That World of Otome Games is Tough for Us - Volume 3 - Chapter 3.1

Chapter 3:

Infiltrating the Royal Castle

THE PRINCIPALITY OF FANOSS had once been an archdukedom under the Holfort Kingdom’s flag. The bloodline of the archduke’s family could be traced all the way back to Holfort’s royal family. Fanoss had won independence from Holfort after frequent outbreaks of war between the two.

They’d been part of the same country and shared the same bloodline, but fighting still broke out. In the wake of all that, they were now bitter enemies.

For the lore of what was supposed to be a fluffy otome game, that part was particularly bloody and brutal. Maybe the developers had tried to flesh out the backstory to make the Principality seem more evil, since they were the game’s villains.

“So this is the royal castle of Fanoss, huh?”

Fanoss’s capital was much like Holfort’s, though on a much smaller scale. Both cities were built around a royal family’s castle. This one sat on an elevated slice of land, jutting upward as befit a fortress.

Marie pulled a face. “The place has no design sense,” she said. “It’s shaped like a plain old box.”

In the gaming sphere, we often referred to blocky, undecorated buildings as having a “tofu” aesthetic. That kind of architecture was convenient and simple, but at the cost of visual appeal, so that was really what it resembled: a plain, boring block of tofu.

“Considering that this is an enemy fortress in the game, I think the unrefined look suits it, don’t you?” I said.

Marie rolled her eyes at me. “What’s wrong with you? You always frame stuff based on how it was back in the game.”

I grimaced. She had a point. I treated this like a video game, rather than as the reality it had become for us.

“My bad,” I said. “Anyway, let’s do this.”

“Yeah.”

The two of us began scaling the fortress’s outer wall, hoisting ourselves upward. Luxion had made our gloves and boots expressly for this purpose. They used suction to latch on to flat surfaces, which made our job easy. He’d done even better with the black outfit he’d made us; although piloted suits whizzed around the castle’s perimeter, guarding against intruders, we melted right into the background. Thanks to our optical camouflage, they couldn’t see us at all.

“I know they can’t physically see us,” I told Marie and Luxion as I continued hauling myself up, “but I’m worried about whether they have magic radar or anything that could detect us. What do you think, Luxion? Will we be okay on that front?”

Luxion hovered above, leading us up the wall. “What capacity they do have to sense magic is primitive at best. My mobile unit is more than able to fool them. But, just in case you need a reminder, your coming here personally to carry out this mission directly contradicted my recommendation.”

In his formal, roundabout way, he was telling me off for ignoring his advice and choosing the hard route. What he didn’t mention was that his recommended course had been unthinkably barbaric, so we’d only had this option in the end.

“And in case you need a reminder,” Marie said, mimicking his tone, “your recommendation was to sink the entire island that the Principality occupies, remember?”

“I simply recommended the quickest, easiest method to accomplish your goals. If there was any demerit to my proposal, it was that we would lose the opportunity to properly analyze the Magic Flute.”

According to Luxion, the Magic Flute that the Principality kept secretly tucked away hadn’t existed back when he was created. The flute had the ability to manifest and control monsters. In exchange for the user’s life, it could also summon a behemoth which had been the first game’s final boss.

“Monsters did not exist when I was created,” Luxion added. “They are most curious beings, given how they simply disappear at the moment of their defeat. I am deeply interested in them.”

That interest was, in fact, what discouraged him from throwing too much of a tantrum when Marie and I opted to infiltrate the castle and steal the two flutes ourselves.

“You annihilation-obsessed maniac. Couldn’t you come up with a more peaceful solution to the problem?” I asked.

“I was merely offering the most efficient one,” he shot back insistently. “I ordinarily oppose anything which would endanger the two of you.”

While Luxion and I bickered, our group finally reached a window that led into the castle proper. Luxion slipped in first to make sure the coast was clear, then urged us to follow.

“We can reach our destination from here,” he said.

Once I was through the window, I paused, turning back and reaching a hand out to help Marie inside. “It almost feels like we’re phantom thieves,” I mused.

She grabbed my hand. “There’s no ‘almost’ about it. That’s exactly what we are.”

***

Vandel Him Zenden, often still referred to as the Black Knight, was an old knight well past his prime. The crown of his head was balding, though he’d grown out the surrounding gray hair that remained, and he had an impressive beard to match. 

The Black Knight was a viscount, which gave him great influence in itself. More importantly, he was the realm’s most powerful knight, which made him an exceptional figure in Fanoss. Vandel was a hero who’d saved the Principality from danger countless times.

Currently, the Black Knight was visiting Fanoss’s royal castle. He’d been meeting with the two princesses, but now that business was over. The hour was growing late; all that remained was for him to leave the premises and return home.

But something gave him pause.

“There’s a foul presence in the air,” he said as he stood before the castle’s gate. He froze, glancing behind him.

The knight seeing him off smiled wearily. “I assure you, should any intruders appear, we’ll have things well in hand. They can’t escape our notice.” The young man sounded confident that their night crew could keep a vigilant watch. 

His words rang hollow to Vandel, however. The ranks of the castle knights teem with weaklings who can’t even sense when the enemy is near, the Black Knight thought. How ironic that the guards here are the least dependable of all. 

The quality of Fanoss’s knights wasn’t necessarily lacking, but that was only if you weighed the army as a whole. The worst of their number were, sadly, the very ones assigned to guard the castle.

“I forgot something. I’ll need to go get it,” Vandel said unconvincingly. It was obvious that he’d made up an excuse, but he quickly spun and began marching back into the castle.

The knight with him panicked at the Black Knight’s sudden decision. “There’s no need to retrieve it yourself. I can do so for you!”

“That’s not necessary!” Vandel barked gruffly.

***

As soon as Luxion led us into the castle’s treasure vault, we began our search in earnest.

“Now, where are those flutes?”

The first game only ever mentioned the Magic Flute the princess used; it wasn’t shown. Therefore, I didn’t know the flutes’ exact properties beyond their ability to manipulate monsters and summon final bosses. Still, those abilities were enough to show they were dangerous.

As I hunted for our marks, the other treasures inside the vault distracted Marie. “Look at all this, Leon!” she exclaimed. “These accessories are amazing. I wonder what kind of price they’d fetch?” She was drooling over a selection of royal necklaces and the like, but rather than fantasizing about wearing them herself, she was interested in pawning them off. It was ironic that she’d been so eager to land a rich man not long ago, yet now it didn’t even occur to her to want any of this treasure for herself.

“Don’t take anything,” I warned her.

“I wasn’t going to!” Marie snapped back. “At any rate, I’m shocked that we got in here so easily.”

It wasn’t surprising that she found it strange; it had really been a piece of cake. We had Luxion to thank for the smoothness of the operation.

Still scanning our surroundings warily, Luxion responded, “Belated though his reaction was, after hearing you speak about the game’s sequel, Master finally requested that I investigate the Principality of Fanoss. I was pressed for time, so I was unable to gather as much intelligence as I would have liked. Still, it was easy enough to find schematics detailing the castle’s layout, security detail, and patrol schedule.”

Marie blinked at him. “You’re really capable of anything, aren’t you?”

“Of course. I’m an exceptional AI.”

I sniffed at that. “And way too full of yourself.”

“I am merely stating facts, but let’s return to the matter at hand. The two Magic Flutes are secured in separate locations. Only one is hidden in this treasure vault.”

When Marie first told me there were two flutes, I’d been shocked. I had to send Luxion on a rush job to investigate, and subsequently to plan our infiltration. None of this would’ve gone so smoothly without him.

Spotting a fancy pedestal with a flute at the center, Marie declared confidently, “I found it! That’s got to be the Magic Flute! I’m pretty sure it looked like that in the game, too!”

“Unfortunately, that is not the real Magic Flute,” said Luxion.

“Huh?” Marie blurted, deflating.

“It’s a replica. The real one is tucked away in a secret room here.” He then explained how to access that room. 

Following his instructions carefully, Marie and I soon discovered a switch allowing us passage through a hidden door. As Luxion had indicated, there was another flute within. It looked exactly like the replica Marie had found.

“There it is,” I said.

Marie scoffed. “Just how scared are they of it getting stolen that they made a replica and put it in plain sight to trick people?”

Both our hands stretched out toward the black flute, only to stop short when Luxion said, “Please do not touch the flute heedlessly. There is a trap in place to stymy would-be thieves. We must disarm it to retrieve the flute safely.”

“Wow,” said Marie. “They’re super cautious.”

Once the trap was disarmed, we snatched our prize. The flute was an ominous-looking object if ever I’d seen one.

“What’re we gonna do with it?” Marie asked with a slight tilt of her head.

Destroying it would put our minds at ease, but there was no telling what the consequences of doing so might be. It could unleash the behemoth sealed within, which would be absolutely terrifying and defeat the whole purpose of our coming here.

“I think our only option is to take it and have Luxion analyze it,” I said. That seemed the safer route.

“First the Saint’s necklace, now this. Everything could be cursed,” Marie grumbled.

Speaking of, we’d left Luxion the necklace to analyze as well, since there was no way to do that ourselves.

“I am in the process of analyzing it now,” Luxion said, referring to the necklace. “As for the flute, please place it in this case for safekeeping.” He had brought along an attaché case the perfect size to hold the Magic Flute. Marie hurriedly tucked the item inside, then snapped the case shut. The locks on the lid clicked, securing it. They were sturdy enough that no one else would be able to crack the case open.

“Good,” I said, dusting my hands. “That’s one flute safely recovered.”

Marie wiped sweat from her forehead. “Yeah, and one more to go. Here’s hoping it’s this easy. Let’s get moving.”

“Hold on. Before we do that…” I started messing things up in the vault, making our break-in more obvious. It was important that Fanoss realize the Magic Flute had been stolen. “Once they know their ace in the hole is gone, they’ll think twice before declaring war on us.”

The whole trigger for the conflict—or, at the very least, a major contributing factor—was the Magic Flute itself. Fanoss wouldn’t go to war with Holfort without the flute to fall back on.

I placed a card on the dais where the item had been. Written on it were the words We took your flute.

“Now, I feel like a real phantom thief.”

With that, we left the treasure vault.

***

Since this was the royal castle, patrols were carried out and guards were stationed at regular intervals, even during the night. It was a well-planned security setup meant to prevent intruders. But what if said intruders knew exactly when the patrolling guards made their rounds and changed shifts?

Luxion had gathered that information beforehand, and his mobile unit was proving adaptable even on the fly. He was using everything at his disposal to gather additional intel in real time to map our route. Marie and I depended on him entirely for guidance. Our confidence in him wasn’t misplaced; en route to our next destination, we never once encountered a single enemy. There were spots along the way where guards stood watch, but the special optical camouflage suits that Luxion had made helped us blend in with our surroundings perfectly. No one was the wiser to our presence.

“These guys are way too lax for palace guards,” I said. It was hard to believe how many of them we’d seen yawning and bleary-eyed.

Marie shrugged. “It works in our favor that way. Now, where’s the other flute?”

As we neared a door, Luxion lurched to a stop. “I must warn you, acquiring the next one will be particularly difficult.” He explained that it was kept in the royal quarters of the younger princess, Hertrauda Sera Fanoss, and that guards were posted outside her room.

“Great. More guards.” I shook my head. “I mean, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, but still.” I slipped the pistol from the holster on my hip. It already had a silencer attached, and I took aim and squeezed the trigger. Muted pops sounded as I fired off each successive round. “Take a little nap, why don’t you? This’ll be over before you know it.”

The guards were momentarily shocked by the sudden pain. They reached for their weapons, only for their eyes to roll back before they could do anything, and then they collapsed to the floor.

“I know you’re just using a stun gun, but that sure was gruesome,” said Marie.

Luxion urged us along. “We only have thirty minutes until the next shift change. I suggest you make this quick.” 

I understood why time was of the essence here, but I couldn’t get on board. “Look, it’d be way too awkward for me to go into a girl’s room.” I turned to Marie. “You get the flute.”

Marie glowered at me. “What?! Why do I have to do the dangerous part? Get your butt in there with me!” She snatched my hand and yanked me along, shoving me through the door before I could figure out how to slip out of her grasp.

Several women were inside the room already. They were all taken aback by my sudden entry.

“Sorry about this,” I said, aiming my gun and stunning them before they could process what was happening. All the women slumped to the floor, unconscious.

Now that there was no one to impede us, Luxion began scanning the room. “I have located the flute,” he announced. He activated a secret switch, and one of the paintings on the wall swung aside to reveal a small vault.

Marie stepped up to the closed vault. “What’s the security code?” she demanded.

“That dial on the front is fake. To open the vault, follow my instructions,” Luxion said.

She did so, and in no time at all, we’d completed our mission. 

“The second flute is ours now!” Marie cried in a hushed voice, cracking the attaché case open to place the two flutes together inside. 

It had proven surprisingly easy to retrieve both. This would be a huge step toward preventing the war that had broken out in the game. Marie and I looked at one another. We nodded and, careful not to make any unnecessary noise, gave each other a soft high five. 

“Done,” I said. “Mission complete.”

“Phew. What a relief it is, too.”

All that was left now was to sneak out and make our way back to—

“Who’s there? Father? Mother?” Hertrauda called out, stirring.

I lifted my gun, ready to fire at the princess, but Marie smacked my hand. “Dummy! She’s still a child!”

“You’re the dummy here!” I retorted.

Luckily, Marie and I were fully decked out in black, including ski masks that hid everything but our eyes. Still, it wasn’t a good sign that Hertrauda had spotted us or heard our voices. Worse, while Marie and I bickered over how to handle her, she was blinking away the last dregs of sleep.

Hertrauda spotted the repositioned painting and the unconscious women on the floor. Her eyes widened. “Y-you rogues!” she cried loudly. “Who sent—”

Marie leaped at her, clamping a hand over the princess’s mouth. “Quiet! If you shout like that, you’ll call attention to us!”

Pretty sure that’s the point.

While I aimed the stun gun at her, hesitating over whether to shoot, Luxion drifted toward me. “I have completely soundproofed the room so no one outside can hear anything,” he said. “Any violence you enact will not call attention to us.”

“Not sure I liked how you phrased that,” I replied.

After all, the girl in front of us was still quite young. She had long, straight black hair, porcelain skin, and gleaming red eyes that spoke to a strong spirit. She was probably only Marie’s height, but she had one prominent feature Marie lacked: Despite her youth, she was particularly well-endowed.

I kept my gun trained on Hertrauda and stepped forward, hoping to intimidate her. For a girl her age, being confronted by a man with a weapon had to be terrifying. Her eyes shimmered with tears, but she glowered at me courageously.

What a strong princess.

“Let her go,” I told Marie.

Startled, Marie stammered, “Wh-what? Are you sure?”

“I want to tell her something.”

Marie peeled her hand away from Hertrauda’s mouth.

“Knaves!” the princess shouted at the top of her lungs. “Guards! Guards!”

However much she called for help, no one came. As soon as reality sank in, she turned meek. Or had she sunk into despair at this point? She was still putting on a brave face, but she was considerably paler now.

After a long pause, she said, “It seems as though you’ve already taken care of the guards outside.”

“It was easy enough,” I replied. “I got the sense that Fanoss doesn’t have the best soldiers.”

Hertrauda glared daggers at me for that comment. I studied her face, wondering whether it was really wise to proceed down this path. But if we avoided war with Fanoss, she and her sister would survive, and it would be dangerous for them to live without knowing the truth of their circumstances.

I beat the first game. There’s got to be some way for me to drop a hint so she can figure things out herself.

“We took your Magic Flute,” I said. “You no longer have your trump card against Holfort.”

“You really don’t think so? If you honestly believe that is the only weapon at our disposal, you’re awfully naive.” Hertrauda huffed and looked away from me.

I wasn’t sure whether her confidence came from an assumption that we hadn’t taken the other flute from their vault or if they really did have another weapon in their arsenal to use against us. Whatever the case, I was impressed that she could stand her ground like this despite her situation. In the game, Hertrauda was just an enemy; meeting her face to face now made me appreciate what an amazing princess she was, with a true backbone.

“Posturing does you no favors. We took the other flute you had in the treasure vault as well,” I said. “And I don’t mean the replica you so cleverly set in plain view. I mean the real one you tucked away in a secret room.”

Hertrauda’s shoulders flinched. I’d cracked her bravado. A more seasoned princess would’ve hidden her emotions better, but nevertheless, I appreciated her honest response.

Marie watched our exchange silently.

“Does that vex you?” I asked the princess.

“Not particularly. If you wish to kill me, then by all means do so. However, you must know that you will pay dearly for it.”

I shook my head at her sadly. “I pity you. Really, I do. You’re completely ignorant of the truth and haven’t even realized they’re pulling your strings. You’re nothing but a convenient puppet to them.”

Her back straightened. “How dare you?”

“If you want to know the truth, look into your country’s real history. The old man in your archives ought to be able to steer you the right way.”

That man had only been mentioned in passing during the game. I think he’s the one who helped the protagonist and her love interest find out the truth about the relationship between Holfort and Fanoss. I can’t quite remember the details, though. It was a vague recollection at best, and I wasn’t sure my hint was sufficient to get Hertrauda the answers she needed. Regardless, I hoped it would at least be a starting point for her.

“Of course, that’s assuming you’re brave enough to face the truth.” 

Keeping the gun trained on Hertrauda, I reached for Marie and pulled her along to exit the room. As soon as we were out the door, I began pumping my legs as hard as I could. Marie sped after me.

“Hold on! What was that conversation about?! You never mentioned any of that to me!” she yelped.

Luxion seemed similarly puzzled. “I saw no purpose in that entire exchange. Even assuming that Hertrauda learns the truth after this, what benefit will that have?”

“Who knows?! Maybe it’ll bring our nations closer to peace!” I said.

I hoped that, once she knew the truth, that might at least lead us to a more amicable path. If it would help us avoid war, I was happy to give her some vague advice.

“Now that they no longer possess both Magic Flutes, there should be no issues in that regard,” Luxion reminded me.

“Yeah, well, taking the flutes wasn’t my preferred method of solving things!”

I was eager for us to get out of the castle altogether and hop on our airbike so we could blow this place. With our mission complete, we just had to make it out of here safely.

“This is the end of our stint as phantom thieves,” I declared. “I never want to do this crap again!”

“I’m as done with it as you are!” agreed Marie.

I beelined for the exit, taking the shortest route available.

“Master,” Luxion cut in, interrupting my concentration, “I have detected an unexpected, powerful enemy presence.”