Chapter 290

Having finished the meal, as usual, they had ordered too much, so the untouched dishes were stored in the Infinite Item Field before they disbanded.

Tatsuro, after giving Ai a generous "I'm off" kiss, headed to his final conversation with Aarenfrit.

At a corner table in the first-floor lobby, a spot that had become almost like their designated seat over the past few days, the elf man, clad in his conspicuous robe, was already waiting with a cup of tea to his lips.

"Hey, Sensei. Thinking that today is the last day makes me feel a bit lonely."

"You're the one who said you wanted to wrap things up early."

"Indeed. But the feeling of loneliness is genuine. You see, I absolutely adore brilliant talent. And I despise mediocrity. In that regard, your party is overflowing with talent, and it moved me deeply."

"Hmm. Yet you never asked to join us."

"If I had asked to join, would you have let me?"

"No way."

"Exactly! Kukukuku!"

For some reason, Aarenfrit found this hilarious, clutching his stomach as he chuckled.

After laughing for a while, with tears of mirth in the corners of his eyes, he straightened his posture.

"Well, rest assured, I have no intention of asking to join. My Curse Magic is at its strongest when I'm alone."

"Yeah, I figured. It seemed like you were holding back when you were with us, but normally, you could unleash Curse Magic that engulfs everything around you. Even mages would be overwhelmed instantly if they're not up to par, and martial artists wouldn’t stand a chance."

"Precisely. That’s why I rarely form parties. But this time, you shone so brightly, Sensei, that I couldn’t help but linger like a moth to a flame. It was truly entertaining, though."

"I had a decent amount of fun too."

In truth, beyond his Curse Magic, Aarenfrit possessed a wealth of knowledge from his long life—information that couldn’t be found in books.

Since he shared it so freely, Tatsuro found it incredibly fascinating.

"By the way, you mentioned finding a new way to kill time. Where are you headed, Aarenfrit?"

"To the capital of this territory, the town of Lyusiten. I heard an interesting rumor, so I couldn’t wait to check it out."

"Don’t cause too much trouble for others."

"Kuku, I can’t guarantee that!"

"Don’t act so proud of it…"

This man, Tatsuro thought, was someone who cared only about his own amusement, regardless of the consequences for others.

If something stood in the way of his fun, he’d likely destroy it without hesitation to move forward.

Tatsuro felt a slight pang of pity for whatever had caught this man’s attention.

(Well, as long as it’s not related to us, it’s… fine, I guess?)

"By the way, you guys are leaving this place soon too, right? Where are you headed?"

"It’s a secret. I don’t want you showing up uninvited."

"Kukuku, that strong wariness of yours is part of what I like about you. And you’d do well to keep that caution. People as talented as you, Sensei, will always attract others—whether good or bad. So, stay vigilant. Otherwise, someone like me might trip you up."

"Thanks for the advice. I just hope it’s not you who tries."

"Kuku, no doubt."

Their conversation continued with such idle banter, and in the end, Aarenfrit went on at length about the wonders of Curse Magic, as he had done many times before, bringing the discussion to a close.

"Well, it’s about time, so I’ll call it a day."

"Is that so? That’s a shame. I had more to say about Curse Magic."

"There’s still more? I’m already full."

"Then there’s no helping it. I’ll head back to my room. Tomorrow, I’m leaving from the north gate at noon."

"You said that yesterday too."

"Did I? Well, I’m leaving from the north gate at noon tomorrow, so feel free to come see me off."

"That’s what you meant, huh? Well, if we feel like it, we’ll all show up."

"Then—I’ll be waiting!"

"Hey, wait! I said if we feel like it!"

Before Tatsuro could finish, Aarenfrit stood up with a flourish of his robe and strode off to his room.

"Jeez. If we don’t show up, he might wait forever."

Sighing at the retreating figure, Tatsuro mentally added one more task to tomorrow’s schedule.

That night, he spent time affectionately with Ai, and after a short sleep, morning came quickly.

For some reason, his body felt sluggish, as if he were sick, but thanks to his title’s effects, he dismissed it as mere sleepiness. He used Life Magic to wake himself up, and once the feeling faded, he went to wake Ai.

"Tatsuro, chu~"

"Mm—"

Still half-asleep, Ai puckered her lips like an octopus, demanding a morning kiss, and Tatsuro happily obliged.

After some morning cuddling in bed, they got dressed and went to fetch Leah and Nana for breakfast.

Since they planned to see Aarenfrit off at noon, they decided to take it easy until then. Over breakfast, with everyone gathered, they ate slowly while enjoying conversation.

(-Hm?)

During the meal, Tatsuro felt a recurring sense of unease, but unable to pinpoint its source, he finished breakfast with a lingering sense of frustration.

"Alright, shall we clean up?"

"Okay!"

"Yes, sir!"

Tatsuro called out to gather the dishes and take them to the box set up in the hallway for each floor.

As Ai and Nana responded and stood to help, they noticed Leah hadn’t reacted, and all eyes turned to her.

In that instant, Leah, who had been sitting between Ai and Nana, vanished before their eyes like mist dissolving.

"Huh?"

"""-What?"""

"Peewee?"

"Neigh?"

In the blink of an eye, a person had disappeared, leaving everyone stunned, mouths agape, unable to process what had happened.

But they quickly snapped back to reality.

"Leah! Where are you?!"

Tatsuro shouted her name, scanning the room, but she was nowhere to be found.

Cardina, already in True Form, was casting Detection Magic while checking her Spirit Division’s visuals, searching frantically.

"I’ll check our room!"

"Please!"

Nana rushed out, throwing open the door to the room across the hall and searching every corner.

Near the area where Leah had set up her Makeshift Workshop, Nana found an unfamiliar letter, sealed with a crest on high-quality paper.

She reached to open it but reconsidered, deciding it was better to show Tatsuro first, and hurried back to the others.

"Father, this was there!"

"A letter…? Cardina."

"Peeeweee… Peewee!"

After Cardina scanned it for traps and gave the all-clear, Tatsuro took a photo of the wax seal with his smartphone and used Earth Magic with iron to make a mold of the crest.

Then, careful to preserve the seal’s shape, he broke it open and read the contents.

---------------

Your companion’s sudden disappearance must be quite distressing. But rest assured.

She is under the protection of Don Lyusiten Morrow, the lord of this Lyusiten Territory.

It seems she possesses remarkable skills. Wouldn’t it be a great loss for such talent to remain in the hands of an individual?

Thus, I intend to welcome her as the exclusive Blacksmith of my territory.

And you all seem to be exceptional adventurers.

My territory desires strong forces, and I am prepared to offer you fitting positions.

This is not a demand. If you have no desire to see her again, feel free to ignore this.

But if you wish to reunite with her, come to my castle and pledge your loyalty.

Then, I shall arrange for you to meet her immediately.

Don Lyusiten Morrow

---------------

"What the hell is this old man blabbering about?! Is he out of his mind?!"

"Kidnapping someone’s kid and then talking like this?!"

Ai, who had read the letter through Tatsuro’s shared vision, was just as furious.

Cardina and the others, upon confirming the contents, were equally enraged.

Nana, in particular, looked ready to storm off and kill the lord herself.

"To think he demands loyalty from Father and Mother while ignoring Leah’s will and making her an exclusive Blacksmith? I’ll kill him."

"Nana, calm down for a moment. For now, it seems her safety is guaranteed, so let’s organize our thoughts."

"Ugh, understood."

Tatsuro managed to soothe Nana, who was exuding intense pressure in her True Form, gradually regaining his own composure.

But a single letter guaranteeing her safety wasn’t enough to ease their minds.

Moreover, it wasn’t even certain if this was truly from the lord of Lyusiten.

Thus, rather than charging in recklessly like a boar, they needed to understand the situation thoroughly and act calmly.

"First, how did they kidnap Leah? She was with us just moments ago, then vanished like she melted away. How do you think they did it?"

"Spacetime Magic, maybe?"

"Even if someone had such a skill, I doubt they could pull it off without us noticing or entering the room. It’s not impossible, but the likelihood is near zero."

"Then what else could it be? Hmm, it’s like it’s on the tip of my tongue, but I can’t quite grasp it… I feel this weird sense of unease."

"I feel it too."

"Peewee!"

"Neigh!"

"Cardina and the others feel it too? I’ve been feeling off since this morning, but I can’t figure out why. Ai, you too?"

"Huh? I haven’t felt anything in particular."

"Ai doesn’t feel it?"

Tatsuro considered the difference between Ai and the rest of them.

(Gender doesn’t make sense since I’m the only guy. It’s not about being a Magical Entity since I’m here too. Then… maybe whether we can use magic?)

"Cardina, scan the spot where Leah was with maximum-output Detection Magic."

"Peewee!"

As if grasping something hidden in the mist, Tatsuro analyzed the information flowing from Cardina’s Detection Magic, using Multiple Thinking to process it.

He found what he was looking for and realized who had kidnapped Leah.

With that realization, the sense of unease cleared, but he felt frustrated at how easily he’d arrived at the answer and why he hadn’t thought of it sooner.

"Leah didn’t disappear just now. She was never here to begin with."

"Huh? But she was here. We were even talking to her."

"That’s what we were made to believe. Even though nothing was there, we were convinced Leah was present. And when they no longer needed to keep up the charade, it was lifted."

"Hmm?"

"Peewee!"

"Neigh!"

"Ah!"

"That’s it!"

"Ai, come here."

"Mm?"

Ai, still completely under the spell, couldn’t reach the answer on her own and tilted her head in confusion.

Tatsuro pulled her close, observing her with Spirit Eye while working with Cardina to undo the magic.

"It’s Curse Magic!"

"Exactly. And it’s Curse Magic sophisticated enough to deceive Nana’s eyes, who was with her constantly, infiltrate the room, kidnap Leah, and even leave a letter with such ease. Despite all our caution, I can’t even guess how they pulled this off, but there aren’t many who could manage it… Aarenfrit. Was he planning this from the start?"

There was likely no one with Curse Magic more powerful than his. Without such skill, it would be impossible to so perfectly ensnare Tatsuro and the others.

"Then when was Leah taken? I was with her the whole time and didn’t notice anything…"

"It can’t have been days ago—two or three days, at least. Wait. Ai, you received the repaired Gem Sword from Leah yesterday, right? Was that an illusion?"

"Hold on!"

Ai quickly checked her Item Box, confirming the Gem Sword was there and taking it out.

It was indeed in the state Leah had repaired it to.

"So, at the longest, it was after you parted ways with us yesterday."

"Yeah. Probably less than half a day ago… We need to hurry. For now, Ai and the others, stay here on maximum alert. He made such a point of it—he’s probably at the gate he said he’d leave from."

"You’re going alone? Isn’t that dangerous?"

"I’m not alone. Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi are with me. Besides, this time, I’m going to face him as an enemy from the start. I won’t let him get the upper hand in a magic battle."

"If it gets dangerous, call us right away. If it comes to it, I’ll lend you my skills remotely."

"Yeah. I’ll count on you then."

Tatsuro equipped the gear Leah had made for him, channeled Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi, and prepared for full combat readiness.

"I’m off."

"Go for it."

With Ai and the others seeing him off, Tatsuro left Cardina to guard the place and hurried to the north gate, where Aarenfrit was likely waiting.