In the center of the high-mobility fortress city Code's First Area— the zone closest to the tower where the king resided, and the most expansive of all—stood that colossal structure.
The base of First Prince Angus Code, currently considered the figure closest to the throne, was unlike the clusters of buildings scattered across Code. It was a castle.
Built on elevated ground, it was the first thing to catch the eye upon entering the First Area. Angus had constructed it himself, using the city system as his tool and books brought in from the outside world as his reference. The castle served as both a symbol of Angus's authority and the nerve center of his faction's military strength.
In the innermost chamber, the throne room, Angus Code was receiving a report from his right-hand man, Jean Gorton.
"The plan is proceeding without issues, I trust?"
"Yes, sir. We have our people producing weapons up to their full authorization limits. Training of the individuals we've brought in from outside is also progressing extremely well."
Code's resources were far from infinite. Only the king had unrestricted access to them; those below that rank had to share what remained.
Available resources were determined by class. No matter how efficiently one used the city system, there was a limit to what could be conserved.
Since all royals had access to the same pool of resources, the number of nobles aligned with each royal faction played a crucial role in determining the outcome of the succession war.
Thus, nobles rallied behind whichever royal looked most likely to win. Angus, backed by the greatest number of noble supporters, was considered the frontrunner.
The resources had many uses: food, clothing, miscellaneous goods, buildings, weapons, the production of mechanized soldiers, and facility repairs. Angus stroked his beard and nodded with satisfaction.
"Our weapons would be beyond the reach of those surface-dwelling apes. But slack off, and we could lose to Nora's knights. Her knights are made from Code's output, after all. If we fielded Kai and Saya, we'd fight well enough, but even our foot soldiers could manage some interference."
"As you say. Princess Nora's approach is quite interesting. Had the Thunder Emperor fallen into her hands, it would have become troublesome. But now that possibility is gone, your position remains unshaken."
"Because we wasted those mechanized soldiers and the neutralization gas. We can't afford to be careless."
Nora Code had used her resources to research ways of enhancing Code's citizens. The result was an elite knight corps whose performance exceeded that of mechanized soldiers.
After years of research, she had produced enhanced humans—the knights—who possessed superior stamina, physical ability, and combat proficiency with Code weaponry, all at an exceptionally high level.
Angus had never expected that ordinary citizens could be enhanced to such a degree, even using the city system's resources. Since he hadn't allocated resources to that kind of research, he couldn't produce enhanced humans like Nora's.
In place of that, Angus had focused on weapons research. His castle was expansive because it housed the production of a wide variety of weapons, and the crowning achievement of that research was the neutralization gas capable of incapacitating even humans with ability ratings over ten thousand.
Nora was playing her hand well, but in terms of raw military strength, Angus held the advantage. If Kai and Saya deployed Angus's weapons, the enhanced knights would be nothing more than fodder.
If there was any lingering concern, it was that he had burned through nearly all his stockpiled neutralization gas in the effort to capture Kai and Saya.
That stuff was expensive. Producing it in quantity required a great deal of time—far more than they had before the king's death.
Angus silently accessed the city system to check the status of weapon production, then addressed Jean.
"Production efficiency has dropped recently, hasn't it? What happened?"
"Yes, sir. About a month ago, the amount of Mana Material being drawn from the Ley Lines began to gradually decline... That appears to be the cause. Something may have happened to the Ley Lines, but within our current ability to investigate, no cause has been found. Fortunately, the decline isn't limited to your resources alone—the conditions are the same for everyone."
"I see... Everything will be resolved once I've secured the throne, then."
Code's resources depended significantly on Mana Material. He couldn't ignore the problem, but it wasn't something he could address right now.
To investigate the cause, they first needed to restore Code's mobility.
"What about the others besides Nora?"
"Prince Tony is the same as always. Prince Morris, according to rumors... has reportedly begun pouring resources into producing a decisive-weapon."
"...Morris. Even if he obtained a legendary sword, it's meaningless if the one wielding it is a coward."
Angus furrowed his brow and spoke with contempt.
Morris Code was the most timid of the royals. A coward through and through, terrified of being executed after the throne changed hands.
He clearly wasn't royal material and had shown no noteworthy activity until now. But it seemed he had finally made his move.
Most likely, as the succession drew near, a fit of nervous courage had seized him. He had previously positioned himself as cooperating with Angus, but at the eleventh hour, he'd lost confidence in that choice. This was largely within the range of expectations.
A decisive weapon wasn't a diverse arsenal like what Angus produced. It referred to a small number of elite, exceptionally powerful weapons.
But Morris had few nobles backing him, so his available resources were negligible. A skulking, panicking Morris posed no threat to Angus.
And to begin production only at the last moment, no less...
"Well, I've already made my move regarding Morris. A foolish younger brother who defies his elder must be dealt with accordingly."
"Lastly, regarding Prince Zachary..."
"Oh, I don't need reports on that one. He's beneath Morris. A mad dog can't rule a kingdom."
Angus scoffed and continued.
"He's probably still playing with the lower-class citizens. No matter how many commoners he recruits, they're no match for us."
Fourth Prince Zachary Code had an even weaker support base than Morris.
With four older siblings ahead of him, Zachary would have needed extraordinary talent or extraordinary luck to claim the throne. The man had neither. And he had abandoned the few nobles who did support him.
A foolish man. He had been hiding his whereabouts for some time, but they had a general idea of where he was. Searching via the city system was impossible, but there were other ways to find someone.
For that man to become king—to pose a threat to Angus—he would need some extraordinary hidden trump card.
Impossible, but hypothetically speaking, even if he allied with something on the level of the Thunder Emperor, victory for that man was out of the question.
Having thought that far, Angus posed a question to Jean.
"Come to think of it, how is the spare faction doing? What is the Thunder Emperor up to?"
"Yes. The Thunder Emperor appears to have become Princess Alixia's personal guard after that incident. There's no sign that Princess Nora has made contact. She seems to have truly given up."
"A convenient state of affairs. A Thunder Emperor who isn't in Nora's hands is nothing to fear."
Alixia, who had been stripped of royal authority by the king's decree, was even less of a concern than Zachary. She wasn't even at the table of the succession contest.
She was a spare royal, created through noble petition—so it was only natural, really.
That said, it had been surprising when her guard had attempted to reach the Thunder Emperor. But well, these things happened.
They had already confirmed the guard's information. A man with a total evaluation of four. He had infiltrated under a false name to rescue the Thunder Emperor... They didn't know how he had entered Code, but that could be thoroughly investigated after the succession battle was settled.
"Princess Alixia hasn't cut off information access. You should be able to observe freely."
"There's nothing worth seeing, but... I am a little curious."
Irregulars should be kept to a minimum. At the very least, the spare's recent movements deviated from the plan Angus had laid out.
Angus heaved a deep sigh, then brought up a live view of Princess Alixia Code on the display before him.
§ § § She really did take a liking to chocolate, huh.
I watched half exasperated, half impressed, as Her Highness devoured the chocolate bar with chocolate smeared all over her mouth.
Her demeanor was more childlike than any princess I had met so far, without even a trace of nobility.
I hadn't expected that when I offered the chocolate bar—saying I'd bring it to the king—she would practically hog the entire thing.
Well, it was fine, but... if she didn't hold back a little, she wouldn't be able to eat her meals.
Among Treasure Hunters, quite a few had a weakness for sweets. In fact, among the members of the Mourning Specter, I was the only one who liked them (Citry, incidentally, claimed she was bad with sweets yet loved making them). Even looking at the Beginning Footprint as a whole, sweet-tooths were a minority.
It was a joy to gain a fellow sweets lover. But was it really okay to feed a princess this much candy...? Well, it was already done, so worrying was pointless—though perhaps I had given her something she shouldn't have had.
I transformed my deck chair into a sofa, sat down, and watched as Her Highness stuffed the chocolate bar into her cheeks like a squirrel, her face flushed red.
"Sure, enjoy it. Savor it, because that's the last of it."
"Mm—!? Nn—... glf—...!! ...Kh-h, kh-h, kh-h!! ...!? What!? What did you say!?"
My words made her choke, and she coughed with tears in her eyes. Ah, because she kept stuffing her entire mouth...
Maybe if the people holding her captive saw her like this, they'd judge her harmless and let her out?
Her Highness bonked her forehead against the door's window and looked over at me.
"L-l-l... last... one?"
"Yep. That's the last one I have."
"!?!?"
It was what it was. What I carried was a Space-Time Bag capable of storing large quantities of chocolate—not a Treasure Weapon that produced chocolate infinitely. Naturally, once I'd expelled everything I'd stored, there was no more to retrieve.
When I'd been in the Imperial Capital, I'd restocked regularly and had plenty of other snacks too, so I'd never worried about the count. But lately, I had been eating and giving them away too much.
Once I returned to the capital, I'd need to buy another box...
"Ch... col... ate..."
Her Highness collapsed in despair. Even if she said that, I didn't have any more.
But chocolate was a popular confection that had been around for ages. Even if Code didn't have it, the towns outside sold it pretty much everywhere.
She couldn't very well go out and buy it herself, but there were now quite a few outsiders who had come to this city. Someone among them was likely to have some.
"Maybe someone who came from the outside has some—"
"!! Really!?"
"But you can't walk around outside alone... it's dangerous, and your trusted Biker squad got kicked out by your defense system and disappeared... Not that it was your fault or anything."
"...Wh-what about the other... guards?"
Come to think of it, I had completely forgotten. Were there a minimum number of guards required? Did I need to go find some?
One of the Biker gang had mentioned that if there weren't enough guards, mechanized soldiers would fill the gaps—but when would that happen?
No matter what, going back to the prison was going to be miserable.
As I brooded, as if perfectly timing the moment, a voice came down from the ceiling.
"Your Highness, Klye Andrich. Forgive my presumption, but allow me to resolve this predicament."
"Oh?"
It was Olivia's voice. The door to the small room opened, and in she walked with an imposing air—Olivia (and Jean in tow).
The star rating on the card affixed to her chest was still a one.
Olivia's face had gone deathly pale when Her Highness had demoted her. Had she recovered?
"Hey, hey, good to see you. I was a little worried, actually. You turned so pale and ran off like that—"
I raised my hand in greeting, but Olivia clicked her tongue and glared at me.
"Silence, Klye Andrich. I've investigated everything you've done since then. I already know you trapped us in that ambush. And that the annihilation of the previous guard squad, the Bikers, was entirely your doing! Yes—all of it was to become the leader of Her Highness's guards!"
"Well, that's..."
The accusation was so far off the mark that I was genuinely taken aback. Olivia's interpretation was truly off by a mile.
I hadn't done anything. I had no idea what she was talking about.
The Bikers had wiped themselves out on their own.
Olivia knelt before Her Highness's door and apologized in a slightly trembling voice.
"Your Highness, my discourtesy the other day was inexcusable. And so... might I be granted one chance to atone for my offense? I am prepared to serve Your Highness with every fiber of my being."
Her Highness looked down at Olivia with wide eyes. Jean stepped in to add his support.
"Your Highness, Olivia has served faithfully until now. What she did was an unforgivable act, but... would you consider giving her one more chance?"
Jean's class rating, unlike Olivia's, remained at five.
Well, Her Highness's behavior that day had certainly been unexpected. If Olivia had been fulfilling her duties up to that point, perhaps one more chance was warranted.
Her Highness blinked, then—for some reason—looked over at me and asked.
"...What do you think?"
Jean's eyes went blank with astonishment at the question. Olivia's kneeling shoulders trembled, and I was just as surprised.
Jean had served Her Highness longer than I had, yet she was asking me for my opinion... Tsk, tsk. You'd better do your job properly or face the consequences.
When it came to duties, both Olivia and Jean seemed to have been doing the bare minimum. That was probably why they lost to a chocolate bar.
But gaining more allies was a good thing. Having once been bitten, Olivia would surely work hard this time.
"Hmm... Your apology doesn't quite cut it. Want me to show you an example?"
"!? Wh-what—"
Let me teach you. A heartfelt apology goes like this!
I dropped to my knees on the spot and executed a flawless dogeza.
"I'M SOOOORRY!! PLEASE, PLEASE... forgive this witless Olivia, Your Highness!!"
My pathetic yet oddly poignant voice echoed down the corridor.
Now then... she wanted one more chance, right? Unfortunately, I'd never been in a position to ask for one, so I had no experience there.
Well, I needed to say what I actually thought for it to mean anything...
Nobody said a word. They were all transfixed by my magnificent dogeza. I really nailed it.
It had been a while since I'd done one—opportunities had been scarce lately—but it was a solid performance. I stood up, dusted off the hem of my coat, and spoke to the trembling Olivia.
"Your turn. The trick is to bow so deep it's like you're licking the other person's boots."
"Guh... ugh... uuu..."
Olivia's face had turned beet red, and she was shaking. Jean's cheek had gone taut as well.
Pride was a heavy burden. I didn't have any, so I could grovel to my heart's content.
Perhaps unable to watch any longer, Her Highness stared fixedly at Olivia and spoke with a straight face.
It was an expression you'd never associate with the same person who'd been gobbling down chocolate bars moments ago.
"...Fine. And this method of atonement—what exactly is it?"
"Y-yes. I've brought in new guard candidates to replace the Bikers. They're known as fighters on the outside—combat ability is reasonably high, and each one can be sent out to explore independently without issue. Their overall capabilities far exceed Klye Andrich's. I believe they will be of use to Your Highness going forward."
She shot me a quick glare as she spoke. The edge in her tone was unmistakable.
Come to think of it, when she had been trying to have me expelled, she had mentioned finding new guards.
They were exactly the kind of people I needed right now. If they were from outside, there was a chance they had chocolate.
Her Highness looked displeased.
"...Are you dissatisfied with the ranking I established?"
"Th-that's not—"
Apparently, Her Highness might be a chocolate-loving princess, but she was strict about hierarchy.
It would be cruel to let Olivia get bullied any further. For a normal person, complaining about my incompetence would be perfectly justified.
"Your Highness, now, calm down."
Let me smooth things over a bit. I needed to dial down her agitation.
I produced the card Her Highness had given me—the one with the large star, proof of Class 6—and tapped it against Olivia's head.
"If you're that confident, then I'll hold you to it, Olivia. Bring me someone useful, will you? Someone actually useful—unlike me."
"Y-yes...! B-bring them in!"
At Olivia's command, Jean sighed and looked behind him. The door at the far end of the long corridor opened, and the guard candidates Olivia had recruited filed in.
The guards were every bit as intimidating as the Bikers had been—hard-faced through and through. There were five of them, not a large number, and they weren't particularly big, but the oversized blades hanging at their waists gave them a striking presence.
Four of the five men were wrapped head-to-toe in bandages.
Bandits, maybe? Come to think of it, that made sense... Anyone entering this city was essentially a criminal. Well, I shouldn't judge without talking to them first— A man with shifty eyes sidled up with a grin. There was nothing refined about that smile. Um, was this really okay?
"Heh heh... We're honored by the invitation. Your Highness, we're the Don-Tan Family—a well-known mercenary outfit that's even taken down a Level 6 Hunter. Those Bikers who were strutting around just because they had numbers? We make them look like amateurs. With us as your guards, everything's safe, secure, and—Thousand Transformations!?!?"
The moment they laid eyes on me, the men recoiled violently. The grins that had been plastered across their faces moments ago twisted into rigid masks of fear.
They drew their blades reflexively and took up fighting stances, but their hands and feet were trembling. Not that even in that condition I'd have any trouble with them...
Had I met them somewhere before? I scanned their faces one by one but couldn't place a single one. Don-Tan Family, Don-Tan Family... Hmm, it rang a bell but also didn't... I couldn't afford to memorize every bandit name when my already limited memory space was at a premium. If I was going to remember something, I'd rather it be my Clan members' names.
But we had definitely crossed paths. I flashed a hardboiled grin.
"Well, well, long time no see. Running into you here—what a coincidence. How've you been?"
"You—! We weren't told, Olivia! You mean to say that idiot, that fool of a leader who can't tell friend from foe, is the Thousand Transformations!?"
"!? Wh-what exactly do you mean by that!?"
Olivia's voice was sharp. Her Highness had her eyes wide but seemed to be enjoying herself. It was nice how she could find amusement in anything...
"We're pulling out! There's not enough lives in the world to fight that guy!"
"Calm down—stop talking and shut your mouths! This man has a total evaluation of four!?"
"So what!? You didn't see what this man could do at the station, so you can stand there looking all calm!"
I snapped my fingers.
Now that I looked at them properly, these were the guys who had attacked me at the station. No wonder the name sounded vaguely familiar.
If they wanted me to remember them, they needed to make an impression on the level of Klaha or Fox Girl. Seriously... In that case, those injuries were probably from Salsala.
Salsala really was an enigma.
In any case, I didn't want these people as guards. There was no telling when they might change their minds and come at me again.
"Want me to Salsala you again?"
"H-hey... we're sorry! We've got no intention of going up against you! We were tricked by this woman—"
"...I'll let you off this time. I'm busy too, you know... Don't do anything bad again, okay?"
"...Gah!!"
The Don-Tan Family's men turned crimson and fled as if being chased.
Safe!
I let out a breath of relief and flashed a wry smile.
"Small fry."
Seriously, running away after one encounter? The truly dangerous ones would target me *because* they knew my name—and wouldn't give up after a single defeat.
In that sense, these might have been some of the better bandits. Better... bandits... what?
Well, the "Salsala" thing might have been too much of a trigger...
Olivia stood frozen, appalled by the humiliating display of her handpicked guard candidates.
"This is... How... Men with evaluations rivaling the Bikers, fleeing at the mere sight of him—what exactly are you... No, what are you doing in this city—"
So those guys really were as strong as the Bikers? Maybe the Biker squad wasn't all that impressive either.
And what was I doing in this city, she asked? Hah... When I let my guard down, I sometimes nearly forgot my own secret. Thank heavens for Kaiser and Saya.
I gave a small cough and addressed Olivia.
"Well, we can talk about the details later. The pressing issue right now is how to procure chocolate for Her Highness. The Don-Tan Family was a bust—anyone got a good idea?"
"...I'm getting a bit of a headache. If you'll excuse me."
Olivia pressed her hand to her forehead as though she'd just woken from a nightmare and departed. Take care of yourself.
Her Highness was frowning as she watched Olivia's retreating figure.
But it wasn't over yet. If the chief attendant was a bust, perhaps the butler chief had an idea. I turned to Jean, who had been left behind.
"Jean, got any ideas?"
"...W-well... ahem, ahem."
Jean cleared his throat with great ceremony. Now that I looked closely, his complexion was about as bad as Olivia's.
Come to think of it, even after being demoted for trying to fire me, Olivia hadn't seemed to reflect on it at all. Well, ultimately everything was probably my fault—but right now, I had completed the task of feeding Her Highness. It hadn't been intentional, but preparations for her protection were complete.
Then again, both Olivia and Jean were a bit too businesslike. Their loyalty was lacking. They should take a page from Franz's book, that man who worked his fingers to the bone every single day.
"...Well, yes. Choc...olate, or whatever it's called—I'm not sure what it is, but ahem, ahem—is it truly something that even Code's city system cannot provide? I find it hard to believe such a thing exists in this world..."
Hmm, point taken. It was admittedly strange that in a city where pressing a single button could produce virtually anything, chocolate was somehow excluded. Clay-like snacks and chocolate weren't all that different, were they? There might be no cacao, but even so, it seemed like something they should be able to produce.
Her Highness apparently couldn't produce it, but she was a prisoner after all. There had to be city systems she was unable to access, and among them, there could very well be one capable of providing chocolate.
"Jean, that's a solid suggestion. Might be more efficient than hunting down someone who has chocolate."
If I didn't have to talk to bandits, even I could handle that. The prospect of searching for chocolate—or of protecting a princess—was far more motivating than I wanted to admit.