Chapter 23

There wasn’t much that I knew about Through.

But they were from Makoku and could use magic.

And they belonged to the Grass Snakes, whose headquarters was in Makoku.

Through’s magic allowed them to escape the detection of the barriers protecting the royal castle.

And at the same time, they were able to shake off the pursuit of Her Majesty’s Shadows.

Judging by all of this, it seemed likely that Through did not specialize in combat, but in infiltration and escape.

And then the important part. Reinforcements were coming from Makoku.

In other words, this order had a time limit. And that time limit was rather short.

I didn’t know if the leaked information was that beneficial or if there was a sudden need for more information, but this sudden move suggested that Makoku was going to be throwing their full weight into this operation.

They were probably going to act as a backup so Through could do even more damage.

In other words, eliminating Through would solve the problem.

So, what to do?

The entrance ceremony for the academy would be starting soon. I couldn’t take too much time on this. At least, I didn’t want to.

I knew where the Grass Snake’s base was, but there would be no point in charging in.

It was apparently a large mansion, which made me think it was used to lure the enemy in.

The real one must be somewhere else.

And so the next day, I took a walk in the high-end residential area of the city.

It was to see the building that was their base. But there was nothing particularly strange about it.

The word on the street was that a merchant that had found success in Makoku had bought it to live in one day.

Of course, that was just a story.

The real investigation would start at night, but I decided to poke around lightly for now.

And so I covered my face in cloth and jumped over the wall and entered the mansion.

“…Hmm. There doesn’t seem to be anyone here.”

All the doors were locked.

But I didn’t want to use Shadow Crossing during the day.

Perhaps I should come back later.

And so I left the mansion… Once I was a good distance away, I checked to see if I was being followed, but I couldn’t sense anything.

Either no one had bought my act or no one was watching over the place.

That night.

I sensed a presence outside of my dormitory window.

It was probably the lady from last night.

I made sure the others were asleep and then quietly melted into the shadows.

“Hello again.”

“I won’t have too many updates if you visit so often.”

“Too many? So, you do have something then?”

She was dressed entirely in black, just like yesterday, so I could only see her eyes.

But her tone suggested that she was now very interested.

“I infiltrated their base this afternoon. It was completely empty.”

“Ah, that is too bad.”

“As I did it in broad daylight, I was hoping someone would follow me, but I was disappointed.”

I had moved away from the mansion and melted into the shadows and waited.

But not a single person appeared.

In other words, no one had been monitoring the building from the outside.

“Well, we attempted an ambush of the mansion I told you about before. So they must have all left. But I cannot tell you about their other base. After all, if I told you, they would know that we know.”

“That will result in this battle being stretched out.”

It was an old trick. There was no need to let the enemy know what you knew about them.

So I understood why they didn’t want to tell me.

“It would be best if you could clean this up before the reinforcements arrive…but is that too hard for you?”

“When are they arriving?”

“They are traveling with a merchant caravan, so it should be 3 or 4 days from now.”

“3 or 4 days. I might be able to do it if I am allowed to do it in my own way.”

“What do you mean?”

“If I can act a little boldly, it might just work.”

My abilities were more fit for pursuing.

And so it was better for me to have the enemy appear.

“I hope you won’t be excessive? …If you draw too much attention, Foul Eater and the others might take notice.”

Foul Eater was a Right Hand that worked in this city.

The Right Hands here weren’t my enemies.

“Would it be bad if they did?”

“Who knows? They were ordered to withdraw, as they failed in their mission. But they are not happy about it at all.”

I believed she said their names were Foul Eater, Beheader, and Thousand Needles.

“I don’t really care what they think about me. But if they get in my way, I will kill them.”

A professional shadowing a professional. That would be like asking me to kill them.

“Isn’t that a little morbid?”

“Ah, and are you the type who tries to persuade someone to talk once they have a sword pointed at your neck?”

“…”

“So please tell them to stay out of my way if they don’t want to die.”

“They will interfere without a doubt if I told them that. Mister ‘Shadow Crosser,’ are you trying to provoke them on purpose?”

“I’m just saying what should be very clear already. But since I have your permission, I think I’ll go take a look now.”

“Huh!? Now!? Hey, wait. I’ll go too…”

She said frantically. But of course, I would not wait.

I melted into the shadows.