Chapter 322 The Cruelest Best Case
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Our eyes met—hers burning with a fierce, incandescent rage. In real-time, it couldn’t have been more than a fraction of a second, yet to me, that single instant felt like an eternity.
”Master Neil!”
Sia’s voice shattered my paralysis. Time surged forward again as coils of violet mana snaked around the intruder’s neck and arms. Though the magic didn’t look particularly forceful at a glance, the moment it took hold, the strength drained from the assailant’s body. She slumped, tumbling off the sofa where she’d been pinned against Betty and hitting the floor with a heavy thud.
”Foru-nee… ?”
Betty stared at the prostrate woman in sheer horror. I pushed myself up from the floor, my heart still hammering against my ribs, and finally got a good look at our attacker. Up close, I’d only seen flashes of hair and eyes, but now I saw the animal ears atop her head and the tail sprouting from her lower back. It hit me then—she was a Lycus¹, just like Betty.
Before I could process the realization, the tassels holding back the curtains on either side of the window snapped without warning.
Snap!
The fabric fell shut, plunging the room into a sudden, suffocating gloom. We were left in the dark, teetering on the edge of a full-blown panic.
”Now what!?”
”Calm down,” Sia commanded, her voice a cool blade in the dark. She held up a finger, a small slip of wind magic glowing at the tip to prove her point. “I’m the one who cut the tassels.”
She stepped forward, already scanning the room. “People are gathering outside. They heard the window shatter. A few have already circled around to the back of the mansion. We can’t afford to let any third parties see… whatever this mess is.”
So that was why she’d acted first and explained later.
”The neighbors are certainly quick on their feet. Even I haven’t quite wrapped my head around this yet.”
”This is a frontier settlement, Neil. Between the elves and the spirits, everyone is sitting on a powder keg of secrets. People are always watching, always hunting for a scrap of intel. But because they haven’t found anything useful in ages, they’ve started getting bolder—and more desperate.”
She was right. Lately, the spies and observers who used to blend into the scenery had become brazen. They didn’t care if they looked suspicious anymore. Those first on the scene were likely exactly the kind of vultures she was talking about.
Sia looked down at the Lycus on the floor. “So, how do you want to settle this?”
”How? Sia, you know me. You know what I’m going to say.”
If she’d been watching from the window, she must have seen Espera—a Theocracy Inquisitor—and assumed I was selling Betty out. If she’d attacked to save her kin, then this was all just a tragic misunderstanding. A terrible accident. I had absolutely no intention of pressing charges or treating her like a criminal.
But Sia only let out a heavy, theatrical sigh.
”Haa… You really don’t get it, do you? Listen to me. It doesn’t matter why it happened. A ‘Dog of the Kingdom’—a Lycus—just assaulted a Noble of the Empire. That’s you, Neil. This isn’t just a scuffle; it’s an international incident capable of tanking the relationship between two world powers.”
”I mean… sure, on paper. But she didn’t come here to assassinate me. I don’t know how she found us, but she must have been tracking Betty. She saw us talking to Espera-san and thought the worst. She jumped the gun because she wanted to protect her sister. Right?”
I looked at the woman for some kind of confirmation, but she remained silent, pressed against the floorboards. Betty watched her, her eyes trembling with a fragile hope that was painful to see.
”Anyway! As long as word of this doesn’t leak out, it’s not a problem, right?”
”I suppose so,” Sia conceded, though her eyes drifted toward Espera with a sharp, calculating look. “If it stays in this room, there’s no fire to put out.”
I followed her gaze and stepped in to defend Espera. “Espera-san is with the Theocracy, but she’s not the type to intentionally sabotage the Empire’s peace… are you?”
”Indeed. I have no interest in the petty squabbles of nations—unless, of course, such a conflict would serve to save a greater number of souls.”
”See? We’re fine—”
”However,” Espera interrupted, her voice dropping an octave. “Keeping this quiet will be nearly impossible.”
”—Eh?”
Before I could ask why, Sia nodded in agreement.
”She’s right. Regardless of Espera’s personal feelings, she is being watched. She can’t just hand the Theocracy a fake report when there are other observers in play. And we have no guarantee this woman wasn’t spotted the moment she stepped into the settlement.”
”Then… then what do we do?”
”It’s not ideal, but while we can’t hide the fact that an attack happened, we can change who the target was. As long as we all stick to the same story, we can claim she was after someone else.”
”A different person? Who?”
Everyone’s eyes turned toward Espera.
”Me,” the Inquisitor said simply. “If we frame the attack as an assault on a member of the Theocracy, we can contain the diplomatic fallout. It minimizes the damage to the Empire. However… if we go that route, I will have to take her into my custody officially.”
”Wait! Then Foru-nee will… !” Betty cried out.
”Officially, she would be sent to the Theocracy to be used as a bargaining chip with the Kingdom,” Espera explained. “But realistically? It is unlikely the Kingdom would lift a finger for a single Lycus. She would never be sent back.”
The room went cold. We all knew what happened to ‘bargaining chips’ that had no value.
”No. I won’t accept that.”
”You don’t have a choice,” Sia snapped. “If Espera is caught covering for a Lycus, the Theocracy will recall her and send someone far more ruthless in her place. If that happens, Betty is as good as dead. Are you really going to lose both of them because you’re trying to play the hero?”
”I… !”
”Master Neil,” Espera said, her voice soft but unyielding. “As a woman of the cloth, I understand your desire to save everyone. But precisely because I have dedicated my life to salvation, I know its limits. We are often forced into choices we hate—sacrificing one to protect the many. You should not feel ashamed of this. Human hands can only hold so much.”
”Still, I—”
”Fine by me.”
The woman on the floor finally spoke, her voice cracking the silence. All eyes snapped to her.
”I’m the one who messed up. I’ll take the fall for my own stupidity.”
”You’re remarkably calm,” Sia observed. “Given how hot-headed you seemed when you came through that window.”
Calm? Maybe her words were, but I’d seen her eyes. The fire was still there. But as I looked at her now, I realized the rage wasn’t aimed at me anymore. It was burning toward something else entirely.
”I won’t let my mistake bring trouble to the clan. I’d rather die alone than let that happen.”
”No! Foru-nee, don’t say that!” Betty wailed.
”…”
”Please! Say something! Why won’t you even look at me?”
”You abandoned the clan, Betty,” the woman whispered, her voice like ice. “This has nothing to do with you.”
The rejection was visceral. Betty recoiled as if she’d been slapped.
”That’s not—! I didn’t abandon anyone—”
”Heh. Whatever you say.”
”What is with that attitude?” Sia asked, leaning in. “I thought your kind prized their kin above all else.”
”We did. I used to believe that too… until I saw Betty.”
”Foru-nee… what does that even mean… ?”
The woman ignored her sister’s plea and looked directly at Espera. “If you’re taking me, then just get it over with.”
”Espera-san, is really no other way?”
”This is the best course of action for the ‘worst-case’ scenario,” Espera admitted. “But… there is a flicker of hope.”
”Really!?”
”We are operating on the assumption that other Inquisitors are already here and watching. However, if we can confirm that they haven’t arrived yet—or that they’re still in the dark—we can essentially ‘delete’ this incident from the record.”
”And how do we confirm that?” Sia asked.
”If the rumors of an attack spread, any Inquisitor in town will contact me to get the details, knowing I was at the mansion. We wait a few days. If no one reaches out, we can assume we’re in the clear. But until then, I have to officially ‘hold’ her. If I’m questioned, and I don’t have the prisoner I claimed to have caught, the whole lie falls apart.”
”Can’t you just say she’s being held here at the mansion?”
”There’s no logical reason for that,” Espera countered. “The clinic has holding rooms. If I’m the one who was attacked, it would be suspicious if I didn’t keep the assailant under my own watch.”
”I get it. But how do we move her without anyone seeing?”
”Actually, that part is easy because we have you, Master Neil.”
”Me? Oh… you mean the Sub-Space.”
”Exactly. We transport her through your pocket dimension directly to the clinic. If we get through the next few days without the Theocracy breathing down our necks, we just release her back through the same way.”
Sia looked at me. “What’s the call, Neil?”
”…Right. Let’s go with Espera’s plan.”
* * *
It felt like walking a tightrope over a pit of fire, but I couldn’t see a better path.
Betty was a ghost of herself, shattered by her sister’s words. I left her in Lewya’s care and opened the gate to the sub-space tunnels we’d mapped out beneath the settlement. We moved in silence, eventually emerging into the cold, sterile basement of the clinic.
”I won’t even ask why a neighborhood clinic needs a secret basement,” Sia remarked, her brow furrowed.
”It’s an isolation ward for patients with highly infectious diseases. That is the official story, at least.”
”Right. An isolation ward with reinforced metal doors and heavy-duty locks.”
Espera ignored the jab. She led the woman into one of the rooms and produced a heavy iron key, clicking the lock into place with a finality that made my stomach churn.
”Espera-san… how long does she have to stay in there?”
”I have to be careful with this. My next periodic report is in five days. If no one contacts me by then, I’ll release her.”
”Five days… ” I looked at the door. “If the Theocracy does find out… if I can prove I’m useful enough to them, could I save her then?”
Espera looked at me with something like pity. “I won’t say it’s impossible, but the higher-ups aren’t easily swayed. Doing enough to impress them in just five days isn’t realistic. For now, we can only wait.”
She reached into her robes and pulled out the two items she’d asked me to translate earlier.
”If you can decipher these, the girl you call Betty will be safe. That much I can promise.”
”…”
”Master Neil,” Espera said, stepping closer. “I know I’ve said this, but do not dwell on the ones you cannot save. Be proud that you save anyone at all. There are many who have the heart but not the power, and many with power who lack the heart. You possess both. That makes you extraordinary.”
”…Thanks,” I managed to mumble.
Her words were meant to be a comfort, but they felt hollow. I might save Betty, but that just meant I was failing someone else.
I stood there in the dim basement, clutching the two items she’d handed me. One was a small, pocket-sized memo pad—the kind you’d find at any 7-Eleven back home.
The other was a police ID².
I stared at the face on the card, the name Masayoshi Sudo staring back at me in bold, printed kanji. My fingers tightened around the plastic. The modern world was bleeding into this one, and I was the only one who knew how deep the wound went.
—
Summary:
Following a sudden attack by a mysterious Lycus woman, Sia intervenes with magic to restrain the assailant. The intruder is revealed to be Betty’s sister, Foru, who acted out of a misunderstanding regarding Betty’s safety. To prevent a diplomatic disaster between the Empire and the Kingdom, Espera proposes a plan to frame the attack as directed at herself. Neil reluctantly agrees to hide Foru in the clinic’s basement via his sub-space ability for five days. The tension escalates as Foru coldly rejects Betty, accusing her of abandoning their clan. Finally, Espera hands Neil modern artifacts—a memo pad and a Japanese police ID—confirming a deeper connection to Earth.
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Trivia:
- The violet mana used by Sia is noted as not appearing strong but being highly effective, suggesting specialized binding or weakening properties.
- Foru’s rage is noted by Neil as being directed elsewhere, hinting at a larger threat or grievance against the clan’s current situation rather than just Neil.
- The presence of a modern Japanese police ID belonging to ‘Masayoshi Sudo’ suggests that Neil is not the first or only person from Earth to impact this world.
- Espera’s ‘utilitarian’ philosophy foreshadows future conflicts where Neil’s idealism will clash with her ‘greater good’ logic
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Character Insight:
The sisterly bond between Betty and Foru is shattered; Foru’s cold rejection indicates a deep-seated cultural or tribal trauma regarding those who leave the Lycus clan. Meanwhile, the relationship between Neil and Espera remains one of mutual utility but growing ideological friction, as Neil struggles with the ‘choices’ she forces upon him.
—
Lore And Worldbuilding Context:
Introduced the concept of the ‘Dog of the Kingdom’ as a derogatory or formal term for Lycus in political service. The clinic’s basement serves as a covert ‘isolation ward,’ revealing that the settlement’s infrastructure is built for secrecy and state-level containment.
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TL Notes:
The term ‘Foru-nee’ is kept to preserve the familiar suffix which highlights the pain of the subsequent rejection. The transition to ‘Sub-Space’ for Neil’s ability aligns with modern light novel terminology for spatial storage or movement skills.
—
Glossary:
Notes:
• Neil – A young Empire noble managing the frontier settlement.
• Betty – Grey‑haired Lycus tribe member, born missing her left arm and labeled a malformed child, ignorant of sexual education due to the tribe’s eugenics. She is Forutis’s younger sister (gimai) and was missing for weeks before being found inside a noble’s manor.
• Sia – A guard with unparalleled mana-sensing abilities. She wears a sheer negligee and displays exhibitionist tendencies. She is obsessed with Neil and enjoys the risk of being caught during intimate acts.
• Foru – Female Lycus beastman with grey hair, arrow‑fast movement, animal ears and a hidden tail under a heavy robe. She possesses superhuman sight, hearing and a keen sense of smell, and protects Bearty as a younger sister, currently tracking a scent from a letter he sent while searching for her missing sister.
• Espera – Middle‑rank Pentis Inquisitor, crisp‑tongued and brutally honest, charges high fees as ‘fair compensation’ to fund aid. Cool, assessing gaze spots Bearty, studies her unique traits, then departs quietly. She is also an object of Forutis’s hatred, present in the room.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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