Would he come along with me, saying that it was no big deal at all? Would he give his life for me?
“Kousuke…”
I thought of him and called out his name.
When the bodyguards I had trusted betrayed me, and when an ogre far more powerful than myself had attacked me, it was Kousuke who had come to my aid.
I could ask him. I knew he would come if I did.
Just then, I heard a loud rattling, and my door opened.
“Heya, Ludie.”
He strolled in like it was nothing.
—Takioto’s Perspective—
According to what Sophia’s mother explained to us after Ludie had been led away…
“So there’s an item related to the Malevolent Lord in the Sanctuary? And the thing the Church made off with is the key to enter the Sanctuary. Also, it’s impossible to enter the Sanctuary without either the key or without someone of imperial blood.”
“That’s right.”
The more time went by, the higher the likelihood the Church would get their hands on the item they were looking for. There was a chance the lives of the citizens could be at risk, too. However, since there were formidable monsters in the Sanctuary, His Majesty needed to prepare accordingly before heading there.
“…What happened to Ludie?”
“Well, I expected her to say she would go instead, so…”
Sophia evasively trailed off. I supposed she couldn’t come out and say she confined Ludie to her room. For now, however, I decided to side with Sophia.
“Right, that would be really concerning, wouldn’t it? You have my sympathies.”
“Thank you. And allow me to apologize for getting you all wrapped up in this.”
“Please, don’t lower your head; it’s not your fault,” Yukine said to Sophia as the latter bowed to us.
We had been summoned here because there was a chance Ludie would go out of control and head into the Sanctuary. She had been confined to her room for the time being. Also, since there was some chance that the Church would try to harm us, the imperial family had decided to protect us here in the castle as well.
“I’m sure this really inconvenient for you, but I’d like you to stay here in the castle a bit longer.”
Sophia looked genuinely apologetic.
“Not at all. I couldn’t think of anywhere more comfortable than here. Especially with such delicious food around,” Yuika said.
“Thank you. It’s a relief to hear that.”
“Is Ludie in her room?”
“That’s right.”
“I hope she’s not too dispirited by all this. I’m sure she’d feel better if we could give her some support, though.” I tried asking in a roundabout way if we could see Ludie and talk with her.
“Oh, she’ll be just fine. I’m here, and she has Claris and the other bodyguards with her, too.”
However, Sophia gently rejected me.
“I see. I’m worried, but if you’re there with her, Mrs. Tréfle, I’m sure she’ll be fine.”
Sophia nodded, then left the room to attend to other matters as soon as we finished talking.
A few moments after the door closed behind her, Yuika looked at me.
“How exactly do you manage to get wrapped up in trouble so often?” she asked before she drained the rest of her cup of tea.
“I think it’s nice that I know I’ll never be bored when I’m with Takioto,” Yukine said, standing up and lightly stretching her shoulders.
“I knew you’d see it that way, Yukine. Hey, Yuika, you heard that, right? You’ve got a childish way of looking at things, okay?”
“Indeed, I have never been bored while with Master. From offering up my panties to having my clothes become see-through, there’s always something.”
“Please forgive me.”
I really didn’t want to remember all that stuff, thank you.
“Joking aside, what are we going to do?”
C’mon, Yuika, we didn’t need to talk about that—just one look at me should’ve made it clear. Hell, same went for her, too.
“You’re literally getting ready to move as you ask that, you know.”
“Hmm, I suppose so. I didn’t even need to ask, did I? What do you think, Yukine?”
“Hmmmm…” Yukine let out a troubled grunt with a wincing smile. “To be perfectly honest, I don’t really want you all to do anything dangerous.”
After saying this, she took out her naginata and began to check its condition. At the same time, Nanami started looking through the foodstuffs she had taken out of her item bag.
“You know, Yukine, that’s a bit rich coming from you.”
That was big talk from someone who would fly into whatever hell necessary to help her friends. Though I loved that part about her, too! Bwa-ha-ha!
“You’re the last person I want to hear that from,” she said with a smile.
Yuika nodded several times in agreement.
“That’s a good point. No matter who’s in trouble, you jump headlong into danger.”
“Now, now, everyone, I think that’s enough teasing Master for now. He’s an incorrigible pervert—can we simply leave it at that? More importantly, I think it prudent we move fast.”
“Y’know, I think you’re the one who’s teasing me the most, Nanami.”
Though to be honest, none of that was really important. The Church followers should’ve already infiltrated the Sanctuary by now, so we needed to get moving.
“First of all, we need to meet up with Ludie. Then we gotta ask what she wants to do.”
“That’s true. This does all depend on her.”
“If Ludie still insists on going into the Sanctuary, then obviously, I’m planning on going with her, but what about you all?” I asked.
“I mean, you don’t really need to ask, do you?” said Yuika.
“Ludie’s pretty much family,” added Yukine.
“If anything were to befall Miss Ludie, my whole plan would fall apart.”
Right, we were all thinking the same thing. Not that I had a clue about this plan of Nanami’s or whatever.
“For now, let’s make for where Ludie is. Sophia said she was in her room, right?”
Yukine nodded.
“Hmm, the security will be a big problem.”
The castle guards were on watch, protecting Ludie. We would need to evade their detection to go meet her.
“Right, so what should we do? Knock them all out?”