章 32: 『The Walter Family』

"So... an intruder finds itself in our nest—urgh." The voice clenched her chest, seemingly in pain.

"Milady! You've been pushing yourself too much—and here I have already warned you to stop using your spatial arts." Her subordinate rushed to aid her.

"It can't be helped, letting things go unchecked and left as is would be disastrous, Beta."

*Knock* *Knock*

A knock echoed at the seemingly lavishly designed bedroom—and the light that illuminated inside was seemingly in contrast to the stark darkness outside. The capital of Lizea was as peaceful as ever, and this was due to the hard work of the mysterious and obscure Walter family—that only the royal palace and a few close subjects are aware of.

"I'm coming in, Lady Nadia." She reported, entering the door.

"Alpha, I assume you're bringing in the trespasser that somehow broke through the Illusionary Soul Formation? How exactly did this person..."

Her subordinate bowed at her mistress, seemingly bringing a struggling person in a sack—they really were merciless when it comes to their enemies. This was Alpha, one of the direct subordinates of Nadia Walter—in fact, she had served the Walter family even before her mistress was in charge.

"Right... it turns out..."

"..! This guy...?"

"..." He stared blankly at the person in front of him, seemingly at a loss.

That's right, this was Naoki who, for better or for worse, wandered into the Walter residence—it seems this was the place where he detected the soul fluctuation from.

"Lady... I think I know this man—my husband had mentioned him in a letter." She added, it seems that this was the reason she had not outright killed him.

"You mean back in your village? If I recall, your daughter is of the same age as h—*Cough*." Nadia groaned in pain, her body seems to be in a bad state.

"Alpha..." Beta looked at her fellow subordinate with a look of worry.

"You're Greiea-san aren't you...?" Naoki finally spoke up, addressing the person who had abducted him.

It is common for people affiliated with the Walter residence to have a codename—even Nadia Walter herself. In fact, "Walter" was just a pseudo-lineage that their first ancestor came up with—and as to what their real lineage was, only a few people know.

Greiea, also known as Alpha Walter, was one of the most loyal subordinates of the Walter family—even to the point that they let her handle most of the affairs in the family. Because of Robert, Naoki was aware of her name—but wasn't informed that she had worked here.

"Since you seem to be not affiliated with Golden Messiah, and my husband has put high hopes on you—I'm willing to let you go, as long as you don't say a word about this place and that you shall never come here again." Alpha sternly said, preparing a Soul Contract.

"Wait... I assume that your soul is fluctuating, is that right?" Naoki stood up, addressing the woman that was seated upright on the bed.

"How do you know that?" Nadia sternly glared, as so her subordinates.

Nadia Walter was suffering from the after-effects of the constant use of her spatial arts—which was very powerful but was also likewise taxing on the body. Currently, her soul is on a rampage—unable to regulate itself and causing her to be in pain at random intervals.

"I am aware that you have some secrets to hide, and that you are constantly fighting against your enemies. Believe me or not, the reason I was able to enter this place was that I could sense your damaged soul from afar."

"A Soul Seeker...?"

The girl that was aiding her mistress randomly added. A Soul Seeker was exactly what they needed, but due to the secretive nature of the Walter Family and the rarity of Soul Seekers in general, it was nigh impossible to get one without being overt.

"That's impossible, a male Soul Seeker?" Nadia looked in suspicion, she couldn't believe it.

"Actually, it's not that impossible Milady; If he is to be believed, it all would make sense from the information that I have on him. My husband had informed me that he is a Stray—in other words, someone of mysterious capabilities from another world."

"That's great! I'll go prepare the Soul Artifacts for protection right away!" Beta dashed outside the room, seemingly not doubting anything.

Still, even if Alpha had said that, she still didn't fully trust it—asking Naoki to verify it somehow. After all, if any harm were done to their mistress, Naoki would die a painful and torturous death.

"Actually, I don't have any plans in using my abilities though..." Naoki embarrassingly said.

"...?"

"..."

The two were speechless—if that was the case, why did he even come here in the first place? The two collectively thought. It seems this person was an idiot beyond words.

"I'm back! Let's get started right away!"

"Ah..."

"..."

An awkward silence befell the room, Beta was unsure what just happened—but it seems like Alpha was about to pounce on Naoki and end his life.

"Uh... I am sorry?"

Needless to say, if Naoki wanted to come out alive there, he had to help—though it was more like he was coerced to help at that point. After escaping with his life, he heaved a sigh of relief—it seems that the artifacts had worked properly this time.

"It's good that it was protected this time. I honestly would have never helped her if I'll be affected by the side effects of my ability—I'm not going to repeat the same mistakes all over again, even if it means letting someone else die." Naoki nodded to himself resolutely.

Though while it was generally harmless and surprisingly fast—Naoki had still seen a glimpse of her memories. When he saw this, he silently prayed for the person that he had treated earlier—it seems that her identity wasn't that simple.

"It seems I worried Carol—her state is in a great panic right now."

It appears that the Illusionary formation also prevented information from going outside—including Naoki's marriage connection with Astria. Naturally, if one had suddenly cut off their connection, most would assume that they had died—with this, even if it was midnight, Astria woke up immediately.

"I hope she doesn't get mad..." Naoki could only heavily sigh, heading back home.