Chapter 56

Yuri was sound asleep, having been exhausted from his first day in a new place and job, and further tired from a long soak in the bath.

After Yuri went to work at the document department, the kitchen was filled with worried voices about him.

However, when he came to the cafeteria at noon with a scratch on his face, everyone was surprised but relieved to see him looking energetic. They were all melted by the cuteness of Yuri hugging a stuffed animal and taking a nap. This led to the anticipation of hearing his daily report. When he came back with a stuffed animal, they seriously thought that Yuri might be kidnapped or that a criminal might appear in the North Demon King's Castle.

It seems he spent the day energetically and happily.

"Sleep well, you."

After checking on Yuri for a while, he readjusted the blanket and left the room.

He then headed to the small conference room on the first floor. Inside, the document department's Elise and Mars, the agricultural team's Jean, the riding beast team's Yahar and Tsen, the medical team's Vincent, the intelligence team's Vass, the blacksmith team's Jot and Kalf, and the facilities team's Yaeto were all gathered. The room felt unusually cramped due to the number of people.

"...So? What's the reason for the summons and this lineup?"

When he asked Elise, who had called the meeting, she silently gestured for him to sit down.

When Elise had gone to the document department to pick up Yuri, she had used lip movements to specify the time and place when Yuri wasn't looking.

Sitting in the nearest empty chair, Elise began to speak.

"The reason for the summons is, of course, Yuri. Those present today are the people who were involved with Yuri today."

"...I've heard some from him. It seems he caused quite a stir."

"More than you think. We've gathered to share information and report to Rois."

"!"

Elise's words made his eyebrow shoot up. Considering the report to Rois and the people gathered, it seemed the situation was more complicated than he had imagined.

"How much have you heard from Yuri?"

"Got a perfect score on the morning test, enjoyed the carpet on the second floor, encountered Jean and got some delicious toot, met Filius and Edith in the stables, and dealt with the Lett escape incident, got a little scolding and disinfection from Vincent, took a nap with a stuffed animal, got lost and was helped by Vass, and did his first job in the document department."

"I see. The fact that he only mentioned the flow of the day shows that he doesn't realize how outrageous his actions were."

"What did he do?"

He asked Elise, who sighed.

"The morning test was a standard enlistment test, which he aced within the time limit. You probably knew this from talking with Kalf in the cafeteria. On the second floor, he casually mentioned advanced knowledge that wasn't widely known. He met Rois, and while he did enjoy the carpet, he also saw through Rois's true nature. Jean also mentioned something that caught his attention. In the riding beast team, he resolved the Lett escape incident, which resulted in multiple injuries. During his walk, several situations were revealed about the environment Yuri was in. And Vincent... he was unusually defeated by a stomachache and a look up. The sight of Yuri hugging a stuffed animal and taking a nap was quite adorable. I scolded him for getting lost, but encountering Vass was a good opportunity. His work performance was excellent, and he can be expected to be a valuable asset."

"......You're leaving out a lot, aren't you?"

He sighed and muttered. What was that all about? And there were some outrageous things mixed in there.

"The test, the Lett escape, and the work are fine. Getting lost... I'll scold him next time, but this time he was scolded by Elise and Vincent, so I'll let it slide. But advanced knowledge? Seeing through Rois's true nature?? What kind of joke is this?"

"That's why we've gathered to hear from you."

Elise's words made everyone sit up and listen.

"What we need to discuss today is the information exchange for investigating Yuri's background, centered around the report to Rois.

First, I'll mention a few points that Mars and I noticed during our walk together. Please add any additional points."

'Understood.'

What we know so far is that Yuri is a rare neutral being who is being targeted in the Eastern Territory. After stating this, as Elise mentioned the new information discovered today, the expressions of those in the room gradually became more serious. Meanwhile, Mars was taking notes.

When Elise mentioned the "Magic Mirror" technology that Yuri casually mentioned after hearing a little about the castle's structure, it was clear that Yuri had done something that would attract Rois's attention. When Jot and Yaeto, who are engineers, heard part of the principle from Yuri, they evaluated that "it is impossible to immediately create a Magic Mirror with the current technology in the North Demon King's Castle," which led to the question of where he had obtained that knowledge.

According to Elise, Yuri showed a reaction that was fitting for a "caged bird." It was unnatural that he didn't know common plants and animals that one would normally see in daily life, yet he knew about Onma. His intelligence in reading and arithmetic was at or above the level of an average adult.

Even more problematic was that Elise's character evaluation made Mars burst out laughing—this in itself was a remarkable event. When Jean heard Rois's evaluation of Yuri's character, Rois clearly stated, "Scary, an absolute monarchist."

This had to be reported to Rois. It was giving him a headache.

Furthermore, the information Jean brought: since Yuri came to the North Demon King's Castle, the crops have been unusually abundant. This might be a coincidence, but it seemed too unlikely. When Yahar reported that Yuri had a constitution that was attractive to magical beasts, it couldn't be denied, especially with the example of Lett. Moreover, even Elise's riding beast, Filius, liked Yuri on first meeting.

These matters required detailed investigation, which would take time.

The final piece of information came from Vass.

"Yuri doesn't know anything. He doesn't remember. That's certain.

...But magic reacted. It's likely that some kind of sealing magic has been placed on Yuri."

"Did Vass's detection magic not work?"

"Definitely at the level of Cherifas, or even higher."

As the leader of the intelligence team, Vass had used detection magic to check if Yuri, who had been lost, had been subjected to the kind of magic used by spies when he was found.

Vass's information-gathering ability is the best in the North Demon King's Castle and is widely recognized as being top-notch in any of the four territories. If the magic was something that Vass couldn't detect, it would fall under the jurisdiction of the magic team leader, Cherifas. This was almost a given. But what if it was beyond even Cherifas's capabilities?

"Seriously? What kind of burden did the adults in the East put on that kid?"

"Rois's reaction is hard to predict."

"In this situation, we should first consult Cherifas."

Who is Yuri, really? Can I really protect him?

"......Just hearing the situation, it seems like Yuri is a child whose survival is a miracle."

"......Vincent?"

When his thoughts were about to drift, Vincent's voice brought him back to reality.

"Do you think there are Cherifas-level mages just lying around? In the Eastern Territory, such a person would undoubtedly be a valuable pawn in power struggles. Assuming such a person sealed Yuri and brought him to the 'Deep Forest,' it would be natural to think that they would kill him before he grew up and developed emotions. In other words, there must be a reason why they didn't."

'Reason...'

"Simultaneously, as long as we don't know the reason, the North Demon King's Castle can't dispose of Yuri. Doing so could create friction with the Eastern Territory, which would paradoxically become a new reason to keep Yuri alive."

When Vincent calmly shared his thoughts, Vass thought for a moment and then spoke.

"I'll look into the Cherifas-level mages in the Eastern Territory."

Vass's words were met with a nod from Vincent.

"Next, the unknown knowledge. Where did Yuri learn it? Elise, Mars, you're the ones who know about knowledge. Any ideas?"

"...Honestly, I'm thinking of possibilities I'd rather not consider."

"Captain...?"

When Vincent turned to Elise and Mars, Elise answered with a troubled expression. Mars looked puzzled at Elise's unusual demeanor.

"If it's knowledge that even we don't know, ancient documents are a strong possibility. However, ancient documents generally provide old knowledge, not new knowledge.

...But there is one book that doesn't fit this description, to my knowledge."

"Captain, that...?"

When Elise mentioned a possibility, Mars's face changed. From their reactions, it was clear that it was something dangerous.

"Is it that special?"

"......It's kept secret for a reason."

In response to Vass's question, Elise answered cautiously.

"Of course, we're not saying that this is the source of Yuri's knowledge. However, all possibilities should be considered."

"How do you connect a secret book to Yuri?"

"To be honest, I can't easily explain it here. If we need to confirm it, it should be done after other checks are completed. I can't touch the book myself, but I can introduce someone who knows about it."

"Is there someone who knows about the book?"

"Fesil, the captain, is the foremost expert on books in the North Demon King's Territory."

When Elise mentioned this, everyone thought of the person in question.

Fesil, who served as the captain of the document department for about 20 years, is Elise's mentor. In his younger days, he doted on the more feminine Elise like a child, and he would play with those who made crude remarks, making them mentally broken with a smile. He also trained the current Elise to be the captain of the document department before retiring.

He is undoubtedly a sly old fox, even more so than Vincent in some ways.

"Fesil... I have a drinking appointment with him soon, so I'll mention it."

"Vincent..."

"As long as we don't mention the content, do you think he wouldn't notice?"

"That's impossible."

"Besides, Fesil would definitely want to meet Yuri out of curiosity, given the situation and Elise's trust."

Vincent's words were met with silence.

"Doesn't that mean a new threat to Yuri might appear?"

"Exactly."

After a while, Jot muttered, but it wasn't funny. There was no way to deny it. The silence continued.

"Yuri would definitely get attached to Captain Fesil right away..."

"More and more, it seems like he'll be taken away with a smile."

Kalf said with a dry smile, and Jot agreed.

"Let's make it clear that Yuri is in the North Demon King's Castle."

"Let's train him hard so he can become a regular member in three months."

"Hey, Yuri is an important new member of the cooking team."

I couldn't help but interject, and I wasn't wrong.

The others, who were from different teams, looked at me with lukewarm eyes. Don't look at me like that!

"......Is that all for now?"

"Sure. Then, Dilnan."

With the notes Mars had taken, Elise spoke. Yahar then called out to me.

"Right away, but to avoid scaring him, let's meet Yuri with the dragon at a convenient time."

This time, the attention turned to Yahar.

"Physically attractive to riding beasts, and crops flourish just by being around. If this is true, he's a valuable resource with at least some magic power. Proving this as soon as possible would help Yuri. Of course, Tsen and I will be there to witness it."

Yahar's words were met with a nod from Jean.

"In that case, the agricultural team can also come. It would be strong if we can prove something."

"...Yahar, Jean."

"I like Yuri."

"He's quite interesting. It's been a while since we've had such a promising one."

The two laughed, and it was clear that Yuri had quickly won their favor.

"The question is where this power will be directed. As long as the adults around him don't lead him in the wrong direction, I don't think Yuri will go astray."

"Assuming he's placed in the not-so-safe North Demon King's Castle