Ch 255: WHERE DID SHE GO?

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"... Haa... They tried numerous methods to obtain information about Alessia. Bribes, blackmail, falsification of documents, murder. But nothing worked. In the end, they had to go back to the border because the war was getting closer and closer, and those members of the intelligence service had to prioritize the security of our kingdom over the whims of the king.... It's funny that... No, that's not important to the story..."

'So... the fact that back then knights appeared as red dots on my map? No, it couldn't have been because of that. As effective as Drial Cenit's spies were, it's ridiculous to think that they could have gotten an enemy kingdom's militia to work for them.'

' - Good. I think I'm free of the paralysis now, and just in time. I have no more to tell him... I'm stupid. Without realizing it, I ended up telling him all the information I had.... Haaa... It doesn't matter. At this point, there is no use in lamentation. The result is the same; I've already told him too much.'

"... So, since there was a risk of the girl being in the war zone, all of us in the intelligence service were informed of all the necessary details of Alessia Addari's identity and history, in addition to details of past operations related to the girl, so that we could identify her..."

' - There is only one way to keep my current lifestyle from falling apart. I didn't want it to come to this, but.... Yeah, there's no other way. Let's give it a try. Haa... Surely he will quickly accept my proposal, and this failure of mine will be forgotten... Why could it be that this idea bothers me a little?... Haa… my mind is a mess'

"... Look. I don't know what relationship you have with that girl, but she can't be that important to you. I think you should consider coming to my kingdom with me..."

' - The possibility is slim, but he might.... No, he surely will be just like all the other men and seek to get rid of his problem at the expense of others.... Haa...'

"... We can split the reward for delivering the girl in half," says Beatrice with a conflicted look on her face.

' - Even if he wasn't, I'm telling him that they would pay him an absurd amount of money for delivering Alessia Addari.... Most likely, my kingdom's intelligence service will try to silence him... but he doesn't know that, and once he agrees, I'll already find a way to get him out of that trouble. Such a large amount of money could tempt any man to show his true nature. If he wasn´t, I w-'

"No, thanks!..." I say, without a second thought.

' - How devoted he is to that blonde?! Could what I'm hearing be true? Is he really willing to make an enemy of an entire kingdom over a woman? I thought men like that didn't exist; why can't I have someone like that for myself?'

"... Besides, if you hate the king and that demon of his as much as you seem to me to do, why do you work for them?"

"Because I have no choice left. You can't win against those kinds of people..... You can't be thinking of taking on an entire kingdom by yourself over a woman, can you? That would be incredibly stupid," says the girl, and raw anger is reflected in her voice.

' - Please, God Solus, help me to make this man understand the wisdom in what I am telling him. I find him too fascinating for him to end his life in such a way. Keeping my job is important, but I.... above all, I don't want him to die. I have to… Do more research on him'

"... Accept my proposal; don't be a fool. Hmm… Should I seduce you? This thing we just did doesn't have to be a one-day thing. We could.... have fun every day...." says Beatrice, smiling seductively.

The girl looks a little ridiculous trying to seduce me from her position, but I decide to stifle my smile and not laugh at her.

At least I owe her that much; after all, she confessed everything I wanted and gave me the opportunity to discover new ways to generate pleasure.

' - Now he will surely accept. I'm offering his freedom from the problem, lots of money, and.... myself. As fond as he is of Alessia Addari, I'm clearly a better option. I mean, it's true that she's quite pretty; she has to be with the mother she had, but beauty isn't everything in life. At the end of the day, I don't think many women in the world can keep up with this sex maniac.'

"First of all, I am the only one who can disturb MY Alessia. I don't care if it's the king of Drial Cenit or a stupid demon. No matter who it's against, I'll somehow manage...." I say, showing more confidence than I really feel.

' - He has to be lying.... That's the only explanation... But... Why would he do that? Agh... What could that girl have that I don't? Haa... A small part of me was hoping this would happen. He's such a strange man... But somehow, that just makes him even more interesting to me. Strength, speed, intelligence, and strange powers, combined with a strong mentality that cares about his own.'

'Anyway... why is she just now making this proposal to me? Wouldn't it have been more beneficial if she had proposed to me at the outset of everything we've done? Hmm... I think this girl is a lot dumber than I thought.'

' - He definitely merits further investigation, but... Haaa... I may be able to return to my kingdom safely if I deliver the information I have about Emir..... If I remember correctly, Samael Entrial was very interested in any information about the Golden Archer'

"...Besides, seduce me? I doubt that you even know how to do it! Keep in mind that even when I was under the influence of drugs, you failed. Hahaha. I couldn't even move, and yet you failed!"

Beatrice: "....."

Beatrice opens her mouth to say something but then blushes intensely and closes her mouth tightly, while little tears appear at the corners of her eyes.

' - Fuck the mission and my old life! This is personal. If I manage to escape, I need to confirm whether this man is genuine.... If this man is indeed genuine, I am determined to seduce and conquer him.... Even if it's the last thing I do in my life... Anyway, since I won't be able to deliver Alessia despite all the information I just leaked to the enemy, my life as a spy is ruined.'

"What's the matter, cat got your tongue?" I ask, and a mischievous grin appears on my face as I notice the spy's expression, which, just a few moments ago, was full of smugness but now looks completely humiliated.

But the girl chooses not to answer.

' - Convincing him to help me and bringing him to my side was the only way to make up for giving so much information to him, my… enemy. If, at any time, my kingdom learns that I have spoken about the king's secrets, my head will roll off the scaffold. Given this situation, I cannot take the risk of returning.'

'Hmm… She seems to have finally run out of words. From her expression, it gives the impression that she was sure I would accept her proposal... But what she's offering is worthless to me.'

' - Haa... It's not like I'll really like the way I was living until now either. And come to think of it... I'd rather not have to give Alessandra's daughter to that damn king.'

'The money she's offering me is irrelevant, but that's not the problem with her proposal…

It makes no sense for me to betray Delia and Alessia for some crazy girl I just met....

In fact...

I don't think I could betray them for anything in the world…

It's weird…

I feel like it would be like betraying myself.'

' - Hmm? What is this strange feeling? now that I gave up my old lifestyle… Somehow, now I feel freer than ever.... In fact, I feel as if I could free myself from these bonds just by wishing for it'

We were both silent for a while, looking at each other and engrossed in our thoughts, until....

I watch as Beatrice's figure transforms into a blurry shadow in a split second and darts off at full speed towards the tent entrance.

Following the direction of the shadow with my eyes, I see the girl's naked body return to its usual shape, just a few inches from the tent's exit.

But now she is standing, free of her restraints.

"Hey! Stay where you are," I say, stunned by what's going on.

' - Huh? How did I do that?.... No, that doesn't matter. I was finally able to free myself; now I have to focus on escaping.... I have to hurry to hide somewhere.'

Suddenly, Beatrice turns to leave the tent and....

She disappears in front of my eyes.

'What the fuck...

WHERE DID SHE GO?.....

This is bad, very very bad....

She doesn't even appear on my interface map!...

&%@#%...

I should have guessed that she might be able to pull off a trick like this one...

After all, she now has the same class as Cael, even though she was only level 1.'

' - Ermm... My legs hurt, but I seem to be able to run relatively well.... I'm probably going to need several weeks to recover from this.... But the experience... Wasn't too bad.... Intense, yes, but not bad. You are a most unusual man, Emir. You definitely have piqued my interest, so I'm sure I'll be seeing you again.'

Frustrated and annoyed with myself, I slump into the chair vacated by my former captive, resting my face in my hands.

'Haa....

As if things weren't already complicated enough....

I'm going to have to be a lot more cautious from now on....

Haa… at least she still doesn't know where Alessia is, and I don't think she has any way of finding out.'

The three annoying beauties are the only ones who could give her that information, and I know they won't fall into the same trap as I did.

They never split up, and Beatrice won't be able to fool all three of them at once.

Aside from that, I know they would never betray Alessia.

'Come to think of it...

Cael knows some things about me and Alessia....

But I'm sure Beatrice won't be that stupid....

He would kill her without thinking too much....

I'm an idiot...

But still...

A part of me is glad I didn't have to kill her.'

Before I can suppress it, a smile appears on my face at the prospect of meeting Beatrice again in the future.

' - Okay, I'm out of the tent. Now I have to look for some clothes. It's a shame to have to leave all my stuff behind, but at least I'm keeping my life. Why would it be that Emir is not trying to follow me?'

'Anyway… at least I'll make sure she can't come back to this place.'

Then I slowly stand up and begin to store everything inside the tent in my inventory, intending to store the tent in my inventory as well when I'm done.

'She said this tent was a magical item with the function of soundproofing the inside from the outside.... I suppose it will be useful for me to camp in the no man's zone.'

' - I was right in front of him.... Did he let me get away? Come to think of it... people don't seem to see me, despite the fact that I'm running around naked in the war zone, where most of the people are men.... This… this is so strange'