A few hours later, around noon…

Incognito, Stripe is aimlessly wandering around the capital's streets. Her golden eyes stare at the cobblestones below, rising higher only to weave through the busy crowd and avoid walking into someone. Her gaze turns in the general direction of the palace, and she lets out a large, sullen sigh as it drops back down to her feet. Wearing her baggy cloth hat on her head, a woolen sweater with a high collar, and a pair of pants somewhat clashing with her otherwise feminine attire, she blends in well among the disinterested and busy faces of the citizenry.

Donnnnnnnnnnggggggg… Gonnnnnnnnngggggg… Donnnnnnnnnngggggg… Gonnnnnngggggggg…

The bell tower in the distance tolls, signaling midday. She briefly watches the heavy bell swing far away, before turning back around and continuing onward, heading anywhere.

The crowd thins just a little as she approaches a crossing. She turns her head to look down the street leading to the market, briefly considering heading there before simply walking past the street. She keeps walking, heading forward towards nowhere in particular, though eventually her legs take her nearby a lake within the city. Stripe walks off the street onto a small plaza near some benches, and looks at the lake.

After a few moments of relative silence near the loud and busy street, a woman calls out from behind her.

「Heey! Hey, you!」

The voice shouts, and she turns her head around to see who it is.

「Geh!…」

Stripe immediately cringes when she sees a woman in a black uniform wearing a peaked cap rush toward her, waving her arm high above her head.

《Ministry agent?… Do they know?-》

She glares at the woman running up to her, though there is no apparent hostility in her tone or body language. Rather, she seems like she just found an old friend on the street.

《…No. I've done nothing wrong right now. There's no chance that she knows… But why is she?…》

「Ahh… Hello? Do you need something?」

Stripe asks as she turns to face the tanned woman with a visibly forced and awkward friendly smile, keeping her hands close to her chest in a meekly defensive posture.

「Noo, not really…」

She replies, panting heavily while she's catching her breath, smiling back, gently lifting the brim of her hat. Stripe looks at the large two-handed hammer resting on her shoulder.

《…This must be the Hammerer. It's a woman all along?》

「Then why?…」

Stripe gently tilts her head as the woman straightens out with one last large huff, and adjusts the peaked cap on her brown head.

「…I knew it!」

The Ministry woman suddenly declares, grinning a little as she looks at her face. Stripe's awkward smile turns into a tight-lipped grimace.

「Nnhh… Know… What?」

《…I'm completely unprepared for this. I stashed all my equipment, I don't even have a dagger. How? Did they track me-?》

Troubled, Stripe lets out a nearly inaudible groan, then asks as she takes a small step back.

「…Your eyes are kinda like mine!」

The woman declares, briefly pointing her finger at her before she turns it around and points at her own amber-colored eye with a large, satisfied grin on her face.

「Eyes?-」

Stripe asks, furrowing her brows before realizing the woman is staring into her eyes. She makes a conscious effort to keep her pupils as round as possible.

「Ah… They're a similar color.」

She remarks, looking back into the Ministry's agents orange eyes.

「Right! I saw you back there on the street and I saw your eyes, but when I tried to walk up to talk with you, you suddenly disappeared into the crowd. I could only see the tip of your hat!…」

With her fist on her hip and her other hand lazily hanging off her hammer's grip to keep it balanced on her shoulder, the agent nods her hatted head with fervor.

「…Maaaan, if you actually tried to hide from me, there's no way I'd be able to find you! Ahaha!… That's pretty bad for me! Hahaha…」

The woman grins, rubbing the back of her head as she laughs.

「But… Is that really a good conversation topic?」

Stripe asks with an awkward, discomforted grimace.

「Ah. You see… I don't know if you know, but that's actually a rare color!…」

The Ministry agent replies with her index finger extended.

「…So when I saw you, I was wondering if you were maybe like me.」

She adds, and shrugs her hand.

「Like you?…」

《Is she a beastman?…》

Stripe looks at her large orange eyes and smiling, tanned face. Her golden yellow eyes briefly glance at the woman's hat prominently featuring a metal dragon and a grinning skeleton just underneath it, holding its skeletal thumb up. Her gaze drifts lower to the agent's exposed thighs beneath her short skirt.

《…No, where would she hide her tail? More importantly, isn't she ashamed? Just a little higher, and everyone could see.》

Her brows furrow, and she looks back at the woman's face.

「That's right!… So, if you could come with me, I'd like to ask you a few questions.」

「Come with you?… Where?」

「Just… Come with me, you know?」

The woman replies, smiling as she takes a step closer.

「Um… Do I have to?」

Stripe asks, and the agent stops in her tracks, tilting her head and appearing a little confused by the question.

「…What I mean is, am I under arrest?」

She clarifies, and the uniformed woman shakes her head, laughing.

「Ahahaha!… No, no no… Nothing like that. I just want to take you with me so we can talk about a few things.」

The agent dismissively waves her hand then adjusts her hat by its brim, smiling at her. Stripe looks over her shoulder at the lake behind her, then around herself in general. The small plaza is empty, the benches are unoccupied, and a steady stream of people flows along the street behind the Ministry woman while she stares at Stripe with her brown head gently tilted.

「Um… If I do not have to… I'll have to refuse. I'm sorry, I have a lot of things to do today-」

「Don't be like that, it won't take long. It's just a few private questions I'd like to ask in private.」

The woman replies, walking closer with a large smile on her face.

《…She's just acting. If I agree, I bet I'll end up as their torturer's toy.》

「…Are you saying you want to take me in for a questioning?」

Stripe asks, and her gaze sharpens while she warily stares at the agent. She stops again, and her amber eyes drift upward while she thinks with her finger on her tanned cheek.

「Hmmm… I guess you could say so, but you're not in trouble or anything. I'm just really curious about some things.」

She shrugs, smiling at Stripe.

「If I'm not under arrest, then I refuse. I am busy.」

Stripe replies in a firm tone, cautiously glaring at her.

「I see…」

The woman lowers her head, hiding most of her face behind her hat's brim while her smile fades.

「…In that case, I'm sorry. But… You probably understand, right?」

She adds as she raises her head back to meet her golden eyes with her amber ones, smiling as she grips the hammer's handle with both of her hands.

「Sorry for what? I can't say that I do-」

Fwoomm!

The Ministry agent swings her hammer in a low arcing blow aimed at her knees. Stripe backflips out of the way just in time and lands on her feet, remaining in a low crouch.

「Ah.」

The Hammerer lets out a surprised utterance as she staggers a few steps, swung around by the hammer's inertia. Stripe glares at her with a sharp gaze, one hand on the cobblestones beneath.

「…Slit pupils?」

The woman says, tilting her head as she regains control of the hammer and rests it on her shoulder again. Stripe's golden yellow eyes snap wide open, and she places her hand on her face.

《Shit! She distracted me!》

She thinks as their eyes meet, and the uniformed woman blinks her orange eyes at her with her brows lightly furrowed.

「You have really long nails too… I didn't expect you to dodge that either! You're kind of like Straf!」

The Ministry agent declares with surprise on her face when she notices her clawed fingers.

「Straf?…」

《…Katastrof Vindict?》

Stripe replies, standing back up to the toes of her feet, her clawed hands open, and her eyes focused on the woman before her while taking brief glances of the surroundings.

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「Yup! He's my boss's boss!… But he's out right now and I kinda miss him!…」

Nona nods her hatted head, grinning as she takes a few steps sideways.

「…I am really curious about you right now! You're definitely under arrest now! I think I'm onto something here!-」

She adds, and the slit-eyed woman darts towards the crowd of onlookers at the edge of the plaza.

「H- Hey! Get back here!…」

Nona runs after her, but the golden-eyed woman slips into the crowd. She stands on her tiptoes and looks for the woman's cloth hat amidst the distant heads, but can't find it.

「Nggghh… And I was about to do something the boss would have been really proud of!…」

She groans in frustration, then lets out a resigned sigh and shambles off the plaza in defeat…

…

Later that day, in the evening…

The queen's carriage rolls in through the gate with the steady sound of trotting horse hooves. The citizenry makes way, and the sparse crowd splits to the sides to allow it through. A few moments later, it rolls past the open palace gates and into the dark courtyard. Plumed guards carrying oil lanterns swarm the carriage, forming a perimeter. Somewhat surprised and a little concerned, the drivers jump off their seats and head for the cabin door.

「Your majesty, we have arrived.」

The mustached driver opens the door, and pokes his head inside. He stands back as Straf jumps out and places his hands in his pockets.

「Maaaaan… I'm getting tired of horse-drawn carriages. Maybe I should get to making mechanical ones already.」

He says to Cycelia as she climbs out, smiling at him.

「Hehehe… Don't even joke like that-」

「I'm not joking.」

He nonchalantly replies, shrugging his shoulders as Cycelia suddenly goes silent. She looks around at the guards surrounding the carriage.

「Your majesty, there has been an incident yesterday…」

One of the plumed guards says as he approaches.

「An incident?…」

She tilts her chestnut head, blinking at the guard. Their lanterns' lights glitters in her concerned emerald eyes.

「Yes… There was an intruder at the palace around last midnight. While we believe she is long gone, just to be safe, we have increased security around the palace.」

He nods, and his red plume jiggles lightly while the drivers pull Cycelia's baggage off the carriage roof.

「Well, that's worrisome…」

The mustached driver says with a strained grunt as he slides it off the railing above and down to the ground.

「Minister… Niklaus from the Ministry of Security wants to see you. He said there has been a development, and to inform you as soon as you arrive.」

The guard turns his head to Straf's bored grimace, and calmly explains.

「Aggghhhh… More fucking work, huh?…」

Straf throws his head back, groaning at the night sky in frustration.

「…Could any of you take this to her majesty's room? We need to put the carriage and horses away.」

The driver asks, looking at the guards' faces while pointing his hand at the baggage. One of them steps closer.

「I'll handle it- Hngggh…」

He declares, and makes a casual attempt to lift it.

「…On a second thought… Help me carry this…」

The plumed guard turns his head to one of his colleagues, and nods his plumed head at the baggage, straining heavily. He rushes up, and the two carry it into the palace, albeit struggling.

「Well… In that case, we'll bid you goodnight, your majesty. We'll handle the carriage.」

「Mhm. Thank you for everything. Goodnight.」

「Our pleasure, your highness.」

The mustached man nods back, smiling at her from the driver's seat, and the two ride away towards the rear of the palace.

「First the Mage Federation, now this…」

Cycelia quietly remarks with her eyes lowered.

「Yeah, that's a whole lot of plot hooks, isn't it? And a lot of dreadfully tedious shit for me to do…」

Straf asks, and turns his fatigued gaze up at the night sky as he grumbles.

「…I don't even rule the place. Can't someone else do it?-」

He asks no one in particular, and his tired eyes snap open in sudden realization.

「…I guess being the government has its downsides after all.」

Lowers his face back down to the guards, he scrunches his mouth to the side heavily.

「Do you want your book back, Lia?」

Straf asks, looking at Cycelia.

「Ah. Yes. Yes, please. I'd like to finally put it away and lock it up where it's safe.」

She nods powerfully for a moment, staring at him intensely with a tight-lipped grimace.

「…Alright. It's the safest with me, but a promise is a promise. Lead me to that supposedly safe place.」

He shrugs, and points his hand to the palace door. She nods again, and leads the way. The horde of guards escorts them through the darkness, never straying too far…

…

A few minutes later, a few floors up…

Straf and Cycelia walk through heavy steel doors while the rest of the palace guards stay outside. The large room is dimly lit, with only stubs of what presumably were once long, long candles slowly burning away, lining the columns leading to pedestals ahead. Upon the marble pedestals there are red pillows, and on those pillows, there is a golden crown encrusted with gems, a scepter of solid gold, a fur-trimmed royal mantle folded up into a neat square, and a large lockbox, each with their own pedestals, though the lockbox is lying on the bare pedestal.

Cycelia walks up to the lockbox, and raises its lid. The interior is padded with a reddish leather, and just large enough to fit a book the size of the grimoire in.

「Straf, could I have it now?…」

She asks, turning her large emerald eyes to him.

「Yeaaah…」

[Portable Storage] opens, and Straf pulls the dark grimoire out. He approaches the pedestal closer, shrugging the tome while his free hand remains in his pocket.

「Do you want me to just throw that in there, or is it a big deal if you do it?」

He asks, standing beside her. With her face bashfully lowered and her lower lip gently bitten, Cycelia wordlessly stretches her dainty hands out for the tome.

「Alright.」

Straf shrugs, and drops the tome into her waiting hands. With a tight-lipped grimace, she turns to face the steel lockbox, and gently sets the grimoire down in its padded interior.

Cycelia then gently lowers the lid back down. It only makes a quiet clank as it makes contact with its bottom half, and she lets out a large, relieved sigh.

「Ahhhh… Now I just need to get my copy of the key from my room. For lack of better words, I feel like I just closed the longest book.」

She turns her green eyes to Straf, smiling a little.

「You sure the best solution wouldn't be… I don't know, casting it into a fucking volcano?」

He asks as they turn away and head back to the large double doors.

「Straf… My duty as the heir to the throne is to safeguard the grimoire and prevent its misuse. I don't feel like I have the authority to destroy it. It's just not up to me.」

Cycelia replies, staring at the ground ahead of her as she walks beside him with a gently sullen expression.

「I get it, the plot device is immortal and eternal. You're its sole owner and proprietor though… If not you, then who?」

He asks, shrugging his shoulders with his mouth aslant. Cycelia silently thinks, still staring downward.

「I don't know, Straf. Just not me.」

She turns her serious, pensive face to him, and looks Straf in the eyes for a few moments before turning her head forward.

「Well, alright… Maybe later, then… I'll go say hi to Lily.」

Straf shrugs, then reaches into his [Portable Storage] once again and pulls out his skateboard.

Clunk!

It makes a loud noise that echoes through off the room's walls when he drops it to the ground, and places his foot on its center.

「Straf, what is that?」

Cycelia asks as she stops in her tracks, pointing at the skateboard, blinking at it with her head gently tilted.

「Ah. You've never seen this before. It's the thing I said I'll show you some time back… Skateboard, Lia. Hmpf…」

Straf says, and lets out a little grunt as he reaches down to pick it up. He holds it up, letting Cycelia see its scraped bottom.

「…Once upon a time it was a symbol of rock music and rebellious teenagers, now it's the symbol of sad middle-aged men who can't let go of the past.」

He explains with one hand in his pocket, turning his face to hers.

「…What's it for?」

She asks, blinking with confused eyes at Straf's nonchalant face.

「Skating, Lia. Would you like to try?」

Clack!

He asks, and drops the skateboard to the floor again. The plumed guards briefly peek inside, furrowing their brows.

「Um… Sure? How do I do it?」

「Give me your hand and step on it.」

Straf says, holding his hand out for hers. She sets it down in his, and carefully places her foot on the skateboard.

「Now try gently pushing yourself forward off your other foot.」

「Okay, I'll tr-」

Krrrrk!

「Wah!?」

Cycelia manages to propel the skateboard forward like a railgun, sending it flying through the air while she tips backwards, flailing her arms.

Clang!

「Ow! What the fff-!?」

It impacts one of the guards in the back of his head, ringing his helmet like a bell. Wincing, he looks inside the room with an angry scowl, which quickly softens into a tight-lipped grimace when he sees Straf holding Cycelia in his arms as if dipping her in a dance. She looks at Straf's close face with her emerald eyes wide open.

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.

「…I should have expected that.」

Straf remarks, and lifts her back up to her feet.

「I suppose you'd be too much of a special snowflake if you'd be a skating special runaway dragon princess. There's the speed limit of the universe, and there's the believability limit.」

He adds, shrugging his shoulders as he continues onward towards the orphaned skateboard rolling slowly along the floor.

「I'll go pay Lily a visit, and I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight, Lia.」

Straf nonchalantly says as he steps on the skateboard, and kicks off.

「Mhm… Goodnight-」

She rapidly nods her chestnut head, but Straf quickly makes a sharp 90 degree turn outside the steel doors, and kicks off again, disappearing beyond the wall.

「…Night, Straf.」

Cycelia says to herself as her palm slowly raises to her heavily beating heart beyond her large chest…