POTC 93

The last place Ivan was seen was an alley near the market.

"..."

Fenrik, standing in front of the alley, was mulling over the details he had received from the knights.

[A merchant reportedly spotted it here just as he was preparing for morning business. Of course, he said he didn't know it was a gay man, 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 I was in the Forbidden Forest with Presepe.

[They said that when they saw it, it appeared to be in a serious condition, so they kept a close eye on it. However, when it didn't come out of the alley even after a long time, they went to check on it just in case, only to find that it had completely disappeared.]

It was literally a dead end. With not a single way out.

But it suddenly disappeared?

"...It would have been impossible to climb over a wall this big."

Fenrik 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, and

"..."

Fenrik gazed up at the towering wall, then slowly walked out of the alley, lost in thought for a moment.

'There is a third party.'

I 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 my mind was the day I returned to the capital from the Forbidden Forest.

It was a story that Hannah had told me.

[But they said they don't know his whereabouts yet. Instead, they told me to stay safe, saying they would come find him as soon as they get a clue… … … … … …]

"..."

All sorts of information were conflicting in my 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."

Fenrik 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 his true self, was not as obsessed with Praesepe as expected.

Well, it wasn't that I 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."

Fenrik, frowning, let out a sigh of annoyance and muttered to himself.

In any case, Fenrik 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, but

"..."

Having come out of the alley, Fenrik checked the time while taking long strides.

I had sent a few soldiers and a carriage to the mansion earlier, so it was almost time for Presepe to arrive.

I intended to look around the market together and give a dagger as a gift that would be easy to carry and use. Then, we just needed to take a carriage back to the mansion together.

However, no matter how long I waited, Presepe did not appear.

The soldiers sent along to escort her, too,

"Grand Duke Fenrik!"

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 Mr. 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.

divided the knights into several groups and was surveying every street near the market.

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 Fenrik's mansion to the center of the market.

"So I thought you had already met………………"

"..."

"Or did you send Lord Presepe to another place first?"

"..."

"grandee?"

Penrik 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 he knew which path to take or how to get there, but the cunning Ivan covered Presepe's eyes and moved on.

The only thing he could sense was the smell of grass. Was there a forest on the way to the market? Presepe tried to recall the map he had seen in Fenrik's study, but there was no way he could remember such a thing in this absurd situation.

And when he opened his eyes, Presepe was in a strange building.

"..."

What is this again?

Presepe looked around nervously.

The first thing that caught my 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 I 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 they dragged me here," Presepe thought to himself.

“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 my thigh with his only remaining left hand and asked, and Presepe instinctively made a disgusted face.

Then, he 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."

I 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.

I heard those kinds of things countless times when I was pursuing Ivan as well. Of course, that is only true for the present. In fact, even in 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 I saw him, was reflected in his violet eyes, which clearly showed signs of tension.

Come to think of it, having been locked up, 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 my mind was the day Ivan visited the mansion. It was the bug options that had appeared vividly before my eyes at the time.

Dietrich and Siegfried, and even Atar Hanan, who was already dead, regained their memories from the previous playthrough after choosing the bug option.

Since Atar died so quickly, I don'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 I 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 my 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 he would feel good after having his arm cut off? If he did, he would have lost his mind." Presepe struggled to swallow the words that kept rising to the very tip of his 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 I 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 it 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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