Yukine had voiced her agreement. How rude. Well, at least we weren’t going through as many twists and turns as there were in a mystery manga.
“It feels like I’ve exhausted a lifetime’s worth of major events in just the past few months. At least be aware you’re a walking troublemaker, okay?”
I did feel a little like I was sticking my head into trouble, so I supposed I might have come across like someone who enjoyed dancing into oncoming traffic.
“So what did you do this time, Kousuke?”
“Nothing!”
I seriously hadn’t done anything. This was all the Church of the Malevolent Lord’s fault.
We watched all the different news reports playing on the TV for a little while longer before there was a knock on the door to our room.
It was Sophia, looking solemn and serious.
“What’s wrong, Mother?”
Her expression didn’t appear to have originated from a burning desire to see her beloved daughter as soon as she could. Rather, Sophia looked a bit panicked.
She hesitated for a few moments but then decided to talk.
“To make a long story short… We found out that the Church of the Malevolent Lord made off with the elven treasure while all those attacks were being carried out.”
The mood in the room instantly grew leaden.
“I can’t go into any details here…but I will explain after, so I want you all to wait here. It’s not clear what exactly the Church is scheming yet, so I’d like you to stay inside the castle, okay?”
“We understand.”
We all nodded.
“I’ll show you somewhere you can relax after finishing your meal, so once you’re done, let the maid at the entrance know, okay? Ludie, Claris, come with me.”
Sophia then left the room with her daughter and Claris in tow.
From there, we quickly finished our meal, and an elven maid and soldier led us to a spare room.
Once we entered, the maid told us to summon her if we should need anything, then departed.
While I pondered over what to do next, I caught a glimpse of Yuika deep in thought, her arms crossed and one hand resting under her chin.
“What’s up, Yuika?”
“…Oh, sorry, Takioto.”
Her response came after a moment’s pause.
“Well, it’s just, I have some questions.”
“Questions?”
“If the elven treasure was stolen, you’d wonder why we were the ones summoned like this, right? Though, the first thing that comes to mind is the possibility they suspect we did it, I guess.”
“True.”
No matter how friendly we may have been with Ludie, to her family, we were outsiders.
“But with all this freedom they’re giving us right now, I’m not feeling much suspicion from them, really.”
“An astute observation, Miss Yuika. If they did suspect us at all and there was any chance we would try to flee, I doubt they would have purposefully requested we come to the castle. Were I in such a position, I would have immediately sent soldiers to secure us.”
Nanami had a point. That and, they wouldn’t have brought us into such a nice room. Heck, in the worst-case scenario, they might have locked us in jail.
“Then why did they summon us here?”
This was Yuika’s question.
“The simplest explanation…has to be that if the Church is involved here, then we’re in danger, too,” Yukine said. Well, this was probably where your mind would normally go.
“The thing is, Yukine, I have this strange feeling that’s not it,” said Yuika.
She was right. Also, if the danger really was closing in on us, then normally, one would have thought to increase the number of guards with us until we had gotten to our rooms. While there had been a soldier among the group who had picked us up, that wasn’t nearly enough people to provide protection.
“First, there’s one assumption to keep in mind. Among the four of us, the only people the Church has anything to gain from targeting are Ludie and Takioto, right?”
While I wish she wouldn’t have thrown my name in the mix, when I thought about my position, it made sense. At present, no one on the Church side knew about Yuika’s true identity, either.
“Also, if I was going to go after Takioto or Ludie, I would have either attacked them while stealing the empire’s national treasure, or beforehand, at least.”
“I believe I would do the same. Our foe must understand that security would be tightened as soon as something occurred,” Nanami agreed.
“There’s no way a group as cunning as the Church of the Malevolent Lord doesn’t understand that. Also, Ludie’s family must know their daughter was at very little risk of danger.”
“Hmm. Even then, there was still some possibility that we’d be targeted.”
“I believe you’re right, Yukine. That was why they summoned us here, but if that was all, couldn’t they have sent several guards to meet us before we went to the castle?”
Yukine nodded.
“Also, they basically stuffed us in here with zero explanation. What did the Empress even mean when she said she would explain everything later? It really sounds to me like they don’t want us involved at all.”
“Well, part of that’s gotta be because we’re students.”
“Obviously, I can understand that they did this to protect us, but if that was the case, they would’ve beefed up the security, right? They could’ve at least stationed a soldier here with us. Plus, I would assume they would keep Ludie and Takioto together if they both needed protecting.”
Hey, Yuika, you sure you wouldn’t make a good detective?
“So that’s why I really get the feeling they have some other reason they’re doing this. Like, maybe this national treasure is actually a really big deal in all sorts of ways,” said Yuika.
“Surely, anything worthy of being labeled a national treasure must be quite the item.”
“Also, you know how strong Ludie’s sense of justice is, right? Plus, she fully understands her own position and her duties, and she has the strength of will to act on her own.”
“That’s true.”
While Ludie loved her ramen and tended to seem clumsy or unreliable in her day-to-day life, she was still part of a respected imperial family, with a noble mind worthy of her status.