Tyrant's Stars: Parts Three and Four by Hideyuki Kikuchi

opponent, because he gave no reply.
    Nevertheless, the left hand continued, saying, “After luring him out and all, that’s gotta be really annoying.” “What?”
    “Earlier, I checked the course logs in the control room. From where we picked up Sue all the way to here, you were broadcasting on a subspace frequency—the same secret wavelength Nobles use to communicate with each other. You used that to lure Seurat out, didn’t you? Were you that angry about Sue trying to protect him?” There was the sound of something knifing through the air before the left hand had finished speaking.
    The left hand leaped a yard away. Seeing the long spear sticking out of the ground where it had just stood, it jeered, “Come now, pretty little Sue is watching! I left the view screen on.”
    “You little bastard—can you make my car do whatever you like?” Roughly pulling his spear free, the count headed for his vehicle. Sue’s face appeared in one of the windows that had its shades open only by night.
    “Too bad she didn’t get to see you at your best, eh?”
    Not replying to the silently laughing left hand, the count made a swipe of his spear, and then walked toward his car.
    As soon as they were in the living room, Sue came by. Not saying anything, she stood in the doorway, gazing at the count as he set down his spear and took off his cape.
    “What are you looking at?” the count asked irritably.
    “Um, nothing,” Sue replied, hanging her head low.
    “Did the left hand say anything to you?”
    “No, it’s just—well, I just. . .”
    “You just what?”
    “I was just worried if you were hurt—that’s all.”
    “Worried about me?”
    “Yes.”
    “Did you think a mere servant of the Nobility could slay a Noble?” The girl had no answer for that.
    “Go to bed,” he said without even glancing in Sue’s direction. The girl didn’t know what to say.
    “What is it? Go to bed already.” “I’m sorry.”
    The count didn’t seem to understand what she meant.
    “Um ... I mean . . . thank you.”
    This time, it was the count who was at a loss for words.
    “You get hurt, risk your life in battle ... all for our sake . . . But I . . . I can’t do anything in return . . .”
    “It’s my job—now go to bed.”
    “Yes, sir.”
    Bowing to him, Sue left. Before the door closed, he heard her thank him once again.
    The count heaved a sigh. And a long sigh at that. As if there was something funny or unavoidable about the situation.
    Down by his feet, a voice chortled, “You old man, you! All it takes is a thank you to put you over the moon? As Nobles go, you’re a pushover. Oh, thank you so much, kind sir!”
    A chase then ensued that lasted a good ten minutes, at which point the left hand leaped out of the room.

CHAPTER 5

I
    I t was Sue who noticed something wasn’t right. Waking with the dawn, as had been her habit back on the farm, she peered out the window through the still-open shades and called to the left hand on the floor, “This is strange.”
    “What is?"
    “The sun’s to our right, so if that’s the east, we’re going in the opposite direction. We—we’re going further and further away from the fortress!”
    “That’s preposterous,” a voice snorted, but rather than the left hand’s, it was that of the count. “I was up all night. Even without consulting the instruments, I can tell what direction I’m going. This car is definitely headed for the fortress.”
    “Wait just a second—the light is coming from the east. That’s bizarre. Look into it.”
    With this remark from the left hand, the count ordered an investigation. There wasn’t long to wait before a female voice responded, “There’s nothing out of the ordinary. We shall reach the fortress in approximately one hour.”
    However, the natural world beyond the windows offered the two of them a contrary opinion.
    “Yes, this really is quite strange. Stop the car,” the count said, now
    that he too realized all was not