Maccad Empire, Emperor’s Office
The sound of a stamp being pressed down and the scratching of a pen rang out through the room, which was seemingly isolated from the world. Beyond the window lay a very geometrically arranged courtyard, filled with greenery. The warm rays of the sun shone in through the window. The temperature of the room was perfect with the help of a magic tool and the volume of the sound filtering in from outside was also perfect. The room came equipped with many different functions, but the emperor favored its soundproofing the most. The entire room could have been considered a magic tool, and it had been crafted by the world’s most skilled magic tool user.
There was a knock at the heavy wooden doors.
“Who’s there?”
“Indera Djenda, sir.”
“Enter.”
“Thank you.” She bowed as she came into the room, approaching the desk where the emperor was seated.
“Here are the materials regarding the former Rising Sun Kingdom’s territories,” she said, handing a heavy stack of bound papers to him. Despite its thickness, it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. Due to how busy the emperor was, it was her job as the chancellor to filter out unnecessary information for him.
“Hm...” The emperor put his hand to his chin, reading the documents silently.
They contained basic information, such as updates on the production of crops and magic tools, the current state of the economy, and the positions of the various lords within their territories. It was all necessary to enable governance.
However, what he was reading now was very different from the information the Maccad Empire had previously received. The Maccad Empire had had a spy in the Rising Sun Kingdom, so they’d been able to collect information on their own—information that was perhaps even more accurate than what they’d received from the various lords in the Rising Sun Kingdom. Regardless, it didn’t contradict the official information they received.
However, it wasn’t that which caught his eye. Rather, it was the results of the investigation into the person who’d attacked the castle. Due to the fire, all of the evidence and everyone who could’ve given testimony aside from the heroes had been destroyed or killed. From the small scraps of evidence that they were able to recover, they’d learned that a third party—a new demon king—had most likely been responsible for it all.
“The corpses of the royal family were not found.”
“More specifically, they could not be identified due to the intensity of the flames. It is unclear whether they are alive or dead, but...”
Judging from what had happened, it would’ve been easy to determine that they’d died. According to the statements of the heroes, the king and queen were most definitely dead. The lords had also backed this up by saying that Bitrei had been targeting the royal family. Most likely, the second princess had also died in the castle.
The castle also had a hidden passageway, but all they found within it were the burned corpses of soldiers who had been lying there in wait. Thus, it was very difficult to imagine that the second princess had survived.
The emperor tilted his head. “These flames are a little too convenient, don’t you think?”
“How so?”
“It’s almost as if someone was using them to erase evidence. It’s not something demons would do.”
“But according to Ryuto’s testimony—”
“I know. But still...” He trailed off, collecting his thoughts before confirming something with Indera. “Has the castle been left as it was?”
“Yes—we have preserved the scene as best as we could.”
“Good. Then let’s have the Traveling Noble investigate.”
“Sir... Are you certain?” At first, Indera was surprised, but she understood. The Noble was the best magic tool engineer in the world. But also...
“The Noble has met the second princess before. Perhaps that person may be able to find something. Make contact immediately,” the emperor commanded.
“Yes, sir.”
The gears of the story Inori had thought concluded were, unbeknownst to him, turning once again.