“Oh, I can’t take it anymore!”
“Wh-What? You don’t need to sh-shout like that…”
A voice broke the peaceful silence of the guild, prompting Krankheit to jump in surprise. She didn’t even try to hide her discomfort as she glared at the source of the voice, Vampille—a noblewoman well-known for her stupidity. Krankheit generally hated everyone at Yerkchira except for Master, but the noble was by far the worst of the bunch.
Vampille spun about to face the gloomy girl. “Soulgros, that’s what! How dare she go on a date with Master?! I won’t stand for it!”
Of course she won’t, Krankheit thought with a sigh. Vampille never needed an excuse to start shouting, but she was exceptionally loud and empty-headed whenever Master was involved.
“B-But… we all decided that Soulgros would have her date with Master next…”
When Laladie had abducted Master, the ninja went above and beyond to stop the alraune. She was awarded the second date in recognition of her service. There was nothing but vapid incredulity in Vampille’s eyes as she glared back, however.
“Who cares about that? I don’t like it, and that’s that. I’m going to ruin their outing.”
“What a bitch,” Krankheit muttered.
The girl broke out in a cold sweat. She knew she couldn’t possibly talk Vampille out of her insanity, and she turned to Anat, the guild’s surrogate leader, for aid.
“T-Tell her she can’t.”
“Hmm.” Anat pursed her lips in thought. “Why not?”
Krankheit wasn’t expecting that reply. “B-But you’re the one who said Soulgros could date Master in the first place…”
Anat smiled warmly. “Yes, but did I say I wouldn’t interfere? Did I promise not to ruin their time together?”
Krankheit paled. I thought she was supposed to keep the peace…
Vampille grinned proudly at her ally. “I wasn’t expecting sense from you, but I welcome it wholeheartedly!”
“O-Oh, no… H-How are you even going to find out where Soulgros and Master are, though? We only figured it out when L-Laladie abducted him because we had Soulgros to help… You can’t rely on her this time; she’s the enemy.”
Now that their interference was a foregone conclusion, Krankheit was fully prepared to throw in her lot with the pair. She hated the thought of Soulgros getting flirty with Master as much as they did. The issue of how to track down their opponent remained, however, as Soulgros was by far the most skilled tracker in Yerkchira.
“Hmm… Excellent question.” Anat paused to consider her question.
“Can’t you just track them?!” Vampille whined.
“O-Of course she can’t,” Krankheit muttered.
A moment later, however, they heard the ringing of approaching footsteps behind them.
“I can.”
The trio whipped about to find Ritter standing there, as expressionless as always.
“Ritter?” Vampille raised an incredulous eyebrow. “Are you quite certain?”
She nodded firmly. “I’ll follow the scent to Master.”
“I-Is she a dog…?” Krankheit wondered aloud.
It was a downright inhuman tracking method, but apparently the petite knight was convinced that following the most pleasant smell would take her to Master.
Anat shook her head. “Thank you, but I don’t think any of us will need to leave just yet.”
“Why?”
Ritter’s eye filled with confusion. She would kill Anat on the spot if she was suggesting they allow Soulgros to roam free, and yet Krankheit knew the priestess would rather die than give another woman the edge in winning over Master.
“Laladie and Leiss are already gone,” Anat replied matter-of-factly.
In other words, they had two guildmates running interference already. If nothing else, the women of Yerkchira could rely on each other to be treacherous to no end.