The Mysterious Child: An Adventure Tale Beginning with Numerology

There was a skill called "Clairvoyance."

It was a skill that allowed one to view the surroundings of pre-selected targets from the sky.

The number of targets that could be set was ten. The range was a diameter of a thousand ri—in other words, about 4000 kilometers.

Since it could only be deployed with oneself at the center, the maximum distance was half of that, 2000 kilometers. However, at that distance, it could cover about half of the Bargia Dragon Dukedom from here in the imperial capital of the Maguu Empire.

Of course, most of the Mataisa Kingdom's territory was also within range. It had extraordinary performance as an information gathering ability, without being detected by the target.

Its only weakness was that it could only be used while closing one's eyes, and multiple locations couldn't be viewed simultaneously.

Therefore, it was unavoidable that he missed that moment.

"...What?"

He growled lowly as he raised himself from his chair.

The room was spacious, and while all the furniture placed there was of the highest luxury, there were few unnecessary items, making it a calm and tranquil room.

This place enveloped in silence was the most heavily guarded room in the Maguu Empire—the Emperor's room.

The Emperor was frozen in place at the unexpected sight.

He was using "Clairvoyance" to check on the important missions currently in progress simultaneously.

He found Zaft of the Shadow Demon Tribe dead.

Zaft had been an excellent pawn. Despite his insidious personality and abilities, his raw combat power was not inferior to the Emperor's. He was one of the top five powerhouses in this country, on par with the SS-rank adventurers and knight commanders in the imperial capital.

Since he could use long-distance teleportation at night, the Emperor had found him quite useful. Although great sacrifices were made in the past to subjugate him, he had worked well beyond that.

"The opponent... could it be the angel tribe?"

Perhaps because several minutes had passed since Zaft's death, the view from "Clairvoyance" was fading.

The Emperor tried to gather as much information as possible with his limited vision.

...Probably those who went on the kidnapping mission were pursued by Mataisa's pawns, and Zaft, who received a rescue request, headed there.

What was there was the fated enemy of the Shadow Demon Tribe—the Angel Tribe. If the Angel Tribe and Shadow Demon Tribe, who had been rivals since mythical times, clashed, it was unlikely that either would come out unscathed.

He reconsidered that it wasn't too surprising, as he knew there was an S-rank adventurer of the Angel Tribe in Mataisa.

"This won't be straightforward."

What's done is done. The Emperor sighed as he slowly leaned back in his chair. The angel seemed to be on the verge of death too, so there was no point in blaming Zaft.

The problem was how to move forward from here.

Zaft had been excellent. In this operation too, he had been entrusted with the role of overall support. Losing that piece was painful.

But it wasn't beyond repair.

The Emperor spoke to his ring.

"Remioron, can you hear me?"

"Yes. How may I serve you?"

The ring was a communication magic device developed based on the talking stone offered by the hated Luney Trading Company. Its communication range was at most to the neighboring country and it had little magical power stored—it was a degraded version of the talking stone, but it could be mass-produced even with Maguu Empire's technology.

"Zaft has been taken out."

"What? The enemy must have some skilled individuals."

"It was the Angel Tribe. It seems it was almost a mutual kill."

"I see. So, what shall we do?"

"Shift the operation to Plan 2. Execute 'Night Parade of a Hundred Demons'."

"Understood."

The communication ended.

The Emperor activated "Clairvoyance" again to view the surroundings of General Remioron. As ordered, Remioron had begun to command the army and move.

"Now then, what will be your next move, Mataisa Kingdom?"

Since the time of the Stoania Independence War about a thousand years ago, relations between the Maguu Empire and the Mataisa Kingdom had been poor.

However, for the Emperor, past grudges were honestly irrelevant. Although the Maguu Empire and Mataisa Kingdom were adjacent, they were completely separated by mountain ranges that reached the sky along the entire border.

It was impossible to cross the mountain ranges, and even if one could fly, monsters would interfere, making it impossible to reach the other side. The north was covered by the Lunera Great Forest, and the only path leading to the interior of the continent was through a valley in the Katedra Mountains in the west.

In other words, the Maguu Empire couldn't go out or be entered without going through Stoania.

The mountain ranges served as an impenetrable fortress and were also the reason why the Maguu Empire couldn't expand its territory.

However, unlike the past emperors who had ambitions for territorial expansion, he, the current emperor, wasn't attached to such things.

What he desired was one thing.

"If only I had the [Book of Wisdom]..."

It had been twenty years since he killed the previous emperor and became emperor himself.

It was two years ago that he learned that what he had been seeking since childhood was secretly stored in the forbidden library of the Mataisa Kingdom.

It was what he desired above all else. He wanted to obtain it even at the cost of his life.

Therefore, he made a decision.

"I must obtain it at all costs."

According to legend, what the [Book of Wisdom] would bring was said to be extremely significant.

It wasn't just knowledge, nor was it just a technique or skill.

It was a skill created by the God of Creation.

It was what he had been seeking all his life since birth.

If only he had that.

Yes, if only he had that, surely—

□ □ □ □ □

Luna woke up several hours later.

"...Huh? Where am I?"

"You're awake already. How are you feeling?"

We were in a guest room of my mansion.

Luna sat up in bed and pouted while spinning her arms around.

"Hmm... I feel a bit sluggish! My punch is wimpy too~"

"Well, you were on the verge of death. It's amazing you can even get up."

I had switched Luna with a transcribed copy just before her core was about to be destroyed. Half of her body had been pierced by a knife, and her injuries were actually severe.

I checked Luna's body with "Eye of Fabrication." Examining for any lingering effects was part of the aftercare.

As I was examining her,

"Oh, you're awake already?"

"You have awakened?"

Gavin and Maple peeked their faces in as they opened the door to the room.

I had tried to send the two of them back to the royal capital earlier, but they both insisted on waiting until Luna woke up. Since they were going to stay overnight anyway, I had Maple take a bath, and while that was happening, I prepared a warm meal... and that's how it got to be this late.

By the way, Maple's clothes are being washed, and she's currently borrowing Saaya's clothes, which are a bit big for her.

Maple, holding the edges of her skirt embroidered with elegant flowers, said:

"I would like to express my gratitude once again, Luna."

"I've been thanked again~ Hehehe"

"I too would like to express my gratitude. Luna-san, thank you for saving my master."

"No problem~"

The master and servant pair bowed their heads by Luna's bedside.

Luna, who didn't care who she was dealing with, was smiling naturally as always.

That's the ideal image of an adventurer that I aspire to be. I'd like to learn even a little from her.

"Luna, do you want to eat something? I was thinking we'd head back to the royal capital after dawn."

"Hmm, I'm not hungry. I want to take a shower instead!"

"Then go take a bath. Our bath is spacious."

"Bath! Luna loves baths!"

Luna jumped out of bed.

She was guided by the waiting maid dragon and headed straight for the bathroom.

After seeing off the energetic Luna, Gavin spoke to Maple.

"Princess, it's about time for you to retire for the night."

"Why? I'm not sleepy yet."

"You've been on edge all day, haven't you? Your mind might still be excited, but your body must be tired. You need to rest, even a little, for tomorrow."

"...Then, Gavin will come with me."

"Huh?"

Maple tightly grasped Gavin's hand.

Her gaze was intense.

"There are no ladies-in-waiting here. I can't sleep alone in an unfamiliar place..."

"B-But, I'm a man. Surely I can't be in your bedroom..."

"You're my future husband. There's no problem."

"B-But..."

Gavin looked at me with a troubled face.

I gave him a thumbs up and said:

"I've prepared a twin bedroom for you!"

"Don't mess around, you bean sprout!"

"Be grateful it's not a double bed. And be thankful I'm letting you stay for free."

"Ugh..."

When told that, he had no choice but to stay silent. I understand.

As I was grinning, Maple gave me a thumbs up where Gavin couldn't see, so I returned it with a wink.

It might be troublesome to get involved with royalty, but considering she'll eventually be my sister-in-law, I should try to get along with her.

"Well, I'm going back to my room first, so ask the maid about your bedroom. Take your time."

"Good night~"

"Tch"

Well, even if it's Gavin, the other party is an eight-year-old, so nothing untoward should happen.

More importantly, I have something to do.

I went up to the second floor and returned to my room, immediately speaking to the talking stone.

"Saaya, can you hear me?"

"Yes~"

"Have you cleared the 52nd floor yet?"

"We did. We're taking a break now."

When I called earlier to borrow clothes, Nagi was challenging the floor boss solo. It was taking time because she was insisting on defeating it alone, but if they've cleared it, that's perfect timing.

"Did something happen?"

"Well, it's like this..."

I explained in detail what had happened over the past few days.

While Saaya was surprised, she seemed more concerned about her hometown than the royal capital.

"So the Maguu Empire is seriously attacking now, right? I wonder if the Shaboom region is okay."

"I checked with the Luney Trading Company too, and it seems everywhere except the northwest is fine."

"That's good... wait, isn't the northwest Muuteru's territory?"

"That's right."

"Is that area okay?"

"My oldest brother is protecting it, so it's fine."

By the way, I've been honest with my companions about my family situation.

It seems everyone had already guessed that I came from a high-ranking noble family, but apparently someone heard that Saaya's ex-fiancé was me.

There was no point in hiding it anymore, so I told them honestly.

"Your oldest brother, he's the 'Flash Knight', right?"

"You knew?"

"Lalahaine Muuteru is famous. They say he has a genius-level talent for light magic, is a skilled swordsman, and is considered the model knight with both good looks and personality. He's even more famous than the duke. And he apparently has two wives, one of whom is an S-rank adventurer from the Angel Tribe."

"...Huh?"

A strange sound came out of my mouth.

"An S-rank adventurer from the Angel Tribe... you don't mean..."

"She's famous too. The solo S-rank, Luna, was it?"

It connected!

So Luna's darling was Lalahaine. No wonder she said I smelled like her darling.

Does this mean I'm currently hosting my sister-in-law and future sister-in-law at my house?

They're all family!

"...What's wrong?"

"Well, you know, that adventurer I just mentioned fighting alongside? That's Luna."

"Oh, what a coincidence. Make sure to greet her properly."

"...I mean, Lalahaine should have told her about me too."

Luna didn't know about me, and she didn't even know about Gavin.

Well, she seems like a muscle-brain, so maybe she just forgot even if she was told.

"Anyway, the country is in trouble now, right? What should we do?"

"That's what I wanted to discuss. The 52nd floor is a good stopping point, so we could either head there as adventurers to help out since they're probably short-handed, or continue with the dungeon conquest. Decide among yourselves."

"Okay, I'll discuss it with everyone."

After a moment of silence...

"We're coming there! Actually, Seori is about to cry because she's feeling lonely."

"I know."

Emotions are leaking through the familiar communication.

"Alright, shall I come pick you up then? The 52nd floor, right?"

"Yeah— Oh, wait. Elen is saying something... Huh, what? No way!?"

"...What's wrong?"

"Um... just wait a moment."

Saying that, the communication cut off.

And then, the next instant.

"We're home."

"We're back."

"Master~!"

"We're home!"

Hearing voices from behind, I turned around.

My companions, who were supposed to be in the dungeon, were standing there with nonchalant expressions.

Behind them was something like a door made of light.

Slowly walking out from there was a sheep loli.

"Home."

With a staff in one hand, she let out a snort while maintaining her expressionless face.

While catching the half-crying Seori who was rushing towards me, I spoke with a trembling voice.

"Elen, you finally completed it?"

"Mm, it's done. The 'Transfer Gate'."

Elen puffed out her small, flat chest confidently.

Elen-san, that's seriously awesome.