"Successor, Come To My Tower" V6 Chapter 3 - Is It Lunch Break Yet?
The Tower of Fang, it wasn't really a tower.
In terms of shape, the facility itself was more like a 'fortress' of sorts. It was surrounded by high walls with only one entrance (although there were also back doors into the wall). The windows were small and mostly on the higher levels. The nine-story high-rise buildings — all of it was made of massive, compressed bricks.
On the inside of the outer wall, there were four towers at each corner of the site. It was such a vast space that it could conceal an entire army if it needed to. At the back stood the fortress-like building.
From the outside, this Tower looked sturdy and particularly unfriendly, but once you got inside, it was nothing but a few cluttered corridors. Each floor had the same structure, with dozens of rooms on each floor. The first floor was mainly for the Tower's executive offices, with rooms for reception, administration, and so on. If you just wanted to do some simple paperwork in the tower, the first floor was sufficient. However, since the Tower's executive office itself was located on the top floor, there were many cases of miscommunication, which had become a problem.
The second floor was mainly used for storage, so was composed almost entirely of storage rooms — It was designed to cushion vibrations and noise that came from the third floor training rooms and various other areas. The rest of the floors were classrooms, labs, etc. The student dormitory was located in a separate building outside of campus, and was accessed mainly through the service door — an exit that lead to the community cemetery.
It was just about noon — and they were in a room on the fourth floor.
"This is the so-called break room."
Leticia muttered as she rested her head on the table. In the room closest to the main staircase of each floor, there was always a prepared break room. Sometimes it took the role of a waiting room, but nonetheless.
Orphen looked at her and grinned.
"You don't like it, do you, Tish?"
"This room? I hate it."
Majic gave her a curious look and asked.
"Why?"
She was curt in her response.
"Do you really think I'd feel at home in a room like this?"
She made a rough gesture around the interior of the room.
There was a wooden couch — a stained table with some coffee makers on it, which might still work if only she had hot water with her. The needle ticked away on the wall-mounted clock ever-so-annoyingly, and there were no windows in the room.
(Well, it is what it is.)
Orphen thought to himself, looking around the room as she gestured.
But, it didn't seem like Majic understood at all.
"But it seems like Master is enjoying himself."
They jolted—
After Leticia gave him a suspicious look, Orphen tried to argue.
"Do... Do I look like I'm having fun?"
"Yeah."
Majic answered. Leticia silently rested her head on the table and looked up at him.
"............"
Orphen didn't reply. He looked up at the ceiling — the bare wood imposing on the room like a curse, inviting you in. There wasn't anywhere else to look — like a starry night sky that somehow tried to capture your gaze.
The room unintentionally fell silent, but Orphen didn't know what move to make next. Then—
The door suddenly opened with a loud creak. There was a young man standing at the entrance, his eyes directed at the room where they sat.
After looking at the figure, the room stayed quiet for a moment more — the man himself was just a sorcerer's apprentice who didn't seem to know anything. He didn't even wear the standard black robe. Still, his clothing style was founded in black colors, with a black shirt that had a high collar worn over his white undershirt. There was a ring on his right ring finger — a cheesy looking skull ring, perhaps the greatest threshold of bad taste between heaven and hell, but for some strange reason, it looked good on him.
His age was the same as Orphen — There was something like a lapel pinned to the tall neck of his undershirt. It wasn't the coat of arms of the Tower, but the mark of a secretary.
He spoke slowly, in a quiet, or maybe just sleepy voice.
"Master Forte is ready for you — except,"
He turned his eyes to Leticia and Majic, showing very little emotion beyond a slight smile.
"Miss Leticia and the boy will have to wait a little longer."
Forte Packingum was a straightforward man.
Orphen thought so, at least. Everything he did was short and to the point. Anything he said was said without delay—
And when that abrupt man saw his face for the first time in five years, he said:
"Now, that man — he's a spy."
It took him a few seconds to understand the meaning of those words — in the meantime he observed the man's face. He had long black hair tied and hanging haphazardly behind him. This was actually in violation of the hair regulations at the Tower, which also went for Leticia. The man's calm black eyes were without luster. There were few cases where he'd motivate himself to separate his upper and lower lips, and the man who spoke few words was usually wearing the robe of a substitute teacher. It was a robe that signified his role as the classroom manager of the Childman class.
This was the dedicated teacher's waiting room — a room which was used for the Childman Classroom until a few years ago. Of course it was familiar to him. Though it seemed — that Forte had done some remodeling since he began using the room.
Or maybe his memory was just fuzzy — but he couldn't judge that by himself.
"............"
After a while, Orphen finally realized what he meant.
"What man... Do you mean the secretary from earlier?"
"Yes."
Forte nodded, then sat back in his chair. He lifted his head and continued.
"Vinvi Stottaul — It's a pseudonym, of course. I hired him because he'd never been enrolled in the Tower, but when I examined the situation a little more closely, he was expelled from a classroom in Totokanta seven years ago for misbehavior. I don't really care about that, but he's been sneaking out without my authority and meeting with Whurl Karlen."
"Whurl Karlen..."
Orphen asked in a muffled voice. Forte finally let a thin smile spill to his lips.
"Whurl Karlen, teacher of the Whurl Classroom. I'm sure you haven't forgotten."
(I haven't forgotten...)
Orphen mumbled and narrowed his eyes. When he thought back, Forte had forgotten to give the title of the teacher.
(I guess what Tish said was true. Forte really does plan to become a teacher in the Tower...)
However, Forte continued to speak, regardless of what was on his mind.
"He even caught Master Whurl's attention. I'm sure he's a powerful sorcerer. Possibly even has training as an assassin..."
He closed his eyes — and Orphen gently looked away.
Then he muttered.
"So why are you so calm?"
"?"
Just by moving his eyebrows Forte's questioning in the conversation was clear. After taking in a deep breath, Orphen raised his head and said it again.
"Are you telling me that the Whurl Class sent you an assassin!? How could I have forgotten about the Whurl Class — the only assassin class in the Tower! I was in that class until I was ten!"
Forte was looking back at him with a calm face, but he continued.
"No matter what you do in this tower, you have to keep an eye on Master Whurl Karlen!"
"That's why he's the very first person that I have to crush."
Forte answered without hesitation. It was his chance to take a deep breath and continue further.
"And, you must've already met Hydrant, correct?"
"............!"
Orphen stopped dead in his tracks. When he'd heard those words, he finally remembered—
He spoke slowly.
"Yeah, I remember that bastard, he was enrolled in the Whurl Class until he was assigned to the Tower's Executive Department. I was wondering why he came to pick us up..."
Forte only nodded. When he glanced at him, Orphen continued in the same tone.
"Last night, someone who could only be a Stabber from the Tower broke into Tish's mansion. If it was really a Stabber from the Tower, then of course the Whurl class has to be involved."
Once more, Forte nodded. He remained expressionless.
"Some of the staff in the Whurl classroom have already started moving."
"To ruin you, Forte."
He said it ironically. But—
"Actually, that's not the case."
As Forte shrugged his shoulders he stretched — then he sat up a little further in his chair and sighed.
With both of his hands on his desk, he spoke to him more quietly.
"They've been behaving strangely for some time now — it seems to be related to the Dragon Worshippers."
"Dragon Worshippers...?"
"Last week — a dozen people were slaughtered in a house on the outskirts of Taphrem."
"Again?"
When Orphen groaned, Forte chuckled.
"Well, yes. Though it's a little different from the earlier 'Krylancelo' fuss... They broke through the front door of the house, smashed up all of the household belongings, and brutally beat the bodies — In other words, they weren't killed with a single blow. They weren't stabbed or poisoned, so the cause of death seemed to be blunt force trauma or shock..."
"That's a flashy affair."
Orphen cringed as he imagined the scene.
"I was in the hospital — but anyway, I don't recall hearing Cleao talk about any such rumors."
"I wonder. Have you noticed anything?"
"I've noticed some things, but I won't be telling you."
Orphen mumbled with a bitter tone. Forte asked back suspiciously
"Why?"
"Because you've been secretly keeping score, haven't you? You're just waiting for me to make a mistake so you can deduct points."
"What?"
"... That's just like you."
Forte answered with a bitter smile.
"That's fine. There are several strange things happening — for example, the mansion was secretly renovated from a house that was abandoned years ago, and what were the victims doing gathering there? However, the strangest thing is the situation itself, that all nineteen of the individuals were beaten to death. To beat somebody to death takes a lot of energy, both mentally and physically, and would require at least the same amount of people. So you're saying that many perpetrators came in, kicked down the front door, killed everyone inside, and not one of them was caught? That's no joke.
"In other words, it was a crime committed by a Stabber who's pretending to be an amateur?"
"That would make more sense. Somehow — and I'll admit it's just a hunch — I felt like the Whurl class were likely suspects. So I started to investigate, and immediately I received an application for a secret agent that I'd been requesting from general management for quite some time. The applicant was Vinvi Stottaul."
Vinvi's hard-to-pronounce name was echoing through his head, and suddenly remembering, Orphen opened his mouth.
"... You said earlier that the Whurl Classroom was giving the Dragon Worshippers a run for their money."
"The victims in this incident — the nineteen men who were hanging out in the abandoned house — were identified as Dragon Worshippers based on their belongings and the nature of their meetings."
"By any chance... could that be it?"
"What do you mean?"
However, while listening, Forte smiled like he already knew what he wanted to say. It wasn't humor — it was a satisfied smile.
Noticing this, Orphen spoke.
"On our way to the Tower, we were attacked by Dragon Worshippers. The leader said something about his friends being killed by sorcerers, so your guess may be right. Then that bastard Hydrant showed up at just the right time, like he'd been watching and waiting for it—"
After saying that, Orphen suddenly stopped talking. Forte's facial expression had changed a bit, and he turned a sympathetic gaze towards him...
"Forte?"
Forte sighed lightly. He took a piece of paper out of the desk drawer.
"To tell you the truth, I didn't call Tish in here because I thought it'd be better if I only let you see this."
When Forte said it, he handed the paper to him. The paper — it seemed to be a copy of some document. Orphen studied the paper — the ink hadn't even dried yet, and then Orphen...
His fingers loosened and the paper drifted to the floor.
Forte gave him a serious look.
"For such a document to dare to fall into my hands, means that the Whurl Classroom doesn't intend to keep me alive for long, but I won't be dying without a fight."
Orphen hadn't even heard his words — it was like a tingling pain in the backs of his ears. He stood there, staring down at the fallen document.
Of course, it was probably Hydrant who had created the document.
"... I didn't want Tish to see this, because she's the type of person who'd strike their classroom in a heartbeat."
Bam!
Orphen stomped on the floor and quickly left the classroom. He didn't care anymore — he didn't care if their enemies were an army of Stabbers!
Forte's words reached his ears a little too late after he left the classroom in a hurry—
"... But, I wonder if you're still the same?"
Orphen didn't reply. He left the room and ran down the corridor, recalling the location of the Whurl Classroom from memory.
The document had Hydrant's signature — his real name. The name of Milan Tram.
The content was simple, it was a commission report.
The details of the little incident that had happened—
A small disturbance occurred just a few moments ago, consisting of an attack on the road near the Tower.
The victim of the attack was the senior sorcerer, Leticia McCready, and those accompanying—
Their attackers were twenty-three Dragon Worshippers who kept their faces hidden—
One of the testimonies was from Hydrant. He had testified that the behavior of the senior sorcerer Leticia McCready and her company were legitimate self defense.
Self-defense.
The report stated that all of the attackers were killed in the battle.
Bam! He kicked the door with momentum as he ran—
Orphen jumped into the classroom. His boots skid across the floor, and behind him, the door closed.
The classroom was empty.
"Damn it..."
Come to think of it, the classrooms were rarely used unless you were in the middle of a lecture.
(Around this time of day... maybe they're in the training room?)
It was where they typically practiced their physical training and combat techniques, but when he snapped out of it, he turned to head off.
Then—
His toe stopped at the door.
"............!?"
He turned around, horrified. It wasn't that anything had happened— but a chill ran down his spine.
The empty classroom was dark, even though it was early afternoon. The desks were dirty. The chairs were scattered around all over the place. The bulletin board was tilted with the legs bent, but there was nothing stuck to it, just countless marks left behind by thumbtacks. Dust had piled up on the window frame.
And next to the window, stood an old man.
(When did he...?)
He asked himself, but he couldn't stop trembling. He was certain that nobody had been there a moment ago.
It was written on the old man's face — he smiled and laughed, then he answered.
"I was in your blind spot, that's all."
His voice was low, and quiet. Even though he was elderly, he was taller than Orphen — and although he didn't seem like he weighed much, his body was still well-built. He was wearing a jet black robe with a silver trim. Orphen knew the old man's name well.
"Master Whurl Karlen..."
"So you remember me, Krylancelo?"
The old man said, glancing at the doorway—
"I heard that you had returned to the city. I'm glad you've come to say hello, but I hope you'll tell me why you've suddenly barged in here before you leave."
"I'm looking for Hydrant."
Orphen replied shortly, looking back at the old man — Master Whurl. Of course, he wasn't the kind of opponent to react to something that simple.
Whurl laughed again.
"Milan isn't a student of this classroom anymore, and you can't just rush in here."
"... You're the strongest Stabber in this Tower."
Orphen blurted out even though it was irrelevant — and only after he'd uttered it, did he finally realize what it was that he wanted to say. He kept going.
"You've raised a number of dangerous assassins in the Whurl class, and that Hydrant guy's probably the best student you've ever trained."
While listening, Whurl cynically twisted the corners of his mouth — like a crack in the asphalt, the ground peeking between his thin beard.
"Just as you are truly the best Stabber raised by Childman, the true strongest assassin of the Tower."
"Don't say things you don't mean! And take some responsibility!"
He swung his arm sideways as he started to scream.
"And as for you, I'm sure you've got copies of all the documents that were submitted to the Executive Department."
"I've only read the ones that were submitted yesterday."
"Then why don't I tell you! Just a minute ago—"
"There's no need. I don't need to ask why you're so angry — or why you're spitting such bile in my direction. I already know."
Whurl spoke bluntly, then shrugged.
"I assume you're referring to the attack on the Dragon Worshippers."
"It said in the report that all of the Dragon Worshippers were killed—"
Orphen shut down, he managed to somehow restrain his anger.
"I didn't killed any of them — That son of a bitch Hydrant killed them all after we left, when they couldn't even move!"
"That's right — Our classroom handled the recovery of the bodies. It was quite disappointing to be called up to the Executive Department, only to be ordered to clean up the bodies of people who were no longer relevant."
The old man's eyes narrowed as he said the words. Because of that, the smile that'd been on his face before disappeared without a trace.
"It seems that Milan has been penalized accordingly — A pay cut, if I recall? I guess I can't blame him too much. When he was a child, his parents were slaughtered by a band of such fanatics."
"... I've never heard of that."
Orphen stared suspiciously at Whurl — Who kept his cool, and didn't seem to have a concern in the world.
Orphen pulled his gaze away from the old man and looked around the classroom. It wasn't for any particular reason, but he was beginning to suspect that if Master Whurl could suddenly appear like that, there might be several other assassins still there. He just couldn't see them.
Whurl followed his line of sight and muttered.
"I'm not sure why you're so angry, Krylancelo. You were a victim of the attack carried out by those Dragon Worshippers..."
"... They were saying something about their friends being killed by a sorcerer — just before they were killed by Hydrant."
While answering, he returned his gaze to Whurl.
"Forte told me that a group of dragon worshippers were attacked last week, but all of them were eradicated. He suspects it was at your behest."
"... Can you really tell me this without permission?"
"You already know that Forte's aware. Don't underestimate him. Within just a few days time, Forte's new secretary could just die a mysterious death right in front of this classroom — That's the kind of thing he's capable of. But I don't care about any of that. You can have all the fights and civil wars that you want, just leave me out of it."
Orphen kept on spitting his words.
"I don't know what you're up to with the dragon worshippers — I only care about one thing."
He shoved his finger forward — This time, he didn't hold back.
"There was a man sneaking into Tish's mansion — a Stabber, and almost all of the assassins of the Tower answer to your call. Lay a single finger on her or my companions, and I'm going to show you what it feels like to be targeted by an assassin. Don't forget who I am!"
Just as he said it, he turned his back.
Whurl spoke softly behind him.
"So — You don't even know what you're talking about. You've just revealed as much."
Orphen ignored his comments as he walked out the door. Whurl kept talking regardless.
"I'm not going to claim that I don't know what you're talking about — We won't get anywhere by playing dumb. I know Hydrant is no match for you. Even back then I knew that. I kept thinking to myself 'I should have never handed him over to Childman.'"
Orphen opened the door. There was no one in the hallway. He couldn't even hear the sound of footsteps vibrating on the linoleum floor in the corridor that stretched out to his left and right.
Whurl's last words were a threat.
"But I would advise you not make me your enemy, if you can help it. Childman is no longer in the tower to protect you—"
The door closed.
After entering the hallway, he felt unexpectedly weak — Orphen pressed his right hand against his face and sighed in disgust...
Needless to say, he'd already turned the Whurl class against him.
She was slowly running up the highway, which was a gently rolling slope—
At this point in the city there were fewer buildings, empty vacant lots and scattered trees stood in their place. The mansion in the distance seemed quite large. Remembering that Orphen had told her that most of the houses belonged to senior sorcerers, Cleao still had the exact same question in her mind as when she'd heard it.
She jogged slowly, paying careful attention not to step on Leki as he ran at her feet.
Sitting on the slope was Leticia's mansion, where only the roof was visible — Was it bigger than her house? She wondered while she ran...
It seemed that Tifis was still following, but was falling a bit behind. Although he seemed to be lagging, maybe it was just the pace that he'd gotten used to.
Though — Tifis, who had suddenly picked up his pace, lined up beside her. He almost kicked Leki, but he rushed to move, and then he spoke up.
"Um."
"?"
Cleao replied with a glance. She wasn't very good at running — obviously. However, it seemed that sorcerers were trained to use their voices while moving.
In fact, even Tifis talked without much difficulty.
"I was just wondering, can I ask you a question?"
"Sure..."
(...Even though I've been crashing here for two weeks, I haven't talked to anyone besides Orphen and Tish...)
She thought. Then Tifis asked her, a bit shyly, while hiding his eyes behind his bangs.
"Miss Cleao, you're not a sorcerer, are you?"
"N—no."
She shook her head, a bit bewildered at the question, then looked back at him.
"... Why, is there something wrong with that?"
Cleao tried to press it. She waited for an answer, then he finally opened his mouth. Somehow Cleao felt like she could predict every word he was about to say. As expected—
Tifis asked exactly what he was getting at.
"Then, why are you with Mr. Orphen and Majic?"
(Really, again—)
Cleao naturally held her head in her hands and sighed — her breathing growing ragged as her pace slowed. Tifis quickly noticed this and slowed his pace, but Leki hadn't noticed at all, and only after a short while did he stop and look to his left and right. He shook his head, falling flat on his butt where he stood.
"Um...?"
Tifis inquired with a nervous look on his face.
Cleao answered immediately.
"Orphen never asked me that question."
Tifis seemed a little surprised — He must've noticed that her tone was growing increasingly sharp.
But nevertheless, Cleao wasn't angry — just clearly aware. She was simply stunned.
She picked up her pace and continued.
"I've been thinking about that for a while. The only thing around here are mansions belonging to sorcerers, right?"
"Yeah... Well, these are houses that the Damsels' Orisons bought up over a while— Long ago it was the planned construction site for the Tower."
"Well, I don't know the circumstances there... but this is what I think: In places where there are sorcerers, everyone there is a sorcerer, and everyone looks like they belong there. That's why you're asking me about it now, even."
"Huh..."
"You don't understand."
Cleao cut him off with a sharp look. She glared at him without remorse — He watched, aha, and Tifis tried to get out an amiable laugh.
She chose her words slowly, and cautiously. She wasn't trying to tell him off. In fact, she was only speaking her thoughts out loud.
"At the Sorcerer Alliance in Totokanta where I grew up, only sorcerers could enter the building. Just trying to get a look into the facility would cause the guards to come outside without warning. Orphen won't even take me to the World Map Tower, and the very fact that there are sorcerers on guard makes it an established fact that this is a place only for sorcerers. Even if there weren't overall limits, it'd still only be a place where sorcerers could go, right?"
"Well... That may be the case..."
His uncomfortable tone of protest implied that it wasn't that simple, but Cleao ignored him and continued.
"After all, any place where there are sorcerers, everyone there is a sorcerer, and no one else is allowed to be there. Even at Tish's house, I'm the only person who's not a sorcerer."
She shrugged.
"It's not good for me to be there."
"Well, maybe that's true, but..."
While listening to Tifis' irritated voice, Cleao stopped. She sighed — then took in a breath and rubbed her knees with both hands.
"I'm tired from running and talking at the same time."
"Oh — Sorry."
Tifis apologized, but Cleao waved her hands.
"It's okay. You can keep jogging if you want. I'll walk."
"Umm..."
Tifis raised his voice while looking back towards Leki, who was still running, and hadn't realized that the two had stopped moving. He gave Cleao a troubled look and continued.
"That's not the reason that I wanted to ask... It was because I thought it was unusual for someone like you to hang around with a loan shark. I was curious — but..."
"Eh?"
This time Cleao was the one with a dubious look on her face. She put her hands on her mouth and groaned.
"Is it really so unusual?"
"I don't think it's normal, no..."
Leki, who finally noticed that they'd stopped, came running over again.
"............"
"Umm — So, Orphen didn't act too terribly annoyed by it, and Majic said he was going to be Orphen's student. It seemed interesting, and my mother nor my older sister tried to stop me, so... uh—"
She turned, getting a little lazier as they reached the road in front of the mansion—
Cleao waved her hand while holding Leki, but was still looking for the right words.
"I was attending school in the downtown area, so it didn't matter if I took long vacations on my own. I had already passed my graduation exam. So, I didn't have to come back anyway—"
She suddenly stopped speaking. Tifis, who had been walking a bit ahead of her, also stopped.
"...What's up?"
She asked. Tifis pointed vaguely to the gate, caught off guard by something.
"What is this..."
He groaned in a stunned tone. As Cleao looked in, she saw what he was pointing at. It was the gate of the iron fence that surrounded Leticia's mansion. It was still brand new, and sturdy — but for some reason, it was all chained up now. In addition to the chains a plate was fixed to the chains with something like shaving cream. Beyond it there was an old desk — and a pretty heavy sofa—
"Barricades... I wonder why."
Cleao pondered. Leki, who was sitting in her arms, looked up at the roof in curiosity — Cleao suddenly felt the same thing, and followed his gaze. Then, they saw it. A figure standing on the roof.
The shadow bellowed loudly with laughter in response to their attention.
"Wahahahaha!"
"Oh no, It's Vulcan."
"That's right!"
With shaggy black hair, and the tattered fur cloak that he always wore, he answered loudly with his chest puffed up.
He threw is head back and pointed his stubby finger at the sky.
"You could never forget this scream! My voice pierces right through people—"
He gradually lowered his finger until it was pointing at them, then continued.
"Only the frogs in the outback wouldn't know me! The Fighting Dog of Mazmaturia, Volcano Vulcan, who will obey his divine destiny and fry this pack of fools in salad dressing!"
By the end of his rant, Vulcan's finger was pointing at them.
Cleao was just removing the barricades from the gate.
"Oh, Tifis. Can you help me out and hold the other side of this board?"
"It's surprisingly easy to get through this, isn't it?"
"Heeeeeyy!"
Vulcan cried out.
"Hold on a minute! You people, taking down the barricades that someone built for their safety with great pain and effort — Ahhh! It was a bad choice to use that sofa!"
"Shut up! What even is this!"
Cleao pushed Leki onto her head for the time being, then pointed right back at him.
"I don't know what you're trying to do, but I've been jogging and I'm getting tired!"
"Ha! You're a sore loser, girl!"
Vulcan shouted, then he threw back his cloak in a theatrical gesture.
"It's the duty of a warrior to always be at peak physical condition! It's purely your inexperience that has prevented you from being fully prepared for this battle—"
But Cleao kept talking, ignoring him entirely.
"I don't quite understand what's going on, but if you're going to play games, leave me out of it!"
"Who's playing!"
Vulcan waved his hands furiously in the air.
"Hey, you better — listen to me — Hey—!"
"Never mind. Tifis, can you remove this chain?"
"Yeah, it's only wrapped around it..."
"Ah, come on! Hey, stop that. Hey! That's... If you forcibly remove that barricade you'll set off the trap we set up!"
"They really need to think about what they're doing sometimes. I just don't know what to say... Here, let's move the desk."
"This is heavy."
"That — That's it, if you do this I can't guarantee the life of the hostages! I'm also worried about my old age, this is bad for my gastrointestinal tract! So stop moving that desk — and I'll stop talking!"
"Seriously, shut up!"
She pushed the desk aside as she said it — and now that the barricades had been removed, Cleao finally screamed.
"If you don't stay quiet, I'll blow up this whole building!"
"Um... Please don't do that."
Tifis timidly asked from behind her. Vulcan also seemed a little nervous on the roof.
"Haaahahaha! That's right! You'd better stop, if you can!"
"I don't know if they're bullish or just pathetic..."
Grumbling and groaning, Cleao passed through the gate. Leticia's mansion seemed larger because the pathways were extremely narrow compared to the courtyard and the backyard — apparently to prevent people from peeking into the premises, and the windows of the mansion also contained patterned glass for the windows that faced the front yard. As a result, the front of the house was oddly designed to face north.
Anyway, when they entered the front yard, Cleao dropped Leki at her feet.
From the top of the roof she could still hear Vulcan's persistent yelling.
"Ooohhhh! You have the audacity to invade my fort!"
"How cheeky do you have to be!?"
Cleao placed her hands on her knees, bending forward a bit, then shouted back.
"What do you mean this is your fort?"
"No more bullshit! I took this place over just a few minutes ago! That means it's mine!
"What are you talking about?!"
"What's the matter! Because we're the only ones occupying this place, it's ours! If you break anything else, my Special Forces won't be so silent!"
"Spe...?"
It was Tifis that muttered back. He anxiously looked left and right, wondering if he could predict the next development...
For the time being, Cleao picked up the end of the chain they had just removed, which had fallen at their feet. She kept her head down, and waited.
When—
"Confirming target..."
The small whisper wasn't missed by Cleao. It was the little girl, whose body was hidden by the shadows around the flower bed. She moved her head to glance in that direction, and confirmed it with just one grumble. It was the child, about ten years old with black braided hair.
The rusty chain clinked in Cleao's hands.
The girl kept muttering.
"Target confirmed — capture mission accomplished. Pat, awaiting next orders."
She spread out what looked like a crumpled flyer in her hands.
"Confirming instructions... I repeat... uh... Recycled furniture at a discount... Wait. The orders were on the back. 'A daring surprise attack strategy! You don't have a noticeable smell, so you can be stealthy. The enemy's upwind so they won't smell you if you sneak up behind them. Incidentally, if you die, there's no one to come pick up the corpse."... If you feel like something's wrong — Repeat until completion. Now disposing of the order form."
She let the flyer drop to the soil of the flower bed, then the girl took a breath, seemingly relieved.
"Disposal complete. From this point on, Pat moves to take strategic action. I wonder if I'll get a snack..."
After muttering, the girl — Pat raised her face.
Cleao stood holding the chain in both hands, and — when she looked down at Pat.
"............"
They stared at each other...
After several seconds had passed? Pat had a smile on her face.
"From Pat to field command — I, having failed my surprise attack ... must say goodbye."
Then she fell to the ground.
"... You know what..."
Cleao groaned, looking tired, but Pat shook her head.
"Don't talk to the dead."
"Well, okay, but..."
She raised her head and looked at Tifis. He giggled as he scratched his head.
"Oh, when she gets bored enough she'll come back to life. Don't mind her in the mean time."
"Got it."
Cleao held her head and walked away from Pat. While dragging the heavy chain, she looked around warily.
"What's next..."
Unexpectedly she heard a sound of the window opening above.
She looked up — and saw a dwarf with glasses peeking out of the window. The black cat, Nora, who for whatever reason seemed very attached to him, was hanging on his shoulder.
A voice rang out from above Dortin, but he didn't seem very enthusiastic about it.
"Go, now, Dortin!"
Vulcan declared. Not realizing he had drawn his sword and was now swinging it around in the air.
"The enemy is half-dead already, thanks to our preemptive surprise attack!"
"I don't think that's the case, but..."
Dortin murmured. But Vulcan kept ignored him.
"If we implement our ultimate sabotage here, we can easily invite them to our dreamland and kill them!"
"I wonder where the mental fortitude to say these things comes from..."
"Come on! Advance, Dortin! My mother gave birth to you for this day!"
"............"
Dortin surrendered and sighed. Then, he picked up what looked like a bucket that was sitting by his feet—
A clear liquid fell from above, right onto Tifis' head as he stared up at him.
"AAAAHHHH!?"
Tifis tumbled over, screaming as it poured over his head without warning. As Cleao watched him hit the ground she retreated a bit then screamed.
"Is that hot water!?"
"Heh! — So the small golden mob girl seems to have noticed!"
Vulcan shouted proudly, even though he hadn't done anything. He also heard Cleao reply from below.
"Who are you calling little mob girl!"
But Vulcan ignored her and continued.
"Even your life force, cluttered by material goods, is perishable in boiling water. We'll dig a hole deep enough to bury your corpse, then you can boil away in peace—"
"Uuuuuuughhh..."
Tifis rose up, half crying. His face was bright red, so the water was probably pretty hot.
"Are you okay?"
While awaiting his answer, Cleao glanced over to where Leki was — and was relieved to see that the little dragon child had retreated far enough not to be in the splash radius of the boiling water as Dortin had thrown it from the window above them.
On the roof, Vulcan was still flailing.
"Ha—hahahaha! There's no blind spots in our plan of action! The invincible Fighting Dog, Volcano Vulcan, is a rare schemer! We're closing in on the day when he shall conquer the world! And you'll be the first to hear about it when that happens! Now, Dortin, don't stop attacking!"
"But, brother..."
Dortin answered.
"There's no more hot water."
"... Huh?"
Vulcan's movements came to a perfect stop. Dortin spoke bluntly.
"There was only a pot full. It'll take a couple of minutes to boil, so we'll have to wait."
"............"
The wind blew by. It didn't move Tifis' soaked hair, but stroked Cleao's face.
The wind was passing quietly... The window where Dortin was at closed. He'd probably gone to the kitchen to boil more water. Pat was still pretending to be dead and wasn't moving, and Cleao had a blank expression on her face, not hearing the sounds of the ringing chains.
"Vulcan ♪"
Now in a good mood, Cleao smiled and called out.
Vulcan was motionless, as if frozen. But she continued without a care.
"What's the next attack, huh? ♪♪"
"............"
"If you don't have one, I think I'll come up to within about a meter from you, just in case you think of something. ❤"
"............"
"And this chain is about three meters, and it'd only take two meters of chain to tie you up, right?"
"............"
"I think it's about time for Orphen to come back, so I should tie a chunk of iron to the end of the chain, then we'll just have to find a deep and fast flowing river. It's a lot of work ❤"
"Hey... What kind of personality do you guys... have..."
Tifis groaned, turning a little pale.
"Don't say 'us' like we're working together here."
While Cleao said that, she tried to enter the mansion with the chain. Then—
Something fell behind her.
She looked back in surprise — Vulcan had apparently fallen from the roof, with his head now sunk into the ground.
"Oh, you didn't have to commit suicide, I wasn't actually going to throw you into a river."
"N-no—That's not..."
It was Tifis that answered. He was looking up at the roof with a pale complexion.
"Huh...?"
Cleao followed his gaze with a questioning tone. Where Vulcan had been standing just a moment ago—
There was another familiar figure standing there.
She vaguely wondered.
(Why would the Adorable Masked Clea-chan No. 2 be standing there, of all places...?)
Of course, she didn't know that the black suit was the standard style used by Stabbers of the Tower.
Table of Contents
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| (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) |
Starting At Night Arriving At Morning Rushing Through The Launch Break Moving Fast In The Afternoon Footsteps Echoing After Sunset Burning At Midnight Missing The Sunrise |