Chapter 25: The Desperate Princess-sama
“Here we go. Arrived.”
“Whoa!?”
I had just teleported in front of the entrance gate of the Weimar Royal Capital, and the guard, startled, shouted loudly.
“Did I scare you? My bad.”
“Uh? Y-you are…”
“While I’m at it, could you go fetch someone important from national defense?”
“Uh? W-what?”
Tch, what’s with this guy?
He’s just flustered and completely useless.
As I contemplated finding someone else, I noticed a figure approaching us.
“What in the world is going on here!?”
Ah, I’ve seen that guy before.
He was the one I spoke with the other day.
“Hey. Long time no see.”
As I raised a hand in greeting, the man’s face turned into a picture of shock.
“Kenta Maya!?”
“Yeah. You’re fine. Just go get someone important from national defense, will you?”
“Is it more trouble again?”
“Yeah, it’s definitely trouble.”
I said that while glancing at the rope I was holding.
The man followed my gaze and gasped, covering his mouth.
“This is one of your soldiers, right?”
“Ugh… huh?”
The man, who had been about to vomit at the sight of the corpse, cautiously turned his eyes toward it at my words.
“…Indeed, this armor is our country’s standard equipment, but… no way…”
Hah, I knew it.
He’s starting to doubt me.
“Are your eyes blind? Take a look at the other corpses.”
“Others? W-what is this!?”
“Isn’t that armor from Admos?”
When I asked, the man nodded vigorously.
“Admos soldiers killed your guards and invaded the forest. This guy is the witness.”
I tossed the only surviving Admos soldier, bound by rope, in front of him.
“Admos soldiers attacked our troops!? This is a huge problem!”
“That’s why I told you to get someone important from national defense.”
“I-I understand! Hey! Someone! Report this to the Royal Castle!!”
As the man shouted, a soldier mounted his horse and rode off toward the Royal Castle.
While I watched him go, the man bowed his head toward me.
“What?”
“I-I apologize for doubting you without evidence.”
“Oh, whatever. As long as you get it.”
If I were to get worked up over every little thing, I’d be exhausted.
If he’s sincerely apologizing, that’s good enough for me.
After waiting a few minutes, a familiar sight caught my eye.
A carriage bearing the royal family’s crest was speeding toward us.
“Looks familiar. Isn’t Princess-sama going to burst out again?”
“W-who knows…”
As I chatted with the man, the carriage stopped, the door swung open, and Princess-sama leaped out.
So far, it was exactly like last time.
“Déjà vu.”
“H-haha.”
Princess-sama ran toward us, but this time, she displayed a different action.
“I-I sincerely apologize!!”
She slid to the ground in a dramatic dogeza right in front of me.
“…What are you apologizing for?”
“Th-that is…”
“For breaking your promise?”
“!?”
Princess-sama’s face turned pale as she looked up at me in shock.
“Well, you really messed with me, didn’t you? Because of that, I had to expend my energy on this.”
I was referring to the incident with the Younger Princess-sama being held captive in the tower.
Realizing this, Princess-sama began to tremble uncontrollably.
“Honestly, I thought about blowing up the entire Royal Castle, you know? But I figured getting that upset over a broken promise was a bit much. I decided to just deal with the culprit myself.”
“I-I am grateful for your mercy…”
“Yeah. So, today’s a different matter.”
I tossed the bound Admos soldier in front of Princess-sama.
“Ugh!”
With a gag in his mouth, all that came out was a muffled groan, but the armor he wore was clearly Admos’s standard equipment.
Princess-sama, being royalty, must have recognized it as she frowned at the sight of the Admos soldier.
“Why is an Admos soldier here?”
“Those guys killed the guards you stationed at the forest entrance and invaded.”
“What!?”
Finally, Princess-sama noticed the corpses of her own soldiers.
“W-what have they done!?”
“Admos soldiers brutally murdered Weimar soldiers within Weimar territory. This is a huge problem, isn’t it?”
“Of course it is!”
“Then, you’ll deal with Admos strictly as Weimar, right?”
“…Huh?”
At my words, Princess-sama’s face turned pale once more.
“Huh? Your own soldiers were killed by soldiers from another country, and your nation is doing nothing? Good grief, what a cold country.”
“N-no, that’s not true!”
“And you know,”
“!”
“Those guys took one of my acquaintances hostage to invade the forest. Honestly, I’m really furious. If you don’t handle this, I’ll invade Admos myself.”
“I-I understand! We will take care of it! So please! Please remain calm!!”
“Oh? Then I’ll leave the cleanup to you.”
“Y-yes!!”
“And if you break your promise next time… you know what will happen, right?”
“Y-yes, ma’am!!”
Princess-sama said that and once again performed a deep dogeza.
Seeing her like that, I left the corpses and the witness behind and teleported back home.
Still…
Does Princess-sama really think I’m some kind of king?
“Your highness” and “remain calm”—that’s a bit much, don’t you think?