London.
The study of the Duke of Normandy.
In it, Gazelle reported on the latest events that happened in the royal house. The Duke, who was standing at the window and watching the evening city, said after listening to the end.
— It looks like Mary is starting to lose ground sooner than we thought.
Turning around, he continued.
— In that case, it's worth speeding up the rebuilding before someone does it faster than us.
Gazelle, after listening, replied.
— Yes, sir.
And she left the room while the Duke began to explore the outside world again. But suddenly he took out a folder from the cabinet. William opened the folder and looked at the photo and its description with interest.
An unknown room.
Richard was sitting on the couch, writing and talking at the same time.
—Well? Did they get the message?
The bodyguard leaned against the wall and spoke.
— Yes, but the answer is delayed.
Dipping the pen into the ink, the prince said with a smile.
— Well, let's not rush them, let's give it to them... a week, and if we don't get a response, then we can start in 2 weeks.
When he finished writing, Richard put the paper in an envelope, sealed it, and stamped it with an "R" pattern. He handed it over and said.
— Well, in the meantime, could you pass this on to our future friend?
Japan.
Svyat and Noboru fought with wooden blades. The fight may have been a training match, but no one wanted to concede victory in it. This was watched from afar by Okochi and the novice, who had already finished their fight.
Svyat, in his manner, fought on the counterattack and, waiting for the moment, knocked down his opponent's leg and knocked him to the ground. The duel is over. Noboru looked annoyed. Glory came over, held out his hand and said.
— Let's do it again, otherwise it wasn't fair.
Noboru grabbed his arm, pulled himself up and stood up. Then he dusted himself off and answered.
— No, let's go with someone else, I want to make it to lunch in one piece.
Then Svyat asked the guys.
— What, no one wants to?
Okochi took Noboru's wooden blade and spoke worriedly.
— Maybe sometime later? We should rest before lunch, and in the meantime, you can practice your blade on the dummy... You've got a little bit of a lame left hand.
Svyat is a little upset.
— Good... Let's see you again.
Glory walked towards the mannequins, and voices in Japanese were heard from the guys who had already left.
— When will he learn to use a katana instead of surreptitiously?
— Well, what can you do if it's not his. The guy is normal. — the second voice sounded.
— That's right, that it's not his, why did he come here at all? There are enough crooked hands without him, — the first one was heard again.
— Paris? A third voice suddenly appeared.
— Yes, yes, Paris-Paris.
Svyat approached the mannequin wrapped in armor without mood. And clutching the katana in his hand, he hit the armor with all his might, trying to cut it in half. There was a click of metal.
London.
There was a click of metal from the opening of the lighter, with which the general lit a cigar. Following that, "7" handed him the note that the White Pigeon had received during the last mission.
General. When he finished reading, he sighed and said.
— Listen carefully, now head to the royal house and stay with the heiress as much as possible. Do not lose sight of her, keep an eye on her constantly.
Ange, Dorothy, and Lawrence didn't show it, but it was clear that they didn't like it. The general added the same thing.
— The prince thought we would make concessions to him, but he did not take into account that we can also be stubborn.
The heroes, after listening to the last instructions, left the office and went to the car, Lawrence said.
— Well, let's just follow the order, or do you have an idea to do something?
Dorothy smiled and looked at Ange, who in turn said.
— Lawrence, go to the royal castle, tell Charlotte and Beatrice about the order, and keep an eye on Mary together.
The officer sighed, but said with a smile.
— There is. But I'm afraid to ask, but are you...?
Dorothy started the car.
— And we'll go somewhere, don't worry, we won't be long.
The girls drove off, leaving Lawrence alone by the road.
Japan.
Evening.
Chise talked to her sister. During the conversation, many important topics were raised, but among them there was one more important one.
— Sis, it's time to decide where you're going on your journey, because Lord Horikawa won't always be in London and he won't always need protection.
Chise thought about it because she was faced with a difficult choice, "to stay with her sister in Japan under the guidance of Lord Horikawa" or "go to Albion to visit friends." The girl thought about this topic for a long time, after which she spoke.
— Sister, I love you very much, but right now I can't give you an answer, I need to think about it for a while.
The nurse got up, went to the window and said.
— Of course, I'm not rushing you, but it seems that someone is very dependent on your answer.
Chise also went to the window and saw the enraged Svyat scattering the things prepared for meditation. Exhaling, he calmed down, then sat down and continued to meditate.
London.**
A certain car pulled up to the alley, Ange and Dorothy got out of it, the latter said.
— So how do we find the secret spy hideout? In the midst of all this... There's nothing here at all!
Ange examined the alley and, noticing a dumpster, spoke up.
— To hide a leaf, put it in a forest.
After that, she took out the key ball and, turning it on, found the passage, pushed it aside. There was a staircase leading to a dark basement. They carefully descended and found themselves in a cramped corridor. So they moved forward in search of the door, lighting the way with a key ball.
Soon they came across a room with a door torn from its hinges. Empty boxes and crates were scattered randomly in it. Dorothy asked a perfectly logical question.
— What happened here?
There was a small, barely noticeable shadow in the hallway. Ange looked around and said.
— It seems that we are not the only ones who decided to visit the abandoned headquarters...
The girls slowly began to move along the corridor, scanning every corner for danger. They reached a room that looked like a warehouse. Once inside, Dorothy pointed the gun, but there was no one there. There was only a half-empty wooden counter, through which another room could be seen, in which a running shadow appeared again. The girls exchanged glances.
Ange increased the power of the K-ball and rolled it into the room, after which they broke into Dorothy and pointed a pistol and sickle at the owner of the shadow. It turned out to be a small black lizard that was running around the headquarters in search of food. Dorothy sighed.
— Well, buddy, tell me, how did you get to this kind of life?
The lizard seemed to nod and run away. Ange was inspecting the warehouse at the same time. After walking around several empty shelves, she noticed a piece of newspaper, the main headline of which was: "The barber is a murderer." Dorothy spoke up.
— It seems that what was left after the move has long been taken out for us.
Ange, after reviewing the newspaper, suggested.
— Let's make another circle and return to the castle.
Japan.
The candle was lit. Svyat took the candelabrum in his hands and carried it to the table. He opened the book and continued reading it. Time passed, and the boy began to fall asleep, but he tried his best to stay awake. In the end, Svyat still collapsed on the table.
A little more time passed. The candle went out. But there was a light from somewhere. Svyat woke up and tensed up, suddenly a second light source also appeared for a moment. The kid took the first thing he could lay his hands on and ran outside. He quickly looked around the building, checking for signs of fire. Fortunately, nothing was burning.
Svyat calmed down and looked at the object he had grabbed in a hurry. It turned out to be a simple axe, but it had a special effect on the kid. He threw it aside, along the way he fell on his side, after which he caught sight of a mannequin with a red bandana on his head.
The boy rushed in the opposite direction from the mannequin and ran so hard that he stumbled at every third step. It seems that Svyat saw an invincible enemy in the face of the mannequin and ran as fast as he could, not thinking at all about fighting with him.
The kid ran down the street without turning around. Turning a corner, he entered the forest, after running a little more, Svyat ran out of breath and fell.
After making sure that there was no pursuit, the boy crawled to a small spring, from which water flowed. He drank from it, washed his face, and suddenly noticed his blurred reflection. I stared at it for a long time, but when I couldn't see anything, I hit the water.
Svyat sat down under a tree and looked up in frustration when he saw sakura, cheered up a little and, sighing, got to his feet and said softly.
— It's time to go home...
Morning.
Svyat lying on the table was awakened by a knock on the door. The boy stood up awkwardly and opened the partition. Chise stood in the doorway and immediately spoke.
— We need to talk... In general, I think we need to...
— Go back home... — Svyat calmly interrupted her.
The girl was surprised.
— Yes, that's right, pack your things, I've already arranged a train to London, there are really a few transfers, but we'll manage, and yet...
— No, I'm going home to my homeland... The kid interrupted again.
Chise lowered her fervor.
— Oh, well, if that's the case, then... I'm going to find a train...
The girl quickly disappeared from view. Svyat slowly began to pack his things, finally tidied up the room and, after taking one last look at it, left.
Outside, he started waiting for Chise, and suddenly Noboru, Okochi, and a novice approached him. The first one said it.
— Paris, Chise said that you were leaving and we couldn't miss this celebration...
Okochi pushed his friend.
— This is an event. Therefore, here is a modest gift from us.
Okochi held out his Katana in its sheath. Svyat accepted the gift with a smile and shook hands with everyone. Chise came out of the building. They all said goodbye and Svyat and Chise went outside, where a carriage was waiting for them.
The boy immediately jumped into the cart, and finally his sister came out to Chisa, with whom they had a fun chat, after which they hugged and the girl got into the cart and they drove off.
When they got to the train, they went in and got into their carriage. The locomotive started moving.
A few days have passed.
They passed quietly, even boringly, but each of them was more dreary than the previous one. After another transfer, they reached the station where the Train had to get off.
It was evening outside, and the sun was already setting. Chise and Glory got off the train. Svyat put the things on the ground and said.
— Well, I guess I should... Saying goodbye? — He said uncertainly.
Chise smiled and replied.
— It's time...
Svyat sighed.
— You... The main thing is that you live well... Calm down, although you're unlikely to succeed. And... don't forget.
At the end, Svyat awkwardly bowed. Chise hugged him and said.
— We won't forget, but you will... Come visit.
They said goodbye and, waving after each other, were very upset in their hearts. The train left, and Svyat walked along the road. When he reached the village, he walked down the street towards the far house. The residents who saw him looked at the boy with surprise. Svyat went into the courtyard and stood in front of the door. After thinking about further actions for a long time. But he decided to knock anyway. The door opened. Svyat immediately said.
— I'm sorry, but you...