“It’s bad—really, really, really, really bad! It’s bad news! I shouldn’t have looked! I—I never should have learned about this!”
✦ ✦ ✦
The person on the other end was yelling.
“Salinger, how could you have shown this to me?!”
“What do you mean?”
He didn’t understand what was going on.
The engineer had taken an oddly long time to analyze the chip, and now he was accosting Salinger when he finally called back. Why was the man panicking?
“I paid you. Tell me how the analysis went.”
“It’s that chip! I’m taking off. To the Sovereignty’s… No, I can’t go anywhere here. I’m defecting to the Empire!”
“What are you talking about?”
Defecting? To the Empire?
The voice on the other end of the comm quivered. Was the engineer scared?
“What’s wrong? If you finished analyzing the chip, then you must have seen what was on it, yes?”
“……A monster.”
“A monster?”
It sounded like a metaphor rather than a joke.
Sometimes, purebreds were referred to as monsters, for their inordinate power. In fact, that word probably was a good description for someone he knew well—Mira.
However…
Why would the engineer be scared of a “monster” like that?
“A-anyway, I’m out!”
“Wait! Are you forgetting how much I paid you?”
“Th-then I’ll send you a digital report later! Bye!”
The comm cut off.
Should he call the engineer back? No, based on what had just happened, the man probably wouldn’t pick up.
……This is strange. He was so agitated.
……If he wanted to just run off with the money, he could have left without contacting me.
In other words, the engineer had been telling the truth.
He was scared of whatever was on the chip.
“Hmm? The report came through.”
He got a message on his comm.
It was a list of names—not even full sentences.
“Seventh Queen, Mirabella, On, Logias, Growley, Shaklek, Kospital…Schwartz, Harley, Gauch. These are all members of the royal family. But they’re Zoa and Lou names, not any of the Hydra.”
They were all powerful members of the Zoa and Lou, Mira included.
……Is it a list of people to watch in the conclave?
……Or could they be influential people the Hydra are trying to keep an eye on?
But that didn’t explain why the engineer was so frightened.
And then…
“‘Subject F’? What does that mean?”
On the list of royal family members and their attendants was one name he didn’t recognize.
What was a “subject”?
The message was only a text. He had the feeling, however, that there were originally images to go along with the names.
……Think about it the other way. Why didn’t he send me the photos?
……Was he afraid?
He must have determined that the images were too dangerous to send.
The engineer had seen something. But if he was too scared to even send the images, then…
“Huh?! Harley and Logias?!”
He looked at the screen again.
Salinger repeated the list of names again in his head.
✦ ✦ ✦
“…someone attacked the previous head of the Zoa, Lord Logias, along with his attendants Harley and Gauch.”
“…to determine whether you were the perpetrator of these incidents.”
✦ ✦ ✦
They had been attacked.
Several people on the list had been attacked and were now in critical condition. If this wasn’t a coincidence…
“No way. The Hydra couldn’t have…”
In the empty rocky ridge, a chilling wind tickled his back.
“This isn’t a list of people to watch. It’s a list of targets!”
✦ ✦ ✦
The Nebulis palace.
The royal family and its vassals had gathered in a meeting room.
They all stared at the documents in their hands, their mouths pulled taut.
“I will give testimony. The culprit is none other than the sorcerer Salinger!”
A man with a large build shouted, his voice trembling with rage.
This was the Hydra Astral Guard Janess. Salinger’s attack had left him seriously wounded, though he had since recovered.
“The coward hid in the shadows to attack me. You can even see it on the security cameras! Your Majesty! These violent incidents have dragged on for three weeks, resulting in many civilian victims. We must dedicate all our resources to resolving them!”
“Janess, thank you for your counsel.”
The queen leaned both her elbows against the table.
Though her eyes were as sharp and piercing as always, her tone was hesitant.
“We agree on the point that he attacked you. However…we only have inconclusive witness reports to corroborate the other incidents you’ve accused him of perpetrating. Is it necessary for the queen to order the arrest of a single criminal?”
✦ ✦ ✦
“I believe this is more than enough reason to.”
✦ ✦ ✦
The man’s low voice was so calm, it seemed almost out of place as it reverberated through the space.
He sat three seats down from the queen. The man wore a crimson suit over his impressive build, sitting in perfect tranquility.
The head of the Hydra, Arken.
With his lustrous blond hair, parted in a perfect seven-to-three ratio, and his slight mustache, he projected an air of elegance.
“Your Majesty, Janess is not simply asking you to be wary of a single criminal. These incidents could shake the entire nation.”
“And what makes you think that, Lord Arken?”
“Because Salinger’s crime spree has continued. As far as we are aware, he started by stealing astral powers from the astral corps and military police.”
He was stocking up on astral powers. And after arriving in the central state, he had attacked Janess.
“Do you think this is enough to satisfy him? No. He’s set his sights on the astral powers of the Revered Founder’s direct descendants. Your Majesty, you are his true target.”
“……Tsk.” The queen narrowed her eyes. “Lord Arken, I’m sure you are only issuing this warning out of your own anxiety. However, do you truly believe a common criminal of unknown origin could defeat me?”
“Everyone knows that Cassandra Zoa Nebulis VII possesses the astral power of Inferno.”
Fwoom.
Arken produced a lighter from his pocket and flicked it on.
He showed off the flame to everyone.
“Flame astral power is strong, but as you can see here, it falls behind Ice and Wind types in defense.”
He tilted his glass of water over the flame.
The water fell onto it, and the fire extinguished.
Though even children were aware that water put out fires, the same concept applied to astral powers. It was well-known that Flame astral power was at a disadvantage against Water and Ice types.
Additionally, flames couldn’t protect one from bullets or a knife wielded at close distance.
In other words, it had many weaknesses.
“Flame astral power is susceptible to surprise attacks. And the sorcerer Salinger is a craven individual who would stoop to any level. As long as he’s at large, Your Majesty, you can’t ever afford to let your guard down, even when you sleep or bathe. He seems to have a great many tricks up his sleeve, so I am sure it would be easy for him to infiltrate the castle.”
“…”
“Please understand, my queen. Janess and I have made this proposal out of concern for your welfare.”
“Lord Arken, I appreciate your counsel…” The queen sighed. “I believe there is no merit to my involvement in the matter of a lowly criminal… However, in light of your concerns, I shall place an order for the sorcerer Salinger’s arrest.”
This was bad.
As Mira watched the event unfold before her, she couldn’t help but feel internal discord.
The queen had designated Salinger a top criminal.
He wouldn’t be able to go to public establishments like stations or airports, and with the military police on patrol, he wouldn’t even be able to step out under the light of the sun.
……How could the Hydra do this?
……To my Salinger?!
In her eyes, they had gotten everything wrong from the start. Salinger wasn’t even behind these mysterious attacks.
However…
There was one thing she couldn’t deny.
……Salinger wouldn’t attack the general populace.
……But I could see him going after the queen.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Salinger, do you dislike the Sovereignty?”
“Not really.”
“So you just dislike the royal family?”
“That’s right.”