『Stress has increased by 7!』
I swiped away the annoying status window with my right hand. I know it’s close, okay?
“Murmur thinks the real culprit behind this conspiracy is Fenex.”
“Fenex? That’s the name of Lady Jepar’s daughter, right?”
Unlike Esme, who tilted her head in confusion, Citrine wore a serious expression.
“How is that possible? Fenex passed away a long time ago. That’s why Lady Jepar has been volunteering in Starlight Alley for 50 years.”
“The ‘Fenex’ Murmur is referring to isn’t the real Fenex.”
“Huh? Then… Oh no, I’m so confused.”
Esme covered her mouth with her hand.
“Do you know about changelings?”
“Of course. Aunt Colette really hates them. They’re demons who use forbidden transformation magic, right?”
“That changeling is impersonating Lady Jepar’s daughter, Fenex.”
“That’s too much! Who would do such a thing?!”
Esme stood up and shouted.
Mother and daughter.
Esme has a lot to say about the bond between them. It’s only natural she’s angry.
“Murmur thinks that’s why Murmur and friends couldn’t persuade Lady Jepar.”
“But! Citrine collected the fines, and the officials from the Imperial Palace took Lunarin away, right? All the ingredients at Piglet House were burned too.”
“Yes, Lady Jepar also destroyed the magic circles.”
Citrine sighed.
“Lady Jepar deceived Murmur and us. She hid Lunarin somewhere to complete a new magic circle.”
“But didn’t Citrine check the ledgers and everything and say there were no issues?”
“Those ledgers can easily be manipulated to deceive people.”
I don’t want to think Lady Jepar would act so maliciously, but the situation is heading that way.
“But! But…!”
Just as Esme was about to speak, Nicasia appeared, letting out a deep sigh.
“Am I late? I’m sorry.”
“No. We’re the ones using Nicasia’s room without permission. Murmur is grateful.”
Nicasia smiled and sat down.
“I said it was fine, didn’t I? Oh! Were you discussing something important?”
“We were just about to talk about Princess Nicasia.”
Esme clenched her fists and looked at me and Citrine.
“There might be a changeling impersonating Fenex, but there’s no way Lady Jepar could be behind a conspiracy!”
“Because Lady Jepar is currently under surveillance by the adults from the Imperial Palace?”
Esme nodded and looked at Nicasia.
“I spoke with her again today. Lady Jepar is completely confined to Piglet House and is being investigated. She has no means of contacting the outside.”
“See! She can’t be plotting anything!”
“If she had already informed the changeling impersonating Fenex about Lunarin’s location, there would be no problem. And before the event started, the changeling told Lady Jepar about Murmur’s actions.”
“Huh? What? Uh…”
Esme plopped back down into her seat.
“Nicasia, did you find anything else suspicious?”
“No. Everyone believed me and investigated further, but there was nothing particularly unusual about Lady Jepar or anyone else.”
“What if Murmur meets with Lady Jepar?”
Nicasia made a pained expression.
“That’s… absolutely… not possible. I’m sorry.”
Considering Murmur’s reputation, it’s only natural.
No matter how much Nicasia mediates, the adults from the Imperial Palace would never allow a conversation.
“Murmur? I have an idea. Want to hear it?”
Nicasia’s idea? I couldn’t help but nod in anticipation.
Esme, by the way, is now a pancake, her face stuck to the table, looking up at us.
“If the changeling is impersonating Fenex, what if we find that changeling?”
“Capturing that changeling would definitely stop the conspiracy from progressing further.”
“It might be unpleasant for Murmur, but I can sense the presence of evil demons plotting something.”
I, of course, know about Nicasia’s unique ability.
She can distinctly detect the terrifying and fearsome aura of demons. It smells sweet, right?
“Um, are you sure? The Imperial Princess becoming a search dog?”
“It’s fine. The academy students are in danger, right? If the gatekeeper demon ‘Gabriel’ is summoned, something terrible will definitely happen.”
Nicasia’s eyes sparkled with a sense of justice.
“Murmur thinks it’s too much.”
“Mu, Murmur! It’s fine!!”
“This has nothing to do with Nicasia’s efforts. Murmur knows, right? Cosmos Academy is HUGE!”
I stood up and drew a big circle with both hands.
“Ugh!”
“Dragon Tail Street is comparable in size to a city. The area around the New Helheim Clubhouse is as big as a castle.”
“But…”
“Cosmos Academy was once called the ‘Duchy of Cosmos.’ It’s so big that Murmur can’t possibly walk around it. It’s enormous.”
Nicasia bit her lip.
“Finding a changeling hiding somewhere in this vast area by sniffing around like a dog isn’t feasible. That’s not a plan.”
I shook my head firmly.
“It’s a gamble. Murmur doesn’t want to gamble. Murmur will make a plan with friends to stop the conspiracy!”
“Alright. I guess I was suggesting something too unrealistic.”
Nicasia, thankfully, smiled.
“But Murmur, do you have a plan?”
“Yes, Murmur has a plan.”
I made a V with my right hand.
“For this plan, Citrine and Nicasia need to help Murmur.”
They both nodded.
“Riola, can you put up the map Murmur mentioned?”
As I tapped the table with both hands, Riola smiled and unfolded the map of Cosmos Academy.
I was scared I’d get scolded when I first asked, but thankfully, it’s fine.
“This is the academy’s map, right?”
“Yes, see the places Murmur marked with crayon?”
“Oh? These are the places we went with Lady Jepar to erase the magic circles?”
Citrine pointed to the Venus Hall warehouse, Hedone Lake, and other locations.
“Yes, that’s right. Remember these eight places.”
Lady Jepar’s magic circles are randomly set up in these eight locations.
Even the summoning of the gatekeeper demon is determined at one of these places.
“Setting up magic circles in these eight places is the most efficient.”
“Hmm… I think I read about this in a book. If it weren’t these places, we’d need more than four magic circles.”
As Esme said, during the sub-quest, we had to learn this knowledge in the library and check the magic circles while visiting these eight locations.
“Alright. I remember the locations. What’s next, Murmur?”
“Murmur thinks Lady Jepar’s conspiracy will definitely coincide with the ‘Moonlight Choir Festival.'”
“You mean Professor Aphrodite’s Moonlight Choir Festival?”
“Yes, it’s the day we sing under the full moon.”
Esme nodded.
“Right. It’s the day we receive a lot of magical power from the full moon, share delicious snacks, and sing joyfully.”
“It’s also the day when students and faculty, who are usually scattered, gather in one place.”
Thanks to the date the broken status window provided, I was certain, but this is another reason.
“Murmur wants to station people at these eight locations an hour before the Moonlight Choir Festival starts.”
“Is there a reason we’re not erasing the magic circles today?”
“Murmur doesn’t want to play tag with the changeling.”
These eight locations are precious foresight gained from my ‘game knowledge’ and real-world knowledge.
Using this, there’s only one chance to stop the conspiracy and deliver a counter-punch.
If we keep erasing the magic circles, it’s hard to predict how the other side will react. The already derailed main story could spiral out of control.
“If all the magic circles are erased before the choir festival starts, there’s no way to proceed with the conspiracy.”
“Right. And since the hidden Lunarin isn’t infinite, they can’t set up new magic circles.”
“They can’t make desserts with Lunarin at Piglet House anymore, so they can’t supply the magic power needed for the circles.”
Primeordial Rex’s terrifying conspiracy will instantly crumble.
It would be great if we could find them all in the dark and punish them, but that’s quite difficult, so I won’t even consider it.
We’ll do what we can right now.
“Murmur’s plan seems pretty solid. If I were them, I’d definitely set up magic circles in these eight locations.”
“Practically, this choir festival is their only chance. We might not catch the bad changeling impersonating Fenex, but… um, well…”
Esme glanced at us.
“You want to say it doesn’t matter?”
“Aunt Colette always said capturing changelings usually fails. For us, still in the 5th grade of the elementary section, catching a changeling skilled in transformation magic is, in a way, a dream.”
Esme clenched her fists.
“But! If this opportunity falls through, Lady Jepar might tell us more!”
“…Even though we know the hope and memories we provided can’t replace Fenex, you still say that?”
“That changeling is still impersonating Fenex!”
Esme’s eyes sparkled.
“Murmur believes that too. Lady Jepar just couldn’t resist the temptation of being one step closer to seeing her daughter again.”
“I don’t think the world works that softly. But…”
Citrine took my hand.
“If it’s Murmur’s word, I’ll believe it!!”
“Yes! Thank you, Citrine. Then, can you send people from the guild to these eight places Murmur mentioned?”
“Oh~hohoho! That’s easy!”
I nodded and looked at Nicasia.
“Can you help too, Nicasia? It might be dangerous with just the guild members.”
“Sure. I’ll talk to the adults. And I’ll send Riola, Maris, and Brisa too.”
The three maids behind Nicasia smiled.
Great, that’s incredibly reassuring!
“What about asking the professors for help?”
“That’s a great idea! Esme!”
I feel bad for Nicasia and Esme, who are smiling brightly, but the professors won’t help.
The middle school vice-principal will interfere with strange excuses. In the game, it’s hard to even see the professors’ faces before the incident happens.
“Murmur! Let’s do our best!”
Nicasia smiled and hugged me.
“Yes, Murmur will do her best to stop Lady Jepar’s conspiracy.”
“We’ll make the changeling impersonating Fenex cry buckets!”
“Murmur’s plan is perfect!”
Citrine and Esme naturally came over and patted my horn and head.
My head feels a bit weird, but whatever.
I, Murmur, have friends.
* * *
“Mom, mom, you know what?”
“Oh dear, what is it, my daughter?”
“Murmur is amazing and awesome!”
“Murmur?”
“Yes, don’t you know Murmur? She’s super, super amazing! She does anything for her friends!”
The girl, smiling brightly, shoved a pudding dripping with strawberry syrup into her mouth.
“You know! Murmur has these cool horns!”
“This is the first I’m hearing of her. Is she that famous?”
“You have to remember! Murmur is going to be the Demon King!”
The girl picked up a pancake dripping with shiny syrup with her fork and ate it.
“If it’s Murmur, she’ll make sure mom and I can meet forever. She can already summon spirits.”
“Really, my daughter?”
“Yes, Murmur is a great person who will become the Demon King! Right now, she’s small and soft and cute, but she’s super strong and scary!”
The girl brought a cookie her mom had lovingly baked to her mouth and bit into it from the top.
“So remember? No matter what happens, Murmur is a precious and amazing person who will make sure mom and I can meet.”
