Not long afterwards, the troops arrived in the Margravate, and the commander came to the Margrave’s residence.
We moved to the reception room to welcome him.
Knock. Knock.
“Excuse me. Commander Tory has arrived.”
“I understand. Show him in.”
Toria-san announced the commander’s arrival, and the Margrave gave permission for him to enter.
We all rose from our seats at once and waited quietly.
Click
“Please excuse the intrusion. I am Tory, commander of the force dispatched here.”
“You’ve come a long way. Thank you for your efforts. Please, have a seat.”
“Thank you.”
The man who entered looked every bit the professional soldier. He was tall, clean-shaven with a completely bald head, and so solidly built that his powerful physique was obvious even beneath his armor. His bearing was impeccable, and his manners were equally polished. Compared to the eccentric nobles I had met until now, he was in an entirely different league.
Then Casey-san and Telma-san stepped forward together and bowed their heads respectfully to Commander Tory.
“Commander, on behalf of the House of Viscount Nasca, I offer my deepest apologies for the trouble our family has caused.”
“And on behalf of the House of Viscount Franz, I sincerely apologize as well for all the trouble we have brought upon everyone.”
“For now, I will accept your apologies. However, we are here to carry out our mission in the Western Frontier Territory, so there is no need for concern. The full investigation will begin once everyone has been escorted back to the royal capital.”
The commander accepted Casey-san’s and Telma-san’s apologies with calm professionalism. Considering the sheer scale of this incident, it was obvious that resolving everything would take quite some time.
“So the royal capital is conducting a large-scale investigation as well?”
Emilia-sama asked.
“As expected of Emilia-sama. The members of the House of Viscount Nasca and the House of Viscount Franz who were apprehended here in the Frontier have confessed to everything. Using those confessions as a starting point, the authorities are now tracking down everyone connected to both the Human Supremacy Cult and the Red Scorpions.”
“““…Eh?”””
The room fell silent in an instant.
None of us had expected the investigation to have progressed that far already. Not only Casey-san and Telma-san, but even Sue looked completely bewildered.
Well… I’d actually already heard about this from Emilia-sama.
“S-Shun-san… did you already know about this?”
I admitted with a nod.
“A bit. I couldn’t tell anyone because it was confidential. Apparently, Casey-san’s and Telma-san’s older brothers deeply regretted dragging their younger sisters into all of this. They were only minor members of the criminal organization and hadn’t committed any major crimes themselves. Because of that—and because they genuinely regretted what they’d done—they confessed everything and accepted responsibility for their actions.”
“I see…”
There was no way I could have shared information like that. Not even with Sue.
That said, it was also true that the two brothers had known some of their associates were involved in the bombing incident. As a result, the question of their punishment would ultimately be left to the courts.
Commander Tory continued,
“For the time being, we will resume questioning all those who have been taken into custody. I’ve been informed that additional suspects were arrested yesterday as well.”
He turned toward Casey-san and Telma-san.
“As for the two of you, your movements will not be restricted as long as you remain within the capital of the Frontier. In fact, it would greatly assist our investigation if you continued staying here at the Margrave’s residence.”
“Thank you very much for your consideration.”
The two women bowed deeply in gratitude.
As for the restrictions placed on Casey-san and Telma-san, I thought they were perfectly reasonable.
That being said, what were we supposed to do until the next detachment arrived?
Tap. Tap.
“Hm? Shiro, what is it?”
“Well, weren’t we supposed to repair the Goddess’s statue at the church after the festival was over?”
“…Ah!”
She was right.
“I completely forgot.”
With everything that had happened before the explosion in the town square, the matter had completely slipped my mind. Still, it would give us something worthwhile to do.
When I looked over at Emilia-sama, she gave me an approving nod.
“All right. Until the next unit arrives, we’ll focus on repairing the Goddess’s statue at the church.”
“““Okay!”””
The girls all answered enthusiastically.
“I’ll notify the church staff. If I remember correctly, it’s the church near the fortress gate.”
Once I explained our plans for the time being, Shiro and the others raised their hands energetically.
It was a sensible arrangement. Everyone would know exactly where to find us, and if anything happened, the garrison stationed near the gate would be close enough to respond immediately.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeneijiworks.com
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