Chapter 242 Our Current Situation
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Thank you for your help… Master.”
”I don’t know what happened, but I’m glad I could help.”
After spending a few hours listening to Estesia-san’s otaku talk, I thanked Master with a tired face.
The moment I heard that Master had arrived, Estesia-san exclaimed, “Amelia Pordhail is here!? No way, I have to leave now!” and quickly ran off.
I was relieved that Estesia-san didn’t want to be recognized as an otaku.
”It’s been a while since we met like this, so I have a lot of questions for you, Neil-sama…”
”I know, it’s about Pius, right?”
The details had already been shared in a letter, but the reason Master came to the frontier settlement with Pius was twofold. One was to see if I could use my authority as the master of a criminal sl*ve to extract information about Curtio from Pius. The other, which was more important, was to protect Pius from those in the Imperial Capital who were trying to eliminate him.
To be precise, those people were not trying to eliminate Pius himself, but rather the Curtio that was embedded in Pius’s heart, which should not exist. Since a criminal sl*ve is treated like a death row inmate, they didn’t care about the life of such a being and were calling for Curtio to be immediately removed from Pius’s heart and disposed of.
Until now, it seems that Master and my father have been handling those kinds of voices, but recently they finally couldn’t hold it back anymore and came to temporarily take refuge in the frontier settlement.
”But Master managed to hold it back until now, huh?”
”That’s because the master of Pius was Neil-sama, the Emperor’s favorite. Good or bad, any story related to Neil-sama reaches the Emperor’s ears, so they probably couldn’t act carelessly.”
”Ah… I see.”
I nodded in understanding and turned my gaze to Pius, who was sitting next to Master.
The traces of Pius being a giant were completely gone, and his body had completely weakened.
However, it wasn’t that he had no muscles at all; thanks to rehabilitation, he had recovered enough to walk on his own.
The extraction of the Curtio embedded all over his body was also progressing, and only the Curtio that had fused with his organs and was difficult to remove remained.
”If we can get information about that Curtio, we might be able to temporarily divert the gazes directed at Pius.”
”Understood, I’ll ask.”
I felt a bit uneasy about forcibly extracting information from someone who couldn’t speak due to being a criminal sl*ve, but I convinced myself that this was for Pius’s sake.
”Pius, ‘Tell me what you know about the person who embedded Curtio in your body.’.”
”……?”
”Huh?”
That’s strange; even though I should have exercised my command authority, it felt like the mental control magic didn’t activate.
After that, I tried changing my words and giving the command several times, but there was no sign of the magic activating. As I tilted my head in confusion, Master placed a hand on Pius’s shoulder.
”Please try again.”
”Understood, ‘Tell me everything you know about Curtio.’.”
”…It seems that the magic circuits in the body have burned out, so mental control is no longer effective.”
”Could it be the influence of that Curtio?”
”Probably…”
Hearing this, both Master and I made serious faces.
A criminal sl*ve who cannot be controlled by mental domination would definitely cause trouble if outsiders found out.
This became a secret just between us, and we started discussing what to do about the remaining Curtio.
”If we had healing magic, the extraction would be easier, but getting the Theocracy’s help with a criminal sl*ve is going to be tough.”
”The charges against Pius are the problem, so even if we explain it’s Curtio’s fault, it probably won’t work.”
The Theocracy teaches that saving people is their doctrine, so they wouldn’t help treat Pius, who became a criminal sl*ve due to mass murder.
”By the way, there are no priests in the frontier settlement, right? I think having a priest is necessary for a place like the frontier settlement.”
”That’s true. In fact, we’ve received requests to attract priests who can use healing magic, but…”
”Are you against letting Theocracy people, who don’t recognize ihomono as humans, into the frontier settlement?”
”…It would be a lie to say I have no thoughts on that. But I was scolded by His Majesty before, saying, ‘You tend to see the nation as just an individual.’ I had been deciding that the Theocracy is that kind of country based on just one aspect. It’s true that the Theocracy is a country with severe racism, but I’ve tried to think it’s not just that.”
”So, will you attract them?”
”I’m trying to move the conversation in that direction, but to be honest, I don’t really know how things are going right now. It’s my father who’s dealing with Theocracy.”
The frontier settlement is technically land that I govern, but on paper, it’s under the Count Atmiras, which means my father is the one in charge.
So when it comes to wanting to invite priests from Theocracy, it’s not something I can decide on my own. My father is also a bit worried about letting me handle negotiations with other countries, but the biggest reason is the existence of the elves.
The frontier settlement has a cooperative relationship with the elves, but those elves are considered “ihomono” and not recognized as people by Theocracy.
Originally, the frontier settlement was trying to promote harmony with the ihomono within the empire, which is supposed to remain neutral on this issue, so Theocracy obviously doesn’t like that.
Because of all this, the negotiations have become quite complicated, and I was completely out of the loop on this matter.
”Whether we welcome the priest as a ‘religious figure’ or just as a simple ‘medical officer’ like in the kingdom will change the conversation a lot. My father and I want to treat them as medical officers, but who knows how they’ll respond.”
”From the looks of it, it seems like it will still be a while before a priest who can use healing magic comes to the frontier settlement.”
”Yeah, it’s a headache.”
I want to wrap this up quickly before the calls for a priest who can use healing magic get any louder, but rushing things won’t lead to good results, so I have no choice but to leave it to my father.
”By the way, Neil-sama, about the interdimensional magic I’ve heard rumors about…”
”I have a magic book borrowed from one of the elf elders regarding that, so you might prefer that, right?”
”Is that really okay? A magic book on lost magic is quite a valuable item, isn’t it?”
”Since it’s borrowed, I can’t allow Master to take it out, but it’s fine to read it inside the mansion. Just wait a moment, I’ll get it from the interdimensional space now.”
”Ah, it’s okay for now. I plan to visit someone later, so I’ll borrow the magic book after that.”
”Oh, is that so? Understood.”
It’s rare for Master to prioritize something other than magic. I wonder if Master even has acquaintances in the frontier settlement?
Master doesn’t usually get involved with others, and her social circle should be quite limited… Well, prying into someone else’s business is probably bad manners.
After that, Master and I talked a bit about our recent situations, and then Master left for their appointment, while I returned to my work.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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