108 Knight and Prince
Climb vertically up the north tower on the floating stones.
Unlike the floating stones used to go up and down the King's Tower, these floating stones move at a slower speed.
There are gargoyle statues placed regularly on the inner wall of the shaft - perhaps if you try to escape from here and go down the shaft, those gargoyles will attack you.
Being forced to fight in close quarters in a closed room while using Levitation must be a very difficult situation for a magician.
If you can't use magic, it would be difficult to escape from the vertical hole itself.
Hellfried looked at the gargoyles he sometimes saw with a strange look.
Eventually, the floating stones reach the upper layer of the north tower. As we crossed the bridge connecting to the upper level, the floating stones descended on their own. When you return, talk to the gargoyle near the bridge and he will move the floating stones from below.
Go through the detour-like passage and head to the room at the back. That is where Rosemary is.
That said, it doesn't mean that Rosemary is locked up in a particular room. This is because the upper echelons themselves are like a prison.
It seems that the north tower was originally a facility to imprison noblemen who were suspected of something. It's the most strict prison against magicians, but because it's targeted to a limited number of people, it's equipped with just the right amount of equipment and personnel.
The monitoring system seems to be quite strict for the personnel stationed here, as they are subjected to magical inquisitions when entering and exiting.
"You have an interesting face."
――Rosemary's room had a clean impression. It is equipped with minimal furniture and there is no place to hide. The back room, where the bath and toilet would be located, probably had a good view as well.
When Rosemary, who was sitting at her work desk facing a book, looked up and recognized us, a fearless smile formed on her lips.
What can I say? Her impression is almost the same as the last time I met her.
“I have a rather complicated topic to discuss, so please start with the two of you.”
I asked her companion to take the lead. Their story is based on my monitoring, and my story is based on not letting them accompany me. That's definitely the order. I have no choice but to ask you to go home first when you're done talking.
"...Lord Chester. You should talk to me first."
Prince Helfried looked a little nervous and handed over to Chester.
Chester responds with a salute to Prince Helfried, and he walks towards Rosemary.
“Your Highness Rosemary…no, Rosemary-sama, it has been a long time.”
"I don't remember asking you to come visit me."
Rosemary took out her old fan and stood up.
“It seems that the nobles who were close to me did not request to meet or visit me.”
"That's why you came as our representative."
Rosemary says without showing any expression of happiness.
"It's a virtue to be obedient. Do you understand why I pushed you away?"
Yes, that's right. That's probably why Chester feels drawn to Rosemary. It may not be just a matter of likes, dislikes, or whims.
"...No. I don't understand."
"Yes, then I'll tell you. Even though you introduced me to Greg, you didn't seem to understand Greg very well. What I needed was a knight who was loyal to me. But you... That's probably not the case.Once I turned my back on the Hiryu Corps and prioritized exploring the labyrinth, that became clear to me, so I distanced myself from it, that's all.''
"it is"
Chester rolled his eyes.
I see. Rosemary didn't push Chester away because her self-esteem was hurt.
Although Chester himself is part of Greg's faction, he has sworn allegiance to the kingdom and the royal family, and it can be said that he operates within the framework of his own self-regulation of chivalry.
For example, when something happens to Rosemary, she becomes the enemy - or she decides that she doesn't know which side to fall on.
If that's the case, it's probably her way of managing risk by keeping it away from her from the beginning.
Even so, she is outspoken.
In the end, Chester earned Rosemary's displeasure...and was shunned by Greg's faction, who perceived it that way.
That's why after the commotion between Greg and Fernando, their necks were tied together. She may be able to take pride in that as her accomplishment. Rosemary doesn't mention it.
Chester said closing his eyes. She then said,
“…Still, I wanted to come and meet with Rosemary-sama.”
Could that come from Greg's actual experience of being cut off from his clique?
"-Well, that's up to you. This is how I am. I can't get out of here, but I'm enjoying my current situation to a certain extent."
Rosemary shrugged her shoulders. Chester seems satisfied with that and bows to Rosemary again and steps back behind her.
As for Chester, I guess he was concerned about how Rosemary would be treated.
"Hellfleet"
Rosemary narrows her eyes and looks at her brother.
“Sister--I am.”
"I can almost guess why you came here. I suppose you weren't there to talk to her father?"
"of course"
Rosemary covers her mouth with her feather fan - tells Helfried.
"I'm here because the otherworld ambassador over there foiled my plan. That's all."
"B-but...my sister is in a place like this..."
"Hellfleet"
Rosemary shows a particularly kind smile at Helfried, who makes a frown on her face.
“Do you know why I was so harsh to other princes and princesses?”
"……home"
"Because I don't want to transfer even the slightest sympathy to someone who will have to be defeated someday. Please understand that I haven't done that to you. Out of all of us, you are the least suited to be a king. In other words, you are... You can’t even be my enemy.”
In that sense, Albert and Marlene could be Rosemary's enemies. Not because Hellfried is his immediate family. She was not worthy of being seen as an enemy due to her qualifications...it was as if she had been told that to her face.
"..."
Helfried was silent for a moment, then ran out of the room.
Chester bowed and left the room following Hellfried. Only me and Rosemary were left behind.
“…Maybe you shouldn’t have made it so explicit?”
"It's just a nuisance if they do things like that."
, Rosemary says, as if the wind is blowing somewhere.
From Rosemary's point of view, she probably feels that if she leaves any influence on the outside world, she will endanger herself.
At the same time, not leaving any connections behind would also protect Chester and Hellfried themselves.
Or, could it be that if I induce them in a way that arouses their distrust towards me, they will lose trust in me, who is my point of contact?
Where does the true intention begin and where does the formality begin? What can I say, it's still difficult to read.
"Why did you name me? If I ask you, will you answer?"
"Let's just say it's safe for both of us since it's the hardest to bribe. I never thought that even though I threatened the prince, he would ignore me and beat me up."
Rosemary laughs with some amusement.
"Well, first let's do something that needs to be reported."
Rosemary has some old books on her bookshelf. She pulls out a stack of papers from her desk drawer that she seems to have written on them.
“First, about the section where the sealed door is.”
She opens the encrypted ancient document and Rosemary says:
"Twilight Forest, Great Ruined Lake. I've already found these two. There are two left. It says that the magical light water vein and the Fiery Fortress lead to the Spirit Hall."
Water veins and forts, huh? Citadels are troublesome. The division itself is harsh, and some fairly high-level monsters also appear. If we leave it to the knights, some people might die. Water veins and forts. I have no choice but to proceed one step at a time.
"The magic water vein is currently being explored."
"Really? In that case, the rest is a flaming fortress. I'm glad we deciphered it in time. It can't be said that it's useless, can it?"
Then, Rosemary laughed lightly and said, "One more thing."
"The path to the Moonlight Temple is from the back labyrinth."
“From the back labyrinth, huh?”
“Accurately speaking, I wonder if we should pass through the door in the depths during the full moon and exit through the back labyrinth side.”
In any case, since the entrance is sealed, you probably won't be able to go inside... but it's important to know how to get there.
"I wonder if this is what the labyrinth is about. I'm also doing some research on jewels. Legend says that four pairs of jewels can seal away disaster."
...New information has come out again.
A pair of jewels. Are you talking about the Spirit Hall's jewel and the Majin's jewel? In other words, a demon brought the jewel from somewhere.
As for the jewels, if you continue investigating, you might be able to find out something about their role.
While I was thinking about it, Rosemary said.
She said, ``About Marlene's assassination attempt - I'd like to talk to you, okay? I have a lot to say about that poor trick.''
...Is that so? She was also asked about the assassination attempt at the Magical Inquisition, so she must have known that she was under suspicion.
Rosemary seemed to have said that there was a mistake in the amount of medicine given to Marlene.
...That's right. I think she would like to share her opinions with Rosemary.
"For the time being, I can kind of imagine how to confuse the Magical Inquisition."
"Huh?"
When I said that, Rosemary's eyes widened in admiration.
"If you can get things on terms with the magical inquisitor, it won't be that difficult."
"You say you bribed the Magical Inquisitor?"
"Maybe it's not a bribe, but a threat. Taking your immediate family hostage, something like that."
Classic and universal. It's a method that anyone can use.
This can be used not only by inquisitors, but also when moving criminals. This means that you can move it regardless of whether you are breathing or not.
"So you're saying that anyone can do it, whether they're there or not?"
"That's right. For example, first, blackmail someone in a position where they can carry out the action and have them give the drug to them. Naturally, a magical inquisition will be held. Next time, just have the perpetrator threaten the inquisitor from the mouth of the perpetrator. But if that were the case, information that would connect me wouldn't be immediately available.''
"...You don't need magic or secret potions to get past the Inquisition, huh? The Inquisitor will know that the threat is true... As long as you're familiar with the internal affairs, you can do it."
That's what happens. If I were to force it, I would say that it would also be necessary to have the organizational strength to take the people involved hostage.
“Are the Inquisitors of those days the same as the Inquisitors of today?”
"No. He should have been replaced."
It should be seen that the perpetrators of this incident have already been silenced.
"Why did you target the third princess?"
“Is there a motive—is it to make people think that Rosemary is the only one there?”
"Ha--"
Rosemary closed her fan, slammed it into her palm, and spat.
He laughs like he's laughing.
``To me, who believes in the supremacy of ability, that girl is nominally my greatest enemy.In fact, rumors spread that I had done it somehow, and some people distanced themselves from me. Tawa”
There's a possibility that rumors about that were spread. Even Albert didn't say it explicitly, but it seemed like he was wary of Rosemary.
She actually did a lot of things with Rosemary and she wasn't innocent. It would have been difficult for her to refute the incident.
HM. It seems very possible that the person who targeted Marlene was Rosemary's enemy.
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