"Haa, haa... I-I can't take it anymore... Brother..."
Lucia lay sprawled on the ground, gazing at me with resentful eyes.
Her limbs were limp with exhaustion, and all color had drained from her face.
The mana Lucia possessed was enormous. On top of her natural talent, she had spent a long time charging my Treasure Weapon collection, so in terms of raw mana alone, she surpassed even top-tier mages. To put it in perspective: my Treasure Weapon collection, which Marietta and the others had to drink one Mana Recovery Potion after another just to charge, she could charge with virtually no rest. That should give you some idea of how absurdly powerful her reserves were.
This time, since it was supposed to be a sightseeing trip, I had brought almost no Treasure Weapons, so her morning charging sessions had been much easier—but.
I looked at the "Key of the Earth" she had been diligently charging for me.
"Hmm..."
"What is this Key of the Earth thing? It doesn't require sword-level amounts of—"
Lucia was barely catching her breath. Among Treasure Weapons famous for their enormous mana requirements, the Barrier Ring was well known. But it seemed the Key of the Earth demanded mana far exceeding even that of the Barrier Ring.
No wonder even Luke hadn't been able to charge it.
What kind of power did it hold? Even the famous sword-type Treasure Weapon that Ark Rodan possessed—*History Forger*—didn't demand that much mana.
I couldn't help but smile.
"I see. This one's dangerous."
"!?"
As expected of a Treasure Weapon certified as a national treasure. Something about it really stimulated the collector's soul.
I didn't know what power it held, nor did I know how to activate it, but fundamentally, a Treasure Weapon's power was proportional to its mana. For such a small Treasure Weapon to demand that much mana—it was like a crab packed to the brim with meat.
Now then, how to check its abilities...
Lucia reached out and weakly patted my knee.
"You look way too happy about this."
"It might have power comparable to the Floating Fortress..."
"!?"
The world of Treasure Weapons was profound. Among the largest Treasure Weapons ever confirmed in this world was a flying castle known as the Floating Fortress.
Just as its name suggested, it soared freely through the sky and used its built-in mana cannons to indiscriminately raze the land below. It was an absurd Treasure Weapon that had once plunged the world into the depths of terror.
The mana required to charge a Treasure Weapon was fundamentally proportional to its size and power. Facility-type and building-type Treasure Weapons consumed mana on an entirely different scale.
In fact, the mana consumed by the Floating Fortress was supposedly incomparable to something like the Barrier Ring.
Incidentally, the Floating Fortress met its end through a mana-depletion-induced crash. It had been carrying a large number of mages aboard, but even so, the mana hadn't been enough.
Its comically absurd ending stood in ironic contrast to the tragedies it had wrought, and now the whole affair was remembered as nothing more than a joke.
"A keyhole, huh...?"
"Brother... please stop doing dangerous things."
"I'm not doing anything dangerous."
"..."
Since it was called the Key of the Earth, there had to be a door it could open. Assuming the person who named the Treasure Weapon hadn't just named it at random— No... actually, there was a possibility that activation required a sheath. If the key was a sword, the keyhole could be a sheath. That was plausible enough.
Among Treasure Weapons, there were quite a few that couldn't be activated unless used as a set.
Having only one shoe-type Treasure Weapon, or only one Resonance Stone—there were plenty of patterns that simply didn't work. I probably shouldn't get my hopes up...
"If you're not doing anything dangerous, then what exactly do you intend to do...?"
"Huh? ...Something fun?"
"..."
Why did everyone assume I was going to do something dangerous? I got into trouble often enough, but I didn't think I'd ever been the one to initiate it. Probably.
With Lucia still giving me her usual sulky silence, I offered an awkward smile and changed the subject.
"Oh right, Lucia—are you ready for the tournament?"
"!? Y-You made me charge your Treasure Weapons, didn't you, Brother!?"
"That's true..."
"...You're not just messing with me, are you?"
...No, but... I really hadn't expected that even a professional like Lucia would collapse from the mana drain.
When I fell silent, my capable younger sister let out a small sigh and spoke.
"I'm fine. Even if I deplete my mana, I can just get a potion from Citry... More importantly, are you all right, Leader?"
"Of course! I'm fully prepared to cheer you on. I'll even wave a flag."
"..."
§ § § When the last of the tofu for ingredients ran out, the seemingly endless fried tofu production finally came to an end.
Incidentally, the White Fox had been gobbling up each batch as soon as it came off the griddle, so nothing remained.
Unlike Sora, who was fed up with the greasy smell, the small White Fox looked somewhat disappointed. Despite having devoured dozens of servings, it seemed the appetite still wasn't satisfied. Sora, who had been forced to help the entire time, could barely stand the pain in his wrists.
The White Fox stared fixedly at Sora. Everything about this was unexpected, but the pressure emanating from that gaze was extraordinary as always.
He didn't know what to do. Should he ask if there was anything he could help with?
*Fake Fox... please help me.* Under that silent stare, his eyes darted around as he forced himself to speak.
"White Fox... you like fried tofu, don't you?"
"...Not particularly."
The White Fox replied with a dismissive air. After eating that much, it was rather impressive to say something like that with a straight face.
Clearly, the amount she had eaten far exceeded what her small body should have been able to hold. That slender belly was just as flat as before the meal.
After that, the White Fox fell silent. Sora had heard that bosses were supposed to be eloquent, but that didn't seem to be the case here.
He needed to say something... but what? Sora was just a priest. He had received an education, but it wasn't the kind that prepared him to become the boss's right-hand man.
The White Fox, who had been silent, suddenly looked at Sora and spoke.
"If you don't give me fried tofu within ten seconds, I'll kill y—"
"So, White Fox—what exactly is your relationship with that Fake Fox, Thousand Transformations?"
"........................"
The White Fox fell silent.
That was close. Sora had heard that the boss was terrifying, but this White Fox was far too... free-spirited.
As Sora pressed a hand to his chest to calm his racing heart, the White Fox cautiously opened its mouth. Its tail was glowing.
"That kikikan-san is my organization's consultant. I hired them to specialize my organization in fried tofu production."
!?
That was absurd... Specializing a secret society in fried tofu production was incomprehensible. Did the other bosses know about the White Fox's plans?
Also, what exactly was kikikan-san?
"Of course, the other faces are aware as well. Kikikan-san is Thousand Transformations's nickname. That is what we call them."
"...!"
The answer was so precise it felt as though his very thoughts were being read, and Sora's eyes widened involuntarily.
To think that even the other bosses knew... that was a terrifying thought. What on earth was happening to the organization? What had it become?
They had talked about taking over the world with fried tofu, but secret societies weren't supposed to be like this. Even in a tightly hierarchical organization, other members wouldn't just blindly obey.
Sure, in the Nine-Tailed Shadow Fox organization, the top dog set the rules—but were they saying secret societies weren't fashionable anymore?
Maybe they couldn't reveal everything to the likes of Sora, but what exactly was this "destruction and rebirth using fried tofu"...?
Answerless thoughts spun through his mind. The White Fox spoke while wagging its glowing tail.
"The rules are—mine to set. Secret societies aren't in fashion these days. As for destruction and rebirth—I can't reveal everything to the likes of you just yet."
"I-I see..."
It was an answer that brooked no argument. As expected of the boss—could they see right through Sora's thoughts?
It was evident from their commanding presence alone, but their power was truly unfathomable.
The White Fox nodded with apparent satisfaction as Sora involuntarily shuddered.
"But, White Fox... even if you plan to achieve destruction and rebirth with fried tofu, there haven't been any orders issued. Won't the organization's members be confused?"
Not just Sora—even Gaf, a fairly high-ranking member, didn't seem to know about this new policy. Even by their standards of secrecy, something like this had never happened before.
Then, for the first time, the White Fox asked Sora a direct question.
"...Sora, what do you think?"
Well... first, they should contact the subordinates through the boss's communication network. It might have been urgent, but the current approach was far too unnatural for an organization.
The fox's leadership capabilities were quite high. If orders had come through the proper chain of command, people might have felt something was off, but they would have accepted it—convinced that something important was going on.
But it was impossible that the White Fox didn't know this.
The White Fox's wagging tail came to an abrupt halt. Then, in a small voice, it asked: "Incidentally, just to be sure—Sora, do you... know my chain of command?"
"N-No... something like that is far beyond a mere priest..."
What was the intention behind that? There was no way Sora would know the highest level of the command chain. The foxes' secrecy was labyrinthine.
"I see..."
The White Fox fell silent, as though pondering something.
In any case, if they were truly changing direction, information sharing was essential. The White Fox had issued orders to Sora's teacher, but a priest was ultimately just a priest—they didn't manage the organization's day-to-day operations.
If things continued like this, the organization would fall into complete chaos.
Just then, there was a timid knock at the door. Very few people knew about this kitchen.
Sure enough, it was Gaf's voice that came through.
"Boss, are you there?"
"W-Wait a moment!"
Sora answered in a panic. Gaf had not yet met this White Fox. Furthermore, he hadn't even realized that the Fake Fox was an impostor.
That matter had been resolved by the real one being acquainted with the fake, but fundamentally, a boss was someone who rarely showed their face.
The impostor had just been unusually open about it—in principle, the boss's whereabouts were supposed to be top secret.
"White Fox is the one in charge of the current operation. What should we do?"
"...Let him in."
It seemed the real one was just as bold as the fake.
With permission granted, Sora unlocked the door, glanced back—and froze.
Gaf, who had entered, immediately bowed respectfully upon seeing the figure within.
Standing there with composed dignity was—Klye Andrich, who had definitely not been there just moments ago.
The small female White Fox who had been talking with Sora mere seconds before was nowhere to be seen.
And as for the Fake Fox—something about them was entirely different from usual.
Their height and face were the same, but their expression seemed sharper than before, and the pressure radiating from their body was overwhelming.
At the completely transformed presence of the Fake Fox, Gaf had gone pale.
"I-I have just... returned."
The Fake Fox nodded magnanimously. The gesture of settling into a seat in the kitchen was different from before—befitting the leader of a secret organization.
"Welcome back, Gaf Schenfelder, King of Thieves. No need for words—your expression tells me you've completed my orders."
"Y-Yes... what an honor, what happiness—"
To the rigid Gaf, Thousand Transformations declared with majestic authority: "You're thinking this is too different from before, aren't you? My behavior up until now was nothing but a bluff. I deliberately showed you that pathetic appearance to test you. I've seen your loyalty to the organization with my own eyes."
"!!"
Gaf Schenfelder's entire body was taut with tension. And in that moment, Sora noticed.
From behind Thousand Transformations—a white tail had sprouted. A terrible premonition crept over him.
The Fake Fox grinned and addressed the prostrate Gaf.
"Don't be so frightened. I'll keep my promise. To you—I shall grant this face, and... future guidance."
"Guidance...?"
And then, the Fake Fox—played by the White Fox—declared with a confidence unbefitting an impostor: "Plan A currently in progress—the assault and annihilation operation at the Martial Emperor Festival—is hereby cancelled due to extraordinary circumstances. Use all resources to fry fried tofu. Convey this to your subordinates through your chain of command."