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The conference room was large and grandiose, fit for the most important of occasions—but it was filled with a thick, oppressive silence. Most of the people there looked ready to fall asleep in their seats.
The seat that stood out the most held a catlike woman with her hair pulled into a ponytail and slightly upturned eyes: Charles, the current head of the Pontier family.
“I’d like to begin
 the eleventh meeting.”
She sounded pitifully weak to the vassals. How could she be strong when everything was going so wrong? The enemy was still infiltrating, and Eiden Gorge, their last line of defense, was lost.
“I have good news and bad news.”
“Let’s start with the good news,” Count Verdot, general commander of the Pontier family, said. “I think we could all use some good news.”
“Agreed, your grace.”
Count Verdot stood up. “The Mercenary King has once again vanished from the enemy camp, according to reports.”
“He went straight through the first and last lines of defense and then vanished
 Did you find out anything else?” Charles asked.
Verdot nodded. “From what I know, it seems to involve the neutral city of Reinhardt.”
“Reinhardt?” Charles’s fatigue was abruptly forgotten.
Reinhardt would be fully occupied with the Master Battle. What’s more, it would take a full moon of day and night travel to get from Eiden to Reinhardt. How could Reinhardt be related to what was going on here?
“A lot of you probably don’t know this yet, but the Young Lady helped me acquire a Class A communication crystal this morning.”
The vassals’ eyes lit up with surprise. A Class A communication crystal would easily circumvent the spells that the Crombells had put up to prevent outside communication, as befitting a treasure of its price.
“As luck had it, your father’s secret safe had the one thing we needed most right now.”
Charles’ eyes lit up at the mention of her father. Even after months of sickness, he brought Charles to see the ball venue. Short as it was, the moment they shared together was precious to her.
“Now is not a good time to change your mind.”
Charles tried to blink away the memory, but her father’s image had shaken her.
“Thanks to that, we can find out what’s going on outside, belated as it is.”
“That’s a relief. As the battle drags on, information will be our most important asset.” Cox, seated next to Charles, smiled. “It’ll be alright.”
Charles and Cox shared a look. The Young Lady saw his steady, reassuring expression and happy smile and calmed down.
Cox

“It turns out that the winner of the Master Battle challenged the Mercenary King for his seat among the Twelve Superhumans, which is what drew him away.”
The conference hall rustled with confusion. The Superhumans hadn’t been challenged in twenty years.
“What happened? Who was it?” Charles inquired.
“Don’t be so shocked,” Count Verdot said. “The victor is
”
Someone audibly gulped.
“
Baron Joshua Sanders. A man of Avalon and Duke Agnus’s blood.”
“I can’t believe it!” The conference room buzzed.
Charles felt an electric thrill run down her spine.
While she was overwhelmed with surprise, someone else leaped out of his seat.
“I don’t get it.”
“Um, Baron Ashval?”
“It doesn’t make sense. I have my doubts as to whether he really won the Master Battle, but even then, why would he keep trying to help us when his subordinates’ lives are at risk? His reputation isn’t worth that much.”
“Perhaps he was genuinely concerned for our family. The fact is, the Mercenary King is no longer creating problems for us.”
“It doesn’t matter if he’s doing it for us or whatever. The disadvantage is too large, and we’ve already lost Sir Cain. Nothing has gone our way—in fact, I struggle to see how it could have gone worse.”
The room fell deathly silent when Cain’s name was brought up. Charles bowed her head guiltily, and darkness erased the light in her eyes once again.
Baron Ashval nervously scratched his pointed chin. “I’m loath to admit it, but he was a true knight. More than half of our troops owe him their lives, thanks to his three-day battle. I am one of them. That androgynous brat—” He leaned towards the Pontier servants. “The evidence is there; we just need to pick up the pieces. I think you understand what I’m saying: we have a mole.”
“Wha—In the family, Lord Ashval?”
“Haven’t you seen the way they’re moving into the basin? They walk through our territory like it’s their own backyard, digging up our traps and cutting off our supply routes. What kind of tactics are those? They even used the secret passageways only a few people in our family know about! They have our people hostage! How many vassals have they conquered already? We don’t even know if Barons Axel, Pedro, and Yudir are still alive!”
Someone sighed despairingly.
“Half of the basin is lost! Without the Black Knight protecting the Dennis River or Lord Cain holding Eiden Gorge, we must catch this rat.”
“So who the hell is it?” Count Verdot demanded. “If you’re so insistent, you must have an idea.”
“Time is of the essence, so I won’t play with words. All of us here have been with the family for a long time. We all had plenty of chances to leave, but we’ve stayed true to the end.”
The vassals nodded. Their frustration had been building in their hearts. It felt good to finally be able to direct it somewhere.
“Right! There’s no way they could know!”
“Who the hell is it? I’ll make them pay.”
“Quickly, Baron Ashval, speak! I’ll cut off his head and bring it to the Young Lady myself!”
Baron Ashval squared his shoulders, but Charles’s expression darkened.
“This won’t do
” Charles muttered. The enemy held a sword to the Pontiers’ neck, and they were eager to use it. Letting doubts drive them to internal conflicts would kill them as surely as the Crombells’ army.
Baron Ashval is the last person who saw Lord Cain. If he’s the rat, he’s playing the room well
 She shivered.
“So it has to be someone who knows our secrets but isn’t one of us. The culprit is obvious!”
“No
” Charles shook her head.
“Bring that commoner, Icarus, here!”
“What a joke! Icarus risked just as much as Sir Cain did,” Charles refuted. “Just who prepared us for the assault on Dennis River?”
“Young Lady, that only increases my doubts.”
“What are you saying?”
“A month has passed, and Icarus still hasn’t explained the logic behind reinforcing the Dennis River.”
“None of us thought they would attack us through the river. If we hadn’t been prepared, we’d be destroyed. Why inform us ahead of time?” Charles was no fool. Why would they take the long way around when they were eager to end it quickly?
“So, what are you planning on doing next?” Count Verdot asked.
“Even if they get into the basin, we can buy more time if we switch to guerilla warfare.”
“I’m going to get that rat to trust me so I can kill them once and for all when the time is right.”
“But we don’t know when Marquis Crombell will make his move—!”
“I’ll drag Icarus here like a dog right now!” Baron Ashavl shouted. “I’ll kill that rat and show them the might of the Pontier family—”
“I don’t think that’s necessary.”
Ashval flinched. Someone was walking through the door. Their beauty was clouded by sorrow; their sky-blue hair was dull and brittle—but still, Icarus remained radiant.
“A-Ah!” Baron Ashval jumped like he’d been struck by lightning.
“I found your rat.”
The crowd roared. “Who is it?!”
“I-Icarus?!” Even Charles was dumbfounded.
“Are you happy with your acting?” Icarus’s bright blue eyes stopped.
Charles turned to follow Icarus’s gaze and stiffened with shock. She’d known him for years, even longer than the rest of the family. He’d been her steadfast support the whole way.
“Count Cox von Wagen,” Icarus intoned. “The gold-eating monster of Avalon.”