Book 5: Volume 4 Chapter 19, Report

Translator: Kazumi

Editor: Silavin

 

The leader of the dark guild, captured at their headquarters, was transported to the shadows base in the Capital with no means of escape.

 

To avoid drawing attention at checkpoints, the carriage carrying him never entered any town along the way. The driver and guards were rotated at intervals so that only the leader himself remained consistently out in the wilderness, lying still in the carriage’s dark interior, alone with his thoughts. Once they neared the Capital, the group proceeded through a secret underground passage to reach their base.

 

There had been a reason for bringing him all this way rather than simply disposing of him on-site. His disappearance would cause confusion within his own organization. Had he died in battle, his body would have remained as evidence. But his subordinates knew he had fled when the fighting broke out, so the absence of a corpse would lead them to believe he had successfully escaped.

 

This kind of uncertainty would buy time.

 

More importantly, bringing him to the Capital meant they could extract information from him directly. For the shadows, that information was what truly mattered.

 

If anyone else within the dark guild had ties to foreign nations, they too would need to be addressed. But those who had been supporting the dark guild had already been persuaded to withdraw, which meant the bulk of the shadows’ work was pretty much done.

 

Whether the organization survived or crumbled would be left to whatever natural forces shaped such things. The questioning of the leader was, in that sense, little more than a precaution.

 

With those mundane matters left in the hands of the Smith Kingdom’s shadows, Peach and her group took their time returning to the Capital. Just as on the journey out, they entered the city under the pretense of escorting a caravan.

 

By the time the handover was complete, the Succubuses were nearly finished as well. A few more days of observation were still needed, but that task could be managed by others. And if something unexpected arose, they could always use the teleportation gate to return.

 

Having arrived safely in the Capital and checked into her lodgings, Peach exchanged farewells with Iris.. The others who had accompanied them had already gone their separate ways before this point.

 

“Thank you for everything.”

 

“Not at all. I learned a lot from you.”

 

It was a perfectly composed exchange. No one listening would have suspected it was a parting between agents. In this world, once a job concluded, it cleanly concluded. There was no need to further expose themself.

 

Peach also knew that Iris might have wished to say something more. But it was not her place to ask. And if Iris had truly wanted to, she would have spoken.

 

Whatever either of them truly felt, they remained cordial, and that was enough. They parted on good terms, and Peach and Mitsuki headed directly for the Crown branch where Kousuke was waiting.

 

♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦

 

After watching the two of them round the corner and disappear from view, Iris let out a long, sigh.

 

The time she had spent observing them had been significant in ways she was still sorting through. Neither Peach nor Mitsuki carried themselves with any air of superiority, yet the skill she had witnessed spoke for itself. She had not even seen the full extent of what they were capable of.

 

Iris had already retired from the front lines after having a child. Thus, it was only natural that certain feelings would stir.

 

She was standing there reflecting, when a hand touched her shoulder from behind.

 

“Ah—!”

 

She spun around, the sound escaping her before she could stop it.

 

The man standing there blinked, visibly caught off guard by her reaction.

 

“Sorry. Was that really so startling?”

 

It was her Husband, who had known she was returning around this time and had come to meet her. He studied her for a moment and gotten a lot more careful,

 

“…It looks like a lot happened. Let’s talk properly when we get home.”

 

“Yeah,” Iris said. “That’s probably best.”

 

There were things she could share and things she couldn’t. He understood that well enough not to press further in the middle of a street. To anyone watching, they were simply a handsome couple reuniting after time apart.

 

Though, more than a few passersby seemed vaguely irritated by that fact as the two of them made their way home together.

 

♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦

 

After parting from Iris, Peach and Mitsuki reunited with Kousuke and the others and settled into their accommodation. They could have directly returned to Amamiya Tower, but there was no pressing reason to rush, and so they decided to spend the night in the Capital.

 

As soon as they entered the room, Kousuke turned to face them.

 

“Good work.”

 

“We’re back,” Peach said.

 

“Thank you.” Mitsuki added.

 

Kousuke listened as Peach recounted what had happened, the details kept appropriately vague given the setting. Even within a private room, walls had ears, after all. Even if any intruder would be noticed immediately by Kouhi or Mitsuki, there was no reason to speak carelessly out of habit.

 

When she finished, Kousuke tilted his head with a slight frown.

 

“From what you’ve described, it sounds like it wrapped up fairly quickly. Was outside help really necessary?”

 

Peach and Mitsuki exchanged a brief glance, the corners of their mouths curving into something wry.

 

His question was not unreasonable but it was based on an incomplete picture.

 

“If you’re only counting the combat itself, then no, not many people were directly involved,” Peach continued. “But the whole job involved a lot more. Surveying the enemy’s strength, coordinating how we are going to operate, all of that required manpower.”

 

The visible combat unit was only a small part at okay. The Succubuses from Amamiya Tower, Peach included, had numbered around ten. The Smith Kingdom’s own forces had likely been operating at several times that count across various tasks. In that light, it made perfect sense that they had needed external support.

 

That said, Peach did bit know the exact size of their counterparts’ organization. And Kousuke’s question was not entirely off-base in another way.

 

“There’s no doubt they were also using this to assess our capabilities.” Peach added.

 

“And that’s fine to you?”

 

“It’s not ideal. But the feeling cuts both ways. We came away with a much clearer picture of their organizational strength.”

 

Since both sides had been acting as liaisons throughout the operation, each had the opportunity to observe the other side. They had anticipated this going in and had cooperated accordingly. There was no point dwelling on it now.

 

The conversation wound down to a natural pause. Mitsuki caught Peach’s eye and gave her a quiet, knowing look.

 

Peach returned a small nod.

 

Kousuke noticed the exchange and tilted his head. Peach turned to him, her expression a little heavier.

 

“Um… I have something to report, Kousuke.”

 

“Something to report?”

 

“En.”

 

She nodded once, and then placed her right hand, gently, over her stomach.

 

Kousuke understood before she said those words. Yet, he waited.

 

“It looks like I’m pregnant.”