Published: July 3, 2025
Seven guards, seemingly security personnel, surrounded the sofa where Ryo sat, keeping their distance.
Ryo was dumbfounded, remaining seated on the sofa.
The last man to enter through the door appeared to be in charge.
"Director, what is going on?!"
It was Captain Bangaan, speaking harshly to the man.
Right behind him was Vice-Captain Amaria.
"Bangaan, this man is not a duke of the Naitorei Kingdom. He deceived us, thinking we would not know anything."
"But I heard that you verified his identity using an identity plate at the border. Faking an identity plate is practically impossible."
"He must have forged it using some method we are unaware of. We too can obtain internal information from the church. Naturally, that includes information about the Central Nations delegation. There were no dukes of the kingdom among the delegation."
"What?!..."
As the man referred to as Director explained, Bangaan was rendered speechless.
At that moment, Ryo finally understood.
Once he understood, he could calm down.
That is how people are.
(＜Ice Wall Layer 10＞)
He decided to create an ice wall around himself.
It would be troublesome if he were suddenly attacked.
Adjusting it, he made sure the coffee in front of him was safely behind the wall.
With a small sigh, Ryo pondered what to do.
In this matter, Ryo was completely innocent.
He had saved the lives of two people.
Yet, he was on the verge of being arrested due to a misunderstanding.
In other words... this was a fight he could absolutely win.
Ryo smirked internally.
However, it was unlikely that the misunderstanding would be cleared up in this situation.
That couldn't be helped.
Battles do not always conclude in the immediate moment.
Nonetheless, the cards Ryo held were strong. Remarkably strong.
If his hand couldn't lose... if it was a royal straight flush, then there was no need to fold at all.
Rather, what he should do here was to raise the stakes as much as possible.
"You understand, don’t you?"
Deliberately, Ryo spoke slowly.
He crossed his legs and took a slow sip of coffee.
"The significance of arresting the first duke of the Naitorei Kingdom."
He paused, looking at the man referred to as Director.
In his eyes, a suppressed anger leaked through...
"I am not a demon. If you acknowledge your mistake and apologize here and now, I will forgive you."
His voice, different from usual, carried the composure and strength of a person in a high position.
He took another sip of coffee.
"Fool! Don't make a mockery of me!"
The Director shouted angrily.
It seemed he had no intention of apologizing.
"There is evidence!"
He spoke with absolute confidence.
But what if the source of the evidence was flawed...?
"Let me tell you what is wrong."
Ryo smiled faintly, just barely.
To those surrounding him, it appeared eerily surprising.
And to the Director, it was close to fear...
Clearly, he felt the 'pressure' from Ryo...
"The party you should confirm with is not the church. You should check with the delegation itself."
"What?!..."
In reality, there were quite a few members of the Central Nations delegation who knew of Ryo, but not many knew he was the 'first duke of the kingdom'.
Of course, most of the kingdom's Guardian Adventurers were aware, but when Ryo acted as an adventurer, he wanted to be treated as 'c-rank adventurer Ryo', so they interacted with him as usual...
Finishing his coffee, Ryo stood up.
"Well then, I will be heading back to my inn."
"Wait!"
At the Director's voice, a guard behind Ryo reached out, but was obstructed by an invisible wall.
"What is this?"
"A physical barrier?"
A completely transparent ice wall and a physical barrier might be indistinguishable to an ordinary human.
Literally, no one could intervene.
As Ryo advanced, the people in front were pushed back by the [Ice Wall].
Keeping their distance, no one dared to act, and Ryo exited the Special Agency's gates.
He saw Captain Bangaan and Vice-Captain Amaria bow deeply on the other side of the Director.
They seemed to be good people...
The negative impression Ryo had of the entire Special Agency was somewhat alleviated by the two.