"We'll find your ring and bring it back. Please lower the water level for now."
"I no longer trust humans."
Sharasa shook her head, glancing subtly at Dak who stood at the back.
She sensed a strange aura from that man.
To her, the aura felt slightly familiar, almost comforting—but at the same time, it radiated a deadly danger.
"Arf arf!"
Riolu barked twice.
"Well then, since it's Gandalf… I'll believe you for now."
Sharasa stared at Riolu, hesitated briefly, and finally agreed.
This didn't surprise Dak at all.
In the original story, the Queen of Water Elements agreed only because of Hiraga Saito—Gandalf's—presence.
If there was any difference this time, it would be that Riolu didn't have the talking, evolving sword specifically assigned to Gandalf.
"Thank you very much! May I ask… do you remember anything about the person who stole your ring?"
Louise gave a slight bow and asked politely.
Without any clues, they might never find that ring in their lifetime. The world of magic was vast; finding one person would be like searching for a needle in a haystack.
"That person didn't seem to know any magic, but was very skilled with a sword. He had heterochromatic eyes—one blue and one red. His physique was similar to his… a male. I'm not entirely sure, but I think he had blonde hair?"
Sharasa's face wore an obvious "frowning in thought" expression.
When she shared this information, Louise and Agnès looked confused, clearly not recalling anyone like that.
But Tabitha's eyes widened, her pupils quivering slightly. Still, she said nothing.
As for Dak, who already knew the plot—
Sharasa's words were basically equivalent to slapping the thief's ID card right on his face.
Someone with that description was none other than Julio Cesare, the void familiar of the Pope of Romania.
However, the ring wasn't in the Pope's possession anymore. It had been "accidentally" lost in Golia's capital and just so happened to be found by Golia.
'This Pope is quite something—scheming so many countries in silence.'
Dak smirked with interest.
By orchestrating small "accidents" that escalated the wars among major kingdoms, his country, under the guise of neutrality, sat back to watch them tear each other apart—and reaped all the benefits.
Even more remarkable, the Pope's public persona remained pristine.
Aside from a few who sensed something was off, most of the world still believed he was kind and merciful.
Characters with brains like that could thrive even in the world of pirates or ninjas—he'd at least be one of the Seven Warlords or a village leader.
"I understand. This information helps a great deal. Thank you."
Louise placed a hand over her chest and gave another respectful bow.
"Then I'll wait here for you. Anyway, the lifespan of you humans is only…"
Sharasa had just started to speak.
But when her gaze swept over Dak, she suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
"Forget it. I'll lower the lake tomorrow morning. Then you may proceed."
"Thank you for your mercy, esteemed Sharasa."
Louise's noble etiquette was elegant and graceful. Even Dak had to nod in approval.
"Mm."
With a soft murmur, the water elementals above the lake slowly vanished.
"Looks like we're camping here tonight."
Agnès tied the horses to a nearby tree and pulled out several tents from the carriage.
She had originally planned to go around, but since the Water Element Queen was going to lower the tide, there was no need.
The detour would be longer and rougher, and she was worried the noble girls inside the carriage might get their butts bounced into bruises.
"Whatever."
Dak yawned, clearly bored.
Time meant little to him anyway—after all, it was just a shadow clone that was staying here.
That night.
Dak, Louise, and Tabitha entered a tent, while Agnès kept watch outside.
It wasn't that anyone forced Agnès—she had simply chosen to do so herself. After all, as a "knight," she was merely an honorary noble, not equal in status to the other three.
Plus, Agnès didn't quite trust this group of sheltered young ladies who had never seen a battlefield. She believed she was far more alert than they were.
Louise, in that regard, certainly fit the bill.
But Riolu had strong innate perception, and as a canine species, its vigilance was naturally high—more than enough to make up for Louise's weakness.
As for Tabitha, she was even more exceptional.
"Teacher."
That night, Tabitha sneaked over and whispered outside Dak's tent.
"You know who stole the ring, don't you?"
"…Yeah."
"If you want to tell Louise, go ahead. Do what you think is right. You don't need to ask me. Don't worry—nothing serious will happen."
Dak lay inside his tent, responding lazily.
And he was right.
Even if they found the ring thief—
According to the dragon's plan, once things stabilized in Albion, they could unite Tristain and Germania within a month.
Then they would help Tabitha ascend as Queen of Golia.
Once the four kingdoms were united, the remaining issues with Gallmania and Romania would be easily handled.
Especially since the current King of Gallmania was a weak-willed coward with no ambition.
The fact that Golia's King Joseph didn't even bother with him spoke volumes.
Within a year,
the noble circles of the six major kingdoms in the magical world could basically achieve "unification" and jointly establish a new era of peace.
And in this era, where commoners had little say, it was the nobles who would decide the direction of the world.
By the time Louise made her move to retrieve the ring, the Pope and Joseph might already be dead.
"I understand."
Tabitha nodded and walked away.
Judging from the footsteps, she was heading toward Louise's tent.
Looks like Tabitha had decided to tell Louise about it.
Dak stayed in his tent for a while longer.
After about three hours, he opened his eyes, got up, and walked out. He looked at the weary figure sitting by the campfire.
"If you're going to the toilet, go farther away."
Agnès glanced at him, then turned back.
"Go sleep. I'll take the second watch."
Dak pointed at his own tent.
They had only pitched three tents. Agnès hadn't even planned to sleep tonight.
"…No need."
"Go on. You still have to drive the carriage tomorrow. I can't do that."
"You? You think you can react fast enough if there's an assassination attempt?"
Agnès scoffed at Dak, but her tone was clearly much more relaxed than before.
"Hey now, don't underestimate me. I'm actually quite capable in close combat—definitely better than you."
Dak sighed and shook his head.
"Hah?"
"Wanna try?"
Dak grinned and beckoned to her.
Agnès obviously wouldn't let that slide. She drew her sword and lunged.
One minute later.
"Impossible?! A weak-looking magician like you—how do you have such insane physical strength?!"
Agnès was pinned to the ground by Dak, panting and struggling.
Dak had used only one hand to completely subdue her, which left Agnès utterly stunned.
Even though she couldn't use magic, her combat skills put her at least on par with a "triangle" level knight.
Yet now she was being pinned down by a magician with one hand?
"What do you mean by 'weak-looking'? Look again."
Dak pulled at his shirt and revealed his upper body.
He didn't have overly exaggerated muscles. With clothes on, he looked mostly normal—maybe his shoulders were a bit broader.
His build was more like Luffy's or Zoro's—lean but powerful.
"…Hmph."
Agnès glanced and blushed slightly.
"All right, go sleep."
Dak pulled her up and gave her a light push on the back, causing her to stagger toward the tent.
This time, Agnès didn't resist. She followed his lead and entered his tent.
For a woman like her, raised among men in the military since childhood, sleeping in a man's tent didn't faze her in the slightest.
If it had been Louise or Tabitha, those two girls might've stayed up all night worrying about it.
One hour later.
After sensing that the three inside the tent had fallen asleep, Dak got up and headed toward the lake.
At the same time, Sharasa's figure emerged from the center of the lake.
"Human. What do you want?"
Sharasa eyed Dak warily, streams of water swirling around her.
She felt an intense sense of threat from Dak.
Even though she, as an elemental, was nearly impossible to kill, she still sensed that Dak might have a method tailored specifically against her kind.
"Nothing much. I'm just curious about the nature of elemental royalty. Could I trouble you to cooperate with me for a few studies?"
"What do I gain from it?"
"How about I take you and your clan to a broader, different world? You've been in this one for tens of thousands of years, haven't you? Isn't it boring?"
Dak smiled faintly, his grin a little sinister.
He wanted it all.
He wanted to study the biological nature of magical species like water elementals.
He wanted to bring the Queen of Water Elements into the Alliance.
And he wanted to move the entire Water Elemental Clan to Pokémon Island.
"Another world?"
Sharasa had no idea what kind of thoughts Dak was harboring.
But she had to admit—she was indeed getting tired of Halkeginia.
"That's right. I'm someone from another world. And I have a way to return."
(End of Chapter)
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