NOVEL WEB Chapter 221.1
Chapter 221.1. Meeting
The finest restaurant in the inner town. A small pond’s deer scare clacks with a kakon sound, gravel is neatly arranged, and pine trees grow in a garden that creates a tiny world. It’s called the world of wabi-sabi.
And then there are sliding doors with beautiful paintings, and a large room with a fresh, distinct smell of new tatami mats.
At the upper seat, Sakimori sits with a displeased expression, his mouth set in a frown. This is the upper seat. At the lower seats sit Tadayoshi’s grandfather, Masako from the Taira family, and Kurou from the Minamoto family.
Three days after the attempted coup, the inner town has recovered from the chaos, and it seems they finally have the space to talk.
For some reason, I’m sitting in the upper seat. Since it’s lonely, I have the well-informed catgirl sitting next to me. It’s useless to try to run away—I won’t let go of the tail I’m holding.
Even if her cat ears twitch and she looks at me with teary eyes, too bad. You know I won’t sympathize with you.
“Sakimori, you tricked me, nyan. I came because you said you’d treat me to delicious food, nyanko.”
Pouting, the catgirl complains with a nyan nyan. Can’t be helped, I noticed you.
This meeting—when I was invited, I thought it was a hassle, but since I’d have to work if I stayed in the inner town, I found Karin, who was eating in the company cafeteria with a carefree expression, saying she was on paid vacation nyan, and I invited her. Inviting her with the promise of good food—I’m too nice, right?
“Look, this appetizer is tasty. Say ahh.”
I pick up the appetizer with my chopsticks and offer it to the catgirl. Karin takes a bite, and although it’s delicious, she sighs and slumps her shoulders. Well, just focus on the food.
“I’ll eat Sakimori’s too, nyan. Oh, I’ll ask the hostess for seconds, nyan nyan.”
Since the food is delicious, Karin decides to order more of the appetizer. Ordering seconds in a kaiseki meal at a high-end restaurant—that’s a girl with nerves as bold as a cat’s.
[Your chopstick manners are terrible. You should only dirty the tips of your chopsticks, Sakimori-san! That’s proper Japanese dining etiquette. I still don’t understand how to eat chazuke without dirtying just the tips of my chopsticks.]
[I’m not well-versed in Japanese dining etiquette.]
[I’ll teach you later. Let’s practice saying ahh a lot.]
[Weren’t you the one concerned about manners?]
Floating in the air and angrily puffing her cheeks, I send a teasing thought to Jealousy Shizuku-san.
“Sakimori, what is the Earth Federation?”
While I was going back and forth with Shizuku-san as usual, Tadayoshi’s grandfather, sitting cross-legged, surprisingly asks with a serious expression.
“We took quite a hit. Mainly to our fighter jets, helicopters, their assembly factories, banks, and the magic tool warehouses.”
This is my first time speaking face-to-face with Kurou from the Minamoto family, but without hesitation, he reports the damage from this incident.
I see, they were thorough. The Earth Federation must have been concerned about our air power. That flying battleship was in pretty bad shape—it’s no wonder. I bet one missile could take it down.
Of course, those sitting before me must have already anticipated what I’m thinking. They all look like they’ve just bitten into something bitter.
“The ringleader of this attempted coup was Miyoshi Nagayoshi of the Miyoshi family, but partway through, it was like he snapped out of a dream, suddenly becoming rational, and hurriedly gave the order to stop fighting. Why do you think that happened, Sakimori-chan? By the way, all of the Miyoshi family’s assets were confiscated by the state.”
“He was probably brainwashed. Did his subordinates or the servants in his mansion see any unfamiliar faces? Suspicious ones. Brainwashing usually means the perpetrator is a close aide, right?”
I shrug and answer Masako’s question. Brainwashing, huh…
[It was probably thought induction. I think Uriel-san had a skill like that. It’s weaker than brainwashing, but since it incorporates the person’s desires, it’s easier to apply. You’re starting to want to have a wedding with me~.]
With a dero dero dero~, Shizuku-san waves her hand, trying to perform this so-called thought induction. She’s like a mischievous fairy asking for the ultimate choice, with an innocent look on her face.
[If I refuse, won’t Shizuku-san get mad?]
[If it works, I’ll apologize. But I don’t think there’s a chance it won’t work, so it’s apology by default. Right? Right?]
[I’m confident in my status ailment resistance.]
[Ugh. I wish I hadn’t acquired that skill.]
As I brush off Shizuku’s strong advances, I relay what I just heard to the three, as if I had almost forgotten to mention it.
“It seems it was more like thought induction than brainwashing. I got this info from Rei somehow—it’s easier to apply since it incorporates the person’s desires. The one using that skill has apparently already been killed.”
I speak as if it’s no big deal, but Tadayoshi and the others lean in, eager to hear more.
“So, you knew after all! Who are those people? They suddenly appeared in the inner town. The ones we captured committed suicide, so there are no survivors.”
“I see… they’re that thorough… Fanatics, huh.”
Tadayoshi’s grandfather speaks in a groaning voice, so I give the three of them a somber look. Watch as Amano Sakimori, the future Best Actor Award winner, delivers a stellar performance.
“Between us…”