Kidnapping Incident 1

It has been about 3 years since the establishment of Shadow Garden. Alpha and I have become 13 years old, and my older sister Claire is now 15. There is no particular meaning associated with the age 13, but that is not the case with the age 15. When the children of nobles reach 15, they must attend a school in the royal capital for 3 years. Nee-san is the rising hope of the Kagenou Baron family, so my mom is all pumped up about setting up the farewell party and all that. Yep, rising hope indeed.

(T/N: 'Nee-san' is what the MC calls his older sister.)

All that's fine and all. Really. But the problem is that she disappeared when the day came for her to set off for the capital. Thus, there is an enormous tumult at the Kagenou house.

"When I entered the room, it was already like this."

So says my father in a dandy voice. His face isn't too bad, either.

"There is no sign of a struggle, but the window was forced open from the outside. The fact that neither Claire nor I was alerted means the kidnapper is very skilled indeed."

My dandy dad places one hand on the windowsill and looks into the distance. All that's missing from this picture is a whiskey glass in his hand.

And hair...

"So?" A chilling voice is directed at him.

"Very skilled, so there's no helping it? Is that what you're trying to say?"

It's mom.

"No, no, of course not. I was merely stating the facts..."

So answers my dad as cold sweat rolls down his face.

"You STUPID BALDYYYYYY!!!!!!"

"Hiii, I'm sorry, I'm very sorry!!!"

By the way, I'm air. Nothing is expected of me, and neither do I cause any trouble. That's the position in this family that I'm striving to maintain.

But, well, Nee-san was a pretty good person, so it's a bit of a pity. The crime happened at night when I was in the abandoned village, so there was nothing that I could have done either.

I quietly listen to my parents' bickering and return to my room at the first chance. I place my palms together in the direction Nee-san had disappeared, then dive into my bed.

Then.

"You may come out now."

"Yes, my lord."

Immediately, my curtains sway slightly, and a young girl wearing a black slime bodysuit steps out.

"Beta, huh."

"Yes, my lord."

Like Alpha, she is also a young elf girl. But where Alpha has blond hair, Beta's is silver.

With cat-like green eyes and a mole under her eye, she was the third person to join Shadow Garden. Even though I told Alpha, "in moderation," Alpha brings them in like stray cats, so their numbers keep growing.

"Where's Alpha?"

"Searching for traces of Claire-sama."

"Fast reaction. You think Nee-san is still alive?"

"Likely so."

"Can she be saved?"

"Possible, yes... but might require Shadow-sama's help."

Ah, by the way, they're calling me 'Shadow.' Because I'm the master of Shadow Garden, fufu.

"Is that what Alpha said?"

"Yes, my lord. She said that since they have a hostage, it would be best to bring our full force."

"Heeh~"

To be frank, Alpha has gotten quite firm. The fact that even Alpha is asking for help must mean that someone of significant power is involved.

"My blood boils..."

I clench my fist while instantaneously releasing magic to create a small explosion.

There's no particular meaning, but I like this kind of theatrics.

I can hear Beta murmuring, "As expected..." with surprise.

As of late, I haven't been lacking a sparring partner, what with Alpha and Beta and Delta and the crew, but something fresh is good occasionally. Above all else, I want to play at being an eminence in the shadows, so this seems like a good opportunity.

"It's been a while since I last got serious..."

Like so, I've also gotten used to exuding the aura of an eminence hidden in the shadows.

Also, Alpha and Beta have taken to fleshing out our setting even further lately, so it's been a blast.

"The criminal is, as expected, part of the Order of Diabolos. Even more, he is one of their upper echelons."

"One of their echelons, huh. So why did they kidnap Nee-san?"

"They suspect her of being a Descendent of the Heroes."

"Hmph, those sharp-eyed bastards..."

So yeah, like that.

Furthermore, they've also been 'gathering research' and saying things like "As expected, your words were entirely correct..." and "About a thousand years ago, Diabolos' descendants..." and "From this stone monument, we can glean clues that point to the existence of the Order of Diabolos..." and other similar such. I can't read ancient letters, so how would I know? I bet Alpha can't read them either, so she just lays out all these ancient-looking materials and whatnot of a similar general feeling in front of me so that we can feel like we're making some headway in investigating the Order. I'm sure that must be it.

"Please take a look at these documents. Based on our latest intel, these are the hideouts that we think Claire-sama might be held in."

After saying that, Beta placed a massive pile of paper on my table. Ok, seriously, I have no idea what to do with all this. Over half of it is in an ancient language; the rest is filled with indecipherable mathematical equations. You guys have gotten good at making up this kind of stuff. I'll admit you all have become even more proficient at it than I have.

While ignoring Beta's 'explanations,' I take out a throwing knife and throw it at the map on the wall.

Thunk.

With a dull sound, the knife pierces a certain point.

"There."

"That place? What is there?"

"That's where Nee-san is."

"But that place, there's not-... no, wait, could it be...!"

Beta hurriedly rummages through the materials as if she'd just realized something.

Um, yeah, I just randomly threw that knife, alright?

But wow, your acting is good, Beta. I can see where this is going – you'll tell me there is a secret hideout at that location, right?

"In conclusion, after comparing various sources, it seems that there is indeed a high possibility that there is a secret hideout at the location that Shadow-sama just pointed out."

Called it.

"But still, to read through this enormous amount of materials in a split second and even deduce the location of a hidden hideout... as expected of Shadow-sama."

"You still lack training, Beta."

"I shall double my diligence."

Seriously, she's good. Even though I know it's acting, I can still feel the emotions that she's conveying. You've got all the essential points down pat, Beta.

"I shall inform Alpha-sama at once. Will we move tonight?"

"Mm."

Beta bows and then takes her leave. Her eyes are glittering and all, such that I can totally feel the respect and whatnot. Cheers to her Academy-level acting.