The Seiwirr team's morale is high.
They thought it would be a very tiring experience to do the work of a profession, but they were tasked with a great mission: to bring the Saint candidate. It was a high-level mission that might even involve a small battle with Efnel.
"This is something to brag about for two months when we return to Kizen!"
Rick exclaimed as he put his arms around Simon's neck.
"We will stop the Saintess from appearing! We can do such a great mission because we work with such a great person!"
Meilyn glared at Rick, trying to make him realize that he needed to calm down.
"We all know this is an important mission even if you don't exaggerate it, so just keep quiet about it."
"you understand, ma'am~ you understand~"
Rick stuck close to Seiwirr, who was walking ahead, and excitedly asked him questions.
He wasn't just making fun of her, but it was also to show complete respect.
"Hey, Simon."
"…"
"O!!"
Simon looked to the side in surprise.
Meilyn stood there with her hands on her hips, pretending to be angry.
"What makes you think so seriously?"
"No, it's just..."
Simon tilted his head in confusion and said,
"I wonder if we are allowed to carry out such an important mission."
"What are you talking about? That's not our mission but Agent Seiwirr's mission."
Meilyn's correction.
"We're just extras. He's a big shot in Vengeance's intelligence department, so I think he could easily pull off a mission like this."
"Hmm."
Simon still couldn't shake the uneasy feeling in his stomach.
Looking past Simon, Meilyn softly asked Camibarez,
"Are you still adjusting, Cami? You look a little sore."
Cami shook her head.
"N-No. With you guys by my side, I'm fine!"
"Then why do you look so sad?"
"…"
"It's okay, Cami. You can tell us anything."
Cami hesitated, fiddling with her little fingers nervously, but soon muttered,
"Are we on our way to… kidnapping the girl who is a Saint candidate?"
Puncture.
Meilyn flinched slightly and tried her best to give a bright smile.
"W-What do you mean by kidnapping!!? Haha! We'll protect him from Efnel first!"
"…"
The wrinkles on Cami's forehead wouldn't go away.
Meilyn hit Simon's arm with her elbow and said, 'Do something!'
Finally, Simon spoke up.
"One thing is for sure, if Efnel had contacted the girl first, they would have taken her to the Holy Federation. Regardless of her wishes."
In the Holy Federation, babies are required to undergo a divinity test when they are born. And, if they pass with a high degree of compatibility with divinity, they are required to become priestesses, told that they have been chosen by the Goddess Deva.
For religious reasons, this entire process is considered very sacred.
"On the contrary, if we make contact with the girl first…"
"I guess we'll at least ask his opinion."
Seiwirr suddenly joins in.
"If he agrees, he will be protected. If he refuses, he will be kidnapped."
Camibarez swallowed.
"…W-What are we going to do with him after we take him?"
Seiwirr brushed his bangs back and winked.
"We will wait for the decision of the higher-ups. Our mission is only to bring him."
Seiwirr explained that it would be a problem if the entire population of the neutral territory turned against the Dark Territory. Therefore, his life would not be taken, but he would probably be sent to the Dark Territory.
If he wanted to stay in neutral territory, perhaps a condition would be added that he must awaken his core. Awakening the core would prevent him from becoming a priest.
"This is just my opinion, but…"
Meilyn crossed her arms and spoke her own thoughts.
"However he lives, it might be better than being Efnel's puppet. At least we have freedom here."
"…Yes."
Collecting himself, Camibarez nodded.
Seeing that everyone was ready, Seiwirr announced,
"Alright then. Then, let's go."
Immediately, Rick clenched his fists excitedly as if he had been waiting for this.
"We'll jump over it with the teleportation magic circle, right? Because we have absolutely no time to waste!!"
However…
The place they arrived at was a train station. Seiwirr spoke to one of the coachmen, then looked at the students and said,
"Everyone, please come in."
"W-We're taking the train? All the way there?"
Rick asked, very confused.
Seiwirr stroked his chin and smiled brightly.
"Of course! Using the teleportation magic circle would be faster, but this is a neutral area. There is a risk of our coordinates being exposed to Efnel. Therefore, riding a shabby and ordinary carriage is the best way to avoid attracting attention." ."
"Wow, I knew it! You always have a deeper meaning in everything, Agent!"
Rick and Seiwirr went in first. The other three followed, jumping into the ship.
* * *
* * *
At the same time.
About 500 meters from where Simon and his group boarded the carriage was a man standing in a daze.
"…I couldn't even sleep a wink last night."
Said a middle-aged man with chattering teeth. His broad shoulders were hunched and all that was visible on his disappointed face was his thick, shaggy hair. Wrinkles formed on his original suit from his crouching, and his legs were shaking non-stop.
"I hear kids are really scary these days."
Beside him, a serious-looking woman who appeared to be his secretary was frowning.
"Even though they are scary, they are just kids."
Blake put her thumb in her mouth and bit her nail.
"No, they're children from Kizen. Kizen! Like, you know, their parents are important people, and they're also high nobles themselves!"
In contrast to his large physique, Blake shrank like a frightened rabbit.
"From what I heard from my seniors, it's normal for them to be criticized and scolded for not doing their job. Like, kids calling their superiors to scold their mentors. Like when some kids complained during a mission with communication orbs that the snacks weren't good enough, and everyone who was guarding them was caught and given a heavy punishment."
"Really, do you believe that nonsense?"
The secretary reprimanded him.
"After all, you are a veteran who has built a career on surviving even the most deadly situations. Why are you so afraid of a bunch of kids?"
"…Do kids these days respect such prestige? I heard that kids these days will turn the other cheek when you say things like, 'Back in my day…'"
"Oh, please!"
Blake began to beg desperately.
"I hope they are good kids. I have a lot of confidence in being good to them if they are..."
"That may be so. It doesn't mean that all Kizen students are rude."
"D-Do you think so? By the way, I also have a SA No.1 disciple under my guidance. I'm sure he's an arrogant and unruly high noble."
"Phew, honestly…"
Blake looked at his watch repeatedly.
"But other than that, they were quite late. Hehe."
He had started waiting in front of the Vengeance building an hour before the appointed time.
But there was no one in sight even an hour after they arrived.
"Hehehe, I know. This is some kind of unspoken test, isn't it? I'll wait here no matter how long it takes, kids! Please just come…"
The secretary took a deep breath.
"I'll make it clear. You're the boss on this shipment, boss! No matter how talented they are, you have the authority to judge them, Agent Blake!"
Blake didn't hear him at all, too busy muttering in frustration.
"Agent Seiwirr! Agent Seiwirr!"
At that moment, a man ran out of the Vengeance building, looking anxiously for someone. He then saw Blake and his secretary and ran over.
"Good afternoon, Agent Blake! Secretary! Have you met Agent Seiwirr?"
The secretary shrugged.
"No, I haven't."
"Damn it! Where did that walking disaster go!?"
"Is there something wrong?"
The man put his hand to his forehead and sighed.
"Agent Seiwirr… he went on a top priority mission, not the usual infiltration mission. The target acquisition mission was meant for the combat department!"
"What?"
Please let me know if you see it!
The man rushed to the market to ask the people. The secretary, who was looking at him, turned his head.
"Did you hear that, Agent Blake? Looks like that troublemaker Seiwirr is causing trouble again."
Still, Blake didn't listen to him at all.
"I also heard that kids from Kizen ask where you graduated from, and if you tell them any school other than Kizen, they start to look down on you."
"Ah, stop!"
"Huhu, a Moiran dropout like me should patiently wait for punishment..."
* * *
"Me? I'm a Kizen graduate, of course!"
On the train moving towards their mission.
As Seiwirr replied with a casual shrug, Rick exclaimed.
"Oh! You are our direct senior!"
Meilyn also seemed surprised to hear that he was a Kizen graduate. He was indeed an elite.
Rick continued,
"We were dying in our first year, and you hung in there for three years! I have so much respect for you!"
"Fufu, the second year will be harder, and the third year will be hell."
Then, Meilyn looked at Seiwirr and said,
"At your age, Agent… Do you perhaps know Professor Bahil or Professor Aaron?"
"Oh, those people? How could I not?"
Rick and Meilyn's jaws dropped. To think he would call two active Kizen professors 'those people'!
"Let's see… Those people were my juniors when I was in my third year."
"Wow!"
"They've been amazing since they were young, so I taught them a lot. Even now, I sometimes meet them when I happen to drop by Kizen headquarters, and they greet me with respect. Haha! I told them not to do that because they're now professors at Kizen."
"With respect? You mean Professor Bahil and Professor Aaron?"
As if he had been waiting, Seiwirr told his epic tale of his time in Kizen. Rick, Meilyn, and even Camibarez listened with their ears perked up in interest.
'Hmm.'
On the other hand, Simon crossed his arms, the uneasy feeling in his stomach growing. Something felt… wrong.
"Yes, that's right. That's when Bahil wove a blood net to catch the fleeing opponent."
"Wow! So he used hemomancy too when he was a student, even though he was a curse professor!"
"What? Ah, yes. He was into hemomancy when he was younger, but then he turned to curses, and…"
Simon closed his eyes.
He couldn't say anything just because he was suspicious.
For now, he decided to remain vigilant.
* * *
The border between the Holy Federation and neutral territory.
Gate of Divinity.
It was a kind of 'checkpoint', and anyone who wanted to go to neutral territory had to pass through it.
This time, Efnel students are passing through. All of them are on a Visit to Neutral Land.
"I've never been to neutral territory before, Sister Rete!"
Rete's roommate, Lilinette, said.
Rete's hands were tucked into his robes with his usual frown.
"I don't think it's been that long for me."
"What? When did you get here?"
"…Ah, don't ask. I had a flashback of that narrow box."
"Huh?"
At that moment, three girls in Efnel uniforms approached while calling Lilinette's name.
Rete looked at them with his characteristic disinterested face.
"Your groupmate, Lilinette?"
"Yes!"
"You really did a good job of picking on ordinary people."
"And you really decided to do it yourself?"
Rete nodded and yawned.
"Other people will only get in my way. I will finish this myself and return to the Holy Federation as soon as possible."
"As expected of you, Sister Rete! Your every move is so unusual!"
"What mission did you get? Something difficult?"
Lilinette waved her hand as if it was nothing.
"You know, the usual. Securing the Saint candidate."
"Be careful. I heard the kids from Kizen are there too."
"Oh my! Are you worried about me? This is great!"
Rete accompanied the sarcastic comment with a sharp glare, and Lilinette instinctively flinched and began setting up a barrier.
"S-Still, don't you have anything to say to your roommate before we part ways?"
While putting his hands in the pockets of his robe, Rete pondered for half a second, then said,
"The boy with the navy blue hair."
"?"
"If you ever meet a boy from Kizen with navy blue hair during a mission, just pretend you're dead and run."
"Hoho! Me? Run? I may be like this, but I'm ranked at the top in all of Efnel in terms of fighting ability."
"It doesn't matter whether you are in the top ranks or not."
Rete looked at Lilinette very seriously.
"One mistake and you're dead."