Trails with Cuddle-Cuddle Osbon
Translator: Tsukii
Editor: Helen
Read at Watashi wa Sugoi Desu!
Author Note:
This arc was supposed to be a filler, but its size has now exceeded that of the North Ambria’s arc…
Thank you for the typo report.
Chapter 066 – Fufufu, Son. This is the Result of the Incident [A]
In conclusion, the Salt Pale fragment was successfully recovered.
After the singularity collapsed, Roselia teleported everyone to the outskirts of the Imperial Capital, where they met Thomas the captured Gralsritter, who was sealed in his “Partition”, and sent them back to the Holy City.
Apparently, the Salt Pale fragment was buried under the throne where Rean confronted Testa-Rossa and Zoro-Agruga.
It seemed that when Barkhorn had checked it, to be on the safe side, he recognized the energy emitted by the fragment of Salt Pale as something he had come across before.
That said, most of the fragment’s function had already been lost.
It seemed that McBurn’s last attack indirectly destroyed the Salt Pale fragment. Upon hearing this, Rean thought carelessly, as expected of him.
And now, two days after the collapse of the singularity, Rean was once again guided to Valflame Palace.
Next to him were Rosine, Emma, and Celine, and across them was Olivert, sitting on the sofa. Sitting on another sofa were Schmidt, Roselia, Barkhorn, and Thomas, all of which were involved in this incident.
Rean wondered why Claire wasn’t present, but it turned out that the discussion that followed was censored, so they had to keep the number of participants as low as possible.
It would have been better if Beryl had been here too, thought Rean but he didn’t say it out loud.
“Well then, first of all, let me congratulate all of you for handling this commotion. Everyone did a great job.”
“No, in the end, the culprits got away……”
“We’ve taken back the Salt Pale fragment, which is our top priority, and that’s good enough for now.”
Even with Olivert’s comforting words, Rean couldn’t agree with them.
I guess he’s surprisingly a boy with a strong sense of responsibility, thought Olivert to himself but he shifted the focus.
“It might not have been the best result possible given the circumstances, but at the very least, Rean-kun was able to rescue Rosine-kun safely…… in that case, isn’t that the best possible outcome for Rean-kun?”
“I guess you’re right.”
“You’ve changed your mind so quickly, brat.”
“You should have prioritized the Salt Pale fragment, Rean-san.”
Roselia was astonished at how quick he changed his mind.
On the other hand, while Rosine understood Rean’s care for her, as a squire apprentice, she had to say that with a wry smile.
“But why was Rosine there? Well, it really helped, but still.”
“Fufu, you can say that’s because of her selfish wish.”
“Sir Lysander!”
“Well, well, I’m sure Rean-kun would like to know it too.”
“Yes, please.”
“Uuh…………”
Unable to defy her superior, Rosine bowed her head.
Emma comforted her, but prepared herself for the fact she would probably be criticized about Vita later.
“Originally, Rosine had been placed in the refuge of my ‘Partition.’ Naturally, she will be present wherever I go…… but before I came to the Imperial Capital, I received the weapon that everyone of the Schmidt’s Classroom made to be given to Rean in Thors, the tachi made of Zemurian Ore.”
“Everyone in Schmidt’s Classroom?”
“Remember that they were tasked with processing the Zemurian Ore? When you were gone for a few days, they assumed you must have been doing something somewhere. They prioritized making your tachi first and I was told to pass it to you.”
“Why did they give it to Instructor Thomas?”
”Because Professor Schmidt told them that if they passed it to me, it would be delivered to Rean-kun.”
“Eh?”
Rean couldn’t help but look at Schmidt.
“It was just to save me some trouble. I knew you were going to the Imperial Capital, after all.”
“Hahah, I guess so.”
“I don’t know what you’re thinking, but stop making that face.”
“I’m sorry.”
Rean smirked at Schmidt’s thoughtfulness, which was hard yet easy to understand.
Schmidt snorted at Rean’s reaction.
“I actually intended to enter the singularity personally, but Rosine-kun told me to focus on containing the ‘Partition,’ you see. So she went to deliver it to you in my stead. Well, that was a correct decision in hindsight. Otherwise, the attack that the Almighty Conflagration used to destroy the singularity would have leaked out.”
Thomas scratched his head as he said this with his hand bandaged.
The impact of the singularity destruction was strong enough to cause burns to Thomas through the “Partition” that contained it.
“It will be particularly bad to leave that man alone. It’s essential that we take measures against him.”
“Even if I had been able to use my Stigma to its fullest, the outcome wouldn’t have been different.”
“Is he that strong……?”
The faces of the pair who fought directly against McBurn were gloomy.
As if to shake off the mood, Olivert changed the topic in a cheerful voice.
“Well, rather than that, let me speak of the matter about the Holy City and the Empire.”
“You’re right, what happened?”
“The Gralsritters, whom Claire secured, had been safely handed over to the Holy City. There will likely be compensation for trespassing and other crimes, but it won’t turn into a full-scale political battle. In addition to finding the third party which was the real culprit, we were able to achieve results before His Excellency Chancellor made any serious moves. After all, we managed to conclude it two days before the time limit.”
Although it was said there were four days until Rosine had to be handed over, Rean’s group practically managed to recover the Salt Pale fragment in just a day.
It was also likely due to the fact that by the time Claire reported to Osborne, the Gralsritters had already been sent to the Holy City.
Claire considered that a blunder, but it was due to the difference in the amount of preparation.
“Where might Claire-san be?”
“When she was sent outside the singularity, it seemed that Instructor Thomas explained the situation to her, excluding the part of the Salt Pale fragment, after which she went to report to Chancellor Osborne, and we haven’t heard from her since. But she seemed to be worried about Rean-kun before she left.”
“I want to pass my greetings, though……”
“Well, there’s always another opportunity. His Excellency Chancellor has likely noticed the matter involved an Artifact, but I doubt he would realize it was about the Salt Pale fragment. If he did, there’s no way he would have acted so casually like that.”
As soon as he knew the matter was concluded, Osborne returned to his own work, leaving only brief political negotiations with the Holy City.
He was likely preparing for the “West Zemuria Trade Conference” that would be held in Crossbell next month, but fundamentally, the chancellor was the busiest man in the Empire.
That was also the reason why Rean hadn’t been able to meet with him again, even though he was thinking of meeting him if there was an opportunity ever since he controlled the power of ogre.
That said, since entering the military academy, he tended to forget about it, just like how he kept forgetting to meet Elise.
“What will happen to Rosine-san?”
“There might be various problems in the Holy City, but, at the very least, we can guarantee her safety in the Empire. She can continue to attend the military academy and the church in Trista without any problems. In fact, you were able to excuse your absence from school for a few days saying you were sick and hospitalized, right?”
“Yes, ‘my illness was quite heavy so I had to stay away from Trista for a while’, that was how I explained it. It might arouse suspicion, but there will not be any major investigations.”
“As for your treatment in Holy City, it’s probably best for you to stay away for some time. This time, the hardliners from the Congregations for the Sacraments, gave instructions for the Gralsritter’s actions, and have shouldered the burden of the indemnity so they have had their assets confiscated to pay for it, but from their perspective, Rosine-kun is the proof of their crime.”
“Rather than simply having them shouldered the burden of indemnity, shouldn’t there be more severe measures like banishment or stripping them of their status?”
“I completely agree about that, but you can safely assume there will be nothing left of them in the future. Even if they were alive, they wouldn’t be able to bother you.”
“Fufufu,” laughed Thomas darkly behind his glasses.
Rean couldn’t help but to give Thomas a thumbs-up, but Emma gently put his thumb down, telling him that it was improper.
While sighing, it was Barkhorn who spoke next.
“There are many who sympathize with Rosine. There were opinions and talks of, given her recent achievements, she should be promoted to a full-fledged squire but……”
“I declined that offer.”
After hearing Rosine’s words, Rean asked the reason.
Rosine was still an apprentice at the moment, so he thought there would be more things she could do if her status rose.
“Even if they use ‘achievement’, I actually didn’t contribute much to anything. In fact, I may have been the trigger that made the problem worse…… at the very least, I thought that, until I could resolve a certain problem, I couldn’t accept that offer.”
“A certain problem?”
“I had an acquaintance among the terrorists. I was wondering if there was any way I could stop her. If I become a squire, there will be more missions I have to take on and I might not have the time to devote myself in that regard.”
“……She was once a squire of the Holy City. She left the Holy City before her first mission, but she has the strength and faith worthy of her status. She is also the daughter of one of my late subordinates.”
“Late subordinate?”
“When we were investigating Salt Pale, one of the squires who accompanied us was her mother. The person herself quit being Gralsritter after the Salt Pale Disaster…… but I guess this is what they call causality.”
Beryl had mentioned that when she did her fortune telling, as she saw through a complex web of casualties, but to think just a single terrorist had that many connections.
With the unexpected intervention of Vita and McBurn, it really felt like there were a lot of different intentions.
“Emma, have you had a chance to talk with Vita-san?”
“Eh? Y-Yes. I don’t know why she is in that Society in the end though…… but still, I think we were able to talk about a lot of things.”
“What kind of things?”
“I-I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Well, Emma, don’t try to play dumb and tell us. What did you talk about with that prodigal girl?”
[“There’s no way I can tell them that all I did was just crying, being consoled, and reminiscing about the past……Celine! Make sure not to tell them!”]
[“Okay, okay, even cats have compassion, don’t worry.”]
Just like Rosine, when she was teased by Thomas, Emma also lowered her head and became silent.
Rean turned to Roselia, but she also shrugged as if to imply that there was nothing she could do.
Just then, Osbon spoke up.
For some reason, Roselia was giving Barkhorn a wink. 1
[“Fufufu, son. Is it okay not to talk about that?”]
Ah~ I see. Since Professor Schmidt is also here, it’s the perfect time.
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