A

by Ineedalife8394

.

4. L

NOVEL

77

Writtenb y Rifuiinn a Magonote

Illustratedb y Shirotaka

MTusKO i eN .u se

j o b l e s sr e i n c a r n a t i o n

joDe

published inJapan in 2019 by

DOKAWA CORPORATION, Tokyo. ish translation rights arranged with DOKAWA CORPORATION, Tokyo.

portion of this book may be reproduced or transmitted ny form without written permission from the copyright ers. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters,places,

incidents are theproducts of the author's imagination e used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, es, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

information or opinions expressed by the creators of this belong to thoseindividual creators and do not necessarily

ct the views of Seven Seas Entertainment or its employees.

n Seas press and purchase enquiries can be sent to

keting Manager Lianne Sentar at . rmation regarding thedistribution and purchase of

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n Seas and the Seven Seas logo are trademarks of n Seas Entertainment. All rights reserved.

ow Seven Seas Entertainment online at .

ANSLATION: Sylvia Gallagher PTATION: Lorin Christie

ER DESIGN: Kris Aubin

ERIOR LAYOUT : Clay Gardner YEDITOR: Meg van Huygen

OFREADER: Stephanie Cohen

HT NOVEL EDITOR: W i n t e rGreene

PRESS TECHNICIAN: Melanie Ujimori, Jules Valera DUCTION MANAGER: Lissa Pattillo

TOR-IN-CHIEF: Tulie Davis

OCIATE PUBLISHER: A d a mArnold

Table of Contents

Color Inserts

Title Page

Copyrights and Credits

Table of Contents Page

Chapter 1: Coming Home and Making Reports Chapter 2: Randolph's Woes

Chapter 3: The Politics of the King Dragon Realm Chapter 4: The Naughtiest Kid

Chapter 5: The King of the King Dragon Realm Interlude: Blue and Red

Chapter 6: Infiltrating Fort Necross

Chapter 7: Dueling Atofe's Ultimate Four

Chapter 8: Imprisoned in Fort Necross

Chapter 9: Princess Rudeus Enters the Fray

Chapter 10: Clash with Demon King Atofe

Interlude: We Got Married

Chapter 11: Number Four

Extra Chapter: The Monkey and the Dreaming Youth Newsletter

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Chapter 1:

Coming Home and Making Reports

IWAS AT A HOUSE on the outskirts of the magic city of Sharia. The

room stretching out before me was outfitted worthy of an evil demon king's castle. It was furnished with a luxuriant Asuran carpet and chairs crafted from mahogany and red dragon leather, overstuffed with Millis wool. The desk was light wood to match the chairs, and the ornaments— all painstakingly created by the artisans of Sharia—would've impressed anyone. The fireplace glowed, its flames faintly crackling in a cozy way that, despite myself, put my heart at ease.

You're probably wondering what part of that sounds like an evil demon king's castle. That was all in the unsettling aura that radiated off the glowering man glaring daggers at me from his seat. His presence made everywhere he went feel like an evil demon king's castle or a secret society. The atmosphere of a place is all about the people in it. The furnishings or whatever are just a footnote. It's always all about the people.

"Th-that's all I have to report for this time," I said, wrapping up my report on events in the Holy Country of Millis. My speaking venue held the kind of homey atmosphere you might find in the house of a family pretending just a little too hard that a divorce wasn't incoming.

Orsted always looked like he was on the verge of going ballistic. Maybe that was why Eris, standing behind me off to one side, was so on edge. Actually, the expression he wore now wasn't his going-ballistic face at all. Hm, I see. Lately, I'd gotten the hang of reading Orsted's expressions, so I knew what this face meant.

Right, so... It was about seventy percent doubt, and maybe thirty percent lack of interest. Not especially angry.

So you can settle down, Eris.

"So, about this misstep... I promise I'll clean up the mess I made here!"

Leave it to Kaijin Quag-Man to put down K*men R*der Geese!

"Oh, yes, obviously, you will be addressing that. The thing is..." From Orsted's tone, I guessed these words were coming from the seventy-

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percent doubt part.

"Something troubles you, sir?"

"You told me all that via the contact tablet," he explained. "Why did you travel all the way here to say it again?"

"I'm obligated to make my reports. Also, it looks like my plans will have to change from here out, so I thought a meeting was necessary."

"I see..." Orsted said with a sigh. He sat back down. "Well? What are you planning?"

"I'll keep it brief," I said, clearing my throat. "As I mentioned over the contact tablet, Geese told me he's gathering forces so that he can kill me in a head-on battle. I don't know if he was telling the truth or not, but I plan to counter him by gathering powerful allies of my own."

"Hm."

Did he really have to look at me like he was grumbling, Exactly what you told me over the contact tablet, then?

I thought that talking in person might lead to some new developments or something, so sue me... Also, checking in is important. It'd be no good if we were each looking at the situation in different ways.

"First I want to claim the Death God in the King Dragon Realm, then Atofe, then after that I'll go to the North God... Oh, do you know where the North God is?"

After Atofe, I wanted to go chat with the seven great powers, starting with the strongest of them:

Number five: the Death God. Number six: the Sword God. Number seven: the North God.

In a past meeting with Orsted, he'd told me that the North God was easier to talk to than the Sword God, so I planned to mix up the order a little and prioritize the North God.

"I know not. Every North God's been a wanderer. The slightest alteration in the course of history could make him appear on the far side of the world. After this much has changed, I cannot say."

"What about normally?"

"The second North God was on the Begaritt Continent, while the

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third was in the warring region of the Central Continent, I believe."

Both of those were far away, and naming entire continents hardly narrowed it down.

"Understood. Next is the Sword God, I guess."

So the order was now the Death God, Atofe, then the Sword God... Honestly, I wanted to talk to a whole lot more people. The top great powers, in order, went Technique God, Dragon God, Fighting God, and Demon God.

Apart from the Dragon God, they're all sealed away or missing, right? Wait, hold on...

"Speaking of," I said, "do you think the Technique God would ally with me? I remember you saying that he split off from the Demon God, which means he should be willing to help me fight the Man-God. Right?"

"You have better uses for your time."

"Yeah, his memories got a bit muddled, right? Okay, so what if we, like, merged him back with the Demon God Laplace to return him to his true form—ah, wait. I guess that would make Sir Perugius mad, huh? Could you maybe, like, talk to him?"

"Enough," Orsted growled, and I shut up. "I will not ally myself with them."

Them. Now I got what he was saying. Orsted saw Laplace and Perugius as cut from the same cloth. The same probably went for all five dragon generals.

"But, um, don't you think if Perugius knew something about Laplace he'd speak up?"

"If he becomes my enemy, I will end him."

"...Understood."

I could guess why he was being so obstinate. Perugius was unaffected by Orsted's curse. Yet Orsted made no effort to get close to him, and now this stubborn refusal. But we didn't have a lot of options here.

Still, for some reason, I hesitated to ask. I couldn't get the question out. It felt like this wasn't the right time.

If I asked him, Are the secret treasures that lead to the Man-God the lives of the Five Dragon Generals? I suspected I'd end up with either

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Perugius or Orsted as an enemy. I owed a lot to them both, and I didn't want to end up in the middle of their spat. Right now, the smart move was to pretend I was still in the dark.

"Got it," I said. "Let's go on to the next thing."

"Proceed."

I changed the subject. Nothing good could come from pushing a plan Orsted had already rejected. I followed Orsted, which meant he had final say on our course of action.

"While I tried pursuing various avenues in Millis, I got the impression that your, er...authority, or whatever you want to call it, was a bit lacking."

"That is because I have none," Orsted replied.

Don't be silly, of course you do! I wanted to reply, but thinking about it, the Seven Great Powers were essentially athletes who'd won Olympic medals. Maybe they didn't have any formal authority. On the other hand, the Seven Great Powers were big names in this world. Though ordinary society tended to forget about them, people with enough status at least knew them by reputation. The Seven Great Powers included the best of the best swordsmen—the North God and the Sword God. Their disciples were employed as martial instructors and guards the world over. When you thought about how strong they were and what valuable allies they'd make to any political power, Orsted's position as number two amongst the Seven Great Powers seemed like a fairly big deal—and I was keen to put it to good use.

"Well, about that: I have a proposition," I said.

"What is it?"

The thing was that while Orsted was a virtual nobody, Perugius was a household name. It should be easy to impress people if they thought I was in the same class as him...even if only by title.

"I've settled into introducing myself as the 'Right Arm of the Dragon God' but it's still a bit...how should I put this? It doesn't rattle people. Like, not many people are awed by the Dragon God, y'know? Or it doesn't feel that way, anyway. So I was wondering if, for clarity's sake, I could call myself the 'Dragon King.' We could do Quagdragon King or something, whatever feels good—"

"No," said Orsted.

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Wait, what?

"I forbid you from using the title of Dragon King." He was glaring at me. Like, really glaring. Yeah, I got it. I could read his face, even when it wore an expression I'd never seen before. This was probably his "angry face".

He's seriously hacked off. What the hell? Man, I'm trembling.

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"All of them live as they please, clinging to their tattered pride. Then they die over petty grudges."

When I didn't say anything, Orsted continued, "You are different. That is why you may not use that name, Rudeus Greyrat."

"I...uh... Yes, sir."

That was unexpected. I hadn't prepped for a real confrontation. I thought he'd wave me off with a disaffected, "You can call yourself what you want."

Damn. I couldn't stop shaking.

I heard a tutting sound, just as Eris moved forwards. "Eris, don't!" I called her off.

Relax. This isn't a fight. It's not even a falling-out. I said something that's totally at odds with the boss's plan for the company, and now he's mad. So get out of that stance, and take your hand off your sword, okay?

"I went too far. My apologies," I said.

"No matter," Orsted replied, and I lowered my head. Orsted's anger dissipated. Orsted always acted on the assumption he had the loops to fall back on, but some things were still non-negotiable. I'd stepped on a raw nerve without looking. Well, whatever. It didn't matter what I called myself. I could project authority in any number of other ways. My own sense of majesty might not be so easy to tap into, but I could...well, hm. I could borrow a bit of authority from Ariel and the Kingdom of Asura, maybe?

Right, let's go with that.

"Let's assume I get Ariel to lend me some authority, then. Who should I try to bring on our side after the Sword God?"

"The Biheiril Kingdom would be best. That is where the Ogre God resides. The Ore God can wait until later. If it comes to war, he will provide good-quality weapons, but he is no good in a fight." Now Orsted mentioned it, I did remember him saying the Ogre God and the Ore God should be brought in with the rest.

"You mean I should get the Ogre God to join us?"

"No. It's extremely likely that he is a disciple of the Man-God. We should crush him before Geese can collect him." Right, the Ogre God was likely to turn against Laplace. And Laplace was the Man-God's enemy.

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The enemy of my enemy, meaning that the Ogre God was easy to turn into a disciple, and therefore we should crush him first. Okay, yeah, that made sense as a strategy—building up our own pieces while also taking out Geese's, and taking them out one at a time so that five of them couldn't descend on us at once. That was one way to go about it.

"Is there anyone else likely to be turned against us?"

"Hmmm. No, none as significant as the Ogre God," Orsted replied. "There is the Abyssal King Vita who lives in Hell, the labyrinth on the Divine Continent, and the Vile Demon King Qeblaqabla of the Demon Continent. It would be prudent to remove those two. Moving against them first would cause problems, however, so they can be left until last."

"I see." They all had such wild names. I wondered if I'd have to fight them just for the crime of being likely to be turned by the Man-God. They hadn't done anything yet. They weren't disciples. Would Orsted mind if I made them my allies first? I wasn't totally opposed to fighting them—if it looked like things weren't going to work, I could fight them then. When it came down to it, I wasn't super keen on murdering people before they'd even gotten involved in any of this.

"All right, so the plan is I either make them my allies or neutralize them."

"Indeed."

The details come later, I guess.

"On to the next topic. About my plans to visit the King Dragon Realm..."

After that, Orsted gave me scraps of information about the royal family and the nobles with power in the King Dragon Realm. That was where we left things.

I hadn't expected the Dragon King thing to get under his skin that badly.

Gotta be more careful next time. *

"Whew..."

"Welcome back, Chairman Rudeus!" The moment I stepped out of

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the boss's room, the girl at reception stood up and bowed enthusiastically. A half-elf, half-human girl. She'd inherited the long lifespan of an elf, but she was still very young. She had been hired as Orsted's secretary after a series of rigorous selection processes over a large number of candidates. She spent all day sitting here, never seeing Orsted because he was always shut up in the back. She acted on his orders purely via written communication, while also meticulously taking care of administrative duties. What was her name again...?

"Oh, yes, thank you."

"You don't look well. Is something the matter?"

"Um, not really... Sir Orsted wasn't too happy with me."

"I see! Even you get in trouble sometimes, Chairman!"

"I might have, uh, pulled the tiger's tail this time, so to speak."

"Oh dear... But the CEO really does rely on you, Chairman Rudeus. He may merely hold high expectations of you."

"Hahaha. No, that wasn't it."

She was resistant to Orsted's curse and considerate of others. An all- around swell lady. The only thing was, I really couldn't remember her name. What was it, seriously? Faristy...or Feristaly? No, that wasn't right. Aisha would probably know, but she was with Zenith right now in the neighboring room.

That was fine. I'd ask Aisha privately another day.

"I was thinking, if Orsted is the CEO and I'm the chairman, doesn't it sort of sound like I'm more important than him?"

"Oh... What should I call him then?"

I wonder. Linia was the acting CEO, and Aisha was an advisor as well as the vice chief. If I was the company chairman, then that left...

"What about Commander-in-Chief?" "...Well, he should have final approval." "True. Um, well, I guess run it by him," I said.

Whatever else aside, she seemed to be doing good work here. Up till now there hadn't been any major problems, and her cheerfulness kept everyone motivated. Orsted didn't seem to have any complaints. I'd also been sure to hire someone in massive debt, so she had a little extra

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motivation to tolerate a rough day here or there. "There haven't been any other problems?" "No, nothing."

"That's a relief. If stuff isn't running smoothly or there's anything else you want, please reach out to me straight away. If it's within my power, I'll make sure it's done."

"What?!" She was surprised. Why was that? It was true that our company didn't have any labor standards it had to abide by, but I was trying to build a positive working environment.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Chairman. It's just that Sir Orsted asked me the same thing."

"Oh, did he? Huh."

"He's already made so many accommodations for me." Ordinarily anyone offered something like that, even indirectly, would be on their guard, thinking it was a deal with the devil. That had to mean the special helmet Cliff had made was doing its job, alleviating the effects of Oersted's curse. Good stuff.

"It's a shame that I can't even see his face, after all that he's done for me."

"That's the fault of the curse. The moment you saw his face, all of the gratitude you feel now would turn to hatred and distrust."

"It's horrible, isn't it?"

"It is. And that's why when Sir Orsted is working in the back there, you are never to sneak a peek through the sliding panels."

"...Wh-what sliding panels?" she repeated, confused. I coughed. Actually, so long as he was wearing the helmet a glance or two probably wouldn't hurt. But knowing Orsted, he didn't wear the helmet all day every day. We couldn't be too careful.

"Doesn't matter. I'll leave things to you then."

"Understood, Mr. Chairman."

"One more thing. Can you hint to the boss that the chairman looked really agonized?"

"Of course." She chuckled. "You know, I didn't expect you to be so timid."

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Nothing surprising about it. I've always been like that. I'm about as brave as I am tall.

After that conversation, I left the office.

Right. Next up, I had to report back to my family about Zenith and the whole thing with Geese. There was a lot I needed to say. At least it wasn't all bad news, but that was cold comfort.

Lilia

THAT DAY, Elinalise was with us. She came to the house a few

times a week to speak with the house's mistresses. She was married with a child and household of her own, but her husband was far away. I expected she was lonely. That feeling was most familiar to both the ladies of the house and to me. From Elinalise's manner and bearing, however, you would never have guessed that she was quietly unraveling on the inside—I imagine that was why she constantly came over seeking advice. We went over all sorts of questions, from what sort of education was appropriate for children of a certain age to small complaints.

One such question: "When do you think Aisha will learn how to behave like a grown-up?"

"I wonder the same, myself. It's not as though she can't... Well, she probably won't until she feels it's necessary."

"When might that be?"

"Say she found a boy she liked, for example..." "I suppose Master Rudeus won't do."

"You know as well as I do that the reason Aisha keeps acting like a child is entirely because she's stunted in her role as Rudeus's little sister. She's not his lover or wife."

"Now that we're discussing it, I suppose I did know that."

"All of which is to say, you need to find someone else for Aisha. Someone charming. Someone who won't pay her any attention unless she behaves like an adult."

"Hmmm," I mused. Yes, I was the one looking for advice that day.

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Miss Elinalise looked much younger than me, but she had the wisdom that came with age. I was grateful for how thoroughly she addressed my concerns.

"Yes. You want someone younger and a bit useless. Someone who's got it really bad for grownup women."

"Really bad, you say?"

"Exactly. Aisha should have no trouble satisfying the fantasies of a kid like that, and she can also knock some sense into that kind of boy."

I knew perfectly well that Aisha wasn't going to end up with Master Rudeus. He didn't want her, and she wasn't interested in him. Unfortunately, I couldn't see any potential marriage candidates I brought home going down well, either.

"All you can do is to try to make it happen."

"I see..." I replied, hanging my head, and then cried out, "Oh!" as Leo came galumphing into the dining room. Miss Lara and Miss Lucie were seated upon his back. They appeared to be playing horse.

"Woof!" Leo barked, looking at me.

How odd. He was a clever dog, and hardly ever barked unless there was a reason. It couldn't be that something had befallen Sylphiette?!

"Woof, woof!" Leo wagged his tail, then looked from me to the front door and back again.

Ah, never mind, then. Leo was far too happy. Besides, if something happened to Sylphiette, he would have barked urgently for someone to come to him.

His gaze was fixed upon the front door. Were we to have a visitor? Leo didn't typically wag his tail for visitors. Ah, perhaps Miss Roxy has come home, I thought, standing up right as the lock on the front door went click. I rushed over to receive the arrivals.

"Oh, hey, Lilia. We're back."

"Hey, Lilia!"

"Welcome home, Master Rudeus! Miss Eris!" I cried.

There, in the doorway, was Master Rudeus, together with Miss Eris, Miss Zenith, and Aisha, and much earlier than I'd expected them. Master Rudeus's plan had been to remain in Millis for around half a year, but hardly a month and a half had passed since they left. On top of that, Master

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Rudeus's expression was unusually solemn...

I immediately knew what must have happened. There had been trouble. Whatever it was, it was probably Lady Claire's fault. Lady Claire wasn't a very flexible person, and also more than a little severe towards Aisha and Miss Norn. She was a devout believer in Millis and by no means a bad person, but also not one you could call "good," even if you were being nice. Thinking about their personalities, she and Master Rudeus would be like oil and water.

If I had to guess, they had a serious disagreement about something to do with family, and it had resulted in a confrontation.

"Did something happen?" I asked. Master Rudeus's already-solemn expression grew even harsher. I was sure Master Rudeus could handle any obstacle...but it stood to reason that some differences just couldn't be worked out.

"I guess you could say that," he replied. His phrasing was deliberately vague.

"Was it Lady Claire?" I asked. Rudeus looked surprised.

"No," he replied. "Well, I mean, Claire and I did have a bit of a falling-out. We're all good now, though. She's not such a bad person, deep down."

This only perplexed me further, although I felt a little relieved. For the past month and a half, I'd been beset with anxiety over not going with them. I'd thought I ought to accompany them to mediate. My worries were unfounded, according to Rudeus's explanation. What had gone wrong?

"Then—" I began, but Master Rudeus looked away with a troubled expression on his face. Beside him, Aisha looked uncomfortable. Something else must have transpired. Looking at Aisha, she may have been the subject of the conflict.

"Did Aisha make a nuisance of herself?" As I'd just been saying to Elinalise, Aisha, despite being already fifteen years old, adamantly refused to behave like an adult. She was talented but persisted in acting like a child.

I was so proud of her, long ago. This girl is a gifted child, I'd thought. Now I can pay back Master Rudeus for his kindness. But if she never stopped being a gifted child...

"No, Aisha did her job well," Rudeus said.

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By now, even I felt like I was prying as I opened my mouth. "So why—"

Master Rudeus cut me off. "I... Look, it's gonna be a really long story once I get into it. Can we wait until everyone's here?"

"Of course. I beg your pardon, Master Rudeus."

"No worries... Hey, and it's not all bad news. I have one piece of great news. Um, I need to unpack, so watch my mom for me, okay?" Master Rudeus laughed weakly, then hurried off to his room. A worried- looking Miss Eris went after him.

Aisha and Miss Zenith stayed where they were. Aisha was sulking, but I somehow sensed that Miss Zenith was in good spirits.

"Did you behave yourself, Aisha?" I asked.

"I, um, did sort of screw up." Ah, so not sulking. She was depressed.

That's not like you, I thought. Ever since she was a child Aisha hardly made any mistakes, and on the rare occasions that she did she rarely owned them. Yet now here she was, admitting one without hesitation. She might have matured a little more than I'd thought.

"Was it something very bad?"

"No, Rudeus fixed it straight away."

I fell silent. What could it have been? With that look on Master Rudeus's face...

But never mind. He said he'd talk about it later, so I would wait.

I suddenly realized Zenith was looking at me. She reached out, looking extremely sunny, so I took her hand and led her to her room.

Later that evening, the whole family gathered. Everyone was there on Master Rudeus's orders. Elinalise had been here already, so she was of course present, as well as Miss Norn and Miss Roxy just home from school. It was of course usual for the family to gather when Master Rudeus returned home, but much less common for him to propose it formally. We usually got everyone together only when Aisha or Miss Sylphie's perceptive eyes deemed it necessary to talk something through. Rudeus still had that look on his face.

This was going to be important. As he began his tale, I listened with trepidation.

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"Let's get things underway. First, I successfully met my objectives in Millis. Cliff worked his way into the Church too, so there's no need to worry about him."

Despite a hiccup with Lady Claire, Master Cliff had established himself in the church as he had originally planned and Ruquag's Mercenary Band was up and running as a result. The church was now thoroughly indebted to Master Rudeus and he had recruited the Blessed Child as an ally of Orsted. It sounded like a total and unmitigated success. Miss Elinalise, hearing that Master Cliff had gotten himself a position in Millis, looked relieved. Sadly, Rudeus's tale didn't end there.

"Geese is a disciple of the Man-God," Rudeus announced.

Geese. That demon thief from Master Paul's old party? He was behind all the trouble that Master Rudeus encountered, and in the end, he had made a declaration of war before fleeing. I'd known him for many years, from back when we crossed over to the Begaritt Continent. Even then, he was always concerned for the welfare of Master Paul and Miss Zenith. I remembered how conscientious he had been about gathering the necessary intelligence to brave the labyrinth expedition. Geese had worked tirelessly to save Miss Roxy and Miss Zenith. While Master Paul sank into depression, Geese ran around trying to recruit powerful warriors to join the party, selling maps he'd drawn up himself for next to nothing. The whole time he'd been helping Master Paul, he never let on he'd had another agenda.

I couldn't square the Geese in my mind with the Geese Master Rudeus described—the traitor working to try and bring Master Rudeus, Miss Roxy, and the others down.

"Ever since your request to post wanted notices came, I've been wondering..." Miss Roxy said. "You're sure there hasn't been some mistake?" An experienced labyrinth explorer herself, she always regarded Geese highly. According to her, there was no one more reliable in any field except combat.

"If only...if only I could say it was." Master Rudeus gave a sad smile, then pulled a letter from his pocket. Miss Roxy took it from him and read over the contents. Her usually sleepy expression darkened, but she nodded, accepting it at once. She passed the letter to me. When I looked at it, I understood.

The letter had a lighthearted and friendly tone despite its contents.

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Something about that told me instantly—this really was Geese. It wasn't that he hated Master Rudeus or Miss Roxy, or that he'd been plotting to destroy them from the start. He and Master Rudeus happened to be opposed, but it wasn't the sort of enmity that came from a grudge.

"Making the occasional gesture like this, telling you out of a sense of fairness when he usually never bothers... That's very like Geese, in a way," Miss Elinalise said with a sigh.

When I thought back, this kind of thing had frequently occurred in the inner palace in Asura. The fierce power struggles of that country had turned scores of people who had no real personal enmity against one another. However, once circumstances had turned a man against his fellow, custom dictated that he should meet his new enemy in a fair fight. This letter modeled that mentality.

"I know Geese did a lot for all of you, so I'm sorry to have to say this," Master Rudeus said, "but it looks like I'll have to fight him...and kill him."

The words seemed to pain him greatly. It might not have been obvious, but I think Master Rudeus thought highly of Geese. Miss Eris described them as good friends and had told me that they called each other "boss" and "newbie." The way Geese talked about Master Rudeus's achievements as though they were his own made me think he truly loved Master Rudeus. Of everyone, this was probably hardest for him.

"Oh, Rudy..." said Miss Sylphie. She didn't seem to know what else to say.

By contrast, Miss Roxy's face was hard. "Geese. Our Geese..." she muttered.

She, like me, had been in that party with Geese. She had relied on him. She'd accepted this new revelation quickly, however. There was no doubt in her eyes. On the contrary, I got the feeling she was determined to be a rock of certainty for Master Rudeus's sake.

"Anyway," Master Rudeus went on, "it looks like I'll be away for a long time again. You have Leo here to protect you, but there's no telling what Geese might do. I want you all to be careful and stay out of harm's way, okay?"

I wasn't going to allow any of us here to become a liability to Master Rudeus. I would work together with the rest of the family to ensure that the whole household was kept safe so that Master Rudeus could fight

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without worrying about us. He was always fretting, always looking back over his shoulder. He couldn't see how committed we were. It was a good quality to be sure, but when he failed to rely on us it made him feel remote. Though I suppose, from the perspective of someone like Master Rudeus, we must have seemed terribly fragile.

"I'll make sure of it," Roxy replied. "Rudy, if Geese is moving against you, this isn't plain old work for me anymore. Whatever you need, tell me."

"The same goes for me," Sylphie added. "I can't do anything right now, but I'm here for you, Rudy." They were playing to their personalities as always.

"Yeah, no question!" Miss Eris added, right as Aisha said, "You got it!" They both spoke like there was no other possible response.

"I understand the situation," said Miss Norn. She looked unsure, but her nod was determined.

I approved too, of course. "I cannot be of much aid," I said, "but I will ensure I do not become a hindrance to you."

If not for the old injury to my knee, perhaps I could have spoken more confidently. The answer I gave was as much as my strength would allow.

"Thank you," Master Rudeus said. "As I said, I likely won't be home for a while. I think for now, though, we can call this family meeting to a close—"

"Wait, Big Brother," Aisha cut in. "You need to tell them about Zenith."

"Oh, yeah."

Miss Zenith. I felt my body stiffen. I remembered then that the mistake Aisha hadn't wanted to talk about was also yet to come up and grew even more nervous. But Master Rudeus was smiling.

"So actually, I found out all about the curse on Mom," he said. This had to be the good news he'd mentioned then, not Aisha's mistake. "She has a curse on her that allows her to read minds. Not that she can see everything, but...it looks like she understands all of us really well."

Master Rudeus relayed all that the Blessed Child had told him and then described how Miss Zenith saw the world around her. Tears ran down my cheeks as a great wave of memories washed over me. There had been

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plenty of signs, now that I knew to look for them. Miss Zenith had always been one step ahead on tending to the garden, and when Miss Lucie was still small, Miss Zenith seemed to know when she would cry before it happened. Then there was...well. I wasn't sure how to describe it. Miss Zenith knew about Paul. We all assumed she didn't realize he'd died. We thought that, if her memories ever returned, she would be distraught. But she knew everything. Not only that, but she had accepted it and had started moving on. When that sank in, I couldn't stop crying.

"Lilia..." Master Rudeus said.

"I'm so sorry. Master Rudeus..." There wasn't a dry eye in the room, but I was the only one who buried my face in my hands and sobbed. I'd done nothing but cry recently. When I was young, I hardly ever shed tears. I didn't think my emotions had such a hold on me. It could be another sign I was getting older.

Aisha stroked my back as I wept, then when my tears finally subsided, Miss Zenith came and laid a hand on my head and set the sobs in motion once more.

Rudeus

MY REPORT BACK to the family was done. They all gave their usual

encouraging responses—words that made me feel like I could rely on them. I knew Lilia and Roxy in particular had complicated feelings about Geese, but they both agreed to the necessity of taking him down without any complaints or misgivings.

Next up was Zanoba. I planned on paying a visit to the King Dragon Realm, so I'd have to run it past him before I departed his company. He'd have his own thoughts on the matter, no doubt.

Eris, Sylphie, and Roxy all came with me. We took the Mercenary Band's carriage to The Zanoba Store. The main item on the agenda was making a checklist for powering up the Magic Armor.

"All right, let's go with that, then," I said when he laid out his ideas.

It was time to resume development on the Version Three. Beyond that, I'd need another trick to keep up my sleeve. Geese already saw the Magic Armor, so he'd figure out some way to counter it. I wanted another

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secret weapon.

When I explained all that, Zanoba replied confidently, "I'm only too happy to help."

"As am I," Roxy cut in. "My knowledge of magic circles has grown substantially over the past few years. I believe I can be of some assistance."

Assistance, you say? I mean, I'm grateful, I'm just not sure that's a good idea...

The fact was, the Magic Armor was now so complex even I couldn't do much more than assemble it and power it on.

"Are you sure?" I said. "It's not the kinda thing you can go into lightly."

Roxy pouted. "Rudy, dear, you do know who you're talking to, right?"

"F-forgive me!" I stuttered.

I went a bit crazy for a second there! I ought to know there's nothing Miss Roxy can't do! I don't know what I was thinking! I'm a buffoon! A total lost cause! I should die right here!

"I did all that study for you, Rudy. I went over all of Zanoba and Cliff's research notes so I could help with maintenance and upgrades."

"Roxy...!"

That's right, back in Shirone she could draw Fire Saint-tier magic circles...

It occurred to me that maybe she hadn't always been able to do that. Maybe she'd learned that when she researched magic circles after going back to the university.

"Okay then," I agreed. "I'm putting the Magic Armor—and my life —in your hands, Master!"

"I accept it," she replied.

I'd assumed that with Cliff gone, the Magic Armor research would stagnate, but I'd made a happy miscalculation. Any armor Roxy made for me would be worth an army by itself. She could've made something dangerous out of cardboard, if she had to; I'd still take on three Orsteds at once in it and wipe the floor with 'em!

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"I'm no Cliff, though, so don't raise your expectations too high," Roxy said. She looked proud of herself despite that, presumably due to confidence in her abilities. I wondered if she didn't already have some plans for improvements worked out.

"Hahaha. Now that the master's master here, there'll be nothing left for me to do!" Zanoba said, and we all laughed.

"Right, Zanoba," I went on. "There's another reason I came here today."

"Oh? Whatever it is, it sounds serious. Mayhap you caught wind of my acquisition of a fascinating new figurine the other day? My friend, it is quite the specimen! Crafted from a unique material. Its limbs are quite supple—"

"I'm going to the King Dragon Realm," I said, shutting Zanoba up mid-sentence, "to see Randolph. You're coming, right?" Zanoba took my hand, squeezing it tightly. Thanks to the Zaliff Prosthesis it was cold, but the strength of his grasp was precisely calibrated to not crush my hand.

"Thank you, Master," he said.

Yeah, yeah, enough with the thanks. Are you coming or not? "I'll pack my things at once."

That means you're coming, yeah? All righty, then.

Zanoba had been begging to know when I would expand into the King Dragon Realm since forever ago. It made perfect sense for him to come along. He'd spent the entire time worried sick about the child Pax left behind.

"Hold your horses," I said. "It's not like I'm leaving right this second."

"Oh, right. I beg your pardon... Then I'll find someone to take over the shop first. Though I hardly have any work right now!" Zanoba cackled.

The Zanoba Store was growing every day. The number of shopfronts and employees had increased, and these days almost everything was handled by on-site workers. As the head of the organization, Zanoba's job was now making final decisions on major projects, interviewing for executive positions, and doing quality assurance checks on products from each location. Given that The Zanoba Store itself was a bit like a subsidiary of our Orsted Corporation, and that he didn't have to be involved in any decision-making, well... There wasn't much for him to do

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here, if I was brutally honest.

"All right, just make sure you're quick."

"Understood," he replied, and with that, I went on my way.

We weren't going to the King Dragon Realm because something had happened. I didn't expect anything would happen. But given my track record, the chances of us getting mixed up in something were high. We might run into Geese trying to recruit Randolph, for example. Okay, that was unlikely, but I wanted to go in with appropriate caution even so.

One person stayed uncharacteristically quiet on the way home.

Eris stared out of the window of the carriage, apparently deep in thought. Maybe she was thinking about Geese. Whatever she might say now, Eris had taken a liking to Geese back when she met him in the Great Forest. I remembered her telling me she'd get him to teach her to cook. She didn't gel with a lot of people, but Geese was different.

Sylphie suddenly squeezed my hand. I looked up.

"Everything okay, Rudy?" she asked.

"...Huh? Oh, yeah, it's fine." I didn't know what "it" was or how it was fine, but I said it anyway. The whole Geese situation was a big shock, but there were plenty of other things that were fine. Sylphie's belly had gotten bigger since I left to take Zenith home to the Holy Country of Millis. The pregnancy had been detected about three months in, and since then another month and half had passed, so rounding up she was about five months along or so.

"How 'bout you, Sylphie?" I asked.

"I was never close to Geese like the rest of you."

"Oh, right." That wasn't what I meant. Hey, though, if she wasn't bringing up the pregnancy, I could assume it was going well. This was her second child, after all. Made sense for her to be a seasoned pro by now.

Still, I couldn't get complacent. The Man-God had said something, long ago, about how people's destinies get ambiguous when they're pregnant, and that makes them easier to kill. Because the Man-God gave that ominous warning, I'd summoned a guardian beast on Orsted's

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suggestion. I was pretty sure Sylphie would be fine, but I couldn't shake all my anxiety. I was sure I'd done everything I could, but even so...

Ah.

Unable to believe my own words as I spoke, I announced, "Until I deal with Geese, I'm giving up sex."

Sylphie stared. Roxy gaped. Eris narrowed her eyes at me.

"Um, okay. If that's what you want, Rudy," Sylphie said. "I don't mind, I just...um...?"

"I don't mind either," Roxy said dubiously. "Although...is this some kind of religious gesture?"

"I told you, right? The Man-God said it's easier to target you when you're with child. Geese might try and use that as well, so I think we should stop for now."

They all looked at me like this was the first they were hearing of it. Maybe I hadn't told them. Or maybe I'd told them and they forgot. People's memories often go hazy.

"Guess we have no choice," Eris said tersely, turning to look out the window again. She didn't sound happy, but she didn't argue. "Hard to imagine you sticking to a vow like that though, Rudeus."

Harsh. Apparently my nether regions were untrustworthy. I didn't trust them, either. They were behaving themselves for now, but when you're holding a loaded gun, your trigger finger gets itchy. That's just what men are like. Once it's cocked, it won't be long till it fires.

"No way Sylphie can go cold turkey, either," Eris added.

"Erm... I'll stick to it if that's what Rudy wants."

"As if. The moment Rudeus says, 'Let's just fool around a bit,' you'll give in, like 'Well, if it's just a bit...' Right?"

"...Yeah," Sylphie admitted.

Surely touching was okay, though. Say I held her close and left the ammunition in the barrel... Just a bit. That kind of thinking would be the death of me.

"That's why I'll be at Rudeus' side at all times, ready to beat him up if he tries anything."

So if I try to get busy, one wallop from Eris and I'm out like a light.

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Then when I wake up, all's forgotten. Perfect.

"Thanks, Eris," I muttered.

Right. From this day on, I'm Rudeus the Celibate. This'll be no sweat.

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Chapter 2: Randolph's Woes

WE ENDED UP with a party of five for our journey to the King

Dragon Realm—me plus Eris, Aisha, Zanoba, and Julie. I didn't plan on Julie coming along originally, but she'd clamped on tight to Zanoba's waist and wouldn't let go. I think after Shirone she'd sworn to herself that next she'd go with him no matter what. Come to think of it, she'd tagged along when we set up a Zanoba Store branch in the Asura Kingdom too, no questions asked. She was crazy about Zanoba, no kidding. You just wanted to be like, "Tell him how you feel already!" except there were no signs that Zanoba reciprocated her feelings. Zanoba had his own complicated history with marriage, so I wouldn't get my hopes up.

Ginger, maybe because she saw all that, decided not to come and instead took over managing the head office of The Zanoba Store. She told me to take good care of Zanoba.

Anyway, while we were in town, Aisha was going to set up an office for Ruquag's Mercenary Band while Julie established a Zanoba Store branch. Meanwhile, Zanoba, Eris, and I would meet with Randolph.

With that, we made our way to the King Dragon Realm. As usual, we traveled by teleportation circle to a nearby location, then walked the rest of the way to the capital city. Wyvern. How long had it been? Seeing the city again after such a long time, it struck me as messy. The buildings were all different heights, and the people were equally disparate. The town had sprung up without any plan, so you ended up with a layout where an inn for adventurers stood right next to a noble's mansion. Across from the Sword God Style training hall there was a North God Style training hall, then a Water God Style training hall right behind that.

The city was a cacophonous mess, but it was brimming with life.

Despite its history, there were no divisions of class here. It was a nation built on meritocracy and imperialism. It wasn't a bad place, in my opinion. But as with all nations, it certainly had a dark side.

When I arrived, I took a day to recover at the inn, then went straight to the royal palace.

I hadn't forgotten to make an appointment with Randolph and

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Benedikte together the day before. My impression was that Benedikte didn't strike quite as lofty a figure while we were in the King Dragon Realm, but royalty was royalty. If I snubbed her, that could be taken as an insult by the whole royal family. I mean, even if none of them took it personally, there was my reputation to consider. Nations are like the yakuza. They're always looking for an excuse to start a fight.

That in mind, I arranged a carriage with a white horse, rustled up some fine clothes suited for the occasion, then headed to the King Dragon Realm palace. It wasn't as vast as the one in Asura, nor as refined as the one in Millis. The word that sprang to mind was "bizarre." After numerous extensions, it now sprawled both up and out. It was crude and slapdash, as though someone had tacked on piece after piece as each became necessary.

Something about it was intimidating in a way I couldn't describe. That vibe would probably make me think twice if I were thinking about attacking it. I wasn't planning to attack it this time, though, so its oppressive aura fell flat.

My appointment got us into the palace without a hitch. We were shown to Benedikte's quarters.

"People are staring," Eris remarked as we followed our palace servant guide. I guess we did stand out. All the knights and nobles in their finery turned to gawk at us.

"Act like you're supposed to be here," I said. This time I was here as a friend of Randolph's. I had no reason to feel ashamed.

Okay, I had one. Orsted was guilty of killing their king. I didn't think that was common knowledge, though...

If we get busted, I'll get Ariel to help us out, I thought, right as we arrived at Benedikte's chambers.

"Great. Eris, Zanoba, you're both ready?" I said. "Yeah."

"Of course."

"If it turns out the Death God is our enemy, the two of you hold him at bay while I prep the magic circle for the Version One. Then I end things here. Okay?"

"You got it!" Eris replied.

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Goldenagato

"Indeed, though I do hope it doesn't come to that..."

Eris and I were a formidable combo in battle. I could count on her to have my back if the Death God turned out to be our enemy.

Zanoba was a reliable tank so long as our opponent didn't have any magicians. I was a bit worried about Aisha and Julie, who I'd left behind...but I couldn't keep them safe everywhere all the time. All I could do was hope that they could get through half a day without incident.

Enough dawdling. Time to go. *

For a room in a royal palace, the place was sparse. It was the absolute smallest space with the absolute minimum number of ladies-in- waiting they could get away with.

"Welcome, Lord Rudeus. It's been a long time." There he loomed, the world's top bodyguard: Death God Randolph Marianne. He looked ghoulish as he stood there, standing between me and his employer, Benedikte, and the baby in her arms. Benedikte didn't speak, but when she looked at me her mouth tightened and she clutched the baby to her. She looked to be on the verge of tears.

First things first. I decided to greet her before Randolph. That seemed like good manners.

"Queen Benedikte. I hope I find you well," I said.

She didn't grace me with a reply, but I guess I couldn't blame her. She must have heard the story of what happened that day by now. Pax was bound to have told her about me and Zanoba before that, and I seriously doubted he had any compliments for us.

Here Zanoba stepped forwards. "It's been too long," he said. "Queen Benedikte, I am Zanoba, at your service." He leaned toward them, disrespectful of personal space as ever. Benedikte drew back while Randolph stepped forwards, but Zanoba remained undeterred. "I am glad to see his Highness, the prince, in good health as well."

A long silence loomed. Randolph stared at Zanoba in consternation. I wished he'd look at me too. Here I was, grabbing Zanoba's shoulder to try and get him to step back. Of course I couldn't budge him.

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"Ah. My apologies. Should I have said princess?" Zanoba asked. Benedikte slowly shook her head. Male heir, confirmed.

"May I ask his name?"

"Pax," she replied after a weighty pause.

"He was named for his father," Randolph added. "Pax the second." They'd given him his dad's name. I wondered if he'd get called Pax Junior or Li'l Pax or something.

Well, isn't that wonderful? I should call my next son Rudeus Junior or something. No, scratch that. I'd doom him to become a perv.

"I see. A fine name. May he grow up strong and hardy like his father." Zanoba was cheerful, but he faltered at the terror in Benedikte's face. "Ah... It appears I have frightened you, Your Majesty. I apologize. I have always had that effect upon people. Please rest assured I do not mean you any ill." He stepped back, but the vibe of the room stayed awkward.

Uh-oh.

"Um," I began. "Oh, I know. Allow me to introduce my wife."

Eris stepped forwards. "I'm, er, Eris Greyrat...Your Majesty," she stammered. Nothing from those etiquette lessons had stuck. I'd chosen the wrong party for this mission. I should have brought Aisha. She knew how to be charming and friendly. But then I'd be in big trouble if Randolph went on the offensive.

Benedikte didn't reply to Eris. She sat looking at Randolph with a nervous expression. Thus, Randolph was the one who answered.

"I remembered your wife as being demonfolk, Sir Rudeus..." He talked without looping the Queen in on the conversation, but then, with her being so tight-lipped, it'd be ruder for him to defer to her and say nothing at all.

"I have three wives," I explained. "Roxy is one of them."

"Oh? That can't go over well with the Millis Church."

"One of my friends is a priest and he lectures me every chance he gets." I faced Randolph properly. "It's good to see you, Randolph." He was exactly as I remembered him, with his skeletal face and unsettling smile, in a stance that would appear vulnerable to an observer who had no knowledge of him. In reality, he was anything but. You could tell from Eris's tightly drawn lips.

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"You look well," I said.

"I am, very much so. I always am. I cannot say the same for you, Lord Rudeus."

"A friend of mine turned out to be an enemy."

"I know the feeling well. As a youngster, I was forced to kill a friend. It was a deeply troubling experience," Randolph said. His attention kept flicking to Eris as he spoke. He nodded, simultaneously shifting and adjusting his position almost imperceptibly to put himself between her and Benedikte.

"Eris," I said, "Could you stand a couple of steps further back?"

"What? Why?"

"Randolph seems uncomfortable," I explained. Eris already had him well within range of her blade. On top of that, she was adjusting her position so that I wouldn't be caught in between them. The two were shuffling around like warriors sizing each other up, escalating to increasingly dangerous stances. If I let this continue, I could well have a fight on my hands.

"He might be our enemy," Eris protested.

"If he was, he wouldn't have let you in here with a sword in your hand."

He surely wouldn't have allowed Benedikte to be in the room, either. Randolph wouldn't fight a Sword King and a magician with his dear charges behind him. He'd lie in wait for us alone, or with a group of allies. I'd dismissed Randolph as an enemy from the moment I saw Benedikte. It was possible Benedikte was secretly a warrior, I suppose, but I wanted to believe Randolph would do a far better job of setting a trap than this. He could be playing a really long game and maintaining his cover for now, but if I started thinking like that, there'd be no end to it. This meeting here and now wasn't a trap. For now, I was going to trust him.

"...Fine," Eris said at last. She slunk back close to the entrance. Her hand kept a tight grip on her sword.

"My apologies, Lord Rudeus," Randolph said.

"Not at all, I'm the one who should apologize," I replied. "I'm afraid our schedule is quite busy, however..."

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"Because of that friend of yours? Care to elucidate?"

"I'd love to. That's why I'm here, after all."

I told him what happened in the Holy Country of Millis: how Geese the demon had turned out to be my enemy; how he had no fighting skills, but he could talk his way out of anything; how with his silver tongue and the Man-God's wiles, they were gathering powerful warriors. I told him how, in order to stop Geese, I had wanted notices out for him all over the world and planned to make key powerful warriors my allies.

"That's a very honest way to fight," Randolph observed.

"I couldn't come up with anything better."

"No, no, I meant it as praise. Even a clever opponent will run out of good ideas if you smash each trick to pieces as it comes without overthinking it."

Randolph gave a rattling laugh. Was he speaking from experience? Immortal demons seemed like they'd be good at that sort of thing.

"Anyway, that's how things stand," I finished. "I hope I can count on your support."

"It would be my pleasure," Randolph said, "but there's no good reason for me to help you. I don't especially want to get tangled up with the Man-God, either."

"What if I told you the Man-God was King Pax's sworn enemy?"

"Oh?" Randolph said, sounding interested. "What's this? Do tell me more."

I told him how the incident in Shirone had been the Man-God's plot, who the disciples were, and what they'd done. Randolph listened until I finished, then laughed. His cheekbones jutted out unsettlingly; his laugh was a harsh croak.

"Well, then, that's a different story. I've longed for the chance to avenge Lord Pax." He grinned. His face was so creepy. It was the kind of face you expected to see behind a major betrayal, but it just goes to show you: you can't judge a book by its cover.

He had agreed without much drama. Things looked promising... until Randolph continued.

"Unfortunately," he said, "I'm rather busy here myself." Hold up. That means this isn't going smoothly.

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"May I ask with what?"

He chuckled. "Ah, how the tables have turned."

His confidence put me on the back foot. I chalked it up to Randolph's typical banter.

"Don't go saying that until you've got the upper hand," I retorted.

"But I do. You're here because you need my help, correct?"

Damn, that sounded like the upper hand, all right. I had no choice but to listen to his demands. Fine. What sort of ridiculous task was he going to throw at me? Could this be another part of Geese's scheme?

"Worry not, it's nothing too arduous," he said. He stepped out of his position defending Benedikte to one that left her exposed. Benedikte sat there holding the baby with something like fear in her eyes. Of what, I didn't know.

"As I am sure you are all aware, this country has been in an ongoing state of unrest."

The King Dragon Realm had become deeply unsettled after Orsted killed their king back in Shirone. Still, the previous king had foreseen it and named his successor. The new monarch was placed on the throne at once, and the King Dragon Realm gradually returned to stability—on the surface. Whoever had killed the old king was a mystery. A foreigner? Someone inside the palace? The culprit's motive was similarly unclear. No matter how placid the face they presented to the world, the palace was irreconcilably divided, with everyone jumping at shadows. They governed under a shroud of fear.

"We are not directly involved in this unrest. However, some see the queen's child as an inconvenience."

Aha. He was worried about Pax's child. Benedikte was the daughter of the old king. She'd been treated as if she didn't exist; she was wed off to Pax, former prince of the Kingdom of Shirone, so the King Dragon Realm could get rid of her.

I mean, that wasn't such a bad set of facts. A use had been found for an extraneous princess. That was all.

But after she'd married Prince Pax, he was killed in a civil war, and as she'd borne his child, everything looked different. Pax's murderers were well underway rebuilding the Kingdom of Shirone. They had their hands full and couldn't move against her at present, but their grudge against Pax

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burned as bright as ever. And why shouldn't it? The late prince had murdered their beloved royal family.

"Personally, I think they'll be swallowed by the Northern empire long before they're done rebuilding, but many still have concerns..."

Royal bloodlines were such a pain. In a country like Shirone, only a legitimate descendant of the previous monarch could ascend the throne. Thus, the current rulers of Shirone wouldn't be happy that Pax's son had survived. If the Kingdom of Shirone stabilized, they'd probably show up in a few years demanding Benedikte's child. Just a little infanticide as a token of friendship between the Kingdom of Shirone and the King Dragon Realm.

But Li'l Pax was still the grandson of the old king of the King Dragon Realm. If a vassal state came up saying, "Hand him over" and they went, "Sure, here you are," that wouldn't reflect well on their reputation. On the other hand, if they didn't hand him over, that would sour relations with Shirone.

So plans were in motion to eliminate the point of contention before it came to that, it seemed. Kill Li'l Pax before Shirone came asking for the same.

"What? You want the kid?" they'd say. "Damn, I hate to tell you this but he died in a tragic accident. What an unforeseeable tragedy! Ah, well. I'm sure you understand, right?" That way, the King Dragon Realm and the Kingdom of Shirone could both get out with their reputations intact.

The only one who'd come out worse for wear would be Randolph.

"They want him dead badly enough to fight Death God Randolph?" I said doubtfully.

"Many see avoiding war between our two nations a higher priority than avoiding my blade. I believe various other fears are at play, besides... but then, I understand little of politics, and lately I've had my hands full guarding Queen Benedikte. I don't know any more than that."

Makes sense.

Right now, the political heart of the King Dragon Realm was in a state of unrest. There was no way other countries weren't looking for a way to exploit that. Even if they couldn't openly attack the King Dragon Realm, they could, for example, harass its vassal states. That seemed more

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than likely.

If Shirone, their bulwark to the north, then turned against them, well... A lot of people were worrying along those lines, I bet.

Personally, if it were me with Randolph standing ahead, I'd be more worried about making an enemy of him.

"There's no point sending assassins and their ilk so long as I'm here, of course. Many fail to realize that..."

"Assassins?"

"Indeed. They don't realize they'll have to go through me until they get here—some turn pale, some weep while begging for their lives, some turn around and leave again. There have been quite a few."

"Scary..."

Orsted told me that the Death God Randolph Marianne of the Seven Great Powers was well-known in the assassin trade—though you could assume that much from his name. People said if you wound up making an enemy of him, you'd better kill your employer and make a run for it.

The ones doing the employing presumably didn't know about that.

I imagined how it felt to be a hapless assassin, coming face-to-face with the Death God. He's a terrifying dude, right? I get it, it was like that for me when I challenged Orsted.

"I don't object to guests, but if things go on like this, the prince's future is...well," Randolph finished pointedly. Their situation wasn't about to improve, no matter how many assassins he cut down. In the end, all they had to look forward to was Shirone's demand for the baby.

He could refuse, but that would damage his reputation here. If they handed Li'l Pax over, the kid would probably end up being executed, regardless of the wording of the bargain. No matter how the dice fell, Li'l Pax wouldn't be allowed to live in peace.

Unless...

"Let's say I find you a way out. Would I still have no chance of convincing you to join the battle against Geese?"

"No chance at all," Randolph replied. "But you need allies in the King Dragon Realm, do you not?" I didn't reply, but Randolph continued anyway. "It would be a great reassurance to have me as your ally. Everyone says as much; they feel they can rely on me. And there might be

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other advantages for you." "I imagine so," I said.

Randolph wasn't going to fight at my side. That left chances for the opposite outcome: he could be taken in by the Man-God—or rather, by Geese's smooth-talking—and show up on the other side. Even if I helped him here, I couldn't rule out him turning against me.

"Sir Randolph," said Zanoba, stepping forwards. "There is no need for convoluted conditions. Although I no longer lay claim to royal blood, the prince is my kin and I served his father. I have no stake in the power struggles of the King Dragon Realm. If you are in trouble, I will of course help you."

Hm, true. We had no reason to abandon Randolph now simply because he might turn against us later.

"Lady Benedikte," Zanoba said, kneeling before her. Down on one knee, his face was about level with the sitting Benedikte's. Eye to eye, he said, "As Pax's older brother, I am also your brother. Will you not permit me to help you and the prince?"

Benedikte stayed silent for a few long seconds, eying Zanoba sidelong... Then at last, with painful hesitation, she held out a hand to Zanoba.

"I-I would be happy for your aid," she said.

"I am yours to command." He took her hand and kissed it. They might say if you want to kill a general, first go for his horse...but Zanoba had gone for the general and scored a perfect headshot. I shouldn't be surprised—this was why he'd come. When you weighed the pros and cons, it wasn't a bad deal for either of us. As Randolph himself had said, I'd secure myself a reliable ally in the King Dragon Realm, and not just Randolph. Benedikte and Li'l Pax— if, through some twist of fate, he ended up wielding power once he came of age—would both be assets. This bond would pay off ten, maybe twenty years down the line. A long- term investment. The Orsted Corporation was always looking to the future.

This mess was our CEO's fault, when it came right down to it. As his follower, it was my responsibility to do something about it.

"Indeed. I shall be glad of your assistance," Randolph said.

The Death God must have known all that. He'd hidden his hand brilliantly.

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You sly bastard...

Anyway. That's how Zanoba and I ended up agreeing to clean up the mess in the King Dragon Realm.

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Chapter 3:

The Politics of the King Dragon Realm

NOTHING IS EVER simple.

Imagine you have kid A being bullied by kid B. Okay, you beat up kid B and kid A is safe, right? But more often than not, that isn't how it works. So long as everyone perceives kid A as the kid who gets bullied, everyone looks down on them. You end up with kid C and kid D picking up where the first bully left off.

So! How to make kid B stop? First off: why is kid B bullying kid A? Do bullies even need a reason? Was there something about kid A that led to their being bullied? It does happen. I assumed that was the case for me in my past life, at least.

I thought the King Dragon Realm might be telling a similar story. Benedikte might be getting bullied due to the unlucky fact she had demon blood in her veins. I wasn't gonna stand for it, if that was the whole deal. I'd beat the crap out of kid B.

But what if there was more to it? Maybe there was some outside cause that was stressing out kid B, and they took it out on kid A. If so, kid B might stop if you removed that outside cause. Removing it and then pointing out all the downsides of carrying on bullying kid A should be enough to make them stop actively seeking a target to bully. Hopefully, kid B was smart enough to see that.

So, the question became, what might the outside cause be? To find out, your intrepid hero ventured into the heart of the deepest jungle... No, okay, I just legged it to the training grounds to ask someone who knew the ins and outs of King Dragon Realm politics. Randolph said I'd find a man there called Shagall who could tell me what I wanted to know.

As you might expect, I'd heard about this individual from Orsted too. He was one of the top dogs in the whole of the King Dragon Realm: Shagall Gargantis, the General Paramount of the King Dragon Realm. He was a quarter elf and had a characteristically rough way of speaking, but he was decisive and a man of action. And he had a moniker: the Generalissimo.

He was also the one who'd recruited Randolph—the Death God

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wasn't interested at all, but Shagall barraged him with visits and offered him every favor under the sun to persuade him to take the post. The guy clearly had a good eye for talent.

The chances that he was a disciple of the Man-God were low right now, for the record, but if the King Dragon Realm ever seemed in danger of falling, those odds would skyrocket. I guess he was a patriot.

"They're an energetic bunch."

"Sure are," I said, looking out over the training grounds with Randolph's letter of introduction clutched in my hand.

Someone who looked like a receptionist had told me that without an appointment, I'd have to wait until training was done. Zanoba was with me too, by the way. Eris wasn't. I'd put her on bodyguard duty for Aisha and Julie.

The training grounds were oval in shape and about the size of a baseball pitch, ringed by tiered spectator seats like the colosseum. Down on the ground, soldiers in teams of six fought one another, their strategy dictated by their leaders' orders. Shagall himself was sitting where he could see the whole scene. He watched the match intently while ordering a few underlings to take down notes. He held these military drills regularly in small groups to improve the skills of his officers. I wasn't sure if it was because these officers were more suited to commanding armies, but individually they weren't noteworthy combatants. Maybe there was something in there that they could use, though.

The soldiers crept through the training ground, hunting for their enemy as they weaved through the various obstructions. They used hand signals to communicate with their allies, then surrounded the enemy, staged a fake attack while pinning them down, then obliterated them.

"Ah, they're reenacting the Battle of Zacharia," said Zanoba.

"You can tell?" I asked.

"I've studied it. That man there, he's the right flank. That was an army of water magicians who, unbeknownst to the enemy, were swapped out for fire magicians. All the enemy's counter spells went awry and they won a crushing victory. A classic bait-and-switch strategy."

"Wow." Now that Zanoba had pointed it out, I had seen the right flank guy switch places with the rear guard guy outside of the enemy's sightlines, then move to the left flank. The rear guard guy then met the

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enemy soldiers who pursued the right flank with magic... Only for the enemy to easily counter him with a spell. The subsequent attack sent him down.

They were fighting with real magic and swords, but they apparently had a similar setup of magic circles to the ones we used at University of Magic because his wounds healed right away. There must have been a rule where you were out if you were taken out, since he left right after that. After him another guy went down, then another, until in the end the general, surrounded by three enemies, surrendered.

"Guess they're done," I said. The team who'd taken down the general raised a victory cheer, and I heaved myself up, ready to go find Shagall.

"I believe there's more to come," Zanoba said. As I started walking, another team entered the ring. I looked over at Shagall, who showed no sign of moving, then down at the new lineup. They appeared to be working in several teams. There was no tournament bracket listed anywhere, so I couldn't guess how many more rounds were coming. They might keep going all day. It looked likely at this point.

What to do? The idea of waiting around wasn't unpleasant, but I'd rather not waste time. Was there no way to wrangle myself an appointment? Randolph's letter of introduction hadn't gotten me any closer than if I'd shown up empty-handed.

I wasn't even sure if I was allowed to watch their drills. They could easily be a national secret or something. No one showed up to chase me out, so I assumed it was fine. But still.

"Hey, this seat taken?" said someone beside me. I looked around to find a man in his early forties with dark blond hair and patchy stubble. He had the air of someone who'd been a bit of a fop back in the day but was making an effort to show he'd pulled himself together. He seemed familiar, but I couldn't place from where. Orstepedia was packed with information, but it didn't have any pictures. I needed names to work out who anyone was. This guy was in the palace of the King Dragon Realm, so off the bat, I knew he was nobility or royalty—at minimum a knight. There was no way the royal family went roaming about without bodyguards, even within the palace, so...noble or knight. No sword, so probably a noble. No guards or attendants either, which meant he wasn't a very important one.

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"Be my guest," I replied. "I don't own it." I decided to try talking to him for a bit rather than ask his name right away. If he was an important noble, he might get offended by my lack of recognition.

"I'll join you, then," said the man. He sat down, then looked out over the training grounds. "It's a good exercise, right?"

"Indeed. I admit I don't understand it very well."

"That's the King Dragon Realm's signature training methodology."

"Surely all countries use mock battles?" I pointed out. Not to rain on his parade, but they had a similar routine in the Asura Kingdom. Theirs was a bit larger in scale and slightly more complex, but the commanding officers drilled the soldiers hard with chess-board style setups.

"You think so?" the man said.

"What, is there something you do differently to everyone else?"

"There is. Take that man who's playing the general of the Western Army, for example. He's the eldest son of a provincial noble. Under ordinary circumstances, a man of his rank couldn't dream of rising to such a station, and if he did, it'd only be to defend his own lands with his own soldiers."

"Huh. Yet here he's playing the general."

"They have all the officers try each assignment, taking turns."

A player rotation—got it. It was the same philosophy as putting players into positions they didn't normally play. That way they could get the hang of the fundamentals while also learning how to play the position efficiently. Made sense to me. Understanding how a position works in theory was pretty different from doing it for real.

"I see. That must allow for everyone to find out what role they're best suited to."

"Precisely," he agreed.

"And not just that," I went on, "you can use it to uncover talent, like him." The Western army was dominating the Eastern army before our eyes. This eldest son of a provincial noble was a damn good commander. This was hardly my area of expertise, but I could tell his orders were precise and he left no slack. His fighting style was steadfast and methodical—no surprise attacks or convoluted maneuvers.

"In fact, in this country, assignments aren't based on social rank."

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"Oh?" Even provincial nobles had a shot at becoming a general for real? Going to the trouble of searching out great talent then not using it was a colossal waste of time, to be fair. It was common sense to use that talent. Unfortunately, a lot of feudal societies were lacking in that regard.

"I bet the Asura Kingdom doesn't do that, eh?" the man prompted.

"I doubt it," I agreed. "Though I'm hardly an expert."

A little while back, Ariel had let me watch the Asuran army run through a practice maneuver. Luke sat beside me explaining this and that. It turned out that in the Asura Kingdom all assignments were determined by your rank in the nobility. A Boreas Greyrat, for example, would be placed in the front right of the commander's division. The positions were based on the assignments drawn up by the commander in the Laplace War —they'd been passed down as-is ever since. As you'd expect, the formations they used reflected the values of that period, dragged unchanged into the present day. Visually impressive and flashy as they were, they lacked any practical value. This sad state of affairs had come about, Luke lamented, because the Kingdom of Asura hadn't participated in any major clashes since the Laplace War.

Meanwhile, the King Dragon Realm could assign all its commanders to the roles that best suited them. Some commanders were best employed on the right wing, some charging the enemy flank. Other commanders fared best in a head-on confrontation, while others still knew how to use magicians to deploy magical attacks with pinpoint timing. They understood where their strengths lay, which allowed them to feel satisfied in their roles.

It was true. That wouldn't fly back in the Asuran Kingdom. Luke told me that he wanted to improve things, but old traditions like that take a long time to change—no matter how old and unwieldy they might be, people will always push back with, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

"Are you here to study our training methodology?" the man asked.

There was a sharp gleam in his eyes. Like he was searching for something. Was that what this was about? Did he suspect me of being a spy? It was glaringly obvious that I wasn't from the King Dragon Realm, so I couldn't blame him. Plus I'd made a bunch of comparisons with Asura without thinking.

"No, my friend's nephew is from here," I replied, indicating Zanoba, who inclined his head.

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"My name is Zanoba," he said.

"Oho, I should have said earlier!" the man exclaimed. "I am Vio Pompadour."

A Pompadour, huh? I've heard that name from Orsted.

The Pompadours were one of the noble houses of the King Dragon Realm, a distinguished line of warriors who even appeared in the Epic of the North God. They were also closely related to the royal family, if memory served. I was pretty sure the king's grandmother had been a Pompadour.

Whew, close one. He's basically royalty. Good thing I didn't say anything rude.

The other thing about the Pompadours was that their likelihood of becoming disciples of the Man-God was around C-rank—the lowest of the lowest of the middle.

"A lord of the house of Pompadour! Please excuse my ignorance."

"Not at all," he said, brushing me off. "What was your name, by the way?"

"My most sincere apologies. I am Rudeus Greyrat. I am employed as the representative of Orsted the Dragon God, second of the Seven Great Powers."

"The Dragon God, eh! I've reeled in a big fish. And you, Sir Zanoba —are you also a follower of the Dragon God?" he asked, turning to Zanoba.

Zanoba nodded. "Indeed, though, I am, um, of little importance." "He's only saying that. He's very powerful."

"Strength is all I have to offer, I'm afraid."

I didn't mean physical power, dumbass.

The Zanoba Store had grown a lot—there were branches all over the world now. And money is power, as they say. I wasn't exaggerating.

"Two such esteemed individuals..." Vio said thoughtfully. "What brings you to the King Dragon Realm?"

"Um, well..." I began.

Hmmm. This is a tough situation to explain to someone who isn't involved. This guy could totally be one of Li'l Pax's would-be assassins.

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Better not reveal too much.

"His nephew, you know, was in a bit of a tight spot, so we came to help him out."

"Is that so?"

"Then we got here and found there's some political trouble going on, so we were wondering what we could do to pitch in. We thought we should get a handle on current events, and to do that, we were told to come here and talk to General Shagall—"

"You have connections with General Shagall? This nephew of yours must be someone quite important," Vio remarked.

"Oh, no, the general just has a lot of friends," I replied. Generalissimo Shagall was known as one of the people who'd shaped the King Dragon Realm into the powerful nation it was today. According to Orsted, he'd gathered up talent from the ranks of those who'd fallen out of favor and used them to build prosperity and military dominance. This training methodology on display was likely his invention as well. He was a popular guy. Connections everywhere. His circle was so wide, no one knew the full extent of it—so when I claimed that Zanoba and I were acquainted with him, it shouldn't have sounded too fishy.

"Unfortunately, General Shagall is very busy, so we're taking the liberty of waiting for him here," I explained.

"I see." Vio looked pensive for a moment, but then looked up and nodded. "A friend's nephew is no better than a stranger in the eyes of most. It is admirable of you to come to his aid."

He hadn't said as much in words, but the skeptical vibes I'd been getting from him abated and were replaced by a genial warmth. The friendliness was sudden...but maybe he was satisfied now that he'd worked out what the strangers were doing here.

"Though I should warn you: I think today General Shagall means to keep going with the drills until sundown."

"You don't say." I looked up. The sun was due south, meaning there were probably around another five hours of drills to go.

"How about you talk to me?" Vio suggested. "I may not look it, but I'm fairly knowledgeable about my country's affairs. There are things I can't go into, of course, but I can tell you about our current situation if that'll help."

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"Would that be all right?" I asked. We needed to know about the present state of the nation. It didn't have to come from Shagall. And a member of the House of Pompadour would know a lot about that. I wanted to hear Shagall's perspective as well, but sitting here for hours was a waste of time.

"Our meeting was kismet, I'm sure. Only, if we're going to talk, this place is... Well, shall we go somewhere we can talk more freely?"

And so, off we went to hear what Vio had to tell us. *

Vio was actually a disciple of the Man-God. Zanoba and I followed him, unsuspecting, right into the jaws of a trap. It was a dire situation...

No, nothing so exciting! He took us by carriage to a restaurant a little way away from the palace—a pretty swanky joint.

I tried to stay on my guard, but even I had to admit that it felt a bit too obvious to be a trap.

Vio talked a lot. Inside the carriage, he told us all about the sightseeing spots—stuff worth visiting near the palace. Then he moved on to the design of the distant palace, then the local legends about the street we were rolling along. He had the easy knowledge of a seasoned tour guide. I was impressed.

This continued through our meal, as he showcased his exhaustive knowledge of the cuisine. The restaurant we were at served traditional King Dragon Realm cooking, as prepared by an incredible chef. The recent fad in the King Dragon Realm was for cutting-edge culinary innovation, so he hadn't secured a job as a palace cook, but he was the best option around if you wanted a traditional meal. The first dish is this, the second is that, blah blah...

Honestly, I wasn't enough of a gourmand to follow a lot of Vio's patter. Even so, his pride and love for every topic shone. I could see the intensity of his love for his country, his patriotism. Wasn't that great?

Nothing in his extended monologue related to what I needed. Alas.

"How did you find the King Dragon Realm's famed cooking?" he asked.

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"It was very good. I didn't give it credit till now, I admit. Last time I came here, I wasn't too blown away by what I ate."

He laughed. "Not all chefs are of equal ability. You're always going to strike out sometimes."

This place, though? This place rocked. The King Dragon Realm's cuisine revolved around fruit and vegetables. It was simple, but undoubtedly nutritious. My impression of health-conscious food was that it was all a bit bland, but this had been outstanding. Goes to show you how good ingredients can be transformed in the hands of a good chef.

"Was there anything else you wanted to ask about?" Vio asked, satisfied he'd told us everything there was to know about his culture.

"Now that you ask... Could you, er, tell us about the political situation?"

"You want to know about politics?"

"Not national secrets or anything—random rumors and gossip would do."

"All right. Let's see... First of all, the King Dragon Realm is in a bit of turmoil at the moment. That started when the former king passed away."

Oof, straight in with a painful topic.

The old king had been a disciple of the Man-God. That was why Orsted killed him.

"Yes, I did hear about that. May he rest in peace," I, follower of Orsted, said. I didn't even blush.

"After that, one of the King Dragon Realm's vassal states was invaded, not just by one nation, but three different countries that came together for the attack. It appeared to have been orchestrated in the conflict zone to the north. They aren't powerful nations, but three at once makes for a thunderous headache. As a matter of course, the King Dragon Realm went to the aid of its vassal state...but you see, there's something off about how those three countries are behaving in the aftermath."

"Off in what way?"

"They won't retreat. After our reinforcements and provisions arrived, they defeated the enemy in battle, then pushed them back to the border. But now they're fighting back hard. There have been attempts to negotiate a peace behind the scenes, but they play deaf to every envoy we

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send."

"Perhaps they think that if the invasion succeeds, they can get at least some territory out of it," I suggested.

"Considering the discrepancy in their power compared to the King Dragon Realm, it should be obvious how impossible that is, even if we are preoccupied with our own problems, and yet..."

When you thought about it, even if these three countries did invade one of the King Dragon Realm's vassal states and occupy a chunk of their domains, the King Dragon Realm, the real heavy hitter here, was hardly going to take that lying down. They'd join the war in earnest, and depending on the circumstances it was perfectly within their power to wipe out the invaders altogether.

"All three of these countries?" I asked. "Yes, all three."

Okay, that is odd.

If it were a simple case of striking at the King Dragon Realm while they were weakened, I'd get it. But why keep fighting this hard even after the King Dragon Realm got back on its feet? If this had been the outcome they wanted, they could have straight-up invaded any time without waiting for a gap in the King Dragon Realm's defenses. And three countries at once...

"Something smells off," I agreed.

"Exactly. There's also the possibility that if Shirone joins them seeking independence, they might conquer one of our vassal states."

"Right."

The biggest names amongst the King Dragon Realm's vassal states were the Kingdom of Shirone, the Sanakia Kingdom, and the Kikka Kingdom, but there were a number of other smaller nations too. Their domains were small and their national influence limited; they were the kind of countries that barely avoided being subsumed by other countries by dint of the King Dragon Realm's patronage. It was very possible such a country could be wiped out. If Shirone had added its forces to the attack while they were withstanding an assault from three other nations it'd be a serious bloodbath. I saw how some had ended up on the side of either killing Pax or handing him over to try and head off a potential invasion from Shirone.

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"That aside..." Vio went on to tell us all sorts of things about the politics of the King Dragon Realm. A minister who'd had a daughter, then such-and-such noble's son who'd become allied with something-or-other faction through marriage. Most of it was everyday small talk, nothing that sounded like it could be related to Li'l Pax. There was always a chance I was wrong, however, so I planned to look into it all regardless.

"Gosh, look at the time," Vio exclaimed. I looked out the window to see that dusk had fallen.

"I'm afraid I have another engagement after this, so I'll have to take my leave of you here," he said.

"Thank you very much for your time today," I replied.

"Not at all, the pleasure was mine. It's not every day I get the chance to boast about my country. I greatly enjoyed myself," Vio said, then he bid us farewell and left.

We went back to the training grounds, but Shagall had already gone home. Bad timing. Nothing I could do about it now, so we headed back to our lodgings. There, we met up with Eris and the others. The five of us crowded around the table and exchanged what we'd learnt.

"From what I hear, it seems like the Millis knight orders are throwing their weight around in these parts," Aisha said.

She told us how a lot of knights from the holy knight orders were staying in town—soldier types in blue armor emblazoned with the Millis insignia, loitering all over the city. When Aisha asked around about them, she heard that they were known for their tyrannical behavior. They refused to pay for meals, got into fights with adventurers, and quarreled with the guilds. Yet for whatever reason there was a silent agreement between the knights and the guards of the King Dragon Realm that the guards wouldn't intervene. This was causing tension with the citizens.

It scarcely needed to be said that if they were a significant presence, our chances of selling Ruijerd figurines here through The Zanoba Store were abysmal. Those knightly Order of Whatever types hated demons, after all. People were similarly dissatisfied about the rising prices of imported goods and increasing taxes.

"I found a building I think might work as a base of operations for the mercenary company," Aisha went on. "What do you think? Am I good to go ahead with refurbishing it as an office?"

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"For now, let's get the teleportation circle and contact tablets set up. Standard procedure."

I had a better picture of the problems plaguing the King Dragon Realm. Next, I'd report back to Orsted, then do some digging into what was behind it all. It didn't sound like a Man-God plot, and this was a future that had been altered by my involvement, so I couldn't rely on Orsted knowing anything about it...but hey, gotta keep the boss in the loop.

"How do you wish to proceed, Master?" Zanoba asked. "Should it come to it, I would happily take Lady Benedikte and the little prince and flee with them from this land."

"No...no, I think we can probably work something out," I said. I could handle the knights of Millis. And I had a little theory about what was going on with the three invading countries.

"You do? I submit to your judgment." Probably is the operative word, though, okay?

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Chapter 4: The Naughtiest Kid

AFEW DAYS LATER I went to the Kingdom of Asura. When I asked

Orsted about the situation in the King Dragon Realm, he'd coughed up the name of the culprit without batting an eye.

All according to my predictions. Although actually, I'd simply remembered a report that had come to Orsted about it. So. I went to the Asura Kingdom, alone, to settle things with the mastermind once and for all.

To get to them, I turned to Luke, who was a bit like the prime minister of the Asura Kingdom. Once I explained what was going on he gave me the location along with directions for how to get there. Connections do come in handy once in a while.

Okay, well, Luke was my cousin, so this was more like having a big brother I could ask to help me out. When I said so to Luke, he blushed a tiny bit.

Jeez, stop that. I'm sorry, but you know I'm into women...

The mastermind was in one of the most heavily guarded places in the Asura Kingdom, but with the travel permit Luke obtained for me, I was able to traipse across regions forbidden even to the highest ranking foreign dignitaries. The security was as heavy as I'd heard. I passed a whole host of checkpoints along the way, but eventually, I arrived at the mastermind's lair.

There I was, in the very heart of Asura's Palace...outside the queen's chambers.

In front of the ornately embellished door stood a huge man. He wore sparkly gold armor, and his battle-axe was planted on the floor before him. A doorkeeper. His whole deal just screamed "doorkeeper." He had to be about twice as broad as me, and that wasn't fat. You could tell from the way he held himself that he was padded by a thick layer of muscle. The good kind, too. He was muscly on the inside, not just the outside. His core was ripped. People with ripped core muscles even stand differently. Eris was the same. Even the way they stand looks more solid.

Of my wives, by the way, the one with the weakest core is Roxy.

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That's why she's always falling over. But that's not important right now.

"Well, hello there!" I said. "Hope you don't mind if I just pop on in." I slipped past the big guy and was heading for the royal chambers, when...

Clomp, clomp.

He stomped over to plant himself in my way.

"Huh?" I tried to go right, and he moved right. I tried to go left, and he moved left. He had me totally blocked off. "So, um, do you think you could let me in?" I tried.

"No. No one tell me about you," he replied. I tried flashing him the permit—which was just the Asuran coat of arms, but he wasn't having it.

I mean okay, I didn't get an appointment, but come on.

Come to think of it, this doorkeeper hadn't been here when I'd come by not so long ago. Was he new? He had to be. I'd never seen him before, and he didn't know who I was. He was almost certainly a new hire. Honestly, Arieluke, what are you even teaching your newbies?

"Look, new guy," I tried again. "You'd better get out of the way or you're going to piss me off. I've got permission to be here, all right?"

"No. It night. Now, only Lord Luke, Lady Sylphie, or Lady Sylphie's husband go in."

What's that? You have taught him how to behave! Very impressive, very impressive. So the problem is just that he doesn't know what I look like.

"Is that right?" I said brightly. "I should have said—so sorry. I'm Sylphie's husband. My name is Rudeus Greyrat. You can go ahead and let me—"

"No. No proof."

Proof? Come on, how am I supposed to prove it?!

Would a photo of Sylphie and me being all smoochy do it? Except —too bad!—there aren't any photos in this world! Maybe if I brought Lucie, the physical manifestation of my and Sylphie's love...would that count? It was a moot point, since she was back at home. All I had in my pocket was the holy idol.

"Um, proof," I said. As I hesitated, the big guy pointed his battle- axe at me.

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"You suspicious."

"Whoa, hold up," I babbled, "I'm sorry okay so just hold on for five seconds and let's stay calm and talk about this like gentlemen!" Hell, the blade on the thing was as big as my head. It looked like it weighed fifty kilos. He could just drop it, let gravity do the work, and squish me flat.

Well, right now, I had the Magic Armor on. I was fairly sure I wouldn't insta-die. Still, I didn't want to get in a fight if I could help it.

I'm Ariel's boss, and you're her lackey. There's no need for us to fight. Love and peace, man.

"I am doorkeeper. You do not pass."

"Hmmm..."

What was I supposed to do now? This guy's total lack of flexibility was getting to be a problem. If I went back to Luke's office and dragged him up here, he'd sort it out in a flash, but he'd looked really busy... I casually attempted to evade Mr. Doorman, first left, then right, but he intercepted me easily. I could really feel his determination to bar my passage under absolutely any circumstances.

"Can I do whatever else I want so long as I don't go past you?"

Mr. Doorkeeper looked a bit confused, but grunted in assent and said, "Yes."

Sorry, dude, I am actually going in.

"Hey, Aaariel! Come and plaaay!" I yelled. Maybe I couldn't get my body through, but my voice? I could squeeze that past him, no sweat. Did you ever see such ingenuity? You thought Odysseus was the trickster? Please. It's Rudeus you've got to look out for!

Mr. Doorkeeper started, looking too confused to act. Not long after, the door opened. Out came a maid I knew well. Ariel's lady-in-waiting. What was she called again? I remembered hearing she'd started at the same time as Lilia.

"Lord Rudeus, whatever is the matter?" she asked.

"I came to request an audience with Her Majesty Queen Ariel, but this gentleman is reluctant to let me in."

The maid's eyes narrowed in anger. "M-my apologies!" she stuttered, then turned to the doorkeeper. "Dohga! This gentleman is permitted! Let him through at once!" But the door guard shook his head.

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"No. No one tell me. He has weapons. It night. Can't do it."

"Dohga, this is Sir Rudeus!" she tried again. "Come now, I know you were told you can let him through at any time."

"No. No proof."

"I'm telling you..." she said, exasperated, but I guess he didn't trust the maid either yet.

This new guy—Dohga was his name, apparently—was a tough nut to crack. A kid like this was probably well suited to guarding the queen's room, though. He didn't seem like the type to be turned by gold or anything.

"Dohga," came a refined voice from behind the door. The kind of voice that charmed everyone who heard it. Dohga visibly jumped. "That gentleman is Sylphie's husband. You are to let him pass at any time."

Ariel sounded a little ticked off, which made Mr. Doorkeeper twitch again. He hurried away from the door, then went down on one knee, grunting deferentially.

Can I go through now? I'm going, okay? We good? Stepping gingerly on my tiptoes, never taking my eyes off the battle-axe, I crept into Ariel's chambers.

Ariel looked like she'd just gotten out of the bath. She'd changed into something casual, and a lady-in-waiting was combing her hair.

"Welcome, Lord Rudeus. I must say, it's rather indelicate to impose yourself upon an unmarried woman in the middle of the night like this, don't you think?"

"Um, true. Sorry about that. It was kind of urgent."

"Well, this is a matter between you and me, after all... Don't worry, I'll be sure to keep what commences between us a secret from Sylphie."

"Hey. There's no need for secrets; nothing's going to happen. And besides, I'm the one who reports back to Sylphie."

"Really? How disappointing," Ariel said. She came back to this joke from time to time. It was to check whether I'd cheat. Whether I'd betray Sylphie.

And what are you gonna do if I actually give into the temptation, huh? Speaking of temptation...maybe because she was just out of the bath, she smelled really good. I'd never felt that way about Ariel before. She

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always presented herself so flawlessly, but something about her now seemed more human—that must have been it.

Agh, don't even think about it! Damnit, Goddess, give me strength!

I took a big whiff of the idol to try and clear my head. Apparently, my vow of chastity had left me with some pent-up energy.

"I see you are a man of taste, Sir Rudeus," Ariel remarked.

"This isn't taste, it's my faith. Now, could we maybe clear the others out of here? Um, not that I'm going to do anything. I just don't want people to see."

Ariel didn't respond. She merely clapped her hands and said, "You may go," dismissing the maid.

It felt a bit like I'd pushed away the ladder to safety. But now we could talk, at least.

"Okay. So, Ariel..."

"Yes."

"The one behind it all...is you. Right?"

"Yes. That's correct... Though, you'll have to be more specific. You could be talking about a lot of things."

Um... Well, okay. I guess Ariel is queen.

Working for the good of your country probably meant getting your hands dirty.

"Do you happen to have proof that I am guilty of whatever it is you claim?" Ariel inquired.

"There's no point playing dumb! I've already got all the evidence I need!" I cried, getting into character.

Right away, the door banged open. I whirled around and saw Dohga standing there, battle-axe in hand. He walked into the room then made a beeline for me, raising his axe...

Whoa whoa whoa, j-just, just hold up a second...! "Stand down, please, Dohga," Ariel said.

"But Your Majesty. He threatened you."

"No one is threatening me. It was a joke."

Dohga gave a reluctant grunt.

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"Don't come in again unless you hear me scream," Ariel finished. Dohga grunted again, then trudged back to the entrance. He looked downtrodden after being told off.

It was kind of cute.

"My apologies," Ariel said when he was gone. "He's very rigid..."

"I got a little carried away with the bit."

"Personally, I like it when you joke around. The palace doesn't keep a fool."

Har har. All righty, I'll train up a clown and bring them along next time. Someone who's good for protection, not just laughs. The kind of guy who'll drag your enemies into the sewers and dispose of them.

"What were you talking about?" Ariel asked, sitting up straight. It looked like she was taking this seriously.

"The three countries invading the King Dragon Realm's vassal state."

"Okay. What about them?" She spoke like it was so obvious that she didn't have to say it outright.

But then, it was.

I'd checked with Orsted, and confirmed that the three countries invading the King Dragon Realm's vassal state were being supported behind the scenes by none other than the Asuran Kingdom. Or rather, Orsted had received a report to that effect. It basically said, Hey, I want to use these three countries to invade this vassal state of the King Dragon Realm. That cool? I'd read it myself.

Only, the Asuran Kingdom wasn't interested in conquering the vassal state, or expanding its territory. That wasn't what this was about. The point was to wear down the King Dragon Realm—pure harassment, plain and simple. Also, the reason consumer prices were rising in the King Dragon Realm was thanks to the Asuran Kingdom ever so slightly increasing its tax on imports and traded goods.

"Would you mind stopping the invasion?" I asked. "It'd help me with some negotiations with the King Dragon Realm."

"Of course," Ariel replied.

She picked up a pen and scribbled something on a piece of paper in front of her. Then she took what had to be the royal seal, stamped and

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folded the paper, sealed it, and then finally handed it to me.

"Give this to Luke, and it should end the invasion a few days later. Use it whenever you feel like it."

"Hahah!" I crowed, taking it with gratitude.

I had a bargaining chip now. Friendship is important, but so is power.

"Oh, right. The other thing was, I wondered if you'd let me use the Asuran embassy in the King Dragon Realm? Predictably, it turns out people don't respect the 'Right Hand of the Dragon God.'"

"Permission granted. I'll see that it's arranged," Ariel said.

She clapped her hands again and the lady-in-waiting from earlier came in. Ariel whispered something, and the other woman nodded before leaving again.

"The embassy has everything on hand, but please let the ambassador know if you need anything."

"Thank you for all of this."

"Not at all," Ariel said, looking at me doe-eyed. It was sexy. I didn't like it.

"Is this why you raised me to this position?" she asked.

"No—I mean, that's what Sir Orsted wanted, but I just wanted to make Sylphie happy."

"Heh heh. I ought to thank Sylphie, then."

"Hahaha. We're both going to be indebted to Sylphie forever, aren't we?"

We chuckled some more together. Heh heh, ahahaha. It was fun talking to Ariel like we were plotting something dastardly. I mean, we could basically do anything.

"I'm sorry about Dohga before, by the way," she said.

"Oh, Mr. Doorkeeper?"

"He's a very reliable doorkeeper, but he is a little inflexible."

I had to wonder what "reliable" here meant for a doorkeeper, but a big hulk like that did seem like the ideal choice to stand guard at an entrance. It was that or be a baseball catcher. With a body like that, he was

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sure to make a first-rate batter too.

"Forgive him this time. I'll make sure he's more careful in future."

"Not at all, I can't fault a young person who's dedicated to his job. Please don't fire him or anything for this."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

I didn't know if he was young inside that armor, but no reason to split hairs.

"Right, then. It wouldn't be proper to linger in the bedroom of an unmarried woman, so I'll be on my way."

"Goodness, surely you wouldn't appear without warning in a lady's room, make demands of her, and then simply wander off?"

"I'm a perfect gentleman," I said indignantly. "Sylphie doesn't have to be ashamed of her husband."

"You could at least give me the rundown of the situation," Ariel said pointedly.

"Oh. Right."

I'd sent her the news of what happened in Millis via contact tablet, but some things were better said in person, as I'd written myself. Anyway, I gave her the rundown on what happened in Millis and what I'd been doing since then.

"...In conclusion, it looks like I'm going to have to fight Geese. I'm gathering my forces now."

"I see..." Ariel said. "I'm presently gathering my own forces as well. When the time comes, I'd be happy to lend them to you."

"What are you gathering forces for?" I asked.

"I could be murdered in my bed at any time, so I'm building a private army. I'm sure as far as Sir Orsted is concerned, the stronger his allies are, the better?"

"No arguments there," I agreed.

Huh... She's really good at this.

Ever since Ariel became queen, she'd taken to her duties like a fish to water. She didn't need anyone to tell her what to do; she knew what she wanted, and she was always moving towards it. And her strides were a lot longer than mine.

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Becoming queen wasn't the final goal for her. There was plenty left on her bucket list. She wouldn't run out of goals until the day she died, nor stop striving to achieve them.

Man. I could probably learn something from that. I wonder if I could borrow her boots for a bit and try to walk a few miles in them.

I wasn't going to ask, though. If I did, she'd hand them over way too eagerly—I bet she'd toss in her stockings for free.

"Y'know, you're a bit scary, Ariel."

"Oh, dear. Truly?"

"I feel if you ever saw me at my weakest, you'd betray us."

"You wound me. After all that I owe you, the very idea...! If you're worried, though, I could tell you one of my weaknesses?"

"What? No! There's no need to go that far. I was just reminded that you're always on the hunt for an advantage, that's all."

"I'm also a woman who acts on her feelings," Ariel said, pouting. Then, as though something had occurred to her, she pressed a finger to her lips. "But there's an entertaining thought."

"What?"

"Well, if I had a child I could name it Rudeus Junior. Wouldn't that be fun?"

"Wha—?! Please don't."

Nothing could be more suspicious! I imagined Sylphie looking at me, her eyes cold, and Luke with shocked disbelief all over his face. If she said anything outright, I could brush it off as a joke, but quietly naming a child after me was basically declaring that the kid was mine. It wouldn't matter how much I insisted that Ariel and I weren't involved. Everyone would draw their own mistaken conclusions.

That's not funny at all. That's an epic betrayal! Not of Orsted, but of me and Sylphie.

"Um, actually, I was talking about betraying Sir Orsted. Not just me."

"You know, I was there when the Water God Reida was killed. Do you really think I could betray you after that terrifying experience?"

The death of Water God Reida... She was right. That had been

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terrifying.

Reida was overwhelmingly powerful. We'd been pinned down— even Perugius. Then Orsted showed up in the ballroom, fended off all her attacks, and knocked her out with a single knife-hand strike. He didn't do it that way because it favored his strength, or because it was the technique he knew best. He killed her that way because it was convenient. If I were a figure of note, the thought of meeting a similar fate would make my blood run cold. Death could come at any moment, no matter who tried to protect you... Like a horror movie, right?

"I don't genuinely think you'll betray us," I reassured Ariel. "Just in case though, watch out for anyone who shows up saying they received advice in a dream."

"I will. But you needn't be concerned about me. I've really come to appreciate just how much this throne is worth."

"Doesn't that mean I should worry if it looks like you might lose it?"

"I'm offering my favors to the servant of the big scary Dragon God for that very reason."

"We'll gladly take whatever you've got."

She chuckled. "I'm counting on you to help me cling pathetically to my throne, should it come to that. Okay?"

I suppose I could lend a hand.

Although, according to Orsted, Ariel's regime would last until Ariel herself died.

"Speaking of clinging," I said, "the other day, Roxy's daughter Lala was..." We chatted about everyday stuff for another hour or so, then with that, I left the queen's chambers.

I stepped out to find myself face to face with several knights. Dohga, plus three others. They were standing there as if they'd been waiting for me. It spooked me a bit, frankly. I thought I was about to be dragged off into the bowels of the castle and shaken down. They all looked seriously intimidating.

The scariest-looking one was someone I knew though, which changed everything.

"Been a while, Ghislaine," I said.

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"Yeah," she replied, nodding solemnly like she always did, but I could tell from the way her tail was wagging that she was pleased to see me again. She wore golden armor, but unlike the full-body plating of the two men standing beside her, her light armor only covered the most crucial spots—the bare minimum. Let me be honest here—it looked badass. The gold of the armor complemented her brown skin beautifully, and she looked tough as hell. She was giving major S-tier character vibes.

Bet Paul would have laughed his head off at how dumb she looks, though.

"Sorry, guess I kept you waiting. I'll be on my way..." I tried to leave, but she grabbed my hair.

"Wait."

"Was there something you needed?"

"Is Eris well?"

"Can you imagine her otherwise?"

"No."

"Yes, she's doing great. Same as always." "Good..."

We had lots to catch up on, but Ghislaine was on duty right now. I mean, she was here outside the queen's chambers in the middle of the night all decked out in that sparkly armor. It had to be some emergency. Better not to get in their way.

"As much as I'd like to catch up, I gotta get going. I'm sure you're busy too—"

"No, um, wait," she mumbled.

What's that? Mind speaking a bit clearer? "Luke told me that you'd be here."

"Oh, you've got business with me? What is it?"

You know I'll do anything you ask, Ghislaine. Well, depending. I'm a bit busy with other stuff right now. It might have to wait till later if it's super involved.

"Nothing serious. He said he wanted to see you."

Who said? I wondered. Then I looked at the two guys beside her.

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They both looked like totally ordinary middle-aged men. One was on the short side, his blond hair flecked with white. The other, unusually, had black hair. I placed both of them somewhere in their late forties, perhaps as old as fifty, and they carried themselves with the dignified air of seasoned warriors. The blond one stepped forward.

"'Tis an honor to meet you. My name is Sylvester Ifrit. I defend this castle as captain of the palace guard, and I place myself at your service."

"I'm Rudeus Greyrat, a friend of the queen, through Her Majesty's beneficence. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

If he was captain of the palace guard, that made him the most important knight in the whole of the Kingdom of Asura. That explained the shiny gold armor. Except, wait, everyone here was wearing the same armor.

"You are too modest; I hear you are an old friend of Her Majesty's," said Sylvester.

"In truth, it's my wife who's the old friend."

"Lady Sylphiette, I believe. Such ethereal and delicate beauty, combined with unyielding strength."

"Just so. You know her well."

A description, no notes.

"Anyway, it's all thanks to my wife that I'm able to impose upon Her Majesty."

"You may claim as much, but I am told you played a leading role in deciding the struggle for the throne..."

Struggle for the throne. That made it sound like there'd been a fair fight between all the different castles and we'd come out on top.

"Aw, y'know... I mean, I was only acting on my boss's orders. The one who really ought to get the credit is my master, the Dragon God Orsted."

"I see you are loyal as well."

Can you call this loyalty? Doubt it, to be honest.

Whatever. Hopefully, through little things like this, I could grow Orsted's authority.

"Had it not been for you, I would never have been promoted this

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far," Sylvester went on. "Yeah?"

"At the end of the day, I'm the son of poor, middling-rank nobles and nothing more. Thanks to this position, however, I've been able to put even my youngest son through school."

"I'm glad to hear it," I said. When I heard "captain of the royal guard," I'd assumed he was from one of Asura's most important noble families. Apparently not. Ariel believed in meritocracy and had been elevating talent. This guy had to be one of her hires.

...Hold on a second, if this guy's captain of the royal guard, how incredible must he be? He might be a useful friend to make.

"Uh, feel free to call me if you need any advice with your son," I said.

"Sorry?" he said, confused, but then brightened. "Oh! Hahaha. You're just as funny as they said. No fear there. My boy's talented, just like his father."

"Talented people still have their own worries and run into trouble."

"True," he agreed. "I'll bear that in mind."

With that, I turned to the next guy who was decked out in his own set of gold armor. Sylvester, Ghislaine, Dohga, and this guy—with all of them sparkling away it made the room seem weirdly bright.

"And, uh, you are?" I asked.

The black-haired man met my eyes, then let out a "hah!" of laughter. I laughed too. I'm a firm believer in a smile as the first step to good communication. Smiles will save the world.

"It's an honor to meet you. My name is Rudeus Greyrat."

The man stared hard at me. He ran his eyes all the way from the top of my head down to the tip of my toes. He walked around to look at me from behind too. He had the air of someone sizing up a rare animal; it felt startlingly familiar. That's right, he reminded me of Kishirika. Which meant this guy probably had a demon eye.

"What?" I said.

"Nothing, nothing. It's very rare that I get a look at a servant of the esteemed Dragon God, that is all."

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"It's true that there aren't all that many of us."

"I imagine so." He talked like someone who'd met Orsted before. "Uh, by the way, your name was...?"

"Oh, how rude of me," he said. "I am..." Then he froze, and clamped his mouth shut. He let out another brisk bark of laughter and shot me a sidelong glance. "I'm afraid it's not yet time for you to know my name," he said abruptly. Unlike before, his voice was now unnecessarily dramatic. "You shall know it when the time is right. My name, my identity..."

With that, the black-haired, middle-aged man turned and strode away. There was even something about how he walked that looked like amateur theatrics.

"What's his deal?" I asked Ghislaine.

She looked troubled. "It was his idea. He wanted to meet you."

Uh, seriously, what was his problem? Did he never grow out of his edgy teen phase?

"Damnit, Chandle," she muttered after her departed colleague. "Rudeus is my old teacher, you tool."

His name was Chandle, got it. As it happened, Sir Sylvester confirmed immediately that the black-haired man's name was Chandle von Grandeur, and he was captain of Asura's Golden Knights.

I really had no idea what his deal was. Still... Hah. I had a funny feeling I'd run into him again.

I guess we'll make our first introductions the second time we meet. The line probably would have been funny if I'd thought of it at the time, but I settled for thinking it to myself.

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Chapter 5:

The King of the King Dragon Realm

SOMETHING I'D LEARNED over the past few years was that even

among equals you still have to demonstrate your authority. When dealing with a big organization, you had to show them you can hang or they'd walk all over you. When in Rome, do as the Romans do... This situation was a bit different, sure, but it was important to do the appropriate prep so that you could keep up.

So here we were at the Asuran Embassy in Wyvern, capital of the King Dragon Realm. Ariel was a major shareholder in our corporation, and no matter where we were advertising the fact that we were backed by the Asura Kingdom brought clout. Borrowed authority and all that.

In reality, Orsted was the one backing the Asura Kingdom, not the other way around. Both were backing me, though, so either way it worked out. In any case, this time we were negotiating directly with the King Dragon Realm government. If it were just me, I'd get my butt kicked to the curb, but by borrowing like crazy from the Asuran Kingdom's authority I thought we might avoid another Millis.

That was my motivation for borrowing clothes and a carriage and everything else I could think of from the embassy, holding tight to the letter with Ariel's seal on it.

At the moment, though, I was sitting in silence, twiddling my thumbs and checking out the interior of this room at the embassy. Someone was taking forever to get changed.

"Aisha, you can take anything you like back with you, so hurry up. Eris is waiting."

"Hmmm... But Big Brother, I can't decide. Do you think green is best, after all? Eris is wearing red, and you're in gray..." Aisha had been wandering around in her undies trying to choose her outfit for some time. I'd usually avert my eyes while a woman got dressed, but Aisha had said, "Big Brother, I want you to choose," and so, while enduring the glares of the other maids, I was here watching Aisha get changed in the flesh.

The thing was, despite saying she wanted me to choose, Aisha had no intention of giving me the last word on the matter. When I said, "Okay,

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that one," she shot back, "No, it's too much like Eris's," and went to look at something else. As the maid outfit had caused a bit of a problem last time, I was all for her wearing something more proper... But she was getting way too into it.

We went through three flouncy, floofy dresses. No one around me put much effort into getting ready, so this was a welcome novelty at first. It was wearing thin at this point.

"But then, I'm not in a leading role, so maybe plainer is better?" she mused.

"You can be showy if you like. In fact, yeah. Let's blow the minds of the King Dragon Realm big shots with your unparalleled cuteness."

"Oh, be serious!" she yelled back.

Now she was mad at me. If we were being serious though, given how few men Aisha got to spend time around, she might as well dress up fancy and try to get some attention here. Step out in a super cute outfit, chat up the noble boys at the palace, grab that trophy wife bag! Or whatever. We'd have to have a talk if she brought home someone too weird... But as Aisha herself said, she didn't really have any real work to do here. And besides, she was free to love whoever she liked.

"Okay, wear the dark-green one. That way you won't match Eris, plus it's not too showy. How's that?" I suggested.

"I guess," Aisha said. "But, like, the skirt's so short! You can see my legs."

What's wrong with that? Hell, show them off. If you've got it, flaunt it, I thought. But the maids around us were making faces that told me this was a no-go, so I could only assume legs were indeed a little risqué.

"Ugh," Aisha grumbled, then returned to rifling through gowns.

Standing there in her underwear, I was getting a front-row seat at how much she'd grown. She'd filled out in all the right places. Hotness seemed to run in our family, and Aisha was no exception. It was the kind of hotness that brought the creeps calling.

Paul's family, the Notos Greyrats, had a thing for big breasts—see Zenith and Lilia. I bet my grandma had giant knockers too. Must be in our genes.

My daughters would probably turn out the same. I couldn't picture Future Lucie with her breasts bouncing around... But if Eris had a

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daughter, she'd be a knockout for sure. "Hey, Big Brother?" Aisha said. "Huh?"

"Well?" she said huskily.

I realized she was standing with her hips thrust to one side, her hands on the back of her head to show her sides. I'd seen that pose somewhere before.

"Who taught you that?" I asked.

"Pursena. She said it's got a perfect hit rate."

"She's lying. She's never scored with that pose... I wouldn't trust her advice."

"No way!" Aisha replied. "She's so popular in the mercenary company, though..."

"Hey, we're not here to hang out!" I said. "Hurry up and choose."

I was trying to move her along, but we had plenty of time. The King Dragon Realm was unexpectedly relaxed about punctuality, so no one would make a fuss if we were a bit late. Great country, right? But my personal motto was to not leave things to the last minute. Still, it was important to always have a bit of wiggle room so you could go through life with time and peace of mind to spare.

Unfortunately, some people wanted to get everything done as fast as possible.

"Hurry up!"

Eris threw the door open with a bang and barged in. She wore a luxurious red jacket with black pants, the formal dress of the King Dragon Realm nobility, and had her hair pulled back in a ponytail. It really suited her. She was every inch the gallant swordswoman.

Actually, though, she was wearing the men's version of formal dress. According to the maids, she couldn't wear a sword with any of the gowns they had at the embassy, so that made her decision for her.

"How are you still trying stuff on?!" she exclaimed.

"Oh, hi Eris," Aisha said. "Sorry, there's just so many options..."

Eris huffed. Her bright red hair swishing behind her, she strode up to Aisha, then grabbed one of the gowns hanging around her. It was a wine

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red dress.

"Put this on, now!"

"But Eris, then we'll match..." Aisha whined.

"What, you don't want to look like me?"

"It's not that. It's just, like, I'm supposed to be in the background. It's no good if you don't stand out."

"Not today! You're my little sister, so you'd better wear something that doesn't embarrass me!"

Aisha went a bit pink. Then, with a sheepish laugh, she took the dress from Eris.

"Well, when you say it like that, Eris, I guess I'll take this one." She looked more than a little pleased. Maybe she was happy Eris had called her "little sister". The mind of a teenage girl was a mystery to me, but what was important was that she was happy.

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With that, we had a dress for Aisha, so we set off for the palace. *

I arrived at the castle then went to the audience chamber of the King Dragon Realm. I don't mean to sound pretentious, but I've developed some strong opinions about audience chambers. I've seen a lot in my time —the Asura Kingdom, the Kingdom of Shirone, Kishirika's castle... Audience chambers are a chance to flaunt your wealth. A wide open room, gorgeously furnished, sometimes with a guard dressed up in swanky armor... It's a great way to show off to any outsiders who step foot inside just how powerful you are, how amazing your country is, how important your king is. That's what audience chambers are about.

The Kingdom of Asura did a spectacular job on size and luxuriance. Its audience chamber was spacious and full of people. Simply dazzling. When I first checked it out, it was decked out more heavily than usual for Ariel's coronation, but everything—the scale, the staff, the expense, the throne, the beauty of the one sitting on it—was top-class.

But let me be blunt about it. The Asuran audience chamber was amazing, no doubt about it. But it came in hot at a global number two. The audience chamber I ranked as number one didn't stop at the audience chamber itself, but extended its grandeur to the route you took to get there. Starting outside the castle, visitors were charmed by elegant gardens and well-curated artworks. As you approached the chamber, you never ran into anyone else. As you passed down that corridor, soaking up the majesty around you, you couldn't help but feel your nerves jangle. Then, when you finally reached the towering door to the audience chamber, the anticipation was overwhelming. Your imagination ran wild with expectation for what could possibly be behind those doors. Then, they opened. You couldn't call the room that came into view luxurious, even if you were trying to be nice. The furnishings were all stripped-down simplicity. Twelve knights were lined up in front of the throne, all of them wearing masks that lent them an air of mystery and intimidation. Even they seemed somehow unremarkable.

There was a reason for this. The layout was designed to further focus attention on the throne. On the throne there sat a man, the only one not wearing a mask. All who made it there were rendered speechless by his

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breathtaking delicacy, refinement, and sheer presence. They praised his magnificence to the heavens.

Where was this audience chamber, then? It was no secret—that was the audience chamber of Chaos Breaker, the floating fortress. The abode of Armored Dragon King Perugius. The opinion crept up on me, but I'm not exaggerating when I say that Perugius has the best taste in the world.

A sigh of incredulity slipped out of me as I looked upon the audience chamber of the King Dragon Realm. It was of a different breed to Asura's palace and Chaos Breaker. In a word it was sloppy. First of all, the entrance was flanked by two huge sets of armor like door guards. They had to be about three meters tall. These suits of armor, easily as huge as the Magic Armor, glared down at all who entered the audience chamber like guardian statues at a temple. There were no giant races in this world— well, it was possible that there was some tall race somewhere that I didn't know about, but no one residing in the King Dragon Realm would fit this armor. Which meant that it existed only to scare and overawe visitors. When you entered the audience chamber the first thing you saw was, you guessed it, the armor. From the doors almost all the way to the throne, empty suits of armor stood around the edge of the chamber. Fencing the gold-threaded carpet that ran up to the throne to protect the king—wow! More armor. This time occupied. The throne they guarded was dull gray steel, like they'd repurposed a suit of armor into a chair. A cushion was affixed to it with rivets. It looked extremely uncomfortable. Aside from this, there were practically no other furnishings. There were some bits and pieces with the marks of allied nations and crests of knight orders, but that was it. Silver armor and rough stone walls. It was like someone had thrown a bunch of stuff together because it looked tough, then called it a day. Even so, the sense of being watched by all those helmets was fairly intimidating.

...It won't be for everyone, so I'm giving it four stars.

There was one other reason I downrated it, though...

"His Highness, the first prince of the King Dragon Realm, Kirkland von Kingdragon!"

Yep, the guy sitting on the throne wasn't the king, but a guy about my age. A young guy with blond hair and a wispy beard.

I'd done my research. Kirkland von Kingdragon: the current first prince of the Kingdragon Kingdom. He would one day be king. He was

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extremely intelligent and politically astute. When the king was absent, he handled affairs of state in his father's stead.

Still, when I dropped the name of the Asuran Kingdom, I'd requested an audience with the actual king. It was possible they didn't respect me enough; they may have dismissed me as an interloper. Just an unaligned nobody, so they could get away without sending the king himself.

I knelt, then kept my head down and waited for what he'd say next.

"Rise, and state your name," he said.

"It is an honor to meet you, your Highness. I am Rudeus Greyrat, follower of the Dragon God Orsted. I trust I find you well."

"Oho." He sounded interested. "Were you not the one who vanquished the Water God Reida, then alone turned back the hordes that threatened Shirone, Rudeus Greyrat?"

The rumors of my exploits had been embellished yet again. They'd start saying I sparkled like a Christmas tree at this rate.

"Actually," I replied, "Water God Reida was my master. And I wasn't alone against that army. My companions and I fought alongside the soldiers of Fort Karon to stop them."

"An honest man to boot. Surely you do not dispute, however, that you were involved in the deaths of both Water God Reida and North Emperor Auber."

"I don't deny it, your Highness."

"In the King Dragon Realm, we place ability above rank and status. We value those who achieve great things—such as you, for instance— though they may lack social standing."

"I appreciate you saying so," I said.

Huh, after I thought they were being disrespectful, he seems surprisingly well-disposed towards me. But no, I should chalk that one up to mentioning the Asuran Kingdom.

"First, I must apologize," the prince continued. "My father, His Majesty King Stelvio von Kingdragon, thirty-third ruler of the King Dragon Realm, has taken ill. Thus, I am here leading in his stead."

"Please, think nothing of it, Your Highness."

Oh he's sick, you say! Well then, there's no helping that. All good.

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"Now, I was told you have something to say that will be worth my while. I don't often get to hear from people like you... Or to rephrase, I have never known a man like you to come to me without some purpose."

"Yes, your Highness, I—" I began, but he held up a hand to cut me off.

"Wait, don't say it. Let me guess."

He stroked his chin, regarding me with genuine interest. He came across as a cerebral fellow with self-confidence to spare. Like a man assured of his own considerable ability and that he could see it in others too. Well, he wasn't wrong. Over the next few decades, he would build up the King Dragon Realm into a nation to match and even rival the Asura Kingdom. His political acumen outmatched even Ariel's, to be blunt. He, along with the retainers he surrounded himself with, were all exceptional.

Unfortunately, there was also sadness waiting in his future—the sadness of a broken heart.

Kirkland von Kingdragon was in love. When he attended the coronation in the Asura Kingdom as ambassador, he'd been smitten with Ariel at first sight. He would have many more chances to visit the kingdom, but at the age of about twenty-five he would confess his love and she'd flat-out reject him. He hadn't been turned down yet, however. So as of now, he'd be advocating for friendship with the Asura Kingdom. For sure.

"You're not looking for an appointment, that much is for sure. I believe you're close to Queen Ariel of Asura, so if that was what you wanted you'd be better served going there. She would be amenable to giving more than a mere government appointment. I daresay she'd grant you a title. How am I doing?"

"All true, Your Highness."

He stared at me even more intently. Then, with a grin, he went on.

"What could bring a man such as yourself to our door, seeking favor? Well now, there's a thought. There has been a strange rumor on the streets of late... Remind me of it, Shagall!"

At this, one of the knights at the prince's side looked up. He had the face of a small-time crook and wore the same armor as Randolph.

"Rumor has it that Rudeus Greyrat is appealing to the rulers of all the different lands in preparation for the resurrection of Laplace some

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eighty years hence," said Generalissimo Shagall Gargantis. I'd been told he was a quarter elf and spoke rough, but this guy's ears were rounded, and he spoke like a noble at court. Maybe because he was addressing royalty.

"Ah, that was it," said the prince. The pope in Millis had known all that too. You really couldn't underestimate these powerful nations and their information networks.

"And as part of your appeals, you are placing branches of your own organization in each of those countries, then using them to do business... Am I wrong?"

"You are not, your Highness."

You're not wrong...but I sense we're about to get a bit off track.

"And thus," he continued, "you have come to the King Dragon Realm, as you went to those other nations, to request our cooperation and permission for your business activities... Is that right?" The prince wore a smug grin of satisfaction.

I mean, yeah, okay. If not for Geese, that was going to be my plan. Only this time, things are a little different... But he's so pleased with himself. If I contradict him he might get grumpy. Not that part of me doesn't want to...

"You came all the way here to seek permission for something you could just as easily do without my leave. I admire that attitude," he said. The prince was in high spirits.

None of this was especially surprising to me. Randolph and Shagall were old friends, and my business could easily have come up in conversation.

"However, if I were to immediately grant your request, it would reflect poorly upon the dignity of my country. We cannot have a senseless mob banging at our door because they think the royal family will grant anything asked of us."

I didn't reply.

"As such, I impose a condition upon—what is it?" the prince said, looking suspiciously at my raised hand. We were getting off track. I had to do something.

"Excuse the interruption, your Highness," I apologized. "Everything you said is true, but today, I'm here for a slightly different reason."

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The prince stopped. "...Oh," he said.

First, let's explain why I'm here.

"It's about Lady Benedikte's child," I said, then watched the expression on the prince's face change along with his demeanor. "My friend Randolph tells me that Lady Benedikte's child...that Lord Pax II is regarded as an unwanted annoyance, and that there are some who seek to do away with him."

"What of it?" the prince replied haughtily, without a hint of remorse. "With his mother being what she is, he is of no political use. Why should the King Dragon Realm support the life of one who will only encumber us?"

"What about Lord Randolph? If the child is killed, he won't stay here."

"The King Dragon Realm is not so feeble that I can be swayed by the strength of one man."

No doubt. If you were, there wouldn't be any talk of murdering Li'l Pax.

"You've come before me today, then," he said, "to ask that I spare the child's life?"

I looked into the prince's eyes. "No. I wasn't thinking of sparing him. It was more like...if you have no use for him, would you give him to me?"

"Pfft." The prince snorted with laughter, then looked at Shagall. "Did you hear that, Shagall?"

"I did, Your Highness, with these very ears," the general replied. The prince stamped his foot, then leaned forwards to glare at me, resting his elbows on his knees. His attitude had changed yet again. Was I seeing his true colors now?

"Tell me this then, Rudeus Greyrat," he said. "How would that proposal serve the King Dragon Realm?"

Don't panic. Don't freak out. Perugius has way more majesty than this guy.

"Allow me to explain," I began.

The government of the King Dragon Realm is in the hands of the Orsted Corporation.

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"First, I'm told that, ever since the death of the former king, a vassal state of the King Dragon Realm has been under assault by three other nations from the conflict zone to the north."

The prince didn't reply, so I went on.

"These vassal states may be under your dominion, but they are still your vassals, and thus you have to support them. The King Dragon Realm was badly affected by this war breaking out in the middle of your domestic unrest, and I expect that you are stretched thin trying to respond."

"What...is your point?" the prince asked.

"I can put an end to all that."

Because Ariel's the one who's driving that war. She'd gone and riled up countries that had long hated the King Dragon Realm, and now she was selling them weapons. Not only that, but she was also looking over their shoulders and applying enough pressure to make sure they kept the war going. The Asura Kingdom had deep coffers—I'd relied on them myself many a time. But that gold didn't grow on trees. They played dirty when necessary. The Kingdom of Asura didn't regard this any more seriously than light harassment, so all I had to do was ask to cut it off at the source.

"One more thing, Your Highness. When the former king died, you took out a loan from the Millis Church because you were in urgent need of cash, correct?"

The prince looked at me.

"Even though you paid off the loan, you still allow their knightly orders to sojourn here to this day. Their high-handed evangelizing is causing a bit of upset, from what I hear."

"What, you can put a stop to that too?" the prince asked.

"I can." If he'd still been in debt my hands would've been tied, but it was paid off. The knights' behavior was little more than Millis's own way of harassing the King Dragon Realm. All I had to do was put in a word with the Blessed Child, or the pope, and then the knight orders should return to their own country right away. I'd owe the pope a favor, but that wasn't a problem. Times like these were why I maintained that connection.

"In addition, if, in the future, any difficulties arise between Lord Pax II and the Kingdom of Shirone, I will take full responsibility for it," I added. If it came to that, I'd bring along Zanoba. Zanoba, Randolph and I

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would make for quite a trio. It'd turn into the Battle to Avenge Pax in no time.

"What say you, Your Highness?" I'd put forward three proposals so far. That should be plenty to persuade him of the benefit of letting the nuisance child live.

"What's in this for you?" he replied.

"I can't reveal their name, but someone in Sir Orsted's inner circle cares deeply about Lady Benedikte and Lord Pax II. I intend to use this as a bargaining chip with him. Those of us who serve the Dragon God are all one under Sir Orsted, but strengthening such friendships is nevertheless important."

I wasn't lying. I was just adding an air of gravitas to telling him I wanted to help Benedikte and Pax II for Zanoba.

But the prince didn't look satisfied, and he didn't reply.

That's one scary glare he's giving me. Was there something I forgot to say?

"I think it's a good offer," said Shagall, throwing me a lifeline.

"Sir Rudeus has the ear of both the Asura Kingdom and the Holy Country of Millis. We can therefore assume he is trustworthy. Our own plans to deal with the issues he raises are already in place, so the benefit of his proposals may be minimal... But from what I hear, he knows the weaknesses of Queen Ariel and the Blessed Child of Millis. Building a relationship with someone as well-connected as Sir Rudeus will benefit us. At present, we're trying to replace a great loss with a smaller one, so any benefit will—"

"Shagall, be silent," the prince said quietly. Shagall immediately clamped his mouth shut. "I understand the benefits."

All right. So what's the hang-up?

"What I don't like is his manner," the prince went on. "He speaks as though he holds us in the palm of his hand."

Dang, so I should have bowed and scraped a bit more, huh? I guess I did lord it over him a bit. Hitting the right balance on that is tricky...

"My distaste, however, does not mean that I want to reject your offer. The fate of Benedikte's child ought to be decided by parliament. I can hardly make a unilateral decision on the sudden offer of an outsider."

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"But Your Highness," Shagall objected, "you explained to parliament that the plan is a last resort, didn't you? If the question is whether to spare the life of a child who may cause strife in the future or lose the Death God now, parliament prefers the first option. Should a better option present itself, however, there would be nothing remiss in you taking it."

"I'm not talking about that! Not that at all," the prince replied. "My concern here is for safeguarding the position and dignity of the King Dragon Realm. If other nations see my father's rule as indecisive, or if it should appear thus to the people, it may even call into question the loyalty of our retainers." The prince was concerned about his father's...no, his country's prestige. Admirable, in someone so young.

Only...it sure seemed improper having this conversation right in front of me.

Shagall seemed to be on my side. It helped that he was friends with Randolph, I guessed. Every point he made supported my position.

"Hmmm," the prince mused. Hey, I didn't mind if he wanted to bring in more players and mull over the decision. We could include the king on his sickbed, maybe the prime minister, and really go through the issue slowly. Once we talked it through properly, they had to see it was a generous offer. Even if they still refused me, I had another plan ready to go: I'd already acquired all their central players' personal information, including their preferences and their weaknesses, and I could put it all to use to clear any obstacles. I could lead them by the nose. The hard sell would certainly have repercussions, though, so I preferred to avoid it.

As we stood there in silence, a new voice said, "What did I tell you?"

All of us looked to see where it had come from, and there he was, emerging from a door off to one side and behind the throne that led into the back of the audience chamber. He was ordinary. A fellow of roughly forty with mousy blond hair, he looked bone-tired. Overall, he kind of reminded me of Ariel's older brother... No, I could do better than that. I'd met someone with an even closer resemblance—a certain someone I'd met when I went to see Shagall on Randolph's instructions—the man who'd been so valuable on the topic of the King Dragon Realm's problems. Vio Pompadour. But this was very strange. Today, he was dressed in incredible finery. Especially that king's crown resting on his head. Now where could he have gotten that thing...?

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"This isn't someone you want to make an enemy of," he went on.

"Your Majesty...!" the prince exclaimed.

Here was His Majesty, King Stelvio von Kingdragon, thirty-third ruler of the King Dragon Realm.

"Listen, Kirk," he chided his son. "We can't openly make an enemy of the Asura Kingdom until we've restored order to the conflict zone. It's public knowledge that Sir Rudeus is friendly with Queen Ariel. If we accept his proposal and enter into a collaborative relationship with the Dragon God Orsted, the Asura Kingdom will be hard pressed to pull this kind of trick again. This is all for the sake of our country."

Vio... I mean Stelvio, walked over to the throne as he spoke, then changed places with the prince. Despite that decisive speech, he didn't exactly radiate competence. If anything, he was the picture of mediocrity.

"All right," he said, then addressed me. "Sir Rudeus." "Your Majesty," I replied.

"We accept your offer," said the king, just like that.

He must have already deliberated to be so decisive. He'd probably pondered it while he sat there telling me all about this rumor and that cuisine in the King Dragon Realm. Maybe before that—maybe it was a factor in his decision to conceal his true identity to get close to me when he heard I was in town. It just happened that there'd been someone else who remained unconvinced. Maybe this whole scene had been set up in order to convince him.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," I replied. In accordance with etiquette, I bowed, but right away, a voice from directly above me said, "That's enough. Rise."

I rose obediently and the king shot me a wry smile. There was no majesty there. Just a tired man and his crooked smile.

"This is all that remains of the King Dragon Realm," he said. "We are locked into unending unrest thanks to a wavering and undignified king. I know you have your battle coming eighty years hence, and I regret that we may offer but little assistance."

"Not at all," I said. "Would you mind if I asked you something, though?"

"What is it?"

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"What was with that act?" I asked. The king gave that same tired smile.

"I merely wished to learn more about you."

"Me...?"

"What you would say and do when we sat beside one another as equals, rather than me up here and you down there. I wanted to know whether you were someone worthy of trust... I don't know of a better test."

Oh, okay. Okay, this is who the king really is, I realized. Now I remembered what Orsted had told me. King Stelvio's reign was not a long one. In less than a decade, he would fall gravely ill and abdicate the throne to his son. After Kirkland became king, the King Dragon Realm would make staggeringly rapid progress. That would be the true beginning for the King Dragon Realm—Stelvio was a pitstop on the way to that worthwhile destination. That was why he hadn't stuck in my memory.

Funny, though. Right now, I was more interested in the king than in Shagall and Kirkland, the important players. In my mind's eye, I kept seeing his face from the other day as he told us about his country's food and famous places, and unique products. He'd looked so happy. So proud.

"Well, I think, you know, uh, that's great," I said.

I had a hunch that he hadn't ever wanted to be king, or even assumed the slightest aptitude for it. And truly, he had neither aptitude nor talent. Yet he still sat on the throne, surrounded by suits of armor. And when he sat there, he had to play his part.

As long as he lived he put everything he had into being the king. He never lost his principles, and always did what he could while those around him lent him their support. That is to say, he would, future tense. He'd act the part of king. For the sake of his beloved country, he'd do his best.

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"Hahaha. Great, is it? You're a little overfamiliar, Rudeus Greyrat."

"My apologies, Your Majesty," I said. He was the kind of person who wouldn't leave any mark on the world. Continuing to associate with him wouldn't reap me any great benefits.

Stelvio then said, "And given that your etiquette could use a little help, let me give you a friendly word of advice. And pass it onto the former prince Zanoba, your friend who is so concerned about Lord Pax II."

"Yes?" I replied, waiting.

"Before you seek an audience with the rulers of a country, learn their faces. Even if they're not much to look at."

"Ah, haha... I'll do my best."

Still, I thought, even as I grimaced in embarrassment at his advice, I'd like us to be friends while he's still alive.

Li'l Pax's safety was secured. As Benedikte was still part of the royal family, the King Dragon Realm took it upon itself to guarantee their safety. Benedikte was temporarily freed from the fear that dogged her, and Randolph looked like the cat that got the cream. The threat to the King Dragon Realm had also been subdued for the time being, and they'd kept Randolph, so there was plenty to celebrate. I also managed to slip in my primary reason for coming—putting out wanted notices for Geese—so that was a load off.

Setting up the mercenary company was going to have to wait for another day, but I was reassured that the current king would allow it. It looked like I'd established good relations with the King Dragon Realm. If only it hadn't been another arsonist-putting-out-his-own-fire–type situation, it would've been perfect...but I'd never be satisfied if I let every little quibble like that bother me.

I now owed favors to both Ariel and the pope, but I'd pay them back eventually. I assumed more trouble would crop up for Li'l Pax in another few years, but when it happened, Zanoba and I would sort things out again.

"You really did help me out," Randolph said when I went to bid him farewell. "I thought I was going to have to burn the King Dragon Realm to

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the ground and leave with the queen." He gave his usual rattling laugh.

He didn't have the power to do that—Orsted had told me as much— but I guess that didn't mean he wasn't willing to try. The King Dragon Realm would've had to choose whether to send soldiers for Randolph to slaughter, or a scuffle with the Kingdom of Shirone further down the road.

"If it's the good graces of His Majesty you're after, I'm afraid I won't be of any use to you. A shame. I so wanted to be your go-to fellow in the King Dragon Realm," Randolph said wistfully. "This is no good. How am I supposed to repay my debt to you now?"

"Now that the threat to Pax is gone, I'd be happy to have you fight by my side."

"Just because no one's targeting him, we can't say for sure he's in no danger," Randolph pointed out.

"You're one to talk, after starting me on that goose chase." I had a hunch that it was Randolph who'd told Stelvio I was in the King Dragon Realm. He might even have informed him if he just gave me a few hints about the problems in the King Dragon Realm, things would more or less head in the right direction.

Okay, no, that sounded a bit paranoid. I couldn't help suspecting him a bit even so... This was Death God Randolph we were talking about.

"Whatever can you mean?" Randolph said. The look on his face was as good as a full confession. "I certainly cannot predict how His Majesty will act."

Anyway. Randolph had no plans to leave Benedikte, so I couldn't rely on his strength for the fight against Geese...but that wasn't the end of the world.

Zanoba cut in. "Yes, Sir Randolph's place is without a doubt here with Lady Benedikte and the little prince." Zanoba had waited here with Randolph and Benedikte, just in case the negotiations went south, set to spring into action if things got severely out of hand and the king ordered Li'l Pax's summary execution or whatever. I'd done my best to ensure that didn't happen, and in the end it hadn't. Their presence was an insurance policy, nothing more.

"Thank you. And so I will remain," Randolph replied with a grin that as good as said, All according to plan. "Having said that, you must allow me to express my gratitude, even if it is only a gesture. My 'too cool

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for gratitude' reputation shall follow me into the next life at this rate."

I doubt it. You're going to be remembered as more of a con man. No matter what you do.

"On which note, Sir Rudeus, I think you're acquainted with the Demon World's Great Emperor, Kishirika Kishirisu?"

"That's right. I've run into her a couple of times."

"If you're hunting for someone, I'd suggest hunting her down first." Oh yeah... Kishirika is around.

Randolph had a point. Kishirika had a demon eye similar to the Eye of Distant Sight; Roxy said she'd used her powers to search for Zenith. If I asked her she might tell me Geese's whereabouts just like that...or, if not just like that, she could narrow down the options a lot. Why hadn't I thought of her before?

Wait, that's it. I wasn't a hundred percent sure I could trust her.

"She may demand some recompense, but show her this ring and say that Randolph asks it of her. Then she should hear you out, even if your request is a little unreasonable."

"Ooh."

You mean I don't even have to wine and dine her?

"Sounds good. I accept," I said. Randolph passed me a white ring. It was a creepy little thing, presumably crafted from some sort of bone. It looked cursed, but I put it on anyway.

After Randolph's letter of introduction had proved pretty useless, I wasn't sure how effective this ring would be. But Randolph, whatever else he was, took his obligations seriously. I decided that this would do for now.

"I'm just happy that Pax is safe," Zanoba said, peering at Benedikte. "Now Lady Benedikte can give all her attention to raising her child."

Uh, his name is 'Li'l Pax,' I thought. Get it right.

Benedikte didn't reply. Was she still scared of him...? But then she met Zanoba's eyes, her lips pursed.

"Th..." The sound that came out of her was almost too small to hear, and as her voice persisted she stammered over the unfamiliar words. "Thank you. I am very...grateful...for your...assistance."

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She spoke from the heart, even with all the stuttering. I could tell.

Zanoba smiled, then clapped his hands together like he'd just remembered something. "Ah, yes. I almost forgot," he said, then called, "Julie!" Standing behind him, she nodded, then lowered her pack and pulled out a box. The box was painted white and decorated like a fanciful building...

Hold on, I've seen that somewhere before, I thought. Aha! It looks like the royal palace in Shirone.

Julie opened the box. The inside was decorated like a canopied bed, and in the bed lay a figurine.

"Oh," Benedikte said softly.

"I had it made for this day. I hope you will accept it," Zanoba said. Benedikte slowly reached to pick up the figurine from the bed and gazed at it, wide-eyed. It was short and blond, a bit on the plump side. A glance was enough to see that it was him. It was a figurine of Pax.

"As his reign was short, I believe there are no portraits. I made it from memory. Julie here did the actual crafting."

"Th...tha..." Benedikte began to cry, fat tears running down her cheeks. She looked at the figurine, trembling all over and sobbing. She gave a wet sniff to pull herself together and turned to face Zanoba.

"I'll...treasure it," she said, cradling her son in one arm and the Pax figure in the other.

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"I'm glad to hear that," Zanoba said. "But nothing material is indestructible. When it becomes damaged, send word to me, and I shall come to repair it at once."

"I...will," Benedikte said with a small nod.

Crap, watching this is gonna make me cry too. Zanoba, you done good, man.

"Well, Zanoba," I broke in, "I'd better be going,"

"Very well, Master Rudeus," he replied. "The rest is safe in my hands."

I'd decided to have Aisha, Zanoba, and Julie stay in the King Dragon Realm for a little longer to mediate things between Asura and Millis.

"I'm counting on you," I replied. Obviously I was busy, but Zanoba had plenty to do as well. Business was booming for The Zanoba Store, but I still needed them to expand further. I also needed him to continue development on the Magic Armor. He hadn't had any chances to shine on this mission, but he was a reliable guy, and I'd be relying on him even more in the future.

"All right. I'll be off then."

"Farewell, Lord Rudeus. May you have strength in battle." "You too, Randolph. Stay well."

My time in the King Dragon Realm had come to an end.

Next stop: the Demon Continent. I wasn't going there to look for Kishirika. C'mon. I didn't have the time to go around asking after someone who could be literally anywhere. I'd still keep an eye out for her —I wasn't stupid. It was a low priority, that's all. No, I had someone else to talk to there: the Immortal Demon King Atoferatofe.

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Interlude: Blue and Red

ROXY WAS AT HOME THAT DAY, drawing up a test for school. It was

meant to be her day off, but Roxy was the sort of teacher who adjusted her lessons based on her students' comprehension of the material, meaning that she sometimes ended up making tests on her own time.

"Huh?" All of a sudden, she became aware of the smell of something burning. She looked up and confirmed that the air was faintly white with smoke. Leaping up from her chair, she opened the door.

In the corridor outside her room, the white smoke hung thicker still. Covering her mouth with the sleeve of her robe, she ran downstairs. A fire?! she thought.

By a stroke of luck, no one else was home. Sylphie was out on a walk with the children. Usually the mothers took turns taking the children on their walk, but today, Lilia and Zenith had accompanied her. They likely wouldn't be back until early afternoon. Ordinarily, Aisha would have been home, but she was away in the King Dragon Realm with Rudeus. Anyone who'd need to be evacuated was already out.

All the same, this was their home, and it was Roxy's job to watch it. She'd be mortified if everyone came back to find the house gone, or even reduced to a smoldering ruin. Determined to stop the fire, she set off in search of the source of the smoke.

She reached the bottom of the stairs, then looked through the various doors, all of which had been left open. On the right was the living room, then on the left the dining room. The fireplace in each room was empty, and the fire didn't seem particularly close, so Roxy continued down the corridor toward the kitchen.

There, she found the source of the fire.

Technically, there were no flames. An unexpected figure loomed over the stove. She was a tall woman with long red hair twisted into a bun, and she wore black undergarments that clung to the curves of her body. It was Eris.

It wasn't unexpected for Eris to be in the house. The real surprise was finding her in the kitchen. As a rule, she never came in here. Yet

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today, in a shocking turn of events, here she was. Her arms were folded like always as she glared at something on the stove that was belching up billows of thick smoke. Whatever it was had long since charred to a crisp, making it impossible to identify... Roxy could just about make out that it was roughly twenty centimeters long.

Did she find a rat? Roxy wondered. Rats were persona non grata in the Greyrat household. The family rule was that, if you found a rat, you killed it on sight, burned the carcass while wearing gloves and a mask, then went out beyond the town limits to dispose of its ashes. Rudeus himself had established this rule. There had been something written about rats in the diary his future self had given him. He was particularly insistent that Roxy watch out for rats. Well, it wasn't as if she were a toddler shoving everything in arm's reach into her mouth, but these were the orders they had, and so she too kept an eye out. Especially while she was pregnant. But vows made in a storm are soon forgotten, as they say. She'd been less vigilant lately. But surely Eris wouldn't burn a rat in their home kitchen. Surely.

"Eek!" Eris jumped slightly as she noticed Roxy. It was exactly as though she'd been caught doing something she shouldn't.

"Sneaking a bite to eat?" Roxy inquired.

"N-no..." No sooner had Eris spoken than her stomach grumbled loudly. That was when it clicked for Roxy. With no one home today, no one had been around to make lunch. Eris was supposed to go to the University of Magic that afternoon to teach swordcraft to the students, and usually she ate at the school cafeteria on those days. The kitchens at the university were open even on holidays.

"Why didn't you go to the school cafeteria?" Roxy asked.

"They're closed. The cook collapsed or something."

"Oh dear." As it happened, Roxy had plans of her own to stop off at the cafeteria after work, so this was unwelcome news.

Now, what happened here? thought Roxy. She pointed at the smoking lump and asked, "What's that?"

"It's a roast."

"I think it's a touch overcooked."

"...It's been a while since I cooked," Eris replied cagily.

It's a total loss, Roxy observed, then immediately used water magic

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to put out the fire under the stove.

"Oh—" Eris started to protest, but then she saw the charred lump emerge from the smoke and halted. The corners of her mouth turned down.

Roxy rushed to open the back door, then used wind magic to air out the room.

"You can't eat this."

"I know," Eris replied, scowling at Roxy. She'd thought she was going to get in trouble.

Roxy wasn't angry. There was no need to be angry when she understood perfectly what had happened. Eris hadn't started a fire either, so no damage was done.

"Why don't I make us something?" she offered.

"You can cook?"

"Hmph! You know I was an adventurer, right? I can manage basic cooking," Roxy declared, puffing out her skinny chest.

"Huh. Okay, thanks," Eris said, stepping back from the stove.

"It'll be really basic, though," Roxy added. The kitchen was Sylphie, Lilia, and Aisha's temple. There was no rule against anyone else using it, but those three didn't look kindly on anyone who messed it up by, say, snacking on ingredients meant for that night's dinner. Not all the stores were off limits, however. If you got hungry, it was fine to nibble at preserved foods like dried fish, meat, and vegetables.

Roxy decided to pull from those supplies to make a soup. She used water magic to fill a pot, then lit a fire under the stove, cut up the ingredients, and threw them in. It was a bit rough to really be called cooking, but Roxy was an ex-adventurer—she wouldn't turn her nose up at raw monster meat so long as it was edible. She also found a loaf of bread, likely baked that morning. Everyone in the Greyrat household but Rudeus were avid bread eaters.

Eris stood in a corner of the kitchen, watching Roxy work in silence.

"I didn't think you knew how to do this stuff," she said after a lengthy pause.

"Everyone thinks that for some reason. It's quite hurtful, really..." Roxy replied. "Neither can you, right, Eris?"

Eris pouted. "I know how to start a fire and roast meat at least... I

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just messed it up this time."

"I see. But that's the same as most people, isn't it?"

There wasn't any great difference between Eris and the majority of adventurers. However, in each party, there was usually one person who was best at frying up dried food and making soup. Roxy was by no means a natural, but she had traveled a lot by herself and picked it up as a necessity.

"I was going to learn. Ages ago." "Oh? From whom?"

"...Geese."

"Ah, Geese would make a great teacher. He was a better cook than most," Roxy said. She deliberately didn't change the subject. Geese might be their enemy, but that wasn't relevant at the moment. "What did you learn from him?"

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"He wouldn't teach me," Eris muttered.

"Why not?" Roxy inquired.

Eris's face turned pink and she averted her eyes. "He said he couldn't teach a woman to cook."

"Ah. A 'jinx', was it?"

"Yeah, a 'jinx.'"

Their eyes met, and they giggled.

Roxy's soup wasn't anything special, but it wasn't horrible, either. It just wasn't good. She'd mismeasured her seasonings, so the broth was way too salty, and she made far too much of it. There was enough soup for five people.

Eris seemed to enjoy it regardless. "More, please!" she said. She ate three extra helpings. She ate it more ravenously than their usual meals, if anything, but Roxy assumed she was just being polite—taking extra helpings not because it tasted good, but because it'd be rude to leave it.

Eris's people skills were nowhere near that advanced. She was hungry right after exercising, and she'd been sweating so she was craving salt.

Eris and I have hardly ever talked like this, just the two of us, Roxy thought. Years had flown by since Eris joined the Greyrat family. They had never grown close despite their mutual respect for each other's talents —perhaps because neither was especially good at expressing themselves in words.

"Hey, Roxy," Eris said, cutting through her thoughts. "Do you want another helping?"

"It's not that. I wanted to ask a favor."

"You do?" A favor. That wasn't so unusual. Eris didn't mind asking for help. She knew her own shortcomings and didn't hesitate to leave those tasks to others. "I'll help if I can."

"I want you to teach me the demon tongue."

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"...I thought you'd already learned it."

"I haven't spoken it for ages, so I'm worried I've lost it." "I see."

Rudeus was in the King Dragon Realm now, but Roxy knew he would soon travel to see Demon King Atoferatofe on the Demon Continent. When he did, Roxy and Eris would go with him. She doubted there would be much, if any, need for Eris to talk to anyone... But she imagined Eris didn't much like the idea of being left adrift, unable to follow a single conversation. She couldn't operate independently if she couldn't communicate.

"How was the soup?" Roxy said, suddenly switching to demon tongue. Eris looked surprised for a second, and then her expression became serious and she met Roxy's eyes.

"It was delicious," she replied in the same language.

"It was a little salty for my taste."

"Seriously?" Eris said, then laughed.

"It sounds like you can speak fine," Roxy said, switching back. "I guess. I followed you better than I expected."

"Shall we try some more?"

"Yes, please."

Roxy went on chatting about everyday things with Eris in the demon language. She talked about the children, and about school, and found that in the demon language, it was easier to talk frankly about topics she usually couldn't broach. When the conversation was over, Roxy felt like she and Eris had grown a little bit closer.

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Chapter 6: Infiltrating Fort Necross

WE WERE IN THE Gaslow Territory, one of the most hostile regions

on the Demon Continent. The monsters that spawned on the Demon Continent were far more powerful than those on other continents and more numerous. There was still an ecological balance, however. Just as there were large numbers of Acid Wolves and Pax Coyotes in Biegoya, so too did this region have its native flora and fauna.

There was the Basilisk, with its petrifying breath. The Black Drake, soaring unchecked through the skies with its powerful jaws and poison talons. The giant Lakewater Bug that created pools of its own mucilage, then attacked anyone who came to drink from them. Then there was the White-Fang Cobra, highly agile and covered in hard scales that resisted magic...

And beasts aside, some places belched poison gas and others gaped into deep ravines. Given that all the monsters were brutally vicious, the whole place was dotted with danger zones. As such, the Gaslow Territory in particular had a reputation as a miserable pit. Absolutely lousy with demons. Next to no towns or settlements were established there, and those that did exist were heavily fortified. Hardly any adventurers came here.

Some, however, allegedly saw this place as aspirational. It was home to the Demon Continent's greatest fort, built by the immortal Necross Lacross, one of the Five Great Demon Kings. The master of that fort was Demon King Atoferatofe—Gaslow Territory's Immortal Demon King.

In the war some four hundred years earlier, she had fought on Laplace's side, raining fury down on the battlefield and crossing swords countless times with Armored Dragon King Perugius. There was a legend about her that was especially heeded by warriors:

"Journey forth, you who seek power.

The Demon Continent is your destination.

Travel its lands. Ascend to Fort Necross.

Show your might before the Demon King, and lust for yet greater might.

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Only then may all-conquering power be yours."

Yup—those who were in search of the fort were knights errant. They followed the legend here, seeking power. No one who made it here ever returned, so in the end, no one knew if the legend was true or a mere fairy tale.

Well, except for me.

Around half of those knights died on the journey. The majority of those who survived were assimilated into Atofe's personal guard. Someone probably did make it home every now and then...but it takes more than one or two people knowing the truth to kill a good yarn like that. I was pretty sure that Atofe's retainer Moore was the one spreading the rumors. It was a nasty trap, preying on purehearted warriors. Devilish, even.

Anyway. Our party that was heading to go see Atofe consisted of three members: me, Eris, and Roxy. I brought along a bottle of wine as an offering. Orsted told me that Atofe liked to drink.

There was probably still going to be a fight even if I plied her with alcohol.

Fort Necross was a three-hour journey from the teleportation circle ruins. It wasn't such a long way, but the ruins with the teleportation circle were deep in the mountains. Some Black Drakes were using them as a nest.

The black dragons came flying at us and we sliced them up, one after another. The dragons themselves, we barbecued, and then we turned the eggs we found into an omelet to keep our strength up as we pushed on. Droves of other monsters came swooping down from up high to attack us, so we trudged on, avoiding some and driving off others. By the time we got to the bottom of the mountain, a whole day had passed.

I'd never seen a teleportation circle this close to a human settlement before. Come to think of it, I'd never seen a human settlement somewhere so thoroughly steeped in magic.

"That was no sweat," Eris said. She'd cheerfully cut through every monster that came at us, as if to sell us on the benefits of daily training.

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