Huge Holy 96

96 - How long have you been under the illusion that it was stolen?

RAW

(T/N: this is not Josiah’s perspective)

I was convinced that this was my chance.

From the start, I didn't like the fact that Ekaterina, a woman, was in a higher position than me.
In E Kingdom, we have an ideology where men should be the leaders of the government, and women should work hard to ensure the prosperity of their offspring.
However, in the outside world, their ideology is that of gender equality, and that women should advance in society. They put emphasis on considering ideologies of other races as old-fashioned, so elves have no choice but to match that, but I can’t accept it.

Why have we come to adopt such an ideology?
Originally, it was because other races hunted elves for slavery due to racial discrimination.
Even the fact that the elf population has finally stabilized is the result of our efforts to ensure the prosperity of our descendants!

However, the fact that it is difficult for elves to have descendants because they have long lives still hasn’t changed.
The ideology that is needed to continue this process must never be blocked by the ideology of other races.
That's exactly why, instead of Ekaterina, I should have been the one in the principal’s seat, but the leaders of E Kingdom chose Ekaterina because of her ability.

This disappointed not only me but also the rest of the youth.
It is natural that they succumbed to the pressure of the public rather than of our will. They ignored our pride.
On the surface, the E Kingdom maintains peace, but on the inside there are smoldering voices of rebellion against the leaders.

Meanwhile, when I thought that Ekaterina wasn't swayed by me these days, I found out that, behind the scenes, she's interested in that commoner man (Josiah).
I hired several informants to find out about the movements of other races, but recently, I obtained Ekaterina’s love letter from them!

Unfortunately, Ekaterina and I are not officially engaged.
We’re not even dating.
It's my one-sided relationship.
At this point, even if I cause commotions like a human by annulling the engagement or cheating, their persuasive power is nonexistent.

However, if it was between humans and elves, it’s a different story.
If this were to be transmitted to E Kingdom, its implications would be completely different.
Ekaterina has a duty as an elf woman.
Any attempt to break it is unforgivable. Children between elf and human are likely to be short-lived. Their upbringings would also be different. They would be isolated from their surroundings. It should be clear what will happen.

Ekaterina and I have the citizenship of I Confederacy, but our duty in regards to elves――to E Kingdom still continues. When we were dispatched here, we were given a royal order to eventually return to E Kingdom and have children.
I am in the process of coming to terms with Ekaterina’s parents, and at the end of it...
Even the leaders of that side (E Kingdom) would, as expected, get off their backside.* (T/N: metaphor for ‘stopped being lazy’.)
For once, I won't make the wrong choice this time.

This evidence alone is enough to corner Ekaterina.
The problem is... that commoner (Josiah).
But, I don't know what he'll do. He's usually a hard man to read. I don't want him to do anything he shouldn't.

It was when I was considering how to handle it.
It seems that heaven has not abandoned me.
The wannabe [Phantom Thief] who was causing a stir among the public was his student, and on top of that, he spread notices announcing that he was going to steal from the academy.
If that guy (Josiah) can be made into the phantom thief's accomplice...!

☆

It's simple, but if something was not where it should be, anyone would be under the illusion that it's been stolen.

I slipped past the noble’s shadows patrolling the surrounding area, the security guards, and Dalmazio, who was burning with fighting spirit to catch the phantom thief, and effortlessly broke Ekaterina’s magic circle.
For us elves, things like analyzing magic circles is our forte.

If things continue like this, I'll end up getting caught by Ekaterina’s wand flowers and the like that are monitoring the area.
But I’ve taken countermeasures.
After all, the wand flower is just a small flower that connects one’s vision and nerves.
And――to be frank, I myself, like Ekaterina, also excel at earth magic. Although rudimentary, I have no problem distorting the space, making it naturally look like I am not there.

Without being found, I reached the storage of important classified documents and started to break the magic circle.
...As expected, this technique formula isn’t a big deal.
In the end, it is a magic circle thought up by a woman. If you want to draw a pattern that looks beautiful, you should just do it with embroidery.
Having easily broken the magic circle, I checked the contents.

I am not interested in ordinary classified documents.
I just wanted another piece of evidence. ...As expected, it’s here! This is the letter that guy (Josiah) sent to Ekaterina!
Just when I thought there's nothing like that in Ekaterina’s room, once I use space magic... to think she put her personal belongings in a place like this!!
...However, to think she would keep a love letter like this, she is a woman after all.

I laughed in scorn at that and deliberately left it as is.
I replaced confidential documents with blank documents.
I dissolved the confidential documents with chemicals and flushed them down the drain.
Now that the confidential documents are missing from the academy, they are as good as stolen.

After that, I acted as if I had noticed something wrong with the storage, and called Ekaterina to check the contents of the storage.
The security guards were also present, and I made them discover that confidential documents had been [stolen] from the storage.
It feels good to see Ekaterina shaken, but I won't forget the important things.
I pointed out sharply.

“Wait. It looks like there are still some documents left, but what are they? I have no idea about those.”

“Eh? Is it these...??”

The security curiously checked it and replied, “It looks like a letter.”
I shout.

“Did you say a letter!? Why is a mere letter locked away in the confidential document storage! Could it be, a malicious letter? Check the content!!"

With this, even this woman won’t be able to make an excuse.
However, the security guard looked grim, saying, “This is...” after seeing its content, he did not open his mouth immediately. Not hiding confusion, he asked back.

“Is this... some kind of memo?”

“Ha?”

I can't help but blurt out those words.
I hadn't even checked the content of the letter, but... what? A memo? Against all odds, it’s a stupid thing.
Unexpectedly, Ekaterina herself answered in a solemn manner.

“That’s a letter from Josiah-sensei.”

I chased after her, saying “What?”, but the security guard interrupted me and asked back further.

“Th, this is a letter!? Are you serious!!?”

“Yes. That's right. It's a letter that Josiah-sensei sent to me.”

I don't understand why the security guards seem unconvinced for some reason.
But I didn't stop questioning her.
There's no reason to stop after coming this far.

“Ekaterina! Explain what's going on!! I’ll consider this an act against the royal order!”

“I will explain this matter to you later. First of all, I must explain this one matter to everyone.”

I don't like the way she took a breath in exasperation, but since the security guards are listening to her confession, she won’t be able to make an excuse.
However, now that I think about it, I should have wondered why Ekaterina admitted it so openly.

――――

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