第１６１６堀：彼の意図について (Part1)
Chapter 1616: Regarding His Intentions
Side: Kagura
"I'm... so tired."
I collapsed into the entryway of my home, uttering those words. I was truly, utterly exhausted. I wanted nothing more than to just fall asleep right there. Just as that thought crossed my mind...
"Whoa!? Kagura? Why are you face-down on the floor like that?"
Hearing the voice, I looked up to see Mikos standing there. That was perfect.
"The Princess summoned me. Must be nice for you, Mikos, being off-duty while they form the school infiltration squad."
"...'Must be nice,' she says. It’s not like I’ve been slacking off, you know... but judging by the look of you, it sounds like you had a hell of a shift."
"You have no idea. Carry me."
I didn't have the energy to move, so I let Mikos hoist me up. Naturally, she carried me over her shoulder like a sack of rice. If it were Yuki, I’d have hoped for a princess carry, but for Mikos, this was just right. If she tried to give me a piggyback ride, I’d have to exert effort to hold on, and I’d probably end up strangling her by accident.
"So, where am I taking you? Wait—you smell like booze. You were drinking? I thought you were working?"
"First things first. The bath. I’ll tell you all about it while I wash off this stench."
"Roger that."
And so, Mikos carried me to the bath. I stripped off my clothes and scrubbed my skin raw to wash away the smell of alcohol before sinking into the tub.
"Ah... that hits the spot."
"So, what happened?"
"I get summoned out of the blue, only to be dragged straight to a yakiniku restaurant to discuss a bombshell Yuki dropped. Then, because we needed to get on the same page as the other nations, everyone ended up at the yakiniku place. We held a strategy meeting while having a yakiniku party, which turned into a full-blown drinking session."
"Huh?"
Mikos wore a look of utter confusion.
"It’s the truth. I don't get it either, but that’s how it went. And since I was the only representative from Weed there, I was bombarded with questions. You get it, right?"
"Ugh..."
Mikos, who should have been enjoying the open-air bath, made a face of pure disgust. If she felt that way just imagining it, she could surely understand what it was like for me, who had actually been there.
"So, what were they grilling you about?"
"Wait, you don't know, Mikos?"
"Nope. I didn't get any word on it. And Eris and Ratz didn't seem particularly panicked, either."
"Wait, even those two?"
Was it possible that the two people in charge of Weed’s assets, funds, and supplies didn't know about this?
"Just tell me what the topic was that had you getting interrogated. I’m completely lost here."
"Phew, alright. Let’s start from the beginning."
I proceeded to explain everything that had been announced at that impromptu yakiniku party.
"Haa!? Are you serious!?"
"I am. I was just as shocked when I heard it. I hadn't heard a single whisper of it, and the implications are insane."
"No, wait—doesn't that shake the very foundation of Weed!?"
"That’s what you’d think, right? But the leaders of the various nations weren't exactly radiating joy; they were panicked."
"Eh? Even though they’d be in the same position as Weed?"
"It doesn't seem that simple. Though, after hearing the Princess explain it, it did make sense."
"What did she say?"
"It’s simple. Remember when we received the sacred sake from Lady Luna, and the Princess told us it would cause a scramble to get our hands on it?"
"...Ah, so the same thing is going to happen with the Cores."
"Exactly. In fact, she said it might be even more critical because Cores provide a continuous supply of resources. She warned that there would likely be factions within those countries that would ignore their own government's orders just to get their hands on one."
"Ah..."
Once I said that much, Mikos seemed to grasp the situation, her eyes glazing over even while she sat in the bath. Subordinates not listening, acting on their own—we’d been plagued by that kind of interference in Heiden constantly. And more than anything, the Princess was quite... well, let’s leave that aside.
"Once you hear it, it makes sense. That said, Yuki keeping quiet about it until now is a problem in its own right. After the incident in Suls, it’s already known that the Dark Guild created a dungeon."
That’s right. It wasn't that Yuki’s statement itself was wrong. In fact, it might have been the best move he could have made.
"So that’s why it was a bad spot to be in?"
"No, it wasn't that it was bad. If he had tried to deceive them there, people would have just assumed that if they teamed up with the Dark Guild, they could use the dungeons for themselves."
"That would be a problem in its own right."
"Exactly. A massive one. I suspect some would even go so far as to abandon their alliances just to learn how to tap into dungeons from the Dark Guild. If that happened, even if Yuki offered to provide Cores, it would be..."
"Too little, too late, huh? Yeah, I guess he had to say it then and there."
Mikos seemed to understand, but she was still groaning.
"...So, in the end, it’s an unavoidable, massive problem?"
"It seems so."
"Honestly, I have no idea how this is going to end. How do you think things will settle down, Kagura?"
"That... I honestly don't know. Either way, it’s going to be a major decision, and it’s not a situation where we can just chime in. It depends entirely on the circumstances of each nation."
"I guess that’s true. But all the nations were dragging their feet during today’s discussion—the yakiniku party, I mean."
"Yeah. It keeps coming back to the fear that if they let the news out, people will start hunting for Cores on their own and cause all sorts of chaos."
"The details of the Suls incident weren't shared with the lower ranks, right?"
"Right. Probably only a tiny fraction of the upper echelon knows. At the time, the story was that the Dungeon Master had cooperated."
When the truth came out, it turned out to be a disastrous situation.
"In that case, wasn't it a mistake for Yuki-sensei to confess that he could make them usable with Cores? He could have just said he captured or killed the Dungeon Master."
"Hmm, if that were the only factor, then yes. But then he’d have no excuse for chasing after the people who split up in Vinosia, or for building the port."
"Ah, that problem."
"Exactly. He couldn't just wrap up the story there. Well, he could have said the Dungeon Master escaped, but..."
"No, and I don't mean to sound like I’m speaking for him, but at the heart of it, I think he did it to prevent someone who stumbled upon a Core from becoming a Dungeon Master and causing massive damage before anyone knew what was happening."
"...That’s the biggest reason. There’s no telling when another Dungeon Master might appear and cause a repeat of Suls. If that happened, Weed, having withheld the information, would be in a terrible position."
Yuki’s judgment really was the best.
"If that’s the case, then I guess all we can do is keep supporting Yuki-sensei, just like we always have."
"I suppose so. Though, I would have liked a heads-up."
"Yeah, I get that. But I’m sure there’s a reason he didn't tell us."
"If it’s Yuki, then yes. He wouldn't do something like that without a clear intention. He wouldn't surprise us just for the sake of it."
A silence followed, broken only by the sound of droplets falling into the tub.
"Shall we head out soon?"
"Yeah."
I’d relaxed and sweated out the stress, so I figured I’d accomplished my goal. Just as I was about to climb out of the tub...
*Clatter...*
I heard a sound coming from the men’s bath.