"Hmm, okay~ It says here too, estimated late twenties to early thirties. Now I understand why you're so calm, Lucas."
Narke smiled softly and flipped through another booklet. Leo, who had been pressing his forehead with dead eyes, lifted just his eyelids to look at me and asked quietly.
"I did hear you say before that there's no need to block the tabloids... but seeing today's article for yourself, you're not still thinking of using it, are you?"
"Actually, yes."
"Sigh..."
Leo pressed his eyes hard with both hands.
It's surprising how someone who acts as if they'll die if they don't do everything by the book could be so close with Elias.
Well, in the end, he does resemble Elias in some ways.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to force his way into Wittelsbach and obtain a fake identity citizenship.
Narke, who had been staring at me, then spoke.
"Lucas."
"Yeah?"
"You must be tired... but I think you'll manage. Hang in there."
Did he use his foresight ability?
He must mean the overall flow isn't bad.
"Thanks."
"Hey, here it says you have social anxiety disorder so you don't meet anyone. If you're going to report on the same person, shouldn't you at least get your stories straight? What are they doing?"
Elias cackled again.
I looked at him and smiled back.
"This works out well for me."
"You're relaxed. Enjoying the feeling of the whole nation being fooled except us?"
"Well, I can't say that's not part of it. They've lost on both fronts: figuring out the truth and the public's sense of trust."
Any attempt at deduction falls apart if the story doesn't add up.
This fight is one they're bound to lose from the start, because Nikolaus isn't a real person but one who only came into existence in the latter half of this year.
"Trust~ I like that. It's already over."
"Right. People who get interested will look for other gossip pieces where my story appears."
"If it were me, I'd scrape the bottom of the newsstand clean. Honestly, after dealing with the barrier compatibility issue, I was going to try and find out where this Nikolaus guy popped up from."
"..."
I suddenly felt a chill.
I nodded as nonchalantly as possible.
"...Right. I see. But seeing how every story you open says something different, what then?"
"It's annoying. So what's the real story? Fine. My mistake for trying to look into it here... right?"
Elias shrugged.
Yeah.
Even without a 'must find out the information at all costs' attitude, it's the same.
If every story you open says something completely different, you get the chance to realize that what you're reading isn't reliable information but just sensational gossip.
Of course, getting the stories straight would be beneficial too.
But in a situation where only wrong information is circulating, what damage could getting them straight possibly do?
Either way, it's just something to be thankful for and laugh at.
Then, Leo frowned at the proliferation of false information.
"Wait. Now that I think about it... how did the social anxiety story come about?"
"They got an interview with someone who claims to have been Nikolaus's friend as a child. Have you read it, Luke?"
"Yeah."
It was an interview with someone from the Papal States.
He claimed to have had a friend named Nikolaus as a child.
He said 'Nikolaus' often did inexplicable, magical things even as a child, then one day suddenly disappeared and hasn't shown his face since.
There are cases where magic isn't inherited but a mage is suddenly born to perfect non-mages.
He probably considers that Nikolaus to be such a case.
Of course, that's not me, but it's an astonishingly elaborate and, thankfully, perfect scenario.
Leo pulled down the corner of his mouth as if baffled and asked.
"What, a person who was friends with Nikolaus?"
"Yeah."
"...Good grief, it's not like there's only one or two Nikolauses in the world..."
Leo muttered with a skeptical face.
I agree.
But from the tabloid's perspective, that level of fact-checking isn't important.
If it has plausible specifics and a compelling story, people believe it easily. The public not scrutinizing the article's veracity in detail plays a part too.
'Should I check again around now?'
First, the proposal.
〈 Chapter 4. Constant Dripping Wears Away the Stone (2) 〉
Proposal 3: [Impression] Score 5 Defense (?/N) (152 hours 17 minutes 53 seconds)
* Route 1 — 〈 Chapter 5. Good Things Take Time (1) 〉
* Route 2 — 〈 Chapter 5. Don't Praise the Day Before Evening Falls 〉
5 point defense.
It means to prevent it from falling into the 4-point range.
In a way, it's a precarious statement.
Rounded from the third decimal place, it's exactly 5 points.
Even rounded from the fourth, it's only 5.002.
But there's still hope.
The meaning of it getting harder to raise the score gradually is, for example, like this.
Going from stage 1 to 2 required 10, but going from stage 2 to 3 requires 100. Even if the value drops, it doesn't easily fall a whole stage.
Lucas René Ascanien
Impression: -9.9 (+0.1) [+5.0015129]
'The last digits have dropped from 15131 to 15129.'
Still, at this level, it can be seen as oscillating in place.
In a situation where a national reporting outlet like Das Rote is attacking me, just like the 3-point rise during the live broadcast, it could plummet by whole points this time too.
It's true their reporting benefits me, but I have no intention of relaxing, so let's calculate thoroughly again.
"What time did today's Das Rote come out?"
"Six in the morning."
Leo answered quietly.
The newspaper's publication times are 6 AM and 6 PM. Sales increase around these times.
Now, past 11:50 PM, I've already experienced today's impression score changes.
It must have fluctuated up and down constantly, but...
Due to the influence of the live broadcast and the Bavaria press conference, it has maintained an upward trend so far.
'The real thing starts tomorrow.'
Das Rote is a daily.
Once they start reporting in earnest on the speculation that I crossed seven bridges, my impression score will gradually enter a downward trend.
There are many who seriously believe tabloids, enough that you can't just dismiss it as mere fantasy listing.
That's how you can drive a person to their death.
Perhaps, depending on the credibility of the content, it won't be gradual but a sharp drop.
"Leo, when are you going to do the blackmail?"
"I plan to call a meeting tomorrow evening."
Perhaps overwhelmed with nothing but headaches, Leo answered with his eyes closed, pressing his temples.
"Okay. Thanks in advance."
"I wish I could do it sooner... if it gets unbearable, tell me. I'll just go back to Bavaria tomorrow morning and tell Mother."
"Oho, so you can skip school like this~"
Elias laughed from the side.
"...! You think I'm skipping to play around like you?!"
"Huh...? This time I was just saying that out of envy?! What have my usual actions been like for you to take it that way right away~?"
Somehow... you can't help but take it that way.
I thought the same as Leo.
"And I never said I was playing! I was exploring."
"You explored for three whole months?!"
I cut off the argument between Elias and Leo and shook my head.
"It's fine. That much time is enough."
Tomorrow evening... the crazy story about crossing seven bridges will be out there anyway.
Ultimately, whether this turns into a long-term battle or not is the most important thing.
Starting from the day after tomorrow's report, stories about me will stop. Even if not completely, at least all overly sensational stories will be removed.
At this point, I need to consider their decisions one by one.
Isn't the timing of breaking my story a bit off?
Why break it right at the beginning when support is rising?
'Are they stupid?'
The biggest blow would be to break a proper scandal right when I'm considered a saint beyond anyone's suspicion.
What's the reason for not patiently waiting until the peak?
I leaned back comfortably in my chair and tapped the pen tip on the paper.
Watching the ink seep in helps clear my thoughts.
It's obvious.
Their goal is to boost immediate sales figures with sensational headlines and photos right now.
If their goal was to socially bury Nikolaus, they wouldn't have put out these sensational '37 Reasons He Wears a Mask' type pieces either.
Right now, when interest has exploded due to the live broadcast, is the optimal time to boost sales.
'Scrape a bit at an appropriate level here to get some juice, and if my support rises again later... then grab a proper issue to bring it down, creating two sales opportunities.'
Sorry, but by then, as a student, you won't be able to run such reports anymore.
Anyway, the objective is clear.
Since there wasn't lobbying to drive Nikolaus to the brink, this fight is manageable.
I just need to enjoy the truth getting muddied and prevent my impression score from falling into the 4-point range.
* * *
"Lucas, what are you reading?!"
At 3 PM, Pia climbed onto my shoulder and looked down at the booklet I was holding.
"Trash."
"How can you read trash? Isn't it a magazine?"
"No. From now on, it is."
I threw the booklet into the incinerator behind the school and turned straight back towards the dormitory.
'Status Window.'
Lucas René Ascanien
Impression: -9.9 [+5.0008931]
From 15129 to 8931. The 10000s digit has broken.
The reason is obvious.
Because people have appeared who believe Das Rote's report, which is realistically nonsensical.
Do they really think I have time to meet seven people?
Or do they just believe it because it's interesting?
'Still, a drop of 6000 is acceptable.'
The reporting was more elaborate than I thought.
Yesterday's Das Rrote cover was just a typical tabloid cover, but today's cover was my photo from the start.
They cropped a close-up of a photo taken during the charity event from a window to show my eyes clearly.
Due to editing, angle, and the mask's curvature, I looked incredibly villainous. It's astonishing how they picked exactly that photo for the cover.
On top of that, three or four fake interviews were included.
It's a technique they mainly use regardless of the controversial field.
And the most shocking part was the fabricated photo.
They dressed someone with a similar build to me like Nikolaus and staged a plausible situation.
'You can tell they put effort into it.'
Looking at the score change, the results don't seem that great compared to the effort put in.
If they had gotten the reaction they wanted, my impression score would have already dropped to the 4-point range, no, even the 3-point range by now.
Of course, it's not a level to ignore. If left as is, it will truly hit the 4-point range before midnight.
But still...
'About 3 hours left, I guess.'
In 3 hours, the decline will end too.
Let's see how far it drops before then.
I changed clothes, warped to the Bavarian border, obtained permission, and moved to the investigation bureau building.
Since I met with the Chamberlain today to take my medicine, I had a somewhat legitimate reason to skip school.
Looking at the time, it was around 3:30.
Entering the pre-assigned room, a detective recognized me and greeted me.
"You've arrived."
"Yes, may I know how far the progress has gone?"
"We just finished organizing everything."
He pulled out the papers that had been on the typewriter and bundled them together.
"There wasn't a single Bavarian. All were Prussian, commoners, with not-so-great economic situations. All four mobilized individuals were not ones with much external interaction. Of course, no mages."
"I see."
"Here, take a look and let me know if there are any parts requiring further investigation."
"Yes."
I took the file he handed over.
[Analysis Results of Das Rote Issues 11-14]
Yesterday, I contacted Bavaria and requested an investigation into Das Rote, which would be published early this morning.
To dedicate a whole day's page space to the content about crossing seven bridges, they need clear evidence that can capture people's attention.
But of course, such evidence can't exist, so they have no choice but to manufacture evidence themselves.
And indeed, fake interviews and photos were included.
Turning the page, the photo I saw in Das Rote appeared.
'Greta Belter.'
It was a photo of someone claiming to be in a romantic relationship with me.
No, strictly speaking, this person didn't claim that.
The interviews were all written by Das Rote, and this person likely only provided the photo.
Next to it, residence, occupation, workplace, family relations, etc., personal details were written.
To my knowledge, the period that became the novel's background was a time when such investigations couldn't be done this quickly... but as expected, in a world intertwined with magic, it feels like it's developed half a century faster in this aspect.
'Fast and good. In the real world's past, we wouldn't have even found it.'
I closed the file and put it in the envelope he handed over.
"This should be enough. Thank you."
"Not at all. Where do you plan to go now?"
I recalled the residence of the person from the first page and answered.
"I'm thinking of starting from Schlau."
"Then, I will inform His Highness the Crown Prince that you moved to the Schlau region at 3:50."
"Yes."
I gave him a brief farewell and left, heading back to school.
I needed to bring Narke.
* * *
"Is Greta Belter here?"
I came with Narke to find someone I had supposedly been meeting for a long time without my knowledge.
Narke, wearing a suspicious-looking white mask, seemed to find the situation amusing, continuously grinning.
Though the mask hid his expression, the breath mixed with laughter was enough to draw that conclusion.
'Looking at him... he doesn't seem that normal either.'
But then, most high school students facing entrance exams are probably like that.
Of course, that's just a generalization based on my own second year of high school.
Anyway, the reason I brought Narke was because I needed his insight ability today.
I plan to get the photo's subject to speak the truth with their own mouth now and be guided to testify at the investigative agency.
For that, I need someone to verify the facts.
There's a slight feeling of using him... but Narke said last time he wanted to go to a restricted area while hiding his identity like me, so I could bring him with a clear conscience.
Since Leo skipped school today and went to Bavaria, it was convenient to professionally involve Narke, who hasn't yet decided which purification contract to sign, and bring him along.
In reality, he's here, but nominally speaking.
Then, the wooden door rattled.
Creak—
"Who is it..."
Someone opened the door, saw us, and widened their eyes.
The person I saw in Das Rote's photo raised their voice with a bewildered yet excited face.
"Oh, Sir Nikolaus? It is you, right?!"
—-----------
T/N:
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