I Captured the Enemy Who Tried to Kill Me - Chapter 12
Ah, then don’t entrust it to me!
“I’m deeply sorry you took it that way. I’m simply stating there are limits to what I can do.”
Feeling the pressure from the emperor’s energy turning fierce with displeasure at my refusal, I clenched my jaw.
The conversation moved quickly.
“That can be solved by having my knights cooperate. I can lend you as many hands as needed.”
“Then what we’re searching for will surely leak to the outside. Also, the Awakened Ones won’t listen to our mages’ orders.”
“Ha, if you people just show respect, there won’t be any significant friction.”
“I wonder. That might be only Your Majesty’s opinion.”
“Duke, what are you trying to do with me right now?”
Ah, this isn’t right.
I snapped to attention at the emperor’s words.
‘Ah, because of this habit.’
Every time I see that face, I end up performing as the unpleasant duke, and without realizing it, I had sharply picked at his words.
Hiding my slight embarrassment, I quickly added, pulling the reins of the conversation that was about to go astray.
“Instead, I promise you this. If we find Your Majesty’s precious Indoja…”
Ah, I should coat my lies with some saliva before speaking them.
I mentally squeezed my eyes shut and threw out a bright red lie.
“I mean that we won’t hide them or secretly threaten them.”
“……”
“I’m not foolish enough to not realize that if Your Majesty goes berserk and becomes an unleashed beast, the peace and tranquility of the mages would also be shattered.”
Yes, actually, it’s me.
I am that Guide.
I’m actively hiding it!
“Is this satisfactory?”
Kaisis seemed content with that for now, as he exhaled slowly.
I also caught my breath.
“…Very well, there aren’t many who could hide someone under my eyes, so if you promise that much, I have no choice but to believe you. Even if I find it hard to trust.”
“It was Your Majesty who sought out an untrustworthy subject, revealed a fatal weakness, and ordered them to find someone, so that anxiety is also your duty to bear. Must I care for your fragile mind as well?”
“You seem to be growing more and more bold.”
“Yes. Because you won’t kill me for this much.”
No! Actually, I’m scared!
I want to faint from fear!
But I hate dying even more!
‘And Kaisis, you.’
There was something so irritating I could barely keep my eyes open.
Perhaps it was some cursed Guide instinct awakening, but I could see the emperor’s energy, which had been released continuously during that hot night, beginning to tangle.
Far too clearly.
‘Aren’t you in pain?’
What a terribly tough bastard.
Of course, he was the stubborn type who walked around with a normal face even in worse conditions, so I shouldn’t worry.
‘It must feel like having flesh torn off.’
Finding it difficult to keep watching, I bit my lip and decided to end the conversation.
“Then may I end this secret meeting now, Your Majesty? We’re not exactly the type to be alone together. For future reports, please send someone reasonably trustworthy.”
Let me clock out. Quickly.
When I indirectly said I didn’t want to see his face, the handsome sculpture who had been staring at me intently twisted his lips fiercely.
“Fine.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty. Then.”
“Before that.”
“Pardon? What else remains?”
The man, with a contrary spirit, commanded.
“Don’t submit reports in writing. Duke, you will report to me directly.”
What, man?
As I glared at him in disbelief, Kaisis added pleasantly.
“This is highly confidential information too important to trust to papers passing back and forth, so you, personally, come to me. You come to the imperial palace for work every day anyway, right? You just have one more place to visit.”
My blood vessels bulged.
Is coming to work the same as reporting to your boss every day, you madman?
The more familiar I became with facing the emperor, the more my blood pressure rose in anger, overcoming fear and dread.
***
Who said it?
That if you possess the body of a noble lady, you can live happily without worrying about work, money, or retirement.
“Haah. Ruiiined.”
Despite wanting to collapse after returning to the mansion in the capital following my private audience with the emperor, Duke Ariel’s night was still long.
Territory, ongoing projects, magic tower-related work, and so on.
‘If the original Hillaria died, her cause of death was one hundred percent overwork.’
Looking at the pile of work documents with dead eyes, I threw the quill pen into its holder. Damn it!
“Argh!”
In truth, none of the document’s contents registered in my mind.
“What should I do now?”
I received work as Duke Ariel. Even in the original story, though described as a cold and unpleasant noble, she was someone with excellent abilities.
So to avoid any blemishes on her record, the original Duke Ariel would actively search for the emperor’s Indoja.
And the emperor is desperate.
Despite his cold expression, he’s desperate enough to do anything.
In other words, Duke Ariel needs to mobilize the mages to actively search for that Indoja.
I need to immediately order myself to find myself.
While also not letting anyone discover that I’m suspicious…
That was the exact moment.
The system, which sometimes made me suspect it was stalking my thoughts and examining them in detail, butted in again.
As I was worrying and pulling at my hair, a “poof” sound occurred before my eyes.
Simultaneously, an ominous status window glowing in all colors filled my vision.
[Congratulations!]
I frowned, making a disgusted face as soon as I saw it.
[A Guide who never spares advice for you…]
Ah, go away.
Nothing good has ever happened when you congratulate me!
But regardless of my disgust, the status window’s text changed.
[Correction.
For the confused player, we present an excellent reward.
Click to receive reward immediately.
She will be your destined Guide, exclusively for you.
Receive Reward (Click)]
The grandiose sentence was quite appealing.
‘Maybe this time it will be helpful?’
Brightening up, I quickly clicked to receive the reward.
Then my vision brightened, and something with an extremely heavy presence pushed me and fell straight onto my solar plexus.
“Ugh!”
What is this?
I can’t, I can’t breathe!
Save me…
“Cough! Why is this so heavy!”
After coughing for a while, I opened my eyes to see what this so-called reward was.
“……”
“……”
So, um.
I found myself staring into vertically slit yellow animal eyes.
“What is this fat cat?”
“Hissss!”
It was, by all appearances, an extremely fat black cat.
***
“Meow, meoww, chomp chomp.”
The sound of diligently drinking water and chewing something made for excellent ASMR, but it didn’t alleviate my firmly established worries.
After checking once more that there was no one outside, I poked the chubby cat who was feasting away on my office desk like it was putting on a food show.
“Hey.”
The flesh sank in deeply – this wasn’t fat gained in just a day or two.
“What exactly are you? What kind of cat eats human desserts?”
“Hiss!”
The not-quite-cat, who had been eating strawberry cake while wiggling its behind, sharply glared at me.
“Shut up, meow! Do you think I’m a real cat meow! This is all because of you, meow. Why is your perception of cats so messed up meow! Rude human, call me the Great Lord Lucy right now meow!”
I snorted.
“This one’s really funny. Why blame me for the way you talk?”
After being trained in front of the emperor, this level of snarling doesn’t frighten me at all!
“You ignorant primitive human, listen well meow!”
The cat shouted disgracefully, spraying bits of strawberry.
“I am a great being! I didn’t originally talk like this meow. To intervene, I had no choice but to use your perception, keuh, cough cough!”
Intervene? Great being?
It seems like something important and strange just passed by.
The cat, who suddenly started coughing violently as if experiencing a glitch, hurriedly changed the subject.
“Anyway, you need my cooperation meow!”
“Didn’t you just say something strange?”
“I did not meow!”
After glaring at the cat who was pretending not to have said anything, I spoke.
“Fine, whatever. Then bring out your amazing solution. Right now, the emperor has given the ridiculous order to find me. If things continue like this, he’ll eventually find me, and if I just stay put, the only outcome is quest failure and death, right?”
“Breathe while you talk meow.”
“Give me a solution!”
The cat became quiet.
The mass of flesh, examining me with half-closed eyes, asked.
“You. Do you really want to live meow?”
“What? You call that a question?”
Would I want to die then? Why am I struggling so hard?
“Stupid human. That’s not what I’m asking meow. Are you ready to actively dive into this world meow?”
