Project GB is an official initiative by Re:Library.

With the note missing, Mira had no way of contacting the Fifty Bells’ headquarters from her wagon. But she still had a chance if they had a branch in Nirvana. Mira waited with anticipation, while Alma took a moment to think about it.

“A branch hmm… I think it’s somewhere near the east gate. They mentioned they wanted to be as close to the forest as possible, and they found a vacant building there for quite cheap.”

That had happened around a decade in the past, so Alma was not too sure about all the details. She just remembered that it was somewhere near the east gate. Still, that was enough for Mira to go off on.

“Oh! The east gate? So the branch is in this city? You really are the best!”

The Fifty Bells had branches all over the continent, but Kagura had mentioned that often it was located in remote locations, depending on the country.

Here in Nirvana, Alma had allowed the branch to be instated in the capital city, which was pretty much the best outcome they could have wanted.

That had been quite kind of the empress, and it also meant Mira did not have to travel to another city, so she happily praised Alma for that decision.

“Huh? Was that a compliment? Wait, no, what does the Fifty Bells’ branch have anything to do with this? I thought we were talking about Kagura… Hold on a moment—”

Alma blushed for a moment, as it was rare for her to get compliments, only to be confused by the sudden change in topic, and then stopped suddenly as she remembered something. After a short pause, she said, “By the way, it’s nothing official yet, just a rumor one of my informants caught wind of…”

The rumor she had heard was something Nirvana’s secret service had discovered independently, revolving around a certain person involved in the fight against Chimera Clauzen.

“Most people just talk about the famous adventurers and guilds there, like Jack Grave or Eleonora, and you too Grandpa. But I heard that there was also someone less known who goes by the name of Alioth.”

So far, that was largely a preamble, before Alma went straight to the main point.

As it turned out, the person who came to request permission to instate the Fifty Bells’ branch looked identical to this Alioth. And that was not all. Alma’s secret service had looked into Alioth some more, and discovered that he was acting under orders of someone called Uzume.

“The Fifty Bells’ mission is to preserve the forests where spirits live, right? So that would make Chimera Clauzen their main enemy.”

Alma mentioned that, explaining why it made sense for them to be involved in that fight.

“I always assumed that Uzume was just the highest commander of the Fifty Bells, but you were there, grandpa. Do you know more? I mean, I even heard that Uzume is supposed to be a really strong Onmyoji Master, and you’re suddenly asking about their branch. It all connects, doesn’t it?”

Everything was slowly connecting as Alma brought up the information she knew, and when everything was put together, she discovered the truth. The leader of the Fifty Bells was Kagura.

“Hm, I expected no less from your information network. You know a lot already.”

Mira asking for the location of the branch was all Alma needed to figure everything out. Impressed by it, Mira confirmed that Kagura was the leader of the Fifty Bells, and gave a brief explanation of how that came to be.

She also mentioned how Kagura was traveling with the Angel Tiriel now that Chimera Clauzen had been defeated. Also how Kagura was the one who had developed that interrogation spell, and that the branches had a way of communicating with the headquarters.

“…So if we pass a message through the branch, I’m sure it’ll get to Kagura eventually. And unless she’s in a lot of trouble, she should come here as soon as possible, and it should still be faster than waiting two months for your drugs to work.”

Knowing Kagura, as long as she was not completely swamped with work, she would offer her help. The only setback would depend on how often Kagura got in touch with the headquarters, but Mira was sure that it had to be more frequent than once every few months.

Chimera Clauzen had been an enormous organization, so even after their defeat, there were many people connected to them that still needed to see justice. That meant the Fifty Bells still had multiple ongoing operations, which would require Kagura’s opinion and orders to be conducted.

“I see, so that’s why you wanted to know about the branch. And if they send the message, then Kagura will come here… Okay yes, I have hope again!”

Now that she understood everything, Alma hopped on her feet and said, “Let’s go ask them then!” even adding that she was the one asking for the favor, so it was only right for her to go as well.

But Mira noticed what was happening. She had seen that behavior before in Solomon.

“No, it’s enough for me to go alone. I mean, it won’t do for the empress to be wandering around the city like that, and you have plenty of work yourself, so just wait for me.”

For some reason, rulers seemed to have the habit of trying to find any excuse possible to run away from their duties. Mira instantly noticed it was happening again, so she put an end to it and stood up as well.

Soon, Mira was going to be appointed the oracle’s new bodyguard, so it was better to leave the message now.

“Ack…!”

Seeing Alma’s reaction only proved Mira’s hunch right. She stammered for a moment, but did not give up on her escape just yet. She fell silent for a moment, thinking of another reason to go with Mira, looking determined to do it.

“Also, not just everyone can get access to the branch’s communication device. You need to know a specific password before they let you into that room. It doesn’t matter that you’re the empress, or rather, it’s because you’re the empress that you shouldn’t just try to force your way in there.”

Mira spoke with a stern and admonishing voice.

Obviously enough, the room to communicate with the headquarters was off-limits from the general public. Only members of the Fifty Bells were allowed in there.

Being the empress, Alma could probably use her authority to force her way there, but Mira did not think that would be a respectable use of power.