Aftermath and a Request

Emma's heart jolted when someone suddenly called her by her full name. She turned toward the voice and found Cons, Viscount Leerhsen's youngest son, calling out to her.

They were both children of noble families and close in age. Their paths had crossed often at banquets and balls, so of course she knew him.

But as far as Emma knew, Cons had joined MI9 after graduating from Tingen University. Ever since, he had become rather mysterious...

Wait. MI9? If Cons is here, is that why the atmosphere in town feels so strange?

Though the thought raced through her mind, Emma turned to him with a smile and said with a hint of reproach, "Cons, you startled me."

"I'm sorry, Miss Emma." Cons, a tall, thin young gentleman, apologized politely before repeating his question. "What brings you to this remote town?"

That sounds rather like an interrogation... Even if he is being polite...

Has the military discovered what happened to Baron Konwa too? Or did 1-025 cause some other trouble in Backlund after possessing him?

Good thing I sneaked in at night to look up Baron Konwa's records. I left no official record of it... And the entrance was well hidden. Abner buried it again afterward and cleared away our tracks.

Without knowing its exact location, even MI9 will have trouble finding it quickly...

As her thoughts raced, Emma deliberately frowned, her long, straight eyebrows drawing together. "Hmph. Detective Braine invited me to join a school camping trip... What, does MI9 have to concern itself with that too?"

She did not say Atrou had invited her. He was only a jeweler's son, and even with her reputation for being "eccentric," it would seem too strange for her to accept an invitation from an ordinary person so readily.

Detective Braine was different.