episode_0141

000

The royal capital is home to a diverse range of professions not commonly found in the provinces. It is the most populous place on the continent, the birthplace of culture, and has a fair number of jobs that arise from the `leisure` not found elsewhere.

In particular, there were those who took on various odd jobs and solved their daily problems, targeting nobles who did not trust adventurers, mostly called troubleshooters, etc.

Some of these people call themselves `detectives` and rush in like hyenas to try to make a buck when something happens in the royal capital, while others take on tasks that adventurers don’t have to do when asked, such as investigating affairs or searching for lost pets.

A room with a gloomy atmosphere. The magic lamp was flickering, repeating turning off and on, probably because the amount of remaining power source to supply the magic power was running low.

Thanks to the curtains drawn on the window, the amount of light coming in was small, making the turning on and off of the light feel even more distracting.

The wallpaper was originally white, but now it had turned gray. The floor and ceiling were so dilapidated that one couldn’t tell when they had been repaired.

Documents were scattered everywhere, and books were scattered messily with no place to set foot, making this place as cluttered as Lyla’s room, but it wasn’t her room.

A dilapidated office in a building barely clinging to the slum area, which is right next to the back alley even in the royal capital.

A figure leaning back in an armchair in front of a desk piled high with potions for fatigue relief, covering their face with a hat.

He is also one of the detectives in this royal capital, and his name is `Gray`.

Lyla frowns at the office that hasn’t been cleaned for a long time and sighs deeply.

“Gray. Wake up.”

“Umm…”

Slowly opening his eyes to the voice calling him, and removing the hat covering his face, revealed a teenager with gray hair like his name. A child about the same age as Sasha.

Eyes with slightly cloudy sky blue eyes. The voice was hard to distinguish whether it was a boy or a girl, but it was a relatively low and calm voice, no, if you had to say, it was a sleepy voice.

Gray, who had his hair, the color of a rat crawling in the shadows, tied in a ponytail, and was wearing a white shirt and overalls, rubbed his eyes as soon as he saw Lyla, then straightened his posture with a languid voice of `Ooh~`.

“Long time no see. The top student of the magic department of the academy. Lady Lyla. The last time I saw you was more than a year ago, wasn’t it? You need information about the hero who is active in Elesia…. Did your work go well?”

Lyla sighs deeply at Gray’s sarcastic greeting that seems to scrape at people’s insides and says.

“…You know without me answering.”

“Yes, of course.”

“Then don’t ask.”

“Okay.”

Perhaps having seen Lyla’s hair turning red, Gray immediately lowered his tail and obeyed her.

Gray, who looks like an ordinary brat at first glance, was born in an orphanage in the royal capital, and was caught by the royal guards while doing petty theft in the slums.

However, he received a pardon by guessing the identity of a serial thief that the guards were having trouble with, using his observation skills and extraordinary mind, and after that, he was able to gather money and become a detective who set up a proper, albeit old, office.

Even so, helping the guards has been rare since then, and usually he does work similar to an informant or takes on trivial requests, earning just enough money to avoid starvation, and leading an inconspicuous life is Gray’s aesthetic.

Lyla didn’t know what means Gray was using to gather information, but after hearing rumors about him and coming to see him, considering that she was able to go to Albein with detailed information in advance, this detective’s skills must be real.

“So. What brings you here today? An investigation into the affair of the swordsman who is said to be dating you these days?”

“Something like that. I know without investigating each one. …If you keep talking nonsense, I’ll burn this entire office down.”

“T, that much… Oh my. You’re so impatient….”

Gray groveled, sweating, even while smiling playfully at Lyla’s threat.

This unique attitude of immediately bowing his head to the other person wasn’t very pleasing to Lyla, but it was Gray’s own way of getting by.

“I want to investigate Persis Tromea’s younger brother, Setos Tromea. I heard he had a past lover, and I want to know the identity of that lover.”

“Lord Setos? Another one about a high-ranking official. As you know, the higher the investigation target is, the more expensive it becomes, you know?”

Lyla nods at Gray’s words as if asking if she’s okay with it. She was already prepared for that much.

“And. Former hero Albein. He’s probably locked up in a labor facility now, but. I want to know if there are any strange people contacting him.”

“Hmm… I smell something. The fact that you’re asking me to investigate both of them together means that there’s some kind of connection between the two, right?”

“… …”

Lyla didn’t say anything to Gray’s words. It was to avoid information leaking out if she said more than necessary. Rather, Gray seemed to be convinced of something by Lyla’s reaction and wore a smile.

“Well. I understand. I won’t ask for details. But. Apart from the investigation into Lord Setos, there’s something I’m investigating separately right now. Perhaps, I may need Lady Lyla’s help.”

“…From me? You’re a detective, but you’re thinking of entrusting your work to someone else?”

“No, no! That’s not it! Of course, I’m a detective, but Lady Lyla knows more about magic than I do~. If you help me, I’ll cut the cost of the investigation into Lord Setos, so I hope you’ll cooperate~”

Saying that would be disappointing~, and pushing away Gray, who was trying to massage Lyla’s shoulders while making a pathetic voice, Lyla once again let out a big, irritated sigh.

“Alright. Alright. So? What kind of case is it?”

“Recently, there have been continuous disappearances of male members of the Royal Capital Adventurers Guild. Regardless of age. The case probably first occurred more than a month ago.”

“Continuous disappearances of male adventurers…. Are there any commonalities among the victims?”

Gray shrugged at Lyla’s question and shook his head from side to side.

“That’s it. Nothing except the fact that they’re adventurers. Age, marital status, race, origin. Everything is random. Thanks to that, I was racking my brains wondering if it wasn’t a case with some magical meaning.”

“I see…. If they’re only targeting men, they might be preparing for some ideology or ritual. What about the guards?”

“That’s it. It’s quite troublesome. The Adventurers Guild, which asked me to investigate, isn’t moving properly because adventurers keep disappearing, and the guards, for their part, aren’t taking it very seriously, saying that adventurers disappearing isn’t a new thing. Of course, that’s only on the surface, and in my opinion, it seems like someone from above gave the order.”

“If they can give orders to the guards, it’s the military… nobles or knights. Well. They tend to dislike adventurers, so it’s not strange, but.”

Lyla, hearing Gray’s words, frowned and thought of several possibilities, but she was annoyed by the situation where none of them had any basis to be specific.

Perhaps, she judges that it may be related to the succubus disturbance in the royal capital that Iona talked about, but she was a little reluctant to send Gray to the back alley.

“Okay. Then, I’ll investigate this too.”

“Really! Thank you! Then, I’ll contact you right away if I find out anything about Lord Setos and Albein!”

“Okay. …I’m saying this out of concern, but don’t go near the back alley. You’re a detective, so you know that the power struggles there have been intense recently, right?”

“Hehe, of course. It would be a waste of my life to stick my face in such a place and get taken care of.”

Hearing that answer, Lyla gets up from her seat.

“Oh, are you leaving already? I should have given you a cup of tea….”

“No thanks. I don’t even know how old the tea in this office is….”

Lyla said that to Gray and left Gray’s office without even accepting a send-off.

Gray scratched his head while watching Lyla’s back, then put on the hat he had placed on the desk.

“The back alley, huh… Is there something there?”

Saying that, he gathers his investigation equipment and quickly leaves the building.

001

“So. Someone is committing kidnapping, etc., targeting male adventurers.”

When Cleon said that after finishing his meal, Rampart nodded.

“Yeah. Thanks to that, the guild is completely short-handed. We’re sending support requests to the adventurers guilds in the provinces, but there are so few places that respond to it.”

Cleon nods at Rampart’s answer. Eustace probably received that support request and came here from Elesia.

It seems that it’s not just adventurers who have disappeared, but also the number of male employees in charge of the guild’s paperwork has decreased. Thanks to that, Eustace, who can read and write, was dragged out to the side to handle the backlog of paperwork as soon as he came to the guild in the royal capital.

“Cleon… maybe, this.”

“Yeah. It seems to be related to the case that Iona and Lubera are dealing with.”

“What are you guys. Do you know something about this case?”

To Rampart’s question, Cleon answered that succubi were expanding their territory in the back alley. Of course, he didn’t bring up anything about Amelia, because it was a national-level secret, even if the other party was Rampart.

Rampart and Eustace, hearing Cleon’s story, became a little cautious and lowered their voices.

“I see. The Tromea family is investigating things in the royal capital in that way. But, it’s only natural if you consider that it’s the family of the Minister of Defense.”

“But. It’s a little doubtful that the Order doesn’t know about that. …No, considering the current Pope’s and the Order’s stance, it would be right to intervene if they knew. Or, they might be pretending not to know.”

The two people who had each expressed their impressions closed their mouths, then made a difficult expression again.

“But, even if the culprit is a succubus, doubts remain. Succubi are certainly troublesome monsters, but the adventurers in the royal capital should be able to resist them to some extent. There are many guys who are skilled, even if their personalities are strange.”

Cleon nodded at Rampart’s words. So, he was thinking that there were more unknown facts in their methods.

“Anyway. This part overlaps with what we’re trying to solve. Maybe we can help each other.”

“We’d be grateful if you helped us…. Where did you guys make connections with nobles?”

When Rampart asked that question, Kuon made a troubled face and answered while slurring his words.

“Cleon is a master at getting along with women….”

“What…? Come to think of it, you seemed to get along well with the women in the hero’s party even when you were a child….”

Cleon, who had nothing to say to those two people’s stories, closed his mouth, and the two people burst into laughter when they saw Cleon like that.

Only one person, Eustace, seemed to be thinking something different.

“The devil’s hand approaching the royal capital….”

002

On the way back from the Adventurers Guild, the two people, Rampart and Eustace, were walking and talking about Eska, whom they had met during the day.

Kuon, who spotted Lyla, an unfamiliar girl in familiar clothes, walking from afar, waved her hand.

“Lyla~!”

Lyla, who flinched at the voice calling her, breathed a sigh of relief when she realized it was Kuon and came closer to where they were.

“You two haven’t gone home yet. How was the event at the temple?”

“It ended safely. I also met Lady Eska.”

When Kuon answered Lyla’s question, Lyla looked at Cleon for a moment.

[Was there anything strange?]

[No. How about your side?]

[On this side too, I just asked the informant I talked about this morning to investigate]

The two people’s telepathy was done quickly, and both of them smiled. However, Kuon, who was looking at Cleon and Lyla like that, was puffing out her cheeks.

“Really. You two. Do you think I don’t know?”

“What, what?”

“Telepathy. Of course, I can’t interfere, but did you think I wouldn’t notice?”

At those words, Lyla waved her hand in surprise.

“N, no Kuon! I just didn’t want you to worry! I wasn’t trying to leave you out at all!”

“Y, yeah. That’s right. There was something a little concerning, so that’s what we were talking about.”

When Cleon nodded at Lyla’s lame excuse, Kuon watched the two of them for a while, then sighed.

“It’s about Albein, right? Lord Setos, whom I saw at the mansion yesterday, might be Albein’s father. That kind of thing.”

The two people hesitated for a while about what to say to Kuon’s words, then nodded.

“I thought so. Maybe it’s almost certain. His face looks like Albein’s too. More than anything, he knew my aunt’s name.”

“…That means. Albein and Aruru are cousins. And a bastard of the Duke’s family.”

When Lyla said that, Cleon and Kuon both made complicated faces.

“But, Lord Setos didn’t seem to know that he had a child.”

“…That’s right. If he knew that his child was a hero. He would have brought him to the royal capital instead of Elesia.”

If Setos found out that his child was alive and was now in a forced labor facility, what would happen?

The group couldn’t help but have a bad feeling.

“…Anyway. You’ll have to be careful not to get caught.”

When Lyla said that, Kuon and Cleon also nodded.

“Let’s go home now, Sasha and the others might already be back. And, from tomorrow, I’ll be helping with the Duke’s family’s work in earnest.”

The moment Cleon said that and took a step forward.

“Kyaak…!”

Someone coming from the front collided with him, and the other person lost their balance and fell backwards.

It was a beautiful woman wearing slightly fancy clothes. Her alluring makeup and the sweet perfume scent emanating from her body told them well what kind of job she was in.

“Sorry. I should have been more careful.”

When Cleon said that and held out his hand, the woman took Cleon’s hand and got up.

“Ah, no. I’m sorry. Adventurer.”

“… …”

The woman said that and dusted herself off, then saw the stain on Cleon’s clothes caused by the liquor that splashed from the bottle she was carrying and was surprised and bowed her head repeatedly.

“S, sorry! My fault!”

“…No. It’s okay.”

The woman, looking at Cleon saying that, handed him something like a flyer. She looked somehow very familiar.

“I, I work at a place like this. I don’t have any cash right now, so if you happen to come by later, I’ll compensate you-”

“Wait. This man is our party member…. What are you doing in front of us?”

“Cleon…? You’re not thinking of going to a place like that, are you?”

The voices of Lyla and Kuon were heard from behind. Cleon hurriedly turned his head and there he saw Lyla with her hair burning red and Kuon with the light gone from her eyes looking at Cleon.

“No. Wait. This woman is-”

“T, then!”

The woman, probably frightened by Kuon and Lyla, gave him the flyer and ran away quickly. Cleon was looking at her back, but that seemed to anger Lyla and Kuon even more.

“Cle-on-?”

“Wait. Lyla. Kuon. The story I heard at the guild earlier…. Maybe we’ve found a clue quickly.”

Cleon said that and handed the flyer to Lyla and Kuon. As they had expected, the flyer was advertising a business-, that is, a brothel.

What’s more, it was a high-end brothel in the back alley.

“…No way.”

“That’s the no way. It’s a pretty simple method, but…. That woman just now, the series of actions was too familiar.”

The two people, becoming a little calmer at Cleon’s words, remembered that it was as he said.

“Then…. We’ll have to investigate the back alley after all.”

“I had assumed that from the beginning. But if we can pinpoint the location of the business like this, it won’t be easy for us to do it. …Ah, but today is impossible. Cleon’s activity limit time will be coming soon.”

Lyla looks at Cleon as if she suddenly remembered and says.

“…Activity limit time?”

“Yeah. The fatigue recovery medicine I injected this morning. If you don’t go home soon, you’ll collapse on the street, you know?”

“You…! You didn’t design it that way on purpose, did you!?”

Cleon was flustered by Lyla’s sudden words, but he certainly felt his body gradually getting heavier.

“Hehe- I wonder. Well. Let’s go home quickly! It’s a little late for a nap, but if you don’t want to collapse on the street.”

Lyla, looking at Cleon like that as if she was enjoying it, took the lead and walked forward. And Kuon, looking at Cleon worriedly, was preparing for any possible situation.

Cleon was feeling a headache and drowsiness at the same time, and was returning to the lodging.

003

When darkness completely fell on the royal capital, a figure was walking carefully along the moonlit back alley road.

He was hiding his identity by wearing a robe and hood, but judging from the swords hanging on both sides of his waist, he was not an ordinary person, and it could be seen that he was an adventurer or someone similar.

“…If I’m going to fight demons, it’s right for me, who has the power of the Holy Sword, to move.”

The young man, Eustace, said that and was carefully investigating the back alley.

The story he heard from Cleon during the day.

If there were demons threatening people, it was their job to stop them.

Of course, Eustace didn’t intend to delve too deep. He wasn’t conceited enough to do that.

“… …But, it’s really dark here. It wouldn’t be strange if something popped out at any moment.”

“What’s coming out, you say?”

At that time, a voice suddenly came from behind.

Eustace barely managed to hold back from screaming and turned around, and there stood a gray-haired child wearing a flat cap.

“…A kid? Why are you in a place like this at this hour.”

“That’s what I should be saying. Why is the adventurer in a place like this…. Maybe, are you looking for a brothel?”

“B, brothel! I have no intention of going to such an immoral place-”

“Your voice is too loud. If those strange guys patrolling the back alley hear you, you’ll be caught without fail. Ah. I’m Gray. I’m a detective.”

Gray said that and looked at Eustace’s appearance a little, then shrugged.

“I thought I’d seen your face somewhere. You’re Lord Eustace, the eldest son of the Woodnocker family. I heard the story that your family fell and you’re working as an adventurer.”

“Y, your business. More than that, Detective. What were you doing in the back alley?”

“Probably. The same purpose as what Lord Eustace was investigating. I’m investigating the Adventurers Guild’s disappearance case.”

When Gray said that, Eustace nodded and sighed.

“I see… So did you find out anything?”

“A few brothels in the back alley have been hiring quite a few employees recently. It’s strange. Not as many outside people have been flowing in as the number of brothel employees has increased.”

“…What does that-”

Eustace, as if he didn’t quite understand the meaning of what Gray was saying.

But at that moment, he felt that the moonlight from above that was shining on them was blocked by something.

When the two people simultaneously raised their heads-

“Oh my. I felt a holy aura and thought it was that child… but it was someone else? A half-baked hero and a cute little kid…”

A group of succubi fluttering their wings in alluring clothes. They seemed to have come looking for someone, but they licked their lips and approached with unexpected prey.

“…Looks like we’re in big trouble…”

“Keuk… Mystletainn!”

When Eustace drew his Holy Sword, two magic swords appeared dancing around him and slashed at the succubi. The injured succubi were sweating and retreated a little from them.

The succubus who seemed to be the leader of the group rather wore an excited smile and ridiculed Eustace.

“Oh my. Even if you’re half-baked, you can use the power of the Holy Sword.”

“I’ll open the way! Let’s get out of here together!”

“U, usually in this situation, isn’t it `I’ll buy time, run away!`!?”

“No, I have to live too!”

Eustace and Gray shouted that and tried to turn back and run in the direction they had come.

“Sleep.”

The moment a small girl’s voice, ringing quietly, led them into sleep.

They were certain that something had gone wrong.

004

Cleon was sleeping like a dead man. The reason was that two days’ worth of fatigue had come all at once, but a quiet lullaby melody coming from somewhere.

Once again pulled him into a deep dream.

And, slowly. Slowly. The mind was in a swamp of sleep like mud at the same time.

A sweet scent was felt coming from somewhere.

And- a sensation as if the body and mind were separated.

Cleon, noticing that this was the sensation of falling into a dream, recalls the existence of the `Incubus Dream` that he had heard from Iona and Lubera.

Lyla had put up a barrier, but perhaps swordsmen who have more affinity with the dark magic of demons are affected by the Incubus Dream regardless of such barriers.

However, if he was aware of it, there was no problem. No matter what temptation appeared, he just had to not respond to it.

Cleon found himself in the old house in Elesia where he had spent his childhood. He saw himself in the bedroom there.

However, only his body was that of an adult. It felt a little awkward sitting on the small bed.

Why, to this place.

“Cleon.”

At that time, a voice calling him from outside the room.

Cleon could tell that his heart was throbbing at that voice.

“L, Lesia…?”

When Cleon answered that voice, the door opened and she came in.

Not her usual appearance wearing her armor. Lesia in ordinary clothes that he could occasionally see.

She was already over 40 years old, but her aging was slow due to the power of the Holy Sword, so even compared to Cleon now, she didn’t seem to be that much older than him.

Still, her platinum blonde hair and blue eyes were sparkling and looked so dazzling to Cleon’s eyes.

Lesia, who appeared in the same appearance as she was back then, not degraded in his memory. He knew that this was an illusion.

Cleon’s soul was so eager to touch that Lesia.

“Cleon…”

Lesia calling him in a tearful voice.

Lesia- doesn’t make this kind of voice.

His whole body, his reason. Shouts at the foolish soul and mind.

With flushed skin, a flushed face. She doesn’t move her arms or twist her body as if to emphasize the feminine body felt beyond the thin clothes.

Cleon’s breathing was getting rougher.

He wanted to hug her right now. What he felt was not lust, but longing. And only self-loathing.

Slowly, he reached out his trembling arms to touch Lesia’s body.

The moment something was strongly cut with a seogeok-! sound.

Lesia- and the scenery that was with her itself was cut off.

Like a picture in paper being torn in two, the appearance of Lesia being torn cleanly.

When Cleon swallowed his breath, a hand came through the ceiling of the space he was in and spread it open to the sides.

The outside of the room he was in was all white space.

And there, Galatea, huge like a giant, was looking down at Cleon with pity.

“Galatea…”

The moment Cleon called his sword’s name like that.

He opened his eyes and saw Galatea sitting next to him, putting her hand on Cleon’s forehead.

“…Sorry. …And, thank you.”

“… …”

Galatea quietly closes her eyes after gently wiping Cleon’s eyes with her fingers.

Then, the small area of cloth that was draped over her body scattered like smoke, exposing the important parts of the covered woman.

“I don’t want to be her substitute.”

“…Yeah.”

Cleon nodded, holding the hand that such Galatea had reached out.

And, quietly hugging each other.