Combatants Will Be Dispatched - Volume 7 - Chapter 4.3

3

Adelie bows her head along with the cameraman and knights.

“Thank you very much! Without your help, he would’ve taken the sorcery stone!”

Under assault from Belial, Tiger Man started yowling as he dodged her attacks, then tossed a stun grenade before retreating.

As a woodlands combat expert who specializes in sneak attacks, Tiger Man’s fond of making use of stun grenades.

It’s why he even wears sunglasses that protect against the flashes.

“What I didn’t expect was...”

Adelie looks over at us with a torn expression.

“That this gentlewoman is Agentsix’s superior. Lady Belial, yes? Allow me to once again express my gratitude. Thank you so very much for helping me.”

Adelie eyed us warily when we emerged from the copse of trees, but now she’s let down her guard.

"I wanted to finish him off myself, but, well, I'm glad to see you lot are unharmed.”

Pleased that Belial is worried about her, Adelie blushes faintly.

“Do you have a history with that monster, Lady Belial?”

“Yeah, he used to be my underling.”

“Lady Belial, what are you saying?! They didn’t know Tiger Man was one of ours!”

Adelie freezes up in shock, and Belial just smirks at my urgent whispering.

“If you’re going to make it as part of an evil corporation, you need to know how to always live on the razor’s edge. Screw playing it safe. You and I are both villains; live for a good time, not a long time!”

Why does the Kisaragi Corporation always seem to attract these sorts of people? I wish they’d pick up some common sense from me.

I mean, this is Belial we’re talking about. If things go wrong, she’s probably figuring she can brute-force her way out of it.

“You just enjoy riling everyone up, don't you, Lady Belial? Just recently, we were in similar circumstances where we had to try to make sure we didn’t tip off the other party. Combat Agent Ten started enjoying himself by trying to make us break character and mess up like you're doing right now, Lady Belial...”

“She’s just using a bit of Kisaragi-brand humor. Of course, we don’t know anything about that monster.”

“0-oh, I see now! Heh, you had me going there for a minute! I even heard you talking in a language that sounded like the one the monster was using..

Belial does a complete 180, probably because she doesn’t want to be mentioned in the same breath as Ten. Adelie looks at Belial with eyes shimmering with admiration and holds out her hand.

“Lady Belial, your sense of justice is remarkable! I’m Adelie the Gray Savior, Apostle of the Hiiragi Agency of Order!”

“So you're an enemy!”

Adelie, who was holding her hand out for a handshake, instead gets a headbutt from Belial and crumples to her knees.

“Who else did you think she was? You told me yesterday that you completely understood the situation after I explained it to you.”

“I was just letting you talk for maybe eighty percent of it, duh. Still, this makes things a lot easier.” Belial smiles maliciously as she grabs Adelie by the collar and lifts her up.

“Adelwhatever of our competition. You admit that we saved you despite the fact that you’re our competitor, right? And you admit that if I hadn’t stepped in, you would’ve lost the sorcery stone, right?”

“O-of course... We, the Hiiragi Agency of Order, are a just and righteous organization. We repay our debts.”

While Adelie’s got tears welling in her eyes from the pain of the headbutt, she doesn’t give an inch even as Belial has her dangling off the ground.

“So long as you understand. Then let’s make this quick. You’re going to repay us with that sorcery stone.”

“What?! What are you talking about?! I can’t possibly do that! Technically, it isn't mine to give...!”

While the knights around Adelie ready their weapons, the most they can do is look on at Belial from a distance as they recall how easily she defeated Tiger Man.

Adelie, hanging off the ground as Belial holds her aloft with one hand, tucks the sorcery stone against her stomach to show she won’t give it up.

“I-I’ll repay the debt with something else! I can’t give this to you; there’s people who need it!”

“...Fine. Then I’ll accept something else.”

Evidently impressed by Adelie’s defiance, Belial sighs and sets Adelie on the ground.

Adelie looks up at Belial with a sigh of relief.

“Your organization’s name, Hiiragi. It’s too close to Kisaragi, and it’s confusing to people. Change your name to make it clear you’re on the other side. Use one of those normal names like Whateverangers.”

"What the heck!”

As Adelie cradles the sorcery stone and backs away on the ground, Belial snaps at her.

“No on the sorcery stone, no on the renaming! You’re being awfully unreasonable considering you’re in my debt!”

“I-I am not! Hey, people watching this broadcast, am I being unreasonable?!”

The cornered Adelie makes her appeal to the camera, when Alice murmurs something to Belial.

“...Fine. We’ll just say you owe us a favor for this one. Hurry up and take your sorcery stone to the people who need it.”

Adelie cowers as Belial suddenly becomes calmer, but she screws up the courage to announce to us.

“I’ll be sure to repay this debt! But I win this time! The Hiiragi Agency of Order...”

Adelie pauses a moment to build up dramatic tension.

“Will never bow to evil!”

And makes a pose toward the camera.

"..."

“W-w-wait! Are you mad because I was mugging for the camera?! I'll apologize for that, but we'll be on our way for now!”

Belial, irked by Adelie’s posing, wordlessly shuffles toward her, prompting Adelie and her knights to flee.

Having returned to our inn, we turn on the mystery TV.

And here they’ return in triumph! Dame Adelheid, the Apostle summoned by Prince Madia by the Hiiragi Agency of Order, has brought back a sorcery stone! The crisis that was feared when the national treasure was stolen has now been averted!

On the screen in front of us, Adelie is waving her hand to the camera, and the reporter declares loudly that it’s all thanks to Prince Madia.

I look at this less-than-pleasing segment and turn to Alice as she dangles her legs off the side of the bed.

“Hey, are you sure we made the right call here? It looks like game, set, match to me.”
"As I told Lady Belial at the time, there’s still a plan C to go. But to get that to succeed, we can’t have her going on a rampage on camera.”

Rose, who has been strangely quiet, says in response with a downturned gaze:

“Um...is there any way we can help Tiger Man this time? He seems to have been really dedicated to helping Princess Nadia, and I have to admit I’d like to help make her wish come true, too.”

It all got lost in the hubbub because Belial cut him off, but I'm pretty sure Tiger Man wants to get Nadia on the throne to stop this stupid fight over the succession.

I don't know what she’s like since we haven't met her yet, but based on Tiger Man’s story, she seems better than the other two.

“I can’t say anything about that for now. Tiger Man’s started it on his own, so it’s his responsibility to get it done.”

Rose seems to deflate even more at Alice’s harsh judgment.

“But Tiger Man is Kisaragi’s most powerful mutant. Even without our help, he might be able to snag a sorcery stone or two on his own.”

“Miss Alice...you’re right. Evidently you can obtain one of those stones by defeating a superior dragon, and I can see Tiger Man going and hunting one!”

Something about Rose’s statement makes something rattle around in my memory.

Yeah, I feel like we’re forgetting something concerning sorcery stones...

As I’m trying to remember whatever that might be, Belial excitedly asks Alice:

“So what are we going to do now? You have this plan C, right?”

“The plan itself is pretty simple. But to do it, we need a sorcery stone.”

Alice then hops off the bed.

“The sorcery stone should arrive in this city soon. Let’s go pick it up before Tiger Man notices!”

We leave the city of Grunade and walk down the highway leading to the Midgard Mountains.

...How long have we been walking?

The sky starts to get darker, and we start setting up camp. Just then...

"Hey, there’s someone coming this way.”

With her exceptionally good instincts, Belial notices there’s someone approaching us from the other end of the highway.

I turn to face that direction at her prompting.

“You there! Could we trouble you for something to eat?! I am Snow, Knight Commander of the Grace Kingdom Royal Guard! Do not worry! I have no hostile intentions, and I have money to offer! So please.. .please give her something to eat!”

Snow is there, with a slumped Heine on one shoulder, using her sword as a cane.