"Your Highness, should I go with you?"
Sigaochin looked at Yelanka standing before him in her formal attire. Today was her grandmother's birthday, and there would be a family banquet to celebrate.
Yelanka looked at herself in the mirror. She was more radiant than usual after the careful preparation she had done today.
"You can just escort me to the manor," Yelanka said, "You know my grandmother's personality, she always prefers quiet."
"Understood."
Yelanka's grandmother was notorious for her peculiar temperament among the top levels in Xisiya. It was hard for outsiders to imagine that someone of her status and wealth kept only one or two maids and a single gardener at her side.
In Xisiya, families a rank or two below her usually had at least double-digit servants.
"So aside from Her Highness, this birthday banquet will only include Lady Konia, your brother, and your father?" Sigaochin asked.
"Yes."
"I'll wait at the manor gate," Sigaochin said, "If anything happens, contact me immediately. I'll be there at once."
"Anything?" Yelanka watched Sigaochin behind her in the mirror, "It's just a birthday banquet. What could possibly happen?"
"You know what time of year it is, early December. It's a critical period. Even if there's only a one in ten thousand chance, we must be cautious."
"...Right. I'm ready. Let's go."
They left the residence, and Sigaochin drove Yelanka to a Konia family manor.
On the way, Yelanka said, "We've done well lately. Judging by some official matters and connections with certain people, I think we've outpaced my brother."
"Yes," Sigaochin said, "Your support within the circles is not low now. If nothing unexpected occurs, you'll take over Mr. Konia's position on the first of next month."
Yelanka looked out the car window. Although she was only seventeen this year, being born into this family had given her a psychological maturity beyond her years.
Outside, she saw some Xisiyans on the street drinking, taking deep breaths between gulps, looking thoroughly intoxicated.
Yelanka turned to Sigaochin, "There are a lot of people in Xisiya affected by the spores, right?"
"Yes, and that's unavoidable. Even strict Beixing couldn't handle the rules this time, so our country full of drinkers is even less able to control it."
"..."
Yelanka did not want to admit it, but she had to acknowledge that in Xisiya nearly everyone drank, from men to women, old to young.
Out of ten people, at least half developed severe alcoholism after reaching adulthood.
Excessive drinking obviously clouds the mind, and combined now with the spores' influence, the consequences would certainly be bad.
But dependence on alcohol was ingrained in Xisiyans. The climate was so cold that many people did not drink for flavor but to warm themselves.
Such a habit, imitated across families, could become a way of life passed down in one or two generations.
"Beixing's response was to set up containment zones," Sigaochin said with a short laugh, his tone a little cold, "Probably preparing for mass executions."
"Mass executions..."
"I can guarantee it, Your Highness. If the parasitized form ever turns into some kind of monster that threatens humans, Beixing will eliminate that threat immediately. Their efficiency has always been high."
"If the parasitized form becomes a monster that threatens humanity, then doing that is hard to argue against." Yelanka did not oppose the idea.
"Yes. Actually we should do the same, but..." Sigaochin shrugged, "So many here have been affected by the spores that we can't concentrate them all."
"And our official departments are too inefficient," Yelanka frowned, "Many small matters get dragged out repeatedly."
"I heard Suroma has replaced its law enforcement entirely with robots," Sigaochin mentioned, "Probably for efficiency. After all, robots obey orders and don't overthink or delay deliberately... Maybe in the future the Human Consortium nations will all do the same."
"..."
Replace law enforcement with robots?
Yelanka did not approve of that approach.
It meant that if decision-makers issued a wrong order, robots that executed it without thought could cause irreparable disasters.
"There is one more thing I only learned today," Sigaochin said, "The two manned rockets from Suroma and Beixing have had their launch dates postponed to January next year."
"Because of concerns about the rule's effects?"
"Yes. They worry astronauts might become parasitized. You know, if something goes wrong in space, there's nothing ground control can do."
They spoke as the car drove on. Ten minutes later, a pastoral-style manor came into view.
Sigaochin pulled up to the gate and got out to open Yelanka's door for her.
"Remember what I said before I left, Your Highness." Sigaochin pointed again to the purple earring on Yelanka's right earlobe, which concealed a portable signal and communication device.
"Contact me immediately if anything happens. Also, if the signal is interrupted for more than fifteen seconds, I'll come right away."
"Understood."
Yelanka entered the manor. Sigaochin watched her figure and suddenly glanced up at a window in the manor.
Behind the window, Lijeka put down his binoculars and snorted coldly, "What a perceptive one."
"Lord Lijeka, has your sister entered the manor?" Gaejin, Lijeka's trusted subordinate, asked from the shadowed corner of the room.
"Yes. She came in alone, but that woman Sigaochin waited at the gate—probably uneasy. And it seems she noticed me."
"Your attending your grandmother's birthday is normal, so noticing her is nothing. Even if Sigaochin is formidable, if everything happens in a flash, she won't be able to intervene in time," Gaejin said.
Lijeka nodded and turned to look, "Gaejin, it had to be you. To think you would use my grandmother's banquet as an opportunity to strike."
"Heh, I was just going with the flow. This would never have succeeded without Lady Konia's tacit consent... Seems she really dotes on you."
"Of course." Lijeka smiled proudly, "My grandmother has loved me most since I was a child. How could Yelanka compare? Now that the two of us are competing, she'll certainly support me."
"In that case, I'll go make preparations."
"Go ahead."
A few minutes later, Yelanka entered the room where a sixty-something woman with curly hair sat on the sofa by the fireplace, watching the flames.
"Grandmother, I'm here," Yelanka said, "Happy birthday."
Lady Konia turned at the sound and smiled, "Yelanka, my dear. Come, sit."
Yelanka sat beside her grandmother. The older woman took her hand and looked at her face.
"Good child, becoming more and more beautiful. Truly the pearl of Xisiya."
"Has Yelanka arrived?"
Lijeka came down from upstairs at that moment.
"Brother," Yelanka greeted and then looked toward her grandmother, "Where is father?"
A flicker of an odd expression crossed Lady Konia's face. "Your father? He had to attend to some urgent official matters and returned to his office. He'll come over when he's finished."
Yelanka was slightly taken aback, then nodded, "There have indeed been a lot of things lately."
"Who told him to sit in that position?" Lady Konia patted Yelanka's hand, "Don't envy him, but you know how hard he has worked these past years."
"Your father in his youth was proud like a lion. But after taking over your grandfather's position, he grew increasingly silent. That position changes a person completely."
"I know, Grandmother," Yelanka said softly, "I understand."
"So..."
Yelanka cut her grandmother off, "So if Father chooses me, I will learn from him and devote myself to this country, to make it better."
Lady Konia's face almost collapsed at once. She was silent for several seconds before forcing out a smile, "Good child... very good. I'll go rest in my room. You two chat."
After saying this, Lady Konia rose and went upstairs. Halfway up, Yelanka stood and said, "Grandmother, is that it? It's your birthday, after all."
Lady Konia hesitated but continued upstairs.
Yelanka felt extreme disappointment. That a grandmother bound by blood would use her birthday banquet to trap her own granddaughter for the sake of her grandson.
The pain of betrayal by a family member was far more intense than that caused by an external enemy.
Although she felt pain inside, she showed no sign of it on her face.
Lijeka looked at Yelanka's expressionless face and sneered, "Yelanka, my foolish sister. Can't you see grandmother was giving you a chance? If you had gone along and given up the competition..."
"Would that have changed anything? If I said that, would you abandon today's plan?" Yelanka asked, her purple pupils reflecting Lijeka's sullen expression.
"...No. No matter how you answer, the result will be the same."
Footsteps sounded heavily outside the room as the ambushers moved into action.
"Blame yourself for overreaching, daring to compete with me," Lijeka suddenly exploded in rage, veins bulging in his neck, "Have you ever thought how others would see me if you won? They would think I'm a useless man who can't even compare to an underage sister!"
"Aren't you that already?"
Lijeka laughed through his fury, "Ha... you think that bitch Sigaochin protecting you means you're fearless? She should look after herself first!"
Yelanka's eyes narrowed. She sprang forward toward Lijeka in a sudden dash, but seven or eight men and women who rushed in from outside the room intercepted her.
Lijeka gave cold orders as if the person before him were a stranger enemy rather than his sister: "Don't hold back because of her identity. Just leave her alive with one breath!"
...
Bandzhen Public Security Headquarters, Case Room 109.
On the touch screen, Suzuki's profiling sketch occupied the central position.
Beneath the image the label read "Shadow (suspected)," with several indicator lines branching out and connecting to various people.
Some links pointed to Beixing, others to former Andai State personnel, and one connected to Uenoshi.
"What we need to do is assume the target is Shadow and investigate accordingly." The Team Leader tapped the screen and said.
The Divine Child had already left. Only members of the Special Investigation Team remained in the room.
They stood before the screen, watching the lines and brainstorming.
"If Shadow did do this, what was his motive? Why rescue Yamata no Orochi? Do the two know each other?"
"The Divine Child provided some materials," the Team Leader said, "Before our homeland sank, Yamata no Orochi met Shadow without permission and handed an important item to him. This indicates they had secret contact long ago."
"So they knew each other... But how did Shadow know she was here?" someone asked, puzzled. "After she was placed under house arrest, her mind power never recovered, and she had no equipment to contact the outside world."
"Perhaps an exchange went wrong. The Divine Child's file mentions one of Yamata no Orochi's abilities is to create illusions. Maybe she secretly manipulated someone to make contact for her... Another team is investigating that. Our goal remains finding Shadow and Yamata no Orochi."
"Team Leader, if it really was Shadow, finding him will be difficult..." team members voiced pessimism.
Countless organizations and powers worldwide want to find Shadow, including behemoths like the Suroma Empire.
If Suroma's intelligence department can't find Shadow, then a Special Investigation Team newly stationed in this territory would have little chance—it's nearly a fairy tale.
"Don't be discouraged!" Suzuki, an outsider, cheered them on, "The Divine Child places great importance on us—we can't disappoint him!"
"Suzuki is right," the Team Leader nodded. "We must not let the Divine Child down. We'll investigate along two channels. One is mobilizing manpower for a nationwide search... We don't know Shadow's true appearance, but Yamata no Orochi's features are obvious."
The Team Leader pointed to his neck and forearm, "We have a portrait of her face. Also, if her mind power restriction cuff is removed, she'll have scales on her body. That's not concealable. Deploy all peace officers to check for this."
"The second channel requires cooperation from the foreign affairs department. Shadow is from Beixing and cooperated with Beixing officials on the earthquake rule; Beixing must have records of him... Through diplomatic channels, request Beixing's assistance."
"Will Beixing agree?" a member asked doubtfully.
"Why wouldn't they?" the Team Leader countered. "Beixing and Sakura Prayer Country are members of the Human Consortium and have obligations to share intelligence."
"Moreover, even if borders are open, aren't foreign intrusions into official administrative buildings excessive? Shadow also attacked one of our deputy chiefs and abducted an important person. That's a major criminal act and violates Beixing's newly enacted law."
"Yes, I'll contact them now."
The office phone suddenly rang. The Team Leader answered immediately.
After a few words, he brightened, "What? Yes! I understand!"
When he hung up, the members were curious about the good news that had him so pleased.
"Yamata no Orochi contacted two of her former team members!" the Team Leader announced excitedly. "Her teammates notified the Divine Child immediately. Based on this lead, we can directly find Yamata no Orochi, and perhaps even Shadow!"
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