“Leave the one who fooled this Candidate and made her commit crimes to me. And that aside, the sin of insulting magic is a grave one,” Lucy said with a sincere look.
Pardon me, I was a little surprised that’s why she was angry. I knew she was a ridiculous mage, but if she didn’t have stronger ethics than that, she wouldn’t be the head of the Magic Division, would she?
From a general point of view, anyone who intentionally lies to mislead Miu should never be forgiven.
Even if I leave it to the Knights or the Magic Division, I’d like to agree with that feeling.
“… I mean, my sister is already…” Miu muttered.
Her reaction is sluggish.
I’m sure she stubbornly believed in that person’s words and committed crimes just to bring her big sister back to life. That ladder was suddenly taken out underneath her by Lucy’s words, she’s just in a state of stunned defeat.
However, it’s still better that she can communicate. She’s supposed to be a young child but I’m worried about her mental strength.
“Miu,” Lucy said, sitting down beside Miu and putting a hand on her fist. “I’m sorry about your big sister. But if you leave the person who lied to you alone, you and your sister will both be insulted. Are you okay with that?”
“…”
Miu’s gaze remains down.
At such times, it’s unexpectedly difficult to say anything. It does make sense to offer some words of comfort but if you’re not careful, it’ll be counterproductive. In that respect, Lucy’s choice of words was almost perfect.
Someone lied to her. It insulted her big sister, and not to mention Miu, using sweet words to take advantage of her grief over her sister’s death.
I’m not a Hero, a Thief, or some Warrior of Justice.
I do remember that feeling of resentment but it’s not enough to set alight my ambition and drive me to action, I have little to relate with Miu.
But Lucy is different.
It doesn’t matter whether their relationship was weak or the other party was a thief. She’s got an emotional axis far superior to mine. You could say it’s her core.
As a result of her following the flow of Miu’s emotions, Lucy was suddenly asked to show off her skills when they first met.
But now, Lucy’s axis seemed to be working in the right direction.
“… I don’t know,” Miu said. “I don’t know, but nothing to do about it now…”
“Is that so?” Lucy asked. “You have to retain your dignity, Candidate, and the dignity of your big sister. And you’re the only one who can protect both.”
Lucy does not hesitate to respond to the words Miu could only squeeze out.
It’s like Alexia and I are just air but I don’t think it’s a hindrance in this atmosphere. I saw this scene as a time to keep quiet.
Lucy is arguably the last person she met but she’s the one closest to Miu’s heart right now.
""
The way she changed the topic from the existence or non-existence of revival magic was also wonderful. Lucy was good at shifting Miu’s heartache to external factors.
It’s an impressive show of skill. You could say it was the merits of her seniority. No, I’m not in a mood to make fun of her nor do I intend to.
Now then, we should go to the solution at once from here.
What is it?
“… I don’t know the name of whoever taught me about revival magic…” Miu said, slowly and steadily. “They just called themselves, ‘Twilight’.”
“Twilight…”
Naturally, I have no idea what they’re talking about. I could guess that “Twilight” is probably a street name or something but then I have no idea what kind of person they were.
“Twilight…” Alexia said. “Perhaps it’s the ‘Twilight Witch’.”
“Alexia, do you know?” I asked.
There were only so many words I could say, that I had no choice but to listen.
“Yes,” Alexia said. “It’s a bandit I’ve heard about from time to time around the capital.”
“I’ve heard of them,” Lucy said. “Even if they’re small fry, I’ll take care of them, anyway.”
Hmm. It seems that this “Twilight’s” reputation wasn’t so high.
Well, that’s right, if two big names like the Knight-Captain of the Order of Revelio and the Arch Magus knew them, this Twilight should have been more important.
If they’re not, then paradoxically, they’re not that important. It’s just a matter of common sense.”
“Your dignity will be ruined if you’re taken advantage of such small fry, Candidate,” Lucy said. “Rest assured, I’ll beat the living daylights out of them for your sake.”
“… I believed, I believed them…” Miu muttered.
She’s at a loss.
If this Twilight had such a low reputation, it would be even worse for Miu who was so taken by their words.
“… No, that didn’t come out right. I’m sorry,” Lucy said sheepishly.
Combined with the circumstances, it’s difficult to deal with for a girl who’s so young. If this was just a bad boy, it would be easy to talk about, but it’s not that simple.
“Speaking of which, Candidate, do you have any parents?” Lucy asked.
My eyes open wide.
Huh? Did I just hear that? Now?
""
That’s not supposed to be asked. She’s not thinking properly. If she did, she would be shameless. This girl read the mood and decided to ignore it.
“… I don’t know if I do,” Miu said. “I’ve been with my big sister as long as I could remember.”
“… Candidate, perhaps you were born in the South-East District?”
“South-East District?” I asked.
The question marks in my words are obvious.
The capital city, Baltrain, is, well, centered around the Central District and further divided into the North, South, East, and West Districts. I’ve never heard of a South-East District.
I’m not sure if I just don’t know about it. Even without the tourists from inside and outside the kingdom, Baltrain has quite a lot of people and goods circulating through it.
In such a big city, you’d know the geography to some extent. Even with the explanation I heard when I went with Kuruni to the West District, I never heard such a name.
“… The border between the South and the East District has poor real estate and the security is not very good,” Alexia said. “For the sake of convenience, we call it that within the city–”
“…Ah, alright then, Alexia,” I said. “I get it now.”
The usually controlled Alexia explains with an unusually bitter face.
Just from that much, I can guess the rest.
In short, it’s a shantytown or something like that.
From the Knight’s perspective, an organization centered around keeping the peace, it’s a bitter pill to swallow that such a District exists. It’s the same as professing to the world that they can’t do their jobs.
Of course, it’s not the sole responsibility of the Knights. This is also on the administration and the like. It’s like the story of living in a remote countryside town, but as the village grows, various new issues may spring up with it.
“I must add, we’ve also got mages from the South-East District,” Lucy said.
“I wasn’t saying anything…” I said.
Seems Lucy wanted to add some extra info, based on how she saw the conversation between me and Alexia.
No, I’m not going to discriminate against such a place. Speaking of that, I didn’t intend to discriminate in my dojo, either.
“No matter where you were born or raised, Candidate, you are Miu, Miu, and you are still a girl with magical capability.”
“That’s not it,” I said.
Of course, that she attempted to pickpocket me won’t disappear, so I think there should still be a reasonable penalty or punishment.
So, once she’s paid for her crimes, she’s good. She should be able to enroll in the Magician’s Academy proudly. But before all that, she has to get rid of the smoldering regrets and the remnants of this confession.
“Sorry, I forgot to ask,” I said. “Miu, do you know where this ‘Twilight’ is?”
“… I don’t know where they’re at,” Miu said. “But, the place we holed up in is the Central District.”
“… You were in the Central District,” I said.
I couldn’t help but react.
I haven’t gone through the entirety of the Central District, so I’m not familiar with the geography. But at least so far as I could see, there weren’t any of these unfortunate people huddled together.
No, isn’t it because ordinary people like me don’t understand why they’ve fallen to crime?
“… Alexia,” I said. “How will the Knights be moving?”
“Right…” Alexia said. “If we increase patrols based on this information and the whereabouts are clarified, we’ll be able to enter the area.”
From the appearance of the Knight-Captain speaking quietly, I feel a strength contrary to her volume.
As someone who keeps the security of the capital, there’s no one else who should do it. The organizations under the direct control of the state shouldn’t be so weak that when they know a den of evil is so close, they decide to just wait. Especially if the person organizing the effort is Alexia.
Well, now. I’m not afraid to rush into it.
I don’t know how much the position of Special Instructor will work externally, but it’s a connection I’ve made. If my power is useful, I’ll spare no effort to help.
Well, if my opponents are thieves who don’t have combat training, it’ll be manageable.
""
“And what are you talking about?” Lucy asked, sighing and butting in. “I’ll crush them right now. Miu, guide me.”
“Right now?!” Alexia and I screamed, our voices overlapping.