The Protagonist’s Party is Too Diligent – 89
EP.89 Information (3)
“And so?”
Yet the conversation didn’t end there. Bella’s question prompted Alice to look at her, as if wondering why she even asked.
“What do you mean, ‘and so?’”
“Were you really just going to drop that bit of information and leave? It takes ages to get from here to Northwood, and even knowing a Knight Templar is lurking there won’t help us much unless we’re doing something about it.”
I scooped a spoonful of mango parfait, tasting the creamy, sweet ice cream perfectly blended with a slightly tart mango chunk. The warm weather made it even better, making me think that this combination might really be the inspiration behind the French term parfait, the “perfect dessert.”
I regretted not trying some parfaits when I went to Velbur last time. At the time, I’d been so shocked by the Emperor appointing me as his representative that I hadn’t thought of indulging in any delicacies. But next time I made it to Velbur, I promised myself I’d try the cafe recommendation Charlotte had given me.
“Father only ever shares information with us when he wants us to act on it.”
“When he wants ‘us’ to do something, you mean—not ‘you,’”
Bella corrected Alice’s words.
The ones who moved on direct orders from the Emperor were not the real princess Alice, but the so-called “Children of the Emperor,” who were practically the Emperor’s personal assassination squad. I was included among them.
Although, compared to the original storyline, it seemed the number and risk of these assignments had decreased significantly, yet we still carried out missions when required.
“…So? What’s the reason for coming all the way here and revealing that Sylvia is being watched while giving us this information?”
I took another spoonful of parfait and put it in my mouth. This time, I scooped more fruit than ice cream. Despite being transported from so far away, the fruit retained a fresh burst of flavor. I wondered if it would taste even better in its place of origin.
“That assumption is wrong. Do you think Sylvia wouldn’t know if I kept sticking close to her? She likely figured that out back when Lucas was stationed around her.”
Not really. I hadn’t even noticed Mia Crowfield’s clumsy tracking attempts until much later, let alone Lucas’ moves, who was far more skilled.
“She’d probably know exactly where Lucas is if you asked her right now.”
No, I didn’t know. If I knew Lucas’ location in the near future, I might be able to turn back time and pretend to know, but honestly, I didn’t think I’d know it soon enough to want to turn back time.
Of course, there’s no need to reveal that I don’t know. It would be weird to spill the latest information that I absolutely couldn’t know and then admit I don’t know Lucas’s location.
Let’s just not answer.
“You keep dodging the question, so why tell me all this?”
Obviously, it was a command to infiltrate the casino.
In the original story, it was Claire who appeared to deliver this information. At the beginning, her character was introduced simply as the “decadent-looking girl” in the character description field. At least it was her first appearance, so the atmosphere wasn’t too heavy with everyone pretending not to recognize a familiar character.
Alice appeared in the early stages with a somewhat suspicious role, like a character who “appeared diligent on the surface but harbored secrets within,” meant to mislead players. There was even a scene where she engaged in a mysterious conversation with an unknown figure without the protagonist’s knowledge, which was presented as an event cutscene. Given the atmosphere, it was easy for players to misinterpret her as a hidden villain at first.
Besides, they only shared a few clipped lines of their conversation, cutting out most of it to leave vague exchanges like, “…Alright. I’ll keep that information in mind.” It was so blatantly ominous that no one actually believed it.
“Before the break… there’s that, what was it, field training? You have one more round of it, right? I’ve changed the order a bit. This time, you’ll be heading to Northwood for the field training. That includes going near the casino. Even though it may look secure, it’s surrounded entirely by forest.”
Thanks to the dense woods, the casino’s perimeter was virtually impenetrable. Though the trees had been cleared around the casino itself, beyond its boundaries was a forest so vast that anyone trying to flee wouldn’t make it out alive.
There was a bit of history tying the place to local mafias, but that wasn’t something worth bringing up now.
“They say it’s a ‘natural haven of forests’ unlike any other in the Empire… but that also means wild beasts emerge constantly. Naturally, there are hunting requests for around there as well.”
“And?”
Poor Alice seems not to have thought about her own future.
“If you’re really the Emperor’s daughter, then you should carry out the same missions as us.”
That was Claire’s line in this scene. Of course, the Claire of this world was likely either training or studying diligently.
If a game like this included a casino setting, it was usually for one reason: to dress the heroines in bunny-girl outfits. For a game that’s somewhat niche and doesn’t get many figures, there should at least be some fan service scenes like this.
Claire also participated in the infiltration. Both of them dressed as bunny-girls, with masquerade-style masks, as they poked around deep within the casino, only to be caught by Leo.
At first, Leo brushed it off, thinking, “Nah, there’s no way Her Highness would be doing that here.”
…This line, as it happened, had inspired a few fan artists, though that was of no concern to the original game.
“And, well, I came here to ask a favor.”
How would Alice respond? I was genuinely curious, as the game hadn’t shown Alice’s reaction to this line.
I took another spoonful of parfait, eagerly awaiting Bella’s next line and Alice’s response—
“For Sylvia, of course.”
I froze.
“Umm, originally I wanted to ask our real princess and see her reaction.”
Bella smirked mischievously, rolling her eyes towards me.
“After all, there’s someone here who already knows every piece of information without me having to spell it all out.”
“What did Father say?”
When Alice looked at my face and asked, Bella shrugged and replied casually.
“Well, he told me to pass it along to Sylvia.”
“……”
At that, Alice bit her lip.
“Fine. Tell Father this loud and clear.”
Alice glared at Bella, whose expression turned into a mockingly fearful look as she shrugged her shoulders, clearly unphased.
“I’m going on this mission as well—as the ‘other’ princess.”
Uh.
No, no, no.
If you go there, you’ll end up in a bunny girl outfit, too.
Of course, to me, Alice’s bunny girl costume would simply look like a high-quality cosplay, perfectly faithful to the original heroine’s character design. But the problem was that I’d most likely end up in a bunny girl outfit right beside her.
And if things followed the game’s storyline, Leo, who came along with Jake, would likely catch us in that get-up. I didn’t plan on leaving Alice to roam around solo in a bunny costume, after all.
“Oh?”
Bella let out an amused chuckle as she noticed Alice’s determined expression.
“Is this some kind of ‘big sister’ role-playing?”
She teased.
“Of course it is.”
Alice straightened her back, proudly replying to Bella’s remark.
“As someone with imperial blood, I always keep my word. I declared myself Sylvia’s older sister, so as her big sister, I plan to protect her.”
That’s not the issue here.
Alice knew my skills. She was also aware of my history on the battlefield, so she wouldn’t think the mission would end in disaster or that I’d lose my life by going alone. This was pure competitive spirit.
The grin she shot me seemed to say, “See? You have allies too!”
“Well, alright then.”
Bella shrugged again, looking at Alice.
“I was planning to watch from a distance… but now this story’s getting interesting. It would be a shame if I didn’t join when both sisters are sneaking in together. Count me in as well.”
At Bella’s declaration, Alice once again shot her a sharp look, which Bella met with a confident smile.
…So with Bella joining the team…
Were we all going to infiltrate before I even had a say?
It was nothing short of a miracle that my expression didn’t change in that moment.