Episode 42
“The reason the commander exposed this to the media first… it’s probably because he wanted the forces behind it to make a move,” Kallen said as he sat down beside me.
I nodded. I agreed with his guess.
“Right. If there’s a hidden force, this will provoke them.”
The claim that the beasts didn’t appear naturally would send shockwaves across the entire Tristram Empire.
Because it would imply that some faction within the Empire intentionally caused chaos.
It wouldn’t be long before people started denying that the beasts were summoned at all.
There were already newspapers painting me in a negative light.
Calling me something akin to a witch who communicates with monsters.
“Ferocious Hippogriff—Is It Really Safe to Leave It in the Forest? Mysterious Woman Allegedly Communicates with Beasts”
“Unknown Beautiful Swordmaster Talks with Hippogriff? Locals Suspect Witchcraft”
I had deliberately left the critical articles out on the table. A few members of the unit glanced at me with worried expressions.
“Are you… alright?” Kallen asked with concern.
“Yeah. This much is nothing.”
I had braced myself for criticism. Revealing my power had been a conscious, deliberate decision. When I spoke about it during the press conference, the journalists hadn’t looked convinced.
I wouldn’t blame them. In a country where magic wasn’t common, a mysterious woman suddenly claiming to have a special ability wouldn’t sound credible.
But I believed this was necessary—this warning had to reach the ones who had planted the summoning stones.
Bang.
The door suddenly burst open. Antonio walked in. Everyone stood and saluted.
“What’s got you all so engrossed?” he asked, glancing down at the newspapers spread on the table.
When Antonio spotted the articles referring to me as a witch, he frowned.
“They sure went to great lengths to say something so ridiculous.”
He slumped into the seat reserved for him, pushing the messy pile of newspapers aside, and unrolled a large scroll.
It was a map of the entire Tristram Empire—including my homeland, Iote, which had been annexed by the empire.
“These are the regions in Tristram where avian-type beasts have been a problem.”
Antonio marked several areas on the map. Red indicators appeared where his magic touched.
These included our current location in central-southern Cassia, along with parts of the west, southwest, and east.
But not the capital region or the northern territories.
“If we assume none of these beasts appeared naturally, there’s likely a political motive behind choosing these locations.”
“Maybe there’s a shared pattern among the areas affected.”
He let out a heavy sigh, clearly troubled.
“The Scorpio unit is good at gathering intel, but we’re still outsiders here. We don’t know much about the internal power dynamics between Tristram’s lords. For now, Lady Theodora Cassia has agreed to cooperate.”
“Um…”
I raised one hand tentatively.
“Yes, Josephine? Speak up if you have something to say.”
Antonio promptly gave me the floor.
“I think we need to monitor newspapers from across the empire. If someone’s trying to hide the summoning stones, they’ll either deny my claims or suppress any related reports.”
“Then we’ll need to hire informants to be dispatched throughout the empire as soon as possible.”
“I might be able to send out some informants too.”
“You have informants?” Antonio asked, surprised.
Understandably so—what kind of network could a woman locked away in the Ruby Palace possibly have?
“I can release birds. They listen to me.”
“What kind of birds? I’ll catch them immediately,” said Bartol, rising to his feet with a clenched fist.
“Owls would be best…”
“Oh, owl-napping? We’ve actually done that before. But why owls specifically?” Kallen asked.
“Owls can fly long distances and have sharp hearing. They’re intelligent enough to grasp human social structures. They also love gossip.”
That’s how it had always been. When I had no friends in the palace, Luna and the other owls brought me all the gossip.
Being nocturnal, they were also perfect for picking up nighttime secrets—since most illicit things happened after dark.
Still, I didn’t like the idea of capturing them.
“Don’t catch them. I’ll go to the forest and call them. I have a whistle for summoning owls.”
“I’ll look into nearby owl habitats,” said Edrick, the youngest member. With Antonio’s permission, he hurried out.
“Bartol, start recruiting some contacts,” Antonio ordered.
“Yes, sir,” Bartol replied, and left as well.
“I know who the lords are in the regions where the beasts appeared. I’ll make a list.”
I studied the map Antonio had marked.
“…There must be someone who wanted those lords to lose military power.”
“Right. I think whoever orchestrated this wanted the lords of those areas—like the Duke of Cassia—to be weakened.”
“Oh, and one more thing,” Antonio said, as if he had just remembered something.
“Yeah?”
“Most of the magical artifacts from the Demon Continent—including summoning stones—enter through one place.”
“…Where?”
“The North. The Duchy of Lavenhart. It has the closest port to the northwest sea.”
He pointed to the northern region on the map.
Lavenhart was the family of the late Empress—Antonio’s maternal side.
Come to think of it, I hadn’t heard of any avian beasts appearing there, even though it was geographically closest to the Demon Continent.
Everyone fell quiet for a moment, lost in their own thoughts.
“Oh right, Josephine. This is for you.”
Kallen suddenly handed me a heavy-looking book. The ornate leather-bound volume had gold trim.
The title read:
“Encyclopedia of Rare Beasts: All About Avian-Type Beasts”
“What’s this?” I asked.
Kallen grinned mischievously.
“It’s a gift—from him.”
I blinked and looked in the direction Kallen indicated. At the far end of the table sat Nathan.
As soon as our eyes met, Nathan looked away.
“He was too shy to give it to you himself, so he asked me to do it.”
Kallen teased, and Nathan cleared his throat awkwardly, ears turning red.
I carefully opened the book.
“Wow…”
Inside were detailed illustrations and extensive descriptions of airborne magical beasts. The more I flipped through it, the more impressed I became. There was even a section on hippogriffs.
“He used to be really into avian beasts. It was his dream to ride a hippogriff someday. But then he saw you with one, kneeling before you.”
“They should all be in there. Handle it with care—it’s expensive,” Nathan said, rubbing his shiny bald head. His cheeks were red now too.
“He really treasured that book. Used to wipe it clean every day and even wore gloves when reading it,” Kallen tattled like a cheeky kid.
“Shut it, Kallen,” Nathan growled under his breath.
“Thank you, Nathan. I’ll read it well.”
“I only gave it because I thought it might be useful. Commander, I’ll now go investigate those construction supervisors you asked about.”
Nathan abruptly stood up and left, stiff and awkward in posture.
“That guy… I’ve never seen him give anything to anyone before,” Antonio muttered, watching the door Nathan had exited through.
“He seems like a good person.”
I was also watching the same door.
“Who? That guy who just left?”
“All of them. The Scorpio members.”
A smile unknowingly spread across my lips.
Nathan had been the most resistant to my joining.
Now, it seemed even the others—aside from Kallen—were slowly beginning to open up to me.
Maybe because my genuine desire to help them was starting to reach them.
“…You too.”
Antonio mumbled something, but it was too soft for me to hear clearly.
