kscans

Chapter 87 - Interlude: The Plan, Part Two

As Grine and Harynair plotted in the princess's room, Grine spoke.

"...Thinking back, it's a wonder I ever decided to team up with you. ...That night you suddenly appeared at my bedside, I was sure you were an assassin and had prepared myself for the worst."

She recalled that day. It was night. She had been sleeping as usual when she sensed a presence and sat up. There stood a bewitching woman with bat wings.

Grine was momentarily stunned but quickly regained her composure. From her appearance, she was clearly a monster. The question of why she was here was irrelevant for now. The only thing that mattered was how to overcome this situation. That was all.

Just as she was thinking this, Harynair spoke. "...Shall I grant your wish?"

"...My wish?" Grine replied, her tone slightly provocative. "...And you know what that is?"

"...You want to become the Emperor, don't you?"

Grine was shocked. How did she know something no one else did? That was where it began. The secret meetings between Grine and Harynair.

Several days had passed since then. Now, they were working together as good partners.

Recalling the day they met, Grine said, "...By the way, Harynair? ...It's all well and good that you're helping me grant my wish. ...But are you managing to enjoy the human interactions that are your payment?"

"...Mmm, it's still too early to say," Harynair replied. "...I have been observing human interactions during my life here, and I've found it to be quite a duplicitous and untrustworthy environment. ...I like this sort of thing. ...It's as if people's true natures are hidden, yet not hidden at all. ...They're steeped in suspicion and paranoia. ...It gives me chills. ...I wonder what their faces will look like the moment all their hard work comes to nothing."

She wore a bewitching smile as she spoke. A shiver ran down Grine's spine. She was truly a femme fatale. She showed no interest in anything other than her own amusement. However, Grine suspected that her words were only half true.

...Why did she think that? If Harynair only wanted to watch, she wouldn't need to cooperate. She could just observe from a distance. ...But she had made contact. In other words, she was plotting something. ...Something that required her to approach a human. ...Grine didn't know what it was yet, but she would use whatever she could. ...If that was the path to achieving her goal.

"...I have no intention of commenting on your hobbies," Grine said. "...However, you must cooperate to ensure the success of our plan. That is the one thing I need you to uphold."

"...Yes, I know," Harynair replied. "...Everything is for the sake of making you the Emperor. ...For that, we'll have to ask the current Emperor to make his exit."

As Harynair spoke with a wicked smile, Grine countered, "...Not yet. ...It's too soon to kill Father. ...First, on the appointed day, we will incorporate my sister's nobles into my faction. ...We will act after that. ...We wait until the time is right. ...For now."

She wore a wicked smile that was no less intense than Harynair's.

Harynair left the room. As she walked, she thought. She was half enjoying the way things were unfolding, but she also felt a sense of urgency. The reason was that those two would be coming to the Empire. ...If the Emperor was still alive when they arrived, it was highly likely that the monster sent to kill him would end up attacking them instead.

Thanks to Redorza the Sage's cooperation in this matter, she had been provided with the best possible monster. His skill was guaranteed, so there was no problem. ...However, his personality was undeniably self-centered.

If possible, she would have preferred to ask the Minotaur on the border. When she actually did...

"...Sorry, but I must refuse. ...Even with Lord Sidoor's permission, killing an old soldier who has retired from the front lines goes against my pride."

That's what he had said. The Minotaur clan. Their strength was among the top tier of monsters, but their pride was so high that they would flatly refuse to do anything they didn't want to. Honestly, they were a troublesome clan.

Deciding that persuading him was impossible, she had been at a loss when Redorza appeared. "...If you're in trouble, I can introduce you to a fine monster," he had said with an eerie smile.

She couldn't be picky. She had to finish the first stage before they arrived. Fortunately, Daios the Sea General was helping to stall for time, so she had bought a little. Just then, Harynair had a thought.

...Had she always been like this? When it came to her own amusement, she had always acted on her own, without anyone's help. It was the same with that otherworlder. She had been confident that her gas would make him do her bidding, but it hadn't worked. It hadn't worked on the man next to him either, but that was irrelevant now. All she could think about was how to torment him and his girlfriend for her own amusement. ...As she had been making her moves, she had found herself in a situation where she was borrowing someone else's help.

But it wasn't an unpleasant feeling. In fact, it felt like the fun had increased. It was an unexpected and strange feeling.

In the moonlit corridor, Harynair looked out the window. "...Did you feel this way too, when you fought the otherworlder? ...Mestie the Death Controller...?"

She murmured to the full moon, to her long-lost comrade.

Some time after that, at the location and on the stage Grine had designated, several nobles were manipulated into performing a play of apology and acceptance. It was a great success. The balance of power between the factions shifted, and the scales tipped in Grine's favor.

Convinced that things were proceeding smoothly, Grine said, "...Excellent. ...Things are going well. ...All that's left is to eliminate Father, and there will be no problems. ...Harynair, are the preparations in order?"

"...Everything is ready," Harynair confirmed. "...But I have one question. ...Why did you choose those nobles? ...I don't think they're of very high status."

Her question was, in a way, understandable. The nobles manipulated this time were not from historically prestigious families within the Empire; at best, they were middle-class.

What would change by bringing such people into her fold? When asked this, Grine explained, "...Your point is valid. ...However, two things are important. ...First, that the nobles bowed their heads in front of the citizens. ...For nobles, who are the epitome of arrogance, to bow their heads... that alone will influence not only the citizens but other nobles as well. ...At the very least, it will create the impression that they are willing to cast aside their arrogance to join me."

"Second, the nobles I've brought in are in charge of guarding the castle this time. ...My sister's faction makes it mandatory to guard the castle periodically. ...The reason they give is to fortify the castle, but the truth is still unknown. ...However, the nobles on guard duty today have joined my faction. ...I haven't done anything like that. ...It would be meaningless to do the same thing while being at odds with my sister. ...In my case, I have them stationed on the border."

"...From this, the castle's defenses are now at half their previous strength. ...Even if other nobles were to try to guard it now, it would take at least three days to get here from even the closest domains. ...This period is when we must act. ...Harynair, I will confirm one more time. ...Are the monster's preparations complete?"

"...I can set it in motion at any time, Grine," Harynair replied with her best smile. Hearing this, Grine declared, her face filled with determination, "...We move tonight. ...I will see this through to success, no matter what."

Night. Above the royal capital.

A soldier on patrol was idly looking up at the sky to kill time. He saw a single bird flying through the vast expanse. It was ten times the size of a Falcon. ...And it was clutching something in its talons. Anyone would have thought it was the giant bird's prey. ...It was too dark to see clearly, but he could make out a four-legged animal. ...A horse?

The next moment, the giant bird suddenly swooped down. The panicked soldier immediately took a defensive stance. The bird flew to the castle and released what it was holding. The object fell straight into the castle's courtyard. A loud crash and a cloud of dust filled the area. ...As the soldiers in the courtyard cautiously approached, something flew out of the smoke. Before one soldier could even identify it, his torso was sliced open, and he died instantly.

What the remaining soldiers saw was a creature with the lower body of a horse and the upper body of a human wearing armor.

A Centaur.

...A monster attack.

"...Well then," the monster muttered. "Time to rampage and get this over with."

It was the Centaur, the former A-rank adventurer, Rodel the Flash.