Year 2: The Gathering Fires - Chapter 9

“A spy or a traitor - which do you think is the more apt description of our hypothetical ‘Being X’?”

“A traitor.”

“Oh, exactly what I expected you to answer, Kayleigh.”

“…If I didn’t call them what they were, then I’d be lying to myself. Someone, most likely within the Summoned Heroes, has been intentionally leaking or selling secrets to the enemy.” Akane laughed a little. “What?”

“Nothing, but you still seem to be in a little bit of denial about the reality of our situation.”

“…It’s not like I want to suspect our friends or teammates,” Kayleigh said.

“Neither do I, but it’d be foolish to deny the possibility or the reality of the situation.” Upon seeing Kayleigh’s complicated expression, Akane sighed. “For argument’s sake, shall I explain the reasons why it’s more likely to be one of our comrades than a turncoat or a spy that infiltrated from the Demon Empire?”

Kayleigh nodded meekly.

“First, let us consider the timeline of events. We arrived in Aangapea not four months ago, yet nothing like this has happened until now. If there had been someone higher up in the rankings of the Free People’s Alliance that was selling them out, surely they would have done so repeatedly by now. Why not, for instance, target us whilst we were out on assignments or whenever we’re in the city, relaxed and with our guard down? That is because very few people know our schedules and movements on a day-to-day basis; most people, whether they’re servants, soldiers, adventurers or nobles are only told on the day when they need to know.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because I’ve been asking Princess Hiiragi about this in order to avoid a similar situation that led to my death on Earth. Retainers can easily be bought off or convinced to turn on their masters, something that I imagine the leaders of the alliance have considered in regards to securing our safety. If they lose us, then they stand next to no hope of winning this war.

“The second reason is simply because there are arguably more valuable things a higher ranked traitor could provide to the Demon Emperor. If it was a general, they could lead an army into an ambush. If it was a merchant, they could intentionally sell shoddy goods or impede the flow of supplies, potentially crushing the Free People’s Alliance without the Demon Emperor having to lift a finger. If it was a commander at a border fort, they could open the gates and welcome the hordes of the east into the west. However, all that have been targeted in these attacks are scattered caravans of both men and supplies.

“Is it damaging the efforts of King Alexander? A little, but not in a substantial enough way as of yet to cripple the invasion into the east. So, the traitor can only get access to so much information and not one specific kind, which helps narrow down the list of suspects.”

“Have you considered the possibility that this might be a traitor trying to disguise their actions or cover their tracks?” Kayleigh inquired.

“I have, but that seems much more unlikely at this point,” Akane replied. “Of course, I cannot rule it out but I cannot rule it in yet, not without sufficient evidence. Finally, the last reason I have for suspecting the Summoned Heroes is that we know very little about one another. More accurately, we only know what each other has told the rest of us - whether it’s the truth or not is known only to that person.”

“Except for Yve and Guy.”

“Yve says she knew him; Guy says he doesn’t remember.”

“…Even then, I can’t imagine Yve would be the traitor.”

“Neither can I, but perhaps that’s a testament to how good of an actress she is. Guy as well could be pretending to be quite forgetful and dense.”

“Surely, Ewan would be the most suspicious then?”

“Initially, I thought so too,” Akane agreed. “He’s the only one who claims not to remember anything but his name from Earth, a convenient excuse or is it the truth?”

“…I don’t trust him too much.”

“Oh, even though he’s on your team?”

“He might be useful in a fight, but he’s…strange. From time to time, he just zones out and stares at people, mostly women, and doesn’t say anything.”

“Is he a member of Liam’s perverted group of friends?”

Kayleigh chuckled. “No, he doesn’t even look at the women that way. If anything, he’s just…blank while looking at them. Elysa told me he once protected her from Gabriel’s flirting, but then got a bit weird and so she left.”

Akane lent forward in her chair a little and stared firmly at Kayleigh. “Out of everyone on your team, is there anyone you truly trust?”

“…Elysa, probably.”

“Why?”

“Why? Even if you ask that, I’m not sure. She’s just…trustworthy, I guess? She’s always got my back in a fight and is always happy to talk about anything, so we get along quite well. I do wish she’d take things a bit more seriously from time to time, but that’s about it. Trevor and Fala are quite shy, so I don’t think they’d be capable of betraying anyone; Gabriel’s a bigger concern. He basically told us when we all met that he’s a cheater, which means he’s also probably a liar.”

“Hmm, then, for now, shall we remove Elysa as a suspect?”

“Well, we have to narrow it down somehow, so sure.”

Akane started ticking or crossing beside names on pieces of paper she had, marking two separate copies, one for each of them, every time she made a note.

“I trust Duncan,” Kayleigh said.

“…I want to be able to trust him, but he might have been given some motivation to betray us.”

“Dame Chelsea.”

Akane nodded. “If the enemy had a way of contacting Duncan to blackmail him, then it’s a possibility.”

“Duncan sucks at lying.”

“From what you can tell.”

“I trust him.”

“…Sometimes, I truly envy you, Kayleigh.”

“…Thanks for the compliment. Anyway, what about your team? And, for the record, I trust Hajime too.”

“As do I,” Akane said, before quickly noting down that they both believed in her team leader. “He’s a good person with many virtues.”

“You could just say he’s your friend.”

“I could, but that would not be entirely accurate.”

Kayleigh grinned. “Someone’s got a crush.”

“Please save your jokes for someone who will laugh at them.” Akane grumbled something beneath her breath, before continuing. “Amen once told me about the great injustices he suffered back in Egypt, so he’s unlikely to be the traitor. Someone who witnessed such cruelty and malice firsthand would hardly try to court favour with the Demon Emperor.”

“It’s not impossible for anyone to become drunk on power, though.”

“…Does that go for you too?”

“Who can say?”

Akane smiled. “For the time being, I shall rule Amen out as a candidate. As for the other three on my team, I truthfully do not know enough about them to make a judgement.”

“I thought Hajime said you guys were all getting along now?”

“We spend more time together, share meals and study sessions with one another, but our conversations are still largely forced and stiff. It is incredibly uncomfortable and I wish to see them end as soon as they begin.”

“…You have such a way with words, Akane.”

“Thank you for the compliment, Kayleigh.”

“Aangapean only, please.”

“What did you say at the end?”

“Nothing. So, is there anyone that you immediately suspect?”

“Dao Chen.”

“Well, that’s an obvious answer,” Kayleigh muttered. “There are lone wolves and then there’s her - all I know is what Duncan’s told me about her and that’s that she doesn’t like talking to him or his team and that she’s been hanging out with Talon lately. Talon’s disdain for the Demon Emperor is definitely real.”

“I know - I remember what you told me about the battle with the Scarlett Skulls. I knew a few soldiers like that in my old life, though few lived long or happy lives,” Akane said softly. "For the time being, we can rule those two out - I would, however, be suspicious of the rest of Yve’s team.”

“The four idiots I get, but why Hailey?”

“Hailey only ever seems to spend time with Yve. If they’re ever separated, one goes looking for the other, like much what we saw earlier today. If Hailey is secretly in contact with the enemy, it’d be during those moments when no one’s with her. Perhaps Hailey is using her friendship with Yve as cover for that very reason. By the way, why do you suspect the, as you put it, four idiots?”

“Well, those guys, they’re basically just driven by their crotch. Adrian might be a bit shy about admitting it, but they’re all young men with healthy sexual appetites. Someone like the Demon Emperor, a complete dominant figure with beautiful women by his side, might be something they envy and what to have for themselves. Blake caught Liam, Kavi, Gati and Adrian all trying to sneak to a brothel not too long ago. Pent up sexual frustration could make them act…rashly.”

With slightly pink cheeks, Akane cleared her throat. “I’m amazed you can say those things so calmly and without embarrassment, Kayleigh.”

“Well, I wanted to be a doctor in my old life, so knowing those sorts of things wasn’t unusual. What about Blake?”

“She seems…unlikely, but that also makes me suspicious of her. She’s rather outspoken and loud, but she often feels like she doesn’t care about training or fighting the Demon Emperor.”

“By that logic, Feng Li would be ruled out.”

“Feng Li said he served Liu Bei; from what I’ve gleamed, he was a respected warlord of the ancient world?”

“He was, but there were many evil and vile men from that time period too. He could be telling the truth about what time period he’s from, but not which master he served. If he actually served Dong Zhou or someone like Cao Cao, then that would change everything.”

“…As I have no idea who they are, I shall simply move on to the rest of Duncan’s team. Stephanie is clearly in love with Duncan, though the man in question seems to be unaware of this, so it’s unlikely she’d betray him or, by extension, the Free People’s Alliance.”

“Unless the Demon Emperor offered her a deal where he’d kill all of us but those two.”

“Brenda also appears to be innocent, though that mainly seems to stem from her outwards drive and dedication to the cause.”

“Which could just be acting,” Kayleigh said.

“Of course, but, then again, so could we,” Akane countered. “If we continue to use that argument, then we will get nowhere. I have little information on Guy’s team outside of him and Talon, so clearly that is an oversight on my part. What about you?”

“I know their names.”

“…Wonderful.” Akane sighed and stood up, handing Kayleigh her copy of the documents. “So, at the moment, our most likely candidates for the traitor are: Guy, Feng Li, Dao Chen, Ewan, Yve, Hailey, Gati, Liam, Kavi and Adrian?”

“For now.”

The entirety of Yve’s team…that can’t just be a coincidence, can it? Kayleigh thought.

“I’ll pay close attention to Hailey’s team and their movements; you can focus on the rest,” Akane said.

“…What if there’s more than one traitor?”

“Then, we shall simply have to find them one by one. For now, this is the best we can do - it’s not much, but it’s a start. If time passes and we find more people that we can trust and depend upon, then we can expand our search radius gradually, as long as we’re careful.”

“If we involve too many people, then there’s a high chance that the traitor, or traitors, will figure out what we’re up to.” Kayleigh rose from her seat. “It might be best to just keep this between ourselves.”

“…If our efforts bear no fruit this week, then we’ll decide one other person to bring into the group. At present, I wish to try and invite Talon here, but her rashness and emotional tendencies worry me. Perhaps she would become more level headed if she learnt there was a traitor among us.”

“I think it’s more likely that she’d try to kill all of us.”

“I hope you’re wrong, for all of our sakes.”

***

Dao Chen nodded firmly after hearing everything Talon had to say.

A traitor among the heroes…I knew it.

No matter where you go, people are always the same.

“…Where do we start?”

***

This one confirms that the heroes have learnt of a traitor within their ranks. Shall this one inform them?

“No, there’s no need, Echo."

But what if they are uncovered?

“It matters not. Simply continue following your orders as directed.” Mímir rose from his desk and stared out of his office window in the Dread Keep. “Everything is still moving according to plan. Until that changes, we shall not divert course. Tell your kin to continue their assignments as directed until I or his majesty say otherwise.”

This one acknowledges.