7
“For now, this should be fine regarding Iria,”
Miroslav muttered as dhe returned to her room, letting out a small sigh.
It wasn’t a coincidence that she had gone to the bathroom used by Iria and the three siblings. Originally, Miroslav had been thinking that he needed to warn Iria early on, and had been looking for an opportunity to do so.
She had heard that Iria had submitted to Sora of her own will, but given Iria’s impulsive nature, there was still a non-zero possibility that she might explode with emotion at some point.
She might even tell Lars about the situation on a whim. If that were to happen, the “hostility towards Sora” that Miroslav had worked so hard to remove from Lars would reignite.
For these reasons, Miroslav felt the need to restrain Iria, but given the nature of the conversation, she had to be careful not to let others overhear.
Outside the house was out of the question. And even inside the house wasn’t necessarily safe. There was no guarantee that the children, Priest Sarah, Suzume, or Seal wouldn’t overhear.
This is why she chose the bathroom. There, there was no chance of someone accidentally walking in. Thinking this, she had timed her visit to coincide with when the children were finishing their bath.
Miroslav recalled her conversation with Iria from earlier.
Having stated things so clearly, it was unlikely that Iria would leak the situation to Lars. For Miroslav as well, she didn’t want Iria to ruin the efforts she had gone to such lengths to achieve, so she could finally feel at ease.
“Still, I didn’t expect that Iria would accept Master to such an extent.”
Miroslav uttered words that, if Iria had heard, she would have surely retorted, “You’re the last person I want to hear that from.”
In fact, Miroslav was surprised. Even though Iria had sworn allegiance to Sora, she hadn’t expected her to maintain her composure after realizing Miroslav’s betrayal.
She had been prepared for at least a slap, but Iria hadn’t done that. She had suppressed her resentment for having her relationship with Lars torn apart, realizing that blaming Miroslav would lead to blaming Sora. This was proof that Iria’s submission wasn’t fake.
So, as she thought at the beginning, this is fine regarding Iria.
The next person who came to Miroslav’s mind was Iria’s mother, Priestess Sarah.
It was clear that Sora had a deep affection for Priestess Sarah, and Miroslav intended to maneuver the priestess’s heart towards Sora.
This wasn’t on Sora’s orders, but Miroslav’s own initiative.
Providing prey for the hungry Sora.
While Luna Maria was intelligent, she was inept in these matters. She also had personality constraints. Even if she thought of ways to bring others down, she probably wouldn’t act on them.
Miroslav was different in that regard. She had already driven [Falcon’s Sword] to near disbandment as a hidden poison, and going back further, it was Miroslav who had engraved the infamous name of [Parasite] onto Sora. She was well-versed in this kind of behind-the-scenes maneuvering.
“Not that it’s anything to be proud of, mind you.”
A self-deprecating smile escaped her unknowingly.
To put it simply, it was all about scoring points with Sora. Miroslav was a “supplier” like Luna Maria and Iria, but Sora’s interest in her was thinner compared to the two of them. If she fell out of favor, she would be mercilessly cut off.
Miroslav was desperately trying to make Sora think of her as a necessary existence in her own way.
And Miroslav’s behind-the-scenes activities were not limited to Iria and Priestess Sarah.
“Master, if I may have a moment of your time?”
That day, Miroslav approached Sora modestly.
Perhaps noticing the different tone in his voice, Sora furrowed his brow suspiciously.
“I don’t mind, but… judging by your face, it doesn’t seem like something that can be discussed openly.”
“As you’ve surmised.”
“Then let’s use my room. The little ones are stuck to Clau Solas, so they probably won’t suddenly barge in.”
“Thank you very much.”
Miroslav bowed deeply, and what she proceeded to discuss in Sora’s room was about the Adventurers’ Guild. More precisely, it was about the Guild Master Elgart and the receptionist Liddell.
“Actually, I’ve been asked by Liddell to pass on a message to you, Master. She wants to meet and talk with you privately.”
“…Liddell wants to talk to me? If it’s a private meeting, does that mean she’s a secret envoy from the Guild?”
“No, it’s Liddell’s personal matter. Of course, it’s not entirely unrelated to the Guild.”
Hearing this, Sora raised his right eyebrow.
“That’s quite an assertive statement. Have you heard the details?”
“Yes. I couldn’t pass it on to you without knowing the content, so I’ve heard the gist of it. Besides, I’m somewhat involved in the matter myself.”
“Hmm, I don’t quite understand, but let’s hear it for now.”
“Certainly.”
Urged by Sora, Miroslav began her explanation.
To cut to the chase, Liddell’s request was to “stop the retaliation against the Adventurers’ Guild.”
The retaliation referred to here was the content of the conversation with Iria in the bathroom the other day.
[The Master intends to publicize the Fly King incident and make us apologize publicly.]
[It seems he intends to make it known that the Guild’s judgment was wrong.]
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT GADGETIZEDPANDA.COM
Liddell had come to ask Sora to stop this final stage of the “peaceful way to pick a fight with the Guild” that Sora had devised.
Miroslav continued.
“Do you remember when I told you that Lord Sergei, who’s in charge of the Adventurers’ Guild in the royal capital, wanted to meet with you? It seems that at that time, he intended to bring you to his side and then oust Lord Elgart. With your refusal, Lord Sergei’s plans were thwarted, but…”
“And now it’s reignited with this incident?”
“Yes. He’s loudly criticizing that the chaos in Ishka – the monster rampage, the phantasmal species, the death poison – was all due to Lord Elgart’s inaction. It seems he’s already sent envoys to the Guild headquarters in the Holy Kingdom. Lord Elgart and Liddell are overwhelmed trying to contain the situation and don’t have the luxury to deal with Lord Sergei. Liddell was worried that at this rate, Lord Sergei’s claims might be unilaterally accepted.”
Sergei is skilled at amassing wealth and has deep connections with the upper echelons of the Guild. Moreover, not a few of the guilds in various regions have been financially helped by Sergei.
In a battle of swords, Elgart’s victory would be unwavering, but in a battle of money, the possibility of defeat emerges.
“In such a situation, if Master – the dragon-slaying publicly denounces the faults of the Ishka Guild, Lord Elgart’s position will become even more precarious. In the worst case, he might be held responsible and sent to the execution ground.”
Elgart did his best in this incident, but the fact that Ishka suffered massive damage cannot be erased.
If this were an incident in an ordinary city, a mere Guild Master wouldn’t be held responsible.
However, Ishka is an adventurer city. It has a history of favoring adventurers as a city policy, and the Guild has benefited from this. As the person in charge of the Adventurers’ Guild, Elgart is in a position where he must take responsibility.
“Liddell is aware of this too, apparently. But even so, she can’t accept that Lord Elgart, who did his best in a critical situation, should be punished.”
“And if Sergei’s personal grudge is added to that crime, all the more so. So she’s telling me not to do anything unnecessary. Well, it’s straightforward if you put it that way.”
However, Sora mentally crossed his arms.
He had a question.
Indeed, Sora had intended to retaliate against the Guild, and as a plan for that, he had devised a “peaceful way to pick a fight with the Guild” and was implementing it step by step.
But to be honest, since defeating the Hydra, he had almost forgotten about that plan. Now, honing his Illusory One-Sword Style against Kuraia took priority over everything else. Besides, he had no intention of showing himself berating the Guild high-handedly in front of Suzume, Priestess Sarah, and the children, while ignoring the city’s miserable state.
Moreover, Sora had never publicly announced his plan. How on earth did Liddell hear about Sora’s plan?
Additionally, he had heard that there were quite a few people in the Adventurers’ Guild who questioned Sora’s [Dragon Slayer] achievement.
From Sora’s perspective, there wasn’t a single reason to accept Liddell’s proposal. Far from accepting it, he felt like laughing out loud at Elgart and Liddell’s predicament. If Liddell insisted, he might listen to what she had to say, but she would have to offer everything she had as compensation before he would even consider sitting at the table.
Just as Sora was thinking this, Miroslav opened his mouth as if reading Sora’s thoughts.
“Liddell harbors feelings beyond respect for Lord Elgart. Given his crisis, she would probably swallow most demands. You could use her as a hidden poison against the Guild, recruit her into [Our Clan] and use her, or use her as night fodder. It might differ from your initial plan, Master, but I believe sufficient results can be obtained even considering that.”
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