“Phew.”
I relaxed my shoulders and exhaled.
Then, I asked Sophia to confirm.
“So, your demand is for me to place a magic seal on a contract transferring all the Dragon’s Wing’s assets in exchange for these documents?”
“Yes.”
“Do you perhaps think that the Dragon’s Wing should end regardless of the outcome?”
“Mr. Chronos is insane. He must be stopped before committing more atrocities.”
I have to agree with that. If left unchecked, he’d buy more dark maps until he drained all the assets. I need these documents as soon as possible.
Considering everything, I ponder what to do.
If I get these documents, I’ll immediately report to the military police, which would end the Dragon’s Wing. Whether I place the seal or not becomes a minor issue.
But giving money to another villain might lead to more bad things happening.
After this negotiation, I can deal with it by reporting or fighting to capture Sophia. Measures might be in place, though.
“I wouldn’t mind handing over the documents as they are, but I do need money. By the way, the documents are set to burn if they get a certain distance away from me without my approval.”
“I see.”
Besides, wishful thinking perhaps, but she seems to have some kind of conviction.
Though it feels odd that fraud is okay but dark maps aren’t, she seems to have enough sense to get angry at particularly heinous acts.
As for me, I don’t seem to feel any anger.
“…Understood. I’ll place the seal.”
It’s difficult to put into words.
Sophia raised her eyebrows slightly and said,
“You truly are selfless. You could have at least asked to split the money.”
“Probably not that kind of person.”
I don’t act based on profit, justice, or convictions.
I pressed my index finger to the contract and let my magic flow.
This magic seal has the same effect as a blood seal. This will transfer all of the Dragon’s Wing’s assets to Sophia.
“Just to let you know,”
Sophia added.
It was the first time I felt I heard any emotion in her voice, and I was surprised.
“Since you rescued that demi-human girl and contacted Rita Heinkes, the production of dark maps has stopped.”
“Well, thank you for that.”
I removed my index finger.
Sophia quickly took the contract and casually stood up.
“This concludes our transaction. You may do as you wish with the documents.”
“…Understood.”
“By the way, once I receive the money, my associates will report to the guild, the military police, and the newspapers, so even if you do nothing, the Dragon’s Wing will collapse.”
That’s quite determined. More forceful than I expected.
“You seem very proactive… Do you have some kind of conviction?”
When I asked, Sophia paused and seemed to hesitate. It seemed to hit a responsive chord.
“We are irredeemable scum, but we have one unshakable principle. We don’t steal from the poor. We only take from the wealthy, the fortunate, and those who can recover. We’ve even done some things like righteous thieves.”
Her words were firm but filled with sadness.
“I, too, am complicit. I’ll use this money to build an orphanage as atonement.”
“I see.”
“It would help if you could wait for about half an hour. Honestly, my worried associates have surrounded this place, so it might get a bit rough. We mean no harm, so please stay quiet.”
“Uh…”
“Well then.”
With that, she left the shop gracefully, as if she had just come for tea.
The moment Sophia exited the shop’s door,
The atmosphere in the café changed.
Outside and inside the shop, a few people made clearly suspicious moves.
“Protect Vim!”
Just as I was about to ready myself, a familiar voice echoed.
Heidemarie rushed in, with two others behind her—Laura and a man who seemed like a guard.
“You two, why are you here?!”
“No time for that, Vim! What’s the situation?!”
“Eh?! Um, it’s not a fight to the death! The enemy’s goal is to buy time!”
“That’s what he says! Prepare yourselves! Arbel!”
“Understood!”
I realized that I was considered someone to be protected in this situation and accepted it. I retreated behind the two who jumped forward.
But at the same time, I felt a lingering sense of incongruity and looked around.
Laura was isolated at the back of the formation.
Several arrows were flying towards us.
We were prepared to evade and defend, but Laura wasn’t.
“Crap—”
Heidemarie, realizing the mistake, started to shout.
The arrow that passed right by me was slowly heading towards Laura.
So I grabbed that arrow from behind.
“Wait! We have no intention of fighting! We’ll stay quiet until the time is up!”
I immediately shouted after turning around.
The assailants retreated, keeping their distance, and stood still without lowering their weapons.
The situation really did come to a standstill. As Sophia said, as long as we stayed quiet until a certain time, we would be safe.
“Hey, Vim, what’s going on?”
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Heidemarie asked.
I tried to explain, but I was very aware of Laura’s presence.
The bit of blood that had flowed thanks to the crisis suddenly stagnated. I didn’t know how to face her with this feeling, so I stood protectively in front of her, avoiding looking at her.
Heidemarie noticed my unnatural movement.
“Is it something you can’t say in front of Laura?”
She lowered her voice. As expected, she seemed to see through everything.
“…The Dragon’s Wing bought dark maps.”
I whispered, deciding there was no point in hiding it.
Heidemarie grimaced as if to say, “Ugh…”
“Wow… Is Laura one of the victims?”
“It seems so.”
“That’s the worst.”
“…Yeah.”
“So how did that lead to us being surrounded?”
“Well, that’s quite complicated, but the person I just met, Ms. Sophia, joined the Dragon’s Wing after me, but she’s actually a con artist—”
“Uh…”
While keeping an eye on the attackers, I explained the whole situation.
“So, we have to wait until that long-eared woman takes the money out, right? The enemy’s goal is just to buy time, not to attack us.”
“Sorry, I’m bad at explaining.”
“It’s fine. So, we’re safe for now, right?”
“Yeah. Also, Sophia and her organization seem to be against the dark map, so they might report it to the military police personally, besides the money.”
“They’re doing whatever they want, those long-eared folks…”
Heidemarie listened carefully, deliberately not delving into my interpretations.
After thinking for a while, she spoke up.
“So, what will you do now, Vim?”
“Uh… first, I’ll report Sophia, I guess. Oh, but since I followed the procedures, it’s legal. I have to go to both the military police and the guild.”
“…You know that’s not what I meant, right?”
I couldn’t answer any further.
Half an hour passed, maintaining a tense atmosphere.
We heard a whistle, which turned out to be the signal for retreat. The assassins turned around and left the café all at once.
Only we and the café’s owner remained.
Finally able to relax, Laura collapsed onto the floor.
“…Sorry, Laura. For scaring you.”
Summoning my courage, I spoke without changing my expression.
“I’m fine, Lord Vim!”
Laura replied energetically, true to her words.
After confirming everyone was unharmed, I finally felt relieved.
We paid the café owner extra money and left. It was already evening.
Though the festival was far away from the outskirts of the town, we could still hear the noise.
“For now, I’ll go check on the town and see how things are. I’ll also check in with the guild and the military police.”
I said, continuing.
“Heidemarie, could you take Laura to the hospital? Oh, and can you report to the Night Dragonfly?”
We had a duty to report the battle to our party.
Moreover, things might get chaotic with the Dragon’s Wing, so we should inform Camilla.
Heidemarie agreed for the time being.
“Alright, but what will you do once you get there?”
“I’ll figure it out once I’m there. I need to know the situation first.”
“…Come back soon.”
“Yeah. Oh, by the way, why is everyone here?”
When I asked, Heidemarie, who had been calm until now, started to fluster.
“Oh! We were looking for you! Laura said she wanted to enjoy the Festival with you, so I came along too!”
“Ah, I see.”
“Look, Abel is here too. We thought it wouldn’t be good if you neglected your duty to report your whereabouts, so he joined us!”
“Got it. Wait, then—”
I understood now. It was odd for Laura to have a guard despite Heidemarie being here.
“—Abel is my monitor, not Laura’s guard.”
When I said that, Heidemarie froze.
“Lord Vim! Don’t be so formal!”
The guard—Abel—looked shocked at me.
Oops. Did I know him? Maybe we met somewhere before.
“Oh, sorry. Um, Abel, right?”
“Lord Vim, did I do something wrong?”
“No, not at all! If anything, I must have been rude!”
“No, really! If I did something, please tell me!”
As I tried to cover it up, Heidemarie intervened between us.
“Alright, Abel! Take Laura to the hospital! I’ll go with Vim!”
She turned sharply towards Abel and continued.
“Your monitoring duty ends today, right? Besides, I’m not suited for close combat. You, being a shield bearer, are better for guarding Laura.”
“…Yes, understood.”
Then, she turned to me.
“Vim, I’m coming with you after all. It’s complicated, and at least one person who understands the situation should be there.”
“But what about the report?”
“That can wait. Let’s check the situation together first.”
Heidemarie seemed different.
She’s always forceful, but she seemed anxious this time.
“Let’s go. First to the military police—”
Oh, I see.
She’s worried about me.
“No, Heidemarie. I’ll go alone. This is my problem.”
Without waiting for a response, I ran off.
The scenery seemed to pass by unusually slowly.
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Professionals have standards (con artist too).