Editing Saijaku Muhai no Bahamut:Volume 10 Episode 1 (section)

===Part 2===
Inside the underground library where countless bookshelves were lined up.

In that hidden room that existed within the Academy’s grounds, Lux couldn’t believe what he was told.

「What do you mean that there is a traitor within the world alliance?」

Lux asked back with bewilderment to the girl──no, her appearance was young, but she was a woman with a personality of quite many accumulated years.

The captain of the Seven Dragon Paladins, Magialca zen Vanfrick.

What the female leader of the world’s biggest conglomerate told him was actually a simple answer.

The erasure of the traitor was one of the demands that Listelka, the imperial princess of the Lords, mentioned at the world summit.

Her first demand was the annihilation of the hostile organization, Dragon Marauder.

Second, the investigation and discovery of the seventh Ruin, Moon.

Third, the suppression of the traitor that was assumed to be hiding within the alliance.

All of those demands were presented by the lords as issues for the sake of conquering all the Ruins within half a year, but honestly speaking something felt out of place.

「Well, we cannot assert that there is no traitor among us. In the first place if it’s something like keeping silent about the information related to Ruins that has to be reported, every country isn’t completely innocent of that isn’t that right?」

「…………」

Lux too could do nothing but stay quiet at the question that was filled with repulsive jest.

Just like how the Ymir Theocracy stayed quiet about the matter of the Automaton Ney Louches, the New Kingdom also stayed silent about possessing one of the Grand Forces since some time ago.

By the way, the Dark Marketer Hayes who attacked the New Kingdom to destroy the country.

Her existence that possessed the same traits as the ancient Lords──the people of the Holy Arcadia Empire, after that Listelka was also questioned about her.

『Yes, my little sister was awakened a few years earlier than me from our sleep. I’m not sure why she rushed to do such things, but my little sister has redeemed her sins with the loss of her life. Perhaps she was feeling anger and unease──that she has to take back what had been plundered from the Ruins during our sleep. Regarding our inability to stop my little sister’s act that was the result of a misunderstanding, I will apologize as the representative of our side.』

She easily reciprocated like that.

If she said that the tragedy occurred because the people of the Old Empire laid their hands and robbed the Ruins that were managed by the Lords, then their side was also unable to press further.

Although, in regards to Hayes, there was also signs that she had already awakened since the time of human experiments in the era of the Old Empire but──there was no proof or anything left about that.

「Of course, the possibility that those fossils mentioned punishing the traitor only as a deterrence to the countries from here on also cannot be discounted. But from the way they talked, I felt that they had a more definite idea about the traitor’s existence.」

「That’s──?」

When Lux reflexively asked back, Magialca crossed her arms and grinned fearlessly.

「You don’t get the idea? It’s the existence of the rebels called Dragon Marauder.」

「……!? Dragon Marauder, is it?」

The warmonger mercenary organization that was employed by influential people who held enmity against the countries that were monopolizing the Ruins.

A group that was similarly plotting to conquer the Ruins should be an opponent that was unrelated to the traitor amidst the world alliance but──

「Don’t tell me there is a traitor that is connected to them amidst us?」

When Lux spoke that cautiously, Magialca cast her eyes down and nodded.

「Well, that’s how it is. In the first place there are several suspicious points about Dragon Marauder’s existence itself.」

Magialca continued the talk while sighing.

「It seems those guys are using Drag-Rides and weapons that were illegally excavated from the Ruins, but the big countries too aren’t that stupid. No one can steal from the Ruins that easily. In that case, isn’t it normal to think that at first there was a country somewhere that illegally diverted Drag-Rides to them?」

「……Then, you are saying that there is a traitor in the Heiburg Republic means──」

Lux muttered with a nervous look. Magialca opened her eyes in admiration.

「As expected from my favorite hero. You’ve got prospect.」

Magialca’s finger tried to stroke Lux’s chest with a natural movement, but because Lux quietly backed away, her finger cut through the air in vain.

「Cough. The Black Marketer Hayes who raised havoc in the market since some years ago. That woman was doubtlessly involved in the founding of Dragon Marauder.」

「How, can you reach that conclusion?」

「The ledger. Even like this I’m a head of a company. A few years ago, when I did a business of selling Drag-Rides with a high price, for some reason there was a business rival who I couldn’t match at all. That was really irritating. Several get rich quick schemes that wouldn’t come that often slipped away from me──」

「Eerr, then Hayes sold Drag-Rides that she brought out from the Ruins to Heiburg, and then from there Heiburg diverted them into Dragon Marauder, is that right?」

When Lux cut off Magialca’s resentful complain with his question, she immediately nodded.

「The possibility is there. Using the Drag-Ride production facility that is rumored to exist within the Ruin Gigas, that woman conspired with Heiburg’s army commander. She raised her fame in less than a few years by doing that and climbed to the top to become a country’s strategist. It is quite a possible reason isn’t it?」

「……Say, could it be that captain is holding a grudge about that time?」

When Lux spontaneously asked after hearing Magialca’s tone that was overflowing with cynicism,

「That’s not true at all. I only thought that there is no way a newcomer who can do business better than me without doing any petty tricks or fraud could exist. Something like feeling vexed because my own plan got crushed is something that never crossed my mind in the slightest.」

「I, is that so……. But, even if Heiburg’s military division was really connected with Dragon Marauder──now it’s already too late.」

Hayes had vanished, and nowadays Dragon Marauder’s prominence was standing out.

Lux thought that there would be no more merit of doing business negotiation with them.

「No……that negotiation will surely happen before long. Business relationships aren’t something that can be cut off that easily until you find the substitute. With the increase in the danger level of the Ruins at present, those Dragon Marauders are losing a lot of their forces. They got no other place to depend on other than Heiburg.」

The rampage of Dilwy that happened in the Vanheim Principality.

The failure of Pope Nias’s kidnapping plan in the Ymir Theocracy.

And then the rescue operation of the division commander Drakkhen that happened in the New Kingdom just the other day.

It wouldn’t be wrong to consider that Dragon Marauder had lost quite a number of soldiers and Drag-Rides from those battles.

Their remaining decent Drag-Knights were less than 200, thus they would want to reinforce their battle force, surely.

「But, Heiburg’s military shouldn’t have any reason to respond to them right?」

Even if Heiburg was connected to Dragon Marauder, in this situation after the Lord’s imperial family had given a warning, they shouldn’t be able to make contact carelessly.

When Lux expressed his opinion, the mature girl chuckled and stared at him.

「Then while sudden, here is a question. In case you want to carry out a hidden transaction, what kind of method are you going to use?」

「Hidden, transaction is it……?」

Even if he was asked that, he had no recollection of doing business discussion in his time of doing chores.

But at the time that was predating it, if it was from the time when Lux was elaborating the plan to destroy the old empire──.

「I would do it behind the scenes of some kind of big event, or else……」

「Mix it inside that big event itself. Something like that right? And then, soon Heiburg will be holding a fair that is called the Underground Market.」

「Ah……」

Lux reflexively slipped out his voice seeing Magialca’s hinting smile.

「Now you see. Those Lord bunches will go around looking at the various unconquered Ruins while putting the world alliance under surveillance. On the other hand because Heiburg had finished conquering Gigas, the surveillance on them is thin. Don’t you think that the next Underground Market is just the ideal chance?」

「Then──」

「Right. If you can just pin down the transaction place, I’ll be right behind you then. Go carefully okay, mister hero.」

Magialca’s wicked smile looked like she had a hidden motive.

When Lux was going to turn his back on her and leave, she recalled something and said it to him.

「Aa, wait a second my sweetheart. This is a message from Relie about a different matter but, recently do you have something that you want? She will prepare anything you want as the reward of this mission you know?」

──Suddenly she said such thing that was unrelated with the main topic.