Chapter 25

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Translator: Harry Potta
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: The Traitor's Flight
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As it turned out, Mirta was a servant from the fourth floor.

In other words, she knew I was a fake Pero.

“Where on earth did she…”

The problem wasn’t where she had leaked the information.

Someone who knew full well the consequences of breaking the rules would only run their mouth if they had reliable backing.

And there were only two families who could protect Mirta from the Argenta of Fire.

The Cartiel of Wind, or the Alloje of Water.

If the secret about me reached either of them, it would be over.

“Go after her, now. Her location… is there any way to know it?”

It wasn’t as if the contract had a GPS tracker attached to it. It would be impossible.

But surprisingly, an answer emerged.

“According to the Shadows, she was last seen heading for the northern border region.”

“The north?”

I knew from studying the maps. The northern border of Argenta.

“—Cartiel?”

The maid bowed her head at my words.

Pielle’s expression also hardened grimly.

The contract would be broken if one divulged anything about Argenta to an outsider.

Had she already spilled the secret to someone from Cartiel?

Recalling the map again, I suddenly felt something was off.

“...But Cartiel and Argenta are separated by a mountain range. Why would she head that way? What if Argenta sets it on fire?”

No. There was no reason to stick to a land route.

“...The sea.”

“My lady?”

Pielle looked at me as I spoke.

I turned to her quickly.

Even the Infinite Sea was just a sea when there were no monsters.

Naturally, ships sailed on it.

And what if she had someone from Cartiel with her, someone who could control the wind?

They could travel at a speed that was incomparable to any land route.

“She’s planning to go by ship. Launch a ship from the nearest coast, now.”

Pielle’s eyes widened at my command.

“...If she is indeed accompanied by someone from Cartiel, that’s possible. But if that’s true, the ship will be traveling at incredible speed.”

She said calmly.

“We won’t be able to catch up if we leave now.”

“No, we can.”

I said firmly.

“It’s still on water.”

Having stood before the sea last time, I was confident.

On water, at least, we had a fighting chance against Cartiel.

Because water was purely the domain of Alloje.

Pielle’s eyes widened at my words.

* * *

Around the time Croire set out.

The monster disturbance in District 1 came to a swift end with Diello’s arrival.

Fortunately, the water-controlling mage monster from last time wasn't among them.

“Thank you, my lord.”

The field commander, Amos, bowed his head.

He was, in fact, a bit flustered.

He had reported that monsters from the sea were attacking, but he hadn't expected the head of the house to come in person.

It wasn't a commotion that required his presence in the first place.

But Diello had willingly joined the fray.

His stated reason—to stretch his legs—was absurd. The truth was different.

The sea.

Absurdly enough, he wanted to see the sea.

No, the truth was, he wanted to see Croire.

But seeing her so excited at the thought of leaving the estate had soured his mood.

In other words, this was just him blowing off steam.

It was as absurd as that.

‘I'll politely decline. My goal is a peaceful retirement.’

As if hearing that firm voice again, Diello raised an eyebrow.

“—Ah.”

He felt a burning pain at his fingertip.

It was the spot where he had drawn blood to seal Mirta's contract.

—Fwoosh!

A deep blue flame erupted from the spot. It was the flame of retribution, which ignited when the other party broke the contract.

Mirta.

Diello smiled as the name came to mind.

So, she’d finally made her move.

“What’s Mirta’s last reported location?”

At his question, Casillas, the vice-captain of the Argenta knights standing beside him, answered immediately.

“The northern coast.”

As expected, it was clear she was trying to defect to Cartiel.

Mirta was not the only one planning to move to Cartiel.

Diello and the informants under Rick, the head of intelligence, had been aware of this for some time.

But they had let them be.

As the traitors began to move one by one, they would reveal themselves. There was no need to chase them down just yet.

He had simply let them go, keeping them within reach. All he had to do was crush the traitors before they reached Cartiel.

“The timing is perfect.”

A suitable target for his frustration had just appeared.

This was extremely unfortunate for Mirta.

Normally, she would have been dragged back to the Argenta estate and dealt with through proper channels. But now, it seemed she was fated to be summarily executed by the head of the house's own hand, with no chance for excuses, long before she could be brought back.

“I'll go myself.”

Diello started walking.

Cartiel would surely keep their attempts to poach people from Argenta a secret.

Even if they caught the Cartiel member with Mirta, they would feign ignorance.

They would simply cut their losses.

Interrogating the captured Cartiel member would yield information.

Who else was trying to defect to Cartiel.

“Cartiel…”

He glanced toward the distant mountain range.

The Kaltain Mountains, the border between Cartiel and Argenta.

A typical fugitive might try to hide in the mountains, but Mirta wouldn’t go there.

Unless she wanted to become a piece of roasted meat.

With the wind-wielding Cartiel ahead and the fire-wielding Argenta behind, venturing into the mountains would surely turn the range into a sea of fire.

That left only one option.

“The sea.”

The nearby northern sea had just suffered a major monster attack, so the number of monsters there should be low.

“It would take time to break through Cartiel’s waters anyway.”

Diello gestured with his hand.

The whirlpools that churned off the coast of Cartiel.

The wind barrier—the very thing that drove the monsters of the Infinite Sea toward Argenta.

To break through it, even with a Cartiel person accompanying them, would take time.

He just had to get there and take care of them before they could.

“My lord, a team has already been dispatched to capture her.”

“I know.”

Diello replied curtly to Vice-Captain Casillas’s words.

“Prepare a ship.”

If he started the chase from here, he could catch up in an instant.

A smirk formed on Diello’s lips.

But his leisure was brief.

Before long, he would have to face an unexpected situation… no, an unexpected person.

* * *

—Swoooosh…

Controlling the water wasn’t difficult, as expected.

Once I was on the sea, my confidence surged again.

Was it really true that Croire’s ability to control water was weak?

Could it be that the original novel’s heroine was the maid, not Croire, and so she simply never knew the true extent of Croire’s abilities?

“When did you say the Cartiel whirlpools subside?”

Pielle came to stand beside me at my question.

“A report came in that it formed two days ago, so it won’t be today, at least.”

Her answer was quick, as if she had been waiting for the question.

“Then we won't be late.”

The ship shot forward, practically gliding over the water I controlled.

Still, because of the time we’d lost traveling overland to the coast, catching them out on the open sea seemed unlikely.

If I could see Mirta’s ship, I could have manipulated the water to stop it, but unfortunately, it was nowhere in sight.

“However, there’s an uninhabited island nearby they can use as a waiting point. She’s probably there.”

Pielle said. I stared out at the sea.

Pielle and the Argenta informants had said the whirlpools off the coast of Cartiel wouldn’t disappear today.

But that didn't mean we had a lot of time.

Mirta’s contract was already aflame—proof that she had divulged secrets about Argenta.

That naturally meant she had contacted an outsider.

That person was, in all likelihood, from Cartiel, and someone from Cartiel would know exactly when the whirlpools would disappear.

So, what did it mean that Mirta had left today?

It meant the whirlpools were about to disappear.

—Swoooooosh!

We wouldn’t be late, but we couldn’t afford to dally.

I controlled the water to move faster.

The surroundings flew by quickly, as if we were gliding on ice.

The water itself was practically lifting and carrying the ship; it was impossible to move any faster.

“The uninhabited island is in sight!”

A moment later, one of the Argenta men on lookout shouted.

Even with the naked eye, I could faintly make something out.

“That’s…”

But as we got closer, something strange came into view.