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Illusion-Inducing Butterfly – Part 01

Sensing someone’s presence in the room, the Emperor of the Quinbrand Empire, Kagurai, lifted his head.

“Silver Face?”

The window remained open, and there stood a dark figure. It was undoubtedly the masked man who had visited this place recently. However, something was different about the aura he exuded. While last time it was as quiet as a lake at night, now it felt like he was holding back a raging storm.

“I’m disappointed in you, Emperor.” There was anger in his voice. “You abducted Flower Face.”

“What are you talking about?”

“A little while ago, Flower Face disappeared. According to my other companion, she vanished while they split up for a brief moment. I informed you about your Foreign Minister’s plans. Either you didn’t stop him or perhaps you encouraged him to proceed. You think I’m a pushover? I demonstrated that I could infiltrate this place without being noticed by anyone, and you betrayed me and reinforced security.”

“Wait a moment, Silver Face. I have demoted the Foreign Minister and made him swear never to lay a hand on Flower Face again. Also, I have not enhanced security here.”

“You doubled the number of patrolling guards and set up magic traps that weren’t there last time. Did you think I wouldn’t notice?”

“Is that true? I know nothing about it.”

“So you’re just gonna play dumb, huh? You’re awfully stubborn, Emperor Kagurai.”

Silver Face drew a short knife from his pocket, but Kagurai remained calm.

“Would killing me ensure Flower Face’s return? If you suspect the Foreign Minister, you should go there. Or have you already, and found nothing?”

Silver Face fell silent.

“Calm down, Silver Face. Let us talk. Take a seat.”

---

Hikaru was definitely panicking. Paula’s disappearance was a fact, and the idea that she could vanish without any communication was inconceivable.

If people learned that Flower Face was the adventurer Paula, she would probably think she was causing me trouble.

Previously, Sophie and Sara of the Four Eastern Stars uncovered Paula’s true identity, so she cut her own throat with a knife.

If the same thing happens, she might choose to take her own life again.

He needed to prevent that. Lavia would likely blame herself too. He wanted to ascertain Paula’s whereabouts as soon as possible. Unfortunately, he had few clues, so Hikaru decided to visit Kagurai again.

“I understand the situation. The Empire is greatly indebted to Flower Face, so I will assist in the search.”

“Are you sure? The culprit is most likely a noble.”

“I believe you are already aware that I have been secretly investigating the nobility.”

“Oh, that guy.”

Hikaru remembered the assailant from Count Dred’s mansion.

“He’s a man with exceptional skills even in the intelligence department, but he was frustrated when he realized he did not notice your approach.”

“You already know about our meeting? Wait, is he reporting to you directly?”

“Kutsuwa is on a secret mission given by me. But I will have him prioritize Flower Face’s search for now.”

Hikaru finally learned the name of the man he met yesterday. At the time, he had prioritized not triggering the magic item, and he had only approached within five meters during combat, giving him no time to check the Soul Board.

“I’ll be back,” Hikaru said, before disappearing from Kagurai’s presence.

Kagurai’s assurance that he would help search for Paula using Kutsuwa calmed Hikaru down.

Next, he headed to the former Foreign Minister’s residence, the primary target of his search. The man had attempted to abduct Paula initially. He had visited Kagurai first solely because the Imperial Palace was closer.

“How could he demote me like this?!”

“His Majesty was swayed by the Prime Minister and wasn’t thinking clearly. You should partner with the Finance Minister—”

“No way. I would consider it if he came to me, but not the other way around.”

“How about the Minister of Mining?”

“Having power, but no way to use it. It’s just an honorary position.”

Many nobles had gathered around the former Foreign Minister. Hikaru patiently listened to their conversations from hiding, but not one of them even alluded to Flower Face.

All of them did not know the reason for the Foreign Minister’s downfall, and the man himself was keeping quiet. He probably didn’t want to discuss what the Emperor told him.

Does this mean… they didn’t lay a hand on Paula?

Hikaru was growing increasingly uncertain. Ultimately, the conversations revolved around how the Foreign Minister could make a comeback, and the assumption that Emperor Kagurai was a great person remained unshaken. Most of these people were patriotic and quite different from the nobles in Count Dred’s mansion.

They might consider kidnapping Paula if it was for the good of the empire, but after the Emperor’s warning, they wouldn’t attempt it again. Hikaru sensed that determination from the former Foreign Minister.

So who took Paula? Was she kidnapped just because she happened to be there?

Upon completing the former Foreign Minister’s investigation and returning to the inn, Hikaru had the worst possible thought.

Perhaps Paula had been the victim of a random attack.

If that were the case, there were no leads to go on and no point in trying to figure out who did it. He would have to walk around the capital aimlessly, using Mana Detection to find her. It was like searching for a grain of sand on a beach, a nearly impossible task.

It’s impossible to locate the culprit without them discovering Paula’s true identity.

Whoever the kidnapper was, they would have likely unmasked Flower Face first to confirm their identity. Even if they didn’t, there were only several hours left before they did. After half or a full day, they would be curious about the face under the mask.

All Hikaru could do was hope that Paula wouldn’t resort to the absurd solution of taking her own life, as she had done before.

“Hikaru.”

Lavia was waiting in their room for him.

“Lavia… I got nothing. Emperor Kagurai promised to look for Paula, but it would be too late.”

“I went back to the place where Paula was abducted.”

Hikaru had told her to stay in their room tonight, given that Paula’s disappearance was an unusual situation that had shaken her greatly.

“Why would you do something so dangerous?!”

“Because I’m worried about Paula too. It’s not just you.”

Seeing tears well up in Lavia’s eyes, Hikaru swallowed hard. It was only natural for Lavia to be more worried about Paula since she had been right there.

“Sorry, I wasn’t thinking about how you felt.”

“No, it’s my fault.”

“Lavia, it’s not your fault. I know it might not make you feel better, but still.”

Lavia smiled sadly. “Anyway, I think I found some clue.”

She informed Hikaru about what she had learned.

Paula said she wanted to pray at a rundown building that had once been a church, so they split up for a bit.

“But it turns out that place was being used for suspicious transactions.”

“Suspicious transactions?”

“Involving the Phantom Butterfly.”

Just earlier, Lavia had spotted men and women loitering around the church. They had gathered with money, receiving a softly glowing blue powder, matching the characteristics of the drug called Phantom Butterfly.

“So Paula witnessed a drug transaction and got kidnapped because of that?”

“The chances are low, but…”

“It’s still better than none. I’m going.”

“I’m going too!”

“No, you wait here.”

“Hikaru, I…”

“It’s not that. Listen to me. It’ll be morning soon. I want you to go to the Adventurers Guild and gather information about the Phantom Butterfly. Until then, get some rest. Either one of us should rest whenever possible.”

“Okay,” Lavia agreed reluctantly.

Hikaru left the inn and started running. While what he asked of Lavia was important, he knew that going alone would be much faster. There wasn’t much time left until daybreak.

I’m sorry, Lavia. Once we find Paula safe and sound, we’ll talk about this.

Stealth concealed the sound of the black figure dashing through the cobblestone streets.

The eastern sky was going to brighten in another thirty minutes. Hikaru made it to the abandoned church while it was still dark out. His Mana Detection said there was a man inside the building.

After consecutive busy nights, and a whole night of running today, Hikaru should be completely fatigued. But his mind remained sharp, and despite running out of breath and sweating profusely, his feet never stopped.

He slipped into the church through a gap in the broken door. It was small, with broken chairs scattered around. There was a man sitting in one of them.

“Tsk…”

Hikaru clicked his tongue. The man had a faraway look in his eyes, drool dripping from his mouth. He couldn’t even wait until he got home before taking the Phantom Butterfly.

That’s strange…

Upon seeing the man up close, Hikaru noticed something. He was dressed too well for the slums around here. Soon, the man leaned back, opened his mouth wide, and started snoring. Hikaru rummaged through the man’s belongings and discovered a badge with what appeared to be a crest—two birds with their backs turned to each other.

---

Many adventurers arrived at the capital’s Adventurers Guild early in the morning. Few people noticed the figure weaving through their midst like a shadow. Lavia also had 3 points on Imperceptibility, and she was using it to its full extent.

“Excuse me…”

“Whoa! S-Sorry, I didn’t see you there.”

The receptionist, a freckled woman with glasses, was understandably startled by Lavia’s sudden appearance. And she was once again taken aback when she saw it was a young girl entering a guild filled with rugged adventurers.

“It’s fine. I need information,” Lavia said as she handed over her guild card.

Lavia typically set her card’s Blessing to the four-character god Flame Magus, but such a rare Blessing drew unnecessary attention, so she had changed it to a more common one, Ordinary Elemental Magic User God: Beginner Elemental Mage.

“Ah, you’re a spellcaster.”

“Yes. Could you please tell me about the Phantom Butterfly?”

“…”

In that moment, Lavia noticed the change in the mood of not just the receptionist but the people who heard her.

“Come on, now. This ain’t the kind of thing a young girl should ask about.”

Several burly adventurers approached, encircling Lavia.

This might be even riskier information than I thought.

Standing her ground, Lavia tried to think. What was going through the adventurers’ minds and why did they want to keep her away from information about the Phantom Butterfly?