...A Royal Invitation…
"I wonder if I'll be able to find anyone here who can replicate these parts…" Aurdel muttered quietly to himself. He was taking apart and putting back together the guns he'd taken from Earth to make sure they were all in perfect working order, Megumin was watching closely. He'd demonstrated earlier what they did and now she didn't want to take her eyes off of them. She seemed to think that he would replace her with the guns, an irrational thought. To be perfectly honest she was irreplaceable, having a large damage dealing explosive available on command at least once a day was a boon and one that couldn't be easily exchanged. Sure there were better and more consistent ways of dealing damage that would be better for outright battles, but when you find yourself against large armies, powerful Generals and massive constructs it was the best way of getting through. So he made sure to reassure her that she wouldn't be replaced.
He had just finished putting a DMR back together when he heard a knock at the door, both of them looked up. "Megumin, you didn't blow up someone's property again… Did you?"
"I did not! Why are you trying to blame me?!"
"Then if it's not you…" He looked towards Aqua, "Aqua, what did you do this time?"
"I didn't do anything! I've been playing this game all day!" That's right, she had been. He'd even tried pulling her off the couch to do something, resulting in her dealing him a 'God Blow.'
"Is someone there?" The voice behind the door said, still knocking. Aurdel stood up and walked over, opening it. "Good day sir, I presume that you're the owner of this mansion? And that would make you Aurdel Ganowicz?"
"Correct on both accounts."
"Oh, good. Then-"
"Hagen?! What are you doing here?!" Darkness charged towards the well dressed middle aged man.
"Ah, Lady Dustiness, it's good to see-"
"I told you only to come to the mansion if there was an emergency Hagen!"
"Ack!" Darkness clamped her hands around the man's throat and shook him, "Lady Dustiness I assure you this is valid visitation!"
"Drain Touch!" Aurdel touched Darkness and she let out a gasp, releasing her grip on the man's throat. Hagen dropped to his knees and gasped for air.
He cleared his throat, "Ahem, thank you. As I was saying this visit is properly justified. I bring you a letter of great importance." He held out an envelope to Aurdel, he took it from his hands. Carefully he undid the seal, not wanting to tear it or the letter inside. He unfolded the paper.
"'To the one who has defeated countless foes, numerous Generals of the Demon King and innumerable contributions you this nation, Aurdel Ganowicz. I have heard many a story about your great accomplishments and hoped to meet the man behind them face to face. It would be this kingdoms honor if I was allowed to do so, may I have a meal with you. Signed Iris.'" The bottom of the letter was stamped with the seal of some noble house. "Hmm, this does seem rather important."
"Rather important is an understatement, Princess Iris is part of this nation's royal family!" Megumin shouted, Anatalia seemed to shudder at the idea of dealing with more nobility.
"Then I suppose we can't refuse this invitation, can we?"
"Of course not!" Aqua shouted, "This is our chance to cozy up and get rich! Then we'll spend the rest of the time on this world relaxing while other people with the Demon King!"
"It was a rhetorical question, but hearing your input I might actually reconsider."
"I think this is a great chance for Aurdel-san to do some great good!" Yunyun said, "With the support of the Princess you'd be able to get a lot of changes done!"
"Hmm…" That is true, with her help he might be able to organize the guild into a formal fighting force.
"Aurdel, the Princess is not an object to be used!"
"I'm not using anyone Darkness, calm down. Look, we were invited so we're obliged to come. It'll just be a dinner and nothing more, after that we'll come home just fine."
"Aurdel, what should I do for my party tricks?" Aqua asked, "I wanted to pull a tiger out of a handkerchief but none are around, so I was thinking about using a Rookie Killer. What do you think?"
"I think you shouldn't try anything insane like that! The last thing we need is for you to do some stupid trick and get someone important killed. You're not to do any tricks."
"Ehh?! Why?!"
"I just told you why! And Megumin, the same warning goes to you too.
"Eh?! Wh-?!"
"Because while you might indulge in it here, it won't be acceptable to do those Crimson Demon intros of yours in front of the Princess." He looked around. Yunyun and Anatalia wouldn't need reminders, and Darkness should know herself what bad form around nobility was.
"I suppose I should start getting myself ready for it now, you can never be too prepared." He thought for a moment, what was he supposed to wear? He had no manner of formal wear to speak of. For the majority of the time he'd spent in this world all he had on was on was his armor, and the clothing he had now was just for practical use or casually wearing around the mansion when they weren't busy with a quest or something else. The best thing he could think of to wear to an event like this would be a suit but he owned nothing of the sort. And judging by how small everyone else in this world was, he severely doubted that he would find anything his size to wear. He supposed he just had to tailor one himself. At least he had some time, this was supposed to be in a week.
Sooner than expected, a week passed by. Aurdel had in fact tailored himself a suit, though it ended up being a bit tighter than he would have preferred. Though that was in part due to him hiding several items on his person to bring with him inside the meeting. He was sure that he didn't need them, but in case some crazy happened, and they typically did, he would be prepared for the worst. The place this meal was going to be held was at the Dustiness' mansion in Axel. He'd seen it many times before, but never had he actually associated it with Darkness or her family. The feelings she usually gave off weren't very noble even if she was supposed to be.
"Aurdel Ganowicz, ladies, we are honored by your visit. I, Dustiness Lalatina Ford, will be your host for today. Please treat this home as if it were your own and enjoy yourselves." Darkness gave a graceful bow. She was wearing a pure white gown, one that gave off a strong appearance of elegance. To match her dress she had her beautiful blonde hair braided and draped over her right shoulder. With the way she appeared now it was hard to imagine her as anything but a noble. Unfortunately, all it did was cover up her rotten personality that she normally showed to them
He bowed, "Of course. Thank you, Lady Lalatina." He saw a slight twitch from her and her cheeks slightly reddened, apparently she didn't enjoy being called by real name. ...Or did she? He didn't know. And it was hard to say that he wanted to know what was going on in her head, be he REALLY didn't want to know.
She lead them all into the house. While he had his suit and Darkness had her gown, none of the others currently had anything nice to wear. They hadn't had enough time to get dresses made for themselves so were going to borrow from Darkness' own wardrobe. He waited outside as the others clattered about and made noise trying clothing on, the house help bringing him tea as he waited. Their conversations were… amusing. "Hey Darkness, the waist on this dress is really loose. Do you have anything tighter?"
"I'm afraid I don't, that dress had the slimmest waist. A Crusader must be properly muscled to do their job. And Megumin, what's the problem?"
"I don't know what to say, but… it slipped right off. Both the waist and chest are much too big, is there anything smaller?"
"I do have others, but this one is from when I was a child. So- Ow! H-hey! Megumin! Don't pull on my braid like that!" He looked at the two helpers standing outside the door to the room, they had their heads bowed down. Personally he couldn't tell if they were ashamed, disappointed, embarrassed or all the above. "Eh?! Anatalia?! Why are you taking a dagger out?!"
"I can't keep my tail in a dress like this, I need a hole in the back."
"No, wait! Don't!" He heard the sound of a knife cutting through fabric and a whimper from Darkness.
"There, much better. I might even keep it once we're done here."
"You'll have to because of that hole!"
"In that case, can I try on some more of your dresses?"
"Absolutely not!" He heard the sound of a dagger being ripped out of someone's hands and being thrown across the room, shattering a glass. All they were doing was changing clothes, how could they cause so much chaos?
"H-hey guys, how do I look?" Yunyun asked.
"Not nearly as good as me," Megumin said proudly.
"You don't have to be so r-rude! Why don't we go ask Aurdel who looks better?!"
"Wait, what crazy thing are you saying now?!" He heard stampeding footsteps, trampling and eventually falling. Of course, none of them had most likely ever worn high heels aside from Darkness and Aqua.
He looked at the helpers again. Yes, it was definitely a mix of all three feelings from them. After a considerable amount of time they eventually did come out from the changing room, all five of them in dresses and gowns. "Well, how do we look?" Aqua asked. To begin with, Aqua was wearing a pure white dress rather than her usual blue outfit. With her hair down she looked regal, the way one would actually expect of a Goddess. Unfortunately that feeling completely went away when he spoke. Anatalia was wearing a white outfit too, though this one was more akin to a ball gown. The flowing and sparkling nature of the gown matched well with her tail, moving softly behind her. Yunyun was in white as well, contrasting beautifully with her dark black hair and red eyes. He could tell she felt a little shy as he looked at her.
Megumin meanwhile has chosen to be the quite literal black sheep of the bunch, picking a black dress. But though it did stick out from the others given that they'd all picked white dresses, it did work for her. The light and almost pale nature of her skin made for a good contrast, making her appear more as if she was a doll rather than a person. "You all look beautiful." There were varying responses to it. Megumin, Darkness and Yunyun all seemed to blush, Anatalia looked prideful of herself and Aqua…
"Thank you! It wouldn't kill you give more compliments you know."
"Except you Aqua, you look awful."
"EH?!" Not really, but he'd say that just to spite her. "How dare you, you shitty-!"
"Aqua please, behave!" Darkness said, trying to help Aqua get a grip. Instead Aqua physically got a grip on her, "Ow! Please don't pull on my braid!"
"But Darkness, he said I wasn't beautiful!"
"OW! I said stop! Don't pay attention to that!" She tore Aqua hand off of her hair, "We have a meal to attend and we all must be on our best behavior." The others nodded. "Good. Now Aurdel, are you ready?"
"I have been, I've been waiting out here for who knows how long."
Ah... " She seemed a little ashamed with how long it took them to get dressed, "W-well, we must head down now. Please allow me to lead the way, and I'll do the talking." And with that they left the reception area and walked down the halls of Dustiness manor. All over was elegant artwork, tapestries, carpets, chandeliers, everything you'd expect from the home of a noble.
But eventually they came before a set of two large doors. "I want to make sure everything is clear before we go in. Aqua, you are to perform no dangerous tricks of any kind. Those are banned. And Megumin, I don't trust you so I'm going to search you now!"
"Ah?! Why?! And don't do this now, Aurdel can see everything!"
"So Aqua, what were you planning to do?"
"It's nothing like Darkness was implying. Meeting with royalty is a chance few have, so this is something rare for us. But to the Princess it'd just be another boring dinner, so I'm going to make a sand painting on the spot and gift it to her!" A sand painting, huh? For an idiot she seemed to be artistically gifted.
"Aha, I knew it! Your chest was much too large, you were padding it with a smoke bomb and an explosive potion."
So, Megumin was carrying a bomb with her? He wanted to criticize that fact, but he'd be a hypocrite since he had a sheathed combat knife and grenade wedged between his-
"Fufu, you're good Darkness. You may have taken those from me but I still have several manners of performing a grandiose introduction!"
-and an M6D on his-
"No grandiose introductions!" Darkness shook Megumin to get the point across. The helpers near them looked disappointed and hoped to not be implicated with whatever mess they were about to cause. "Again, please, don't cause any trouble. Simply eat and nod your head, allow me to speak." That was simple enough for the others, especially if Aqua got completely wasted and passed out.
Eventually they opened the doors and walked into the dining hall. The room was set properly for the occasion, red carpets lining the floor, candles and fancy dishware sitting upon a large table and a large crystal chandelier hanging overhead. "I apologize for the wait, Princess Iris. These are my friends and comrades in arms. Right this way my friends. This is the first Princess of the kingdom, her Royal Highness Iris. Please introduce yourselves with proper etiquette." Darkness gestured towards those that sat on the other side of the table. At the far end of the table were three women, all with blonde hair. He seemed to notice a pattern, all three of these women has blonde hair. It seemed to be a common occurrence with nobles in this world. Darkness, Dust and now these three. Odd…
The first of the three women was the youngest and stood in the middle, covered in a white dress with a not too dissimilar look from Darkness. She was the Princess. Looking at her she could be no more than twelve, if it weren't for the fact that she was standing before him he would've found it hard to believe for such a young girl to act as an arm of the royalty. On her right was a woman in a plain black dress, unarmed. Presumably she was one of the Princess' bodyguards though, as the woman to her left was one in a white suit with short hair and sword at her side. In the end it is how he roughly expected nobility to look.
He bowed and was about to introduce himself when Aqua began before him, "I am the great Archpriest Aqua, I am honored to meet you. Please, allow me to perform a-"
"Excuse me Princess Iris, there is something I must tell me companion." Darkness pulled Aqua away, who began pulling on her braid in protest. Meanwhile, Megumin was now taking the opportunity to cause a ruckus. She pulled something off of her thigh and placed it upon her shoulders. Darkness yanked her away too. Aurdel watched as the three of them struggled with each other, Yunyun and Anatalia unsure of what exactly to do given the situation. The Princess leaned over and whispered to the woman in the white suit.
"Plebian man, the Princess has said not to look at her with such an intense glare. Normally it is impossible for a lowly commoner such as yourself to have dinner with royalty due to your lowly status. Lower your head and do not meet with my eyes. Now hurry up and finish your greetings so that you might tell me your stories of adventurer," the woman in the suit said, quoting the Princess. Haha, what was that? He heard Aqua whisper something to Darkness, followed by a small gasp from the latter.
She rushed over to him and whispered in his ear, "A-Aurdel, please try to keep your calm."
He put on a fake smile and whispered back, "I'll keep it as long as I can manage. But then again, I'm not the one you should be worrying about."
Darkness looked around and saw Aqua making her sand painting. "Your Highness, to commemorate this day of our meeting I would like to present you with this. You'll find that the details of this painting are exact, even the tiny bit of sauce on the corner of your lips has been rendered perfectly." Iris frantically wiped it off her lips, Darkness moved frantically.
"Allow me to apologize Your Highness! Allow me to remove this insolent-!"
"Because the Princess saw the Lalatina acting is such a frantic state, a great deviation from her usual calm and quiet self, she will not pursue the matter. It is permissible for Adventurers to have some manner of crudeness. So instead of arguing, allow us to hear your tales of Adventurer, that is what the Princess said." Darkness bowed deeply in apology, Aqua meanwhile took the opportunity of being separated from Darkness to walk over and hand her the sand painting. Upon seeing it Iris had an exuberant look upon her face. "To make such a beautiful and perfect sand painting in such a short moment of time is a great skill indeed. Amazing, simply amazing! A reward to you, Archrpriest! The Princess said."
Aurdel was getting sick of this 'the Princess said' crap already. The woman in the white suit reached into her breast pocket and pulled something out, offering it to Aqua. It was a rather expensive looking gem, Aqua taking it right away and beginning to appraise it. Darkness sat to the right of the Princess, the rest of his party sitting on the right side of her. He himself was sat down to the left of the Princess, he felt a slight amount of unease as the chair creaked a small bit. Fortunately it didn't break, apparently Darkness had taken the liberty of asking someone to reinforce the chair he'd be sitting in. The Princess looked at him dead on, then whispered to the woman in the white suit. "Now, I've heard many stories of your accomplishments as an adventurer but I wish to hear them from you yourself. So man of many things, tell your tales. That is what the Princess said."
...A Royal Pain in My-...
"...After that I organized all the groups of adventurers into their respective jobs and had them perform their duties. Once all the preparations were made, then we assaulted the Mobile Fortress Destroyer."
"Amazing! I've heard of great tales and feats from adventurers before, but nothing like this! Others tell in simple detail of how they fought a large group of beast by themselves, or how they'd slain a dragon with simply their sword… And they were amazing, but they never went into such details or such action as yours! Is what the Princess said." Frankly he didn't want to have to do this anymore, he was sick of having to watch the Princess whisper to the lady in the white suit and then have her message relayed to him. Because after all, she WAS sitting right next to him.
"I don't fight battles with one or two skills under my belt, I utilize everything I can for the best outcome and best chances of success. If that isn't possible then I withdraw and try to better myself for the occasion. Aside from that I regularly train to improve."
"An exemplary model of an adventurer indeed, how might you spend your days? The Princess is curious, as am I."
"I maintain my weapons and equipment and improve them wherever I see possible, if not that then I'll exercise in my room. And if not that either, I'll work on one of my many projects."
"How interesting. The adventurers before you all showed a dedication to their job but never in the way that you do. Tell me, what did you do before you became an adventurer? The Princess asks." He was REALLY getting sick of the echoing.
"Before I became an adventurer I served in the Navy and Army, not of this nation, and participated in a twenty-seven long year war until I was severely wounded. After that I became an Adventurer."
"A soldier? One would think that you would be sick of fighting after your service, but you kept going and kept fighting. "
"I can't exist without it, it's a part of me."
"Interesting indeed, the Princess says." How insightful… Aside from him having to blather on to the Princess about meaningless things, it was quiet. That was probably because Aqua had drank herself into a practical coma given that she was face down on the table. That was probably for the best though.
"But hearing this all has raised some doubts in my mind, I've heard even stories that you beat the hero of the magic sword Mitsurugi. If that was the case, would you mind showing me your adventurer's card so that I might use your skills as reference," the white suit said.
"No."
"...No?"
"No." She looked astonished at his denial, he simply sipped on the wine placed in front of him. Given that he had skills from both a Lich and an Archdevil, it probably wasn't the best to reveal them to the most powerful people in the nation.
The Princess tugged at the white suit of the woman, "Perhaps you lied about your accomplishments and are simply a con man. Perhaps you never even defeated Mitsurugi, is that that case? The Princess asks. I myself am skeptical, it is hard to imagine one defeating the great hero of the sword Mitsurugi. Especially given how handsome he was." Okay, he was done with this charade.
"Haha, fuck off." The room was silent, he heard Darkness' utensils clatter to her plate. The wine was good.
"How dare you speak to royalty with such a foul tongue you beast!" The woman with the white suit drew her sword from her waist and swung it at him.
Thud, the blade of the sword landed in his hand and cut it slightly. Some blood poured out, but not much. She and the Princess both looked shocked as he calmly stood up, "Now, I said I was going to try and control myself. But…" He bent the blade of the sword into a curve, then tore it from the stunned woman's hands. With moments he was up close and cracked the top of her head with the wide and dull end of the weapon, sending her toppling to the floor. "There are just some things I won't take sitting down, being insulted is one of those things." He walked up to the Princess, patted her on the cheek with his still bloody hand, then sat down. "Now I came here to speak with the Princess, not a puppet. So, what will it be?" Darkness quite literally fainted, her chair tipping over.
She smiled, "Alright, I'll speak with you."
"I-I apologize for the way this turned out, and for the behavior of my companion." the black dressed bodyguard said, bowing her head.
"And I apologize for losing my temper, but the matter has passed now." The woman with the white suit stood silently by the Princess' side with her head lowered in shame as he spoke those words.
"And I'm sorry for calling you a liar…" The Princess said softly, "But despite that, will you keep telling me stories about your acts as an adventurer?" She looked up at him with sad eyes. He felt somewhat sad for her.
"Sure, I"ll tell you more stories," she smiled at that.
"Well then, I suppose we will be returning to the castle," the woman in the black dress said, "Lady Dustiness, we thank you for the reception and apologize for all troubles." The woman began to chant teleportation magic..
"And these are given to you all as part of your service to the kingdom and its people. No doubt you will be remembered in the pages of history," the woman in the white suit said finally. She handed a plaque and a bag with something to Darkness, but still barely raised her head.
The others said their goodbyes. "I'm sure that there will be many opportunities in the future to tell my stories."
Her mage bodyguard finished her chant, "Why wait?" Iris grabbed his arm.
"Teleport!" Before he could respond, the world around him disappeared. When he blinked his eyes he found he was no longer in Darkness' home.
"Princess Iris?!" Both her bodyguards said. They were standing in front of a large and rather impressive castle.
"Didn't you promise that you'd tell me more stories?" Ah, this was a kidnapping.
Since there was most likely a heavy amount of guards and because he had no idea how he was going to get home from wherever they were, he'd just play along for now. It wasn't much of a choice. He followed the Princess. "Welcome back Princess Iris!" There were maids waiting for her arrival inside the castle, all of them bowed before her. Were none of them going to question this random man that had shown up alongside her…? It should be extremely suspicious for someone like him to suddenly appear and wander around. He'd be on his best behavior, he always was, but he still felt like it was improper.
The Princess lead them through a winding path of hallways in the castle, one that would be impossible for most to remember but was easy for him. Materials like gold, silver and silk were worked in wherever possible to give the most wealthy appearance possible to those who walked throughout. And it certainly did it's job, at least for most. To him it was far too glitzy and became more of an eyesore the more he saw it. Eventually they didn't have to see anymore of it as the Princess lead them off to a room separate from the rest of the castle. It was lavish to say the least. "Aurdel Ganowicz-sama, this will be your room for the time that you stay in the castle. Please feel free to treat this place as your own home and rest easy."
The two bodyguards were about to leave when he stopped them, "Hold on, isn't it wrong for this to happen? The implications of the way something like this looks is way too bad."
"I feel the same way about the situation, but her Royal Highness insisted that it be like this," the woman with the white suit said. "If there is an issue with the arrangements you'd have to take it up with her Royal Highness herself." Great.
"Usually her Royal Highness does not act this willfully, normally she restrains herself and acts as the epitome of a modest and obedient royal. But perhaps, because this is the first time she has acted out in such a way, you might be willing to be a temporary playmate?"
"Aren't there those of a more proper age? A good portion of my companions would be better fit for such a task, I'm far too-"
"Her Royal Highness did not pick any of your companions, she chose you. And if appearance is what you are worried most about I may speak to the Princess for you regarding that," the mage stepped away for a moment and left him simply standing with the one in the white suit.
"...Do you want me to bend your sword back into shape?"
"Of course not, I'll simply take it to a smith have it repaired. I require none of your help in such a matter," she turned her head boldly away from him. Clearly she was still sore from earlier but at least tried to look proper in front of Princess Iris despite that. After that small exchange the two of them remained quiet until the mage returned.
"The Princess shall make the proper arrangements tomorrow, simply proceed as would be expected."
Proper arrangements? What the hell was that supposed to mean given the situation? Personally he had absolutely no idea. And 'as would be expected'? What did that mean either? It was now that he was beginning to understand Anatalia's hesitancy to interact with any forms of nobility, they were a hassle. It was like dealing with ONI but with even less so done in order to protect humanity from some threat. Here, it was just whatever the noble wanted. Aurdel sighed, "Might I at least have your names so that I might be able to call one of you down should some incident occur?"
"I am Lady Claire," the one in the white suit said.
"I am Rain," the one in the black dress said. Good, he had names now. That was a lot more useful and respectful that "suit lady" or "dress lady."
After that, the two of them left. It was just him and Iris now. "Say, Princess-"
"Please, just call me Iris. I want you to take the same tone with me that you do with Lalatina… Erm, I mean, with Darkness."
"Alright, Iris, why is it that you're so interested in hearing about adventurers so much?"
"It's because I have no others to hear stories from, aside from those that I visit or dine with. My father and my onii-sama are off on the frontlines against the Demon King, I am unable to speak with them."
"Are there no other children your age?"
"There are, but none that I might associate with for fear of being looked down upon due to a difference in wealth and social standing. And even if that wasn't an issue I would not be permitted to visit them without my personal retainer."
Hmm, so she was lonely. "Alright, well, is there any story in particular that you might want to hear? I have a few of my adventures here, or I might be able to tell you some of my stories from when I was still in my own world." Hearing so many possible stories to be told the Princess lit up.
"I want to hear them all!"
"Okay then, I suppose I'll start with the ones from my world." Iris was excited as he began.
"...And so our team's and John's went head to head. It was like that a lot of the time, this time in particular thought was the most brutal. By the time the instructors stopped the exercise we'd torn up half the course with our fighting. It really was a sight to behold."
"Wow… That really does sound amazing." Iris had been listening attentively to every detail of every word he said, listening from start to finish. "Keep going!"
"It's much too late for that today, I'll tell you more tomorrow. Even someone like me needs some sleep," Iris sighed in resignation and got up from where she sat.
"Do you promise that you'll tell more tomorrow?"
"Yes, I promise."
"Okay, I'll hold you to that promise!" And she walked out of the room. He was able to start taking his clothes off and getting ready to slip into bed when she poked her head in for a moment more, "And don't worry, I'll make sure to handle your problem." After that she left for good for the night, shutting the door behind her. He was slightly concerned now, he didn't know what 'handling his problem' meant. He'd have to be on his toes tomorrow. With a yawn and a stretch of his arms he took off the suit he was still wearing, then laid down in the bed. It was soft, extremely so compared to even the ones they had at the mansion. He had no trouble falling asleep.