New chapter of Nameless Hero is out! (1/3 chapters)
Briefing for the Undercover Investigation
(Thank you for reading at bayabuscotranslation.com)
We moved to the Stride Household’s main mansion. The overly large double-door entrance opened to reveal a Western-style building similar to the Aldridge estate. It was completely different from the modest annex.
“Welcome home, Martin-sama.” (Butler)
A butler greeted us. Further back in the grand hall, there was also a maid standing quietly. Both the butler and the maid seemed young.
“This way.” (Martin)
Martin led us to the right, and we entered a hallway. After passing several rooms, we arrived at one with a fireplace and two long sofas facing each other. It was a room for receiving guests.
Alfred and I sat on one sofa, Tristan sat on the opposite one, and Martin-san sat on a smaller sofa.
“Now then, where should I begin?” (Martin)
“Jii-san, I already asked this earlier, but is this job about investigating that kidnapping case?” (Alfred)
Alfred spoke first.
“That’s right.” (Martin)
Martin-san, unlike before the exam, answered plainly.
“Does that mean you’ve found the kidnappers’ hideout?” (Alfred)
“No. But we’ve discovered a possible location. That discovery was thanks to Tristan.” (Martin)
As Martin-san spoke, the maid entered the room and served tea for four.
“Tristan? What have you been doing here all this time?” (Alfred)
“Well…” (Tristan)
Tristan glanced at Martin-san.
“It’s fine. Go ahead.” (Martin)
Martin-san nodded, letting Tristan take over the explanation. Tristan began talking about what had happened over the past six months.
After I went missing, Tristan stayed in Dali Amor for some time. He visited various Adventurer and Merchant Guilds to secure funds and find a way into the Gala Ruins. He also gathered companions but didn’t succeed.
While searching for me, he took on missing children search requests, which were becoming more frequent. During this time, he met Martin Stride’s son and grandchild, Parcine Stride and his 12-year-old child, Charene Stride, who had not yet been kidnapped. Charene was unable to sit back and watch after his younger sister, Irene, was kidnapped at the Dali Amor Carnival, and decided to throw himself in the water as a decoy.
Kidnappings often occurred in the morning or evening. Tristan secretly tailed Charene at dusk as he walked alone in Dali Amor. Tristan’s plan was to catch the kidnappers during the act. However, Charene was abducted, and the 12-year-old never returned.
“It’s rare for Tristan to mess up that kind of job.” (Alfred)
“I wasn’t careless. I kept watching Charene while suppressing my presence. But at the exact moment he was abducted, Charlie just disappeared.” (Tristan)
“Disappeared?” (Jack)
I couldn’t stop myself from asking.
“Yes. It was like he was cut out of the scenery.” (Tristan)
“You’re kidding.” (Jack)
“Is such a magic even possible?” (Jack)
I asked Tristan again.
“Jack, I wasn’t relying only on sight. If magic had been used, I should have detected it through the presence of mana. In other words, there was no magic involved.” (Tristan)
No magic, yet someone vanished? Is that even possible?
“…Even though I apologized to the Stride Household, I couldn’t accept it. I continued searching on my own.” (Tristan)
“How?” (Jack)
“When it was Charene, I focused only on her. That’s why I failed to notice the abduction. So, I decided to widen my focus to the entire city.” (Tristan)
Did you pay attention to the whole city?
“It was like a game of spotting differences. From the roof of the San Amolina Great Cathedral, the highest point in Dali Amor, I constantly watched the grand square. No, it’s more accurate to say I monitored it. I observed the movements of all the people in the city.” (Tristan)
Watching the movements of tiny figures constantly must have taken a tremendous amount of effort. It’s something most people would give up halfway through.
“…That’s when I noticed something strange in the overall picture. Occasionally, something would suddenly disappear. I realized that was probably the moment of a kidnapping. And right after that, something always happened.” (Tristan)
“Something? What was it?” (Alfred)
Alfred leaned forward, eager to find a lead on the culprit.
“Soldiers.” (Tristan)
“Soldiers?” (Alfred)
“Several people dressed as soldiers would run around. They wore armor identical to the Dali Amor Guards.” (Tristan)
The Dali Amor Guards. Were they the same soldiers who chased me when I infiltrated the city with Kea to find the Akasha Scriptures?
“Could the guards themselves be involved? If so, the entire city is covering something up!” (Alfred)
“I don’t know. It’s possible the kidnappers are disguising themselves as guards.” (Tristan)
That sounded more likely. But when I was chased, it was definitely the real guards. That was after the fight with Reingard, wasn’t it? This kidnapping case feels connected somehow.
“Did you follow those soldiers afterward?” (Jack)
“Of course. They moved to a warehouse near the cathedral, loaded goods onto a wagon, and left quietly through the city’s west gate. I followed that wagon for three days and nights. It headed west until it reached a large facility in the mountains. The cargo being unloaded looked like children, based on the shapes and sizes.” (Tristan)
So that’s the hideout.
“If that’s the case, why not storm the place and capture the boss right away?” (Alfred)
“You really are an impatient man.” (Martin)
Martin-san, who had been silent and left the explanations to Tristan up until now, furrowed his brow deeply and looked suspicious.
“Fred, it seems like this situation isn’t as simple as it appears.” (Tristan)
Tristan looked as if he would have done so if he could.
“This kidnapping case isn’t just the work of some lowly thugs.” (Tristan)
That made sense. Judging by the sheer scale of the incidents, it had to involve a large-scale operation. Hundreds of children had been abducted so far.
“There are at least three groups involved in this.” (Tristan)
“Three?” (Jack)
“Yes. One is the Dali Amor Guards, or rather a group of criminals posing as them, who I’ve been tailing. The second group is the ‘Church’ and its affiliated Holy Knight Order.” (Tristan)
“The Church? You mean the Melpeque Church?” (Jack)
“Yes. The Church established facilities to harbor the children, claiming to ‘take care’ of them.” (Tristan)
“That makes no sense. The Melpeque Church in Dali Amor is basically a tourist attraction with the Great Cathedral!” (Jack)
“The Church is a sponsor. They provide funding and send knights to reinforce the operation.” (Tristan)
I was struggling to keep up.
“Wait, explain this to me. What’s the difference between the Guards and the Holy Knight Order?” (Jack)
“…The Holy Knight Order is a combat group formed by the high priest of the Melpeque Church and his six closest aides. The Dali Amor Guards are simply a part of the city’s local administration.” (Tristan)
“Aren’t we doing the same thing in terms of protecting the city?” (Jack)
“Not exactly. The Guards protect the city itself, while the Holy Knight Order protects the Melpeque Church as a religious institution.” (Tristan)
I see. Different purposes meant different organizations. That would also explain why the Holy Knight Order wasn’t limited to Dali Amor. They probably had bases in other cities as well.
“I saw members of the Holy Knight Order entering that mountain facility. They also brought several children with them.” (Tristan)
“Tristan… what about the third group?” (Alfred)
Alfred, who had been sipping his tea during our exchange, joined the conversation again.
“That group is a mystery. Most likely, they’re the masterminds behind everything. They’ve roped in both the Guards and the Holy Knight Order. These groups that should be allies of the people. So, they they’re not only abduct children from Dali Amor but also from Barwich, Soltaire, and other towns.” (Tristan)
“The mastermind’s identity is unknown. It makes sense. It’s only been a year since this started. But there’s no doubt someone’s pulling the strings.” (Alfred)
Alfred nodded, his expression showing that he was buying into the story.
“Alright, I get the background now. So, Jack, you’re going to infiltrate the place and gather intel, right?” (Alfred)
“Before that, I have one more question. About Jack.” (Tristan)
Tristan turned to me, his expression unreadable. His composed demeanor brought back memories.
“Jack, what happened to you? How did you change so much?” (Tristan)
Of course, Tristan was curious. In less than half a year, his disciple had grown strong enough to rival him. It was impossible not to wonder.
I gave Tristan a brief rundown of the past six months, hitting the key points.
—
“So, it’s the Goddess’ blessing that changed you.” (Tristan)
“The Goddess’ blessing… though it does look a bit rough.” (Jack)
“You have to hide your face when you infiltrate.” (Tristan)
I touched my right cheek. It did look sinister. In Soltaire, I’d been mistaken for a demon child several times. Even my Managram listed my race as “Human (Demon)”.
What’s with the Demon anyway?
“Why not leave it to Liona?” (Tristan)
Tristan directed the suggestion to Martin-san.
“Hmm, true. A disguise will be necessary. Liona, come here.” (Martin)
“Yes.” (Liona)
At Martin-san’s call, the maid waiting near the room’s entrance walked over briskly.
“Help him with makeup to hide those markings on his face.” (Martin)
“Understood.” (Liona)
The maid, Liona, bowed and approached me.
“Wait, right now?” (Jack)
“The infiltration will be later, but preparing your disguise now won’t hurt. Better to try it out.” (Martin)
“Young master, please follow me.” (Liona)
Alfred and Tristan didn’t stop me and watched silently as I was led to another room.
Well, if it’s just hiding the markings, it shouldn’t take long.
—
“This way.” (Liona)
We left the meeting room and were led to another room, about three doors down. It was a compact space with a luxurious vanity and various outfits hanging on racks. It seemed to double as a cloakroom and a makeup room.
“…” (Jack)
As I blinked at the sudden change of setting, the maid walked over and gave me a reassuring smile.
“My name is Liona. Don’t worry. Sit here.” (Liona)
She dropped the formal tone and spoke to me casually. Judging by her demeanor and appearance, she was probably around the same age as Alfred and the others, including Nancy-san. As expected of a maid for a wealthy noble family, she was stunning. Her features were perfectly balanced, with sharp eyes, a defined nose, and flowing black hair.
I sat in the chair in front of the vanity as instructed.
“What’s your name?” (Liona)
“People call me Jack.” (Jack)
“People call you?” (Liona)
Ah, I messed up and said something strange.
“I mean, I’m Jack.” (Jack)
“Jack, then. How old are you?” (Liona)
Liona-san was preparing various makeup tools while talking to me in a friendly manner. She was being considerate of me.
“I’m technically ten years old… I’ll be eleven soon.” (Jack)
“Wow, you’re still so young. You do look childlike, though. About the same age as Irene-sama—Oh, is the problem this pattern?” (Liona)
Liona-san stared intently at my face. It made me a bit nervous.
“There’s no way just point makeup will work. Looking closely, it’s on your neck too. This will need full-face coverage.” (Liona)
“Are you going to put makeup on my whole face?” (Jack)
“Yes, but leave it to me. Oh, and close your eyes for a moment.” (Liona)
Whatever happens, happens.
I closed my eyes and entrusted everything to Liona-san.
—
“How about this for the finishing touch?” (Liona)
Something was placed on my head. It was clearly a wig.
Are we seriously going this far for a disguise?
Then, a comb was run through it several times, and my hairstyle was adjusted.
“Alright, done! Go ahead, open your eyes.” (Liona)
I opened my eyes nervously as instructed. The makeup hadn’t taken that long, so there was no way it would make a huge difference. Thinking that, I looked into the mirror in front of me. What I saw was an ordinary girl who could be found anywhere. Even the demon crest was hidden.
“…W-What is this…?” (Jack)
“It’s perfect! You look so cute.” (Liona)
The long, voluminous brown hair fell nicely over my chest, covering the demon crest on my neck. However, this transformation was so extreme that it felt like an identity crisis. Combined with my unchanged clothes, the overall look was rather ridiculous.
“Why cross-dressing?” (Jack)
“That’s what you’d call a disguise, isn’t it?” (Liona)
“No, you just need to hide the pattern!” (Jack)
“Cross-dressing is something you can only do when you’re young, so it’s fine. You look adorable!” (Liona)
Liona-san had a mischievous streak.
She is clearly having fun with this, wasn’t she? Surely, the real thing won’t involve cross-dressing, right?
—
“Jack, are you ready yet?”
At that moment, Alfred’s voice came from the hallway.
This is bad. If he sees me like this…
“Yes, we’re ready!” (Liona)
With that, Liona-san ran to the door and moved to open it. She glanced back at me and winked.
No, no, that’s not okay! Why does she look so excited, like she’s asking, “This is fine, right?”. The people around me sure love teasing me!
“Go ahead.” (Liona)
“Took you long enough.” (Alfred)
I could see the redhead, the white knight, and an elderly man beyond the door.
“Ah! Wait, wait, hold on a second!” (Jack)
If they see me like this, I won’t be able to face Fred or Tristan again!
“What’s going on, Jack? Why are you so flustered—” (Alfred)
Our eyes met perfectly. It’s over. I’m done for.
“…Oh, sorry, wrong room.” (Alfred)
“What?!” (Jack)
Alfred quickly retracted his head and shut the door.
“Fred, I believe that was Jack.” (Tristan)
Tristan added a bit more.
“What? Don’t be ridiculous. There’s no way there’s a guy in that room.” (Alfred)
“Liona’s makeup disguise skills are impressive, after all.” (Tristan)
“…Seriously? Are you Jack? Pfft… Haha! You’re cross-dressing? Hahaha! What’s with that face!” (Alfred)
I could feel my face turning bright red.
What a humiliation. Even children have pride.
“It’s actually quite good.” (Tristan)
“Indeed. This should work perfectly for the decoy investigation.” (Martin)
While Tristan and Martin evaluated it calmly, I still found it humiliating.
So, I really am going to infiltrate like this. I don’t have the skills to disguise my gender.
After that, Alfred continued to make fun of me from start to finish.
—
The meeting with the Stride Household ended. I was so irritated that I didn’t want to talk to Alfred on the way back. Completely disregarding my mood, Alfred kept talking to me.
“Jack, it’s fine. Everyone has their own hobbies. Even if they’re… Pfft… hard for others to accept… Haha, sorry, I can’t stop seeing it in my head!” (Alfred)
“Fred, knock it off! I didn’t do that because I wanted to!” (Jack)
“Yeah, yeah… Haha… Sorry, haha…” (Alfred)
Although he calmed down a bit, Alfred still smirked the whole time.
Cross-dressing as a hobby? I’m not Armando-san!
Tristan stayed behind at the Stride Household. He promised to return to Liberta’s hideout once this case was resolved. Though the cross-dressing was humiliating, I had to convince myself it was for the sake of helping the children.
The infiltration mission begins in three days. Like Charene, I’ll wander around Dali Amor alone, deliberately getting myself kidnapped. Alfred will be the one tailing me.
—
That night, we returned to Soltaire. We’d left in the morning and managed to make it back the same day.
“Alfie, Jack, welcome back!” (Lindsay)
“Welcome back.” (Kea)
Lindsay and Kea greeted us.
“How did it go?” (Lindsay)
“Ah, well, I wish you could’ve seen it, Lindsay! Jack looked so ridiculous, haha…” (Alfred)
“What do you mean?” (Lindsay)
Alfred was talking about the cross-dressing, but that’s not what Lindsay was asking about.
“Oh! No, we passed the interview test, and the mission is set to begin in three days!” (Jack)
I hurriedly cut in and interrupted Alfred’s next words.
“What do you mean by ‘ridiculous’?” (Lindsay)
“N-Nothing!” (Jack)
“…?” (Lindsay)
“Ah…” (Jack)
Kea seemed to notice something. Perhaps her goddess-like insight allowed her to see my embarrassing state from earlier.
Her reaction was the same as when she saw Armando-san nearly cross-dress, so it’s possible. Darn… This is humiliating.
When I glanced at Alfred, I caught him stifling a laugh.
What’s so funny?
As I glared at him, he waved his hand dismissively and turned away. It seemed he was trying to say, “Alright, alright, I won’t say anything”.
She’ll definitely tell Lindsay this behind my back!
“So, you’re leaving again in three days?” (Lindsay)
“…Y-Yeah! But here’s some good news!” (Jack)
“What is it?” (Lindsay)
“We found Tristan.” (Jack)
Lindsay’s eyes widened at the name.
“What?! Really?” (Lindsay)
“Yeah! He was hired by the client for this mission. So, Tristan will be working with us on this quest.” (Jack)
Lindsay gave a genuinely happy and radiant smile.
“That’s wonderful. If Tristan is with you, I feel relieved.” (Lindsay)
“After this job is done, he promised to come back here.” (Jack)
“…I see… It’ll be lively again. Housework might get tougher too.” (Lindsay)
Lindsay’s eyes glistened with tears.
“It’s okay. I’ll do my best to help!” (Jack)
I felt so happy that I teared up a little too. The frustration and humiliation I felt earlier with Alfred completely disappeared.
“Thank you, Jack. Really. Ever since you came back, I’ve started to believe that everyone else will return someday too. Even Dwayne will recover.” (Lindsay)
Lindsay had said something like that last night. And it really seems to be coming true. Things are going better than expected. I’ll do my best to meet those expectations. It’s my way of repaying Lindsay, who saved my life.
“Alright, if that’s settled, let’s celebrate early! Let’s go all out tonight!” (Alfred)
Alfred cheerfully stepped through the front door into the living room. He seemed to be slowly returning to his old self.
Now we just need to figure out where Lizbeth is. If Lizbeth comes back, the party will finally be complete. As for Dwayne’s treatment, it’s not an immediate threat to his life, so it can wait for now. First, we need to successfully complete this mission and resolve the kidnapping case. That way, the townspeople will smile again, and so will Liberta.
To prepare for the infiltration in three days, I decided to take a good rest.
(Thank you for reading at bayabuscotranslation.com)
Please consider supporting Bayabusco Translation @
bayabuscotranslation 