The Most Powerful Wizard's Scheme of Seclusion

◇ ◇ ◇

Time goes back a few hours.

With the heads of the goose heads in sight, a tense atmosphere surrounds them.

A decision that has just been made. It's not just a matter of time before you'll be able to get your hands on it. Until I made a plan to mobilize all the single mages against Ars.

But the biggest concern that was raised as expected.

If we lose sight of Ars in the outside world and the largely unknown territory, each country will have to intercept it without a single wizard. Everyone understood that the pretense of interception was not even a mere decoration.

The powerful magic that had killed Hispida and dealt a devastating blow to Rusalka. If that was unleashed on their own country the conclusion they didn't want to think about would be done without resistance.

It's not that there were no concerns at all in the past, but only this time, Rusalka's devastation was already too tragic. It had been burned into my brain.

That's why no one was able to spin an effective rebuttal to Rafcenal's proposal. As a result, it was inevitable that an unspoken agreement would be made.

The only thing that would change was if there was one person here who knew that it was not a coincidence.

It's not a coincidence that the only person who knows this is not a coincidence is the one who is present here, because he has a dark feeling coiled up in the depths of his stomach that never clears.

The same is true for the woman in front of him. It's a good idea to be able to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

Here, only Rusalka was drawing an agenda that was decidedly at odds with the rest of the country. This was probably a selfish action interspersed with personal feelings.

Jean mocked himself and at the same time felt a little bit of regret for forcing Lithia to make a tough choice. However, despite the way she had taken advantage of her position, Lithia commanded dignifiedly with a slightly sad expression on her face.

'Jean Rumbles. Head of Lusarka, Lithia Toof Infratta, gives the order. Together, we will clear Mr. Hispida's regret.

She forgave me for this selfish advance. As a head of state, he cannot give an imperial order to Jean, a single wizard. Nevertheless, Jean went down on one knee and deeply engraved words of gratitude into his heart, "I respectfully accept your order," he said, putting it all into one word.

It all started when Jean went to the scene of Hispida's murder.

The scene was so grisly that it was impossible to examine it. Hispida lying there, as if embraced by nature, with a peaceful face.

Her arms hang limp and powerless, covered from her mouth to her sub-chin with clotted blood.

Jean looked around, praying that her death hadn't been painful in the least. He had all of his men in this area to investigate the traces. That wouldn't take a lot of time in the outside world either.

But there were a few things we found out.

Once, Jean had heard of the magic in Hispida's AWR. It was for a forbidden magic that he had learned about by chance. But Hispida replied with a straight face, his usual aloof smile gone.

She said that that magic could only be used once, and the person who would use it was already decided. That was the [Exorcism Anti-Drawing [Unlimited Zero]].

Three thick sheets of paper that were probably used for that purpose were found - unevenly smeared with red spots that were scattered as if they were no longer useful.

With all this here, only the all-important AWR was missing.

After receiving the call, the troops who had arrived before Jean had just barely detected a magical reaction that would have been the two magicians by the time they arrived. It didn't seem to be able to follow them to this devastation, though.

Jean guessed that the two were probably Ars and Loki.

It was too unnatural to assume that they had brought up the AWR to disrupt the investigation. It's a good thing it's Jean, so we know it's not the killer, so it's a good thing.

Remembering what Ars had asked him to do, Jean punched the trunk of a huge tree. The meke and embedded fist shook grandly and made the leaves fall off.

'Why didn't you tell me, Ars!

Words of regret leaked from the gap between my forehead and teeth. No, I can't even begin to say it. If Ars had expected to go this far, there is no way he would not move.

Besides, Hispida had a vendetta that had to be accomplished. It is something that cannot be stopped, even if it is Jean.

This scene reminds me of regret.

--just like that time........

The remorse is also driven by Hispida, who has supported Rusalka for longer than Jean. So when he was chosen as the second single mage, he was called Lusarka's twin wings and so on, but Jean went out to the outside world frequently, eager to make Hispida as comfortable as possible.

As she became known as a merchant, she became a celebrity in the city. I thought that someday she would be able to heal her heartbreak....

Jean is ashamed of himself for his naivete when he visits Hispida's home. It was a closed room with materials from those days pasted to the extent of his resentment.

All of them covered the walls and the articles released haphazardly on the floor.

Hispida had been burning wood to keep the fires of revenge burning for a long time. She had kept this obsession hidden and kept it to herself for the past few years, not letting anyone know about it.

It was impossible to imagine.

It is impossible to imagine that anyone can guess his or her intentions, even if they are the same person. Only those who have kept a grudge in their hearts can understand or realize it.

Jean spent the whole night alone looking through all the material. To find out what she was thinking ... what she had found.

Of course, she didn't want anyone in this room right now.

But after three days of no sleep and three days of rubbing deep, blackened shadows, Lithia, who was also shaded in the same way, came to greet him with a fleeting smile.

She, too, had not slept in the last few days as she spearheaded the domestic rescue and relief efforts. Then, as she staggered into the room to find her footing, she reported, "I found traces of Ars-san's blood from the scene.

She herself looked down and announced, as if she couldn't believe it.

But--'

''No, it's not. It's not Ars and the others. Here.........

With that, Jean handed over a document that was arranged in chronological order. There was a photo left there that seemed to have been printed from all the military's surveillance cameras, from where it was purchased, plus a virtual LCD was deployed from the equipment being activated.

''...!　What is this?

Fatigue was erased in a moment of astonishment. Already Lithia knew about Hispida's revenge as a report. That was why she had allowed Jean to stay here.

The eyes drop, a picture that is only taped to the documents.

But the person in it and the words that Hispida had added in his own handwriting were so divergent.

'What the hell is going on, Jean!

At the angry voice that mimicked a reprimand, Jean gave a calmly guided answer.

'Oran Topithon quit the army before Hispida's husband, Sigtham, died. He has not been heard from since. To be precise, he was found dead as an altered body a few days after he disappeared, and according to the documents, it was an accident, but...

Lithia looked down at the date on the posted photo and exclaimed.

'Then there were a total of three images captured by the army's internal surveillance cameras. All of them were taken after his death.

Wait, wait, I don't understand.

Rithia ruffled her hair, forcing her dulled thoughts to spin after exhaustion. But it was certainly an area she didn't have enough knowledge in to begin with, Jean told her clearly. A single fact.

'The only thing I can think of is the possibility that Oran Topithon is still alive, but this is almost certainly not the case. Mr. Hispida seems to have investigated that far. So, then, someone is pretending to be Oran Topithon. No, in this case, it's someone in his skin. And that's the person who killed Mr. Sigsum.

Lithia had no tolerance for these black areas, but she couldn't say that anymore. Hispida was a mage who had led Rusalka to greatness so far. She knows too badly how much effort she has put into the reforms that Lithia recommends.

Without her, Rusalka would not be what it is today.

''But I'm sure Ars would not be irrelevant either.

By now, it's slowly becoming clear what kind of intentions he has, since he asked for it in person to Jean on a prolonged basis. I have a bad feeling about the signal left by Ars, if it has come this far.

''Jean....'' an urgent snatch made Jean's eardrums tremble as he was thinking. It contains a sound that is tragic, yet does not end in regret. It was such a squeezing sound that even the throat trembled.

'I'm not sure I can forgive those who killed Miss Hispida. I'm sure I'm not allowed to say these things as a head of state, but I still can't mourn for Hispida-san at her funeral. I don't think I can let it end like this.

'I agree with you on that. I don't think I'm going to be rewarded for this. Maybe it's all just self-satisfaction. Still, those left behind can't even come to terms with it if they can't even be self-satisfied.

Yes, I'm even willing to be a force to be reckoned with for her.

I'm sure they'll understand.

I hope so...

The decision of the two men would greatly disrupt the country. Therefore, it was communicated only to them and to the Governor of Rusalka.

From then on, an unprecedented regime was immediately put in place, whereby all of the Governor's orders were subject to the wishes of the head of state, Lithia.

All wizards in the country know that Lithia went to the military headquarters without knowing what it meant or what the orders were. Even though the news of Hispida's death had only been publicized a short time ago, Jean could see the unavoidable anger that lurked in the depths of grief on his face.

The vindictive words uttered towards the head of the head of the state are swallowed up. The reason for this is that they too saw something similar to Lithia's expression.

And then the meeting of the heads of state arrived.

Both Jean and Lithia had only memorized the content and other superlatives, devoting the majority of their thoughts to what had been decided before the Alpha arrived.

It's probably not until after the hearing to extract information from Alpha under the guise of an explanation of the situation is completed that we can move on to the main topic.

However, Jean had been made to cringe a few times along the way.

The fact is that although Lithia is good at policy bargaining from experience and is skilled at coming up with innovative policies, she is not good at this kind of gut-checking.

Rusalka must only work independently. This is because this is a retaliation for personal feelings only.

--For God's sake, Sisernia-sama. Don't mess with Lithia-sama too much!

Jean felt a cold feeling down his spine as he prayed for such a thing. It was clear from the fire that Cisernia would have the upper hand in a battle of tongues.

Perhaps it was because Jean was taking a step back more than anything else, but he still found Sisernia to be a scary person. As well as having the keen eye to see through Lithia, who seems to be in possession of the information immediately, she will search for our hand from the little information she has.

I'm sure that the same amount of information was drawn out from the position of Lithia as well, so I can't help but feel that the two are incompatible.

Their personalities are as different as they can be. Lithia is bought for her honesty within Rusalka, and she puts the people first with her integrity. That's why, even after that incident, she responded immediately, and when she had finished what she could, she now went to the scene and took direct command.

This makes her vulnerable to being outsmarted by the intentions and malice of the people, which makes her vulnerable to being outsmarted. It is easy to be taken advantage of. However, Jean was truly glad that she was the head of Rusalka.

It's a very good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

-- as expected, they even read our movements. What about Alpha, though?

In the end, there is no way that Alpha will be able to propose anything at this meeting. Because everything has already been decided to the point where nothing will be any different than the countries involved in the crime.

So far, the grace period -- for Alpha and for Rusalka.

--Here it is. For God's sake, Lithia-sama, don't throw a tantrum yet. If possible, though, I'd like Alpha to be quiet too.

Alternate gaze shifts. It's probably true, as Lithia lightly said, that Cicernia's condition is not good from earlier. If that is the case, I'd rather it stay that way, but the degree of certainty of the information known by Alpha and Rusalka is different.

I was almost beginning to get an idea in Rusalka as opposed to Alpha, who was still groping. Of course, it was only after coming to this meeting.

But at the end of the day, even that is not beyond the scope of expectation. The degree of suspicion, as a matter of fact, is that there are only a few steps that can be done as well as the Alpha.

'It is an honor to be invited, gentlemen, to call me Mekphis. Best regards henceforth.

It's a very good idea to be able to have a good time with a good friend.

It's a very good idea to be able to have a good time with them.

In the true sense of the word, this was the reason why the single mage was bringing in AWR.

--That was.........