A Flat-Chest Believer Reincarnated in a World Where Women with Small Breasts Aren't Treated as Women ~ I Ended Up with a Flat-Chested Harem. - Chapter 35

After completing our mission, we returned to the Gustique main estate. All that was left was to report to Father, and then the mission would be officially over.

We gathered in the meeting room: Father, Mother, Risty, myself, and Lyla.

“Everyone, great work. Let’s start with a report from Folca.”

“Yes. We treated all the patients, and the buildings were disinfected with purification magic or instant-death magic. I believe the situation will resolve without further issues. However, I’ve left Benit and Lazdam behind to monitor for about ten days. They’ll return after that.”

I began by reporting the basics. Father nodded, saying, “I see.”

“As for the details…”

I proceeded to explain the course of events in chronological order. Once I finished, Father nodded deeply.

“Hmm. If it were me, I would have had everyone focus on suppressing Kanshura’s Green Fever first, and then sent Folca and Lyla, along with Risty and Fiona in pairs, to handle treatment and disinfection. However, that would likely have resulted in a slight increase in deaths. Regardless, you did well. Thank you.”

Father’s plan was one I had considered as well. It would have allowed us to divide the treatment and disinfection while providing stronger protection. But the reason I didn’t adopt that strategy was precisely what Father said—the longer the treatment took, the more people would die.

“There’s one more thing. Risty has something to discuss.”

When I looked over at her, Risty began to speak.

“Kudell attempted to extract the pathogen responsible for Green Fever during this incident. As a result, she identified a microscopic organism that seems to be the pathogen. We’d like to conduct infection trials with the members of The Lab. Do we have your permission?”

“You’re going to experiment on the retainers from The Lab… Well, if Green Fever is cured with Holy magic, there won’t be any long-term effects.”

“If we were to use criminals or something, it would take time to arrange, and we aren’t sure they’d give honest feedback about their symptoms.”

“I understand. Just be extremely careful not to let the pathogen leak outside. But how did you find it? I assume you searched through vomit or feces, but healthy humans are said to have a vast number of microscopic organisms in those too, aren’t they?”

“We used the binary purification method.”

Risty answered, looking a bit puzzled.

“Uh, Risty, I don’t think we’ve ever explained the binary purification method to Father.”

Father was a busy man. We hadn’t reported everything that went on in The Lab.

“Um, Father, the binary purification method is a technique Kudell came up with to identify pathogens. We take a sample from an infected patient and divide it into two portions. We apply purification magic to only one of the portions, and then we compare both portions under a microscope. From past research, we know that purification magic only eliminates harmful microscopic organisms in humans. So, any organisms present only in the sample without purification are considered likely candidates for the pathogen.”

In reality, they also adjusted the conditions to cultivate colonies and did various other things, but I left out those details.

Father’s eyes widened in surprise.

“I see. Kudell is truly a remarkable talent. I’m glad we kept her.”

At Father’s words, Risty tilted her head slightly and said, “Kept her?”

“Well, Kudell has an affinity for Holy magic, doesn’t she? There was a plan to find her a marriage match with another noble family.”

In the Rolique Kingdom, retainers serving counts or higher-ranking nobles are treated as nobles themselves, so Kudell is considered a noblewoman. With her large chest, beauty, and ability to use Holy magic, she could aim to be the primary wife of a lower-ranked count, for instance.

We had been planning to arrange a match for her if she wished. However, she had flatly refused.

“Ah, I see. Yeah, if she dolled herself up, Kuu could be stunning.”

Risty was right. I’d only seen Kudell in makeup and a dress once, and she was indeed stunning. But she seemed far more vibrant in her white lab coat, working on experiments, so I was fine with things as they were now.

“Well, in any case, permission granted.”

At that point, Father paused briefly, tightening his expression slightly.

“There’s another matter I need to inform you all about. The intruders we captured in Kolibe have given new statements after ‘interrogation.’ The three who were caught directly infiltrating Kolibe have consistently claimed to have been hired in the city of Karzalba. However, the two that you, Folca, and Risty captured on the opposite side of Kolibe have begun to claim they were from the Kingdom of Griffis.”

The atmosphere in the room became heavier at Father’s words.

“Griffis, you say? That’s a troubling name to hear.”

The Kingdom of Griffis was our neighboring country that suddenly invaded eight years ago. My grandfather, the former Marquis Gustique, died in that war.

“Yes. According to their statements, the two were part of a criminal organization operating within Griffis, acting under orders from higher-ups. They weren’t told who specifically hired the organization, but they did admit that men were recruited from Karzalba as well, meaning the statements from all seven captives now align.”

“If the same statement came after prolonged ‘interrogation,’ we can probably assume it’s true.”

“Most likely. And one more thing—there have been reports of suspicious individuals all across the Gustique territory, starting from Marilba. These people seem to have been gathering various information, but we haven’t been able to catch them. It seems they took advantage of the gaps in our security while we concentrated personnel in Kolibe.”

This was unsettling news.

“However, the reports of suspicious activity remain vague. Some mention a man who tried to get information from a drunk in a tavern, or a woman who attempted to seduce a Gustique retainer, or strange footprints found on the grounds of the ironworks.”

I see. Each piece of information alone wouldn’t be enough to conclusively label someone a spy, but when put together, it certainly looks suspicious.

“It’s frustrating that all we can do is issue a warning.”

“Indeed. Well, this is just for information sharing. Once again, thank you all. I’m sure Count Rendolf will be relieved.”

The report was finished. Another job completed.