Playing the Perfect Fox-Eyed Villain Chapter 176

Episode 176. Unexpectedly Big

'You dare use me?'

Prince Osborn had already seen through Yurian's half-moon-shaped, cross-eyed smile as she looked at him.

Unconditional loyalty to the royal family?

There is no such thing in this world.

Osborne knew that everything was made up of 'conflicts of interest'.

Moreover, isn't he the heir to the throne?

Since you have to figure out each and every intention of those who are trying to give you something, you can't help but be unaware.

'but…….'

I can't figure out why.

What does Yurian gain by postponing the award ceremony and subjugating the 'Six Fingers'?

That's what Osborne is struggling with.

Why on earth?

Only by knowing this can you take control of the conversation and make it flow more smoothly.

I don't know what the 'intention' is, but I'll add a word just to give it a try.

“Hmm… Is there really a need to postpone the award ceremony? Yurian, I can see some ‘intention’ in your words… No, you wouldn’t dare do that to the royal family. Right?”

Yurian's smile deepens at Osborne's subtly overbearing words.

“Hoohoo, Your Majesty Osborne. I am Yurian, the self-proclaimed royal hunting dog.”

“I know. Your loyalty.”

“And, if we make up for the royal family’s ‘mistake’, wouldn’t the award ceremony become even more ‘splendid’?”

what?

For a moment, Osborn thought he had misheard Yurian.

Until now, I thought the reason Yulian postponed the 'award ceremony' was because of his achievements.

Because the criminal we finally caught has disappeared.

Of course, it was the imperial family's fault, but it was as if there was no 'reason' to praise Yurian's achievements.

I knew it.

“To make the award ceremony shine? What do you mean?”

Flugel, who had come along, interrupted his conversation without permission, but Osborn did nothing to stop him.

Flügel's question was soon the same as Osborn's question.

“To award an award just for capturing a criminal who harmed nobles… doesn’t that medal seem less valuable?”

“Heh heh…….”

Flügel laughed in disbelief.

The Order of the Golden Guard is not comparable to the second-rank, highest-ranking order, but it is still the most valuable 'honor' among the second-rank orders.

In fact, it can be said that the value of this medal is equivalent to that of the first class, as it can only be awarded to those who are not of the 'royal family'.

As I looked at Yurian, who said that it seemed to be of low value, the outlines began to take shape.

“This is it, I knew you were an ‘ambitious person’, but you have bigger ideas than I thought, huh?”

Osborne let out a laugh at the fact that the 'outline' was larger than he had expected.

“Well, that could be the case.”

If you think about it a little, it's obvious.

There is no one in the system who does not know who he is chasing.

The exiled swordsman.

The 'empty spot' he left behind is still there.

“Yurien, I think I’ve been misreading you all this time.”

No one can replace the title of 'Geomseong', but the trust of the empire and the admiration of the subjects that he has received as 'Geomseong' up until now can be replaced.

“It seems that he intends to monopolize the position of ‘Black Star’, the status that Haydn Reich once held.”

Greed that is not satisfied with a mere 'medal'.

Covering up the royal family's mistakes with your own merits, and increasing its efficiency several times over.

Osborn nods, now that he has finally put all the pieces of the puzzle together.

But it's still just my guess.

I turn my gaze to check Yurian's intentions.

'As expected.'

When Osborn looked at Yurian, the angle of his squinted eyes had deepened and the corners of his mouth had turned up a little more.

***

What is this kid talking about?

The reason I'm postponing the award ceremony for the 'Order of the Ten Swords of the Golden Guard' is simply to get rid of the 'Six Fingers' and at the same time deal with that annoying guy called 'Dantes Christo'.

But──.

'The seat of the Black Sword… … What?'

Even if I misunderstand, it seems like I misunderstood deeply.

but.

'Not bad.'

Since there was no good reason to do so anyway, we can just shed light on Osborne's 'misunderstanding'.

“I have no intention of taking your place, Your Majesty Osborne. It’s just that…….”

"just?"

“It seems absurd that everyone would miss the traces left behind by those who were left behind in that era.”

"haha!"

Osborne's blunt expression began to dull.

“I also don’t like traces of black magic. And.”

He seemed to truly find my words amusing, as a smile spread across his face.

“As you said, the Adratan Empire needs a new ‘hero.’ A ‘hero’ who can grab the attention of the people, whether for good or for bad.”

Swish.

Osborne rose from his seat.

When he first appeared in my office, he had a blunt, questioning look on his face, but now he seemed relieved, as if he had found the answer.

“Then, as you said, I will postpone the award ceremony. And I will also help you deal with the guys called ‘Six Fingers.’ Is that what you want, Yurian?”

Huh? It feels like it was solved too easily?

So something feels uneasy… … .

I was confident that I would receive help from the 'royal family', but I knew it would be quite difficult.

After all, it is generally difficult to borrow the hand of a 'prince'.

“Yes, Your Majesty Osborne.”

“Okay, then. Okay, let’s do that.”

I bowed politely as I watched Osborne leave the office.

As both Flügel and Osborn left, a quiet silence fell over the room.

“Phew…….”

Anyway, I don't want to talk to those called 'princes' for long.

If you make a mistake, it wouldn't be strange if you end up on the guillotine.

'But, you're allowing it so readily?'

It's scary, really.

‘… …replaces the position of the Black Sword.’

It seems that 'misunderstanding' has become the point.

In fact, it can be said that the position of the 'Geomseong' is different for the 'heir to the throne'.

The 'Prince' he is with will likely gain the trust of the nobles.

'No matter what, 'Yurien' can't replace that spot.'

Yeah, that's for sure.

No matter how much a 'hero' is needed, someone who is already full of notoriety cannot take the position of 'Sword Master'.

Because in my opinion, the position of 'Black Star' must be noble and pure.

All we have to do now is get the help of the 'Imperial Family' and deal with the troublemakers.

'I hope it's okay.'

***

… … I thought.

Since it was a task to take down a mere slum group called 'Six Fingers', I thought they would only deploy a few platoons of military police and a few knights at most.

At most, a few more wizards will be added.

Even just that much, even excluding Claude, could be helpful enough when dealing with other fingers.

But my prediction was wrong.

“Hahahahahahahaha!”

A conference room that was incomparably large compared to my office. Hearty laughter echoed through the room.

“Hey, I see a lot of familiar faces!”

The man with a gorilla-like appearance looked around at those sitting at the round table, smiled, and opened his mouth.

The man's name is Theo Lennox.

Among the Imperial Knights, he is the leader of the 'Unbreakable Knights' who boast superior strength in the 'Conquest War'.

“Shut up, Theo! Your laughter is so loud it’s tearing my ears.”

“Hahahaha! Don’t say such things, Kalina!”

The one who cursed and reprimanded Theo's laughter was the Brigade Commander of the 'Knights of the Brand', 'Kalina Hainax'.

And the one right in front of him is Schwartz, the leader of the 'Knights of the Blue Lion'.

As usual, the guy was glaring at me with a glum expression.

'No way… … , are all of these the Six Fingers Suppression Squad?'

Three knights, and even 'closed eyes'.

'Isn't that crazy?'

It was so absurd that I burst out laughing.

At best, it's a matter of taking down a criminal organization.

But, you're sending three knights?

“By the way, are you saying that we need to recruit three knights and one of the imperial agencies to catch a criminal organization?”

Kalina opened her mouth in a curt voice, as if she had had similar thoughts to me.

“Don’t ask too many questions, Kalina! These are the thoughts of His Highness the Prince Osborn!”

“Don’t you have it? It’s just a criminal organization, and it’s in a slum!”

Kalina, who was gradually raising her voice, made eye contact with me and coughed in vain.

“Well, I think so. Isn’t that right?”

Shrugging, Kalina spoke to the member of the 'Knights of the Brand' standing behind her.

What? As a knight commander, are you afraid of 'Yurien'?

No, the color of 'fear' is not visible above Kalina's head.

You don't seem scared, but were there any other points of contact?

“We are knights! We must simply remain faithful to our roles as knights!”

Hey, it's noisy.

Theo, that guy was loud even in the text, but hearing it in person is ear-piercing.

“Isn’t that right, Schwarz? You should say something!”

“As you said, we are knights. We have a set task to perform. However, I have one question.”

“What?”

Swish.

Schwarz pointed at me with his finger.

“Why is that guy sitting in the operational command position?”

This guy has to bite me and hang on, right?

I shrugged at Schwarz's words.

“His Majesty Osborne simply chose the right person for the job.”

'Actually, I don't know either.'

I want to say that, but I'd rather not look down on it, so I'll just come out strong.

“Well, certainly. It’s a bit odd that the commander-in-chief of the missions carried out by the Knight Commanders is ‘Closed Eyes’.”

“I don’t really care.”

“What? What on earth is the reason…….”

At Schwarz's urging, Kalina glanced at me.

“Aren’t you handsome?”

“That doesn’t make sense.”

“Schwarz is too hard, so it’s not good. A man needs to have a bit of a sinister feeling to be tasty.”

As she said that, Kalina smiled at me and waved.

“I can’t believe it. Both His Majesty the Emperor and His Majesty the Emperor…….”

Leaving Schwartz mumbling something behind, I clapped my hands once to get the attention of the knight commanders.

“Still, since we’re all here, I guess we should give a quick briefing about tomorrow’s operation.”

It was still questionable why Osborne had invested so much, but now that it was happening, he was determined to take the lead.

“His Majesty Osborne’s orders are to wipe out the Six Fingers, the criminal organization she belongs to, along with the escaped convict, Anna-Louie.”

“Hmm, hmm!”

Despite the simple explanation, Theo reacted by nodding vigorously.

The response was so good that I would have liked to say more if it were normal.

“But! There’s one thing I’m curious about!”

He's a bit awkward because his voice is so loud.

“What’s the name of the operation!? I think we need a name that we can explain to the other knights!”

That's the operation name.

Honestly, I haven't thought about anything.

I never thought things would get this big in the first place.

'ah.'

Suddenly, a good name came to mind.

“The operation name is.”

When the group called 'Six Fingers' was destroyed by 'Geumseong' in the work, this was the name of the episode.

“Let’s do ‘finger snapping.’”