Special Task Force Authority
Finding Theresa was a very simple matter.
She was so notorious in town that you could find her with just a little bit of asking around.
Of course…….
‘I’d recommend you don’t go near her if you can help it.’
‘Hey, kid. She’s in a foul mood right now, how about you try meeting her another time? What? You have something to tell her? Don’t come crying to me if you get stabbed. Got it?’
‘I’m busy. Get going. Shoo~ I don’t know where she is.’
Every time I tried to look for her, not only did I hear bad things about Theresa, but there were even people who tried to push me away.
From what I heard, she used to be fine not too long ago, but it seems she’s changed suddenly since about two months ago.
“Who are you?”
Sweating nervously, Theresa eyed me warily. I answered as I caught the blade she had thrust right up to my nose.
“Owen, Captain of the Special Task Force under direct command of the Royal Family of the Kingdom of Lumin.”
“……Special Task Force? That’s a name I haven’t heard before.”
“It’s a newly formed unit.”
“What do you people do?”
I curled my lips up in a smirk and answered.
“Noble Oversight.”
“……What?”
Theresa’s face went deathly pale.
“Ah, no way. That can’t be…… Royal Oversight, really, did my mother actually…?”
She suddenly started muttering all sorts of things, and since the atmosphere felt oddly dangerous, I added a word.
“I haven’t accused anyone of anything yet. In fact, I came here today for a matter unrelated to my official duties, so you don’t need to worry about that.”
Theresa’s shoulders twitched as she asked.
“Something other than your official duties?”
“I’m looking for someone.”
For the sake of continuing the conversation, I asked without much expectation.
“She’s a small girl, blonde, looks about my age. Her eyes are sharp like a cat’s, and she looks like she could hiss at any moment.”
“……That’s oddly specific in a weird way.”
“It’s the truth, so what can I do? So, have you seen a girl like that?”
Theresa frowned as she replied.
“I’m not sure if it’s the same person you’re looking for, but I have seen someone like that.”
“……Oh.”
I didn’t expect her to actually know anything.
“Where did you see her?”
“I can’t tell you that.”
Theresa’s face twisted subtly as she said so.
I quietly guessed at the meaning behind her words, then asked softly.
“Are you sure you want to say that? After hearing what kind of group we are?”
Saying ‘I can’t tell you’ implied that she did know where, and that it was likely somewhere directly connected to her own family.
Whether or not the person was really Elena, it was still worth looking into, since blonde hair wasn’t exactly common.
“I once heard a rumor.”
“A rumor?”
“That a few months back, a boy summoned everyone in the Royal Family and wielded the Holy Sword to catch a noble who was colluding with the Demon Race.”
Theresa withdrew her blade, her eyes narrowing.
“That was you, wasn’t it?”
I smiled as I countered.
“Do you believe the rumor?”
“It’s not that hard to believe. The description matches exactly with what I heard.”
Theresa gave a weak smile.
“Besides, at this point, I want to believe in anything.”
I suppose that’s understandable.
Judging by her state, she seemed far too burdened for someone her age.
“What happened?”
“If I tell you, will you be able to help?”
“I’ll hear you out, at least.”
Theresa clicked her tongue quietly.
But it didn’t seem like she truly wanted to hide it, because she opened her mouth to speak not long after.
“Fine. I’ll tell you. But I’d rather not talk about it here—can we go somewhere else?”
Now that I looked, people nearby were glancing at us from the corners of their eyes.
I must look like a kid approaching someone he shouldn’t, so of course they were paying attention.
I nodded and said.
“Tell me here. I’ll protect you.”
“……What?”
Theresa looked at me in disbelief.
“Why should I trust you?”
“You said you believed the rumor, didn’t you? That’s why you’re even willing to share your situation with me.”
“That’s different.”
“It is. Rumors get exaggerated all the time.”
I summoned the Holy Sword and gripped it in one hand.
“But whatever you’re worried about, it’s none of my business. I’m busy.”
“…….”
Theresa’s gaze sharpened as if she was looking at a lunatic.
“It might actually be safer for you to speak here.”
“Why?”
“I can’t tell you that.”
“……What the hell.”
Theresa gave a hopeless sigh, then relented.
“Fine. I’ll tell you. It’s not like there’s any way out for me, anyway.”
With that, Theresa finally let out the trouble she’d been holding inside.
“My mother collapsed.”
About ten minutes later, I summed up her story in a single sentence.
“So you’re saying you can’t tell whether Jerni Houston really created a Chimera Research Facility, and now you’re being eaten up with suspicion. That’s it, right.”
Even if Jerni Houston hadn’t made the Chimera Research Facility, it was still a problem.
If someone was targeting Marquis Houston’s Domain and orchestrated all this, Theresa, who lacked authority, wouldn’t be able to do anything about it.
No wonder she’d been drinking in the daytime.
But…….
“There’s one thing you haven’t told me, isn’t there?”
“……What are you talking about?”
Instead of answering, I pulled a torn piece of cloth from my pocket and held it out to her.
“This was found at the Chimera Research Facility. Look familiar?”
“…….”
“I already know you were hiding there.”
I subtly checked the area near her leg—exactly where Murfin said he saw her.
Perhaps conscious of my gaze, Theresa slowly pulled the torn cloth behind her back.
“Ugh.”
She groaned, realizing she’d been completely found out.
“Ha. Fine. I’ll tell you everything. I’ll say it all.”
“You’d better not hide anything this time.”
I pressed the torn piece of cloth into her hand.
“If I can’t get an accurate grasp of the situation, I’ll have no choice but to take the strictest measures.”
“……Are you saying you’ll report our family?”
“Depending on how you talk, I might not even wait for that and just start swinging my sword myself. The Special Task Force exists for that reason.”
“……Ha, what nonsense. Do you really think you can handle that?”
I narrowed my eyes.
“Jerni Houston, the Lady of the House, has collapsed. Do you really think I can’t take care of a noble house without a lord?”
“……Still, our family is a Marquis. Isn’t that a bit arrogant?”
“I raised hell in front of your king.”
“…….”
“Did you really think that stuffy king would have allowed me to dance with my sword in the Noble Hearing Chamber in front of all those nobles of his own free will?”
Theresa swallowed with a hardened expression.
“Okay, okay. I’ll tell you, so stop looking at me like that.”
She let out a sigh, then took a deep breath and began to speak.
“It was dark, so I didn’t see it clearly, but while I was secretly investigating the Chimera Research Facility, a light suddenly appeared in the middle.”
“Wait, why were you investigating the facility?”
“Well, if I didn’t, my mother would’ve been framed for something ridiculous. She’s an Honor Knight, so I doubt she was actually involved, but you never know with people.”
“Mm, true, I can’t deny that. So what was the light you saw?”
“It was magic. Space movement magic.”
“……Oh?”
That was interesting.
I quietly waited for her to continue, and Theresa closed her eyes, recalling the events of that day.
“There were three people who appeared via spatial movement. One had their hood pulled deep over their face, one was hidden so I couldn’t see, and the last one was the blonde girl you asked about.”
“……Hmm.”
If it got this specific, then it had to be Elena.
“The one who cast the magic was the hooded one. He spoke as if he knew the internal layout of the estate’s keep perfectly.”
With that, I could narrow down the list of suspects.
Someone among the servants, knights, or other members of the family who were active inside the keep.
But just because the pool was smaller didn’t mean I could pin down the culprit.
“The one I couldn’t see felt incredibly ominous. Even their voice was broken and raspy.”
“Did you hear what the two of them talked about?”
Theresa shook her head.
“I tried, but I was discovered and had to run.”
I gave her a puzzled look and asked.
“But didn’t you say you knew the whereabouts of the blonde girl? If you haven’t seen her since then, how do you know where she is?”
Theresa frowned as she answered.
“As they were chasing after me that day, I heard them mention where they’d be keeping her.”
“And that place was directly connected to your family?”
“……Yeah.”
“You managed to escape, huh.”
At my words, Theresa grimaced.
“It felt more like they let me go on purpose.”
“……They let you go?”
“I can guess why. There was nothing to be gained by catching me, and nothing to lose by letting me escape.”
“……Ah.”
I could picture in my mind the most troublesome part of Theresa’s situation.
“You’re really isolated in your family, aren’t you.”
“I won’t deny it. I’m the sort of daughter who drinks in the daytime, after all. It’d be weird if I weren’t an outcast.”
If the ones who took Elena knew about both Theresa’s and Jerni Houston’s situations, then they would’ve realized there was no point in chasing her, and so changed their plans.
That meant those people were likely hiding inside the Houston Family.
‘Now that I think about it, there’s been no mention of who’s acting as regent right now.’
Usually, if the lord is incapacitated, someone has to take over those duties. But no matter how I look at it, Theresa has no such authority.
And it didn’t seem like anyone else was acting in her stead.
‘Hmm, guess I’ll just have to catch those bastards first and think about the rest later.’
Just then, Theresa looked around as if she’d realized something.
“……But isn’t it getting weirdly quiet around here?”
Just as she said, the number of people passing by had noticeably dropped.
“It is strange…….”
Screee!
I cut myself off mid-sentence, swinging the Holy Sword at something whistling through the air toward us.
Clang!
The blade bounced off the Holy Sword and clattered to the ground.
“What the—what just flew by…?”
“Murfin, Beatrice, capture them.”
At my words, Murfin and Beatrice, who had been watching from behind the building, leapt out and dashed at the assailant who’d thrown the blade.
“Urgh?!”
Murfin tripped the attacker, and Beatrice stomped on their back, pressing her sword to their nape.
“Don’t move.”
The assailant, who’d thrown the blade, suddenly jerked his head as if his neck was rusted, twisting all the way around to stare at Beatrice.
“Ku, ku, kuk, kukk.”
“…Ugh, step back!”
Seeing his bloodshot eyes, Beatrice immediately retreated, warning Murfin behind her.
Murfin quickly moved back as well, when suddenly the assailant’s body swelled up and exploded.
I deflected the flying chunks of flesh coming toward me and Theresa with the Holy Sword, while Beatrice and Murfin, now covered in blood, grimaced.
“What the hell was that?”
“They were being controlled.”
I noticed there was no sign of anyone else in the area and curled my lips into a smirk.
“A Demon Race bastard with mind control powers must’ve evacuated the humans from the danger zone.”
Now this was getting interesting.
A Demon Race being who had abandoned their humanity wouldn’t do something like that for no reason.
And right after Theresa started to open up about her troubles, there was a sudden attack?
“Theresa Houston.”
“Y-yeah?”
“We’re going to your house right now.”
“My house? To our house?”
“Yes.”
When someone goes this far out of their way to reveal themselves, not tracking them down would be a waste.
Besides, it’s the perfect place for those who kidnapped Elena to be hiding.
Two birds with one stone, or more like killing two at once.
“Special Task Force. As of now, I’m starting an investigation of the Houston Family estate.”