Satou's here. When I hear the word 'stray child', I remember department stores and amusement parks. The time when a teary-eyed lost child holding his trousers asked me, "Mother, where?", feels nostalgic.
Since my appearance was suspicious due to an all-nighter, I immediately pushed the child to a sales clerk nearby though.
◇
As I go toward the alley where the voice is, a sexy prostitute-like woman with emphasized cleavage is waiting for me there.
"Young master, it has been a long time."
She touches my neck and then leans herself to me coquettishly, making us look like we're having a lovers' talk.
"Mou, please be a bit more embarrassed."
"Forget about that, do you have any new information? Say it quickly."
I urge the woman who's playing her index finger on my chest like she's sulking to press ahead.
The woman is an intelligence agent of the Marquis house.
Due to the matter with Inquisitor Vilas back then, the Marchioness instructed them to tell me about various info.
The information are mainly about nobles who bear ill-will toward me, explorers with bad attitude, and the movement of criminal guilds.
For some reason she doesn't inform me with letters, but by directly telling me while acting as a prostitute or an explorer instead.
"Mou, I've put some effort to look like a prostitute and all, at least gently rub my hair or butt please."
"If you don't have any business, I'll go okay?"
I know that she has some, but we'll be like this forever if I follow her pace, so this kind of attitude and tone are needed.
In short, she's of Arisa's kind, someone who likes young boys.
"I'll do it seriously! First, about the matter with the Fiend Drug--"
In the end, my fear about coup d'etat in the Royal Capital didn't happen, and the one that got regarded and disposed as the mastermind was the subordinate general of Marquis Kelten, instead of the marquis himself as Sir Sokel had told me.
"--the lizard no doubt cut its tail to save himself, but since the the uncle of Sir Sokel, the one who gave the testimony, was in Duke Oyugock's faction...."
For that reason, Duke Bishtal who hated Duke Oyugock the most, came to protect Marquis Kelten.
Who was Duke Bishtal again?
I check Toruma Memo after a long while since I couldn't remember it. According to it, he's a family member of the Labyrinth Army's general, and a lord of a big territory north of Marquis Eluett territory that's north of the Labyrinth City itself.
In the end, it seems the head of the army that were found managing the fiend drug warehouse was to become the criminal and got disposed of.
It was the one I found when I went to the Royal Capital back then huh.
Who'd have thought that the warehouse of the regular army would unashamedly store illegal items...
"There's more about the fiend drug matter, the seized drug were taken by the Royal Research Institute, but some part of it flowed to the outside--ah, please keep this a secret from other people."
"Ah, of course."
Some of those fiend drug were taken to the Foreign Trade City, and were smuggled away on several ships. The ships' nationality was unknown, but it seems they were heading toward the western part of the continent.
"Fumu, by the way, isn't the later part of the story unnecessary?"
I do have something to do with the Fiend Drug matter, but it was mainly as Kuro, so I think there's no need for Satou to know the particulars.
"No, that's a side issue."
"And the main issue?"
"Yes, do you remember an organization called 『Wings of Liberty』?"
"Yeah, they were fanatics who not only kidnapped Sera-sama, but also planned to resurrect the demon lord right?"
I was being vague, but [Wings of Liberty] were the bunch who resurrected the Golden Wild Boar King.
Although, it's unclear whether it was really their intention or they were tricked by the greater demons that acted as their executives.
"Some of the guys who smuggled the Fiend Drug were members of the 『Light of Freedom』."
"Light? Wasn't it 'wings'?"
"Yes, [Wings of Liberty] are the extremist group driven out of the [Light of Liberty]."
According to her, it seems [Light of Liberty] has a headquarter in Parion Holy Land located on the west of the continent. To have demon lord believers existing in the country of the god who summons heroes to exterminate demon lords, what a strange story.
As a sidenote, it seems that there's a similar organization in the royal capital called 『Wind of Liberty』.
It seems that there's actually a faction of [Light of Liberty] too here, but they're moderate, or rather, they seem to be just a small-time group which collect forbidden books, and perform immoral ceremonies as they like.
They didn't even have anything to do with the Fiend Drug matter from before at all.
"And?"
"Yes, the remnants of 『Wings of Liberty』 might possibly get their hands on the fiend drug through 『Light of Liberty』, so..."
So she wants to tell me that some [Wings of Liberty] guys who have grudges might use the fiend drug and attack us huh.
I'd have liked if she made it briefer.
She told me that the political situations on the western part of the continent were unstable as the last irrelevant information.
Currently, it's only at the degree of trade closure and small-scale skirmishes, but it seems at the level where war could break out anytime.
Wars between nations should have been difficult to happen during the Demon Lord Season, so why is this happening. I wonder if demons and demon lords are instigating it behind the scene after all?
Apparently, that's the reason why the date palm has stopped being distributed here.
As expected, stopping wars in order to ensure date palm distribution here is 'that', but I wonder if Shiga Kingdom and Saga Empire can stop war by pressures?
I'll try to consult it with the hero who's searching for a demon lord in the Weasel Empire's Labyrinth once he's returned to the surface.
Come to think of it, one of the oracles said that a demon lord would appear in Parion Holy Land too huh. Hero Hayato should have investigated it before he went to the Weasel Empire though....