Rihart briefly outlined the purpose and duties of the survey team without any unnecessary remarks, then brought the project orientation to an end.
He didn't take any questions either.
It was an imperial decree, and with an imperial scribe staring right at them while taking down the minutes, no sane person would dare raise an objection.
The moment the first meeting ended, he returned to the Black Knights' headquarters and walked out toward the terrace overlooking the capital.
Taking a black case from inside his uniform jacket, he drew out a cigarette.
He then slowly brought it to his lips, keeping his gaze fixed in the direction of the Land of Chaos.
Soon, a thick, grassy scent reminiscent of burning poisonous roots drifted all around, accompanied by pale haze.
As the acrid smoke numbed his ruined sense of smell, his sharply boiling nerves finally calmed a little.
‘…The Land of Chaos.’
The thought briefly crossed his mind that a monster habitat might be preferable to a party hall teeming with aristocrats who reeked of nauseating perfume.
Declining invitations from nobles was a hassle in itself, and at the very least, venturing into a demonic realm would free him from such annoyances…
It was while he was blowing out cigarette smoke with such idle thoughts.
Lewis, assigned to the project's escort detail, approached.
He was an exceptional swordsman with hair as fiery red as a flame, and having once lived as a mercenary, he harbored the strongest rebellious streak in the order.
Even so, Rihart paid that no mind and chose four of the Black Knights' very finest elites as the survey team's guard.
Protecting the researchers and healers was merely a pretext; he simply worked best with those four.
At Rihart's indifferent reply, Lewis scratched his head with an expression of thorough discontent.
He grumbled.
The Emperor truly was too much.
Entering a demonic realm was hardly knightly business, yet His Majesty had gone ahead and appointed his master as the head of a special survey team.
“…”
What was even more terrifying was that for Rihart, who had cleaved that rampaging monstrous bird in a single stroke, clearing out the frenzied beasts before they breached the border was entirely feasible.
Just as Lewis was muttering about how the Emperor was working his own nephew to the bone, someone else spoke up.
Hugo, having returned after retrieving the class-one classified documents, called out in a stern voice.
Listening to their usual clichéd bickering while lightly flicking the ash from his cigarette, Rihart suddenly spoke.
Lewis protested in an aggrieved tone.
Rihart's long eyes narrowed.
Seeing his master looking unusually amused caught Lewis off guard.
Good grief.
Seeing his master, a man otherwise indifferent to everything, display such fierce obsession left Lewis inwardly stunned.
Because the search for the white-haired woman had ceased over the past few days, he had assumed Rihart had moved on—only to discover he had struck a deal with the Emperor.
Still… the moment the imperial family stepped in, the chances of failing to find her dropped dramatically.
After all, under an imperial decree, they could search anywhere across the entire empire as they pleased.
The information networks spread across every corner would operate on a whole different level, too.
‘Willingly marching straight into a demonic realm for a woman he's met only once.’
Thinking that late-blooming infatuation was truly a frightening thing, Lewis clicked his tongue inwardly.
***
After the first project meeting concluded.
Before her daze could even fade, Mona was summoned by an official dispatched from the imperial court.
Handing over a stiff appointment letter adorned with gold foil along with a bundle of documents, the imperial official said to her:
Mona cast her gaze down at the appointment letter with a heavy heart.
LETTER OF APPOINTMENT
Name: Mona Bellose
You are hereby appointed as a researcher of the Special Survey Team by direct imperial decree.
- Appointment Period: From October 30, Imperial Year 664 until the conclusion of the survey.
Perhaps because of her reunion with that unreal man, looking at such an official document felt entirely devoid of reality.
Stuffing the appointment letter and project documents haphazardly into her bag, Mona trudged down the hill from the old command headquarters.
The sharp corners of the stiff, starched appointment letter poked ceaselessly at the inside of her arm.
Readjusting the bag over and over as she boarded a shared carriage, Mona stared pale-faced out the window the entire ride back to the dormitory.
“…Phew.”
Only upon opening the door to her dormitory room did the tension suffocating her chest ease, allowing a long sigh to escape.
Kicking off her shoes, she dumped the bag heavy with papers onto her desk.
The ornate, gold-crested appointment letter and a thick stack of papers spilled across the desk with a clatter.
“…”
After a brief hesitation, Mona cautiously picked up the stack of papers.
Inside were a copy of the non-disclosure agreement prohibiting any mention of this project to the outside world, as well as the support package provided by the imperial family to the survey team.
Skimming the intricate agreement with dead, glassy eyes, Mona's gaze suddenly sparkled the moment it landed on the ‘Support Details’ section.
‘They're giving… this much research funding?’
This amount was on par with the monthly salary of a high-ranking official.
Feeling somewhat bewildered, Mona pushed up her thick glasses and checked the numbers once more.
Yet no matter how hard she peered at it, she hadn't misread the figures.
‘They're giving this amount every single month?’
She wondered if she would have to spit it back out if she failed to produce commensurate results, but no such clause existed.
Even more astonishingly, an operational stipend was budgeted separately from the research funds, lodging was fully covered, and all necessary survey equipment would be provided.
…So this was what it felt like to be on a project backed by the ruler of the nation.
Having barely scraped by on a pittance of departmental research funds and meager scholarships, Mona sniffled.
Was it from being touched?
Not at all.
‘If only that man, Rihart, weren't there, I could celebrate with my whole heart…’
Tears pricked her eyes at the wretched irony of contemplating exile to another country in the face of such a flawless project.
‘…What on earth am I supposed to do?’
Working beneath that terrifying man carried far too much risk, but defying an imperial decree was out of the question as well…
‘I'm completely cornered…’
Biting her lip in her misery, feeling like a rat caught in a trap, Mona gasped aloud the moment she saw the final item listed in the document.
4. Additional Support
- Authorization to view rare literature and records held in the imperial archives.
R-Rare imperial literature…?
Her heart, which had only skipped a brief beat at the generous funds and stipends, suddenly began to hammer frantically against her ribs.
Even when faced with the latest fashionable trends, Mona felt indifferent, and her greed for money was just as modest.
Taking after her grandmother, a knowledge-thirsty scholar who had devoted her entire life to academics, Mona was a print addict who completely lost her mind at the mention of rare tomes.
‘…I'm dying to know what's in there.’
Wasn't it an absolute truth that the most secret records slumbered within the archives of the high and mighty?
Books regarding monsters in particular were heavily suppressed as forbidden texts, making them virtually impossible to find on the open market.
‘Maybe I can find a book in there that helps me complete my research.’
Despite having suffered unspeakable disasters due to the side effects of her perfumes, Mona still hadn't abandoned her dream of creating a ‘perfume to befriend monsters.’
Behind her lenses, a bluish madness flickered within Mona's pale silver pupils.
Rihart Cronel?
That man didn't matter right now.
Well, obviously he did, but still.
…She just had to make sure she wasn't found out.
He didn't seem to have the slightest clue that Mona was the woman in the white mask.
So all she had to do was stay out of his line of sight as much as possible.
“Life is always high risk, high return, isn't it?”
So long as she wasn't caught, a thrilling expedition into the Land of Chaos, early graduation, a hefty research grant, and access to rare literature awaited as magnificent rewards.
And if she got caught…
…Well, she decided to worry about that later.
