Under the vast blue sky, a flash erupted in the center of the square.
From the top floor of a clock tower situated quite a distance away, a man clutching a slender long-range magic tool allowed a smirk to crawl across his face.
"I did it..."
His contract had called for an 'attack' on the Second Princess of the Kingdom of Sinfonia or the Hero-role. Yes, an attack, not an assassination.
From his client’s perspective, a death wasn't necessary to achieve their goal: to diminish the prestige of the Sinfonia royal family and secure a political advantage.
The Hero Summoning for the Hero Festival was conducted alternately by the three nations of the Human Realm. During the pilgrimage, the summoning nation provided the escort, and a high-ranking member of the royal family always accompanied the group as the official in charge. If either the Hero-role or that high-ranking official were injured during the journey, it would be a catastrophic blunder for the summoning nation, breeding public distrust toward the royal house.
Because of this, the royal family always provided the Hero-role with an escort of elite warriors. In fact, no Hero-role in history had ever suffered a serious injury; they had all completed their pilgrimages unscathed.
The man didn't care which one he hit—the Second Princess leading the escort or the Hero-role, the star of the festival. If either of them were wounded, the faith in the Sinfonia royal family would crumble, and his employer would reap the rewards.
He had stayed in this city for two months to conduct his reconnaissance. He had prepared for this shot by imagining every conceivable scenario.
Even after the Hero-role arrived in the city, the man didn't act immediately. He waited for his moment. He waited for the precise second when a guard would move out of the line of fire.
He had worried that the opportunity might never come and his mission would fail, but fortune had smiled upon him. The pair had appeared in the square to meet an acquaintance of the Hero-role. When that acquaintance arrived, the guards had shown a infinitesimal lapse in their formation to let the visitor through.
It was the perfect timing he had prayed for. His magic bullet had successfully slipped past the guards' vigilance. It was no exaggeration to say that several miracles had aligned in his favor. Perhaps the man was truly lucky—and that was exactly why he had committed the 'mistake one must never make.'
He should not have fired today. He should not have fired at this time. He should have investigated not just the Princess and the Hero-role, but also the identity of the person they were meeting.
If he had, he would have realized that launching an attack that involved Kaito was an act equivalent to suicide.
Grinning, the man peered through his telescope to confirm the result. The explosive smoke shrouding the square began to clear.
"No... Ah... Why...?"
Emerging from the haze were the Second Princess, the Hero-role, and Kaito. Not a single one of them had a scratch; there wasn't even a speck of dust on their clothes. Standing with them was a figure in a black robe bound by chains—to the man, she was the Incarnation of Despair.
"It can't be... The Ph-Phantasm K—"
"I'll explain one thing first."
"!? Ah, aaah...!"
Before he could finish his mutter, the Phantasm King vanished from his sight. A high-pitched voice rang out from right beside him an instant later.
"I don't particularly care if a Princess of the Kingdom of Sinfonia dies, or even the Hero-role."
"Ah... hiek...!"
The Phantasm King No Face was standing there, her voice echoing shrilly. She was right next to the man as he leaned out of the clock tower window, standing vertically on the exterior wall as if gravity were a mere suggestion.
"However, if those two are hurt, Kaito-san will be sad. He will be wounded. In other words, this is what happened, right? Right here in front of me, you 'tried to wound Kaito-san’s heart.' That is the reality of the situation, isn't it?"
"!?!?"
Her tone was frigid. The sheer weight of her intimidation was so intense that the man suffered the illusion that his head had been lopped off by bloodlust alone.
Escape was impossible. He was a criminal awaiting execution; the right to his own life had already been stripped away. He understood this in a heartbeat.
"Still... well, my master is very kind and soft-hearted. If I were to kill you, he would likely feel responsible for it in his own way. Therefore, I will not kill you."
"E-Eh...?"
"I will give you two choices."
"Choices...?"
With nothing left in his heart but terror, the man could only parrot No Face’s words. His face was ghostly pale, and he was so paralyzed by fear that he couldn't even break into a sweat. However, hearing that she wouldn't kill him seemed to spark a tiny ember of hope. His complexion improved by a fraction.
That fleeting hope was pulverized by her next words.
"If you truthfully reveal who commissioned this job... I will forgive you to the extent that you will never be able to lead a normal life again."
"!?"
"If your professional pride forbids you from naming your client, that's fine too. The result will be the same. You will eventually confess everything with your own mouth. Though, in that case... after you finish telling me everything, I guarantee you will say this: 'Please, I'm begging you, just kill me.' Now then, feel free to pick whichever one you like."
"Ah... aaaaah... ugh, aah..."
The words were merciless. Furthermore, it was obvious that No Face already knew exactly who the client was. She was forcing the choice upon him regardless—whether to throw everything away and live in misery, or to protect his pride, endure a living hell, and then die. It was a horrific ultimatum.
"Come now, choose. I’ll give you a few seconds."
I didn't grasp what had happened at first.
A sphere of magic power had suddenly streaked toward Princess Cattleya, and it looked as if it had exploded before it hit Mitsunaga-kun, who had jumped to shield her.
Immediately after that, Alice appeared in her Phantasm King guise, and I saw that Princess Cattleya and Mitsunaga-kun were safe.
"Seigi! Are you okay!? Are you hurt? Does anything pain you? I'll get a doctor—no, a healing mage immediately!"
"I'm fine, Katy. I didn't get a single scratch..."
"I see... Thank goodness. Wait, what were you thinking!? I am stronger than you! I could have handled an attack like that easily! If you shield me and something happens to you, what am I supposed to do?!"
Princess Cattleya was in a total panic, checking on Mitsunaga-kun while calling him 'Seigi'—a name she clearly only used when they were alone. Once she was sure he was unharmed, she let out a massive sigh of relief and immediately began scolding him with terrifying intensity.
I think I finally understand why Alice said Princess Cattleya is a lot like Lilia-san. That panicked fussing was exactly how Lilia-san acts when she's worried about my health.
"S-Sorry. But look, I'm okay."
"Honestly, you... Th-Thank you very much."
Watching the two of them, I realized once again just how close they were. Despite the gravity of the situation, it was a heart-warming sight. Then, Alice materialized in front of us.
"Ph-Phantasm King-sama!? Um, about earlier—"
"Kaito-san, I’ve apprehended the sniper. I took the liberty of looking into his background, too~"
She completely ignored Princess Cattleya.
"Thanks, Alice... Uh, what about the attacker?"
"Don't worry. I didn't kill him."
"I see..."
As expected of Alice, she was incredibly efficient. She'd already caught the guy and found out who sent him. After reporting to me, she finally turned toward Princess Cattleya and spoke in the high-pitched voice of the Phantasm King.
"Second Princess of the Kingdom of Sinfonia... You don't mind if we handle this matter on our end, do you?"
"Y-Yes. Of course."
"Then, Kaito-san. I’m going to go process that fool."
"Eh? Ah, yeah... but..."
"I know, I know. 'Don't kill him no matter what,' right?"
Alice nodded as if she already knew my request, but she didn't have it quite right, so I decided to correct her.
"No, that's not it."
"Eh?"
"I only want you to spare him if it's possible. If No Face gets hurt, or if you're in any danger at all, I want you to kill him without hesitation."
"Kaito-san..."
That was how I felt. As much as possible was enough. I didn't intend to be obsessively concerned with the life or death of a total stranger. The reason I usually asked her not to kill was just because I didn't want to see Alice have to do that kind of work; I wasn't doing it for the sake of her enemies.
"The safety of No Face is far more important to me than the life of some stranger. If it's necessary, just kill him."
"I-Is that so? Gosh, hearing you say that makes me a little embarrassed..."
"Ah, er... anyway, I'm counting on you."
"Yes, my master. As you wish."
With a grand, theatrical bow, Alice vanished.
I felt a sense of relief knowing Alice was handling things. But then, a voice drifted from behind me.
"Well, the one leaving just now was a split body, so the main body, Lovely Alice-chan, is still right here! It's okay! Your beloved Alice-chan is standing right in front of you, so you're welcome to shower me with as much affection as you want!"
"You really know how to ruin a moment."
"Eh?"
We'd just had a cool, dramatic atmosphere going, and she'd completely demolished it. Why can't she ever stay cool until the very end...?
Dear Mother, Father—Alice handled the attacker with her usual speed and is taking care of the masterminds as well. I'm truly grateful, and she really is reliable, but... well, in a sense, it was typical Alice.