Chapter 41: Sniper Rifle (2/2)

“How rude! A demon race saying something like that to the genius of all geniuses Lute-sama! Guards! What are you doing! Hurry up and kick this insolent one out! How did someone like this get inside my estate!”

“Calm down Meiya. She’s ojousama’s friend, the Centaur Karen Bishop-sama. I already told you that I sent a letter to explain our current situation and asked her to come, right?”

“…. She’s Chrisse-san’s friend, huh. Truthfully, I think she’s a lovely person. How do you do Karen-san. My name is Meiya Dragoon, Lute-sama’s number one disciple. Feel free to relax and think of this place like your own home.”

「こ、こちらこそよろしく」

“M, me too.”

Once I scolded Meiya, she became friendly as if she was a different person.

Karen was also surprised at her change in attitude and became nervous.

Karen cleared her throat and turned to me once again.

“Anyway, While you are fugitives, but what the hell are you saying to your master Chrisse.”

“Well, that was just part of training.”

“Training?”

“I already have ojousama’s consent. It’s a spartan military training. I would never say something like that to her otherwise, right, ojousama?”

[Yeah, it’s just as Lute-oniichan said.]

Ojousama wrote on the mini blackboard and showed it to Karen.

[Karen-chan, thanks for specifically coming for me. I’m very happy to see you again after so long.]

“You’re taking the words out of my mouth. I was surprised when a letter arrived at my home after I heard you went missing. It had a name I don’t recognize, but it was written in Chrisse-chan’s handwriting that I know very well.”

Karen stepped up to Ojousama and hugged her.

“Really, I’m glad you’re alright…. Not only me, but Barnie and Muir were also worried when we heard Chrisse went missing.”

The two were hugging each other, being glad for each other’s safety, almost like sisters.

Some time ago I asked for Meiya’s help to write a letter addressed to Karen.

I had actually wanted to send letters to the other two, but for all three of ojousama’s friends to receive a letter and have them move at the same time would stand out too much, so it can’t be helped.

After discussing it, I decided to send a letter to Karen, who was most acquainted with military matters.

Her family runs a large weapons and armor business.

Not just selling them, they practically do all kinds of work on them.

Karen’s family has their own mercenary army, and they are dispatched to various places with weapons and armors. It seems that they using their products on the battlefield to spread word of their brand, which promotes business. Furthermore after the battles, they would be able to make improvements from feedback on suggestions and ease of use regarding the weapons etc.

Having that kind of family situation, and consequently receiving strict military training, I decided to entrust her with calming the others down.

The fact that I called her to the Meiya estate in the Dragon Continent is also for no other reason.

It is to let her know about our situation, for new intelligence, and to inform her of our safety.

I asked ojousama, [wasn’t it forbidden to ask the help of another family in a family dispute?], but she said that it was okay, because it’s not like we were asking her for direct help. Therefore I was able to send the letter to Karen without hesitation.

Karen tore herself off of ojousama, and rubbed the tears in her eyes.

“It’s also good that Lute is safe. Really, thanks for protecting Chrisse.”

“Not at all, it’s the obvious thing to do as a butler of the Vlad house. Then, I’m sorry to ask this immediately after you just got here, but can you tell us about the current situation?”

“Well, since the weather is nice and all, why don’t we have some tea at the courtyard.”

As Meiya raised her hand, the maids have already arranged a table, chairs, a parasol, tea, and tea cakes at the courtyard, as if they had been prepared beforehand.

In under three minutes, a small but fashionable spot had been erected at the courtyard.

Temporarily stopping the unarmed combat practice, we listened to Karen’s story while sipping on the tea.

According to the news Karen brought us—

It seems that after master was captured, they put on a magic prevention collar to seal his magic and sold him as a slave.

She knew that he was sold not to the Demon Continent, but some other continent, though she didn’t know where.

Madam was locked up at the top of a tower in the Vlad castle.

She also had a magic prevention collar put on her, and was not able to escape on her own.

The castle seems to be occupied by the Vampire house’s head, the eldest son Pylkkänen Vlad and the second son Ravio Vlad.

They were being loud about plundering master’s business and even unreasonably resorting to violence to unfairly lower wages, so they faced considerable resistance from the workers. Thanks to that, the business seem to have become stagnated.

Merry-san and the other surviving servants escaped and hid in several places, but since they had little fighting power they were unable to do anything.

Now that they don’t have master, the difference in power was overwhelmingly against them.

Moreover, there were several of the Vampire house’s magicians besides Pylkkänen and Ravio standing watch at the castle. Because of that, they couldn’t do a thing.

The only blessing within the misfortune is that they guaranteed madam’s safety

As she was their only prisoner, if they somehow got her wounded or killed, Merry-san and the other houses with relations to the Vlad house won’t stay silent. They couldn’t protest about matter of master and his brothers, but madam is another matter entirely. If something happens to her her relatives won’t stay still.

If madam died it certainly would go beyond the limits of what can be settled as being a family dispute.

It will be a war to pay back blood with blood.

Of course, it was something they did not want. Therefore they guaranteed madam’s safety.

Furthermore, it was also the same reason why they searched every nook and cranny for ojousama.

If they had ojousama, were madam to pass away for some reason they could use ojousama as a new hostage to protect against Merry-san’s attacks.

Karen grit her teeth sorrowfully.

“I want to do something to help if I could, but another family can’t interfere in a family dispute. I’m sorry I can’t do anything besides providing information.”

“Not at all, this is helpful enough. But is it really alright? If it’s forbidden to interfere in a family dispute, doing all this, though it’s only providing information, would also count.”

Ojousama had already said [it’s okay], but just in case, I tried asking Karen.

In response, she put on a wicked smile.

“I’m only making sure that my dear friend is safe and have a chat with her. If she somehow got intelligence from that, that’s not my problem, right?”

In other words, it seems like this doesn’t count as [lending a hand].

I don’t know what standards they were using, but if it’s no problem then so be it.

“Karen-sama, thank you very much. Thanks to you I was able to get accurate information on the situation. This way, one of the strategies I thought up seems to be usable.”

“Hoo, what kind of strategy is that?”

I had the daughter of a military family who had mercenaries in their employ, Karen, listen to my plan, and asked for her opinion.

The contents of the plan is simple.

Get inside the castle with a small number of people using the escape route we used when we fled the castle.

Meet up with madam, and then leave the castle.

Meanwhile, in order to draw the eyes of the castle guards, I want to have Merry-san and the other servants do something flashy as a diversion. Though they have little fighting power, they should be able to do something once.

If they did that the Vampire house head would be on the lookout and dispatch the magicians after them. As a result, the castle’s defenders would be shorthanded.

Karen folded her arms and considered the strategy.

“….. I see. It’s a simple plan, but it’s more realistic than gathering a force and assault the castle, but isn’t it hard to rescue Seras-san just with Chrisse and Lute?”

Having her point that out, I frowned.

Certainly, our fighting power is not enough to infiltrate the castle.

“I wasn’t intending to include ojousama in the infiltration team. I was going to have her assist during our escape.”

“Then can you do it alone, Lute? Not being a magician and all.”

“U, ummm…”

Meiya, who had been silent, raised her hand.

With a red face and bleary eyes, she announced.

“Then I, Lute-sama’s number one student, shall serve as your partner! I’m confident that I can attentively help you out like a lover, like a wife, like a faithful servant—nay! Even more than that!”

“No, Meiya is no good. Even though you’re a B-minus ranked mage, you don’t have good reflexes, do you? I certainly can’t take you along.”

“Uguu!?”

She collapsed as if she had taken an arrow right to the heart.

However she is totally non-athletic, I tried having her practice with ojousama once, but she became nothing but a burden.

At that time I cut her off from practice since we had no time and she was being a hindrance.

[So how about we hire some adventurers from the Guild?]

“That is absolutely a no.”

I swiftly rejected ojousama’s proposal.

There’s no way I could include some adventurer… some untrustworthy person in this important plan. In the end, they were no more than outsiders employed using money. If any problem happens…

The bitter trauma from when I was tricked by fake adventurers went through my mind.

As I wanted Merry-san and the others to act as diversion, I can’t include them.

In the first place, they had already been seen by the Vampire house, and were under observation.

I can’t have them help with an undercover surprise operation.

I at least wanted one other capable person for the castle infiltration.

At least a B-minus ranked magician, and someone I know that I can trust. If possible, someone who had learned magic, and was good at handling a handgun, that much goes without saying.

No way someone like that exi—no, there is one person like that.

My fiancée who grew up together with me at Elle-sensei’s orphanage, Snow!

“If my fiancée Snow, who’s studying at a magic school were here, this discussion would be over sooner. If I were to go meet her right now it would take over a year to go there and back…. I guess it’s impossible after all. Hm? what’s wrong Meiya? You look pale.”

Meiya started to sweat like waterfall with a pale face.

“No, actually… how should I put it, well…”

Meiya mumbled, stumbling on her words.

Rather than Meiya’s response, Karen reacted to my remark.

“Lute has a fiancée? I didn’t know that.”

“My childhood friend who grew up in the same orphanage with me. I never had the chance to talk about her, sorry. But I wonder if she could conveniently appear. Please reach her, o my voice! Somehow—”

“LUTE-KUN!!”

The moment I raised my hands and jokingly offered a prayer to the heavens.

Seemingly having waited for the moment, a young girl appeared from behind a tree planted in the courtyard.

Her silver hair tied in a ponytail. A bishoujo with dog ears, a tail, skin white as a field of snow, and breasts that you could tell was big even from under her clothes, approached with tears in her eyes.

“I miss you…. I miss you, Lute-kun!”

My fiancée Snow who should have been studying magic at a school in the Fairy Human Continent was for some reason standing before my eyes.