Chapter 66
A room in the imperial harem.
Zandra had come to visit.
"Mother! Mother!"
Ignoring the ladies-in-waiting as though they were invisible, Zandra barged into the room.
This was the room of the Emperor's Fifth Consort—the room belonging to Zandra's mother.
Its mistress, a green-haired woman, let out a sigh and welcomed her daughter.
"What is it, Zandra? Why are you making such a fuss?"
"Of course I'm making a fuss! Leonart has gone south as an inspector, hasn't he?! He's gone to our base of support!"
Watching her hysterical daughter make a scene, the green-haired woman, Zuzan, laughed as if it were nothing.
Perhaps irritated by her mother's composed smile, Zandra formed a whip of wind and struck a nearby lady-in-waiting with it.
"Aaaah!!?? P-please forgive me!!"
"Shut up! Shut up! That Leonart has gone to my uncles, hasn't he?! With the power to drag our name through the mud as much as he likes!"
"Aaah!! Guh! P-please... forgive..."
"You're so noisy! Shut up! You're here to be beaten!"
Saying that, Zandra continued relentlessly beating the lady-in-waiting, who had fainted and gone limp.
By the time she finally calmed down, the lady-in-waiting was covered in blood.
Normally, once one's anger subsided, one might feel at least a little guilt, but Zandra showed no concern whatsoever and returned to her conversation with her mother.
"It's Leonart I'm talking about. Of course he'll investigate us thoroughly. If that incident comes to light, we won't be able to talk our way out of it."
"You don't need to worry. I've entrusted the south to your uncle. He'll handle it well. Even if he fails, all responsibility will fall on your uncle. It won't spread to us."
"But we can't afford to lose support in the south."
"It doesn't matter. If your research succeeds, we won't have anything to fear, will we?"
"That's true, but..."
"As long as you and I remain safe, we can take the throne. Once we have it, we can reward the southern nobles. Surely they'll forgive us for abandoning them temporarily. They'll follow whoever is strong, too."
Zuzan said so and smiled.
It was an alluring yet fierce smile.
Unlike Zandra, who did not show her feelings outwardly, Zuzan was the sort of woman who quietly bottled them up inside.
Zuzan had bottled up her aggression for many years, and her smile was now filled with madness.
"His Majesty has forbidden me from researching forbidden arts. You're my only hope."
"I know, Mother."
"You're a brilliant girl. You have more qualifications than anyone to become Emperor. You inherited my qualities, too. The slave trader should be bringing the children soon. Your test subjects will be arriving again. Be sure to complete it—the perfect curse."
"I will. And I'll curse everyone who irritates me to death. It's wrong for anyone to trouble me. I'll kill everyone I dislike."
"That's right. That's the spirit."
As she stroked her daughter's green hair—the same shade as her own—Zuzan gazed fondly at her beloved daughter.
She had inherited every quality Zuzan wanted to pass on.
Her daughter could be called a copy of herself.
If Zandra took the imperial throne, it would be the same as Zuzan taking it herself.
"When the time comes, I'll eliminate anyone who gets in our way again. You do what you can. Don't worry. We have plenty of allies."
"Yes, Mother."
With that, mother and daughter embraced.
If the Emperor saw this, he would wonder whether they were truly his consort and daughter.
Both wore mad smiles that made anyone who saw them shudder.
The ladies-in-waiting, the only witnesses to the scene, desperately kept their heads bowed.
And they prayed.
That this hell would end soon.
■■■
Leo had headed south and arrived in a certain city.
Vyunme, the largest city in the south.
It was ruled by the House of Duke Kruger, a great noble family wielding influence throughout the south.
"Thank you for your cooperation, Duke Kruger."
"Not at all. It is only natural for a noble to cooperate with an inspector."
The man who laughed as he said this had green hair.
Although he was already over fifty, he still looked youthful.
He was tall and slender, with a thin sword at his waist. He had once been a warrior who had fought on many battlefields.
His name was Sven von Kruger.
He was the elder brother of the Emperor's Fifth Consort, making him the Emperor's brother-in-law.
"I think Duke Kruger is the best person to ask about the south. To be frank, are there any nobles you find suspicious, Duke Kruger?"
Leo looked straight at Duke Kruger.
Duke Kruger was involved in many of the events taking place in the south. Leonart knew that, too. But he couldn't investigate Duke Kruger right away.
He should start with places connected to Linfia's village, but first he wanted to know whose name Duke Kruger would mention.
"Suspicious nobles? There probably aren't any so obviously suspicious that I need to keep an eye on them, but I don't have the nobles near the border entirely under my thumb."
"I see."
He had said he did not have a firm hold. In a situation like this, that sort of vague phrasing smelled fishy.
It left him plenty of room to make excuses.
But that alone wasn't enough to press him.
Keeping a close eye on every move Duke Kruger made, Leo smiled and continued making small talk.
■■■
While Leo was meeting with Duke Kruger, Linfia was shopping in the city.
Of course, she was also taking the opportunity to look around the city.
"And I'll take that, too."
"Certainly! Thank you kindly!"
"Has anything unusual happened recently?"
"Unusual? Hmm... Nothing comes to mind."
She asked a fruit seller, but received the same sort of answer.
This was the fifth shop. Everyone had responded in much the same way.
At least on the surface, nothing seemed out of the ordinary in Vyunme.
"I see. Thank you."
As she said this, Linfia looked around while carrying her purchases.
She had bought almost everything she needed. There was little point in gathering more information.
As Linfia wondered what to do next, she spotted a white-haired old man having trouble at the side of the road.
"I'm sorry to trouble you. There's something I'd like to ask..."
"..."
"Hmm. The people around here are rather cold."
The old man sighed.
He was short, with slightly pointed ears.
He was a dwarf. Dwarves naturally had old-looking faces, but Linfia could tell that this old man was elderly even for a dwarf.
He was slender for a squat dwarf, with a long white beard hanging from his chin.
Unable to simply pass by the stooped dwarf leaning on a white staff, Linfia approached, knelt beside him, and spoke.
"Sir, is something wrong?"
"Oh, a kind young lady. Sorry to trouble you, but could you show me to the city gate? I'm terrible with directions, you see. I've been lost for three days now."
"Three days? That must have been difficult. I'll show you the way."
Linfia rarely let her emotions show, but she couldn't hide her surprise that a dwarf had been lost inside the city for three days.
However, she quickly smiled and offered to guide him to put him at ease.
The old man smiled at her kindness.
"No, no, thank you, thank you. Perhaps because I'm a dwarf, no one would listen to me. I was in quite a predicament."
"I see. That was unfortunate."
Though her tone was flat, Linfia's words carried an air of compassion.
Sensing this, the old man laughed heartily.
"Not at all, not at all. You found me, young lady. I was lucky."
"I was helped when I was in trouble, too. Or perhaps I should say I'm still being helped."
"Oh? Are you in trouble too, young lady?"
"Yes, more or less."
"I see, I see. That sounds difficult. Hmm... I suppose this is some kind of fate. Is there anything I have that might be useful?"
With that, the old man opened the bag on his back and began searching through it.
Linfia tried to decline, but the old man kept rummaging through the bag, insisting that young people shouldn't be so reserved.
"Sir, this way. This way."
"Hmm? Oh, that way?"
Perhaps because he wouldn't stop rummaging through his bag, the old man immediately started heading in another direction whenever Linfia looked away.
As Linfia repeatedly redirected the dwarf's course, they reached the city gate before she knew it.
"Sir, we've arrived."
"Hmm? Arrived? Where?"
"The gate."
"Oh! That's right, that's right! I was looking for a gift to thank you, young lady, and forgot why I came here!"
The old man abruptly raised his head and let out a hearty laugh.
With a personality like this, no wonder he got lost, Linfia thought. Still, she couldn't help worrying whether it was safe to let him leave the city like this.
However.
"I'll give you this, young lady. It's a flute made from a spirit tree. Blow it when you desperately need help. Your allies will be able to find you."
"I can't accept something like that! Please keep it, sir!"
"I don't need it. You keep it. Be sure to blow it, now. There's nothing wrong with relying on others, you know."
With a broad smile, the old man left through the gate.
His retreating figure looked so terribly unreliable that Linfia couldn't help worrying, but she had things to do and couldn't look after him.
After bowing once toward the old man's back, Linfia returned to the city.
"Humans aren't such a lost cause after all. Now, where should I go next? Is anyone calling for me?"
Muttering this, the old man left the road and disappeared into the mountains.