching you eat right in front of me makes me so envious that I could cry!"

"That's a little dramatic... Brother wouldn't really take our dinners..."

"I never lie when it comes to wagers."

"Right..."

When I said that with a straight face, Leo buried his head in his hands.

After remaining like that for a while, he raised his head as though he had steeled himself.

"It can't be helped... I accept your challenge, Brother!"

"Hmph. Have you forgotten our record?"

"I-it was a long time ago!"

"We've played a hundred games, and your record is one win and ninety-nine losses. You stopped after saying you didn't want to suffer a hundredth loss, yet now you've come back to embarrass yourself as an adult. Prepare yourself."

I grinned as I picked up the pieces.

Sweat beaded on Leo's forehead, but he arranged the pieces while trying not to get swept up in my pace.

Then the battle began.

As one would expect from twins, Leo read my moves one after another. In that sense, he was several levels tougher than Orihime or Leticia.

But he could not go on the offensive. If he could read my moves, then I could read his as well. That had not changed since we were children.

The match would be decided by how we caught each other off guard.

In that kind of mind game, Leo could never beat me.

"I've taken your queen, Brother!"

Leo mounted an all-out offensive and captured my queen.

But that was a trap.

He was as straightforward as ever.

I casually advanced the piece I had quietly brought near his king.

"Too easy. This ends it."

"—We'll see."

With that, Leo slipped another piece between the piece I had advanced and his king.

He had left one piece behind to defend while launching his full-scale offensive.

Now I was one move behind.

For me, already under a full-scale assault, that was a fatal delay.

And then...

"I won...?"

At last, one of Leo's pieces captured my king.

Leo muttered as though he could not believe it himself.

Beside him, Leticia and Orihime were overjoyed.

"I did it! As expected of you, Leonart-sama! My dinner is safe!"

"As expected! I always knew you'd pull it off someday!"

Treated like a hero by the two of them, Leo bashfully scratched his cheek.

I gave him a wry smile and stood up.

"Don't get carried away. That's two wins and ninety-nine losses in one hundred and one games. I'm still far stronger than you."

"Yeah, I know."

Leo smiled as he said that.

Seeing his smile, I left the room with a frustrated look on my face.

"Did you lose on purpose?"

"Who knows?"

Fine followed me out and asked, but I merely shrugged and dodged the question.

Fine laughed when she saw me like that.

"Hee hee... You really aren't straightforward."

"I didn't go easy on him."

"Really?"

"Of course. I used all the strength I had and thought through the best moves I could make. I just wasn't serious."

"??? Is there a difference between giving it your all and being serious?"

"I used all the strength I could. But I didn't have the determination to win at any cost. That's what it means to give it your all without being serious."

As I explained, I heard laughter coming from the room behind us and smiled.

It seemed I had been the catalyst after all.