As the meeting ended and the nobles dispersed following Mercurio’s closing remarks, Rei also stepped out of the Magic Tent.
However, he did not head toward his assigned quarters.
Seto approached as soon as he saw Rei emerge. Together, the man and the beast began to shadow their target nobles, maintaining a discreet distance.
"Guruuu?"
What’s wrong? Seto cooed inquisitively. Rei reached out and stroked Seto's head.
"Just a bit of tedious business. Well, with a group this large, it’s only natural for guys like that to slip in, but still..."
Rei was referring to the nobles who had behaved strangely during the discussion. They were the ones who had remained conspicuously silent on the matter of Frizion, neither supporting nor opposing the proposal.
Under normal circumstances, Rei might have simply viewed them as spineless turncoats who didn't know which way the wind was blowing—neutral at best, but ultimately just directionless.
But the look in their eyes had been different.
It was a gaze of pure condescension, as if they were looking down on everyone else in the room. Had they merely been troubled or indecisive, Rei wouldn’t have thought twice about it. But this was something else entirely.
When he noticed that the two nobles flanking the man held the same arrogant expression, his suspicion hardened into conviction. That conviction was what drove his current actions.
Walking alongside Seto, Rei followed the three targets, careful to stay out of sight.
They navigated through the camp for a while until, as expected, the three nobles entered the same tent. About five soldiers stood guard around the perimeter, clearly under orders to let no one pass.
Though it was a tent, it was a noble’s pavilion—a spacious structure roughly the size of six tatami mats.
"All of them in one tent, huh? Ordinarily, you’d assume they were just consulting about today’s business... but I have my doubts."
"Guruu?"
Seto tilted its head. Rei stroked Seto's head again while keeping his eyes on the pavilion.
The guards were staring intently at a nearby adventurer man who had accidentally wandered too close. They seemed poised to intervene if he took another step, but the man sensed the hostile atmosphere and hurried away without a word.
Once he was gone, the guards resumed their silent vigil.
Those soldiers are in the way if I want to eavesdrop, Rei thought.
Even to his eyes, the guards looked well-trained. He figured the nobles had brought them along as a precaution, likely driven by the paranoia of their own guilty consciences.
Rei spent a few seconds considering his options. Deciding there was no point in lingering, he gave Seto one last pat and whispered.
"Seto, sorry, but wait here for a bit."
"Guruu."
Seto nodded its understanding. Rei moved a short distance away and retrieved a spear from his Misty Ring—not one of his disposable throwing spears, but an ordinary spear meant for standard use.
After a five-meter sprint, he executed a massive leap. Activating his Sleipnir's Shoes, he used the air as a series of footholds, jumping higher and higher into the sky.
One step, two steps, three steps.
By the third step, he was positioned directly above the nobles’ tent. He allowed gravity to take hold, plummeting toward the earth.
He aimed himself straight at the soldiers guarding the entrance.
The guards were focused entirely on the surrounding camp, watching for anyone approaching the tent on foot. They never dreamed of an attack from the sky.
Before they could even register his presence, Rei slammed down onto the unluckiest of the group. The man was crushed beneath Rei's weight and lost consciousness instantly. It was a mercy that Rei’s landing merely knocked him out rather than snapping his neck.
The remaining four guards froze.
Despite their vigilance, a comrade had been neutralized in the blink of an eye. Worse, the man Rei had landed on was the commander among the soldiers, though Rei didn't realize it at the time.
For Rei, a split second of hesitation was all the opening he needed.
"Hah!"
With a sharp, short breath, Rei thrust the spear. The butt end slammed into the solar plexus of a soldier’s leather armor, instantly knocking the wind out of him and stealing his consciousness.
He repeated the motion three more times.
It happened with blinding speed—a series of strikes so fast they seemed to occur simultaneously. In a matter of seconds, the spear’s butt end had reaped the consciousness of nearly every guard.
Only one soldier remained.
By the time the final man realized Rei was the one attacking them, his eyes went wide. He opened his mouth to scream, but Rei was faster.
"Go to sleep."
A final strike from the spear's butt end sent the soldier into the darkness of oblivion.
The guards collapsed in a heap. Though their bodies hit the dirt with a dull thud, Rei had finished them with almost total silence, a feat made possible by his sheer mastery of long-handled weapons.
"Now then..."
Rei paused to listen for any commotion inside the tent. When he was certain no one had been alerted, he pushed aside the entrance flap.
The moment he did, he heard the nobles discussing their plan to betray the Rebel Army.
I see. So that’s the plan, Rei thought. An act of betrayal in the middle of a major clash with the Subjugation Army would be devastating. It would sap the army's morale far more than their actual numbers would suggest. 'Embedded Poison,' they call it. The damage would be significant... but can these fools actually pull it off?
The three nobles inside had only joined the rebellion after the previous battle. Rei had heard from Theoreme that their loyalty was considered suspect; as weathercocks, they were already slated to be placed in the vanguard for the next engagement.
Rei doubted things would go as smoothly as the men hoped, but a betrayal in the heat of battle would certainly create an ugly mess.
The conversation inside shifted to why the Imperial intelligence units were struggling to spy on the Rebel Army camp.
Between the Gurgast soldiers and Vihera, there are plenty of reasons, but the Beast Soldiers are the biggest factor, Rei mused. But it would be bad if these guys leaked that information.
Even if their fate was already sealed, there was no reason to give them a parting gift for the afterlife. If this information reached the Subjugation Army, it would be a catastrophic error.
Rei stored his spear back in the Misty Ring and drew his trademark weapon: the Death Scythe.
While the spear would have been easier to wield in the cramped quarters of the tent, Rei wanted to instill psychological terror. The massive scythe was perfect for that, regardless of its impracticality in a small space.
"It’s probably because someone like me was around," Rei said, stepping into the tent.
The nobles spun around, their eyes bulging in shock.
After a moment of stunned silence, they tried to hide their agitation behind a wall of high-handed arrogance.
"You! What is the meaning of this?!" one shouted. "This is my tent! I don’t care if you’re a prominent figure in the Rebel Army—a mere adventurer has no right to barge in as he pleases!"
"Th-that’s right! I don't care how much Her Highness Vihera trusts you, there are limits to what is permitted!"
"We’ll overlook this if you leave at once! Now, get out!"
Rei ignored their blustering and fully entered the pavilion. He had to maneuver carefully to fit the Death Scythe through the opening, but once inside, he loomed over them.
"What’s the matter? You seem awfully rattled. Was that a conversation you didn't want me to hear? Something about the Rebel Army's counter-intelligence system?"
"Wh-what are you talking about?! We have no idea what you mean!"
"I see! I've got it! You're trying to frame us for some crime, aren't you?!"
Rei rested the Death Scythe on his shoulder and gave the men a cold, dismissive look as they scrambled to cover their tracks.
"You know, I am an Alias Holder Adventurer. Isn't 'mere adventurer' a bit of an understatement?"
"Hmph! Alias or not, you are ultimately just an adventurer from the Kingdom of Mireana! Do you think we, nobles of the Bestia Empire, would bow before the likes of you?!"
The noble spat the words with venom. Ordinarily, an alias carried weight regardless of borders—a fact that should have been obvious given Rei’s reputation from the fighting tournament.
But the nobles couldn't afford to acknowledge that. To do so would be to admit they were cornered. Instead, they clung to the fact that he was a foreigner from a rival nation, hoping to cast doubt on his testimony. They knew he had heard them, and they were desperate.
Damn it, why this man of all people!
Rei held a unique position within the Rebel Army. As a guerrilla unit consisting of only one man and one beast, he was allowed to act with total autonomy. The Rebel Army Upper Management recognized him as a force equivalent to—if not greater than—an entire battalion.
He was the Rebel Army's Trump Card.
Furthermore, he was deeply trusted by the rebellion’s leadership. Despite the rumors regarding his relationships with the women in charge, his influence and voice were undeniable.
The conspirators had to deceive him. They had to survive this encounter without leaving behind a single shred of evidence.
I’ve heard His Highness Mercurio and Viscount Boogle dislike him because of his closeness to Her Highness Vihera, one noble thought, searching for an opening. Maybe I can use that.
The man puffed out his chest and spoke.
"We know you aren't exactly in His Highness Mercurio's good graces. Even if you try to spread lies about us, no one will believe you. You’d best act carefully for your own sake."
The nobles assumed Rei would back down. Even if he could bully them, he surely wouldn't dare cross a member of the Imperial Family like Mercurio.
They thought they had won. Then they saw the mocking smirk on Rei’s face.
Their mistake was assuming Rei held any innate respect for the Imperial Family. To a normal resident of this world, that would be common sense. But Rei was anything but normal.
He had been born and raised in Japan, not Elgin. He knew of the concept of royalty and nobility, but he had never met one until he arrived in this world. In Japan, the Emperor was someone you saw on TV; Rei had never felt any personal connection or reverence for the title.
Furthermore, almost every noble Rei had encountered so far had been a selfish, arrogant egoist. Respect was the last thing on his mind.
And most importantly, Rei knew that Mercurio himself had been suspicious of these three during the meeting.
"Are you done with the preamble?" Rei asked. "Because if you have nothing else to say, I'm going to haul you before Mercurio and Vihera. If you want to try and run, go ahead—assuming you think you actually can."
He shifted the Death Scythe on his shoulder, letting the massive blade catch the light.
He didn't bother mentioning that Seto was waiting just outside. Even on a warhorse at full gallop, there was no escaping the griffon. On foot, they didn't stand a chance.
"...Guh. Don't think you'll get away with this."
"That's right! You'll regret laying hands on us!"
"Enjoy your little victory while it lasts. We'll make sure you learn your place soon enough!"
Rei gave a small, weary shrug.
"The howling of losers. You can save your excuses for Mercurio."
Rei reached into the Misty Ring and pulled out a coil of rope, ready to bind the three men.