The Protagonist’s Party is Too Diligent – 103
EP.103 Strategy (2)
The place where we met Bella wasn’t far from the casino.
It was a forest I remembered from the game. While the game didn’t allow deep exploration outside the casino building, and the forest wasn’t fully rendered, the spot we were in matched the direction I recalled from the casino.
“So close…”
Alice said, looking back.
Even by the standards of the world I came from, the building loomed high like a needle piercing the sky. The casino and the hotel stacked above it weren’t among the tallest skyscrapers in the world, but standing close, you had to crane your neck to see their peak.
The building was illuminated by dazzling lights that shone even into this forest.
The stark contrast between the vibrant casino and the dense jungle surrounding it was almost surreal. It felt like the perfect setting for a hidden, corrupted city straight out of a novel.
“You’re here on time.”
Bella stood slightly off the path leading from the forest entrance.
Hardly anyone roamed the forest at this hour, so she didn’t seem concerned about the light she carried drawing attention. She wore the same fox mask as before, paired with a tight leather suit. Her attitude was relaxed, but her outfit betrayed her caution, as if she feared revealing her identity.
It made sense. Both Lucas and Bella often seemed insolent in front of the Emperor, yet their loyalty to him was unwavering. They would never act outside the Emperor’s plans.
Bella held a small bag in her left hand. It wasn’t particularly large—more like a handbag—and looked rather worn despite its leather material.
That bag… it was likely Verratti’s.
In the game, Verratti used a similar bag to search ruins. Inside it was probably one of the Papal State’s relics.
“Hmm.”
Bella made a soft sound, scanning us.
Her abilities were exceptional—within her field of expertise, she had likely reached the pinnacle. However, even she couldn’t clear an ancient dungeon alone.
“Impressive.”
Bella smiled behind her mask. Claire and Leo had already seen her unmasked before, but her voice was altered now.
To me and Alice, who knew the truth, Bella’s disguise was obvious. But to others?
Leo probably wouldn’t notice, but Claire, with her sharp eye for detail, might.
However, when I glanced at Claire’s face, she didn’t seem particularly surprised.
“Two daughters of the Emperor and two from loyalist families. I hear all of you are highly skilled.”
Bella remarked.
“That’s right. Both of them are incredibly capable. As a fellow imperial princess, I can vouch for them.”
Alice spoke, stepping forward confidently.
Bella shrugged, exuding a strangely overbearing demeanor.
She was a difficult character to grasp. In the main storyline, Bella was barely more than a side mention, with a few illustrations and a handful of voiced flashbacks. While her personality was described as “similar to Claire’s,” it wasn’t identical to the Claire from the main game.
Besides, the Claire I’d come to know over the past two months had already diluted my impression of her original counterpart.
From what I’d observed of Bella’s personality over the past ten years, this demeanor was an act.
When she wasn’t wearing her mask, Bella was playful around us. She often teased or joked, sometimes even in ways that were slightly irritating.
“Well, if the next Emperor of the Empire says so, I guess I have no choice but to follow.”
“……”
Alice glared sharply at her, while Leo nervously swallowed. In the original story, Leo’s attitude toward Alice softened significantly after this point. However, with Bella’s “next Emperor” comment, that day seemed far off now.
“The location—did you find it?”
Alice asked.
“With three imperial princesses on the case, failing to find it would be a disgrace to the Empire.”
Bella replied, though her words were less optimistic than they seemed.
“That said, not finding it immediately might not be such a blow to the Empire’s prestige.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Alice frowned.
“It turns out we acted a bit too quickly. Verratti didn’t know the exact location of the ruins. She only infiltrated based on an estimation drawn from the Papal State’s records.”
“…Then, how many more people like her are infiltrating the Empire?”
“Probably more than a few,” Bella replied nonchalantly. “Honestly, the size of this land can be a curse sometimes.”
As she spoke, Bella pulled a sheet of paper from her bag and handed it to Alice. Alice hesitated briefly before accepting it.
The paper wasn’t a mere note—it was a map.
“A rough guide of the area.”
Alice commented.
It wasn’t a military-grade map but a simplified guide. The surrounding area was vast and intricate, and Northwood likely didn’t want tourists getting lost, so they distributed maps akin to theme park brochures.
Unlike the colorful, mascot-filled theme park maps I remembered, this one was plain and practical. It outlined the commercial district centered around the casino and the surrounding forest.
Marked at regular intervals in the forest were several X’s.
“Poor Verratti,” Bella said mockingly. “The Knights Templar must’ve been truly unlucky. How else could she have worked so hard only to pinpoint the location at the very end?”
We couldn’t disagree with Bella’s words.
*
Relics resonate with each other. They aren’t just separate devices with unique abilities but parts of a larger mechanism.
In the original story, the precise function of the relics was never revealed. From what I understood of the series’ broader lore, they were artifacts imbued with divine power, capable of granting impossible wishes. It seemed plausible to assume the same for this setting, though fans had grown tired of the relic storyline by the time I played the game. After all, it had persisted through multiple shifts in the series’ overarching world-building.
Still, most players speculated the relic would eventually be used to resurrect a deceased heroine.
That didn’t mean I intended to give up on saving her. In the game, I could only watch events unfold, but this wasn’t a game—it was my reality.
“To be honest, I think I get why Verratti couldn’t find it.”
Bella spoke, her expression one of mild irritation.
It took us nearly three hours of wandering through the forest to finally locate the dungeon entrance.
From the start, we’d never actually seen what a relic looked like up close. The idea that it would glow brighter when near others wasn’t all that helpful since none of us knew what “brighter” actually meant.
It wasn’t until we got close to the dungeon entrance that the light became faintly stronger.
In truth, relics didn’t glow by default. They began emitting light the moment we entered this area, identifying the presence of other relics nearby.
“…Do you think Charlotte’s group hasn’t finished their mission yet?”
Alice muttered with concern.
“……”
She had a point. If it was taking us this long to find the entrance, how would we handle the challenges inside when we were already so exhausted?
I sighed softly.
Again.
*
Without hesitation, I grabbed the relic halfway from Bella’s hand and walked straight toward the dungeon entrance. The others were left stunned.
There wasn’t an obvious path to follow; I simply forged ahead, weaving through the densely packed trees.
It probably took me less than 30 minutes to get there.
…Though, from my perspective, it felt closer to eight hours.
Rewinding time and retracing my steps through endless detours was an exhausting process. Even with a general sense of the building’s orientation, it wasn’t much of an advantage. I had to rewind repeatedly to pinpoint the entrance in a way that seemed plausible to the others.
As I pressed forward, the group’s expressions shifted from calm confidence—like this result was expected—to growing astonishment. By now, they were practically speechless.
“……”
Alice’s gaze became increasingly meaningful as she stared at me, but I didn’t bother explaining myself further.