“About this afternoon...”
After returning to the Weinder Company’s shop in the outer area of the capital, I asked Jacob about what went on today.
“Did you figure out something about that stupid prince...? I mean, the Empire?”
“About that... they actually ended up getting intel on us.”
“Wha— The Empire? Why?!”
We’re just a humble copper company. Did they mark me because of what happened in the afternoon?
“One of the third prince’s subordinates got in touch with me while they were all together.”
“...We’re just a little copper, dammit... Wait, how do they know your face?”
“They were apparently camping out near Reylia during the monster flood’s suppression, and investigated the Weinders during that time.”
“Drat... So?”
“He said something about wanting to talk to you again.”
“And of course, you refused, right?”
“Hell no. You think the guard of a humble copper company could do that? Still, thanks to that, we managed to match up what intel we had. I did figure some things out about that group in black.”
Jacob’s expression turned to that of a professional in an instant.
“First, they’re pros.”
“Pros? You mean they’re all experienced combat personnel? They were all pretty young, weren’t they? Since they’re the prince’s attendants, it means they’re all children of some big-wigs, right? I’m sure they get training to be a guard at least...”
“They’re not the kinda mook that’s just there for show. How do I put it...? The imperial army has a doctrine of pure strength above and beyond what the Kingdom has. I’ve heard this from some retired vets from the war 40 years ago, and the prince’s subordinates were saying the same thing.”
“In other words, a large-scale generational shift has happened within the imperial army?”
“It’s possible.”
“The Empire hasn’t had any foreign wars since then, either. But their battles with monsters can’t even be compared to what we have here. It’s kind of like having monster floods all over the place every year, I guess? Be that as it may, would a member of the imperial family really be out fighting monsters?”
“Apparently the emperor has the land split up by ley lines and responsibility for them is left to each house in the region. Having said that, the imperial capital is surrounded by the domains of several other houses, so it should be the place under the least amount of threat from monsters.”
“So maybe there was a large-scale monster flood-like event near the center of the Empire which inflicted severe casualties on the original working generation?”
Meaning there was a possibility that the scale of monster activity was big enough that even the safest region couldn’t ignore it. It matched up with the stories I’d heard of the Empire being troubled for food. It could also explain their fixation with Alfina.
This matched our hypothesis that a large-scale fluctuation in the flow of mana was happening globally, based on the ley line activity that should never have occurred in the Kingdom.
Give me a break, there’s a possibility for a global crisis here. I can’t keep up with the self-preservation of the entire human race.
“...But from what I saw of them, they didn’t seem that hard-pressed.”
I couldn’t feel the tiniest amount of panic in the prince, or any of his attendants. Are they bluffing? Or maybe they’re influenced strongly by the top dog being with them? No... If my guess is on the mark, they shouldn’t have the composure for that...
“One more thing. When that redhead got in their way, they took up combat postures, right? How do I put this...? Something felt out of place.”
“Out of place?”
“Yeah. It’s like their center of gravity was off... This is all intuitive, so I can’t really explain it. Maybe it’s just my imagination too. Anyway, that’s about all I noticed.”
“Got it. Good work. You can take the day off tomorrow, just as promised. Go out on a date with Remy or something.”
“Aren’t you the one going on dates, boss? Hmm? What about that little lady you brought along to Reylia? Her Highness herself. Your old man is gonna melt a hole through his stomach, you know?”
“It’s alright. That’s not what’s going on with her.”
“Hmm? If that’s really true, then I guess Mia can relax a little. If that’s true, that is.”