Our mission was to rescue Lord Eyens and the young prince.
They were indeed further inside.
"By the way," I asked, "what's this about a 'younger sister'?"
"She’s Prince Min’s sister, sir. They’re twins—dead ringers for each other. She’s such a cheerful girl; it would be a damn shame for her to die in a hole like this."
"Huh..."
Truth be told, my heart was racing at that moment.
"Ah, I’ll go tell everyone we’re taking a breather."
"Got it."
I blurted out that transparent excuse and retreated to where the others were waiting.
"Captain, what’s up?" Melissa asked.
I hunkered down in a squat in front of her.
"Hmm? What happened? Claire, you come over here too."
"What is it, Leo? Does your stomach hurt?"
I gave my head a frantic little shake.
Then, I contacted the Fairy and Kevin.
"Who is Prince Min’s twin sister?"
"What?" Kevin gasped.
The Fairy tilted her head in confusion as well.
Because... she wasn't in our records.
...That girl.
Who the hell was she!?
"Why does some wildcard always have to pop up?!"
"I-I-I! I have no idea!!!" the Fairy stammered, just as flustered as I was.
We had a grasp on everything, even the Emperor's illegitimate children. The Latarnia Government had already secretly contacted and secured several of them. Yet, this was a person I had never even heard of.
"Well, let’s just go meet her."
"That’s all we can do. Claire, what do you think?"
"I’m not sure... but Lord Eyens has no reason to try and kill Leo, so it’s probably safe to meet her."
With that decided, we headed deeper in.
Raven-kun and the others were with us, so it should be fine. The rear of the facility was a storage area for the mall's backyard, and the layout was a labyrinth. It seemed to be connected to the subway system.
We proceeded, following the map the drones had compiled.
"It seems those soldiers from earlier got lost as well and happened to stumble upon Lord Eyens and his men," the Fairy noted, sounding exasperated.
Old Man Eyens was always a bit too serious about things like this...
Suddenly, a transmission came in from Nina-san.
"The ultrasonic sensors show a passage leading down behind that door."
"Roger that."
I opened the door to find a staircase. Descending, we emerged into something resembling a mine shaft. Groundwater was seeping through the walls, trickling into a drainage ditch, while the roar of massive fans filled the air—likely for ventilation.
"This facility has been here for a long time."
Well, whatever. As we moved further in, a familiar pirate stepped out to block our path.
"Hey! Hands up... Leo-danna?"
"Yo."
"H-Hey! Help is here! Leo-danna came to save us!"
"Sorry I'm late. I’ve got the government’s leash on me these days."
"Serving the court is tough work, huh? Gahahaha!"
We exchanged a few bits of banter like that.
"Hey, Claire... did our husband forget he’s the number two man in the country?" Melissa asked, her voice dripping with exasperation.
"That’s just Leo... let’s just give up."
Isn't Claire-san being a bit harsh?
Ren’s unit, which had been guarding our rear, caught up with us.
"Master. No abnormalities found."
"Ren, have your unit take over the watch."
The Beast Race members under her command let out a series of war cries. Apparently, they were getting pumped up. The Beast Race had incredible combat power, but... honestly, they weren't exactly built for stealth missions.
"It is an order from the Super Great King!!! Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, awooo!!!"
It seemed I had been assigned some mysterious title called 'Super Great King.' Well, whatever.
The pirate led us into the inner chamber. It was filled with the sounds of the wounded. Ah, damn it! I should have brought Kevin!
But wait—we were a humanitarian aid unit! We had brought nurses and doctors with us!
"Medical team, move in!"
"Understood!!!"
You might have been picturing a group of dainty female nurses. Not a chance. These were all macho meatheads! Yes, because in this line of work, you need muscle. Muscle is justice!
"Let’s move! Glory to the Galactic Empire!!!"
"Long live His Majesty the Emperor!!!"
Their loyalty was truly something to behold. I looked down at my own hands. I mean... I love my wifey, but I don't feel any particular loyalty to the Galactic Empire. Since they pay my salary, it would be a problem if they collapsed, and I’d risk my life any number of times for my wifey, but... is it really okay for someone like me to be a Grand Duke?
In the back room, I found Old Man Eyens and two children.
One was a boy. The other was a girl—or so I assumed. They looked to be about ten years old. The boy was on the shorter side, while the girl was taller. They were supposed to be twins, so maybe she’d hit her growth spurt first. The boy was seated in a large chair that looked entirely too big for him.
Time for introductions.
"I am Leo Kamishiro, Grand Duke of the Galactic Empire."
"We are Min, the Third Prince of the Taikyoku Nation."
I turned my gaze to the girl.
"I-I am his younger sister, Shiyun."
She bowed her head politely. Since the Third Prince wasn't my boss, I kept things casual.
Old Man Eyens stared intently at me.
"Your Excellency. Please, I beg of you, protect Lord Min and Lady Shiyun."
"I will do my absolute best."
Having said that, I forced a smile onto my face.
"By the way... Lord Eyens. You have something you want to tell me, don't you?"
I maintained the smile while exerting a bit of pressure.
"Your Excellency the Grand Duke. This humble one had no intention of deceiving you. It is simply a matter of necessity for the sake of the Taikyoku Nation."
Well, if you're going to go that far, fine. It's not like one extra person is a burden. I just didn't like being kept in the dark. If something goes sideways, it’s on Old Man Eyens anyway. I’m not taking the fall for this.
"Let's get moving, then."
A transmission came in from Ren.
"Master, an enemy unit is approaching."
"Wipe them out."
"Understood."
I’ll have to grill some meat for them later. I wasn't worried about Ren and the others; there was no way ordinary soldiers could stand against the Beast Race. Even I wouldn't want to fight them.
"Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
"Gau, gau, gau, gau!"
"We’ve got them cornered!!! Awooooooooooooon!!!"
See? With Ren there as the pack's alpha, they were a force of nature. They weren't a race that needed to study martial arts to become strong; they were born for this.
The Third Prince was hoisted up by a burly pirate.
"The Princess will be here."
I reached out and took Shiyun's hand. I was worried picking her up might be seen as harassment, so I hesitated. While I was debating the matter, Melissa walked over.
"Cheating on us already?"
"No. Princess, Melissa is here—would you like her to carry you?"
Shiyun just looked down shyly. Melissa turned to look at Claire.
"There the Captain goes again, picking up another girl."
"Again?"
Why do you guys always treat me like some kind of delinquent? I haven't done anything I'd be ashamed of. My track record with women is perfectly clean!