Deserters (3)
"Did it fail?"
A certain blonde woman with pointed ears quietly muttered after sensing something.
"I was expecting those guys' strength to surpass even the knight order of the Imperial Court..."
A look of disappointment was clearly on her face, but she soon snorted.
Then a subordinate, who also had pointed ears, spoke beside her.
"It's a good thing we put a self-destruct spell on them. If we hadn't, all our information would have been leaked to the Imperial Court bastards."
"But it's such a shame. I went to all that trouble making them immune to the torture spell, only for it to fail."
Any soldier of the 7th Legion is absolutely compelled to obey their officers.
No matter what, against their spells, a soldier is nothing more than a dog.
But what if there were a means to neutralize those spells, even briefly?
That was something these demonkin possessed now.
"I've always thought about it. What would happen if we could convert all the prisoners dragged to the 7th Legion to our side?"
"That would be ideal, but do you think those prisoners would willingly join us?"
They were all little more than criminals.
There was a good chance that merely trying to control them would make them resist even harder.
"Oh, they'll join. As long as they can be freed from the spell, that is."
"By the way, since when have you been researching how to nullify that spell, lady Eramon?"
"Hmm... when was it again?"
The demonkin woman called Eramon paused to recall old memories.
All demonkin were born with a sense of duty to expand the demon realm and wrest control from the Imperial Court.
Eramon, too, had devoted herself to her own field from birth, working to fulfill that duty.
"Do you know the principle behind the torture spell?"
"It uses the side effects from a failed artifact once used by Heroes, channelled through a spell."
"Then who created that artifact?"
"That's..."
It was hard to say exactly who.
The creator wasn't human.
"The World Tree's wisdom. Not just the artifact, even that spell is essentially the World Tree's creation."
In fact, the spell's origin could be traced back to the World Tree.
If not for the World Tree, the spell could never be broken.
"So you tried to find a way to break a spell created by the World Tree itself?"
"Yes. But we're dealing with the greatest being on the continent. No matter how desperately I researched, decoding that spell proved impossible."
Of course, it wasn't that there were no ways at all.
Based on her research, if she could directly access the World Tree, it might be possible to manipulate the spell.
In theory, at least.
"Of course, I considered searching for the World Tree myself... but it's impossible."
"Well, we demonkin can never enter the elves' village where the World Tree is kept, after all."
In the end, it seemed the research amounted to nothing, destined to be abandoned.
At least, until something unexpected was revealed.
"But then—what do you know? The samples of spells I'd created began showing strange reactions."
The spells from her research began to fade.
It was as though they kept disappearing and reappearing, and the oddity sparked an idea in Eramon's mind.
The World Tree, the mother of all spells.
So long as the World Tree existed, these spells would never vanish.
For the spells to flicker in and out like that could only mean something had gone wrong with the World Tree.
"At that very moment, the spell stopped working for a bit. Of course, it soon went back to normal... but in that I sensed a possibility."
If something really had gone wrong with the World Tree, would that not mean the spell had sprouted a flaw?
Moreover, there were rumors of odd incidents breaking out inside the Imperial Army at the same time.
"They say some soldiers from the 7th Legion escaped right around then."
There were also rumors of a monster outbreak, but events like that were common in the demon realm.
The key point was that the soldiers had deserted.
"In the 7th Legion, where escape should be impossible as long as the officers' spells are in force, such an incident occurred. What do you make of it?"
"Come to think of it..."
The demonkin subordinate standing beside her seemed to share her suspicion.
One thing was clear, something had gone wrong with the spell.
"Yes, I'm sure the root—the World Tree itself—is compromised. So, I decided to experiment on those guys."
The deserters came straight to them, seeking cooperation.
Being criminals, the only place they could go was the dark underworld where demonkin hid.
"Normally, the spell should never have been breakable. But that time, it worked!"
Eramon's instincts had been right.
The spell she devised to break torture spells worked on them.
"But the number I can release at once is still limited. It's not perfect yet."
"Still, it's a tremendous achievement! If you can just refine it a little more, we could definitely bring over all the 7th Legion's soldiers!"
The soldiers now had two choices.
Either remain as the legion's dogs until death.
Or desert, aided by Eramon.
The choice was already obvious.
"But this is just the fruit of my research. It wasn't handed to me for nothing. It's as if—no matter how hard I tried, a wall I could never break suddenly grew thin, you know?"
"Then what happened to the World Tree...?"
It was certain at the very least that something serious had happened.
"The spell has returned, so the World Tree isn't dead. But its wisdom has weakened, surely. Or else—"
—The entity may have changed.
"Changed into a very foolish being. Hahahahaha!"
Feeling more certain than ever of her research's value, Eramon burst into wild laughter.
Then her subordinate demonkin, curious about something, asked a question.
"By the way, lady Eramon, when did you begin this research?"
"When, you ask?"
Eramon smirked as she replied.
"Have you forgotten how many years I've lived?"
****
"Mmm..."
"Pram, why do you keep scratching your ear?"
"I don't know. It just started itching all of a sudden. Is someone talking bad about me? So annoying!"
After clearing out the deserters, their carriage resumed its journey.
As Pram continued to rub her ears, she suddenly yawned and grumbled about being bored.
"When are we getting there, anyway?"
"We've still got a few hours left."
"Haaa... This is so tedious."
"Don't worry. Once we arrive, you won't have a chance to get bored."
"Aaah... So, in the end, we're back to the Imperial Court again. So long! Wise old days as a Saint~"
Seeing Pram missing her days in the Holy Nation, Silia spoke up.
"Perchance, would you like to go back and try being a Saint and getting exiled by the sacred stone again?"
"No."
Pram declined flatly.
She had seen for herself what life there was really like.
She recalled how, in that underground lab or whatever it was, she had seen capsules filled with countless people.
Inside, there were girls all being trained as Saints.
'If I hadn't been careful, I would have ended up in there too.'
Thinking back, Pram felt a chill crawl down her spine.
Just picturing it made her skin crawl; it was the stuff of nightmares.
'Wait.'
Thinking back, something else absurd had happened then.
[Young master!! I miss you so much!!!]
She had been given a strange surprise injection and started behaving oddly.
She'd clung and thrown tantrums like a little child.
'Damn it!'
It only happened there, but the embarrassment was enough to make her lose her mind.
Worse, she'd acted that way even in front of the young master!
"Hey, um."
"Yeah?"
Pram looked at Rio and asked.
"Do you think the young master would hate it if we acted childish in front of him?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean... If we, like, throw a tantrum and act like kids, would he look on us kindly?"
That question gave Rio her own worries.
She, too, had once behaved childishly in front of the young master.
"I'm not sure myself. But the young master... I don't think he would care that much."
"Ahh... So you're saying he doesn't really react, right?"
"Yeah. But if there's no reason for it, he might get annoyed. Maybe even scold us to keep it down."
"You got a point. But Rio, why do you sound like you know so much about it?"
She sounded as if she'd tried it herself.
As Pram gave her a suspicious glare, Rio swallowed dryly.
"Do you have to look at me like that?"
"Do you have to make that face?"
"..."
"..."
The tension between the two was rising when Silia cut in to break things up.
"Alright, alright, if you want to bicker, do it later. Have you forgotten who's riding with us?"
Silia gestured toward Estelle as she spoke.
As members of the legion, they couldn't disgrace themselves beside a royal.
Silia gave them a warning glare, and that finally settled them down.
"Our apologies, Your Highness."
"No, it was actually a fascinating conversation."
Estelle, hearing their chat, let her imagination run wild.
'Rio acting all clingy...'
A pleased smile crept across Estelle's face, and Rio shuddered instinctively as she saw it.
"Dame Silia. Dame Silia."
"Yes, Your Highness?"
Estelle called Silia in a low voice, twice. Silia, a bit puzzled, answered, and Estelle whispered into her ear.
"Really?"
Silia's expression was rigid for a moment, but then broke out into a bright grin.
****
The carriage finally arrived at the capital.
Knights and courtiers within the castle greeted the returning royal with due formality.
Moreover, it wasn't only the royal family who alighted from the carriage.
"These guests will be staying with us tonight. Please treat them with respect."
Estelle gestured toward the special task force and instructed the courtiers.
Normally, they would have immediately departed for the legion after bringing back the royal, but Silia said she had business and chose to stay a day longer.
"Why do you need to do business here so suddenly? There's nothing for you to gain here now."
Louis asked slyly, and Silia replied with a smile.
"Louis, deals require time to conclude."
"Don't tell me..."
"You, of all people, would know, wouldn't you?"
Silia and Estelle's whispered conversation.
Louis had overheard it all with his enhanced hearing.
"Are you really going to do it?"
"Heheheh..."
Seeing Silia's sly grin, Louis gave up on trying to dissuade her.
"If you get caught by the person concerned later, don't blame me."
"Don't worry."
Louis was genuinely worried, since if the 'person concerned' found out, the castle might get turned upside down.
"So... Louis."
"What?"
"I'm going to use that thing. Is it alright?"
"Haaa..."
Louis let out a deep sigh.
.
.
.
A royal homecoming feast was underway in the castle.
Above all, the recent negotiations with the Holy Nation's Pope had put the Imperial Court at an advantage.
And since those achievements were owed to the special task force, they, too, were invited to the banquet.
But they were a secret unit, so they attended in disguise.
As the party swirled around them, Silia slipped quietly away from the crowd.
At the same moment, Estelle also slipped away, and they met in the garden at the back of the castle.
"It was hard to slip out in a dress."
"In any case, thank you for making it all the way here. You've brought the item for our deal, right?"
"And you as well, Your Highness?"
They exchanged the items they had agreed to trade.
Estelle produced a bundle that seemed to contain books.
Silia had in hand a magitech device that recorded everything it saw.
The items crossed hands and were exchanged.
"Hehehe. We have a deal."
"Thank you so much."
"These are the 'pink novels' I used to secretly read, hiding from my father. Treasure them."
A 'pink novel' enjoyed even by the princess herself.
It couldn't but be a cut above the other books.
"Hold on. Mind if I check the recording first?"
"There's no one here, so go ahead."
Even if Louis eavesdropped, he'd already made it clear he wouldn't get involved.
He'd said, 'This has nothing to do with me~' and made himself scarce.
Estelle activated the magitech device.
An illusion appeared in midair, replaying the recorded scene.
["Aaaaaaang!! Older Brother!! Don't abandon me!! I'll be so good, I promise!!"]
There, under the effects of fruit, a scene of Rio throwing a tantrum before Louis was playing.
"Ah... ahhhh...!!"
Estelle had never seen that side of Rio before.
Seeing it for the first time, Estelle was not just moved but wept openly.
"So cute..."
At the same time, blood trickled from her nose.
****
"Hiiik...!"
"Why are you shivering all of a sudden?"
"It's... nothing."
Just as Rio was chomping on meat at the banquet, she felt a sudden chill.
Pram just tilted her head, wondering what was wrong.