"…It’s because of Bella."

At Claire’s words, Alice and I exchanged a glance.

Could it be that Leo and Claire were starting to suspect Bella’s true identity? I’d thought Bella’s performance was flawless.

"It might sound intrusive, but after meeting Bella yesterday, we both felt something. We wanted to help her."

It seemed her act had worked a bit too well.

Alice’s shoulders, which had been tense with worry, relaxed slightly.

"But we couldn’t find Bella, and somehow, we ended up noticing you two instead."

"You’re quite observant."

"Wouldn’t it be stranger if we didn’t notice?"

Claire gave me a smirk.

While Alice might have been harder to recognize, Claire seemed confident she’d know me anywhere.

And thinking back to before I rewound time when Alice, Claire, and Leo all came rushing in, Claire had probably recognized Alice just as quickly. In the original story, while Leo hesitated and brushed off his suspicions, Claire would have been more thorough.

"…"

Our conversation paused as a bunny girl passed by in the hallway. She gave us a quick glance, taking in our unmasked faces, but didn’t linger. She’d probably just noticed the bills still clutched in my hand.

Masks weren’t mandatory here. It was just that most people dressed like this didn’t want to reveal their identities.

Once money exchanged hands, showing your face became a lesser concern.

"So, what are you planning to do now?"

After watching the woman walk away, Claire decided we were out of earshot and spoke again.

"…Even if I asked you to go back, you wouldn’t, would you?"

"Of course not."

At Alice’s reply, Claire nodded, then threw a look at Leo. Catching her gaze, Leo nodded seriously, his expression resolved.

Alice sighed, though she didn’t seem particularly unhappy.

"In that case, will you cooperate with me?"

Claire and Leo exchanged glances before looking back at us and nodding.

"Alright."

"Gladly."

Satisfied with their responses, Alice nodded.

"Good. Both of you… You’re talented, and you’re from House Grace."

She continued.

"According to the information I gathered, there’s a spy hiding here."

"A spy?"

At the word "spy," both Claire and Leo’s expressions became serious. A moment ago, Leo had been darting his gaze around, unable to meet ours, but now he was looking straight at us.

Truly, House Grace—the empire’s most loyal family.

"Yes. I’m not exactly sure what their mission is, but given the nationality, it probably involves something to do with the relic."

Though Bella hadn’t given her detailed information, Alice had managed to make a surprisingly accurate deduction based on context.

If you knew enough about how the Theocracy operated, it wasn’t a hard guess. The Empire’s intelligence agency wasn’t exactly clueless, after all.

"The relic?"

Without clearance for this kind of information, Claire and Leo looked a bit puzzled.

"I’ll fill you in on the details later. For now, we need to capture our informant."

"Do you know who it is?"

"Yes."

Alice nodded, a fierce determination blazing in her eyes.

"I spotted them earlier. If we hurry, they might still be there. Leo, I have a task for you."

Leo blinked at Alice’s call.

Before he could respond, Alice grabbed the pound note still in my hand, now cold and clammy, and pressed it into Leo’s hand.

"…I’ll need to borrow this."

She said, glancing at Claire, who gave a silent nod of understanding.

…Hmm.

I understood what she meant, but…

Was it strange that I felt uncomfortable knowing the money came from between my own chest?

---

From there, things played out surprisingly similarly to when I first arrived.

In the original story, it hadn’t been clear exactly what Alice was up to the first night she encountered Leo. Given what happened later in the storyline, she likely didn’t gain much.

But this time, she had plenty of support. Especially since Leo, a man, was with us.

"Want a drink?"

"…Shut up."

Claire asked a nervous Leo in a low voice. Unlike earlier, Claire now wore a mask. She hadn’t obtained it in any legitimate way; apparently, she’d picked it up after spotting it on the floor, dropped by someone drunkenly stumbling around.

Wearing the mask and loosening a few buttons on her uniform as if to match the disreputable atmosphere, Claire was starting to resemble her original character a bit.

Of course, her naturally earnest demeanor kept it from fully working, but it was a small hint of the Claire from the game. She wouldn’t fully pull off the look unless she let her hair down.

"There they are."

"Oh, that person…"

Back in her bunny girl mask and refocused, Alice pointed toward Chiara Verati, prompting a surprised murmur from Claire.

It was no wonder. If you didn’t know, it would be shocking to learn that someone who appeared so casual was actually a member of the Holy Knights. And on top of that, all female Holy Knights doubled as nuns.

No one would expect someone like that to be dressed in a bunny girl outfit, even with sparkles on her chest.

The Theocracy had chosen their agent well. Other zealots wouldn’t have taken on such a role, but someone who merely acted the part of a believer would take it gladly.

If it allowed her to fight for her cause, she’d probably be thrilled to accept.

"…"

I stayed silent, letting Alice take the lead. After all, the reason I’d gone along with dressing as a bunny girl was to let her handle things her way.

Well, at least we’d found the right person.

Thank goodness the Empire’s intelligence agency wasn’t incompetent.

Or maybe Bella was just exceptionally good at what she did.

"Do you think you can manage?" Alice asked.

With a stiff, nervous expression, Leo gave a small nod.

"Alright, then…"

With that, Alice moved a little further from Leo. I stood at a slight distance from her, ready to rush in if needed, while Claire stayed close beside me.

…Hm.

This was a bit uncomfortable.

Claire seemed intent on protecting me, which felt odd. After all, she was much younger than me… well, at least by my perception.

Focus.

There’s work to do. I can worry about this awkward feeling later.

If things went wrong, I could always rewind.

But strangely, I didn’t feel any desire to rewind this moment, even if Leo or one of us made a mistake.

With that unsettled feeling, I watched Leo stiffly walk forward, his legs and arms moving in sync.

---

In the end, the operation was a success.

Though it seemed Leo’s pride suffered irreparable damage.

Imagine giving a bunny girl money only to fumble so badly you drop it before you even get it into her chest, leaving her to awkwardly pick it up with a frozen expression.

I considered rewinding to give him another chance, but figured he’d probably just repeat the same mistake. So, I decided to leave it alone.

Besides, it wasn’t entirely Leo’s fault. The bill had absorbed enough moisture from being tucked in my chest that it couldn’t hold itself stiffly anymore.

That damp bill was probably one of the reasons Chiara Verati’s expression had soured, too.

Still, maybe she’d been aware of us from the start, as she quietly followed us.

And so, after a long journey, we ended up right where I had been before rewinding.

The costumes and the leader of the conversation had changed, but the location was the same.

"So, Your Highness, what brings you here dressed like that?"

Chiara Verati’s eyes darted to me, and then she added,

"Or perhaps I should say, Your Highnesses?"