The last place Ivan was seen was an alley near the market.
"..."
Fenrir, standing in front of the alley, was mulling over the details she had received from the knights.
"A merchant reportedly spotted him here just as he was preparing for morning business. Of course, he said he didn't know he was the Archmage, but upon realizing the appearance was similar, he immediately reported it."
The report came in after the arrest warrant had been issued, but the sighting itself had already happened a few days ago. It was when he was in the Forbidden Forest with Presepe.
"They said that when they saw him, he appeared to be in a serious condition, so they kept a close eye on him. However, when he didn't come out of the alley even after a long time, they went to check on him just in case, only to find that he had completely disappeared."
It was literally a dead end. With not a single way out.
But he suddenly disappeared?
"...It would have been impossible to climb over a wall this big."
Fenrir muttered as he fiddled with the high wall.
And understandably so, as the wall surrounding the alley was well taller than an adult male.
The height was high, but above all, the most important thing was Ivan's condition.
At the time of his escape, Ivan had recently had his right arm severed. Furthermore, having been imprisoned for several days, his condition could not have been good.
You climbed over this wall in that state? It might have been possible with magic, but if your physical condition was that bad, your magical power would have been completely depleted as well.
Furthermore, it was strange that several days had already passed since the warrant was issued, yet he hadn't been spotted even once, except on the day of his escape.
"..."
Fenrir gazed up at the towering wall, then slowly walked out of the alley, lost in thought for a moment.
'There is a third party.'
He felt a strong conviction. A conviction that Ivan's disappearance was possible only because of someone's help.
...If so, did that being even help Ivan escape from prison?
"They say that upon hearing the news that Archmage Ivan had escaped, he came to the capital first and was chasing after him."
What suddenly flashed through his mind was the day he returned to the capital from the Forbidden Forest.
It was a story that Hannah had told me.
"But he said he doesn't know his whereabouts yet. Instead, he told me to stay safe, saying he would come find him as soon as he gets a clue..."
"..."
All sorts of information was conflicting in his mind. Hannah's words. The unfolding situation, but even the relationship between Ivan and Vidar, who had absolutely no common ground.
Siegfried said, "As of now, there are no other clues besides this place where Ivan was last seen. We have launched an investigation starting from the alley."
Fenrir did not disagree with Siegfried's idea either.
For now, getting rid of Ivan was a priority over Siegfried or Dietrich, and Siegfried, having found her true self, was not as obsessed with Praesepe as expected.
Well, it wasn't that he didn't know it was also due to a petty sense of guilt and justice...
However, if Vidar had truly helped Ivan escape, Siegfried and the Knights’ investigation would have been completely useless.
It wasn't helped to escape by human power in the first place, so how are we supposed to find clues and chase after leads?
"...It's a pain in the ass."
Fenrir, frowning, let out a sigh of annoyance and muttered to himself.
In any case, Fenrir also needed time to think. Besides, Vidar had never left his side for a long time, regardless of the reason, so it was clear that he would come looking for him soon.
It remains to be seen what information can be extracted and to what extent from Vidar, who is incredibly insidious and never reveals his true intentions.
"..."
Having come out of the alley, Fenrir checked the time while taking long strides.
He had sent a few soldiers and a carriage to the mansion earlier, so it was almost time for Presepe to arrive.
He intended to look around the market together and give a dagger as a gift that would be easy to carry and use. Then, they just needed to take a carriage back to the mansion together.
However, no matter how long he waited, Presepe did not appear.
The soldiers sent along to escort her, too,
"Grand Duke Fenrir!"
It was Kevin, not Presepe, who appeared.
Kevin wore a somewhat puzzled expression, then approached and stood in front of Benrick.
"Were you still here?"
"... What?"
"I thought you had met with Lady Presepe."
And then, he said something unexpected.
"I am on my way back after receiving a report from a knight who was surveying the opposite side of the market. However, I saw soldiers and a carriage passing by earlier."
Fenrik was the alley where Ivan was last seen, and Kevin was receiving a report from several Knights investigating the area, having gone in the exact opposite direction from the market.
And the path Kevin had taken was also the only passage leading from Fenrir's mansion to the center of the market.
"So I thought you had already met..."
"..."
"Or did you send Lady Presepe to another place first?"
"..."
"Grand Duke?"
Fenrir did not answer Kevin's question.
He simply checked the sword at his waist and ran out without looking back.
Since there was only one possible reason for Presepe's disappearance.
***
After being dragged out of the carriage, Ivan stubbornly dragged Presepe along.
It would have been fortunate if she knew which path to take or how to get there, but the cunning Ivan covered Presepe's eyes and moved on.
The only thing she could sense was the smell of grass. Was there a forest on the way to the market? Presepe tried to recall the map she had seen in Fenrir's study, but there was no way she could remember such a thing in this absurd situation.
And when she opened her eyes, Presepe was in a strange building.
"..."
What is this again?
Presepe looked around nervously.
The first thing that caught her eye was a stone statue that was so old it was cracking here and there and had started to crumble.
It looked similar to the shattered stone statue she had seen in the church.
...So is this a church?
However, as if to prove that it had been a long time since anyone had been around, not a single sign of human presence could be felt.
"Well, I guess that's why he dragged me here," Presepe thought to herself.
“Sit down.”
Regardless of what Presepe was thinking, Ivan grinned and said.
"No?"
Would you like it then?
"Then shall I seat you?"
"..."
"I lost an arm, but my legs are fine. Do you want to sit here?"
Ivan tapped his thigh with his only remaining left hand and asked, and Presepe instinctively made a disgusted face.
Then, she quietly went and sat in a corner.
"Why the long face? It's been a while since I've seen you."
Ivan bent his legs to meet Presepe's eye level and asked.
"Try smiling a little cutely."
Would you be laughing in this situation? It was absurd.
"Or you could try crying. That’s actually more my style."
She felt like it would be better to just die than to cater to Ivan's tastes.
"Well. We can take our time taming you later. Anyway, you'd better not make me angry today. You promise, right?"
"..."
"I trust you know that I am treating you very gentlemanly right now."
It was immediately clear what was implied by the word 'gentlemanly' that Ivan had uttered. It meant that he was not using magic to violate Presepe's spirit, just as he had done to the soldiers earlier.
She heard those kinds of things countless times when she was pursuing Ivan as well. Of course, that is only true for the present. In fact, even on Ivan's route, that guy ruined people by using magic very slowly, just like a worm gnawing at fruit.
"..."
Ivan's face, looking a little gaunt compared to the last time she saw him, was reflected in her violet eyes, which clearly showed signs of tension.
Come to think of it, having been locked up, having had his arm cut off, and then escaped, it’s no wonder he’s so haggard. But if he was going to get so emaciated anyway, it wouldn’t have been so bad to just waste away and die...
'...But why hasn't Ivan changed at all?'
What suddenly flashed through her mind was the day Ivan visited the mansion. It was the bug options that had appeared vividly before her eyes at the time.
Dietrich and Siegfried, and even Attar Hanan, who was already dead, regained their memories from the previous playthrough after choosing the bug option.
Since Attar died so quickly, she didn't know what happened to him, but in the case of Dietrich and Siegfried, didn't they even develop a sense of self? So their personalities have changed compared to when she was playing the game.
'Why is only this bastard still the same...?'
Presepe frowned and looked at Ivan, but Ivan's gaze was fixed on one spot.
Right on his sagging right sleeve.
“Do you know anything?”
Ivan raised his head, gazed at Presepe with a smiling face, and asked.
"It’s really annoying when something you had disappears."
"Then do you think you would feel good after having your arm cut off? If you did, you would have lost your mind." Presepe struggled to swallow the words that kept rising to the very tip of her throat.
"It's incredibly frustrating, much worse than you expect."
No, so what do you want me to do about it? Then go complain to Dietrich.
It was just as she was having that thought.
"You're the same. It's not necessarily limited to just the arm."
"... What?"
"You were originally mine, too."
"..."
"But having you snatched away right before my eyes time and time again, how awful do you think I feel?"
Ivan, his face completely devoid of any smile, looked at Presepe and asked again.
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