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ambush 2

Treat me to a Ko-Fi to give me more motivation!!!

*****

Sandwiched between the clingy Vanessa-san and the stiff, sullen Master Segrus, I walked through the streets of the Royal Capital at night.

「It's rare to see you out in the city like this, Vanessa-san. Master Segrus mentioned there isn't much time, so are you heading to work now?」

「I suppose so. Even after you retire as an alchemist, you still have to take responsibility for the items you've made. Whenever a problem like this crops up, they call me in.」

「You’re surprisingly diligent about that.」

「Even I don't want to be working at night. But, you know, if I don't do it, the Country gets mad at me, so I have no choice.」

(...Hm? The "Country" gets mad? Not the Alchemists Guild?)

Hah! I-I mean, I had my suspicions, but did she really work on projects of that scale?

Considering the nature of the request Master Segrus received from the King, I could only surmise that this was an affair of staggering proportions.

「Could it be... were you the one who created the barrier surrounding the Capital?」

「It was a joint project of love between me and Zeg-chan.」

I knew it... The moment that thought crossed my mind, I realized the gravity of my situation and suddenly felt breathless.

I was being flanked by the two great alchemists who protected the Capital. I felt like a simple walk home was about to turn into a high-stakes formal reception... but there was no point in putting on airs now.

Neither of them seemed like the type to sweat the small stuff, so I decided to interact with them just as I always had.

If anything, Master Segrus seemed more irritated by the fact that she had exaggerated their work as a "joint project of love."

「Hey, don't say things that invite misunderstanding. It’s also against the rules to disclose the details of a back-channel deal.」

(A back-channel deal...) So, the fact that they set up the barrier through a joint effort was supposed to be a secret.

「It's fine. Mia-chan isn't the type of girl to go around blabbing.」

「That is not the point, good grief.」

「What’s the harm in a little talk? Mia-chan is the kind of girl who makes friends with commoners.」

「I wonder. She doesn't look like a noble who can be trusted.」

Master Segrus shot a glance my way, his hostility evident.

While he gave a gentler impression than when we first met, there was a clear, vast distance in his heart. It felt like he didn't want anything to do with me—as if, in some way, he was actually afraid.

「Master Segrus... do you happen to hate nobles?」

「What reason is there to like them? They're just a bunch of people given special treatment simply because they were born into the right house. As long as words like 'noble' and 'commoner' exist, this world will remain unequal.」

Perhaps I had touched a nerve; after saying only that, Master Segrus began stomping ahead of us on his own.

Watching him go, Vanessa-san wore a wry smile.

「Sorry, Mia-chan. Zeg-chan is from a poor village; he doesn't have any good memories of nobles.」

「Ah... that makes sense. No wonder he hates both me and Master Clein.」

「He doesn't mean any harm. When he was young, the noble ruling his village was a man driven by greed. Apparently, Segrus was treated like a slave.」

「What? Slavery was abolished a long time ago. Doing that in this day and age would result in severe punishment.」

「I imagine he thought he wouldn't get caught in such a tiny village. In fact, it seems Zeg-chan was treated that way until he reached adulthood.」

I couldn't imagine it at all looking at the current Master Segrus, but I didn't think Vanessa-san was lying.

Perhaps the reason he was so acerbic toward Master Clein was that he simply couldn't bring himself to acknowledge a noble. The higher the rank, the stronger that feeling likely became.

「Deep down, he has a strong sense of justice and is a kind person. The incident only came to light because Zeg-chan smuggled himself into a transport shipment and practically launched a one-man raid on the royal castle to report it.」

「...It's a miracle he's safe. It wouldn't have been strange if he'd been executed on the spot.」

「Truly. If the King hadn't been a man willing to listen, Segrus wouldn't be alive today.」

They say there's a fine line between recklessness and courage, but it sounded like he’d survived by the skin of his teeth.

Having walked such a harrowing path, Master Segrus had now attained the status of a noble himself. He must have claimed his barony with an ironclad resolve and a powerful set of convictions.

「That's why he wants to change this country. And to do that, he needed results in a visible form. No matter what means he had to use.」

「Which is why there was a 'back-channel deal.'」

「Exactly. In exchange for providing his technical expertise, he had a small request granted.」

(A request from Vanessa-san sounds terrifying...) Just as I was thinking that, Master Segrus, who had been walking ahead, approached us again.

「How long do you intend to spend on idle chatter?」

「Oh, what a strange thing to say. You’re the one who didn't stop us even though you could hear everything, Zeg-chan.」

「Even if I'd stopped you here, you would have just talked about it later.」

「Caught me, did you? Well, it's just so rare to see Zeg-chan with a noble girl.」

In the sense that he had called out to me purely out of concern, perhaps Master Segrus had softened a little.

「Good grief, you talk too much. Even if you tell a noble, there's no way they could understand the heart of a commoner.」

「Targeting nobles like that is your bad habit, Zeg-chan. If you don't start facing them properly, you'll eventually be stripped of your position as a Court Alchemist.」

「Hmph. His Majesty is a man of reason. He wouldn't stoop to such petty behavior.」

「Is that so? Even though the King is the top of the nobility?」

「I couldn't care less.」

Master Segrus, speaking with a grim expression, and Vanessa-san, talking quite happily, continued their back-and-forth without giving me a moment to interject.

Their genders were different, and their ages were far apart. They seemed to do nothing but argue, yet it was clear they cared for one another.

Master Segrus had waited near the Alchemists Guild specifically to escort her so she wouldn't run into danger, and Vanessa-san spoke in a way that showed her concern for him.

I found the bond of trust between the two of them a little bit enviable.

「You two really are close.」

「We're totally lovey-dovey. Right, Zeg-chan?」

「What part of this could possibly lead to that answer? As I thought, our values simply do not align with the nobility.」

(They look incredibly close to me, regardless of the age gap,) I thought as we reached the vicinity of my home.

「I'll be fine from here. Thank you very much for walking me close to my house.」

「Don't mention it. I'll be waiting at the Alchemists Guild again!」

「...」

Master Segrus remained silent, as if to insist he hadn't intended to escort me at all, but I couldn't help that. It was a fact that he had been concerned, so I intended to be grateful.

As I watched the two of them head off to work, planning to rest my exhausted body, I overheard the tail end of their conversation.

「So, how is that boy doing? Is he well?」

「I've only just finished dispatching him to the runt’s place.」

「I see. Then it seems there won't be any problems. Actually, a little more...」

The two of them gradually moved further away, and their voices faded. However, hearing the content of their talk left me with a slightly complicated feeling.

I wondered if Vanessa-san’s "small request" had actually been about Leon.

*****

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