Turning to face Rolf, Shaldina spoke.

  "He's someone who managed to escape from this castle and evade our pursuit. He wouldn't flee recklessly."

  "Then, Lady Shaldina, do you believe the otherworlder knows the geography...?"

  Rolf's expression showed skepticism, as if such a thing were impossible.

  "Probably..."

  "But in that case, wouldn't he choose the closest route, the south? If it were me, I wouldn't head east."

  If Rolf was fleeing, he would choose the shortest route. In a situation where his life was at stake, the sooner he could escape the country, the better. There was no reason to choose a longer route. That was Rolf's thinking.

  "Yes, if he were just fleeing, he'd go south. However, we would also anticipate that."

  "So he chose east to counter our expectations? No way... that's too much..."

  A worried expression crossed Shaldina's face.

  "Rolf, I hope I'm wrong. But we've been outmaneuvered this far, haven't we? Underestimating the enemy could lead to him escaping abroad."

  Rolf pondered for a moment before speaking.

  "Indeed... but we can't dismiss the possibility of the south either..."

  His judgment was realistic, both a strength and a flaw.

  "I understand what you're saying. My belief that he went east is just a hunch... Therefore, I plan to leave the south to Lady Celia, Lord Rolf, and Lord Orland while I head east."

  "That seems reasonable... but shouldn't we split into two groups of two instead?"

  His suggestion was logical. Under normal circumstances, the group would indeed split evenly. However, Shaldina shook her head in response to Rolf's suggestion.

  "No, the east is just my hunch. Besides, I'm worried that just Orland wouldn't be enough to handle Celia… although I do have an excellent vice captain with me. We'll be fine."

  Rolf recalled how the usually composed and even ruthless Celia, often referred to as the "Blizzard Queen," had been agitated and shouting.

  (Indeed... as Her Highness pointed out, it would be risky to leave the currently unstable Celia under Orland's care alone... but with that one around, there should be no danger to Her Highness.)

  Hearing Shaldina's words, Rolf quickly calculated in his mind. A clear image of the skilled vice captain Shaldina mentioned formed in his head.

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  "Understood. Then I will reorganize the troops accordingly."

  "I'm counting on you, Lord Rolf."

  After saluting the princes in respect, Rolf pushed his tired body to stay awake and worked through the night to reorganize the troops. all to capture a single otherworlder.

...

  "Lord Rolf! The troops are ready to move! We can depart immediately."

  One of his deputies came to report.

  "Lady Shaldina, shall we go?"

  In response to Rolf's words, Shaldina pointed her sword toward the distance beyond the castle gate.

  "Advance!"

  With Rolf's command, a cavalry unit of 150 men began to march, chasing a shadowless otherworlder.

  Running at the forefront, Vice Captain Saito rode alongside Shaldina.

  "Your Highness, we have closed the Adelfo checkpoint as per your orders."

  "Good work. That was fast."

  The order had been issued yesterday afternoon. Even with a change of horses, it was still swift. Shaldina looked pleased with Saito's report.

  "Do you intend to capture him in the town of Adelfo?"

  Saito was a Japanese man who had been summoned and enslaved by the Ortomea Empire. He quickly adapted to his new reality, accepting his role as a slave with surprising ease. Over the past ten years, he devoted himself entirely to serving his new masters, always striving to please them with unwavering dedication.

  Saito appeared to be in his mid thirties now, he had the appearance of a businessman with his hair neatly parted to one side.

  If you put glasses on him and had him wear a business suit, he would blend right into any business district. In response to this intelligent looking man's question, Shaldina grinned mischievously and asked back.

  "Oh? Did I say that?"

  "No, which is why I am asking, Your Highness."

  Not quite the answer she was hoping for, Shaldina's face turned slightly stern as she replied.

  "Then, let me ask you, my excellent strategist: do you think we can capture the otherworlder in the town of Adelfo?"

  "No, it's almost impossible."

  Saito replied bluntly. This time, his answer seemed to please Shaldina. She smiled slightly as she continued.

  "Oh? Why is that?"

  "How do we search for someone whose face we don't know? Or do we have any information that can identify the man?"

  This was the biggest problem with this mission. The known facts were that the otherworlder was a tall, well built man, intelligent, and ruthless. That was about it. Frankly, there were countless people like that in the capital or even across the entire Western Continent.

  During last night's pursuit, they had searched based on the assumption that the target was wearing guard armor, but they had lost all traces after the target left the castle gate.

  "Indeed... Haha. We can't search for someone whose face we don't even know."

  A smile appeared on Shaldina's face, and Saito's eyes narrowed.

  "So, what will you do?"

  "Don't worry. Since we don't know his face, we'll have to make the culprit show himself."

  Hearing Shaldina's words, a sharp gleam appeared in Saito's eyes, signaling that he understood his master's plan.

  "I see. That's why you had the Adelfo checkpoint closed..."

  "Exactly. Although, since the number of troops we can use is limited, we can't expect much..."

  "What about deploying the Adelfo garrison?"

  Shaldina shook her head at Saito's suggestion.

  "That won't work. If we move the border garrison, Zaluda will seize the opportunity to invade. And we can't ask the nobles for reinforcements either."

  "Indeed... If the nobles find out, they might use this chance to hid the traitorous otherworlder and use him to rebel."

  Shaldina imagined the situation if this incident leaked to the imperial nobles or neighboring countries and let out a wry smile.

  "We'll have to disclose it eventually, but now isn't the time. That's why we need to be careful... though we're at a disadvantage."

  Saito silently nodded in agreement with Shaldina's words.

  He was a shrewd man. While he might have felt a flicker of sympathy for the new otherworlder, he knew exactly where his loyalties lay. After more than a decade of hard work to reach his current position, he wasn't about to jeopardize it over some misplaced compassion. No, he was more determined than ever to put the upstart in his place and personally fasten that slave collar around his neck.