Side Story Chapter 20.5 : Caught in a Scheme (Theodore’s POV)
Translated by: chocolalaProofread by: -
Two hours later…
I couldn’t help but grumble, “He’s late.”
I was now waiting alone at the place where I had promised to meet Urschel. Urschel was a meticulous person, there was no way he would fail to keep his promise.
However, an hour had already passed since our appointed time.
…I have a bad feeling about this…
“Did something happen to Urschel…?” I murmured to myself.
It was then that suddenly someone called out to me, “Are you, Mr Theodore?”
Three people, dressed in black, reminiscent of crows, with a lifeless, inorganic ambience, approached me. All three were expressionless, like Noh masks1.
I knew these people. They were the watchmen.
Watchmen… I was not exactly familiar with them, but any people of this kingdom would know more or less about their existence. They were called the watchmen, but in essence, they were the royal family’s secret guards2. Unlike the Knights Order whose job was to maintain security and defend the borders, their main duty was to punish those who harmed the royal family and maintain the royal family’s reign.
…To be stopped by them means…
“Do you have any business with me?”
“Let’s get straight to the point. We suspect that the House of Minusle is plotting treason against the kingdom. You are naturally suspected of complicity in this plot. Will you come with us?”
“…”
As I’ve thought…
That’s what it meant to be stopped by this special unit. Treason… When something as major as that was involved, no doubt these watchmen would be in charge.
However, we were innocent. The House of Minusle would never plot such a grand plan. Despite that, no matter if we were innocent or not, once this special unit doubted us, in the end…
“I have no idea about that. But, I will cooperate with the interrogation. How soon can I be released?”
When I inquired about this, the creepy, expressionless men immediately responded with assurances, “We’ll let you go when you’re dead.”
…Once the special guards suspected someone, they would never leave the interrogation room ever. Never again would they see the light of day until they were dead and gone. As soon as someone was suspected of harming the state, it was like a life sentence for them. Only death awaits for the suspects. No matter whether they were innocent or not.
Aah! I understood instantly.
I—no, the House of Minusle—was caught in a scheme…
This…no doubt was something done by Prince Leodore. Only a few members of the royal family would be authorized to move the watchmen—His Majesty the King and the Prince. Of course, Prince Leodore had the authority to do that.
Didn’t he tell me at the party? That he wanted to get his hands on Urschel. Even if that resulted in destroying the House of Minusle.
So, this is what he meant.
We were caught in his schemes.
No matter how invincible the House of Minusle was, once we entered the sight of the special guards, it was the end of the line for us. By virtue of their duties, the special guards were guaranteed greater power by His Majesty the King than any other noblemen.
Thus, this meant that…
A fit of certain anger welled up inside me.
…Sorry, but I can’t follow these watchmen. I could not care less about them. I… I have something I need to get back.
Two of the watchmen quickly surrounded me on both sides and grabbed my arms. But I immediately conjured up a spell. Apparently wary of me as a mage, all three of them were carrying automated magic circles, but they were old-fashioned.
Did they think they could stop me with a defective outdated magic circle that could only stop an inexperienced mage? I had been taken for a fool.
As a result, I could freely wield my magic…!
The two watchmen took me to a coach which had a barred door, like a prison made of iron plates. But it wasn’t me they were taking. It was an illusion of me.
I created a solid illusory entity and cast a spell of invisibility over myself; when I left their custody, the three policemen did not even notice.
Ha, they should just keep playing with the doll that doesn’t say anything. It had a body temperature and a pulse, but no brain. They could just enjoy a silly game of torture with that doll.
I waited for the carriage door to close and then I left. I must find Urschel. My tracking spell probably wouldn’t work. My opponent was just that kind of a nasty bastard. He saw me use it at the party. I was sure he’d got some sort of countermeasure.
The thing I could rely on now was the ring on Urschel’s neck… Given that I couldn’t detect anything from it yet, I guess it hadn’t been triggered. In a way, though, it meant that Urschel was safe for now.
It would be too dangerous to go straight to the palace. There was a possibility that Urschel might have been taken somewhere other than the palace. Anyway, Urschel had told me all about his plans for the day. Although there was the possibility that Urschel had already been taken away, the remaining place with a clue was… Abalana.
The place where Urschel met with Ben, a member of that bastard’s aides. Without further ado, I rushed there.
Footnotes
Let me chuckle at this description, does Noh mask even exist in their world?
They’re like SS, I chose the word watchmen after some considerations.