Arthur, the administrative officer of the Empire, spoke in his usual weary voice.
“…It’s impossible.”
“No, you mean to tell me that the Central Army isn’t coming even though a Dark Priest has been discovered?”
The conference room of Percus Manor had become almost indistinguishable from Arthur’s office.
The place where I was currently having a conversation with Arthur was also the conference room.
One notable change since Arthur had started using the conference room was the presence of a sleeping bag in one corner.
It was a luxury item made from the fur of the ‘silver duck’ found in the Northern Region. I had heard that only a handful of adventurers who frequently lived outdoors possessed such a thing.
For the top brains of the Empire’s administration, the result of their luxury was merely a sleeping bag.
It indicated that he spent a significant amount of time outside solving issues as they arose.
Moreover, Arthur had a reputation for being holed up only in the conference room at Percus Manor. The reason being that he claimed he needed to maintain confidentiality.
Naturally, he never stayed in comfortable guest rooms.
He always fell asleep exhausted in the sleeping bag tucked away in the corner of the conference room. Lately, it seemed like his sleeping hours had decreased more than before, as the area under his eyes was increasingly darkening.
In many ways, it was true that Arthur was suffering.
Nevertheless, I had no choice but to ask him for additional help. It was because I simply could not understand the situation.
“Are you saying that you can’t trust my testimony? As you mentioned before, there are few people on the continent who have severed ties with the Dark Cult as much as I have…”
“Of course, that’s not what I mean.”
Arthur’s assertion was firm.
Just by the resolute tone of his voice, it was clear that he trusted me. At least in regard to matters related to the Dark Cult.
In that case, there had to be another reason.
As my questioning gaze was directed at Arthur, he sighed and started rummaging through a mountain of documents piled high. Before long, he handed me a sheet of paper.
I took the document in silence.
The first line of the paper, formatted as a report, held a large title.
‘Dark Priest Sightings Report’
“Whether by coincidence or not, since Sir Ian left, reports of sightings of that Dark Priest named ‘Miltram’ have been coming in from various places. There have already been dozens of cases reported.”
Normally, this would be impossible.
For the same person to be sighted in dozens of widely separated locations was not information one would expect to encounter in an official Empire report but rather in a collection of urban legends.
Unfortunately, the subject of these sightings was Miltram.
As someone who could traverse the modified bodies at will, it would not be surprising if he appeared in many places.
A low curse escaped my lips involuntarily.
“…Damn it.”
It felt like he was revealing his identity too easily.
With the eyewitness accounts so dispersed, it was natural that the available military strength would also be scattered. Even if the Empire, the Holy Kingdom, and the Kingdoms joined forces, chaos was inevitable.
They probably didn’t even know where or how many troops to deploy.
Requesting power support for a rural area like the Percus Territory was difficult. Even if they were to dispatch the Central Army out of caution, it would only be a small number.
That could not happen.
The disaster mentioned in the letter seemed to be a foe against whom victory was unlikely even with full preparedness. It was better than having no support, but more soldiers were needed.
The problem was that I had no concrete evidence.
I needed to prove that the ‘real’ Miltram, who was scheming among the dozens of sightings, was in the Percus Territory.
However, I didn’t have the means to do so at that moment.
A sigh escaped Arthur’s lips as he understood my circumstances.
“I will do my best, but there’s a high possibility that any request for additional support will be rejected.”
For a moment, I thought of the Blood Letter.
If I were to take out the Blood Letter and request additional military support from Arthur, the situation might turn around immediately.
But I couldn’t bring myself to do that.
This was an issue for which an administrative officer had been dispatched under the Emperor’s special directives. If I were to use the Blood Letter as a pretext for a military support request, that news would surely reach the Emperor’s ears.
Moreover, the Blood Letter I possessed had not been received from the current Emperor.
It was a message I had procured from the future Emperor during my previous life. The probability that the Emperor fully trusted me was still low.
In that case, the chances that he would grant me military authority were also extremely slim. It could very well turn into a disastrous mistake at a time when I needed to build trust.
After biting my lips several times, I ultimately had to return to the fundamental solution.
“…I need to gather evidence.”
“Yes, that is the best course of action. Fortunately, there are capable individuals gathered here, including Rainelle’s magic troops.”
It would be convenient if I could mobilize the soldiers of the Yuridina Clan, but that was impossible.
It was no ordinary matter for another military force to come beyond the territory’s borders. Such an action could only be taken through official requests and permits, like with the Rainelle Clan.
Nonetheless, the fact that I could mobilize an army of up to a thousand in case of emergency was the only consolation.
Furthermore, merely keeping watch over the territory would also serve to prevent Miltram’s escape.
Although I didn’t think for a moment that Miltram would try to flee.
“I need to meet with Mr. Raymond and my friends. Investigating the forest where Miltram was sighted should bring something to light.”
“You must be careful, Sir Ian.”
Arthur advised me in a worried tone.
“If the main body of the Dark Priest is indeed there, there must be a reason for it to reveal itself.”
“…I’ll do my best.”
With those words, I left the conference room.
It was only natural that I had to be as cautious as possible, but with a crisis threatening the territory, there was no way I could deliberately avoid danger.
The best I could do was to bring the best military strength with me.
I felt that I had to meet with Mr. Raymond at least once.
It might also be good to consult with Reto while I was at it. He was quite sharp-minded and would surely provide various tips.
Especially regarding the concerning ‘secret of the Percus Family.’
As I pondered these various thoughts, I found myself arriving at the reception room before I knew it.
Since there were so many guests, the rooms at Percus Manor were often occupied by someone. The one exception was the reception room.
It was spacious enough that one or two people wouldn’t draw attention.
I sat quietly in the reception room and began to go through the documents.
There were many dots marked on the map. Among them were some near large cities, indicating that there would likely be chaos in the Empire until Miltram was caught.
For just one Dark Priest, the scale of the incident was too large.
How many Dark Priests like Miltram could there be in the Dark Cult, and among them, there were bound to be those of particularly high rank.
According to records from the Divine War, there were bishops and saints even in the Dark Cult.
They remained an enemy whose power could not yet be gauged. I was beginning to feel as exhausted as a hunter facing a beast lurking in the dark.
It was then that I sensed an unexpected gaze.
Through the slightly opened door of the reception room, long hair fell like a shadow.
There were many people with black hair in Percus Manor.
However, hair so long that it reached beyond the waist was quite rare.
The owner of such hair could only be one in the manor.
Ria Percus, my younger sister.
She was watching me with wide, curious eyes.
“What’s up?”
“…I just wanted to make sure it’s really my brother.”
It was a ridiculous remark.
I shook my head and replied.
“If I’m not the brother you know, then who am I?”
“A fraud wearing my brother’s face!”
With that, Ria began to whine at me as she always did.
“Our brother is not that strong! He doesn’t look at documents so seriously! He doesn’t bring along beautiful women of high status one after another!”
All I could do was click my tongue at Ria’s complaints and impart the truth of life.
“…Ria, everyone grows up eventually.”
“Your growing period was over ages ago!”
Ria burst into the reception room looking flustered.
Because she adored her brother so much, it seemed difficult for her to accept that I had now become an independent adult, leaving the family.
It could also be that there hadn’t been an opportunity for us to be alone together for a while.
I gave Ria a bitter smile and said, “Although, it seems you’ve grown quite a bit since then, too.”
“…Hmph, of course.”
Then, as if remembering something, Ria covered her mouth and gave a mischievous wink.
She edged closer to me and perched herself on the armrest of the chair where I was seated.
Then she pushed her backside against my arm.
I could feel the touch of a woman’s supple body pressing against my arm.
“At least I could charm my brother, right?”
At that insinuating tone, I let out a deep sigh.
“…Get off me, meat lump.”
“Meat lump?!”
It was another moment that provoked Ria’s sensitivity.
