"...Huh?"
I had made it back, but the reaction from Lania and the other scouts was… strange.
It almost felt like they were looking at a ghost.
["Wow, you're really popular. I'm jealous."]
'Shut up.'
As Esther snickered, Lania's voice rang out from a distance.
"ORABONI!"
I'd lost count of how many times I'd heard that today.
With her usual exclamation, Lania and the other scouts brightened as they hurried toward me.
"You really… came back."
"I told you not to worry."
"…Yeah, I know. I knew you would."
She said that, but her expression told a different story.
I chose not to point it out.
And then, a familiar face stepped forward.
"Carl Marcus."
Kalakin's expression was quite a sight.
Shock, disbelief, relief—
Just seeing him like this made everything worth it.
"You did well. Thanks to you, no one was lost."
"…I didn't do much."
"No. You did more than enough."
Honestly, for the scouting team to have survived such a ridiculous mission under these conditions without a single casualty—it was nothing short of a miracle.
They had faced countless situations where total annihilation wouldn't have been surprising.
And Kalakin had undoubtedly played a huge role in getting them through.
'Hmm.'
A glance around confirmed that the scouts were in rough shape.
Iris's once pristine silver-white hair, like fresh snow on a mountain, was now a mess—trampled and dirtied.
Dmitri, who always prided himself on maintaining a dignified appearance, looked like he had just rolled through a battlefield, his clothes in tatters.
Kalakin and Hildegard weren't much better off.
Yet, despite it all, no one had sustained life-threatening injuries.
It really was a miracle.
"…You made it back."
After my brief exchange with Kalakin, Hildegard was the next to greet me.
Maybe because she had spent a lot of time around Dmitri and me, she seemed to feel a certain familiarity toward me.
"Yeah."
"Asking 'how' would be meaningless, wouldn't it?"
"Just lucky."
"Haha… Yeah. That's really fortunate."
After finishing my conversation with Hildegard, I turned toward Dmitri and Iris.
"…You're back."
"Yeah."
"…Well, that's all that matters, I suppose."
Dmitri nodded, but his expression remained serious.
Pushing his temper wasn't in my best interest right now.
And finally—there was Iris.
"U-um…"
She hesitated, fidgeting nervously as she approached me.
Just as she was about to say something—
["What are you staring at?"]
"Eek!"
She had just started lowering her guard around me, but the moment Esther spoke, her face turned deathly pale again.
["Tsk, tsk. How fragile."]
'…She's not usually this bad.'
["Huh? Master, do you know this girl?"]
'She's a teammate.'
["Hmm… No, that wasn't the tone of someone just talking about a teammate."]
'You're imagining things.'
With that, the short-lived reunion came to an end.
I spoke up.
"For now, let's head toward the remnants of Kronos. I have things to discuss."
"They're not 'remnants' No matter how much I care about you, if you call us that again… you know what'll happen, right?"
"…That was my mistake."
Even though Lania and I were siblings by blood, there was no need to sour our relationship over something petty.
In this messed-up world, family bonds were easily discarded.
"There's something you need to say? To me?"
"Yes. To everyone, actually."
"I don't really have anything to talk about with them."
"It's not a personal discussion. It's about Ark and Kronos."
Lania's eyes narrowed.
"…Oraboni, just to be clear—you're not working for Ark, are you?"
"No. Ark rejected me."
Her eyes widened in shock.
"…Huh? What? Why?"
"They said they couldn't let in someone suspicious."
"What…? Are those Ark bastards blind?!"
Weren't you just accusing me of being one of their lackeys?
"Hah! This won't do. I need to—oh, wait, those Ark bastards are right here. Hey, you lot, come here for a second."
As Lania fumed, Dmitri looked exasperated, Kalakin closed his eyes, and Hildegard and Iris seemed terrified.
"Enough."
"No, but doesn't this piss you off, Oraboni? They threw you out when you had nowhere else to go! Ugh… Seriously."
She shot another glare at the scouting team before turning back to me.
"Wait, hold on. If Ark kicked you out… then why are you with them? Something doesn't add up."
"I was hired as a mercenary."
"A mercenary? Since when does Ark hire those?"
As suspicion filled Lania's eyes, Kalakin stepped in, as if he had been waiting for this moment.
"I know it's unusual. But Carl Marcus is an exception."
"…An exception?"
"Yes. You, of all people, should understand how skilled he is."
Lania's gaze swept over me.
'Is she doubting me?'
Well, of course she was.
Maybe I should come up with a plausible explanation—
"Hmph. Heh… Hngh…"
…Or maybe not.
Her lips twitched.
Her barely contained smile looked ready to burst.
For some reason, Lania kept glancing between Kalakin and me, as if holding back laughter.
"Yeah, well. I guess my dear Oraboni could pull that off. Sure, sure."
Why do you sound so smug?
'I have no idea what's going on, but… I guess this works out in my favor.'
I needed to have a conversation with Lania anyway, so if she was going to accept this explanation, I had no complaints.
"Then let's move out."
"Oh, but Oraboni, there's a bit of a problem…"
"What is it?"
"Uh… We were so busy running for our lives that I don't actually know where our people fled to."
"I do."
"…Huh? How?"
"I saw which direction they went."
It wasn't a lie.
There might be some debate about exactly when and where I saw them.
"Well? That works out, then."
"In that case…"
I glanced over the scouting team.
"I know we've achieved the primary objective of this mission. But I don't think we should stop here. What do you all think?"
Ark's scouting team was tasked with locating the remnants of Kronos, identifying their whereabouts, and uncovering their goals.
In other words, we had technically completed our mission.
However, stopping here felt like a waste, given the situation.
"I agree."
As expected, Kalakin was the first to step up.
"Appreciate it."
"No need. I simply believe your judgment was correct, Carl Marcus."
"Good."
Hildegard quickly followed suit, and even Dmitri nodded.
"I'm in."
"…I agree as well."
"I-I'll… do as you say…"
Iris, as usual, looked terrified, but I didn't call her out on it.
If I did, she might just get even more scared.
["Tsk, tsk. She's so fragile."]
'That's because of you.'
["Oh, come on, you're blaming me again? She's just naturally timid. Seriously, what kind of Ether-compatible person is scared of ghosts?"]
…She had a point.
'…Shut up.'
I nearly got drawn into Esther's absurd logic.
But that wasn't important right now.
One major hurdle was finally behind us.
'Ark still worries me a little… but I've done everything I could.'
After I left, the beast horde advanced toward Ark.
I had managed to thin their numbers somewhat, but it wasn't enough to significantly reduce their main force.
'The beasts here weren't particularly strong overall. If there had been any Rank 2 or higher monsters, I wouldn't have been able to escape so easily.'
From here on, it was entirely up to Ark's strength.
If my calculations were even slightly off, Ark would either fall or suffer devastating losses.
I wanted to chase after the tail end of the beast horde and stop them myself, but the situation was already out of my hands.
'I have to trust them.'
I had witnessed Ark's resilience up until now.
"Let's move."
As I took the lead, Lania and the rest of the scouting team naturally followed.
It was time to bring this mission to a close.
*
"Who's currently leading the remnants of Kronos… No, I mean, the former Kronos faction?"
I almost said "remnants" but I quickly corrected myself under Lania's sharp gaze.
If I had insisted on using that term, things probably would have gotten… unpleasant.
"I don't love the way you said 'former' but… I suppose I'm the closest thing to a leader."
Just as I thought.
From what I knew, the one who would eventually take control of the Kronos Union wasn't actually from the Kronos remnants but from another faction.
So, it wasn't particularly surprising that Lania was currently in charge of them.
"Then should I negotiate with you?"
"Uh… not exactly. It's true that a lot of people follow me, but I don't have any real authority. If you want to make any decisions, you'll need approval from the council members."
"I see."
As expected.
Negotiating with the Kronos remnants wouldn't be as simple as convincing Lania alone.
Even though she acted as their representative, she was ultimately just one seat at the table.
"You already know that hostility with Ark won't do the former Kronos faction any favors."
"…Yeah, that's true."
"But right now, the actions of Kronos and the surrounding minor cities are provoking Ark. At this rate, it's only a matter of time before Ark turns against you."
The Kronos remnants aimed to establish a new coalition centered around Kronos.
Naturally, Ark would never welcome such a move.
In fact, history had already set this outcome in stone.
Ark and the Kronos Union would eventually become enemies.
No one knew that better than I did.
"…What exactly do you want me to do?"
"Call for an emergency assembly. Not just the former Kronos members—bring in those who plan to join as well."
Lania's expression soured.
"…Are you saying you can represent Ark?"
"Of course not."
"Huh?"
Lania blinked in confusion.
"But I can make a proposal. Believe it or not, I have a few friends in Ark."
"Ah… I appreciate the sentiment, but I doubt just being 'friends' is enough to change anything."
That was when Kalakin, who had been listening, cut in.
"That's not necessarily true."
"What do you mean?"
"Carl Marcus isn't a complete outsider to Ark. The fact that Ark sent him as both a mercenary and a tactical director for this mission means they've entrusted him with some level of authority."
"Aren't you interpreting that a little too conveniently?"
"Maybe. But I trust Carl Marcus. Don't you?"
"W-Who said I don't? Ha! Ridiculous. As if I wouldn't trust my own brother more than you!"
"Then that's good to hear."
Hmm.
Thanks to Kalakin stepping in, the conversation was moving along smoothly.
"No matter who Ark sends, you'd have a hard time trusting them. So let me mediate instead."
"…Between Ark and us?"
"Yes."
"Hah…"
Lania let out a disbelieving laugh.
My proposal must have seemed utterly absurd to her.
"…Fine, whatever. Let's give it a shot. Not like we have anything to lose."
"Smart choice."
By then, we could see the refugee convoy of the Kronos remnants in the distance.
Lania took the lead at the sight.
"Follow me. Let's go meet the old folks."
* * *
Silently observing everything from behind, Dmitri's gaze fixated on Carl Marcus's back.
'…If Carl Marcus successfully negotiates with the Kronos remnants, his position within Ark will no longer be that of a mere mercenary.'
A shiver ran down Dmitri's spine.
Of course, the only reason this was even possible was because Lania, a key figure among the Kronos remnants, happened to be Carl Marcus's sister.
But as someone raised in the aristocracy of the Red Line, Dmitri knew all too well—when power and profit were on the line, blood ties meant little.
'Carl Marcus is not someone to make an enemy of. If that's the case…'
Dmitri's eyes gleamed.
If someone couldn't be an enemy, the best move was to make them a friend.
"Carl Marcus."
"What is it?"
Dmitri rummaged through his coat and carefully handed something to Carl Marcus.
"It's a multi-calorie bar. You must be hungry… No, you are hungry. Take it."
"…Thanks."
As Carl Marcus hesitantly accepted the energy bar, Dmitri smiled inwardly.