It was the middle of the night.
We were currently imposing on Beezel at his mansion. I apologized to Beezel as he came to greet us, feeling bad about the sudden, late-night visit. I asked if he had been in the middle of something important.
"Not at all. To tell you the truth, I was meeting with Count Pugyal until just a moment ago... but he suddenly took ill and headed home. It’s no trouble."
I see. I have a history with the Count, and there is the matter of his daughter to consider as well. I had been hoping to offer him a proper greeting at some point, but the timing never seems to work in my favor. It was a shame.
"I am sure the Count feels the same. I shall pass your regards along to him."
With that, Beezel guided us to a detached wing of the mansion. It was a space specifically for receiving unexpected guests, and apparently, it was kept in a constant state of readiness. It was incredibly convenient for a situation like this. Frau must have known that when she suggested we come here.
"Of course I did. This is my family home, after all," Frau said as she began issuing orders to the mansion’s security staff. She was telling them to stay far away because things might get dangerous. I, for one, didn’t think it was going to be that dangerous.
In the center of the hall sat the man who had called himself Kissinlee, placed firmly on a sofa. A woman sat beside him; apparently, she was his wife. She had been hiding nearby, watching our initial interaction. I hadn't noticed her, but Galf and Daga had caught her scent immediately. They also noted that she was quite powerful. That was why they hadn't moved to capture the husband the moment he appeared—they didn't want to trigger a fight with her. That made sense.
"Ah, my apologies. Kissinlee is a clan name, much like Fougma. My name is Aeplee. This is my wife, May."
Aeplee Kissinlee and May Kissinlee. Since he had introduced himself, I followed suit. I told him I was Hiraku—Hiraku Machio—the Village Head of several settlements, representing the Village of the Great Tree. Then I introduced the others.
First, the master of the house, Beezel... Count Beezel Chrome. He was also one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon Kingdom.
"I am Beezel. It is a pleasure."
Next to him was Beezel’s daughter, Fraurem.
"I am Fraurem. Please, just call me Frau."
Beside Frau was Malbit, the leader of the Angel Race.
"Nice to meet you."
And next to her were two people he might already recognize: Bell Fougma and Yor Fougma. Neither of them seemed inclined to offer a greeting; they just sat there glaring.
Then there were the ancient demons: Prada, Bulga, and Stifano.
"I do not know your objective in targeting the auction items, but you should prepare yourself," Prada said.
"Ah, I’m not involved in this. Please treat me as if I don't exist," Bulga added.
"Likewise, I am uninvolved. Feel free to ignore me," said Stifano.
Then there were my escorts standing off to the side: Galf the beastman, Daga the lizardman, and Reginleiv of the Angel Race. They gave silent nods, their guard still fully up.
Finally, standing behind our guests were the others. From the right, they were Futa Fougma, Miyo Fougma, Hii Fougma, Roku Fougma, and Nana Fougma.
I wasn't sure how they’d been contacted, but Futa and the rest had arrived. I could understand Miyo, Hii, Roku, and Nana showing up, but Futa was supposed to be the gatekeeper for the Village Five teleportation gate. I asked if she’d left it unmanned.
Apparently, since Yor had asked Arako to watch the hot springs gate, Futa had reached out to Ronana, who had happened to be nearby. But if Ronana was stuck on gate duty, wouldn't Gratz be upset? It turned out Gratz had come along too, so the two of them were guarding the gate together. Was that really okay for the Minister of Military Affairs? Well, I supposed it would be fine if we finished this quickly.
I tried to get the conversation moving, but Bell stopped me. She said she wanted to explain the history between the Fougma and the Kissinlee to me first. I told her I was all ears.
Bell cleared her throat. "I am Bell Fougma. Allow me to provide some context. This goes back quite a long way... In the kingdom where we were created, there was a project called the Venus Plan—the Population Decline Suppression Plan. It revolved around the use of homunculi. Simply put, it was a project to supplement a labor shortage with artificial life. At first, they manufactured workers for simple tasks, but they eventually moved on to creating high-performance Kingdom Soldiers and Warriors.
"While they were incredibly useful, the incompetence of their commanders became a glaring issue. To be blunt, the royalty was judged to be useless. Since that was a problem, the Mercury Plan—the Royal Guardian Plan—was launched to support the crown. That is how our Fougma clan was born.
"It was thought that the royalty would be secure then, but then some idiot... excuse me, some member of the royalty declared that instead of supporting the crown, they should just create people to do the crown's work for them. That led to the Poseidon Plan—the Kingdom Administrator Plan.
"The issue was that we Fougma, created under the Mercury Plan, were designed with peak performance in mind. We were specialized individuals built regardless of budget. They tried to surpass us, but the result was the Kissinlee clan—essentially a 'milder' version that integrated our specialized traits into a more general model. If that were all there was to it, we would have no grudge and would call them our brothers.
"However, the Kissinlee clan followed their programming and took over administrative duties. Eventually, they decided the royalty wasn't necessary at all, and they seized power. It was an unforgivable betrayal. I don't care if the royalty wanted it or handed over power willingly; as Royal Guardians, we cannot abide it.
"Furthermore, about fifty years after that, a rebellion broke out and the country was destroyed. Do you think we can forgive them? Actually, I’m not that angry about the country being destroyed—that was somewhat inevitable. What I cannot forgive is that they decided we were too 'specialized' and difficult to use. They shoved us into the Sun Castle, insulted us as a clan of budget-wasters who did no work, and then slashed our funding. I will absolutely never forgive that."
So, the Kissinlee were the budget-cutters.
"It's a fresh Kissinlee! Surround them! Don't let them get away!"
Wait, what did "fresh Kissinlee" even mean? And I told them to stop surrounding him; the man looked like he was about to cry. Prada, don't join in. You haven't forgotten that the last raid happened because of you, have you?
Miyo, stop kicking the sofa. The sofa didn't do anything to you. Besides, that belongs to Beezel. It looks expensive. It’s probably a high-end antique.
Wait, I didn't mean you should kick him directly instead. Look, he’s not even resisting. Stop it, we’re not getting anywhere. Malbit, stop smiling and help me hold them back. Frau, don't run away with Beezel. Don't leave this all to me. I can't keep them under control alone.
Things were a bit chaotic for a while, but eventually, everyone settled down. Thank goodness. The tea tasted wonderful.
So, Aeplee and May had something to discuss with Bell and the others. I asked if it was okay for us to stay. I offered to step out if they preferred.
Apparently, if I stepped out, they were certain they’d be beaten to a pulp, so they begged me to stay. Fine by me. For now, I decided to let Bell lead the discussion. I’d only chime in if my opinion was requested.
"So, what is your business?" Bell asked, her tone somewhat blunt. "You mentioned there would be a benefit for us as well. Please, keep it brief."
"I apologize for the trouble at the auction," Aeplee began. "Our target was our daughter, who was put up for bidding. Not her physical body, but her Memory Unit."
A Memory Unit was a massive crystal, much like what Gou used to be.
"We essentially live within Memory Units now because maintaining physical forms is difficult," he explained. "The problem is that a Memory Unit looks like a beautiful decorative object. A noble who didn't know it was our daughter's essence took it and put it up for auction. We were simply trying to get her back."
Ah, that must have been the item brought in on the final day.
"It would have been fine if we could have won the bid, but we were outbid. Our supporters became enraged, which led to that riot."
I see. Bell asked a question about these supporters.
"We had to survive after the kingdom fell. We gathered demons and beastmen and formed a small village. Those were the residents. We provided them with advice on how to live through our Memory Units... and well, they ended up treating us like gods."
I couldn't really relate to that last part.
"When the Demon Kingdom expanded, the village had no desire for war, so we submitted and became part of a noble’s territory. We used to provide soldiers as tax, but as wars ceased, we were told soldiers weren't needed and were asked for money instead. They started taking anything of value from our village."
"We wouldn't hand over the important things, but the noble's idiot son went so far as to steal our daughter's Memory Unit..."
It had been thirty days since their daughter was taken. Aeplee and May had spent those days planning a rescue, finally manifesting physical forms ten days ago. They raided the lord’s mansion three days ago, but it was too late; the daughter had already been shipped to the auction.
Hearing that, Beezel clutched his head. He had received a report three days ago about a raid on a lord's mansion in a territory belonging to one of Count Pugyal's associates. He’d been discussing that very thing with the Count.
Wait, did that mean Aeplee’s village was near Howlin Village or Hyuma Village? I remembered hearing that the surrounding area belonged to Pugyal’s associates during a previous dispute. It was close enough to trade with Hyuma Village. They were practically neighbors.
After raiding the mansion and capturing the noble's son, Aeplee and May had headed for the auction, leading to today’s mess. They’d gained entry using a letter of introduction found on the son. They’d even intended to make the boy pay for the winning bid. I see.
There was certainly room for sympathy, but the outcome would depend on how the Demon Kingdom judged the situation. Would they rule in favor of the noble, or punish him?
"If the facts are as you say, the noble will likely be punished and his house dismantled. There is no reason to protect him," Beezel said. He then looked at me and clarified that this wasn't an official order from the Demon Kingdom yet... though I hadn't thought it was. It’s not like I came here to blame anyone for that anyway. Frau was the one who suggested this place.
I understood Beezel's take, but what about Count Pugyal? Would he protect his associate? Beezel was adamant that he wouldn't. Apparently, the Count was soft on his daughter but incredibly strict with his subordinates.
The conversation started to drift, so Bell gave a deliberate cough. "Excuse me. I understand the Kissinlee’s circumstances, but what is your proposal for us? As I said, keep it brief."
"Help us get our daughter back," Aeplee said. "If you do, we will give you the Maintenance Tank we have in our possession. I’m sure you’re interested in one; they’re impossible to find nowadays."
Bell didn't answer but gave a thin smile, gesturing for him to continue.
"The person who won the bid was a young woman. She had two children with her. She didn't use a proxy, so it should be easy to find out who she is."
"Are you asking us to help negotiate the return of your daughter?" Bell asked.
"Someone who can bid that kind of amount... I doubt they can be moved by money."
"So you mean to use force?" Bell asked, making a final confirmation.
"It is to rescue our daughter."
Having heard that, Bell turned to me and asked what we should do. She was asking even though she already knew the answer. She knew exactly what she was doing.
I told them to cut out the talk of force. Beezel was right there, after all. Besides, the person who won the bid was an acquaintance of mine—Raimeiren. Apparently, Hiichiro had been asked by Gural to get it, and Hiichiro had asked Raimeiren.
Trying to take something by force from Raimeiren, while she was with Hiichiro and Gural... that was beyond dangerous.
Prada, stop laughing. Aeplee and May are genuinely confused because they don't know the situation.