I’m the Only One Who Can Put the Tyrant To Sleep Chapter 119

“Katana, is something wrong?”

“W-what? Wrong? Nothing’s wrong!”

Katana answered between quick breaths, clearly trying too hard to act casual.

“Hm…”

“S-so, Evelyn, what are you here for?”

“Just to chat. Can’t I come in?”

“Uh…”

Her eyes darted nervously before she reluctantly stepped aside.

The room looked much the same as usual—strewn with clothes and papers from her magical research.

She didn’t suddenly clean all this out of embarrassment… Maybe it’s just adolescence?

At her age, it wouldn’t be strange for her to have things she wanted to hide. I dismissed the thought lightly and sat at the table.

Only then did Katana, who had been lingering awkwardly near the door, come sit across from me.

We spent about half an hour exchanging meaningless small talk. Then I spoke up.

“By the way, Katana… don’t you think His Majesty’s been acting strange lately?”

“H-huh?”

She avoided my gaze again, her demeanor growing awkward.

“W-what do you mean strange? I don’t really see anything odd.”

“You don’t?”

“N-nope.”

“He keeps going outside the palace. What could he possibly be up to?”

“Ah… r-really? W-well, more importantly, Evelyn! When are you going to visit Floria?”

“Princess Floria? Why bring her up all of a sudden?”

“N-no reason, I was just curious…”

What is this?

I narrowed my eyes at her. She’d been normal when we were talking about other things, but the moment I mentioned Caesar, she tried to change the subject. Suspicious.

And before I came in, she was acting strange too. For her to dodge now, of all times, when it’s about Caesar…

Ignoring her attempt to steer the conversation away, I pressed.

“Katana. Do you perhaps know what His Majesty is doing?”

“W-what? Me? N-no! Of course not!”

She looked like she’d jump out of her seat, that’s how startled she was.

“You really don’t?”

“Of course not! I-I absolutely don’t know!”

Katana shook her head violently. Which only made it obvious she did.

“…Is that so?”

If she was denying it this hard, pressing her would get nowhere. I pretended to drop it and changed the subject.

“Then do you know about Ian?”

“What about him?”

“He might be planning to start a war. Strictly speaking, it’d be more like invading alone.”

“Ah, th-that…!”

Katana let out a gasp, her head starting to nod before she jerked it side to side in panic.

“Of course I don’t know! I-I don’t!”

So she knew about that too.

The only ones aware of Ian’s plans were Caesar and me. Since I hadn’t told her, she must have heard it from Caesar.

So the two of them have been talking behind my back… and keeping it secret from me?

I pushed down the sting of being excluded and kept up my act of ignorance.

“Anyway, that’s why we’re planning to release just one spot in the palace’s barrier. Could you handle that, Katana?”

“You don’t need to worry about that! Caesar already told me!”

“…What?”

“Ah!”

Katana clapped both hands over her mouth as if she’d just let something slip.

“So His Majesty has told you everything.”

“N-no, not everything! Just that—well, you need a mage to alter the barrier, so he only told me about that part!”

It had only been a few days since Caesar and I discussed this. And already he had asked Katana to do it—without telling me.

“So? Where exactly did he want the barrier opened?”

“He asked me to open it right in the center of the palace garden.”

“The garden? Not somewhere like the underground prison?”

“N-no…”

He wants Ian Bryden to appear in the garden? Why?

The palace garden sat at its very heart, designed so it could be seen from all the inner halls. If Ian appeared there—right at its center—every eye would be drawn to him.

That could put civilians in danger.

“And did he mention any other measures? Like turning it into a prison?”

“Ah, yes! He said he’s looking for something Ian could technically escape from, but not easily.”

“What does that mean?”

“If it’s too easy, he’ll slip away. But if it seems impossible, he’ll flee right away. So Caesar’s looking for a balance between the two.”

That was the same reasoning Caesar gave when I suggested sealing Ian inside stone walls.

“And he said he’d install surveillance artifacts inside too!”

“Surveillance artifacts? Like ones that record video?”

I thought of the device Baron Gobette had used, but Katana shook her head.

“No, much better than that! I’ll be making them myself. Not only do they record, but if someone intrudes, their twin artifact will sound an alarm. We can monitor the place all day without a guard!”

Like an unmanned security system, then.

That would certainly allow us to respond the instant Ian arrived.

“But the real problem comes after that…”

Even if we bought time by containing him, that would only stop the ambush. The real fight would still remain.

“And what about after? Did His Majesty say anything about that?”

“H-huh?”

Finally realizing she’d said too much, Katana shut her mouth tight.

“…Well? Did he?”

“N-no! I really don’t know about that! Honest!”

Then she covered her mouth again with both hands, as if to say she’d never let another word slip.

Clearly Caesar had warned her to keep quiet.

I could only sigh as I looked at her.

 

 

 

*****

 

 

 

 

That evening, I went to see Olche. Lately, instead of Alvin, she had been staying close by Caesar’s side and rarely showing herself.

After prying the location out of Alvin, I arrived at the quarters Olche used when she stayed in the imperial palace.

Knock, knock—
The door opened only briefly. The moment she saw my face, she slammed it shut again.

“If you’ve come to ask what His Majesty’s been doing these days, I cannot tell you a thing!”

Hearing her shout through the door, I couldn’t hide my exasperation.

First Katana, now Olche. Are they both shutting me out?

“Excuse me, that’s not why I came!”

I knocked again, sharper this time. Slowly, the door cracked open and Olche peeked out.

“Really?”

“Yes. So… may I come in now?”

I wedged myself through the gap before she could change her mind. Awkwardly, Olche shuffled closer.

Her quarters were in an even worse state than Katana’s room—sweat hung heavy in the air, as though she hadn’t washed her clothes after training, and there wasn’t even a clear table to sit at.

I finally managed to drag out a chair buried under a pile of clothes.

“Sir Olche, you’ll have to sit on the bed.”

I gestured as if I were the host here. Scratching her head, she meekly sat down.

“So, Lady—why have you come? Truly not to ask about His Majesty?”

“No, I said that’s not it.”

I barely kept the irritation out of my voice and got straight to the point.

“I want to ask about something else.”

“What is it?”

Her expression softened with curiosity.

“About when Her Highness the former princess was kidnapped. You came to rescue me then, remember? At that cabin—you saw Ian’s power with your own eyes.”

“Ah, yes. I’ll never forget that. It was the first time in my life I’d seen anything like it.”

Olche’s face darkened at the memory.

“You said stone soldiers appeared, right? Can you tell me more about what happened?”

“That I can… but wouldn’t it be better to ask His Majesty? Honestly, I couldn’t put up much of a fight. I was practically helpless against him. Only His Majesty could stand against those soldiers.”

“Well…”

I wanted to ask Caesar too, but I could hardly get near him these days, let alone speak with him. Admitting that felt humiliating, so I glossed over it.

“You saw from a different angle, didn’t you? His Majesty must have been busy fighting. That’s why I’m asking you.”

“I see…”

“Anyway, just tell me what happened. In as much detail as you can.”

“Hmm… Well, when we first rushed into the cabin, he was inside. We smashed through the door for a surprise attack. The moment the door burst open, though, the stone soldiers appeared.”

“Hold on. Tell me more precisely. What exactly did Ian do? How did the stone soldiers appear?”

The real reason I had come was not just to hear the story, but to find the conditions under which Ian’s power manifested.

“More precisely, you say?”

“Yes. Even the tiniest detail. Tell me everything you remember.”

Olche furrowed her brow, deep in thought. Then she continued.

“He had his back turned to us. When the door opened, I shouted, ‘Seize him!’ The knights rushed at him. And then… he stretched both hands forward.”

“He stretched out his hands?”

“Not exactly stretched… more like this.”

Olche raised both hands, palms outward toward me, almost like a gesture of surrender.

“And then, in the very next moment, the stone soldiers rose from the ground.”