“I told you not to call me ‘my lady,’” Elvie scolded.
“Yes, but normally we’re…”
“I also said not to address me that way when I have guests.”
Evidently, Elvie didn’t care for being called a lady in front of others. Rila must have sympathized, for she nodded.
The boy looked between me and the two beautiful women. His face turned bright red when his eyes met Rila’s.
“Ahem. Normally I would tell you to take it easy today, but in light of present circumstances, I’d like to show you a map of the incident to explain what transpired,” said Elvie.
“Fine by me.”
“Thank you.”
Elvie, seemingly eager to leave the stables quickly, strode toward the manor gate. Rila glanced back at the boy, who waved at her.
“I am a sinful lady,” she remarked.
“Yes,” I agreed. “You’ve committed a terrible offense.”
“Hee-hee,” Rila laughed.
We passed through the gate and entered a symmetrical garden.
Two women I assumed were servants gave us deep bows at the door. As expected, they greeted Elvie with a simultaneous “Welcome home, my lady.”
Elvie went as red as she had with the stableboy, and she reminded the maids to address her by name.
“I take no offense at the title,” Rila assured.
“Yeah, I don’t care what they call you, my lady,” I added.
Elvie flushed deeper. “St-stop that. Don’t tease me.”
She took us to a guest room and had us wait while she left to retrieve something. When she returned, she was holding paper rolled into a tube, likely the blueprints of the castle.
“Very few people are permitted to keep these plans in their possession…” Elvie glanced at Rila as though she had more to say.
“There is no cause for worry. I cannot memorize a layout simply by looking at it. I do not mind if you show me. Go on.” Rila waved her hands in an exaggerated motion, urging Elvie to continue.
“Why does she act so high-and-mighty?” Elvie whispered to me.
“Because she’s basically royalty in another country.”
“I see…”
Thankfully, that explanation satisfied her. I technically didn’t give her the full truth, but this worked fine, since it wasn’t a total lie, either.
“Why does someone like her live with you?”
“It’s a long story.”
Elvie frowned. “According to Almelia, you have something called a ‘shared house’? Is that what this is? You’re not involved with her in a funny way, are you?”
“Define ‘funny’?”
Judging by her questions, Elvie wasn’t interested in Rila’s background so much as our relationship.
“Er, w-well…”
“You may tell the delicate maiden,” Rila announced. “Our relationship is most impure.”
“R-Roland?! I cannot believe you!”
Elvie turned scarlet and shot straight up.
“Calm down, Elvie, she’s teasing.”
Truthfully, Rila’s description of our relationship was accurate.
“I’m aware that you’re a womanizer,” Elvie grumbled.
“That’s not true… They come to me.”
“What’s the difference?! You really haven’t changed… In that way, at least.”
Evidently, Elvie found this exchange somewhat nostalgic—she suddenly laughed.
“Now back to the matter at hand.”
She spread the paper that had been rolled up in the tube. Its contents depicted the castle interior. Elvie told us about the guard situation just before King Rubens—his name was Mefis the Second—was killed.
Rila wasted no time ordering the servants around and telling them to bring booze.
“I was giving commands and making arrangements for the guards. Do you see any potential openings?” Elvie asked.
“I don’t. You’ve used the fewest number of people possible, but arranged them to cover one another’s blind spots.”
“In that case…”
“Were I the assassin…” I traced my finger along the castle plan to highlight the path of the hypothetical assassin. No one saw the king die. None were killed except the target. It was a clean, perfect job.
“…”
A feeling of wrongness built in me as I explained how it could have happened.
“I see… So you would have been able to do it that way,” Elvie said.
“…”
That was odd.
She’s right. I could do it.
The only route I saw was doable, but only with my skill, Unobtrusive.
Even if the true assassin used an ability that made them imperceptible, Elvie’s guard formation had no weaknesses. It was near impossible for any run-of-the-mill assailant to succeeded without being spotted or killing a guard.
So what if someone with a great, rare skill had decided to do the deed?
Someone like that wouldn’t choose to be an assassin in the first place. Most that lucky became thieves instead. A person with the power to turn invisible could steal money directly from multiple people. The same thing could be accomplished with a skill to disguise yourself as other people or objects. Few would choose to kill people with options like those, which meant they weren’t cut out for assassination.
Once I had the whole story, it didn’t seem so odd that Elvie suspected I was responsible for the king’s death.
“…Was it me?”
Honestly, it was the only reasonable conclusion.
“Roland, wake up.”
My eyes snapped open, and I saw Elvie.
“What happened?”
The room was dimly lit. Based on the weight of my eyelids, it was shortly after dawn.
Rila slept in the bed next to mine.
“It is alcohol from your own home! Why do you not drink it?!”
She’d imbibed heavily and ranted at Elvie while trying to force booze on the other woman.
Elvie had rejected the demon lord, though. “No, thank you. I have to work tomorrow.”
Ultimately, I wound up keeping Rila company until she was done. When she woke up today, she’d have an awful headache and feel sick.
Transferring her to another bed despite her wanting to sleep in mine was the right call.
“I have morning training. I’d like you to observe,” Elvie said.
“All right.”
Elvie waited patiently while I got changed.
“I heard that you lost your arm…protecting Almelia. Was the opponent that powerful?”
“Yes,” I answered.
Elvie seemed to infer something from my succinct reply. She didn’t inquire further.
We left the room and headed to the rear yard where training ordinarily took place. Elvie picked up one of the wooden swords leaning against the storage house.
As soon as she started her practice swings, she began to pant.
“Good form. Looks like you’re putting your all into each attack.”
“You said”—her sword cut through the air with a keen sound—“that training for a real battle means swinging with all I’ve got, just like genuine combat.”
“You remember well.”
Elvie’s straightforward and earnest personality was plain in her swings. Undoubtedly, she practiced every day.
“So…they keep you on as a guild employee even with your injury?”
“At the moment, it doesn’t seem to get in the way of my work.”
“I see. I-if you do quit, I’d like you to come to the Haydence family for whatever you need.”
“I doubt it will come to that… But if it does, then I will.”
“Y-yes. You should.”
The morning sun continued to rise, and eventually Elvie sighed deeply and ended her training. She accepted a towel from a maid and wiped away her sweat.
“I’m headed to the bath. Breakfast is ready, so she will guide you over… If you would please handle the rest.” She looked to the servant.