Whatâs Truly Important Isnât Money
Part 9\nâThis isnât something you should be saying so casually, Kagami-dono! Itâs dangerous to leave it alone!â
Alice returned to the passage exclusive to the Casino Staff again and tried to turn the knob to the door of the break area. However, at that moment, she heard yelling from inside the break area, and just for a moment, Alice shrunk back.
She slowly opened the door and peeped inside, as if wary of something. Inside stood a restless Krul, Takako, and Rex. Kagami was also there, seeming troubled by something as he stood with his arms folded, and Menou, wearing a stern look, had tried to grab Kagamiâs shirt collar.
âPlease calm down, Menou-chan. I understand your eagerness, and while that may be true, she would have tried to let you know first if she had to run away or hide.â
The appeasing Takako, who spoke with a serious expression, seemed like a completely different person from the one Alice had seen when she left the break area.
âEveryone. D-did something happen?â
Although she had become slightly insecure when she thought that they were having a dispute, Alice entered the break area as soon as she saw that it wasnât the case and asked that question timidly. The attention of everyone in the room gathered on her. As soon as he saw Alice, Menou approached her in the blink of an eye and took her hand, seeming relieved from the bottom of his heart.
âI couldnât see you, and you worried me, Alice-sama! Iâm glad youâre safe!â
âI said I was going to hand David-san his gloves didnât I? Youâre over exaggerating things.â
Seeing Menouâs nervous response, Takako shook her head saying, âyare, yare.â
âCome, Alice-sama! Letâs go to a land far away from here, together, just the two of us! Everything will surely be handled by Kagami-dono later on!â
âEhâŚno way. I donât want to be separated from Kagami-sanâs side.â
After Alice replied to Menou with a blunt denial, he received damage to his soul and yelled out, âGuhah!â However, he immediately recovered and said, âThatâs not something you should be saying so casually!â, as if he was at his witsâ end.
âCalm down, Menou-chan. Alice-chan still doesnât know anything, remember?â
Takako pulled Menou away from Alice, as if suppressing him, and said that. Feeling tired, he then uttered, âMuâŚthatâs right. Sorry,â as he seemingly calmed down a bit.
âBut Shishou, if what Menou says is true, then wonât it be bad for several reasons? At the very least, if Menouâs and Aliceâs identities are discovered, surely, it wonât just be us who will be sorry.â
Rex said that as he faced Kagami with his arms folded, as though something was wrong. Towards this, Kagami just groaned, âHmmmâŚâ and didnât say anything.
âThatâs why, please tell me, too, if something happened! Did something happen while I was away?â
Alice, who had become anxious while trying to process the story after being left out, yelled that.
âIâve heard Menou talk about David being a spy for the Kingdom, though.â
Kagami said that with a sigh.
âA spyâŚof the Kingdom? David-san is?â
As she listened to Kagami, Aliceâs face distorted in disbelief.
âIt was when he accepted Kagamiâs kind offer, and tried to return after changing his clothes. David-dono was strangely cautious of his surroundings, even in the Tavern he was in charge of. I thought it was unnatural to head off somewhere that wasnât the delivery point, so I followed him. And thenâŚthere was a spy wearing a Staff uniform as a disguise near the warehouse.â
Listening to Menou, Alice immediately recalled David and the conversation he had with the Staff member near the warehouse. Since it was something she had personally witnessed, the hope that Menou was mistaken, was crushed.
âWas that personâŚtruly a spy? Was he truly in disguise?â
âThereâs no doubt about it. I heard them speaking with my own ears. âHere, this is the information that should be relayed to the King. At the moment, Rex-sama and Krul-sama have not shown any suspicious movement,â and then I definitely saw him handing over a document of some sort. Without a doubtâŚhe ran away since he suspected that someone was listening in on him.â
After Menou utter that seriously, Alice, who usually didnât know how bad these events were nor what kind of impact they would have, could somehow feel the gravity of the situation.
âIt might not be impossibleâŚif itâs David-san. I do admit that David was superior in completing work without waste in the past.â
Krul uttered that restlessly.
Takako and Kagami then understood the meaning of this instantly.
This excellent and talented person did have the obligation to observe Krul, but it was impossible to act useless when helping out with Kagamiâs work. There wasnât a need to virtually cling to them in order to observe them if his job was to âconfirm whether or not they were working every day for the Demon King subjugation.â
In other words, there was a reason for these things.
ââŚobserving AliceâŚhuh?â
Kagami scratched his head, looking troubled, as he muttered that.
Kagami had always thought that David was reluctant to separate from Krulâs side. However, he was now questioning if that was true, and if his real goal was Alice.
The issue was the source of the information leak. Kagami had willfully believed he was Krulâs observer, but could it be that he had been wrong, and David had actually been observing Alice?
âAlthough the Kingdomâs side doesnât know anythingâŚthey appear to be doubting us a bit.â
If that was really the case, then the Kingdom knew Aliceâs origins, and there was a possibility of it being exposed. At the very least, the Kingdom doubted Alice.
What information did they receive that made them doubt her?\n