The room was filled with tension, a silent battle of gazes that no one wanted to lose. Elias was the first to break the silence, his voice tinged with a mixture of disbelief and amusement.
"What the hell are you talking about now?!"
"...Wow."
Narce leaned back in his chair, hands in his pockets, clearly impressed. It seemed like I'd managed to say something outrageous before he could even use his Insight.
"...Lucas."
Leo called my name, but then just buried his head in his hands without saying anything else.
If he was going to call my name, he should at least say something—this kind of reaction was the most nerve-wracking.
I opened my hands, trying to explain myself.
"I'll explain properly. I don't actually mean I'm going to become a real Pleroma. I'm just going to pretend to be a Pleroma follower."
"...But either way, you're saying you're going to dive even deeper into this. Are you trying to get yourself killed? No, of course not. But still…."
Leo inhaled deeply, still clutching his forehead.
"Lucas. This might sound overly cautious to you, but I don't want a repeat of what happened last time."
"Yeah~ To be honest, it was pretty nerve-wracking to watch."
Elias added with a chuckle, siding with Leo.
They were probably talking about the Strauch incident. After the incident, there had been a festival, which had eased the tension a bit, but then another group of Bavarian mages got attacked by the Pleroma, and Leo must have been completely exhausted.
Still, I knew that, because of that incident, Leo didn't want to back down against the Pleroma. Right now, he was only taken aback because I hadn't explained myself fully. He hadn't outright rejected the idea or said it was impossible—he just wanted to verify the risks involved.
I wish I could reduce the risk, but there's no way to do that. The only option is to convince him why I need to dive into the enemy's lair once more.
"Yeah, sorry about this. But I have my reasons for not being able to give up on this plan."
Leo just stared at me in silence, so I continued.
"First of all, if I don't pretend to be a Pleroma follower, the amount of information I can gather will be extremely limited."
Why would they share their plans with someone who isn't one of them? If I want to extract information from Gerda Asman, I need more than just altered emotions—I need to be in a similar position to her.
Leo seemed to understand this as he nodded.
"Secondly, Gerda Asman becoming a Pleroma was directly influenced by the Pleroma's plans. The increasing number of missing persons in Heiligenz before Asman became a Pleroma was part of their operation. They targeted her to make those abductions easier."
"Yeah."
"Ultimately, our enemy isn't just Gerda Asman, the Pleroma's tool, but the Pleroma faction itself, which is trying to use Heiligenz as a human resource pool."
And... is it only Heiligenz?
The scope of their scheme correlates directly with the potential gains I can make. I've previously mentioned that there are likely at least three Pleromas involved. In the novel, Elias only managed to capture the surface level, not the deeper layers. My goal is to uproot this network and figure out just how far their plans extend.
"Yeah. It sounds like you're even thinking of infiltrating the Pleroma's world. Your plans always seem reckless—and they usually are—but…."
Leo pursed his lips and then exhaled deeply, meeting my gaze.
"...They've also been effective. So, is there anything we can do to help?"
* * *
Today marked the fifth day since I started meeting Gerda Asman.
Fortunately, every time I came, the first person I met after taking the potion was Gerda Asman herself.
Arvin Asman, or rather, Eric Asman, seemed completely engrossed in his business, as he was never around.
'Lucky.'
I was at the Asman residence again, staring out the window.
The plainclothes police officer Leo had assigned to watch over me was sitting at the café across the street, occasionally glancing in this direction while pretending to read a newspaper.
And…
Elias might need to retract his "machine" comment.
The potion must have really taken effect because I found myself momentarily feeling a negative emotion toward the undercover officer stationed outside the house.
'Now I get why Leo was so wary.'
Of course, as soon as I felt it, I recognized the feeling for what it was and pulled myself out of it, but it was still shocking to realize that I could feel something like that, even if only for a moment.
Just then, Gerda Asman entered the room and sat down at the table.
"Today, we should just relax at home. Don't you think?"
"You must be tired."
"I've been out and about all week."
Considering I'd been showing her around the capital for the past several days, it was no surprise that she was exhausted.
Anyway, it was about time for me to bring up the topic I'd been leading up to. The weather was overcast again, with rain pouring down just like that day.
'It's a bit early, but….'
There's no helping it—I can't afford to waste time.
As I smiled in silence, Gerda asked me,
"What did you do during the day?"
"I was looking for places I'd like to visit with you. Though, of course, I also enjoy staying in with you."
I sat down, smiling as I replied.
'This is insane…'
I can't believe these words are coming out of my mouth.
Every time I speak like this, I'm hit with a wave of existential dread, but thankfully, the effects of the potion kick in at just the right time, preventing me from running out the door in a panic.
Gerda laughed and waved her hand.
"Haha, not that."
"But it's true."
She smiled knowingly, as if she was aware that I wasn't being entirely serious, so I continued with a grin.
"Alright. In my free time, I've been analyzing the current situation. I've been considering whether to stick with the original plan."
"Very diligent. When do you plan to publish the newspaper?"
"There's been some disagreement among my partners, which has caused delays, but we're aiming to finish by the first half of next year."
Finish, huh? More like never publish.
I won't even keep this relationship going until December, let alone the first half of next year, so I'll wrap this up soon.
Leaning forward slightly, I smiled gently.
"What about you, Asman?"
"Hmm. I started working again today, but it's a bit personal, so I'm not sure if I should share it with you."
Good answer. No need to hear it to know it's related to the Pleroma.
This is just a reminder that Gerda Asman is only maintaining this relationship out of curiosity.
I glanced at Gerda's eyes and summoned the favorability window.
Gerda Asman
Favorability +7*
It's a bit high for simple curiosity, but it seems like she's not feeling the same kind of serious emotions I am after taking the potion.
After all, we haven't known each other long.
'Her expression says it all.'
Even now, Gerda was tilting her head, her expression amused as she observed my reactions.
Today, I'd taken an eighth-stage potion, so she must have noticed a difference from the day before.
She had brought up a personal topic she found difficult to discuss just to see how I would react.
Why she would bother to meet with me just to observe my reactions is beyond me, but my guess is that she's still in the process of testing her newfound abilities.
Regardless, the important thing is that, no matter what I do, I'm in a submissive position emotionally, and she's aware of that.
'Perfect.'
It's all going according to plan.
I'm sinking lower and lower into the role of the submissive, exactly where I need to be.
As much as I despise this kind of relationship, it's the ideal position to crush someone's guard. Now that the foundation is set, all that's left is to leverage the image Gerda Asman has of me.
"A personal matter?"
"Yes."
"Am I not trustworthy enough to know?"
"..."
Gerda's lips curled slightly in a suppressed smile.
"Perhaps."
Of course, that's how she'd respond. She wouldn't just casually share Pleroma's secrets with anyone.
But I'm not just anyone. Since the topic's already out there, let's push forward today. I don't want to drag this improper relationship on any longer than necessary.
"That's disappointing. When will I be trustworthy enough?"
"It might take a while."
"So, does that mean I'll get to keep seeing you until then?"
Gerda burst out laughing.
"Well, sure. That depends on you, Mr. Weitzel."
"Oh, that's a relief. But… now that I know, I'm not sure I can wait that long."
"Hmm…."
Gerda chuckled, tapping her fingers on the table.
No doubt she saw this as a childish plea.
Whatever. That's exactly what I want her to think. I hope she sees me as a fool blinded by love.
Because…
I'm about to say something that will knock her for a loop.
I quickly summoned the Traits window.
Retry Lv. 1
― Return to the last checkpoint within 〈Chapter 5〉.
― 2.0 Points per use.
― Next Level:
2.0 Points.
* Current Points: 5.0 Points.
* Next Point Acquisition: Luck +0.25.
'I can use it twice.'
That's plenty.
If this is the wrong move, I'll just reset it immediately.
I watched Gerda's amused expression and spoke.
"...Let me take you where you want to go. First, I'll show you a small world. Then, a larger one."
Before I'd even finished speaking, the smile vanished from Gerda's face.
Seeing her reaction was enough to shock me, but Gerda quickly regained control and forced her lips into a smile.
"All of a sudden?"
I didn't answer her question and shook my head.
"I've reached this point, and… I know you can understand much more than this."
"..."
Her face began to harden once more.
I could almost hear her walls going up.
'Good.'
I struggled to suppress the urge to laugh.
Earlier, I'd noted that the Pleroma used something other than religious texts for their incantations.
If they used a line from *Faust* for the ritual that turns someone into a Pleroma, it made sense that they might use other quotes from the same work.
So I'd recited a line that seemed likely to be used as a spell.
'Got her.'
I never asked if she was a Pleroma—I merely suggested that she might understand. And yet she still flinched. All she had to do was play dumb.
I gazed at her stiffening expression and forced a gentle smile. The potion made it easy to smile warmly; surprisingly, the sight of her face alone made it come naturally.
I reached across the table and took Gerda's hand. Fortunately, she didn't pull away.
"I can understand anything. Because I'm in the same position as you."
"..."
"I know it was inappropriate to bring up something sensitive. I'm sorry, but…."
I kissed the back of her hand and asked,
"Can't you let me help?"
I really need to ask Elias if he has any alcohol on hand later.
Maybe Elias was right to call me a machine—after all, I'm already considering taking a ninth-stage potion next time.
But for now…
'Come on, talk.'
I watched as confusion crept onto Gerda's rigid face.
It's time to find out how she plans to send more people to Pleroma.