Zenos was no mastermind. He was just a healer. That was why the demi-humans adored him. No one had told her this! Well, more like she’d reached the wrong conclusion all on her own, but that was neither here nor there.
What a farce! she grumbled to herself.
“Liz, is something wrong?” Zenos asked, concerned.
Lily seemed worried too. “Are you okay, Liz?”
“O-Oh!” Liz exclaimed, shaking her head vigorously. “I’m fine!”
What had she worked so hard for?! She had felt like something was off, but knowing her efforts had been utterly pointless was almost enough to bring her to her knees. She’d thrown herself into what she’d thought was the lion’s den with a do-or-die attitude, dealt with a plethora of strange women, and even sacrificed her beauty sleep, pulling an all-nighter! And for what?! The man she’d been toiling so hard to ensnare was just an ordinary healer!
“Did you remember something unpleasant?” Zenos ventured, still concerned. “Maybe I jumped the gun a bit by bringing you here. Sorry about that.”
“O-Oh, no, don’t worry about it, Zenos. I’m grateful,” she said with a smile, despite sobbing internally.
Liz had attempted to injure Zenos in his sleep, but some sort of protective magic had kept him from harm. Then she’d joined him on this morning stroll, hoping to find an opening to try again, but if he wasn’t an overlord, then there was no point. In fact, the existence of a mastermind figure at all was now uncertain. The very premise of her strategy to control the slums was falling apart around her, making her feel a little dizzy.
Wait. No, wait a second, she thought, lifting her head. “Hey, Zenos, you can use protective magic, right?”
“Yeah, I can,” he confirmed.
“But you said you’re a healer? How does that work?”
“Hmm? Oh, I can use protective and healing magic.”
“Really? You can do that?”
“Yeah. Someone taught me once that both types of magic work by enhancing bodily functions, so...”
“Hmm...” It was true that during the attack at the festival, Gaion had thrown a Bomb manastone, and Zenos had caught it with his bare hands. So his focus had to be on protective spells, with healing spells being something he used on the side.
“Anyway, shall we head back for now, Liz?”
“Um... I think I’d like to stay here a bit longer and see what else I can remember. You two go on ahead without me.”
“Oh? And are you gonna be okay on your own?”
“Yes, I’ll be fine. I just want to be alone with my thoughts for a bit.”
“All right. Just don’t overdo it, yeah?” With that, Zenos and the elf girl disappeared down the street.
Liz stood there for a moment as though fully drained of her strength. With the situation being what it was, there was no point in sticking with Zenos anymore. She needed to rethink everything, including her own course of action. “I need results,” she muttered, biting her nail.
“Lady Liz?” came a voice from behind one of the crumbling walls lining both sides of the street. Peeking through a crack was Gaion, her lackey.
Liz looked around before stepping behind the wall too. “Were you following us?”
“Y-Yeah. Just to check on the situation...”
“And what happened to your face?” she asked, looking over Gaion, whose face and body were covered in bruises.
“U-Uh, I kinda took a beating from the top?”
Liz fell silent.
Gaion opened his mouth to speak, a somewhat frightened look on his face. His lips were split in several places. “Lady Liz, the top’s getting antsy, asking when we’ll have control of the slums.”
“Well, I can’t do much about that,” Liz lamented. Her plan had been to proceed as quickly and cautiously as possible, but... “Besides, he’s not actually their ruler.”
“Huh? He isn’t?”
“You were following us, weren’t you? Didn’t you hear?”
“Oh, uh, no, your voices were too quiet, so I didn’t catch any of that.”
“Then what’s the point of tailing someone?! Do better!”
“I-I’m sorry!”
“Anyway, given the circumstances, I can’t easily just—”
“Lady Liz,” Gaion cut in. “It’s an order from the top. It’s not gonna change.”
Liz fell silent again. Gaion was right. Excuses wouldn’t work; she knew that. Still, the reminder in the form of her lackey’s wounded figure sent a cold chill of realization down her spine. The Black Guild didn’t forgive; merely saying she’d made a mistake wouldn’t cut it.
Just what do I do now?
As Liz agonized over this, a loud shout echoed from further down the street. “Someone stabbed him!”
