So then why had I asked Fyodor to remove their collars? In Seele’s case, it was as I’d explained earlier: I wanted to make sure her desire for me to eat her soul wasn’t just because she served me and was truly her own will. This was the only way to be certain. And Lunamaria... Truthfully, I just felt I couldn’t free one without freeing the other. But there was a reason for choosing to do it now: My enslavement of Lunamaria had been a thorn piercing Raz’s heart, and if I removed that thorn, his animosity toward me might weaken or even disappear completely. Besides, if I was going to invite Sela into my clan at a later date, I couldn’t have Seele and Lunamaria walking around the house in slave collars. There’s no telling what she’d think of me. It could even be the deciding factor that made her refuse to join. Most of all, even if I released Lunamaria now, I trusted that she wasn’t going to turn on me, so I used the opportunity to wipe out all of my concerns at once by freeing them both from my service.
With the two women freed, it was time to prepare for welcoming Claudia to my home. While I was tidying up and doing chores, feeling like an overworked housemaid, Miroslav came over to me with some interesting news. Apparently, the royal capital’s guildmaster wanted to arrange a meeting with me.
My response was brief but definite. “Politely turn him down.”
She blinked in surprise. “Really? Are you sure?”
“I am. However he reacts, I’m not worried.” At the moment, my plan was to pick a fight with the guild peacefully. And if I ended up getting into it with the guild here, it wouldn’t be peaceful anymore. So the safest bet was to just ignore their advances.
Of course, I’d be happy to watch Elgart and Ridelle squirm from a distance, grinning and crowing, “Serves you right!” That should still count as peaceful. Probably.
Of course, I wasn’t choosing to rest on my laurels and spectate from the sidelines. It was just that if I made a move now, the guild might catch on to my real plan, and I wanted to avoid that at all costs. In other words, it was time for part three of Operation Pick a Peaceful Fight with the Guild! The plan was simple: publicly announce the Falcon Blades’ intent to use me as bait during their battle with the Lord of the Flies, and then make them apologize for it. And with the leader Raz already heading to Merte, the next logical candidate to apologize to me was the true mastermind behind it all, Miroslav. This way, she and I could claim that she’d joined the Bloodstained Blades as a way of taking responsibility for what she’d done, and Miroslav joining my clan would look completely natural.
The culprit would apologize, and the victim would forgive her. With that, the incident would come to a close at last, and everything would be resolved peacefully. Of course, when the truth got out to the public, it would become clear what stance Ishka’s Adventurer’s Guild had taken on the matter, and their attempt to twist the facts to protect their own reputation would be exposed, but how could they blame me for that? All I’d done was come to an amicable settlement with the Falcon Blades. Even if the guild’s reputation happened to take a nosedive and they were shamed by the public, even if guildmasters from other towns tried to accuse me of foul play, they couldn’t pin all that on me! Elgart and Ridelle should have stuck to working for the sake of Ishka, as they so proudly claimed to.
Miroslav, for her part, had probably assumed I was going to use Sergei and his Horus branch to corner Ishka’s branch even further, which was why she’d looked so surprised. But if I did that, I’d be coming up to the front line. I wanted to resolve this peacefully and indirectly but also make sure those involved knew exactly what my intent was. In that sense, this was the perfect way to do it. And there was another reason as well: Onigashima. I probably still had a bit of time before the Mitsurugis found out about Jijinbou’s death and dispatched a substitute here, but even so, I couldn’t waste time feuding with the guild at present.
“So that’s why I’ve decided to put the guild on hold for now.”
“I see. I understand, master,” Miroslav said. By the way, her “master” was not the same as Lunamaria’s “master.” She was referring to me not as a slave owner, but as the leader of our clan. I still wasn’t used to this politeness and deference from her. To think that the day would come where she’d come up to me and call me her master! Back during our time in the cave, I never would have guessed this would happen. Even in those days, she’d never been this submissive. To be honest, it was pretty awkward, even uncomfortable, to the point where I even suspected this might all be part of her plan to “peacefully pick a fight with her clan master.”
Whether she guessed my inner feelings or not, she continued in a calm voice, “I have something else to report as well.”
“Hm? What would that be?”
“My father wants to meet with you. If you could at least give this proposal some consideration, I’d really appreciate it.”
“The Sauzaar president? What, to thank me for saving you?”
“That’s what he says, but I suspect he’s really after the connections you possess. Not only have you made the acquaintance of Count Elbe now, but you’ve formed close ties with the Dragonauts as well. I’m guessing he heard about both of those.”
“He’d have to have some good ears, then. What do you think? Should I accept?”
“I will abide by whatever you decide, master,” the man-hating, father-despising mage said calmly. “He’s probably looking for a replacement for the support the Falcon Blades gave him. If you accept, it might make it easier for you to gain his aid in the future. But as a trade-off, nobles and their ilk might try to use you more. If that’s not ideal for you, it might be best to refuse.”
“So you’re saying it doesn’t matter to you either way?”
“Yes, master. Whatever choice you make, I’ll be happy.” She looked at me with moist, upturned eyes. The gaze that had once held such disgust and loathing now displayed the exact opposite.
My chest began to flutter, and I found myself thinking that she was absolutely captivating. I swallowed nervously. Before, her hair had been long, all the way down to her waist. Once I’d released her, she’d chopped most of it off, but now her hair was shoulder-length again. Despite knowing this woman all too well, I felt like I was looking at a complete stranger. Feeling a stifling, oppressive air for some reason, I attempted to shake it off by wrapping her in a sudden, tight embrace.
She didn’t resist.