As soon as dinner was over, Ao and I made preparations to begin our patrol.
“Shiro’s coming too.”
“Fran too.”
“Horn too.”
Right on cue, Shiro and the others insisted on coming with us. However, it was already late at night, and someone needed to remain at the mansion in case anything happened.
“Sue and the others won’t be with us tonight. I need you three to stay here and look after the mansion, alright?”
“““Okay…”””
The three of them reluctantly accepted my decision.
I pulled them all into a hug. Ao joined in as well, wrapping her tentacles around them as if sharing the embrace.
“Then I’ll leave things here in your hands.”
“Yes. Leave it to us.”
Entrusting Shiro and the others to Sue, I left the mansion with Ao.
The moment we stepped outside, I activated my Detection Magic.
“So they finally made a move…”
Almost immediately, I noticed someone who had been keeping watch on the mansion.
The moment Ao and I departed, that person began following us. At the same time, another individual broke away and ran off toward some unknown destination. Ao and I exchanged a glance. No words were needed. I continued wandering through the town as if I had noticed nothing, acting as bait. Meanwhile, Ao silently slipped away into the darkness, setting off in pursuit of the person who had run off.
“Are you keeping a good distance, watching me from the shadows? Though, everything I’m doing is completely transparent to you.”
As I slowly walked towards the square, more and more people gathered behind me.
Are they planning to kill me?
I also began to secretly gather my magic power.
And then I arrived at the square.
“Thanks for your hard work.”
“Y-yes. Good work to you too.”
When I arrived at the square and spoke to the guards, they responded in a friendly manner. There were four guards in total, all strong beastmen.
Actually, I’ve seen them many times before during preparations for the Harvest Festival, so I’m pretty much acquainted with them.
“I came because I was worried, since it starts tomorrow.”
“Haha, I understand that feeling. I’m also praying for the success of the Harvest Festival.”
While chatting casually with the guards, I kept an eye on the person hiding behind me.
Five people in total? This should be over in no time.
I gestured with my index finger to the soldiers to be quiet.
“Come on. I already know you’re hiding there. You’d be better off coming out quietly.”
The moment I called out to the people concealed in the shadows, there was a reaction. Five individuals stepped out without hesitation. I wasn’t surprised in the slightest—it was exactly what I had expected.
The soldiers on patrol, however, were another story.
“W-What?! They’re wearing our uniforms!”
Sure enough, the people who emerged were humans dressed exactly like soldiers of the Margrave’s army.
“The best place to hide a tree is in a forest. If they’re dressed as soldiers, the townspeople won’t find them suspicious. And with security tightened throughout the city, having more soldiers walking around than usual wouldn’t seem strange at all.”
“I see… So that’s how they managed the previous attack. Nobody thought they were suspicious, and they caught the guards completely off guard.”
With that explanation, the incidents at the square suddenly made perfect sense.
Dressed as fellow soldiers, they could lower their targets’ guard and slip in behind them with ease. Likewise, approaching festival facilities under the pretense of performing an inspection would attract little suspicion.
I had found the situation suspicious from the beginning. The Margrave’s beastmen soldiers were seasoned warriors. It was hard to believe they could be defeated so easily in a straightforward confrontation. But if the attackers had disguised themselves as allies and struck when their victims were least expecting it, then everything fit together perfectly.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeneijiworks.com
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