Chapter 292: The Organization’s Leader
Everyone fell silent at Charlotte’s words.
This ‘Ice Kingdom’ would collapse? Rui surveyed the buildings visible from the alley.
Every building was covered in a thin layer of ice, sparkling brilliantly. The “ice” created by magic was far stronger than ordinary ice.
And it covered the entire city. It was hard to believe it could be easily destroyed.
“Is it really… certain that Monsters will attack?”
Rui looked at Charlotte with a serious expression.
“I don’t have any solid proof, but I believe they will come. Even if the Monsters don’t attack, if we remain holed up like this, we’ll eventually run out of food and resources. If that happens, the citizens will have no choice but to die. We have to strike out somewhere…”
“The English government is being hesitant, aren’t they?”
At Rui’s question, Charlotte nodded curtly.
“Our Seeker organization and the government have different ideas. The Seekers argued that we should fight while we still have some leeway, while the government says we should consider it carefully. In short, they want to postpone it. They don’t want to take responsibility if we fail.”
Charlotte bit her lip, looking frustrated.
She seemed to have a lot on her mind. Rui and Yuma exchanged glances and nodded to each other.
“Charlotte-san, we also agree with the Seekers’ idea. The Blue King will eventually come to kill all humans. He has that much power. We need to start preparing to fight now.”
“Even so, it’s not easy. Failure is not an option. If we do it, we have to take down the Blue King for sure.”
Charlotte and Michael looked troubled. It seemed the Seekers lacked sufficient fighting strength. Rui stepped forward as if on cue.
“Then we can be of help! You know my abilities, and Yuma’s abilities too. We’ll definitely be a valuable asset, so please let us fight alongside you!”
“That’s… true, but…”
Charlotte turned her gaze to Yuma, making an indescribable expression. She still didn’t seem to trust him completely.
Thinking so, Rui wondered if he could somehow persuade her.
Should he tell her that Yuma had defeated the Red King and the Green Lord? But he was worried that saying the wrong thing might make her distrustful.
Ultimately, Rui and Yuma’s goal was, as originally planned, to fulfill the subjugation request from the English government and receive the White Magic Gem.
To do that, they needed Charlotte to put in a good word for them with the government.
After thinking with her hand to her mouth for a while, Charlotte looked at Yuma and Rui again.
“Alright. For now, I’ll take you to our organization. We’ll make a decision there.”
“Understood. That’s fine with us.”
Rui and Yuma agreed, and they decided to go with her.
Rui approached Eliza, who had been watching the situation unfold from behind, and called out to her.
“Eliza-san, we’re going with Charlotte-san and the others. We don’t need any more guidance, so please return.”
“I see… Understood.”
Eliza nodded in agreement, bowed, and left.
She was a government official, so she couldn’t come with them. Michael, who was walking ahead, beckoned, “This way.”
Rui and Yuma jogged to catch up with the two of them.
◇◇◇
The two were led to a large commercial building. It was also coated in ice, reflecting the sunlight.
“This way.”
Urged by Charlotte, they passed through the front doors and entered the entrance hall.
Inside were several men. They were wearing the same uniform as Charlotte and Michael. They all seemed to be Seekers.
“Charlotte, you’re back. What’s this? Who are these guys?”
A white man in his thirties called out to them. Charlotte answered casually.
“Just some acquaintances. By the way, is Hans-san upstairs?”
“Yeah, he’s in a meeting with the executives. Well, I don’t know what kind of meeting it is, though.”
The man laughed self-deprecatingly. According to Charlotte and the others, the English Seekers were not given any roles and were bored.
Yuma thought that this man was probably dissatisfied with the situation.
“Let’s go.”
The group left the entrance hall and got into an elevator. Charlotte pressed the button for the 20th floor.
“The person we’re going to meet is the leader who oversees all the Seeker Clans in England. Unless we get his permission, we won’t be able to cooperate with you.”
Hearing Charlotte’s story, Rui frowned.
“Aren’t you the leader, Charlotte-san? I thought you were the one in charge of everyone…”
“I’m just the leader of one Seeker Clan called ‘Ophanims’. I don’t have the ability to oversee all the Seeker Clans.”
While they were talking, the elevator arrived at the 20th floor.
The doors opened, revealing a long corridor. The floor was covered with pearl-gray carpet, and the doors lining the hallway had a luxurious wood-grain finish.
Yuma thought that the interior was more like a luxury hotel than an office building.
As he looked around curiously, Charlotte stopped in front of the door at the far end of the corridor.
After knocking lightly and saying, “Excuse me,” she opened the door and entered.
Yuma and the others followed her inside, and they saw about five men and women in the center of the large room. They were spreading a map on a large table and discussing something.
One of them looked up and saw them.
“Oh, Charlotte. You’re back… Hmm? Who are those two?”
A short-haired man with graying hair approached them with a puzzled look. He was probably over fifty years old. His eyes were sharp, and he looked Yuma and Rui up and down.
“Hans-san, these two are Seekers who came from Japan. They crossed the sea to fight alongside us… I’m in favor of cooperating with them, but I wanted to hear your opinion, Hans-san.”
“From Japan?”
Hans looked surprised.
“Hmm, I did hear that the government asked Japan for support. That’s because information about the Red King being defeated was circulating. However…”
Hans frowned as he looked at Yuma and Rui.
“Just the two of you? Do you have any companions?”
It was a natural question. Rui stepped forward and opened his mouth.
“For now, it’s just the two of us. We have another companion who should be able to join us soon.”
Hearing that, Hans made a low groan.
“Hmm, I was expecting a fairly large Seeker Clan to come… It seems my expectations were off. I’m sorry to say, but we can’t move right now either. You can assume that there won’t be any opportunities to fight Monsters for the time being.”
“Hans-san, about that…”
Charlotte stepped forward and explained to Hans about Yuma and Rui. She told him that Rui had fought alongside her in the Black Armor subjugation operation.
And regarding Yuma’s identity—
“The ‘Black Armor’!? You’re the one who…?”
Hans widened his eyes and glared at Yuma with an incredulous expression.