"You want to talk with me, right? As you see, I"m alone. Come out"

A while after I once again called out, a man jumped down from the ceiling.
He"s got a small build and slender physique. Despite coming down from a high place, he made no noise.
That alone makes his occupation and skill clear.
The man who raised his face still had boyish youthfulness in his looks. Black hair and… two red eyes. Despite his young countenance, in his eyes dwells the ghastliness of having went through countless fights.
Seeing the red glow for the first time, I smiled wryly that it"s just as I"d expected.

"… What"s so funny"

The boy said in a sullen tone while scowling at me. His voice is still youthful. His att.i.tude clearly conveys unwillingness. To appear despite that, his reason must be that important.
No, I shook my head.

"Ah, sorry. There"s nothing funny. It"s just that it"s as I expected. I received a report from my subordinates a long time ago. That my fiancée had probably saved Red s.h.i.+nigami. From that time, I could imagine this being the case"

"This being the case, what"s with that…"

I urged the boy knitting his brows to sit on the guest sofa. But, he didn"t move.
I"m not a guest. His att.i.tude was indicating so.

"You are from Hiyuma clan, right? I"ve heard until they make a contract, Hiyuma clan members can only see with one eye. You were called One-eyed s.h.i.+nigami in Sahaja. You still should have seen with one eye when you came to this country. And yet you can now see with both… You made a contract with Lidi, didn"t you?"
"… Yeah"

When I asked a question to confirm, the boy in front of me reluctantly nodded.

"Princess saved me. She didn"t wish for any reward… Despite being aware of everything, she didn"t say I"m disgusting… Don"t you think these reasons were enough?"
"… You"re right"

I nodded to agree with the boy who gave reasons one by one like they were important memories.
All the actions he mentioned are natural for Lidi. I can easily imagine it. My fiancée is such a woman. And I"m proud of such her.

"… I"ve heard you were afflicted by a curse when you were found. It was Lidi who dispelled it, right?"

When I first heard the curse was dispelled, I thought the Medicine Witch was involved, but once I learned of Lidi"s ability the answer was simple. It was Lidi herself who dispelled the curse. I"m sure.
While fixing his eyes on me, the boy nodded.
He truly has guts. He boldly showed himself in the Crown Prince"s office in the Royal Castle, moreover he can normally converse with me like this. On the inside I was astonished. As expected of the man who earned the name Red s.h.i.+nigami at a young age and rose to the guild"s top. He"s got extraordinary mental strength.

"That"s right. It was the same as that time with you. Princess saved me with neutralization magic. I may say that, but I only heard of it recently. Granny taught me"
"Granny?"
"You"ve met her too, right? The Medicine Witch"
"I see… You"re connected with her too"

I was convinced as the boy hinted at his connection with the witch.
That witch has taken quite a liking to Lidi. Since that witch tolerates him, he"s not a danger to Lidi.
Of course I know Hiyuma clan"s loyalty is absolute, still it"s persuasive he can demonstrate a connection with the witch I actually know.
While scratching his head, the boy in front of me spoke. His voice contained substantial confusion.

"What do I say, you ain"t surprised. I thought you"d be more suspicious. At worst I wondered if you"d misunderstand me as an a.s.sa.s.sin who came to kill you"

In fact I was an a.s.sa.s.sin, the boy who shrugged his shoulders with that had no shady aspect.
Rather, he felt indifferent. His att.i.tude of not feeling ashamed or denying having been an a.s.sa.s.sin was quite anticlimactic.

"… I"d been feeling your presence since long ago. There was no bloodl.u.s.t, if I had to say you were acting to protect Lidi. As I mentioned earlier, I knew Lidi had a contact with you. Since I understood this much, it was simple to figure out the rest, right?"

I"d been feeling the presence of the boy in front of me every once in a while. He seems quite excellent so I could hardly sense it, but he touched my barrier several times. There"s also the story I heard from Alex, it was more than enough to convince me.
As expected, his strength left him when he understood why I was convinced.
Just as I thought, my beloved fiancée had easily defeated even s.h.i.+nigami.
I was waiting for her to tell me, but I never expected s.h.i.+nigami to contact me.

"And? Why have you expressly shown yourself? You were moving so carefully as to not be noticed, right?"

When I pointed that out, the boy once again shrugged his shoulders.

"Of course, but you can"t make an omelet without breaking eggs. You know Princess"s ability to take action. I just thought it"d be better to share information"
"… I see"

I could very much agree with the words he bitterly spewed.
Perhaps Lidi and this boy spend time together when I"m not there. Certainly, it"s correct in the sense that we"re covering for each other. But.

"… What do you think of me?"
"Ha?"

I once again asked the boy who had lack of understanding written on his face.
If we are to have cooperative relations.h.i.+p, I want to at least hear that.

"I am fiancé of your master. I want to hear what you think about that"

The boy in front of me was saved by Lidi.
Then, it wouldn"t be strange if a special feeling spouted from there.
And if there is such a feeling, I thought I might rather be a hindrance.
After tilting his head and sinking into silence for a while, he nodded over and over as if he finally understood.

"Ah. Aaa, it"s that kind of thing. You can be relieved. I don"t really see Princess as a woman, I support you and Princess. I don"t feel like disturbing you"
"Can I believe it?"
"Nn, after all Princess loves you, right? If Princess hated it, I"d hinder it whatever it took, but she doesn"t hate it at all. Besides you"re strong. It"s honestly a relief to not have to guard her 24/7"

I was surprised by how readily the boy answered.
The boy suddenly made a serious face.

"… Besides, I ain"t in love with master. I have the obligation to beget the next generation. I will without fail revive Hiyuma clan. In the first place, I couldn"t make master"s child the successor. Princess is completely out of consideration"
"I see…"

The clear explanation this time convinced me.
While still young, this boy has the responsibility for his clan. And understanding his duty, he"s trying to fulfil it.
As the one responsible for the country from now on, I feel I can understand him.
I felt like I understood the reason why I strangely didn"t feel jealous of the boy in front of me.

"Are you convinced with this? I"ll say it just in case, but Princess doesn"t have an affair with me, alright? She always talks about nothing but you"
"Yeah, I know that well. I"m not uneasy about Lidi… I know she can only see me"
"… Well said"

I showed a nod to the boy who laughed exasperatedly.
I already know plenty enough that Lidi has feelings for me. I just want to conclusively hear it from her mouth. I"m just waiting for that.

"Then, since you"re convinced. I"m Cain. I"m the last survivor of the Hiyuma clan. The present family head. I think you know me as Red s.h.i.+nigami, but I ain"t no longer Sahaja"s a.s.sa.s.sin. I only serve Princess, and only obey Princess"s orders. Think of me as such"

I nodded to the boy… Cain, who declared that.
I introduced myself while holding out my hand.

"I"m Friedrich, Lidi"s fiancé. I wonder if I can think we"ll have a cooperative relations.h.i.+p from now on?"

When I asked a question, Cain warned me despite taking my hand.

"If it"s related to Princess. But, from the start let me refuse listening to your orders. You are not my master. Even if you tell me you don"t like my wording, I won"t correct myself"
"I don"t mind. I"m relieved if somebody like you is attached to Lidi… She tends to take nothing but unexpected actions"
"Yeah…"

Something must"ve come to his mind. Cain feebly laughed with distant eyes.

"And? You didn"t come out just to introduce yourself, did you. What"s your business"
"… As a preface. Princess doesn"t know I"m meeting you like this. Please understand that"
"It"s a secret from your master? Is it allowed for Hiyuma clan?"
"… To tell you the truth I didn"t want to either. But I know if I asked Princess she"d absolutely oppose"

It must"ve been a difficult decision. I nodded to the boy who made a bitter face.

"I understand. I won"t say anything to Lidi"
"Thanks. Then please listen carefully… It"s about the matter from before. Princess told me. The man who came today seems to be the Tarim tactician"
"Wha…"

The sudden bombsh.e.l.l statement left me lost for words.
I just discussed that possibility with Alex only. And yet, Lidi, why.

"It was the women"s intuition… Princess said so, but I think she was convinced… She asked me to investigate his movements"
"Lidi did… Why"

Lidi and Tarim should be unrelated. And yet, why did Lidi expressly need to grasp his movements. But if I think about it, Lidi was strange this evening.
She was awfully shaken, she shed tears… Perhaps he is her acquaintance.

"No… That can"t be"

There"s no point of contact between them. Recently Lidi has been staying in the Royal Palace, they wouldn"t have a chance to meet.
Ignoring me who started to ponder, Cain continued talking.

"Princess probably intends to act alone. I also suggested it"d be better if she told you, but she refused… Since it"s a mere intuition. She said she"d tell you once she was convinced, but it"s Princess, who knows when that will be"
"I see"

Listening to Cain"s story, I understood why he expressly got in touch with me.
He too is worried about Lidi who"s his master.

"Normally master"s order is absolute. But luckily Princess gave me freedom. That"s why I moved. Like this Princess will absolutely get caught up in something strange. I want to prevent that"
"Yeah"

I understand his feelings to a painful degree.

"Princess will surely take action soon. Of course, I intend to protect Princess, I won"t let anybody lay their hands on her. Still, supposing something happens. I"d be consumed by regret. To avoid that, I"ll join hands with detestable royalty"

Cain ground his teeth.
His words made me recall that Hiyuma clan was destroyed by the King of Sahaja. Of course he would be resentful. There was nothing but loathing in his expression as he said that he hates royalty.
Still, seeing him declare he"ll ignore that belief for Lidi"s sake, I could think of him as trustworthy man.

"… I"ll keep an eye on her when she"s in the Royal Castle. I entrust the rest to you"
"I know that. If something happens, I"ll inform you. Princess appears levelheaded, but surprisingly she"s the daredevil type who tends to rush headlong. I have no idea what she might do"

As Cain said that with a straight face, I had no choice but to laugh, since she"s indeed like that.