The Protagonist's Party is Too Diligent

Chapter 155

"Ugh..."

Sophia Bianchi hesitated for a few seconds before letting out a deep sigh.

"It seems like you knew from the start, not that I was caught."

While that was true, I imagined she said it with the confidence that she never thought she would get caught in the first place.

I didn’t feel the need to comment on it. Arguing about such a thing would only waste time.

"Well then, let's exchange the necessary information without hiding anything."

As I watched Sophia Bianchi continue, I was a little surprised. Or rather, now that I thought about it, perhaps it wasn’t so surprising.

In the original story, whenever the protagonist asked her something, she would respond without arrogance and only say what she wanted to say. But that was only because she had enough confidence in her skills to take that attitude.

Now that I had defeated her once, she probably realized that showing such an attitude before me would be meaningless.

"Yes, as you guessed, I’m from the Law Country."

She even changed the way she addressed me from "Sylvia" to "Your Highness."

"The reason I’m here... It’s because of the orders from the Law Country to gather information on you, Your Highness."

"My information?" I asked.

"Well, they want to know more about your ability to change the situation of a battlefield with just your own power. I don’t know much more than that. The Cardinals are famous for not giving out detailed information when they issue orders."

"Was this for preparation in case you were caught and imprisoned?"

"Yes... well..."

At my question, Sophia Bianchi made a brief unhappy expression. She must have thought there was no way her true identity would be discovered, considering how confident she was in her skills.

"Because of Eliza's situation."

Mentioning Veratti’s baptismal name suggested that the Law Country had become more cautious since Veratti was captured by the Empire. This had also been touched upon in the original story.

"Is there another reason?"

Sophia Bianchi shrugged.

"The rest of it is information I wouldn’t know unless I met His Majesty the Emperor personally. My main task here is to gather information about you, Your Highness. If I can learn more, that’s great. If not, well, no big deal."

Sophia’s attitude had shifted slightly. Compared to the more formal way she usually acted in front of others, she seemed a bit more relaxed now, especially in her body language.@@@@

"Why are you watching me so closely? There are other princes and princesses, not just me."

"Because you’re unique among them, Your Highness."

Sophia Bianchi answered, as if it were obvious.

"Are you aware of the incident that happened at the Imperial Palace recently?"

"...Yes?"

Sophia Bianchi’s eyes widened slightly at my words.

"It was the incident where Lucas invaded. Many knights and soldiers were injured or killed."

"Uh..."

"Lucas was wearing protective armor and holding Jericho’s sword. I suspect he had something to do with the Law Country’s actions. What do you think? What’s been happening in the Law Country?"

At my question, Sophia Bianchi stared at me blankly.

"Uh, if you give me such high-level information, I don’t really know how to respond..."

"..."

I glared at Sophia Bianchi in silence, and she gave me a slightly awkward look.

"The leadership of the Law Country is a very secretive group. If they don’t think I need to know, they won’t give me any information. I’ve heard rumors about what happened, but I don’t know the details. I just learned that it was the prince who infiltrated."

Hah.

"I may be from the Law Country, but I grew up in Lutetia to create this identity. I’m confident in my skills, and the Law Country trusts me, but beyond the knowledge needed for this mission, I haven’t been told anything else. I’m sorry."

I watched Sophia Bianchi quietly. As soon as my gaze met hers, she shifted uncomfortably.

Just a moment ago, she had been looking me straight in the eye, making me uncomfortable. Now, the atmosphere had completely flipped.

I began to think that she might be hiding the truth from me. But, considering her character in the original story, she wasn’t really good at hiding her emotions, even if she tried. She had always been confident, but after losing to me, she had been genuinely surprised and lost for words.

She might have been trying to hide her true feelings just now, but there was no major change.

Right, she was still just a fifteen-year-old kid. Even in the second year of the main story, she would only be sixteen.

She was still at an age where her sense of self was growing, and she probably thought she was special.

Perhaps the cocky attitude she displayed in the original story came from her being sure of her own abilities.

...

I let out a long sigh.

Thinking about it, it was a bit of a reality check.

Despite all her bravado, she was just a newly transferred kid. Even the Law Country knew that.

Had I been too serious about this?

I shook my head and couldn’t help but feel embarrassed.