A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

The situation in the capital was already bad, and now they still have to say such things.

If things really get worse in the capital, Alice will probably tape Eric's mouth shut.

“Captain Alice, don’t you feel that it’s been particularly cool around here since just now?” Eric said, arms crossed.

He always felt like the air conditioning was on around him, and the coolness was really refreshing.

The feeling of being secretly watched by someone is simply wonderful.

I hope he can feel this way in the summer.

“Colonel, you should have used the word ‘gloomy’ at this point.” Alice rubbed her arm. She actually had the same feeling, and after Eric mentioned it, the chill became even more pronounced.

"Where is the gloom? It's just like when I eat a smoothie, that kind of comfortable feeling that makes my head ache from the cold."

"..." Alice didn't even want to comment on how Eric associated headaches with comfort.

“Mr. Bray, if you have something to say, it would be better if you stood in front of us.”

“You look rather scary, especially your eyes, which are already quite frightening.” Alice turned and glanced at Bray.

"..." Alice's sudden turn of her head stunned Bray, who was following behind the two, for a few seconds.

Bray was still thinking about how to strike up a conversation with Eric and Alice when Alice unexpectedly turned her head to him.

However, it's very impolite to say that someone's eyes are scary.

“Don’t let my appearance fool you, my right eye is wide open right now.” Bray pointed seriously to his right eye.

“Okay, Mr. Bray, don’t bother explaining, I understand.” Alice nodded, completely ignoring Bray’s earnest explanation.

"Ahem." Bray cleared his throat.

"I was wondering who was turning on the air conditioner on the street. Oh, it's you." Eric knew who was following him after hearing the voice.

But why is Bray following me? Is he a pervert? He already has a wife, why is he still following Alice? That's terrifying.

“I’m somewhat interested in that ‘Mathematical Sciences’ you mentioned before,” Bray said curtly.

Bray didn't know how to naturally bring up the past with Eric.

Since we don't know, let's get straight to the point.

"Oh?" Eric observed Bray's expression.

"Why the sudden change of mind, Mr. Bray, with your money?" He also took the opportunity to tease Bray.

“The Mathematical Society has a grudge against me,” Bray said seriously.

It's not just a past grudge; now they're sworn enemies.

"A holiday? Didn't you have no interest in the 'Mathematical Society' before?" If there was a conflict, Bray should have reacted immediately when I mentioned this church.

“It was a holiday not long ago.” Bray looked up, rubbed his chin, and said in a somewhat uncertain tone.

If Naruko and Nia hadn't been frightened, he wouldn't have willingly gotten himself into this mess.

“But even if you say you’ll help us now, there won’t be a single penny in return.” Eric put his hands in his coat pockets and smiled slyly.

“emmmmmmmmmm” Bray fell into deep thought.

"That...reward..."

“That’s all.” This time it wasn’t Eric who said it, but Alice.

Alice's words were even more succinct and decisive, leaving Bray speechless.

"..." Bray began to regret why he hadn't agreed to the other party's request from the beginning.

"Even so, count me in." Bray raised his hand and waved it weakly.

“Very good, Captain Alice, throw the documents to him.”

"We don't need the materials, I can't understand them anyway," Bray said immediately the moment he saw Alice make the gesture of throwing the paper.

"Don't you want it?" Alice had originally intended to smear a stack of documents on Bray's face.

"No."

"Giving me the information won't be of much use; I'll just follow you guys." Although Bray likes to think about strange things, it doesn't mean he's very smart.

Maybe it's because I'm not smart that I often think about random things.

"Then let's get started right away, expert."

Bray was a little confused by Eric's expert comment, but he still obediently followed along, now essentially working for free.

---

Next, Bray witnessed how Alice and Eric conducted their investigation.

If I had to describe it in one word, it would be "utterly depraved".

Alice can shoot guns, kick doors, and doesn't even need her real body to seduce people.

Eric started chatting with his target, even mentioning what they would have for dinner.

Those who run fast will be caught up by Alice and beaten up.

"Are you... thugs?" Bray muttered.

Eric was unhappy when he heard that.

“Have you ever seen such an elegant rogue?” Eric pointed at Alice, who had a cold expression on her face.

Alice always exudes an elegant aura, no matter what she does.

Even his use of guns and violence was so elegant; Bray has to admit that.

Alice's fighting style was as graceful as a dancer's performance, a feast for the eyes.

"But it seems there's no progress; everyone's the same as before."

"Whenever she's asked about something important, it's like she's triggered some kind of mechanism, and she faints instantly," Eric said helplessly, squatting in front of an unconscious woman.

“Let me see,” Bray tried to say.

"Come on, blind man, take a good look." Eric was happy to have Bray come over and see if there was anything wrong; he had asked Bray to help him investigate.

Bray observed the woman who had fainted without warning, his face expressionless, but some thoughts were forming in his mind.

“It has nothing to do with magic…it’s more about ‘concepts’,” Bray muttered to himself.

But that doesn't make sense either, because Bray carries the connotation of "swan song," and the concept would be suppressed.

"Did you figure it out?"

"No," Bray answered honestly.

“But I want to test something out.” Bray said, gripping the longsword in his hand.

This situation reminded Bray of similar situations he had encountered before.

If the problem is indirectly caused by a concept, then there are indeed situations that cannot be suppressed.

To remove this influence, the connection must be "cut off".

"It seems to be working." Bray slammed his sword down with the hilt and noticed that the other person was showing signs of waking up.

But it seems he can't wake up immediately.

“It seems to be having some effect, but he’s not fully awake,” Bray told Eric.

"A little thorn is needed..."

"Splash!" Alice poured a bucket of water, which appeared out of nowhere, over the woman's head.

“…” Bray wanted to say that this might not be a good idea.

But seeing Alice's eyes, he decided to remain silent. As the woman covered her face and slowly regained consciousness, a smile crept onto Eric's lips.

"You truly are an expert; I concede defeat." Eric gave Bray a thumbs-up.

"Just a coincidence." As Bray spoke, he glanced at Alice, who was holding the metal bucket.

"Why did I faint..." the woman mumbled after regaining some consciousness.

She had just woken up and hadn't yet figured out her own situation.

"Alright, you can start questioning me now." Alice slammed the metal bucket down and said to her boss without any politeness.

"Be a little more polite when you talk to your boss, even if the blind guy is right there." If he could, Eric really liked Alice to give him some face.

Ah, why did I even take this subordinate in the first place?

---

The questioning process was quick.

No, it should be said that the intimidation process was very fast.

During this time, Alice even considered trying to use her charm on a woman.

In her view, the allure of erotic images must be a spell that transcends gender.

After the questioning ended and the woman was arrested, Bray remained silent for a long time.

After listening to Eric and Alice's questions, he was completely dumbfounded.

How exactly did they find out the location of the "Mathematical Society" hall?

Why shoot a gun before questioning? Why kick the door?

And wasn't Alice too harsh on that woman? She even went out of her way to find a place to fill a container with water and continue splashing it.

They actually found out.

He wants to learn; he really wants to learn these amazing skills.

Incidentally, this hall that we've been mentioning is the so-called base.

The members of the "Mathematical Society" all referred to their base in the capital in this way, so Eric and his group also started to call it that.

They found the location easily and arrived as quickly as possible.

However, when they arrived at the location the woman had mentioned, all they saw was a wall.

It's completely unbelievable that this place leads to the "Mathematical Society" hall.

A collapsed wall, which originally belonged to a house that had been demolished, stood there in an ordinary way, with nothing special about it.

There are very few people around, but that's only because this is a demolition area, and it will be rebuilt later.

"Was I scammed?" Eric murmured, touching the wall.

Or is there a hidden mechanism? However, Eric couldn't see any hidden mechanism at all.

Unexpectedly, the information I went through to find out turned out to be false.

Of course, Eric was already mentally prepared that the information he had gathered was false.

The Mathematical Society has been designated a cult by the Empire.

Anyone who knows about cults understands just how terrifying their fanaticism and stubbornness can be.

It's normal for them to lie at the risk of death, and even sacrificing themselves is considered commonplace.

Eric wouldn't be surprised if that woman revealed it to him on the spot.

“We’ve been tricked, Colonel.” Alice glanced at the wall a few times but found nothing unusual.

“That makes sense.” Eric shrugged. It was rare for Bray to help them find someone, but they didn’t expect to get false information.

"I'll have to keep working hard for you from now on."

“I’m not planning on working hard any longer.” Bray noticed that the sun was almost setting and had no intention of keeping the two of them company while they worked overtime.

“What that woman said might not be false.” Just as Eric and Alice were about to give up on this place, Bray spoke up.

Bray had never touched the wall, but it was safe to say that the wall was a door.

However, only when Bray uses his mind's eye can he see that it is a door.

Bray "saw" it, but like the two people in front of him, he couldn't touch it.

In his mind's world, the door and the wall completely overlapped.

In some people's minds, this door is visible and tangible; in others' minds, it is merely an ordinary wall.